The Daily Alaska empire., 1931-08-03

ONST IL. ne IOdI tQ Witll iduSApVS he danced a wild jig, the threw his hat in the air; he was made with triumphant joy.
 And all the time Pierre sat un- moved in watchful readiness.
 Come here, boy" cried the man; come here and see!"
 I'm not interested" Pierre re- turned coldly, still thinking the mans action a trick to entice him ] within reach Go on digging!"
 For minute the man looked at Pierre dumbly-he had forgotten the situation. Then he roared with laughter. "I'll say I'll go on. You poor fish! I've struck the lost Mother Mountain lodel"
 You're wasting your energy" :" said Pierre. Finish the grave 50 we can be on our way"
 The man gazed at Pierre as if dumbfounded that any one could be so stupid Then he said sarcasti- cally, T suppose you know gold when you see it" and tossed a piece of the white quartz at the young mans feet.
 Pierre did not even pick up the piece of quartz. T tell you l am not interested he said. Go on with your digging
 Do you realize what this strike means?" cried the other. Do you realize that there's millions in this vein, the richest ever discovered? Are you human or are you blood less dummy"
 T used to feel things said Pierre. T guess I'm dead-I'm sure that something in me is dead The other was quick to take ad- vantage of what seemed to be a change in Pierres mood T think I know what you mean, boy" he said in a tone of kindly sympathy. But listen, with a hundredth part of the wealth that's right here un- der our feet you could-you could build the most beautiful theater in the world to the memory of your mother.
 Pierre started. What do you know of my mother?"
 T know what Bruce told me" the other answered gently. "She was Harriet Noel I remember sec ing her on the stage once. Didn't she used to stand in the wings while you were acting your kiddie parts?"
 The unexpected assault upon his emotions threw Pierre momentariH off his guard The other, seeing the opening, moved to make the most of it. But Pierre leaped to his feet, on guard again. The man stopped, but smiled as one who, knowing that the cards in his hand insure the final outcome of of the game, might smile at his opponents success in taking one i trick.
 ITO hell with your gold!" cried Pierre with passionate earnestness. Look what your talk of gold has done for poor Bruce there! Look what it has done for Martin Bevis Look what it has done for Annl Look what 1t has done for me! i Anything that I could do with this gold as memorial to my mother would be an insult to her"
 "All right" returned the other calmly. But I'm not goirg to turn my back on these millions. I'm go- ing to put up location notice If you kill me while I'm doing it."
 As he spoke he took from his pocketboook a printed form and proceeded to fill it while Pierre disconnected by the mans confident manner and by the feeling that there was something back of il which he did not understand watched him.
 "Therep he said when he ha6 finished writing. T have located this lode in your name, Bruce's and mine. I've put in Bruce SC that his wife could have his share You and Ann together own con troll take only one-third.
 Suppose you succeed in getting me to Red Butte and turning me over to the sheriff? That wonf bring Bruce back or do away witf the fact that he was a thief anC a murderer. say that for Ann. sake we ought never to let hel know how her husband died, ol that he was guilty of that banl crime and was planning to let hei
 father suffer for it. We will report
 that you and Bruce and I were to.
 gether when we struck this lode
 and that when we were on oul way back Bruce wandered off tht ] trail into Skeleton Sink. We'll say
 1t was impossible for us to go aft. CT him because we were so shor
 of water that we barely made i to the Spring ourselves. That story