As they drew nearer Tom exclaimed:
“A fox, Will!”
They got near enough to observe it closely.
It proved to be an animal of a strange color, with bushy tail and thickly furred feet, even to the soles.
Will made a slip-knot on a rope they carried and flung it over the fox’s head.
He pulled at the animal while Tom released it from the trap.
The first movement of the fox was to start on a run. Will held on to the rope, slipped, fell and went clear over an icy ledge ten feet below.
The fox had disappeared, carrying the rope away.
Will was half disposed to laugh. He looked up to see how he would regain the ledge, when he heard Tom utter a frightened cry.
At the same moment an immense white object loomed up before his vision.