Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1899-12-07
AUSTRALIAN MINERS LUCK.
It Was . Case of Having II Forced
ON Him.

This man had reached the very last
Of his resources without finding a
speck OF gold, and although men In
such extremity are always kind and
helpful to each other, he could not ex-
pect any one to share such fast
dwindling stores with him. There was
nothing for II, therefore, but to turn
back on the morrow, while mouthfnl
Of food was still left, and to retracr
his steps as best he might to the near
est port. He dwelt with good deal
of rough pathos on the despair OF that
last days fruitless work, which left
him too weak and exhausted to carry
his heavy tools back to the spot they
called camp" So he just flung them
down, and, as he said staggered
over the two or three miles of scrub
covered desert, guided by the smoke
of the campfire. Next morning early,
after a great deal of sleep and very
little food, he braced himself to go
back and fetch his tools, though he
carefully explained that he would rot
have taken the trouble to do this il he
had not felt that his pick and barrow
were about his only possessions and
might fetch the price of meal or two
when 1t came to the last.
| have often wondered since II the
impression of the divine mercy and
goodness which was so strong in that
mans mind just then has ever worn
off. He dwelt with self-accusing hor-
ror on how he had rallied at his luck,
at fate, at everything, as he stumbled
back that hot morning over his tracks
of the day before. The way seemed
twice as long, for, as he said, his
heart was too heavy to carry" AT
last he saw his barrow and pick stand
ing upon the fiat plain little way Off,
and was YEARLY dragging on toward
them, when he caught his toe against
stone deeply imbedded In the sand
and fell down. His voice sank to a
sort of awestruck whisper, as if he
were almost at confession, as he said:
"Well, ma'am, II you'd believe me,
cursed awful. l felt as If it was too
hard altogether to bear. To think that
l should go and nearly break my toe
against the only stone in the district,
and with all those miles to travel back!
So ] lay there like Jobs friend and
cursed God and wanted to die. After
bit l felt like a passionate child who
kicks and breaks the thing which has
hurt him, and had to beat that stone
before could feel quiet. But it was
too firm in the sand for my hands to
get 1t up, so in my rage | set out quite
briskly with the pick to break up that
stone, If 1t took all my strength. 1t
was pretty deep-set in the ground. |
assure you, ma'am, but at last got it
up, and here it is-solid gold and near
ly as big as baby's head. Now.
ma'am, l ask you, did l deserve this?"
He almost banged the rather dirty
looking lump down on the table before
me as he spoke, and it certainly was a
wonderful sight, and a still more won
derful weight. He told me he had
searched about the neighborhood of
that nugget all day, but there was not
the faintest trace of any more gold.
So, as he had no time to lose on ac-
count OF the shortness of the food and
water supply, he just started back to
the coast, which he reached quite
safely, and came straight down to
Perth In the first steamer. The prin-
cipal bank had advanced him $500 on
his nugget, but 1t would probably
prove to be worth twice as much. [
asked him what he was going to do,
and was sorry to hear that he intend
ed to go back to England at once and
set up a shop or a farm-I forgot
which-among his own people. OF
course, 1t was not for me to dissuade
him, but l felt it was a pity to lose
such good sort Of man out of the coll
ony, for he was net spending his
money in champagne and card play
ing, as all the very few successful
gold finders did in those first days.
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