The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1922-09-06
CHAPTER XIV

Joined the parade. AS 1t was, he
stood far TO one side, a silent, grim
figure. watching the miners and towns
about in their happiness, calling to
him the news that he did not want to
hears
The Silver Queen had "hit." The
faith of Squint Rodaine. maintained
through the years, had shown his
perSpicacity. It was there; he al
ways had said it was there, and now
the strike had been made at last, lead
silver ore. running as high as two hun
dred dollars a ton. 1t meant every
thing for Ohadf 1t meant that mining
would boom now, that soon the hills
would be clustered with prospectors,
and that the little town would blossom
as a result of possessing one Of the
rich silver mines Of the state.
Fairchild felt cheap. He felt de-
feated. He felt small and mean not
to be able to join the celebration.
Squint and Maurice Rodaine possessed
the Silver Queen; that they, of all
persons. should be the fortunate ones
was bitter and hard to accept Why
should they, of every one In Ohadi, be
the lucky men to find silver bonanza,
that they might f1aunt 1t before him,
that they might increase their stand
ing In the community, that they might
raise themselves to pedestal in the
eyes of every one and thereby rally
about them the whole town In any
difficulty which might arise in the flu
ture? 1t hurt Fairchild, 1t sickened
him. He saw now that his enemies
were more powerful than ever. And
for moment he almost wished that
he had Yielded down there in Denver.
that he had not given the ultimatum to
the greasy Barnham, that he had &C
cepted the offer made him-and gone
on, out of the fight forever.
Anita, What would it mean to her?
Already engaged, already having given
her answer to Maurice Rodaine, this
now would be an added incentive for
her to follow her promise. 1t would
mean possibility Of further argument
with her father, already too weak
from illness to find the means of
evading the insidi0us pleas of the two
men who had taken his money and
made him virtually their slave. The
future looked black for Robert Fair
child. Slowly he walked past the
happy, shouting crowd and turned up
Kentucky gulch toward the Inflated
Blue Poppy.
The tunnel opening looked more for
lorn than ever when he sighted it, a
bleak, staring, single eye which
seemed to brood over it's own misfor
tunes, a dead hopeless thing which
never had brought anything but disap-
pOintment. A choking came into Fair
child's throat. He entered the tunnel
slowly, ploddingly; with tagging mus
cles he hauled up the bucket which
told of Harry's presence below, then
slowly lowered himself into the re-
cesses of the shaft and to the drift
leading TO the stope, where only few
days before they had found that
gaunt. whitened, haunting thing which
had brought with 1t a new misfortune
light d11u Xix
sound of a single jack hammering on
the end of drfn could be heard. Fair
child called and went forward, to find
Harry, grimy and sweating, pounding
away at a narrow streak of black for.
nation which conferred In the top OF
the stope.
It's the vein," he announced. after
he had greeted Fairchild, land It don't
look like it's going to amount te
much !"
MOP
Harry withdrew the drill from ths
hole he was making and mopped hi
forehead.
"It amt a world-beater," came dis
consolately. 81 doubt whether it'll rur
more'n twenty dollars to the ton. thu
wye smelling prices ave gone up
And there amt much money In that
What 'appened In DenverT"
Another frame-up by the Rodaines
to get the mine away from US It wal
a lawyer. He stalled that the offei
had been made to US by Miss Rich
mond"
"How muchT
1.-TWO hundred thousand dollars and
us TO get out Of all the troubles we
are in"
"And you took 1t, Of courseT
81 did notI'
"NoT Harry mopped his forehead
again "Wen, maybe you're right.
Maybe you're wrong. But whatevel
Wedding invitations and announce
ments in ten different styles at TIL