Caspar was sent on to examine the covert of rocks, while Karl and the shikarree remained in the rear to intercept the deer if it attempted to retreat down the ravine.
Caspar approached with due caution. He crawled silently up to the boulders. He placed himself close to the largest; and, raising his head, peeped over it.
There was no deer behind the rock, nor any traces of it in the snow.
He passed on to the next, and then to the next. This brought him into a new position, and near the head of the ravine; so that he could now see the whole surface of the glacier.
There was no musk-deer to be seen; but a spectacle greeted his eyes far more welcome than the sight of
the largest herd of deer could have been to the keenest hunter; and a cry of joy escaped him on the instant.
He was seen to start out from the rocks, shouting as he ran across the ravine—
“Come on, brother! we are safe yet! There’s a pass! there’s a pass!”