MOTHER BERTHA^ STORIES. 117 had formed a light crust on the deep 'snow ; the moon shone brightly, and the stars were twinkling in the sky. What more could I desire ? Away I went, down the hills, over the fields, and through the woods, past the erect, silvery beech trees, the crowns of which formed lofty, sparkling domes of a white, glistening tissue, under which the owls sat relating their terrible stories in the peaceful night. The hare cried and complained of the terrible February cold and the disgusting chatter of the owls ; the fox was out on lcve-adventures, abused his rivals, and uttered scoffing screams and howls. I kept on the side of the parish road for some distance, and then a person in a big fur-coat and driving in a sledge came up with me. Seeing by the gun and the fox, which I carried on my back, that 1 was a sportsman, he entered into conversation with me. If I hurried down to the river, he said, I should be sure to fall in with a pack of wolves, for just as he was driving up the hill close to the sound, they started up the river on the ice. I thanked him for the information, and made for the river, and came out at a point where a pine wood stretched itself down to the river's edge, and prevented a full view of the river. I saw no signs of the wolves. I rushcd, however, down the hill on my snow-shoes, sweeping through the wood in the shadow of the pine-trees, with the protruding alder branches continually slapping me in the face. It was impossible for me to distinguish any object, as I sped on with the swiftness of an arrow, and before I knew where I was I had run against the stump of a tree. I lay with my head buried in the snow, and with one of my snowshoes broken. WhenIgotonmyfeet,Ifeltsuchapaininoneofmylegsthat I could scarcely stand. I crept about on my knees for some time till lat last found my gun, which was buried in the snow. I had scarcely lam down in wait near the bank of the river, before the pack of wolves came leisurely along on the ice ; there were five of them altogether. I waited with a sportsman's impatience ; when they were about forty paces distant, I put my gun up and fired, first one barrel, which missed fire, and then the other, which went off; but the bullet hit the tops of the pine trees on the other side
