Part 76 (2/2)

”Because you are making a very poor meal, and it will be many hours before we eat again.”

Saxe went on with his breakfast; but somehow he did not enjoy it, and his thoughts were either occupied with the terrible face which stood out clear before him as he had seen it the previous night, or he was asking himself whether he should not take Melchior into his confidence, and ask him his opinion about what he had seen.

”I shall not want to stop here to-night,” he said to himself. ”It is too horrible to feel that a hideous creature like that is always close at hand.”

”Now, then,” cried Dale, breaking in upon his meditations; ”pack up, and let's start for the bottom of the glacier. How long will it take us?”

”Nearly two hours, herr.”

”We'll have some provisions for lunch, and take the big hammer and chisel: I shall want the rock marked, so that I can examine it when I come next year, or the year after.”

The orders were obeyed, the tent closed up, water and fuel placed ready for their return, and Melchior led off with the mule to cut across a corner before descending to the edge of the ice.

Before they had gone a dozen yards there was a loud b-a-ah! from overhead, and the goat came bounding down from rock to rock in the most breakneck fas.h.i.+on; but it ended by leaping into their track, and ran up and b.u.t.ted its head against Saxe.

”How friendly that animal has become!” said Saxe, as they walked on, with the goat munching away and trotting beside them; till Dale said suddenly, ”Here--we do not want it with us: send it back.”

Saxe drove the goat away, but it took his movements as meaning play, and danced and skipped, and dodged him and then dashed by, and on ahead, the same gambols taking place at every attempt to send the animal back.

”There--let it be,” cried Dale at last: ”you'll tire yourself out before we fairly start. Why, it follows us like a dog! Perhaps it will get tired soon, and go back.”

But the goat seemed to have no such intention, and it would have been a difficult task to tire out the active creature, which was now tickling the mule's ribs with one of its horns, now scrambling up some steep piece of rock, now making tremendous leaps, and trotting on again as calmly as if it were thoroughly one of the party.

In due time the foot of the great glacier was reached, after a difficult scramble down the steep, smoothly polished rocks which shut it in on either side.

Here the mule was unloaded by a shabby amount of pasture, ice-axes and hammers seized, and the trio started over the level bed of the glacier streams, the main rivulet dividing into several tiny veins, which spread over the soft clayey earth brought down by the water. But this soon gave place to rock as they neared the piled-up ice, which looked to Saxe like huge ma.s.ses of dull white chalk, veined in every direction with blue.

As they advanced the rock became more and more smooth, looking as if the ice had only lately shrunk from its surface, but, on Melchior being referred to, he shook his head.

”Not in my time, herr. The ice is creeping farther down the valley every year.”

”Well,” said Dale; ”we'll try and find out the rate of its progress by scoring the rock.”

This was done in several places as they advanced toward the low arch of ice from which the stream poured forth; and Saxe rather shrank from this task, as it seemed to promise a long wade in chilling water.

But as they came close up, it was to find ample room beneath the glacier to pick their way in over the rock, with the stream on their right, where it had worn itself a channel in the course of ages.

Dale became immediately deeply interested in the structure of the ice and the state of the rock beneath the arch, at whose entrance he paused, while the guide under his instruction chipped marks at the edge of the stream by which he could test the rate of progress of the glacier.

This was very interesting from a scientific point of view; but it soon grew tedious to Saxe, who began to penetrate a little farther into the lovely blue grotto, whose roof was a succession of the most delicate azure tints.

”Don't go in too far alone,” said Dale, looking up.

”No: I shall not go too far,” replied Saxe; ”and, besides, I am not alone.”

He nodded laughingly toward the goat, which had followed him in without hesitation, sniffing at the running water, and then throwing up its horned head to gaze onward into the blue haze from which came the gurglings and strange whisperings of the water.

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