Evening star., 1940-01-07

when the cloud is so thick you can't
see dozen yards ahead!
One thing helped me not to worry
too much. knew that If Dad and
the boys were still on the way up
they must be nearing the place
where I stood. At least they must
be within hearing distance. I
shouted several times. Not sound
answered me. My voice seemed
hollow I had a feeling 1t didn't
go far through that heavy cloud.
I waited and then I shouted again
and again. At last, I just stood and
listened for long time. No an
swering shout-nothing but the
noise of the wind among the rocks.
Boy, I felt funny when I started on.
Sleet Begins to Fall.
I couldn't see far on any side of
me and I had a feeling I was right
on the edge of great cliff. (This
IS probably the point at which the
bloodhounds lost Donn's trail. the
second day of the search for him.
The way the clouds sWirled scared
me- The rocks about me looked
more like ghosts than rocks, until I
tried to climb over them. Besides,
sleet was beginning to fall. 1t
formed slick, thin ice on the sleeves
of my REFER and had to wipe it
off my. face. I didn't like that. I
was wearing pair of blue dun
garees and 1 could feel the water
seeping through and getting cold
about my legs
Maybe I thought, II ought to sit
down and wait for Henry and the
man. They'd be along now any
moment But when l stood still,
the cold, wet cloud seemed to wrap
me in an icy blanket. I started an
Indian war dance to warm up.
"Christmas!" I finally said to my
self, mo use in this. Might as well
go on. I'll be sure to find Dad a
little farther down. But I didn't
find him and the going grew rougher
and rougher.
Ram to Keep Warm.
I hadn't gone far before I felt
sure I was down on the plateau. I
was off the trail and the going was
bad, but there weren't so many big,
broken rocks to climb over. Once
in while I came to an open space,
with moss on the ground, and I
could run little and warm myself.
I kept this up for while and then
I ran plump into tangle of pucker
bush. Fucker bush grows so thick
that a person can actually walk
on it.
quicker bush is another name for
wax myrtle. It's abundance and
thickness of growth make it almost
impossible for the hiker. All trails
avoid it, wherever possibleD
Some places I did walk on it. OF
course. you kept breaking through,
first one foot and then the other.
That wasn't so good, but it was
easier to do that than to struggle
over those big rocks. Fucker bush
is funny stuff. 1t hasn't any actual
thorns, but when the ends of the
limbs die, they dry up hard and
brown. Boy, are they sharp!
I knew now, of course, that I
was off the trail, and I was really
anxious. I don't know how long I
kept on over that kind of ground,
but suddenly the pucker bush gave
way under me and I felt myself
falling into a deep hole. I grabbed
at the bushes as I went down and
got hold of big stem.
Falls Into Deep Hole.
For a moment I thought I was a
goner! Boy, that hole was deep
20 or 30 feet-and there were jagged
rocks on the bottom! I just hung
on to that pucker bush hoping that
it would not tear out by the roots.
I prayed a little, too-just hung on
and prayed. I had a feeling that
that bush wasn't going to break
away, and it didn't.
When I pulled myself up a little
and found that the roots did not
tear loose, I felt around and got q
toetold on the rock and slowly
worked my way upwards. It was