At last, by dint of hard work, standing on the snow he had brought down, Red Squirrel got out his head.  The report he gave was unsatisfactory. Scarcely, however, listening to what he said, I jumped up and thrust out my head, eager to ascertain the state of affairs.  I could see nothing but a vast plain of snow on every side without a single object to direct our steps.  Snow was still falling and had already reached above the level of our hut.  We could not make our way over the vast plain without our snow-shoes, and it would take a considerable time before we could dig them out; and in the meantime we should be well-nigh frozen.