The Lamar register., 1918-04-17


days work"
'It didn't take you ten minutes to do
| that one"
whitley Lewis and took out over
two hundred dollars day on that
other creek last spring-no. a year last
spring, It was" he observed reminis-
Gently. "Thls isn't as good. but it's not
to be sneezed at, either. / think I'll
make me rocker"
81 can help. can't II" she said ca
gerly.
Sure" he smiled. you help lot.
little person. Just sitting around and
keeping me company"
But / want to work." she declared.
"Pve sat around now till I'm getting
the fidgets."
"All right; I'll give you job" he
returned good-naturedly. Meantime.
let's eat that lunch you packed up
here"
In n branch of the creek which
flowed down through the basin, Bill
had found plentiful colors as soon as
the first big run-off OF water had fallen.
He had followed upstream painstak-
lngly, pannlng colors always, and now
and then few grains of coarse gold
to encourage him In the quest. The
loss of their horses precluded ranging
far afield to that other glacial stream
which he had worked with Whitley
Lewis when he was a free lance In the
North. He was close to his base Of
supplies, and he had made wages
with always the prospector's lure OF
rich strike on the next bar.
"In the morning." said he, when
lunch was over. 'Pll bring along the AK
and some nails and a shovel, and get
busy"
That night they trudged down to the
cabin In high spirits. Bill had washed
out enough during the afternoon to
make a respectable showing on Hazels
outspread handkerchief And Hazel
was In a gleeful mood over the fact
that she had unearthed a big nugget
by herself. Beginners luck. Bill said
teasingly. but that did not diminish
her elation.
As the days passed there seemed no
question of their complete success.
Bill fabricated his rocker. a primitive.
boxllke device with a blanket screen
and transverse Stats below. II was
faster than the pan. even rude as 1t
was. and II caught all but the finer
particles of gold.
A queer twist of luck put the cap
sheaf on their undertaking. Hazel ran
n splinter OF wood into her hand. thus
putting n stop to her activities with
shovel and pail. Until the wound
lost its soreness she was forced to be
Idle. So she rambled along the creek
one afternoon. armed with hook and
line on a plant willow In search Of
sport.
The trout were hungry, and struck
fiercely at the bait. She soon had
plenty for supper and breakfast.
Wherefore she abandoned that diver
sion and took to prying tentatively
in the lee of certain boulders on
edge of the creek-prospectlng on her
own initiative. as 1t were. She had no
pan, and only one hand to work with,
but she knew gold when she saw it
and, after all. It was but an idle
method of killing time.
In this search she came upon
downstream side of an overhanging
rock right at the waters edge. II at
tracted her first by Its symmetrical
form, perfect oval; then. when she
lifted 1t. by Its astonishing weight.
She continued her search for the pink
ish-red stones. carrying the rusty
pebble along. Presently she worked
her way back to where Roaring Bill
labored prodlgiously.
Look at these pretty stones
found" she said. "what are they,
Billr'
"Those?" He looked at her out
stretched palm. "Garnets."
"Garnets7 They must be valuable
then" she observed.
"Yes, If you can find any of any
size. What's the other rock7" he in
qulred casually. "You making a col
lection of specimens?"
THAT'S just funny stone found"
she returned. at must be iron or
something. It's terribly heavy for its
size"
"Eh? Let me see it." he said.
She handed 1t over.
He weighed 1t In his palm. scruti-