ith me; for the way out of Crooked Arm Gulch is not a road over which a
man more heavily burdened would care to venture. I had no food with me,
no horses; and I must hurry back, where food, on which to live, and
horses, on which to carry my supplies to the cave and the gold away from
it, could be bought. I--"

"And you found this hunk of gold on the floor of that cave?" Thure who
had been lifting and examining the nugget with widening eyes, could
control his excitement no longer. "And you say that there are thousands
of other nuggets where this came from?"

"Yes, yes! I have been telling you God's truth," and the face grew white
and drawn with pain again. "But, don't interrupt me. I--I have only a
few minutes left. The nugget, the gold, all is yours. I--I bequeath it
to you with my dying breath. The map--the skin map--will tell you where
to find it--North--northeast from Hangtown--a good five days' tramp--No
miners there yet--Deep--steep canyon--Lot's Canyon--Tall white pillar of
rock standing near Crooked Arm Gulch--Must look--sharp--to find gulch
opening--Blocked by great--rocks--Big tree--Climb to third limb.
Remember--climb to third limb--third limb--third--My God!--My God!" and
both hands clutched madly at his throat.

His breath was now coming in quick heaving gasps; and only by a supreme
effort of will was he able longer to command his wavering reason.

"Quick--quick," he gasped, his voice coming in a hoarse whisper. "Bend
your heads close. Beware of the two men who robbed and murdered me--I--I
told--them of the cave of gold; but I did--did not tell them where it
is; and--and they--can--cannot find it without the skin map--They--they
murdered me for--for that map; but they did not get it--It--it was not
in--in my money-belt, as they thought. Guard that map--They--they would
kill--kill you to get it. One is a huge red-haired man with a broken
nose--The other is--is small, with pock-marked face--Beware--beware
pock--pock-marked face and--and broken nose--I--God--I--"

Again he clutched violently at his throat; and then a great wondering
look of awe came into his eyes, now staring straight up into the blue
skies, and his form stiffened suddenly.

Thure and Bud could endure the dreadful sight no longer and turned their
horrified eyes away; and, when, a couple of minutes later, they again
looked on the face of the miner, he was dead, with a smile on his grim
lips and a look of peace on his face, as if the coming