West Virginia argus. [volume] (Kingwood, W. Va.) 1877-1946, 1907-10-17
CHAPTER I

i lights of anchored ships,
then up ut the crenelated
mountains, black against the sky. He
drank the cool air burdened with It's
taints of the sea, while the blood of
his boyhood leaped within him.
"Oh, it's 6ne-fine," he murmured,
''and this is my country-my country.
after all, Dex. It's I'm my veins, this
hunger for the north. grow. ex-
pand."
Careful you don't bust" warned
Dextry. "I've seen men get plumb
drunk on mountain air. Don't expand
too strong In one spot" He went
back abruptly to his pipe, It's villain
Gus fumes promptly ayerting any
danger OF the airs too tonic quality.
Cad, what q smudgew sniffed the
younger man. "You ought TO be in
quarantine"
I'D ruther smell like a man than
talk like kid You desecrate the
hour OF meditation with rhapsodies on
nature when your aesthetics amt
honed up to the beauties OF good to-
bacco."
The other laughed, initiating his deep
chest. In the gloom he stretched his
muscles restlessly, as though an ex-
cess OF vlgor filed him.
They were lounging upon the dock,
while before them lay the Santa
Maria ready for her midnight sailing.
Behind slept Unalaska, quaint, an
tique and Russian, resting amid the
fogs of Berlng sea. Where week
before mild eyed natives had dried
their cod among the old bronze can
non now a frenzied horde OF gold
seekers paused In their rush TO the
new Ell Dorado. They had come like
locust cloud, thousands strong, set
ting on the edge of the Smoky sea,
waiting the going OF the Ice that
barred them from their golden fleece
from Nome the new, where men
found fortune In a night.
The messy hills back of the village
were rldged with graves OF those who
had died on the out trip the fall be-
fore, when n plague had gripped the
land, but what of that? Gold glittered
In the sands, so said the survivors.
Therefore men came In armies. Glen
lister and Dextry had left Nome the
autumn previous, the young man raw
ing with fever. Now they returned TO
their own land.
"This air whets every animal instinct
In me-" Glenister broke out again.
away from the cities / turn savage.
I feel the old primitive passions, the
fret for fighting"
"Mebbe you'll have n chance"
"IIow SOP
'Well, it's this way. met Mexico
Mullins this mornin'. You mind old
Mexico, don't you-the feller that re-
located Discovery claim on Anvil
creek last SUMMER
"You don't mean that 'tinhorn' the
boys were going TO lynch for claim
jumpingf'
'Tdentcall Remember me tellin' you
about n good turn I done him once
Gown Guadalupe wayT
"Greaser shooting scrape. wasn't itT'
"Yep. Well, / noticed first of that
he's gettln' f0t-high livin' fat, too, all
in one spot, like he was playin' both
ends agin the center. Also he wore
di'mon's fit TO handle with ice tongs.
"Says !, lookin' at his side elevation.
What's accented your middle syllable
so strong Mexicor
Prosperity, politics an the wal.
dorf-AstorIer' says he. IL seems Mex
hadn't forgot old days. lie claws me
into corner an says Bill. I'm goin'
to pay you back for that Moralez deal
at amt comm TO me-, says J.
"Thats q bygone'
"Tistcn here says he, an, seein' he
was in earnest, I let him run on.
GLOW much do you value that claim
o. yourn atT
"Hard tellln', says ]. If she holds
out like she run last fall, there'd ought
to DO n million clear I'm her.
"'How much III you clean up this
eummerT
""Bout four hundred thousand, with
luck,
"'Bill' says he. there's hell a.pop
PIN. an you've got 10 watch that
ground Ike you'd watch rattlesnake
Don't never leave 'em get grip on q
or you're down an out
'Ilc was so plumb I'm earnest Il
scared me up, cause Mexico amt Q
gabby man.
"'What do you meanT says I.
"T can't tell you nothln' more. I'm
putin a string on my own neck sayin
this much. You're n square man. 1911
an I'm n gambler, but you saved ml
life oncci, an | wouldn't steer yo,
wrong. Tor Gods sake, don't let eu
jump your ground, that's all