Ten days later the party were re-united at Martigny. The Fortescues had
been there two days, having travelled faster than the Hawtreys had done.
Captain Armstrong and Mr. Fitzwarren only turned up the next day; they
had learnt at Lucerne the inn at which the Hawtreys intended to stay,
and went straight there. The others were all absent on an excursion to
the Col de la Forclaz, and did not return until late in the afternoon.
Captain Armstrong and Mr. Fitzwarren were standing on the steps of the
hotel when the three girls clattered up on donkeys, the elders having
been left a quarter of a mile behind.
'How are you both?' Ada Fortescue, who had won the race by a length,
said, as they came down the steps. 'No, thank you, Captain Armstrong, I
can slip off without any assistance. We were talking of you this morning
at breakfast, and wondering when you were likely to turn up.'
They stood talking at the door of the hotel until the others arrived.
'Which way have you come?' Mr. Hawtrey asked, after they had shaken
hands.
'We went over the Brunig Pass to Interlaken; we stopped there a day or
two and came from Thun over the Simmenthal to Aigle; we stayed there
four days, and a day at St. Maurice, and got in here half an hour after
you had started, and have since been for a stroll among the pines.'
'We were over at St. Maurice the day before yesterday.'
'It is splendid up here,' Ada Fortescue put in; 'we have been grumbling
ever since we came because we did not come on here at once instead of
spending those four days at Lucerne. It was all very lovely, but it was
so hot one really could not enjoy it as one ought to have done. Up here
it is so deliciously cool, at least except in the middle of the day,
that one feels up to anything. I wish you could persuade papa to let us
go up one of the mountains; not a difficult one, of course. At present
mamma won't hear of it; though Mr. Hawtrey said he would go with us and
Dorothy. I don't think papa would mind,' she added confidentially.
Captain Armstrong smiled. Mr. Fortescue was really but a cipher in the
family. He accompanied his wife and daughters, and was very useful in
looking after the luggage and paying bills, but his wife was the real
manager of the party. She was not one of those women who assert their
predominance over their husbands; upon the contrary, she made a point of
consulting him on everything, but as his opinions were always in accord
with hers, this was little more than a form. She herself, among her
intimates, frequently bewailed her husband's disinclination to take a
leading part in anything.
'It is a great disadvantage to the girls, for it compels me to put
myself much more forward than I like. It is always bad for a mother to
have to do so; it gets her the name of being a managing woman, and there
is nothing men are more shy of.' And yet in spite of Mrs. Fortescue's
disclaimer, there were people who believed that if Mr. Fortescue had had
a chance there would have been no occasion for his wife to take matters
so entirely in hand as she did. Within an hour of meeting Captain
Armstrong and Mr. Fitzwarren, she had discussed the matter with her
husband.
'I don't know what to think of these men coming here just as we have
arrived. It must mean one thing or the other.'
Mr. Fortescue remarked that no doubt it did.
'Captain Armstrong is of course an excellent match,' she said. 'The
question is, has he come here on his own account or on that of Mr.
Fitzwarren? If on his own account, it must be in order to see more of
one of our girls, or of Dorothy Hawtrey. On the other hand, Mr.
Fitzwarren cannot be considered at all an eligible person; of course he
is in society, and all that sort of thing, and is very well connected,
but that won't keep up a household. It would not do at all, and I shall
warn Ada and Clara that they are not to think of flirting with him, and
that if I see any signs of them doing so we shall at once move away.'
'He is a very pleasant young man,' Mr. Fortescue said. 'I believe he has
a good position in the Foreign Office, and is private secretary to Lord
Wolverhouse.'
'Yes, that is all very well,' Mrs. Fortescue said, sharply, 'and I dare
say it is a very good position for a clerk in a foreign office, but, as
I said, it won't do to keep up an establishment, so I shall keep my eyes
open.'
