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XI. Outside the Barracks—Snow—A Meeting

           Thebellwasintheopenair,andbeingoverlaidwithseveralinchesofmufflingsnow,hadlostitsvoiceforthetime.

           Aboutthishourthesnowabated:tenflakesfellwheretwentyhadfallen,thenonehadtheroomoften.Notlongafteraformmovedbythebrinkoftheriver.

           Byitsoutlineuponthecolourlessbackground,acloseobservermighthaveseenthatitwassmall.Thiswasallthatwaspositivelydiscoverable,thoughitseemedhuman.

           Theshapewentslowlyalong,butwithoutmuchexertion,forthesnow,thoughsudden,wasnotasyetmorethantwoinchesdeep.Atthistimesomewordswerespokenaloud:

           "One.Two.Three.Four.Five."

           Betweeneachutterancethelittleshapeadvancedabouthalfadozenyards.Itwasevidentnowthatthewindowshighinthewallwerebeingcounted.Theword"Five"representedthefifthwindowfromtheendofthewall.

           Herethespotstopped,anddwindledsmaller.Thefigurewasstooping.Thenamorselofsnowflewacrosstherivertowardsthefifthwindow.Itsmackedagainstthewallatapointseveralyardsfromitsmark.Thethrowwastheideaofamanconjoinedwiththeexecutionofawoman.Nomanwhohadeverseenbird,rabbit,orsquirrelinhischildhood,couldpossiblyhavethrownwithsuchutterimbecilityaswasshownhere.

           Anotherattempt,andanother;tillbydegreesthewallmusthavebecomepimpledwiththeadheringlumpsofsnow.Atlastonefragmentstruckthefifthwindow.

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