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20 - In the Heart of the Rockies by G A Henty · In the Heart of the Rockies

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Speaker 1: The box recording is in the public domain. Read by
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Speaker 1: Alan Kammer, Chapter nineteen, a Fortune. On their return to
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Speaker 1: Fort Bridger, Harry and his companions pounded up the courts
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Speaker 1: that had been left there and found that its average
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Speaker 1: equaled that of the piece they had tried at the mine.
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Speaker 1: The gold was packed in a box and sent to
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Speaker 1: Pete Hoskins. A letter came back in returned from him,
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Speaker 1: saying that five of his friends had put in five
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Speaker 1: thousand dollars each, and that he should start with the
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Speaker 1: stores and machinery as soon as the track was clear
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Speaker 1: of snow. The season was an early one, and in
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Speaker 1: the middle of April he arrived with four large wagons
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Speaker 1: and twenty active looking young immigrants and four miners, all
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Speaker 1: of whom were known to Harry. There was a good
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Speaker 1: deal of talk at Bridger about the expedition, and many
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Speaker 1: offered to take service in it. But when Harry said
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Speaker 1: that the load they were going to prospect was in
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Speaker 1: the heart of the ute country, and that he himself
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Speaker 1: had been twice attacked by the Redskins, the eagerness to
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Speaker 1: accompany him abated considerably. The fact, too, that it was
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Speaker 1: a vein that would have to be worked by machinery,
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Speaker 1: was in itself sufficient to deter solitary miners from trying
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Speaker 1: to follow it up. Scarce a miner but had located
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Speaker 1: a score of claims in different parts of the country,
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Speaker 1: and these being absolutely useless to them without capital to
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Speaker 1: work them with, they would gladly have disposed of them
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Speaker 1: for a few dollars. It was not therefore worth while
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Speaker 1: to risk a perilous journey merely on the chance of
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Speaker 1: being able to find another vein in the neighborhood of
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Speaker 1: that worked by Harry and the men who had gone
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Speaker 1: into it with him. There was, however, some surprise among
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Speaker 1: the old hands when Pete Hoskins arrived with the wagons.
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Speaker 1: What have you cut the saloon, Pete? And are you
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Speaker 1: going in for mining again? One of them said, as
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Speaker 1: he alighted from his horse. Pete gave a portentous wink.
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Speaker 1: I guess I know what I'm doing, Joel Radley. I
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Speaker 1: am looking after the interests of a few speculators at
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Speaker 1: Denver who have an idea that they are going to
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Speaker 1: get rich. All of a sudden, I was sick of
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Speaker 1: the city, and it just suited me to take a
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Speaker 1: run and to get out of the place for a
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Speaker 1: few months. Do you think it is rich, Pete, One
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Speaker 1: can never say. Hoskins replied with a grin. We are
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Speaker 1: not greenhorns, any of us, and we know there is
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Speaker 1: no saying how things are going to turn out straight.
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Speaker 1: Harry has had a run of bad luck for the
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Speaker 1: last two years, and I am glad to give him
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Speaker 1: a shoulder up. You know, I reckon he won't come
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Speaker 1: badly off anyway. It turns out it was not much,
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Speaker 1: but it was quite enough to send a rumor round
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Speaker 1: the fort that Pete Hoskins had been puffing up a
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Speaker 1: wildcat mine in Denver for the sake of getting straight.
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Speaker 1: Harry appointed boss of the expedition to test it. Everything
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Speaker 1: was ready at Bridger, and they delayed but twenty four hours. There.
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Speaker 1: The teams had arrived from Salt Lake City with the
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Speaker 1: stores a week before, and the eight wagons set off together. Pete,
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Speaker 1: the three partners, the two Indians, and the four miners
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Speaker 1: were all mounted. There were eight other horses ridden by
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Speaker 1: as many of the young fellows Pete had brought with him.