This Mrs. Fortescue did for the next four days, and the results were so
far satisfactory that she assured herself that Mr. Fitzwarren had no
design upon either of her daughters. He always made one of the party on
their excursions, but divided his attentions equally between the three
girls, and there was nothing in his manner that could excite the
smallest suspicion, even in her mind, that he viewed one with a greater
degree of preference than the other. Captain Armstrong appeared equally
general in his attentions, and even Dorothy, who had felt at first a
certain uneasiness when they joined, thought no more of the matter. He
happened to be there when they were, and it was natural that he should
attach himself to her party, and she soon ceased to feel at all shy with
him or to think of him in any other light than as a pleasant companion
in their rambles.
For the first week Mrs. Fortescue always formed one of the party, but as
the walks extended and they went higher and higher up the hill-side she
was glad, as soon as she felt that her suspicions of Mr. Fitzwarren's
attentions were unfounded, to let them go under their father's escort.
Mr. Singleton was the only person who complained.
'I wonder how long those two men are going to stay here,' he said to Mr.
Hawtrey one day.
'I have not heard them say anything about it. I shall be sorry when they
go, for they are both pleasant, and it makes it very much more agreeable
for the girls to have them to go about with. Of course, when we take the
carriage we all ride together, but I am sure the young people enjoy
walking much more; they are capital climbers, and I can tell you they
pretty nearly tire me out sometimes.'
'I don't care how soon they go, Hawtrey. You know what my hopes are
about Dorothy, and I feel pretty confident that Armstrong has altogether
different views on the matter. I have nothing to say against him
personally; I admit that he is a downright good fellow. Every one knows
he has a good estate, so I have nothing to say against him, except that
I see he is doing his best to upset my special plans.'
'I have not seen anything of it at all. I did not notice on our walks
that he was more with her than with the others. I imagine that it is
only fancy on your part.'
'You do not suppose he would be wasting his time in rambling about here
with three girls unless he had some sort of object. It is one of the
three, and I have not the least doubt that it is Dorothy.'
'I don't fancy so, for--quite between ourselves, Singleton--I can tell
you that she refused him some months since.'
'Umph,' Mr. Singleton grunted, 'that must have been just before she
became engaged to Halliburn. Now he is out of the way again, and a
better opportunity for love-making than Armstrong has got he could
hardly desire.'
'I don't see that I can do anything in the matter, Singleton; even
supposing that your suspicions are correct.'
'No, I don't suppose you can,' the other said irritably. 'If we were to
go away he would come after us. If he means to ask the question he will
ask it. And the worst of it is that he is such a good fellow, so
unobjectionable in every way. But it is hard that while the other is
spending his time in looking out for evidence that will completely clear
Dorothy from these abominable charges, this man should be cutting in and
making all the running here.'
'I don't think Dorothy suspects anything of the sort, Singleton.'
'No, I don't suppose she does; but a girl can't be thrown with a
pleasant man day after day like this without getting to like him. I am
sure she does not know it herself--she is too frank and natural with
him; still when the time comes and he asks her the question again it
will come upon her how much she does like him, and the contrast between
him and Halliburn will be all in his favour. We might move to Chamounix.
Pretend you are tired of this place, and see whether all the others will
go too.'
'We may as well do that anyhow,' Mr. Hawtrey agreed. 'We have done
pretty well all the walks and drives near here. It will be a change,
anyhow.' And accordingly at breakfast next morning Mr. Hawtrey said, 'I
think we have pretty well done this neighbourhood; it will be a change
to move on to Chamounix. We could stay there for a week and then go on
to Geneva.'
'I think that would be a very good plan,' Mr. Singleton put in. 'I own I
am getting rather tired of this valley. It is all very well for you
young people who can climb about among the hills, but I think I know the
exterior of every house in the place, and have made the acquaintance of
almost every man, woman, and child in it.'
Mr. Fortescue at once assented.
'It makes no difference to me,' Captain Armstrong said, carelessly, 'but
I have been thinking for the last day or two that there would be more to
be seen at Chamounix. I have rather an idea of climbing Mont Blanc.
