The Raymer enterprise., 1922-11-30

Wen find itw
With that determination, he went 4
bed. to awake In the morning fillet
with q desire to reach the mine. t
claw at Its vitals with the sharp
edged drills. to swing the heavy sledgt
until his shoulders and back ached
to send the roaring charges Of dyna
mite digging deeper and deeper into
that thinning vein. And Harry was
beside him every step of the way.
A days work, the booming charges
and they returned to the stope to find
that the vein had neither lessened MOI
grown greater. Another day-and one
after that The vein remained the
same.
Squint Rodaine had established his
office In q small, vacant store building
on the main street, and Fairchild
could see as he went to and from his
work. a constant stream Of townspeo.
pie as they made that their goal
there to give their money into the
keeping Of the be-scarred man and to
trust to the future for wealth. 1t
CALLED Fairch!ld. It made his hate
stronger than ever. As for the girl
who was named as vice president
He saw her, day after day. riding
through town In the same automobile
that he had helped retire on the Den.
yer road. But now she did not look
ut him; now she pretended that she
did not see him. She had gone over
to the Rodaines. she was engaged to
marry the chalkyfaced. hook -nosed
son and she was vice president OF
their two-mIlllon dollar mining cor
poration. Fairchlld did not even strive
to find meaning for II all: women
are women, and men do well some
times II they diagnose themselves.
The summer began to grow old, and
Fairchlld felt that he was aging with
IT, The bank deposits were thinning,
and the vein was thinning with It.
Slowly but surely. as they fought, the
strip Of pay ore in the rocks was
pinching out. Soon would come the
time when they could work II no
longer. And then-but Fairchlld did
not like to think about that.
September came, and with It the
grand jury. But here for once was
slight ray Of hope. The body of
twelve good men and true wore them
selves out with other matters and ad-
journed without even taking up the
mystery Of the Blue Poppy mine. But
the JOY Of Falrchlld and Harry was
short-liyed In the long, legal phrase
ology Of the jury's report was the
recommendation that this important
subject be 'he rirst for inquiry by the
next grand lhqulsltorial body to be
convened and the threat still re-
manned.
But before the two men were now
realities which were worse even than
threats, and Harry turned from hi9
staging late one afternoon to voice
the most Important.
"Well start single lacking tonor-
row." he announced with little sigh.
I'm the angling wall. The veins
pinched down until we amt even get.
ting day laborer's wages out of it
and It's October now"
October! October-and winter on
the way. October-and only a month
until the time when Harry must face
jury on four separate charges, any
one Of which might send him to Canon
City for the rest OF his days. Fair
childs hopes lay inert. He was only
working cow because a great, strong,
big-shoulHered man had come from
Cornwall to help him and was willing
to fight Il out to the end. October
and the announcement had said that
certain girl would be married In the
late fall. a girl who never looked In
his direction any more, who had al
io"Vu Hei hhlHe " DetOuIc dlulluttu
with that Of the Rodaines, now near
ing the task Of completing their two
million. October.
For long moment, FairchIld said
nothing then as Harry came from the
staging, he moved to the older mans
side.
II didn't quite catch the idea"
came at last. Harry pointed with his
sledge.
"rve been noticing the vein. It
keeps turning to the left. It struck
me that It might ave branched of
from the main body and that there's
bigger vein over there some eres
Wen Just ave to make a try for 1t.
It's our only chance"
"And II we fall to find II there?"
III It amt there-we're whippedw
II was the first time that Harry had
said the word seriously. Fairchlld
pretended not to hear. Instead, he
picked up a drill. looked at Its point,
then started toward the small forge
which they had erected Just at the
foot Of the little raise leading to the
stope. There Harry Joined him; to.
gether they heated the long pieces Of
steel and pounded their biting faces
he sharpness necessary to drilling
che hard rock Of the hanging wall.
tempering them in the bucket Of wa
ter near by, working silently, slowly
hampered by the weight Of defeat.
They were being whipped; they felt
It In every atom Of their beings. But
they had not given up their fight.