wealth of one kind or another by a raid on
the coast. If the Chukche was telling the truth, the stay of the white men
could be prolonged by only a few days at the most.

At the same time, the mining crew had reported indications that they would
reach the mother-lode in No. 2 within three days.

"We'll chance it that long," Johnny said, with an air of determination, as
he rose and left the mine.

He was crossing a ridge of snow, when, as once before, his eye was caught
by a spinning black object.

"Another phonograph record! Another warning!" he exclaimed. "Wonder what
it will be this time?"

Johnny whistled thoughtfully to himself, as he strode forward to pick up
the little black messenger.

CHAPTER VI

IN THE GRIP OF TERROR

"Oh, there's honey in the rock, my brother,
There's honey in the rock for you."

Johnny was listening to the second phonographic record. In high-pitched
falsetto note the singer had repeated these words over and over. That was
all. If the other message had seemed void of meaning, this one appeared
doubly so, for here there were no improvised lines, only these two taken
from a threadbare religious song. What could it mean?

Johnny did not puzzle over this long. There were too many other important
matters to attend to. Dangers confronted them. He did not fear the natives
for the present. But the Bolsheviki? If they were coming this way, then
here indeed was peril enough.

"Dave," he said, after a long period of musing by the fire, "I'm going to
take the team of gray wolf-hounds with a two-day supply of food and go see
what all this talk about Russians means. I won't be in danger of being
followed by natives, for I shall start long before sunrise. I'd send the
boys with the airplane, but the sight of the machine would give us dead
away. I can probably obtain the information we need concerning their
numbers, rate of travel and so on, and not be seen at all.

"I shall leave matters in your hands. Push the mining in No. 2 to the
utmost and get the richest of the mother-lode panned as speedily as
possible. A hundredweight of gold would mean much. Should I fail to
return, and should conditions seem to warrant the abandoning of camp, send
the plane out to look for me. If they fail to locate me, take no chances.
Clear the ice with the schooner as quickly as you can. I shall be all
right. I came to this place from Vladivostok once by reindeer, and went
nor