Fitzwarren finds that time is running short, and has made up his mind to
turn his face homewards.'
After some farther talk it was arranged that the carriages should be
ordered for the following morning. There was much regret expressed at
Mr. Fitzwarren's departure, or as the girls called it, his desertion,
but his determination was not to be shaken. He had talked it over with
Armstrong on the previous evening when the latter had urged him to stay
a week longer.
'I cannot afford it, my dear fellow,' he said. 'It is pleasant, very
pleasant, but it is too dangerous a pleasure to be indulged in. However
strict a man's principles may be, he's but human. Another week of this
might be fatal to me. I cannot afford to marry Clara Fortescue, even if
she would have me and her mother were willing, which, by the way, I am
perfectly sure she would not be. The way she played duenna the first few
days, would have been amusing if it had not been annoying. It was almost
heroic. Whenever I happened to be a few yards ahead or a few yards
behind with either of her girls, she would be certain to range alongside
in the course of two or three minutes, and though naturally she did not
express her feelings in words there was no possible mistaking her
manner. She was the watch-dog, I was the wolf; and she was prepared to
do battle to save her lambs from the devourer. At that time I had no
idea of devouring, and indeed I have no idea now; nevertheless I am
beginning to feel that the repast would not be an unpleasant one.
Against the ordinary temptations that occur in ball-rooms and
conservatories, at fetes, and even country houses, I am proof, but this
daily companionship, wandering, and picnicking is beyond me. My armour
is giving way, and I feel that flight is the prudent course before I am
too severely wounded.'
The next morning, therefore, he took his place on the diligence, and
half-an-hour later two carriages started up the valley with the rest of
the party. They had sent on a letter the previous day to secure rooms,
and were comfortably established there late in the afternoon.
'The dinner-bell will ring in five minutes, Dorothy,' Mr. Hawtrey said,
tapping at his daughter's door.
Dorothy was ready, and went down with him to the drawing-room. As they
entered, she caught sight of Ada Fortescue's face, which wore a puzzled
and disturbed look, and she gave what seemed to Dorothy a warning shake
of the head. She moved across the room towards her chair to inquire what
she meant. A gentleman stepped aside to make way for her. She looked up,
and as their eyes met each gave a slight start, for it was Lord
Halliburn who stood before her.
It was an awkward moment, but, as usual, the woman was the first to
recover her presence of mind.
'How do you do, Lord Halliburn?' she said, cordially, holding out her
hand. 'Who would have thought of our running against each other here?'
'Certainly I did not, Miss Hawtrey. I heard that you left town a
fortnight before I did, but, though I had no particular reason for doing
so, I supposed you had gone down to Lincolnshire. When did you arrive
here?'
'Only half an hour ago; when did you come in?'
'Yesterday. I came up from Geneva.'
'We came the other way,' Mr. Hawtrey said. He had only just noticed whom
Dorothy was speaking to, and had at once come up to her assistance. The
three stood chatting together for a time.
'Terribly awkward--most unfortunate, is it not?' Mrs. Fortescue remarked
to Mr. Singleton. 'It quite gave me a shock when I saw him come into the
room just now.'
'I don't think it matters much, Mrs. Fortescue; there is no reason in
the world why they should not meet, and they might just as well do so
here as in London.'
'Do you think there is any chance of its coming on again?' the lady
asked.
'Not the slightest in the world,' he replied curtly; then he rose from
his seat and went across to the little group, who were directly
afterwards joined by Ada Fortescue and her father.
As the party stood laughing and chatting together, no one unacquainted
with the circumstances would have guessed that the meeting had been so
embarrassing to two of the number.
'Are you wandering about by yourself, Halliburn, or are you with a
party?' Mr. Hawtrey asked.
'Ulleswater and Dick Trafford are with me,' he replied. 'I suppose you
have been all travelling together.'
'Yes, we first met at Lucerne; then we came on, and the Fortescues
joined us at Martigny. Captain Armstrong and Fitzwarren were there too,
so it made a pleasant party. Fitzwarren left us this morning; he was off
home again.'
