The Bozeman weekly chronicle. (Bozeman, Mont.) 1883-1889, 1886-12-22

+ i
feared might be damp. A few minutes after
heard Pratt hanging away, obviously simi-
larry occupied | prepared my weapon for
coming possibilities with q very faint heart.
I ] did 50, only because was the thing to do
the Gu. tom of the country felt the whole
moral influence of the time (or immoral. if
you please,) forcing me thus to prepare for
war, while | was sick of war AMI all that ap-
pertained to it,
By ten o'clock / was on guard again.
watching Pratt. The enemy was gradually
advancing and converging on our works.
he was already one hundred feet HIGHER up
and so much nearer the Bank His pros
pect holes now covered only an area of three
hundred feet.
By noon he hal left off the drudging ascents
and descents of the mountain to the river to
wash his prospects. He was occupied en-
tirely with the float quartz" here thickly
scattered about as it had rolled from the
vein, knocking the fragments to pieces. He
had found gold. Uttering joyous "Whoop-
eeW he put a chunk of the quartz in his
bag, and then another and another. His
feelings and mine at that time were certainly
in strong contrast to each other.
BE crawled up gradually toward the shelf
on which lay the Bank 1t inclined some
what toward the river and then jumped off
abruptly, making perpendicular face four
or five feet in height Pratt could now see
that the quartz had rolled from this shelf,
and that the vein must be somewhere at or
near its top.
''Tts up therei" heard him mutter, and
mighty rich, too!n
heard him scrambling up the wall of rock,
! In the crevices heard him pant. All be-
side was still-the stiffness of the California
summer noon day-nothing of life in sight
gave black buzzard wheeling above, his
shadow floating along the ground.
Pratt had gained the top Of the shelf, He
made his way directly toward the face of the
precipice. He burst through the chapparaI
and was disclosed to him, seated Oh u rock
about ten feet from the vein.
"Holloa !" was his Involuntary exclamation;
''you hereF'
YES, I'm here, )" replied.
''Well welln He was evidently Mt a loss
what next to say or do. ats a hot day,
isn't itl"
'Pretty hot, remarked. thought it was
or would be soon in every sense, and the
shadow of a laugh came over me as thought
! IL
Mr.. Pratt sat himself also down upon
rock, drew a rusty red Landana, mopped
with it his face and partly bald head, and
said "Whew" Then ne poked tue grou I'd
before him with the end of his hammer, and
lpoke4 Mother Earth before me with a stick
1t WIS clear to me that Mr.. Pratt intended
to stay here AMI wait for ny going. 1t was
clear to me that l shoul1 rernain--thou5h l
did not like so to do. The situation was
somewhat akin to that in which two gentle
men calling on the same LADY sometimes flnl
themselves-ando OF all work sitting your man
out ranks among the hardest Both Of us
recognized silence as the factor most eth-
caciouS for the removal Of his adversary
only while Mr. Pratt hoped that the dull
ness of his company might remove me, had
no hope that my taciturnity would remove
Mr.. Pratt from the viriniJy OF tho golden
mistress he knew was near.
so we sat one full hour, and tho longest
hour of my life Pratt made the first move
He commence examining the rock naar the
solid noun ain formation. Nearer he ad-
vanced toward the place where Broaner had
screened the worked portion OF the vein with
layer of cut brush. He was in the act Of
removing this when | called out: Don't
touch that brush, pleaso!7
"Why not?7 said Pratt looking back.
'Never mind why no.. Don't touch it," l
said, advancing toward him, feeling as if on
my way to the scaffold.
''Well, young man. do you own this noun
tainT' he said
II own that brush, that's a1," was my
reply.
The brush was ranged against the white
streak of rock for no. moro than ten or
twelve feet Pratt passed it. His eye fell
on one end of the vein-untouched there by
the pick He commenced chipping it with
his hammer.
"You must let that roc!l alone" said,
( going toward him
| Pratt was now up and doing. The war
had commenced.
"Oh, Gomez he exclaimed, don't you
fool around me any more. You must he off
/ your head This mountains as much mine
as yours"
''That's my claim" said. "Let it alone" "
Momentary wonder showed itself in Pratts
eyes that any one else should know of gold
in this form.
"Your claim" said he, 'up heret What
sort of diggings do you call these anywayT
Perhaps you know as well as l. But
that's my claim by right of discovery"
"Where's your noticesW
The written notice on the ground was then
Indispensable to hold claim. We had none.
Broener had put none up, knowing it would
attract attention
"Where's your tools!" he continued.
Tools left on claim were regarded as
most important proofs of possession Broener
had hidden away those he used-where /
knew not
mo notices, no tools and no work done,
and you call this a claimp said Pratt deris-
lively.
Clearly as to the mining rights Of the pc
riod Pratt had the best of me- felt the
moral weakness of the situation Pratt
seemed also to know his own strength and
my weakness in this respect Meantime hs
had taken out his six-shooter and cooked it.
He stood facing me, and had the drop" on
me- was powerless. "Now, young mar" y"
said he, Il give you while l count ten to get
off this ground AMI if you don't I'll put
ball through you Dye hear Get! Famosl
One-two-three-" As he spoke he made a
I step backward 1t was all juInble of rocks