Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-10-04

Johnny noticed that they were empty hand
ed. The bags had been left behind
The boy waited patiently, listening with
his ear to the ground like an Indian. for
the last rustic OF fern and crackle of I'M
derbrush, and then emerged stiff and
cramped from his concealment. But he no
longer thought Of flight: curiosity and am
bition burned In his small veins He quick
ly climbed up the outcrop, picked up the
fallen stone, and in spite of it's weight lift
ed it to the PROSTATE tree. Here he paused,
and from his coign Of vantage looked and
listened. The solitude was profound. Then
mounting the tree and standing over its
axis he tried TO rcck it as the others had.
Alasi Johnnys heart was stout his cour-
age unlimited, his perception all embracing,
his ambition boundless; but his actual
avoirdupois was only that of boy of ten.
The tree did not move. But Johnny had
played see-saw before. and quietly moved
toward It's highest part. 1t slowly de-
scended under the changed center of grav-
ity and the root arose, disclosing the open
Ing as before Yet here the little hero
paused. He waited with his eyes fixed on
the opening, ready to fly on the sallying
out of any one who had remained conceal
ed. He then placed the stone where he
had stood, leaped down and ran to the
opening.
The change from the dazzling sunlight
to the darkness confused him at first, and
he could see nothing. On entering he
stumbled over something which proved to
De bottle, In which a candle was fitted
and box Of matches. evidently used by
the two men. Lighting the candle, he
could now discern that the cavern was only
Few yards long-the beginning Of tur-
mel which the accident to the tree had stop
ped In one corner lay the clothes that
the men had left, and which for moment
seemed all that the cavern contained but,
on removing Them Johnny saw that thy
were thrown over a rifle, a revolver and
the two chamofs leather bags that the men
had brought there. They were SO heavy
that that the boy could scarcely lift them. HIS
| tic L.
ctement; To boy whose truant wander
ings had given him a fair knowledge of
mining, he knew that weight could have
but one meaning. Gold! He hurriedly nm
| tied the nearest bag. But it was not the
gold OF the locality, of the tunnel of The
,, bed rock!' 1t was flake gold, the gold
| OF the river. 1T had been taken from the
| miners sluicas in the distant streams The
| pagS before him were the spoils of tho
| sIulce robber-spoils that could not be sold
or even shown In the district without
| danger-spoils kept until they could be
| taken to Marysville or Sacramento for die
pcsal. All this might have occurred IA the
MIND OF any boy of the locality who hal
heard the common gossip of his elders. put
10 Johnnys fancy an idea was kindled
peculiarly his own. Here was cavern iiI,e
that of the Forty Thieves in the stor1.
DOCK. and he was the Ali Bahia who knew
| it's secret! He was not obliged to saw
open; sesame but he could say It IL he
liked II he was showing 1t off to ANYBODY.
Yet. alas! he also knew It was a secret
ne must keep to himself He had no.
pody to trust 1T to- His father was a char
coai burner OF small means; a widoWer
with two children, Johnny and his elder
| brother Sam. The latter, a fIaerant moor
rlslble or twenty-five, with a tendency To
uisslpatlon and low company had lately
abandoned his fathers roof onJv ~ raan
| pear at intervals of hilarious or nnardIf,
| lntoXication He had always been beId mn
| 10 Johnny as warning, or with +ha
| gloomy prognosis that he, johnny was al
| ready following in his tortuous footstans
| Even II he were here he was not To he
! thought OF as confidant Still less couId
| ne trust his father, who would be sure To
| pungle the secret with sheriffs and CON
| stables, and end by bringing down tho
vengeance or the gang upon the family
| AS FOR himself, he could not dispose Of
| the gold IL he were to take it. The ex
hibition of single flake of it to the adult
public would arouse suspicion. and as it
| was Johnny's hard fate to be ALWAYS doubt
| ed, he might be connected with the gang
| AS truant he knew he had no moral
| standing, but he also had the superstition
quite characteristic of childhood-that
| being in possession of a secret he was a
| participant in its criminality-and bound
| as it were, by terrible oaths! And then
| a new Idea seized him. He carefully nut
| back everything as he had found Ii, ex-
| tfnguished the candle, left the cave, re-
| mounted the tree and closed the opening
| again, as he had seen the others do 1t, with
| the addition OF murmuring shut, sesame"
| TO himself. and then ran away as fast as
| his short legs could carry him.
| Well clear of the dangerous vicinity, he
proceeded more leisurey for about mile,