At dinner the two parties were at opposite ends of the long table.
'Deuced awkward for you, Halliburn,' Lord Ulleswater said.
'Oh, I don't know. I don't mind if she doesn't.'
'I should say we had better move on, anyhow, Halliburn. If it gets known
that you are here together it is sure to be reported the affair is on
again.'
'I certainly shan't run away. If I had known she was coming I should not
have come here, but now we have met and spoken I don't see there will be
anything gained by my leaving; besides, it would look as if I had done
something to be ashamed of if I were to go directly they came.'
'I think perhaps you are right. She behaved very pluckily, I think.
Clara Fortescue had just whispered to me she was here. I was coming
across to warn you when she came in and I watched the meeting. I must
say she pulled herself together wonderfully. It was an awkward moment
for her, meeting you here so suddenly, with a dozen people who knew all
about it looking on. I see Armstrong is sitting there with them as if he
belonged to the party; he and the elder of those Fortescue girls seem to
be on rather confidential terms.'
'That is Armstrong's way,' Lord Halliburn said; 'he means nothing, and
by this time I should say that most of the girls know that he means
nothing. I can't make out why he doesn't marry.'
Ada Fortescue at any rate understood that Captain Armstrong's manner at
the present moment meant nothing; she had from the first detected that
Dorothy Hawtrey was the attraction that kept him with the party, but she
had said no word when her mother had frequently expressed her surprise
at his prolonged stay at Martigny, and had cautiously endeavoured to
learn her opinion on the subject. Ada's silence was due partly to a
feeling of loyalty towards Dorothy, partly because she shrewdly
conjectured that their own stay there was not unconnected with an idea
in her mother's mind that something might come of it, and that did Mrs.
Fortescue believe Dorothy to be the attraction, she would lose no time
in leaving for England. Captain Armstrong said no word regarding the
meeting with Lord Halliburn until she began the subject.
'Did you see the meeting, Captain Armstrong? I was on thorns. The
Hawtreys are not on the same side of the hotel as we are, but if I had
known which her room was, I should have made some excuse to slip away
and warn her; however, it did not matter; she behaved beautifully,
didn't she?'
Captain Armstrong nodded. 'It is a nuisance his turning up here,' he
said; 'but I don't think she cares. Do you, Miss Fortescue?'
'No, I don't think she does. If she had done so, I don't think she could
have been so cool and collected all at once. I am sure I couldn't if I
had been in her place. She met him just as she might have met any
intimate acquaintance.'
'If he has got any common sense,' Captain Armstrong growled, 'he will be
off the first thing to-morrow morning.'
Ada was silent.
'Don't you think so?' he urged.
'Well it all depends. I know nothing about why the match was broken off,
beyond that paragraph in the paper that said it was her doing, and
Dorothy has never alluded to it when we have been together. It depends,
I should think, whether he cared very much for her. I suppose he did. It
seems to me that everyone must love Dorothy Hawtrey. If so he may think
it worth trying whether he cannot bring it on again.'
Captain Armstrong muttered something between his lips that she did not
catch.
'I am almost sure you are swearing, Captain Armstrong, and that is very
bad manners. Still I don't say that I shouldn't swear if I were a man
and all this happened, so I forgive you.'
'We have had such a pleasant time,' he said ruefully, 'and if this
fellow is going to stay here I can see it is all going to be spoilt.'
'I don't see why it should be spoilt. At any rate I am sure that if
Dorothy broke off the match, she is not the sort of girl to make it up
again. It must be an awful thing to break off an engagement when
everyone is aware of it, and you know it will set everyone talking. I
don't think I could ever bring myself to do it. I think Dorothy has put
it quite aside; I have seen so much of her in the last fortnight, and if
there had been anything on her mind I should have noticed it.'
'She coloured up when they met.'
