The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1929-09-13

gong TO work FOR all we're worth
and then some. Are you there. boys,
are you there?"
"We are" we shouted with one ac-
cord.
There was no time to lose. Every
hour for US meant so much more of
thar precious pay-dirt that lay under
the frozen surface. We ran up little
cabin and banked II nearly TO the low
caves with snow. BY and by more fell
ON the roof to the depth Of three feet.
so that tile place seemed like huge
white humm0ck. In this little box of
a home we were to put in many weary
months.
Not that the time seemed long to
us; we were too busy for that In
deed. often we wished II were twice
as long We didn't talk much in those
days. We just worked. worked.
worked, and when we did talk 1t was
Of our work. our ceaseless work.
Neither cold nor fatigue could keep
us away from the shaft and the drift
We had gone down to bedrock, ana
were tunneling In to meet the hole
the half-breed had covered up. So
far we had found nothing.
We were working two men to
shaft. burning our ground overnight
Our meals were hurriedly cooked and
bolted. We grudged every moment Of
our respite from toll Surely we would
strike II soon.
Then, one afternoon, the Something
happened. II was Jim who was the
chosen one. About three o'clock he
signaled to be hoisted up, and when
he appeared he was carrying a pan
of dirt. "Call the Others" he said.
All together In the little cabin we
stood round, while Jim washed out the
pan in snow water melted over our
stove. We could see CLEANS Of yellow
in the muddy water. We had got the
thing, the big thing, at last.
"Hurry. Jim," said. cor I'll die OF
suspense"
Patiently he went on. There II was
at last in the bottom of the pan. gilt
tering. cleaning gold. fine gold. coarse
gold, nuggety gold.
"Now. boys, you can whoop 1t up"
said Jim quietly; "for there's many
and many pan like ii down there In
the drift"
Solemnly we shook hands all round
II was the night of the discovery
NH Drndinol do nd6rncc
Look here, boys; do you know what
this means? 1t means victory; II
means freedom, happiness, the things
we want. the life we love. We're go
ing to get every cent of it, boys.
There's q little over three months to
do 1t In, leaving about a month TO
make sluice-boxes and clean up the
dirt We've got to work like men at
a burning barn. For my part. I'm
willing to do stunts that will make
my previous record look like a
plugged dime. | guess you boys all
feel the same way"
"You bet we do"
"Nuf sed; let's get busy"
So. once more. with redOubled en-.
ergy. we resumed our tense, unre-
hitting round of toll It proved a
most erratic and puzzling paystreak
-one day rich beyond our dreams,
another too poor to pay for the pam
ming. We swung on pendulum Of
hope and despair.
Looking back. there will always
seem to me something weird and in
comprehensive in those twilight
days, an unreality, yagueness like
some dreary, feverish dream. For
three months did not see my face
in q mirror. Not that wanted to.
but | mention this just to show how
little we thought of ourselves.
Ii was mid-March when we finished
working out our ground. We had
done well. not so well, perhaps. as
we had hoped for, but still magnifi-
Gently well. There were our two
dumps, pyramids of gold-permeated
dirt at whose value we could only
guess. We had wrested our treasure
from the icy grip of the eternal frost.
Now ii remained-and Oh. the sweet
ness of ito CLEAN the harvest of our
toll.
We were working at the mouth of
a creek down which ran a copious
little stream all through the spring.
time. We tapped 1t some distance
above us, and ran part of 1t along
our line of sluice-boxes | remember
how | threw in the first shovelful of
dirt, and how good ii was to- see the
bright stream discolor as our friend
the water began his magic work For
three days we shOveled in, and on the
fourth we made cleanup.
When we ran off the water there
were some of the boxes almost full
of the yellow metal, wet and shiny,
glOriously agleam in the morning light.
Day after day we went on shovel
ing in. and about twice week we
made cleanup. The month of MAY
was half over when we had only a
third of our dirt run through the
boxes. We were terribly afraid of
the water railing US. and worked
harder than ever
One afternoon | was working on
the dump, intent on shoveling In as
much dirt as possible before supper.
when, on looking up. who should greet
me but LOcasto. He held out his
great hand to me, and, as | had no
desire TO antagonize him. gave him
my own.
"Tve just been visiting some of nv
creek properties" he said. 81 heard
you fellows had made good strike,
and ! thought I'd come down and con
graduate you. II is pretty good.
isn't itP
Yes" | said: mot quite so good
as we expected. but wen all have
tidy sum- faf