The Young Colonists: A Story of the Zulu and Boer Wars Page 2

do I," Tom Jackson replied. "I felt quite sure that we weregoing right at first, but somehow I don't think so now."

  "I wish the snow would stop for a minute," Dick said, "just to let ushave a look round. If I could see a hundred yards I am sure I shouldknow where we are. What is the matter with you, James; what are youblubbering about?"

  "My feet are so cold; they hurt dreadfully."

  "Oh, never mind," Dick said. "Come, boys, push along, and we shall soonbe home."

  Again they started with heads bent to face the storm.

  "It is getting dark awfully fast," Tom Jackson said.

  "It is, and no mistake. Come, let us have a trot. Come on, young one."

  But, although Dick spoke hopefully, he was not as confident as heappeared. He was sure now that they had lost the way. They might not,he hoped, be far off the track; but he knew that they were not followingthe precise line by which they came.

  It was now nearly dark. The snow was falling thicker than ever, and theground, except upon the uplands exposed to the full force of the wind,was covered with a white mantle.

  On arriving at the bottom of a steep hill, they stopped again.

  "Do you know where we are, Tom?"

  "Not in the least," Tom answered.

  "This ought to be the last valley," Dick said, "and after one more climbwe ought to go straight down into Castleton. Don't you remember in thatvalley there were a lot of sheep in a fold, with a wall round it? If wecan find that, we shall know that we are right. It is near the bottom,so we shall not miss it. Which way shall we turn, left or right?"

  "Let us try the left first," Tom said.

  They walked for half a mile, gradually ascending.

  "It is not this way," Tom said at last. "We are getting to the head ofthe valley. What are you doing, James?" as the young boy, who had beensobbing for some time, threw himself on the snow.

  "I cannot go any farther," he murmured. "I am so cold, and so tired,and so sleepy."

  "Oh, nonsense!" Dick said. "Here, take hold of his arm, Tom, and lifthim up; give him a good shake; he must go on; he would die if he stoppedhere."

  The two lads raised the younger boy, and half-supporting half-dragginghim turned and retraced their footsteps.

  It was pitch dark now, and they could not see a yard before them. Forsome time they continued their way.

  "There is no shepherd's hut. Certainly, this is not the valley. Whaton earth are we to do?"

  "I don't know," Tom said, beginning to cry.

  "Shut up, Tom Jackson. What are you thinking about? This is no timefor howling like a baby; you have got to think of what is best to do.It is no use climbing the next hill, for we might be going away fromhome, instead of getting nearer. Besides, we should have to haul Jimmyup, for he can scarcely stand now; and, although it is bitterly coldhere, it would be worse on the top of the hill. No, we have got to stephere all night, that is clear."

  "We shall be dead before morning!" Tom roared.

  "I will hit you in the eye, Tom Jackson, if you don't shut up; you areas bad as a girl; I am ashamed of you. Now, what we have got to do, isto find some sort of shelter, either a wall or bush, and we must keep onuntil we come to something. Keep awake, Jimmy; we shan't have muchfarther to go, and then you can lie down quietly."

  They went on for a bit.

  "It is no use," Dick said. "They don't put walls across bottoms; morelikely to find one either to the right or left. Now, Tom, you stop herefor a minute or two, and I will look about; you keep shouting everyminute, so that I can find my way back to you."

  Turning off, he began to ascend the next hill, and in two or threeminutes shouted the glad news to Tom that he had found the wall; then hereturned.

  Jimmy, cheered at the prospect of lying down, made an effort, and theysoon reached the wall.

  Like most of the walls in Derbyshire, it was formed of flat stones laidwithout mortar, some four feet high.

  "Now, Tom, set to work; get some stones off the wall on both sides, andbuild up two other walls against this; three feet wide inside will do,and just long enough to lie in. Here, Jimmy, you help; it will keep youawake, and, you see, the higher we make the walls the snugger it willbe; we will have quite a nice house."

