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40 of pain of hers she used to devise errands for the nurse that would take her out of the room, so she might indulge in a few relieving tears. But the excuse she gave was none of these.

"You see," blithely she explained, "if I come along alone behind, I can stop and admire all the views I want, and not keep any one waiting."

She had, on the contrary, kept every one waiting. Around every curve the single-file trail left behind on the snow's white surface by the Bartlett party that day widened out into a circular mass of tracks, where the snow-shoers had gathered to wait for Miss Miller. There was an attempt made at first to avoid unkind comment, but anybody who has ever climbed knows the annoyance of delays—especially when the days are short and a close watch must be kept of the sun—and finally somebody's impatience got the best of him. It was the facetious man of the party who broke the tension—mercifully, the rest of them thought. During a particularly long wait he humorously remarked, "The view must have overcome our little friend completely this time."

"She's the most irritating little creature!" murmured one of the women. "Evidently she never saw a mountain before in her life!"

"She's seen the sporting-window of a