I had heard all I wanted to out of Uncle Ezra. It was plain that he
didn't think there was anything in that map. Well, as Elam said, it was
all in a lifetime. My time wasn't worth anything to me, for I had men to
do the work, and if I made a botch of it, if there wasn't anything to be
made by digging up that gully, there was one thing out of the way. Elam
was bound to become a cattle-herder in case this thing failed. He was
determined to go to Texas, for he couldn't live there and have that
nugget thrown at him by every man he met, and I would go with him. Uncle
Ezra had often made offers for my cattle, intending to leave
sheep-herding on account of the wolves, and invest all his extra money
in steers, and if this thing turned out a failure he could have them and
welcome. I would be as deep in the mud as Elam was, and I didn't care to
have the thing thrown up at me all the time. Texas was the land of
promise with us fellows, any way. The fellows there had got into the way
of driving cattle to northern markets and selling them, and in that way
we could at least see our friends once every year. So I didn't care what
Uncle Ezra said about it.

In about an hour Elam came back with the stockman of whom he had been in
search. His name was Sandy; I never heard him called by any other name,
and if his pluck only equalled his red hair and whiskers he certainly
had lots of it. Of course we had to go through with the Red Ghost and
Tom's being lost, the discovery of the map and Elam's escape from the
Indians, but Sandy never said a word about it. He just sat on his
camp-stool with his elbows resting on his knees, and looked up at Uncle
Ezra. When the latter got through with his story he simply said:

"Where's the letter?"

Of course it was arranged that Sandy should go with us as far as the
canyon that led to the springs, and beyond that he was to take care of
himself. With his letter tucked away in his pocket, he shook Ben by the
hand, and told him that his father would receive what he had written by
noon the next day; and then we all mounted and rode off. Tom had been
supplied with a pair of boots to take the place of his moccasons, and
rode a horse that belonged to Uncle Ezra. We had two mules with us, Elam
leading the one and I the other, which carried our supplies and also our
digging tools; for we intended to dig as no people had ever dug before
for that nugget.

"I hope you will get it, boys," said Sandy, as he lifted hi