collected, with great satisfaction. Josey, especially, began to be in
haste to set out on his return.

"Now," said Jonas, "I'll look around a little, just to see that there
are none left behind."

"O, no, I wouldn't," said Josey; "let us go. We've got them all, I
know."

"I want to be sure," said Jonas, "and make thorough work of it."

So saying, he began wading about in the snow, to see if he could find
any more rafters. He, however, soon satisfied himself that they were all
upon the sled. He then secured his load carefully, with the chains, and
they set out upon their return, as before.

It grew dark rapidly, and the wind and storm increased. When they came
out of the woods, they found that the air was very thick with the
falling flakes, and the drifts had begun to be quite large, so that
sometimes, in plunging through them, the snow would bank up quite high,
before the sled, against the ends of the rafters. Jonas said that, if
they had been two hours later, they could not have got along.

"You said that the snow wouldn't be a foot deep by midnight," said
Josey.

"It is coming faster than I thought it would," said Jonas. "It is almost
a foot deep now."

The road by which the boys were advancing, led along the bank of the