A week passed and Christmas eve came. The weather continued clear and
surpassingly fine. It was ideal weather for trapping, with no new snow
to clog the traps and interfere with the hunters in their work. The
atmosphere was transparent and crisp, and as it entered the lungs
stimulated the body like a tonic, giving new life and buoyancy and
action to the limbs. The sun never ventured far from the horizon now
and the cold grew steadily more intense and penetrating. The river had
long ago been chained by the mighty Frost King and over the earth the
snow lay fully six feet deep where the wind had not drifted it away.

A full hour before sunset Dick and Ed, in high good humour at the
prospect of the holiday they had planned, arrived at the river tilt.
They came together expecting to find Bob and Bill awaiting them there,
but the shack was empty.

"We'll be havin' th' tilt snug an' warm for th' lads when they comes,"
said Dick, as he went briskly to work to build a fire in the stove
"You get some ice t' melt for th' tea, Ed. Th' lads'll be handy t'
gettin' in now, an' when they comes supper'll be pipin' hot for un."

Ed took an axe and a pail to the river where he chopped out pieces of
fine, clear ice with which to fill the kettle. When he came back Dick
had a roaring fire and was busy preparing partridges to boil.

Pretty soon Bill arrived, and they gave him an uproarious greeting. It
was the first time Bill and Ed had met since they came to their trails
in the fall, and the two friends were as glad to see each other as
though they had been separated for years.