"Now," said Jonas, after a few minutes, to Oliver, "I am going away farther, and shall come back here in about an hour. You may go with me, or you may stay here,--just which you prefer." "Well," said Oliver, "I'll stay here." "Good-by, then," said Jonas; "I shall be back again in about an hour." So Jonas went down stairs, and Oliver began to walk about the room a little. There was a window in the back side of the room, which he happened to pass pretty near to, and he stopped to look out at it. He saw the dam and the waterfall below. There was a large pond above the fall, which was made by the dam. The pond was frozen over, and the ice was covered with snow. The water was open for a short distance above the edge of the fall, and it was also open below the fall, where there was a great foaming, and tumbling, and whirling of currents. Oliver looked at it a moment, and then he concluded that it would be better for him to go with Jonas. "I have seen," said he to himself, "pretty much all of the machinery, and I shall be very tired of waiting here an hour." So he concluded that he would run down, quick, and see if Jonas had gone. When he got down stairs, and out at the door, he found that the sleigh was not at the post. He ran around the corner, and saw Jonas at some distance, just at the foot of a hill. He ran after him, calling, "Jo-nas! Jo-nas!" Just at this time, Jonas stopped to let his horse walk up the hill, and so he heard Oliver calling; for the bells did not make so much noise when the horse was walking, as they did before. So Jonas stopped until Oliver overtook him; and they went on the rest of the way together. [Illustration] CHAPTER IX. DIFFICULTY Although it was winter when the boys were taking this ride, yet the sun was shining in a very warm and pleasant manner, and the snow was every where softening in the fields and melting in the roads, indicating that the spring was coming on.