The Oakley herald. [volume] (Oakley, Idaho) 1908-1961, 1921-12-23
XII.
Around Robin Hoods Barn.

After we had covered possibly two
of the four miles between the CHINA
bar and the railroad station, the dog
branched off TO the left along the
mountain on a road that was little
better than a bride path through the
forest, and which, for the time, kept
its level on the slope, neither ascend
ing nor descending.
"How about IL, Daddy?" l asked,
"Where does this trail go?"
Give it time enough, 1t comes out
at the old Haversack, on Greaser
mountain"
ENDS there, you mean?"
you said it; far as l know, it ends
there"
what is the Haversack?"
at amt nothin', now. Used to be a
gold prospect eight r ten year ago.
Never got far enough along to be a
mine, they tell me-"
1t was certainly singular that the
dog should be leading us to an aban-
doned mining project, but Barney
seemed to know perfectly well where
he was going.
In one of the gulch headings there
was a patch of wash sand in what was,
In wet weather, a runway for water,
but which was now only a streamless
ravine with q few damp spots in 1t.
Here Daddy called a halt, and while
the dog sat down and yawned at us
and otherwise manifested his impa-
f~~o - tho Inlou fhn old man OQfh-
cred a few ~pine-cones and twigs,
struck a match and lighted a fire, eau
tioning me meanwhile not to walk on
the damp sand patch
/ hadn't the slightest Idea of what
he was driving at, and he didn't ex-
plain: but after the fire had blazed
I'M enough to light the surroundings a
bit, he went down upon his hands and
knees and began to give an imitation
of a man hunting for n dropped piece
Of money. ITS sort o. queer. Jeanie's
peer here, and the dogs been back and
across a couple O. times, as you a
see. But Fullerton hasn't crossed here.
There's only the n set o tracks"
We made a wider search. with a
dead pine branch for a torch, but
found no other tracks; In fact, the
gulch was quilted SO deeply above and
below that there vas no other prac-
t.cable crossing-place for a horse. If
Jennie had headed for the gulch-and
the hoof prints in the sand, and
Daddy's identification of them seemed
TO prove this past any question of
doubt-she had headed ii alone. But
why had she been riding alone into
the depths of this uninhabited noun
tain wilderness7
Calm and self-contained as he usual
" was, | could see, or rather feel, that
Hiram was growing increasing
~ nervous as We pushed on. | didn't
blame him so far from it, l was shar-
Ing the in full measure.
What were we going t find at the
of the trail?
II must have been at least two miles
beyond the damp sand patch hat the
lin trail we had been following ended
abruptly at the abandoned mining
lain spoken Of by Daddy Hiram-the
taNerSdCh. lHe SluiiiSht was DiisHt
enough to show us what there was to
pc seen. which want much a couple
# t~uinb'e-dOwn s1acks. a shed that
lad probably been the p~rospectors'
blacksmith shop. and q tunnel mouth
hat had once been securely boarded
10, but from which the ~bulkheading
vas now partly fallen away.
Once more Daddy hunted for a dead
line branch and lighted a torch. The
were empty, of course, and
rhile we did not 90 into the tunnel,
re could see, through the broken bulk
eading. that II was half filed with
aved-in earth and broken stone. IN
erfOOt there was only the IN ]