'Of course she coloured up. You don't suppose, Captain Armstrong, a girl
can suddenly meet a man she has been engaged to and has been fond
of--for of course she was fond of him--and who has been acting as lover
to her for weeks, and all that sort of thing, without the colour coming
into her cheeks. It did not last a moment either. It just came and went.
I am sure if it had been me, even if I had ceased to care for him, my
cheeks would have flared up, and I should have been hot and
uncomfortable for hours afterwards.'
'I should not think he was ever very lover-like,' Captain Armstrong
said, savagely; 'I don't think he has got it in him.'
'I don't know,' Ada said, demurely. 'I have never been engaged, Captain
Armstrong; so I can't say what men do under such circumstances. I
believe--I suppose that they do take what novelists call a chaste salute
sometimes. Now, if you swear like that, Captain Armstrong, I shall sit
between papa and mamma at the next meal. It is downright scandalous!'
'I really beg your pardon, Miss Fortescue,' Captain Armstrong said,
penitently, 'but there are certain provocations under which even the
mildest of men may be excused for breaking down.'
'I do not see where the provocation comes in,' she said; 'we were merely
discussing the conduct of engaged couples in general, and of Lord
Halliburn in particular.'
'I would rather not discuss the matter at all. I have nothing whatever
to say against him; he may be an excellent fellow for anything I know,
but at the present moment it is distinctly unfortunate that he has
turned up here, and I hope he will have the common sense to see it
himself, and to start the first thing in the morning.'
But this Lord Halliburn did not do; he and his two friends started early
for the Mer de Glace, while the Hawtreys' party went off on mules in
another direction. After dinner the men met in the balcony and smoked
their cigars together, the only absentee being Captain Armstrong, who
went for a walk by himself. On the following day the Hawtreys determined
to visit the Mer de Glace. Mr. Singleton and Mrs. Fortescue declined to
form part of the expedition; the others took two guides with them, as
the ice was said to be in bad condition. They started at six in the
morning, and made a considerable portion of the ascent on mules. When
they reached the edge of the glacier, the guides, who had been
consulting together as they led the way, said that they should not
advise them going far, for the weather looked bad. Mont Blanc was
wreathed in clouds, and the other peaks were also hidden.
'What do you expect, Giuseppe?' Mr. Hawtrey asked. 'There is no wind,
and the clouds do not look any lower than they did an hour ago.'
'The storms here are very sudden,' the guide replied, 'and when they do
sweep down they come with terrible violence, and Conrad and I both think
there may be snow. With these ladies it would not be safe to venture far
on the ice.'
'Well, we will only go as far as you think it safe. It would be a pity
to have had this climb for nothing.'
'All must keep together,' the guide said; 'let there be no straying. The
snow, over some of the crevasses, is very thin and treacherous.'
On they went for some distance, admiring the ice pinnacles, leaning over
crevasses, and peering down into the depths where the deep blue of the
ice walls shaded off into blackness. The guides went ahead, sounding
carefully the snow before them for a few inches, the first precursor of
coming change, had fallen two days before. Suddenly one of the guides
uttered an exclamation.
'See,' he said, 'the clouds are coming down the mountains. We have not a
moment to lose; it will be on us now before we are off the glacier.'
The sun was still shining brightly, and the parties, as they turned,
glanced somewhat incredulously up the mountain.
'By Jove, it is coming down,' Captain Armstrong exclaimed. 'It is more
like an avalanche of snow than clouds.'
A minute later there was a faint moaning sound, which grew louder and
louder.
'Stand close together and take a firm footing,' the guide exclaimed.
'The storm will be on us in a minute. Look after the ladies, messieurs!'
The warning was scarcely out of his lips when there was an icy blast. It
lasted but a second or two, and it was succeeded by a dead calm. Then a
mighty wind struck them with such violence that they were nearly swept
from their feet, while particles of ice, pricking like needles, forced
them to close their eyes, and hold down their heads before the blast.
The sun disappeared, and at the same moment they were enveloped in a
dense mist. Clara Fortescue had clung to her father's arm, and Ada, who
was with Captain Armstrong a few paces in the rear, hurried forward
towards them, but the storm struck them before they reached them.
