AN UNEXPECTED PERIL
The snow continued to come down thickly. The weather had moderated to
a great extent and this made the snow heavy and clinging. It came down
on the shelter steadily until the top of Birch Tree Inn resembled the
top of some large sugar-coated cake.
The roof of the shelter was not as strong as it should have been, for
the young hunters were amateurs in the construction of such an affair.
It held up bravely until the weight of snow became too heavy, and then
it began to bend lower and lower and commenced to snap and crack, as
one tree after another gave way.
The boys and the old hunter slept on, unconscious of their danger,
until an extra loud crack awoke Whopper. The lad sat up, looked around
him and listened. Then came another snap.
"Must be a log on the fire," said Whopper to himself. "But it didn't
seem to come from there. Perhaps--Oh!"
Whopper heard a crack directly over his head, then down came a heap of
snow that all but buried him.
"Hi! Wake up, everybody!" he yelled, in alarm. "The roof is coming
down!"
"What's that?" called Jed Sanborn, rolling out of his blanket and
struggling to his feet, only to be hurled flat by the snow that came
down on his head.
By this time the boys were all awake and trying to get up. They heard
several cracks, and then more snow came down and with it several
sticks of good size.
"We must get out! If we don't we'll be hurt!" cried Whopper. "Come
on," and he leaped for the doorway, which had been well closed, to
keep out the cold.
Before Whopper could gain the outer air the entire roof of the shelter
seemed to come down, and Snap and Shep were buried beneath the ruins.
Giant was caught against the wall, not far from the rude chimney. Jed
Sanborn reached the doorway, and he and Whopper managed to push down
the barrier and leap outside.
Some of the snow tumbled into the fire and this created a smoke which
all but stifled poor Giant, who, for several minutes could hardly
move. In the meantime Snap and Shep were flat on their breasts, trying
to squirm from under the mass that was pressing them to the earth.
"The others have been caught!" exclaimed Whopper, in horror, as he
gazed behind him. "Oh, what shall we do?"
"Tear the stuff apart as fast as we can," answered the old hunter, and
set the example by springing back and pulling on branches, poles and
chunks of snow. Whopper set in to do likewise, and the pair labored
like Trojans for several minutes. Then they caught sight of Snap and
actually hauled him from the wreckage feet first!
"Who's out and who's caught?" demanded Snap, as soon as he could
speak, and having learned he went on: "We must get Shep and Giant out,
before the fire reaches them!"
"Help! help!" came faintly from Giant.
"Where are you?" asked Snap.
"Here--next to the chimney. I am wedged fast. The smoke is choking
me!"
"We'll git him out!" spoke Jed Sanborn, who had not stopped in his
labors, and he pitched in harder than ever, with Whopper and Snap
doing all they could to aid him. Snap had his face and one hand badly
scratched, but paid no attention, just then, to the blood which was
flowing from the wounds.
It was not long before the three outside were able to aid Shep. Using
all his strength, which was considerable, Jed Sanborn held up a
portion of the fallen roof and Shep crawled forth until Whopper and
Snap could get hold of him and raise him up. He had suffered but
little, although the breath had been forced out of him.
"Get poor Giant!" were the first words. "Don't--don't mind me. I'll be
all ri-right when I--I get m-my wind!"
The others were already laboring to release Giant. Through the tangle
of branches the smoke was pouring, for more snow had fallen on the
fire.
"Giant, can't you turn and get some air through the cracks of the
side?" called out Whopper.
"That's what I am trying to do, but I am caught fast," was the
gasped-out answer.
"I'll try to do something around near the chimney," said Jed Sanborn.
"Where's the axe?"
It was given to him and soon he was at work close to where Giant was
held a prisoner. Fortunately a slender tree of the shelter frame was
located at this point and a few well-directed blows cut it off. Then
Jed shoved the tree upward, thus making a hole through which Giant
fell rather than crawled.
"Are you burnt?" asked Whopper and Shep, in a breath.
"No, but I am about ha-half smoked!" declared the smaller member of
the Gun club and coughed.
"Boys, we must put the fire out, or all of your things will be
ruined," said Jed Sanborn. "I reckon I know how to do the trick, now
Giant and the rest are out."
"How?" asked several.
"Fill up the chimney with snow."
This was a good idea and soon, by forcing the snow down the chimney,
they had the fire all but out. Of course it smoked a great deal, but
this did little damage.
It was three o'clock in the morning and the snow was coming down as
thickly as ever. They scarcely knew what to do, until Jed Sanborn
suggested they build a camp-fire outside.
"So long as you've got plenty of firewood why not use it?" said he.
"We want a light, too."
"Here is the acetylene gas lamp," said Snap, picking it up from where
it had fallen, near the doorway.
"And the can of carbide," added Shep. "This will help us to start a
fresh fire, even if the wood is wet," he continued.
"How?" questioned Jed Sanborn, who had never used such a "new-fangled
consarn," as he called the bicycle lamp.
"I'll show you," answered Shep. "Just heap up some of the wood, with
the little sticks on the bottom."
The wood was heaped up and then, in a hollow in the snow underneath,
Shep dumped out some of the carbide from the can. Then he lit a match,
held it to the snow, to melt the latter a little, and up blazed the
gas, at first slowly and then more furiously, until the fire was
roaring.
"Why, how is that!" cried the old hunter. "Never knew snow to set fire
to anything in my life."
"It is very simple, Jed," explained Shep. "As soon as the snow melts
it turns to water, and the water, soaking the carbide, generates
acetylene gas, which burns about the same as gas in a city."
"Well, it's an easy way to start a camp-fire," was the old hunter's
comment. "I've had lots o' trouble sometimes, when the wood was wet as
it is now."
The roaring fire made matters a little more cheerful, yet the boys
felt discouraged, with the roof of the shelter broken down. Jed
Sanborn did all in his power to cheer them up.
"When you go camping like this you can't expect everything to go jest
right," he said. "You have to take the lean with the fat an' the
bitter with the sweet. Now, I knowed a crowd o' men went camping out
in the North Woods a few years ago. First one of the men took sick an'
had to go home, then the boat they had got to leakin' so they couldn't
use it, then came a forest fire, and in running away one of 'em up an'
broke his leg. Thet was an outin' fer you!"
"Thanks, but I'd rather stay home," said Snap. "But I believe
you,--there is no use of crying over spilt milk, as the saying goes.
What do you advise?"
"Cleaning out the place and puttin' up a good, strong roof. We can do
it by night."
"Night!" cried Whopper. "What is it now but night?"
"No, it's morning, lad, but rather early, I admit."
Under the old hunter's directions they went to work, and by seven
o'clock had the shelter cleaned out. This gave them a chance to get at
their stores and also use the fireplace once more, and they cooked a
fish breakfast and made a generous pot of coffee and another of
chocolate.
"We'll cut all these branches away and then build a regular pole
roof," said Jed Sanborn. "Build it right and it will withstand any
pile o' snow you kin git on it."
He told them just what poles to cut and how to place them, and showed
them the best way to put in strips of bark and bind the whole
together. By nightfall they had the new roof finished, and all of the
boys admitted it was much better than the other roof had been.