?" growled Connor. "You know I
haven't a cent to my name. Besides, I haven't any interest."

"You--what!--you haven't any interest!" cried the other. "What do you
mean?"

"I've sold it."

"Sold it! Who to?"

"To Mr. Crawford, two days ago."

"Well, you are a----" Yetmore began; but catching sight of Tom's
glowering face he stopped and substituted, "Well, I'm sorry to hear it."

"Well, I ain't," said Tom, shortly. "If Mr. Crawford makes a fortune out
of it I'll be mighty well pleased. He's treated me 'white,' _he_ has."

From the tone and manner of this remark it was easy to guess that Tom
did not love Mr. Yetmore: he had found him a difficult partner to get
along with, probably.

"I certainly hope he will," said Yetmore, smiling, "for if he does I
shall. Sold it to Mr. Crawford, eh? So that accounts for you two boys
being up here. Got here just in time, didn't you? You'll stay over
to-morrow, of course, and see Tom uncover the vein?"

"Are you proposing to uncover it, Tom?" I asked.

"Yes. It's only four feet down; one shot will do it. You'll stay too, I
suppose, Mr. Yetmore?"

"Certainly," replied the other. But as he said it, I saw a change come
over his face--it was a leathery face, with a large, long nose. Some
idea had occurred to him I was sure, especially when, seeing that I was
looking at him, he dropped his eyes, as though fearing they might betray
him.

Whatever the idea might be, however, I ceased to think of it when Tom
suggested that it was getting late and that we had better adjourn to the
cabin for supper.

Taking our ponies over to the log stable, therefore, we gave them a good
feed of oats, and soon afterwards were ourselves seated before a
steaming hot meal of ham, bread and coffee; after which we spent an hour
talking over the great strike, and then, crawling into the bunks, we
very quickly fell asleep.

Early next morning we walked about half a mile up the mountain to the
scene of the strike, when, having first shoveled away two or three feet
of loose stuff, Tom and his helper set to work, one holding the drill
and the other plying the hammer, drilling a hole a little to one side of
the spot whence the core had come.

They were no more than well started when Yetmore, remarking that he had
forgotten his tobacco, walked back to the cabin to get it--an action to
which Joe and I, being interested in the drilling, paid little
attention. It was only when Connor, turning to select a fres