The little housekeeper enjoyed her supper thoroughly. Having finished, she put fresh green wood on the fire that the smoke might keep off the mosquitos, and wrapped the rest of the meat in leaves to keep for breakfast. She bathed Kadok's foot, which was swollen and painful, and tied it up, and then, under the boy's directions, cut down some leafy branches and moss to make herself a bed, and wrapped herself in her blanket to sleep.
When morning came it seemed as if the mother's desire that the little girl should have experiences to make her less childish was to be fulfilled, for Kadok's foot was so painful that he could not even drag himself about the cave and Jean had to wait on him as well as to care for herself. She made breakfast and gathered fresh leaves and branches and brought water enough to last all day. Then she made fresh damper and cut strips of the yopolo meat, drying it in the sun and smoke under Kadok's directions. There were provisions enough to last a day or two and she tried not to worry about things, but she wished she had something else to do.
Kadok saw she was growing restless and tried to talk to her, afraid that she would cry. "Little Missa not see cave before, not have at home. Tell about home."
"Oh, it's not at all like this," she said. "It's very cold, and the mountains are high and beautiful and there are no snakes nor wild things. It's all farms and sheep and not wild like Australia. And in the winter the snow is lovely."
"What is snow?" asked Kadok.
"Don't you know what snow is?" she laughed. "I hardly know how to tell you. It looks like soft, white feathers and it floats down from the sky when it's very cold and covers up the ground like a white blanket. Then it is lovely, but when the sun comes out and melts it, it's not nice. Didn't you ever see snow?"
"Never did," said Kadok.
"Oh, Kadok, what's that?" exclaimed Jean, as a mournful sound came through the forest.
"That messenger of Muuruup, Debill-debill," said Kadok with a frown. "Muuruup lives under the ground. He make evil. He makes lightning and spoils trees and kills people. No like hear owl bird. Bring bad storm or bad luck."