  The boys all set to work, and in half an hour three walls were built.At the point where the two side walls touched the other, they were threefeet high, and sloped down to two at the lower end.

  "Now, Jimmy, you chuck the snow out. Tom and I will go, one each way,along the wall; likely enough we may come upon some bushes--they oftengrow in shelter of the walls: if we can find a few sticks we will coverthe house over. Lots of these stones are a couple of feet long, and wewill manage a sort of roof. The snow will soon cover it, and we shallbe as warm as possible."

  A quarter of an hour later the two boys returned; both had beensuccessful and brought a bundle of sticks; these were laid across thetop, interspersed with smaller twigs, the ends being kept down withstones to prevent their being blown away. The last were placed inposition after the boys had crept inside. They did not attempt to roofit with stones, for the supply of sticks and brushwood was large enoughto catch the snow-flakes as they fell, and these would soon form acovering, while it would have been difficult to balance the stones.

  Jimmy was by this time in a state almost of lethargy; but the otherswere fairly warm from their exertions. They now lay down close besidethe younger boy, one on each side. At first they felt the coldextremely.

  "Let us keep awake as long as we can," Dick said.

  "I don't feel inclined to sleep at all," Tom answered; "my hands andfeet feel frozen, but I am warm enough everywhere else, and the groundis precious hard and bumpy."

  "I am only afraid about Jimmy," Dick said; "he is sound asleep, and hewas so awfully cold; lie as close as you can to him, Tom, and put yourarm over him and keep your legs huddled up against his."

  "It feels warmer than it did," he went on, after a pause of half anhour; "don't you think so, Tom?"

  "A lot warmer," Tom said. "I expect the snow has made a good thickroof."

  "Yes, and the wind does not blow through the stones as it did. I expectthe snow is drifting up all round; it was getting very deep against thewall when we got in, and if it goes on all night, Tom, I should notwonder if we are covered deep before morning. The wind always sweeps itoff the hills, and makes deep drifts in the bottoms."

  "What shall we do, then?"

  "I don't know," Dick answered; "but there will be plenty of time tothink of that in the morning. I think Jimmy is all right, Tom; I havejust put my hand inside his waistcoat and he feels quite warm now. Sayyour prayers, and then let us try to get off to sleep."

  This they were not very long in doing, for the air in the little hut wassoon heated by the action of their bodies. Outside the storm was stillraging, and the wind, laden with swirling snow from the uplands, waspiling it high in the valleys. Already the hut was covered and the wallbehind it.

  All night and all next day the snow continued to fall; the next day, andthe next, it kept on. Old folks down in Castleton said they neverremembered such a storm. It lay three feet deep in the fields, andthere was no saying how deep the drifts might be in the hollows. Forthe first two days the wind had tried its best to keep the hills clear,but it had tired of the work, and for the last two had ceased to blow,and the great feathered flakes formed steadily and silently.

  Tom was the first to wake.

  "Holloa!" he exclaimed, "where are we? Oh! I remember. Dick, are youawake?"

  "Yes, I am awake now," Dick said. "What is it? It is not morning yet.I seem to have been asleep a long time, and don't my bones just ache?Jimmy, old boy, are you all right?"

  "Yes," Jimmy grunted.

  "It is quite warm," Dick said. "It feels very close, and how still itis! The wind has quite gone down. Do you know, Tom, I think it must bemorning. There seems a faint sort of light. I can see the stones inthe wall behind you."

  "So
it must," Tom assented. "Oh! how stifling it is!" and he raisedhimself into a sitting position.

  "I am afraid we are buried deep in the snow-drift. Put your hand up,Tom; don't you feel some of these sticks are bent in the middle?"

  "Ever so much; there must be a great weight on them. What are we to do,Dick; shall we try and dig a way out?"

  "That will be no good," Dick answered; "not if it is deep; and if it hasbeen snowing all night, there is no saying how deep it may be thismorning down in this bottom. This drift-snow is like dust. I rememberlast winter that Bill Jones and Harry Austin and I tried to make atunnel in a deep drift, but the snow fell