The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1922-11-02
CHAPTER XVI

stamped U And Harry
Harry was gone
CHATTER XVI
It was as though shades of the past
had come to life again, to repeat In
the Twentieth century q happening III
the Nineteenth. There was only ono
d~ifference--no form Of q dead mar
now lay against the foot wall. to re-
there more than a score OF years un-
TIL 1T should come to light. d pile a
bones In time-shredded clothing. Ana
as he thought Of 1t. Fairchild rernesn-
bered that the earthly remains az
"Sissie' Larsen had lain within almost
q few feet OF the spot where he had
drilled the prospect hole into the foot
wall, there TO discover the ore that
promised bonanza. e.
But this time there was nothing and
no clue to the mystery of Harry's
disappearance. E'airchild suddenly
strengthened with an Idea. Perhaps,
after all, he had been on the other
side of the cave-in and had hurried
on out Of the mine. But I'm that event,
would be not have waited for his re-
turn, to tell him of the accident 7 How
ever. 1t was a chance, and Fairchild
took 1t. Once more he craWIed through
the hole that he had made Id the cave
in and sought the outward world.
Then he hurried down Kentucky
gulch and to the Sampler. But Harry
had not been there. He went through
town, asking questions, striving his
best to shield his anxiety. cloaking his
queries under the cover OF cursory re-
marks. Harry had not been seen. All
last, with the coming Of night, he
turned toward the boarding house, and
on his arrival, Mother Howard. sight
ing his white face, hurried to him.
"Have you seen Harry" he asked.
"No-he hasn't been here" .
1t was the last chance. Clutching
fea at his heart, he told Mother How
ard o. the happenings at the mine,
quickly, as plainly as possible. Then
once more he went forth, to retrace
his steps to the Blue Poppy, to buck
the wind and the fine snow and tho
high, piled drifts, and to go below. But
the surroundings were the same: still
the cavern, with it's small hole where
he had torn through it, still the rag
ged hanging wall where Harry had
fred the last shots of dynamite in his
Investigations, still the trampled bit
of fuse with it's cap attached. Moth
ing more
Back into the black night, with the
winds whistling through the pines.
Back to wandering about through the
hills, hUrrying forward at the sight
of every faint, dark object against
the snow, in the hope that, Harry,
crippled by the cave-in, might have
some way gotten out of the shaft.
But they were only boulders or logs
Or stumps of trees. At midnight,
Fafrchild turned once more toward
town and to the boarding house. But
Harry had not appeared. There waa
only n thing left to do. ts-
This time, when FairchiId LEFT
Mother Howard's, his steps did not
lead him toward Kentucky guIch. In
stead he kept straight on up tho
street, past the little line Of store
buildings and to the courthouse, where
he sought out the sole remaining light
In the bleak, black .building-Sheri6
Bardwell's office. That parsonage was
nodding in his chair, but removed his
feet from the desk and turned drow-
silly as Fairchild entered.
"Well?" he questioned, what's upf'
my partner has disappeared I
want to report to you-and see Il I
can get some. help"
Disappeared? WhoT
"Harry Harkins. He's q big Cor.
nishman, with a large mustache, very
red face, about sixty years old, I
should judge"
"Wait, a minute BardwelFs eyes
narrowed. ~"Ain.t he the fellow / N.
rested in the Blue Poppy mine tho
night of the Old Times dancer"
"Yes."
"And You say he's disappearsd9
When does his trial come upa"
"a week from tomorrow"
"And he's disappeared" A slow
smile came over the other mans lipa.
II don't think 1t will help much To
start any relief expedition for him.
The thing to do is to get d picture
and a general description and send it
around to the police In the various
parts of the country ThatM be the
best way to- find him E. @
sFairchild's feeth grftted, but ho
could n escape the force OF the ar
gument, from the sheriffs standpoint.
For d moment there was silence, then
the miner came closer TO the desk.
sheriff. said he as calmly as pos
sible, Won have a perfect right to
give that SORT OF view. That's your
b~usiness-to suspect people. Howeyer,
some sort OF an accident happened at
the mine this afternoon-a caSe-in 81
IN explosion that tore out the ROOF
Of the t~unnel-and i ann sure that my
partner Is wandering among the hills
VIII Q help me 10 find HIM"
The sheriff wheeled about IN ~
chair and studied d mosnent. Tnen ~
rose. s
Guess i Will he announced.
cant do any harm 20 look Tor HIM,
anyway
Half an hour later. aided by -
deputies who had been s1rzm0ne1
a&A