Unprepared for the sudden shock, Ada would have been swept before it had
not her companion clasped his arm around her. 'You must just fancy that
we are waltzing,' he shouted in her ear. 'Cling tight to me; this can't
last long.' And with great difficulty he dragged her along until they
reached the others.
'That is better,' Mr. Fortescue said, as they arranged the shawls to
cover the girls' heads. 'We will take care of them, Armstrong, if you
will ask the guides how long this is likely to last.'
The guides were but two or three paces away, with alpenstocks firmly
planted in the ice and their heads bent down to meet the force of the
gale. They were talking together when Captain Armstrong joined them.
'Is this likely to last?' he asked in French.
'It may last for twenty-four hours,' the guide said.
'Then we must be moving; the ladies could not stand this cold an hour.'
'It is no easy matter,' the guide said, 'when one cannot see three paces
in front of one. Still we must try; as you say it would be death to the
ladies to stop here, and indeed for all of us. We have only one rope
with us; we did not expect this when we started. It is not long enough
for all. I will be tied at one end, Giuseppe will go ahead and lead the
way, the three ladies and one of the gentlemen will be tied to the rope
behind me, the other two had better walk between the ladies and hold the
rope.'
'I will give them instructions. I have been up some of the mountains.'
The guide fastened the rope round the girls and Mr. Fortescue. 'Now, you
must all understand,' Captain Armstrong said, 'if one goes through,
those in front must stick their alpenstocks in the ice and throw their
whole weight on the rope forward, those behind must do the same with
their alpenstocks, but must stick their heels in the snow and pull
backwards on the rope.'
Ada Fortescue was placed next to the guide, and was followed by Dorothy,
whose father took hold of the rope a yard or two in front of her, while
Captain Armstrong stationed himself between her and Clara, behind whom
came her father. Then they began to move forward in the teeth of the
gale. Giuseppe went ahead, feeling his way cautiously. The mist was so
thick that he could not see the ground he trod on. Talking was
impossible, for it was difficult to breathe in face of the wind and fine
snow. It was slow work, and in five minutes Captain Armstrong passed
forward and joined the guide in front.
'The wind is more on our right hand,' he shouted; 'do you think we are
keeping our course?'
'The wind is no guide,' the man replied. 'It comes down sometimes one
gorge, sometimes another; we may have it all round the compass.'
In 1850 mountaineering was almost in its infancy. The ascent of Mont
Blanc was considered a great feat, and as yet no woman had undertaken
it. The ice-fields and peaks were still almost unknown, and the guides
had not, as now, an intimate acquaintance with every foot of the
mountains. The danger of being lost in a fog or storm was, therefore,
infinitely greater than at present.
Several times Giuseppe was doubtful as to the true course, and the party
halted while he made short casts in various directions. The girls'
strength became rapidly exhausted; the icy wind seemed to deaden all
their energies. Mr. Fortescue had moved up alongside his youngest
daughter to help her along. Mr. Hawtrey had his arm round Dorothy, and
Captain Armstrong was assisting Ada.
Several times the whole party stopped and stood with their backs to the
wind to recover their breath. At last Giuseppe gave a shout, and the
others were soon beside him. He was standing under the shelter of some
rocks which projected through the glacier.
'I know where I am now,' he said. 'We have not gone far from our course;
another ten minutes and we shall be at the edge of the glacier.'
This was welcome news to the men, but to the girls it seemed that it
would be impossible to struggle even for ten minutes further. All had
sunk down close together in the shelter.
'You must not stop here,' Mr. Hawtrey said; 'you can have two or three
minutes to recover your breath, but you must keep moving or you will be
frozen to death.'
Is it necessary to be roped any further, Giuseppe?' Captain Armstrong
asked.
'Not necessary, monsieur, but it is better to continue so; it keeps all
together, and were any to lag behind it would be certain death, for our
shouts could not be heard any distance away in this gale.'
