The Prescott daily news., 1915-06-04


 give you the rlgnt huncnT' WiIkerson asked suddenly. How often have I got to tell you we're partners. 1 be- lieve if you got strike you wouldn't tell me. Are we partners or not?"
 "Yes: we're partners all right l haven't found anything"
 "What was that stuff you had in your hand?" asked WiIkerson drow- silly You're always bringing in a lot of dirt and looking it over, but I notice you kind of keep that dirt ip your hand"
 WilkerSon once more yielded to his physical desire for sleep. but was awakened by the barking of coyote on the hill He suddenly raised him. self and let out q curse against the de- stroyer of his sleep Then he swiftly realized that Gallon was still awake, sitting by the fireside, writing with the same stub pencil
 That's my pencil" he thought duly. "There is not another pencil in this desert How can 1 write to Dolores if Old Man Gallon walks off?"
 He took out of his pocket a worn leather wallet and drew out the pie ture of woman, whose calm, cold fea- lures unadorned by the photographer art, were appealing to the man of his appetites.
 He looked at this moment, and then all the morbid fire in his blood famed toward his heart. Love, life and happiness depended upon the pos session of gold. Therefore, with this fire in his heart, Wikerson suddenly got that absolute thirst for gold which traverses deserts, which has killed more people than the armies of Flu rope
 And in his sudden access of physical woman he rose to his feet, and there came upon his face swift expression. stealthy but determined.
 He put the photograph away and, pantherlike, stole into the shadow un- der the hill and toward the man who had been his partner, but whom he was resolved to kill He crept along, taking all precautions against disturb ing single pebble, until he stood over Gallon, and in the full moonlight he saw that Gallon was drawing the plans and marking the locations of mine.
 "How far," he thought forcefully to himself, "has the old man gone What gulch is this? What place is this3 He has found the gold, and I'm going to have itr' He still watched the pencil and saw him trace in rude letters:
 This will make you happy"
 That moment Gallon saw Wilkerson smiling at him.
 Smiles and tears, sorrow and laugh ter have made this world what 1t Is, and the smile on the saturnine visage of Wilkerson stirred Gallon to his depths. Did Wilkerson know? Had Wilkerson seen? Was Ruth to lose the gold that he had found after all these years? Wilkerson had peered over his shoulder. Wilkerson! Wilkerson! Will kerson! There must be no Wilkerson! He pulled out his revolver and fired at the man smiling at him from the shadow.
 Wilkerson emptied his revolver at the old man. But Gallons trained eye, backed up by his overmastering pas sion, had directed his weapon too sure- ly Wilkerson realized that his ene- my's bullet had gone home,
 Still with the blood lust in his heart, Gallon pulled out the picture of little girl and passionately kissed it.
 "You look like your mother, Ruth" he whispered.
 But while he was yielding to this queer tenderness his former partner was struggling to his feet dizzy with pain. absolutely cowed by the shock of finding himself physically helpless, yet driven by instinct to find other human beings Where were they2 There was no sound on the desert except the rustling of the dry leaves of the