They still had not reached the post. The boy was not sure about the time, because the sun was not shining and all was a monotonous gray.
"Shall we reach the post soon?" asked the girl.
"I don't know," said the boy, "I can't see the trees today and recognize the way, because it is so white. We shall not see the post at all, perhaps, because there is so much snow that it will be covered up and scarcely a blade of grass or an arm of the black cross will show. But never mind. We just continue on our road, and the road goes between the trees and when it gets to the spot where the post stands it will go down, and we shall keep on it, and when it comes out of the trees we are already on the meadows of Gschaid, then comes the path, and then we shall not be far from home."
"Yes, Conrad," said the girl.
They proceeded along their road which still led upward. The footprints they left behind them did not remain visible long, for the extraordinary volume of the descending snow soon covered them up. The snow no longer rustled, in falling upon the needles, but hurriedly and peacefully added itself to the snow already there. The, children gathered their garments still more tightly about them, in order to keep the steadily falling snow from coming in on all sides.
They walked on very fast, and still the road led upward. After a long time they still had not reached the height on which the post was supposed to be, and from where the road was to descend toward Gschaid.
Finally the children came to a region where there were no more trees.
"I see no more trees," said Sanna.
"Perhaps the road is so broad that we cannot see them on account of the snow," answered the boy.
"Yes, Conrad," said the girl.