Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1915-04-13
CHAPTER VII,
The Man on tho Other Bank.

MOKE BELLEW and Shorty
- parted company on the upper
- 'Klondike. Shorty's task was
to return down the Klondike
to Dawson to record some claims they
had staked.
Smoke, with the dog team. turned
south. His quest was Surprise lake
and the mythical Two Cabins His
traverse was to cut and cross the IN.
known region over the mountains to
the Stewart river. Here somewhere,
rumor persisted, was Surprise lake,
surrounded by jagged mountains and
glaciers, its bottom paved with raw
gold.
Old timers. It was said, whose very
names were forgotten In the frosts Of
earlier years. had dived into the Icy
waters Of Surprise lake and fetched
lump gold to the surface in both hands
But the water was too cold. Some
died In the water, being pulled up
dead. Others died later Of consump-
ton. And one who had gone down
never did come up.
All survivors had planned to return
and drain the lake, yet none had ever
gone back. Disaster always smote
them. One man fell into an air hole
below Forty Mile; another was killed
and eaten by his dogs; third was
crushed by falling tree. And 80 the
tale ran. Surprise lake was n hoodoo;
Its location was unremembered, and
the gold still paved its undrained bot
tom.
Two Cabins, no less mythical. was
more definitely located. Five sleeps
up the McQuestion river from the
Stewart stood two ancient cabins. So
ancient were they that they must have
been built before ever the first known
gold hunter had entered the Yukon
basin. Wandering moose hunters.
whom even Smoke had met and talked
with. claimed to have found the two
cabins in the old days. but to have
sought vainly for the mine which those
early adventures must have worked.
81 wish you was goin' with me" ;"
Shorty said wistfully at parting. Just
because you got the Indian bug amt
no reason for to 20 pokin' into trouble
Tbey's no gettin' away from 1t, that's
loco country you're bound for. The
hoodoo's sure on 1t, from the first dip
to the last call"
Tt's all right, Shorty" replied
Smoke. 'ITl make the round trip and
be back In Dawson in six weeks"
A week later Smoke found himself
among the jumbled ranges south OF
Indian river. On the divide from the
Klondike he had abandoned the SLED
and packed his wolf dogs. The six big
huskies each carried fifty pounds, and
on his own back was an equal burden
Through the soft snow he led the way,
packing it down under his snowshoes
and behind; In single file, toiled the
dogs.
For days he wandered through q
chaos of canyons and divides which
did not yield themselves to any ra'
tional Typographical plan.
Then came q mountain storm that
blew a blizzard across the riffraf OF
high and shallow divides. Above TIM
ber line. fireless. for two days he strug'
gled blindly to find lower levels. On
the second day he came out upon the
rim of an enormous palisade. So thick
" drove the snow that he could not see
the base of the wall, nor dared he at
tempt the descent He rolled himself
| in his robes and huddled the dogs about
him In the depths Of snowdrift, but
did not permit himself to sleep.
In the morning. the storm spent, nc
crawled out to investigate. A quarter
of a mile beneath him. beyond all mis-
take, lay q frozen, snow covered lake
About 1t, on every side. rose Jagged
peaks. 1t answered the description
Blindly he had found Surprise lake.
"WelI named" he muttered an houl
later as he came out upon Its margin
A clurnp Of aged spruce was the only
woods. In his way to 1t he stumbled
upon three graves, snow buried. bu,
marked by hand hewn headposts ant
undecipherable writing.
On the edge of the woods was {
small. ramshackle cabin. he pulled th'
latch and entered. In q corner. OF
what had once been bed Of spruce
bough, still wrapped in NANCY FUR
that had rotted to fragments, lay
skeleton. The last visitor to Surpris'
lake, was Smokes conclusion as h
picked up a lump Of gold as large al
bis doubled fist. Beside the lump wa
IL nannar can flled with nuggets Of th