"Oh, never mind me," said Ellen, gratefully; "I am sorry for you, Miss Alice; you have the hardest time of it, with that heavy load to carry; I wish I could help you."
"Thank you, my dear, but nobody could do that; I doubt if
Captain would lie in any arms but mine."
"Let me carry the basket, then," said Ellen, "do, Miss
Alice."
"No, my dear, it hangs very well on my arm. Take it gently; Mrs. Van Brunt's isn't very far off; we shall feel the wind less when we turn."
But the road seemed long. The storm did not increase in violence truly there was no need of that but the looked- for turning was not soon found, and the gathering darkness warned them day was drawing towards a close. As they neared the bottom of the hill, Alice made a pause.
"There's a path that turns off from this, and makes a shorter cut to Mrs. Van Brunt's, but it must be above here; I must have missed it, though I have been on the watch constantly."
She looked up and down. It would have been a sharp eye indeed that had detected any slight opening in the woods on either side of the path, which the driving snow-storm blended into one continuous wall of trees. They could be seen stretching darkly before and behind them; but more than that where they stood near together, and where scattered apart, was all confusion, through the fast-falling shower of flakes.
"In a few minutes he came in sight."
"Shall we go back and look for the path?" said Ellen.
"I am afraid we shouldn't find it if we did," said Alice; "we should only lose our time, and we have none to lose. I think we had better go straight forward."