Clara was unable to rise when the guide said they must no longer delay.
'I must carry her,' her father said.
'I will carry her, monsieur; I am accustomed to carry burdens. If you
will lift her on to my back I can fasten the shawl round me so that she
cannot fall. If another gives way, Conrad will take her; if the third,
then two of you together must help her. That will do; let us go
forward.'
Five minutes later Ada Fortescue sank down, in spite of the assistance
Captain Armstrong was giving her. Conrad at once unroped her and took
her on his back.
'Now, Mr. Hawtrey,' Captain Armstrong said, 'if you put your arm round
your daughter on one side and I on the other we can pretty well carry
her along.'
It was soon necessary to carry her altogether.
'I will take her feet,' Mr. Fortescue, who was beside them, said; 'we
shall get along capitally like that. Nevertheless, the ten minutes
seemed to the three men to be a long half-hour, and it was with a
feeling of the deepest satisfaction that they saw a rocky barrier in
front of them, and left the frozen plain they had been traversing.
'We are not out of the wood yet, Mr. Hawtrey said, 'nor shall we be till
we get down among the trees, and I confess that I am feeling rather done
myself.'
'It is awkward walking like this, Mr. Hawtrey, when one can scarcely see
where one is putting one's foot down. If you will let me I will carry
Miss Hawtrey in the same way the guides are doing; her weight will be
nothing if I get her well up on my back. We shall get on ever so much
faster that way.'
There was a feeble protest from Dorothy, who, although utterly exhausted
was not insensible; it passed unheeded.
'Are you sure you can do it, Armstrong?'
'Quite certain, if you and Fortescue will lift her up; that is it, the
weight is nothing now to what it was on the arms.'
The guides had been standing impatiently by while this colloquy was
going on. They started as soon as they saw Captain Armstrong had his
burden fairly arranged.
'Keep close behind me, monsieur,' Conrad said; 'if you follow quite
close, you will see whether I make a step down or up.'
They descended rapidly. From time to time the guides paused and asked if
all were together, and as soon as the reply was given pushed on again.
Powerful man as he was, it taxed Captain Armstrong's strength to the
utmost to keep up with the guides, who strode on rapidly ahead, as if
their weights were nothing to them. The perspiration streamed from his
face--less from the weight than from anxiety lest he should fall, and
several times he only saved himself by means of his alpenstock. Behind
him he could hear the panting breath of the two elder men, as they
hurried along stumbling and slipping. At last the gloom became denser,
the roar of wind increased, and the guides came to a standstill.
'We must halt here,' Giuseppe said; 'we are in the wood. We will rest
for a little while, and see if we can find a shelter and light a fire;
if not we must go on again. There is a break in the ground somewhere
about here. I must look for it.'
Mr. Fortescue and his friend lifted Clara from his back and he hurried
away. In a few minutes he returned.
'It is close by,' he said; 'we shall do there.'
He led the way, and in a minute they stood at the edge of a little
ravine some fifteen feet deep running through the wood. The girls were
carefully carried down to the bottom. The change in the temperature, now
they were sheltered from the wind, was very great. All three girls were
conscious, the motion and the heat of the guides' bodies having revived
both the Fortescues; none of them were, however, able to stand.
'Huddle as close together as you can, girls; the guides are going to try
and light a fire, and we shall soon have you comfortable.'
'Oh, by the way, I have a flask in my pocket with some brandy in it,'
Mr. Fortescue said. 'I had forgotten all about it until now.'
'Thank God for that,' Mr. Hawtrey said; 'it is worth fifty times its
weight in gold. Now take a good sip of it, girls, it will do you a world
of good.'
As soon as they were free of their burdens the guides, accompanied by
Captain Armstrong, had hurried away, and the former were soon engaged in
chopping off strips of bark from the pines, while the latter collected
sticks. A pile was soon heaped up close to where the girls were sitting,
a match struck, and in two or three minutes a bright fire was blazing.