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Speaker 1: The rest walked on foot. They marched directly for the mine,
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Speaker 1: as with such a force it was not necessary to
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Speaker 1: make a detour over the bad lands. At the first
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Speaker 1: halting place, some long cases Pete had brought with him
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Speaker 1: were opened, and a musket handed to each of the emigrants,
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Speaker 1: together with a packet of ammunition. Now, Pete said, if
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Speaker 1: the utes meddle with us, we will give them fits.
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Speaker 1: But I reckon they will know better than to interfere
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Speaker 1: with us. The rate of progress with the heavy wagons
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Speaker 1: was necessarily very much slower than that at which the
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Speaker 1: party had traveled on their previous journey, and it was
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Speaker 1: not until the afternoon of the eighth day after starting
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Speaker 1: that they came down into the valley. A halt was
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Speaker 1: made at the former camping place in the grove of trees,
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Speaker 1: and the next morning Pete and the miners went up
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Speaker 1: with Harry and his friends to choose a spot for
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Speaker 1: the fort and to examine the load. As soon as
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Speaker 1: the earth was scraped away from the spot from which
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Speaker 1: the rock had been taken, exclamations of astonishment broke from
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Speaker 1: the miners. They had been told by Pete that Harry
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Speaker 1: had struck it rich, but all were astonished at the
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Speaker 1: numerous particles and flakes of gold that protruded from the rock.
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Speaker 1: Pete had forwarded early in the spring to Harry the
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Speaker 1: list of the claimants to the mine and the latter,
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Speaker 1: and Tom had ridden over to Salt Lake City a
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Speaker 1: few days before the wagons came up from there to
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Speaker 1: register the claims at the mining office, and the first
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Speaker 1: step was to stake out these claims upon the load.
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Speaker 1: It doesn't run like this far, Harry said to the miners,
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Speaker 1: and I reckon that beyond our ground, it doesn't run
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Speaker 1: above two ounces to the ton, So I don't think
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Speaker 1: it's worth while you're taking up claims beyond. Of course,
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Speaker 1: you can do so if you like, and we will
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Speaker 1: allow you an hour off every few days during the
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Speaker 1: season to work your claims enough to keep possession, and
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Speaker 1: of an evening you can do a bit of washing
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Speaker 1: down below. You will find a good pay dirt everywhere,
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Speaker 1: at least we did as far as we tried it.
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Speaker 1: They now fixed on the site for the fort. It
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Speaker 1: was upon the top of the bank, some twenty yards
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Speaker 1: above the load, and it was settled there should be
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Speaker 1: a strong double palisade running down from it to the stream,
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Speaker 1: so that in case of siege they could fetch water
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Speaker 1: without being exposed. To the bullets of an enemy taking
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Speaker 1: posts higher up the creek. Among the men from Denver
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Speaker 1: were two or three experienced carpenters and a blacksmith, for
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Speaker 1: whose use of portable fords had been brought in the wagons.
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Speaker 1: The party returned to breakfast, and as soon as this
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Speaker 1: was over, the teams were put in and the wagons
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Speaker 1: were brought up and unloaded, the stores being protected from
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Speaker 1: wet by the canvas that formed the tilts. Some of
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Speaker 1: the men accustomed to the use of the axe had
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Speaker 1: been left in the valley to fell trees, and as
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Speaker 1: soon as the wagons were unloaded they were sent down
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Speaker 1: to bring up timber. All worked hard, and at the
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Speaker 1: end of the week a log hut fifty feet long
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Speaker 1: and twenty five feet wide had been erected. The walls
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Speaker 1: were five feet high, and the roof was formed by
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Speaker 1: the trunks of young trees squared and laid side by side.
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Speaker 1: As rain fell seldom in that region, it was not
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Speaker 1: considered necessary to place shingles over them, as this could,
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Speaker 1: in case of need, be done later on. The door
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Speaker 1: opened out into the passage between the palisades down to
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Speaker 1: the water, and the windows were all placed on the
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Speaker 1: same side, loop holes being cut at short intervals round
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Speaker 1: the other three sides. Another fortnight completed the preparations for work.
