Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-04-13

bout Oar. excMlme0 DOret IerVentIy
 No man watts livin' could treat hel
 bad. She's too good an too apurty fol
 have bad husban'."
 f'She is, is sheY Gale turned or
 him with strange glare In his eyes 1 '"Them's the kind that get the he dev
 ils. There's something about . goot
 giri that attracts bad man. particu
 lariy if she's pretty. and 1t goes dou
 ble too. The good men get the hellions
 A fellow can't get 90 tough but what
 he can catch good woman, and de
 cent maa usually draws 8 critter that
 looks like sled and acts like timber
 wolf"
 "Necia wouldn't marry on no bad
 man." said Dorct positively.
 Neither man had ever spoken thus
 openly to the other about Necia be
 fore, and. although their language was
 indirect, each knew the others
 thought. But there was pc time for
 further talk now. for tae others were
 close upon them. As they came in,o
 view Gale exclaimed:
 | wen, IA ,<cc uoSu pIOubHt hui
 nion along~
 "Humph" grunted Doret. q don
 fink much of dat felIer."
 The three new arrivals dropped
 down upon the moss to rest. for the
 up trail was heavy. Lee was the first | to speak.
 "Dld you get away without 4bein' | secn?" he asked.
 I Sure" answered Gale. ''Poleon has
 been here two hours"
 That's good. don't wnnt nobody | taggin along"
 Runnion volunteered nothing except | 0aths at the mosquitoes and at his pact; straps, which were new and cut him already. As no explanation of hia | presence was offered, neither the trad. CT nor Doret made any comment then, but 1t came out later, when the old miner dropped far enough behind the others to render conversation possible. You decided to take lp another one, ehY Gale asked Lee. Tt wasn't exactly my doia's," re- piled the miner. Stark asked me to let Runnion come long, bein' as he had grub staked him, a..i he seemed 30 set on 1t that I ackeressed. You see, it's the first chance ever had to pay him back for favor he done me in the Cassiar country. There's plenty of land to go around"
 It was Lees affair. thought the trad CT. and he might tell whom he liked, so he said no more, but fell to study ing the back of the man next in front, who nappeneu to be Stark, observing every move and trick of him and dur trg the frequent pauses making point of listening and watching him guard edly
 All through the afternoon the five men wound up the valley, following one another's footsteps. emerging from somber thickets of fir to founder across wide pastures of ''nigger heads" that wabbled and wriggled and bowed beneath their feet until. at cost of much effort and profanity, they gained the firmer footing of the forest. At one point Stark, hot aud irritable, re- marked:
 There must be shorter cut than thls, LeeT'
 Il reckon there is," the miner re- piled, but I've always had pack to carry, so chose level ground rather than climb the divides"
 "S'pose dose people at camp hear bout dis strike an beat us in?" sug- gested Poleon.
 Tt wouldn't be easy going for them after they got there." Stark said sour ly. "l for one wouldn't stand for 1t"
 "Nor l." agreed Runnion.
 "I don't see how you'd help your self,' the trader remarked "One mans got as good right as another"
 "I guess I'd help myself. all right" Stark laughed significantly. as did Runnion. who added:
 Lee Is entitled to put in anybody he wants on his own discovery, and if | anybody tries to get ahead of us there's liable to be trouble"
 "l reckon If don't know no short tut HODCuy else uOeS,' Lee remarked, | whereupon Doret spoke up reassur- lngly:
 'Dere's no use gettin' scare lak dat biccause nobody knows were Lees creek she's locate' but John an me, an dere's nobody wat knows he mak' le strike but us four.'
 That's right" said Gale. "The only other way across Is by Black Bear 'reek, and there ain't half dozen men 'ver been up to the head of that stream, much less over the divide, so don't allow there's any use to fret ourselves"
 They went on their way. travelling until late evening, when they 'amped at the mouth of the valley up which the miners cabin lay. Camp lad been made early at Gales sugges- ion instead of pushing on few miles arther. as Lee had intended. and now, when the cool evening fell and the lraft quickened, 1t became possible to ay off gloves and headgear, so they at about the fire. talking. smoking nd rubbing their tired feet. A l- -4- n A z