Phoenix tribune., 1922-12-23
The CroSS-Cut

mination, "this vein doesn't look like
much, and the mine looks worse But
II you're game, I'm game, and wen
work the thing until 1t breaks u.s."
you've said 1t. If we It anything,
fine and well-if we can turn out five
thousand dollars worth Of stuff be-
fore the trial comes up, then we can
sell hit under the direction Of the
court, turn over that money for cash
bond, and get the deeds back. If we
can't, and If the mine peters out, then
we amt lost anything but a lot Of
'Opes and time. But ere goes. Wen
double-jack. I've got a big 'ammer
ere You old the drill for awhile and
turn 1t, while 1 sling tn sledge. Then
you take tn 'ammer and Lor' ave
mercy on my 'ands If you miss"
Fairchild obeyed. Hour after hour
they worked. Then, as the afternoon
grew late, Harry disappeared far
down the drift to return with a hand
full Of greasy, candlelike things,
wrapped in waxed paper
II knew that dynamite Of yours
couldn't be shipped in time, so /
bought a little up ere" he explained,
as he cut one Of the sticks in two
with a pocketknife and laid the pieces
to one side Then out came a coil Of
fuse, to be cut to it's regular lengths
and inserted In the copper-covered
caps of illuminate Of mercury, Harry
showing his contempt for the danger
Gus things by crimping them about
the fuse with his teeth, while Fair
child, sitting on a small pile of muck
nearby, begged for caution. But Harry
only grinned behind his big mustache
and went on.
Out came his pocketknife again as
he slit the waxed paper of the gelat-
nous sticks, then inserted the cap in
the dynamite One after another the
charges were showed into the holes
Harry tamping them into place with
steel rod, instead Of with the usual
wooden affair, his mustache brushing
his shoulder as he turned to explain
the virtues of dynamite when handled
by an expert.
''It's all in the wye you do it." he
announced. ''n you don't strike fire
with a steel rod. It's fine"
"But II you dor
"Oh, thenI" Harry laughed. 'Then
It's flowers and a funeral-after
they've finished picking you up"
One after another he pressed the
dynamite charges tight into the drill
holes and tamped them with muck
wrapped in a newspaper that he
dragged from his hip pocket. Then
he lit the fuses from his lamp and
stood second in assurance that they
all were spluttering.
"Now we runI" he announced, and
they hurried, side by side. down the
drift tunnel until they reached the
shaft. Ear enough" said Harry.
A long moment of waiting. Then
the earth Quivered and a muffled,
booming roar came from the distance.
Harry stared at his carbide lamp.
"One," he announced Then, "Two."
Three, four and i've followed. all
counted seriously, carefully by Harry.
Finally they turned back along the
drift toward the stope, the acrid odor
Of dynamite smoke cutting at their
nostrils as they approached the spot
where the explosions had occurred.
There Harry stood in silent cOntempla-
ton for a long time. holding his car
blde over the pile Of ore that had been
torn from the vein above.
''It amt much" came at last. "Not
more'n 'arf ton. We won't get rich
at that rate And besides" he looked
upward-"we amt even going to be
getting that pretty soon. It's pinching
out"
Fairchild followed his gaze, to see
in the torn rock above him only mar
row streak now, fully an inch and
half narrower than the vein had been
before the powder holes had been
drilled. 1t could mean only one thing:
that the bet had been played and lost,
that the vein had been one Of those
freak affairs that start out with much
promise, seem to give hope of eternal
riches, and then gradually dwindle to
nothing. Harry shook his head.
''It won't last"
"Not more than two or three more
Shots" Fairchild agreed.
"You can't tell about that. 1t may
run that way all through the mountain
but what's four-ineh vein? You can
go up ere In the ArgOnaut tunnel and
find 'arf dozen Of them things that
they don't even take the trouble to
mine. That is, unless they run Ugh In
silver" he picked up chunk of the
ore from the muck pile where it had
been deposited and studied it intently
-"but l don't see any pure silver
sticking out In this stuff"
But 1t must be here somewhere. l
don't know anything about mining
hut don't veins sometimes pinch off
and then show up later on7"
"Sure they do-sometimes But it's
a gamble"
That's all we've had from the be-
ginning, Harry"
sand it's about all we're going to
savo nnu ffmo r1uloma an,,, ofhino hok1e