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Speaker 1: The stamps were erected with the water wheel to work them.
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Speaker 1: The stream dammed a hundred yards up and a leak
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Speaker 1: constructed to bring the water down to the wheel. The
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Speaker 1: wagons were formed up in a square. In this the
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Speaker 1: horses were shut every night, four of the men by turns,
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Speaker 1: keeping guard there. During the last few days the miners
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Speaker 1: had been at work blasting the quartz, and as as
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Speaker 1: soon as the stamps and machinery were in position, they
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Speaker 1: were ready to begin. The men were all told off
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Speaker 1: to various duties, some to carry the rock down to
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Speaker 1: the stamps, others to break it up into convenient sizes.
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Speaker 1: Two men fed the stamps, others attended to the concentrator
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Speaker 1: and blankets, supervised by Harry. It was the duty of
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Speaker 1: some to take the horses down to the valley and
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Speaker 1: guard them while they were feeding, and bring them back
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Speaker 1: at night. Two men were to bake and cook beate
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Speaker 1: Hoskings taking this special department under his care. Cherry worked
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Speaker 1: with the miners, and Tom was his uncle's assistant. The
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Speaker 1: stamps were to be kept going night and day, and
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Speaker 1: each could crush a ton in twenty four hours. To
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Speaker 1: their great satisfaction. Each of the men was allowed one
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Speaker 1: day a week to himself, during which he could prospect
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Speaker 1: for other loads or wash gravel as he pleased. The
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Speaker 1: old cradle was found where it had been left, and
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Speaker 1: as five of the men were off duty each day,
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Speaker 1: they formed themselves in to gangs and worked the cradle
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Speaker 1: by turns, adding very considerably to the liberal pay they received.
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Speaker 1: The two Indians hunted and seldom returned without game of
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Speaker 1: some sort or other. As the quicksilver in the concentrator
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Speaker 1: was squeezed by Harry or Tom, and the blankets washed
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Speaker 1: by them, none but themselves knew what the returns were.
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Speaker 1: They and their partners were, however, more than satisfied with
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Speaker 1: the result, for although the load was found to pinch
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Speaker 1: in as they got lower, it maintained for the first
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Speaker 1: six weeks the extraordinary average of that they had first crushed.
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Speaker 1: At the end of that time, the Indians reported that
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Speaker 1: they had seen traces of the Utes having visited the valley.
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Speaker 1: The number of men who went down with the horses
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Speaker 1: was at once doubled one or other of the Indians
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Speaker 1: staying down with them, preceding them in the morning by
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Speaker 1: half an hour to see that the valley was clear.
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Speaker 1: A week later, the horses were seen coming back again
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Speaker 1: a quarter of an hour after they had started. The
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Speaker 1: men caught up their guns, which were always placed handy
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Speaker 1: for them while at work, and ran out to meet
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Speaker 1: the returning party. What is it, hunting dog? A large
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Speaker 1: war party? The Indian replied, three hundred or more. The
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Speaker 1: horses were driven into the enclosure. Half the men took
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Speaker 1: their places among the wagons, and the others clustered around
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Speaker 1: the hut, prepared to enter it as soon as the
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Speaker 1: Indians made their appearance. The partners had already arranged what
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Speaker 1: course to take if the Indians should come down on them,
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Speaker 1: and were, for all reasons most anxious that hostilities should,
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Speaker 1: if possible, be avoided. Presently, the Indians were seen approaching
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Speaker 1: at a gallop. As soon as they caught sight of
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Speaker 1: the log house and the enclosure of wagons, they reined
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Speaker 1: in their horses. The men had been ordered to show themselves,
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Speaker 1: and the sight of some forty white men, all armed
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Speaker 1: with rifles, brought the Indians to a dead standstill. Pete
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Speaker 1: Hoskings went forward a little and waved a white cloth,
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Speaker 1: and then Harry and the chief, leaving their rifles behind them,
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Speaker 1: stepped up to his side and held their arms along.
