The sun., 1908-05-03
I'VE GOLD CRAZE IN MOJAVE
vi mr. TO THE FIFTH POST
HOLE HORITIO DTG,

NoN the Town l. LIKE Group Of TOOTH
picks In IIotel TImbler-Mlning
claims Stsked Out Even In the Cellars
But MoJaNe Does It's Duty tOIts Dead
NoJlvE, Cal, April 10. Not since Timber
rg Smith Of Caliente salted the crops Of his
.hckcns with nuggets and sold his hole in
rlo ground to an Englishman on the strength
Of lhe cooks subsequent discovery has this
.lu " the blossoming desert had such a
gold craze as that which Is convusing
Nloiaye at present The price Of town lots,
,arned tomatoes and other general produce
Its SCARED to impossibs heights and even
,lo Cinnamon have taken to dealing in
uures on the town dumps out near the
Last Chance saloon.
The strike came about month ago, more
,r loss when Pinkey lPerkins's wifes son
pv her second husband Horatio IL the
name Of the son-was sinking post holes
for chicken fence out at the Perkins place
near the watering tank Horatio has never
cen noted for much except an ability to
iecorate the platform when the Overland
rains came in-never, that Is, until he sunk
uis fifth post hole
Then il was that he pulled out glittering
-hoyeliul OF the richest pay dirt that khe
Nlojave desert has seen since Pegleg Smith
no relation TO Timberleg Smith, whatever
might he the first hasty deduction, wooden
cgs not being generally hereditary-hit
van BeFnardino thirty years ago with an
J.l can full Of sunburnt gold.
Horatio might have had sense enough to
,eep still about what he found In that fifth
,ost hole. II he had the madness would
not have seized Mojave 50 quickly and the
Harvey eating house would still be selling
.reaks on a twenty minutes for lunch basis.
But Horatio didn't have the sense.
The first thing he did was to tear down
10 the Grotto drink emporium with his gold
yrapped up in a piece Of the Hearth and
Home Family Weekly and ordering drinks
for the crowd. oarelessly toss about $500
d, coarse gold on the bar Horatio always
s,s strong for a four hush whenever he
.se the opportunity coming his way.
None Of the boys took that drink. TheV
~ cooked at the gold in the newspaper
,ud then they began moving for the door
Insy knew that Horado had struck It within
..If mile Of town, for he had never been
,Irther away from the railroad station
han the first turn in the desert road, and
hat was only when Judge Hawkins's bay
mare ran away with him. So the boys
.nst circulated through town without paus-
rg to ask horatio any questions which
he would not answer II he we're anybody
Else besides Horato.
They circulated mighty speedily. No
udy saw any place where the earih mao mao
cen turned in Nojave since they buried
Johnny skinner last month until Willie
SAWYER. commonly known as Sawdust
hapDened 10 be running down the street
al his home, which is just opposite the
uerlxins mansion His wife leaned out the
.scond story window and yelled at him.
Where's the hPe?' yels she.
-Where'd you see anybody digging IN
the ground around hereY Sawdust came
dcL In q treble screech.,
/ seen Mrs. Perkinss boy Horatio setting
lr; post holes over back--' hrs. Sawyer
vas saying. but Sawdust was out OF slght
~ The dust Of the road.
He ran down TO the Perkins place, took
me look at the post holes out back OF the
lcnhouse then tore back TO- his house
and disappeared In the woodehed. Five
% inutes later he was out IN front OF the
house, where the lawn should have been
4 there was any such thing in MoJaver
setting out stakes from the front door TO
he hitching block and around 70 the mes
take In the ground right in the middle
n the enclosure and hung out this sign
nsinted In stoveblacking on the top of
.ra rlreF hoX: