Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1918-12-19

Pored over Maps while Bill Idly
Sketched Their Route on a Sheet of
Paper.
sue the dollar? Besides, how are you
going: to pursue it?"
go prospecting," he replied prompt
~. Gilt the trail for q place l know
where there's coolies Of coarse gold, if
you can get to it at low water. How'd
you like to- GO into the Upper Mas
country this fall. trap all winter, work
the sandbars in the spring, and come
out next fall with a sack of gold it
would take q horse to- pack?'
Hazel clapped her hands.
"Oh,. Bill, wouldn't that be fnc?" she
cried. "I'd love to."
SIT won't be all smooth sailing" he
warned. "lt's a long trip and a hard
one, and the winter will be longer and
harder than the trip Still, there's a
chance for d good big stake, right in
that one, trip
"But why the. necessity for making
a, stake? she inquired thoughtfully,
after q lapse of five minutes. II
thought YOU didn't care anything about
money so bong as yeu had enough to
get along ONT And we surely have
that. We've owe two thousand dollars
in real money-and no place to spend
it-so. we're compelled to save"
Bill blew, q smoke ring over his head
and watched it vanish up toward the
ausky, ro0f beams before he answered.
"Well. little person." said he, "that's
very true, and We can't truthfully say
that stern necessity is treading on u
heels: The possession of money has
never been q crying need with me.
But [ hadn't many wants when / was
playing a lone hand, and I generally let
the future take care of itself. 1t was
always easy to dig up money enough to
buy books and grub or anything I
wanted. Now that I've assumed a GER
tain responsibility, it has begun to
dawn on me that we'd enjoy life bet
tel. if we We're assured of a conpe-
teaace. We won't stay here always.
E'm pretty much contented just now.
So are you. But I know from past ex-
perience that the outside will grow
more alluring as time passes. You'll
get lonesome for civilization. It's the
most natural thing in the world. And
when we go out to mix with our fellow
humans we want to meet them, on
terms Of worldly equality. Which. is
to say with good clothes on, and q; fat
bank roll in u pocket. And last. but
not least, old girl, while I love to. ipaf,.
]. can only loaf about 8 long. H. conf
tentment. Sabe? I've got to, be, doing
something; whether it was, profitable
or not has never mattered,, jNst 50. It
was action"
II sabe, as you call it,"''Hazel smiled.
"Of course l do. Only lazy people, like
to loaf all the time. Iloae. this place,
and we might stay here. Dor. years and
be satisfied. But" ..,
'But we'd be better, satisfied to stay
IL we knew that We, could leave It
whenever we wanted to-" he inter
rupted. "That's the psychology Of the
human animal, alA right. We don't like
to be coerced, even by cis circumstances"
"If you made q lot Of money mining,
we could travel-one could do lots Of
things" she reflected. Il don't think
I'd want to live In a city again. But
it would be nice to 80 there, some
times" .,
ayes. dear girl. It would" Bill
agreed. "With a chum to help you en-
Joy things. We cap DO things together
that I couldn't do alone, and you
couldn't do alone. Remains only to get
the wherewatAal. And since I know
bow to manage that with a minimum
amount of effort, ia like to be about
1t before melody else Bets ahead Of
me. Though there's small chance Of
that"
"Weu be partners." said she. "How
will We divide the Profits. Atllum2"
"Wen split even," he declared.