Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1915-08-14
CHAPTER XIII.
Tho Adventure Wlth The Little MIN.

ways" Shorty demUrred. I'm
suro scalrt Of that glacier No
man ought to tackle II by bis
lonely"
Smoke laughed chcerrully and ran
his eye up the gllstenIng face OF the
tiny glacler that filed the head Of the
valley Here II Is August already,
aud the days have been getting shorter
fot two months" be epilomzed the cit.
ualion. "You know quartz. aud |
don't But Gun bring up the grub,
while you keep after that mother lode.
10 long. III be- back by tomorrow
evening"
lie turned aud started.
Il got 4 hunch somethlns goln' 10
happen" Shorty pleaded after him.
But Smokes reply was d bnntenng
laugh. lle held on down tho little val.
ley, occasionally wlplng the sweat from
Ms forehead, the while hB feet crush.
ed through rlpo mountain raspberrles
ind delicate ferns that grew beside
patches OF sun sheltered leo
In the early spring he und Shorty
had como TO the stewart river and
launched out into the amazing chnos
OF the region where Surprise lake lay.
Aud all OF the spring AMI half OF tho
summer had been consumed IN futile
wanderlngs, when, on tho verge Of
tuning back, they caught their nAt
glimpse OF the battling, gold boltomed
ahet OF water which had lured and
fooled a generation of miners
Making their camp In tho old cabin
which Smoke had discovered on hls
previous visit, they learned three
uhlnga- -6rst, heavy nugget gold was
cArpoied thlckly ON the lake bottom;
next, the gold could DO dlycd for In
ihe sh0llower portions, but the temper.
eiuro OF the water was man killing,
sud, 1nally, the dralnlng or tho lake
WAS too stupendous task Cor two men
IL the shorter half ot u short summer.
uudelerred reasoning FROM tho coarse.
ness Of the gold that II had not tray.
cled far, they had set out Ia search OF
the mother lode, They had crossed the
big glacier that frowned on tho south.
crn rim aud devoted themselves to the
pnSAling maze of small valleys and
canyons beyond, which, by most un
mounlalnllke methods, drained, or had
al one tlmo drained. into tho hke.
The valley Smoke was descending
gradually widened after the fashion vt
any normal valley, but at the lower
end II plnched uurOwly between high
rrcclpllous walls and abruptly stopped
Ia cross wall AZ the base of this. In
q welter OF broken rock, tho sttcamlct
disappeared, evidently andlng Ia way
cHt underground
Climbing tho cross wall from the top
Smoke saw the lake beneath him. un.
llLe any mountain lake hc had ever
seen, Il WAS not blue lustrad is IN.
icuse peacock green tohencd It's shal.
lpwness Il was this shalIowncss that
made lm dmmlns feasible, An about
AROSE iumhled mountains, with lee
acarrod peaks aud crugs. grolesquely
shaped and grouped AN was tops,
tVrry and unsystematlc-a porc night
mara
Across lhe lake, seemingly not more
than hall q mlle, but, ~ he wcll knew,
i've miles away, he could soc TIE bunch
ot spruce trees and the cabin. llo
looked again to make sure ana saw
saoec clearly rising from the chlmne,.
NamcbOly elise had surprised them.
sclyes Into finding Surprise lake. was
hls conclusion as be- turned 10 climb
thc southern wall
From the top " this he came down
iolo a llltle valley. slower gOorcd and
lasy with tho hum Ot bees, that be,
hayed quite as reasonable valley
should, M 70 Gar as Il uiade legitimate
entry 90 the lake What was wrong
with Il was ils length scaNcly 100
yards lts head a straight up end down
clld " l.Op feet over Watch a strcam
pitched itself Ia dvsccudlng wells OF
lnlst
And herr ho encountered more
am0kc, boating hslly upward In the
wnrm sunshine. beyond an Quiet Of
'ock. As be came around .he corner
lc heard a light memlllc taptapplns
'nd a merry whlstling that kept the
'eat Then be saw the man, an up
arucd shoe between bis knees, into