story runs, the pass being
guarded by the Bear Totem. It is not certain whether the vein from which
this gold had been washed was then known. I think Darwood must have
found it later on and located a claim. He at least took from the mouth
of the pass enough gold to make him a fairly rich man. This he hid away,
awaiting a favorable opportunity to get away with it. Such opportunity
presented itself while his tribe was away on a hunt in the fall for meat
for the winter, and made his escape. After some months of terrible
hardships he succeeded in reaching civilization, fairly staggering under
the weight of the gold he had brought away. He had the gold-madness
badly, you see."

"He was plucky," muttered Butler.

"Yes. It was Darwood's intention to return, at the head of a well-armed
party, properly equipped, and work the pay dirt to its limit. But he
died before he could do so. The hardships of that journey, loaded down
with dust and nuggets, led to his ultimate death. You see what avarice
will do to a fellow. It gets to windward of him every time."

"I'd be willing to stagger under all I could carry and take my chances
on the future," observed Chunky reflectively.

"So would we all," nodded the skipper. "That's the worst of us, our
greed. I am glad I am at sea, where I _can't_ dig. Nothing was done
in the matter of locating and working the claim for some years after the
Doctor's death. Then a grandson, Curtis Darwood, who is now aboard this
boat, found a paper or map or something of the sort, on which was a
description of the Doctor's find. It couldn't have been very definite or
they wouldn't have been so long in locating the place. Of course, the
younger man was fired with the desire to find this wonderful mine. The
lure had him fast and hard. He came up here alone the first time and
prospected all summer, but failed, and late that fall he went back home.
When he returned the three other men, who are his companions now, were
with him. They have been together ever since in their prospecting work.
Dawson is a pioneer prospector who knows the game thoroughly. The
others, who have been up here three years, might now be placed in the
same class, though Dawson is the real miner. One can't help but admire
their pluck and persistence, but I shouldn't want to be caught
interfering with them. When a fellow gets the gold madness he is a
dangerous customer to annoy."

"Have they found the gold?" asked Walter Perkins.

Captain