he way up. The letter's right here."

He drew a white envelope from his coat pocket, opening it slowly. "This
is a real proposition, son," he went on in a sobered voice. "I'm mighty
glad that I've got something, at least worth lookin' into, to let you in
on. I only wish it was more."

"Why should you want to let me in on anything?" Ben asked clearly.

The direct question received only a stare of blank amazement from Ezram.
"Why should I--" he repeated, seemingly surprised out of his life by the
question. "Shucks, and quit interruptin' me. But I'll say right here
I've got my own ideas, if you must know. Didn't I hear that while you
was rampin' around the underworld, you showed yourself a mighty good
fighter? Well, there's likely to be some fightin' where we're goin', and
I want some one to do it besides myself. If there ain't fightin', at
least they'll be worklots of work. Maybe I'm gettin' a little too old
to do much of it. I want a buddy--some one who will go halfway with me."

"Therefore I suppose you go to the 'pen' to find one," Ben commented,
wholly unconvinced.

"I'm going to make this proposition good," Ezram went on as if he had
not heard, "probably a fourth--maybe even a third--to you. And I ain't
such a fool as I look, neither. I know the chances of comin' out right
on it are twice as good if somebody young and strong, and who can fight,
is in on it with me. Listen to this."

Opening the letter, he read laboriously:

Snowy Gulch, B.C.

DEAR BROTHER EZRA:--

I rite this with what I think is my dying hand. It's my will too.
I'm at the hotel at Snowy Gulch--and not much more time. You know
I've been hunting a claim. Well, I found it--rich a pocket as any
body want, worth a quarter million any how and in a district where
the Snowy Gulch folks believe there ain't a grain of gold.

It's yours. Come up and get it quick before some thieves up hear
jump it. Lookout for Jeffery Neilson and his gang they seen some of
my dust. I'm too sick to go to recorder in Bradleyburg and record
claim. Get copy of this letter to carry, put this in some safe
place. The only condition is you take good care of Fenris, the pet I
raised from a pup. You'll find him and my gun at Steve Morris's.

I felt myself going and just did get hear. You get supplies horses
at Snowy Gulch go up Poor Man Creek through Spruce Pass over to Yuga
River. Go down Yuga River past first