Prince Jan, St. Bernard | Page 4

to
catch the scent of Brother Antoine who was somewhere ahead of them.
At times they ran from the path to follow little gullies of heavy snow.
They knew that Brother Antoine had trodden here, though no trace of
his steps could be seen on the surface, for the snow slid quickly in the
summer months, and masses of it kept covering the slopes as it shifted
rapidly. In this way Jan and Rollo trailed Brother Antoine until they
reached a spot where they could find no further scent though they went
around in circles. The other monk, who had followed more slowly,
stood watching them as they paused, uncertain what to do. He made no
sign to help them, but suddenly Prince Jan gave a sharp bark and thrust
his nose deeply into the snow, where he began digging as fast as he
could. Rollo, too, understood, and his front paws worked as fast as his
brother's until they had uncovered the face and shoulders of Brother
Antoine, who had buried himself under the snow to see if they could
find him.
Both puppies leaped about in glee, barking and yelping until the sides
of the narrow pass sent back echoes like many unseen dogs answering
them. Brother Antoine rose to his feet, smiling. He patted the soft,
fuzzy heads while the other monk told how the dogs had acted without

any help at all.
"Jan led the way," he said to Brother Antoine. "He shows wonderful
intelligence."
"It is his father's blood," replied Brother Antoine, then he pointed
toward the Hospice. "Go back!" he ordered. Prince Jan started
obediently toward his home, while Rollo followed closely, but every
once in a while both dogs turned back, or waited a bit, until the monks
caught up to them.
They reached the stone steps leading up to the front door of the Hospice.
The door swung open, and the puppies, with Brother Antoine, trudged
through the long corridor, down to the basement, under the high
archways and once again were in the big, enclosed yard. The other dogs
crowded about them as they stood proud and important, for that day
Prince Jan and Rollo had learned the first lesson on the trail. But they
both knew that this was only play and their real work would come
when the snow piled so deep about the walls of the Hospice that it
almost reached the high, peaked roof.
Chapter II
THE LAND OF SNOW
The lesson of the trail had to be repeated several times, before the two
puppies understood just what they were expected to do. Day after day
their mother told them more about the brave deeds of the St. Bernard
dogs, for the work of the mother-dogs of the Hospice was to teach the
puppies to be kindly, obedient and loyal to the trust placed in them by
the good monks.
July and August, the two months that were called the summer-time at
the Hospice, passed swiftly, and Jan and Rollo knew that very soon it
would be winter. The first big snow storm blew over the mountains
early in September, while Jan and his brother slept, warm and snug,
beside their mother. Next morning no sun could be seen, and when the
dogs rushed into the enclosures, dark clouds, shrieking winds, and

sheets of driving snow told them that winter had begun and soon there
would be hard work for them all.
Jan and Rollo quivered with excitement and envy when they saw the
older dogs pass through the long corridors that day, and each time one
of the monks came into the basement where the dogs waited, all of
them started to their feet and wagged their tails, hoping to be taken out
for work.
While Jan and Rollo watched and waited, their mother talked to them.
"Sometimes," she said, "you will find a white mound, and you must
never pass it by without digging to see if any one is under it. You have
learned already that when you find a man, you must lick his face and
hands to waken him, and if you cannot rouse him, so that he will stand
up, or put his arms about your neck, you must hurry to the Hospice to
bring the monks. That way, you may save a life, and then, perhaps, you
will have a collar or a medal, like Barry, and travellers who sit in the
big room will be told that you were worthy of your ancestors."
"Tell us about the Big Room," begged Rollo, while Jan gave a gentle
little nudge of his nose to coax his mother. Both of them had heard
many times from their mother, from Bruno, and the other older dogs,
about the Big Room, yet they never tired hearing