The worst came when they turned straight north into the face of the wind. Either the strong wind or the deep snow would have made walking a difficult task. The two together made it almost impossible. Slowly Grandfather and Little Bear fought their way forward. At last they reached the hills which formed the north rim of the canyon. Little Bear was breaking trail. He turned west. Now he could go faster. The high hills broke the force of the wind and there was no snow close to the base of the cliffs.
“Go slowly,” Grandfather warned. “The Crow may be camped east of the horses.”
Little Bear nodded. He knew it would be easy to stumble into the Crow’s camp. He came to a sudden stop and held up his hand warningly.
“There are the horses,” he exclaimed.
Great Bear stepped up beside Little Bear to get a better look.
“We must go carefully,” Great Bear warned. “The Crow may be camped near his horses.”
Great Bear took the lead. He led the way out into the canyon away from the shelter of the cliffs. In the deep snow it would have been impossible for them to move swiftly. To the impatient Little Bear, it seemed they were scarcely moving at all. But, at last, they were beside the horses. Little Bear counted ten horses. So not only would he and Grandfather get back the horses the Crow had stolen from the Sioux, but they would get some of the Crow’s horses, too.
Grandfather and Little Bear had mapped their plans when they stopped to rest. Now both of them acted as they had agreed. Great Bear went to his own buffalo horse. He mounted and rode a few paces along the trail he and Little Bear had made. Little Bear went to one of the horses that had belonged to Flying Arrow. He climbed onto it and turned it towards the rear of the herd. The horse hung its head low and refused to move. Desperately Little Bear drummed his heels against the horse’s side until it finally started. Little Bear had to fight the horse all of the way, but finally got it to the rear of the herd.
Blowing snow almost hid Great Bear from sight where he was waiting ahead of the herd. He was watching Little Bear. As soon as he saw Little Bear was in place, Great Bear started. At first the herd was unwilling to move from its sheltered place. Little Bear crowded his horse towards the herd. The other horses hesitated, but finally started to follow Grandfather.
One horse broke from the herd and tried to turn back. Little Bear’s horse, which had been so reluctant to move before, suddenly darted aside. It got in front of the runaway horse and turned it back with the rest of the herd. Two other horses tried to break from the herd, but Little Bear’s horse was too quick for them. Once aroused, it seemed to enjoy keeping the other horses in line. The entire herd finally settled into line following Great Bear.