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Speaker 1: There was a short consultation among the Indians, and then
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Speaker 1: two chiefs dismounted, handed their rifles and spears to their men,
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Speaker 1: and in turn advanced. Harry and leaping horse went forward
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Speaker 1: until they met the chiefs half way between the two parties.
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Speaker 1: Harry began the conversation, Why do my red brothers wish
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Speaker 1: to fight? He asked. We are doing them no harm.
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Speaker 1: We are digging in the hills. Why should we not
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Speaker 1: be friends. The white men killed many of the Utes
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Speaker 1: when they were here last year. One of the chiefs replied,
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Speaker 1: why do they come upon the ute's land? It was
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Speaker 1: the fault of the utes, Harry said. The white men
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Speaker 1: wished only to work in peace. The Utes tried to
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Speaker 1: take their scalps, and the white men were forced, against
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Speaker 1: their will to fight. No one can be blamed for
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Speaker 1: defending his life. We wish for peace, but as the
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Speaker 1: Utes can see we, we are quite ready to defend ourselves.
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Speaker 1: There are forty rifles loaded and ready, and as you
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Speaker 1: may see a strong house. We have no fear. Last
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Speaker 1: time we were but few, but the Utes found that
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Speaker 1: it was not easy to kill us. Now we are many,
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Speaker 1: and how many of the Utes would die before they
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Speaker 1: took our scalps. Nevertheless, we wish for peace. The land
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Speaker 1: is the land of the Utes, and although we are
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Speaker 1: strong and could hold it if we chose, we do
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Speaker 1: not wish to take it by force from our red brothers.
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Speaker 1: We are ready to pay for the right to live
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Speaker 1: and work quietly. Let the chiefs go back to their
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Speaker 1: friends and talk together and say how many blankets, and
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Speaker 1: how many guns, and what weight of ammunition and tobacco
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Speaker 1: they will be content with. Then, if they do not
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Speaker 1: ask too much, the white men will, so long as
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Speaker 1: they remain here, pay that amount each year in order
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Speaker 1: that they may live in peace with the Utes. The
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Speaker 1: two Indians glanced at each other. My white brother is wise,
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Speaker 1: One said, why did he not tell the youths so
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Speaker 1: last year? Because you never gave us time. Chief, If
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Speaker 1: you had done so, we would have said the same
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Speaker 1: to you then, and your young men would be with
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Speaker 1: you now. But you came his enemies upon us. And
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Speaker 1: when the rifle is speaking, the voice is silent. I
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Speaker 1: will speak with my braves, the chief said gravely, and
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Speaker 1: turning round, they walked back to their party, while Harry
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Speaker 1: and the chief returned to the huts. What do yo think, Chief,
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Speaker 1: will it be peace? Leaping Horse nodded. Too many rifles,
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Speaker 1: he said. The youths will know they could never take
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Speaker 1: block house. It was nearly two hours before the two
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Speaker 1: Youtes advanced as before, and Harry and the Seneca went
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Speaker 1: out to meet them. My white brother's words are good,
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Speaker 1: the chief said. The youths are great warriors, but they
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Speaker 1: do not wish to fight against the white men who
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Speaker 1: come as friends. The chiefs have talked with their braves,
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Speaker 1: and the hatchets will be buried. This is what the
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Speaker 1: Utes asked, that the white men who have taken their
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Speaker 1: land shall pay them. Harry had arranged that the chief,
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Speaker 1: who spoke the Ute language more perfectly than he did,
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Speaker 1: should take charge of the bargaining. On the list being given,
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Speaker 1: Leaping Horse assumed an expression of stolid indifference. The land
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Speaker 1: must be very dear in the Ute country, he said,
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Speaker 1: Do my brothers suppose that the white men are mad
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Speaker 1: that they ask such terms? Peace would be too dear
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Speaker 1: if bought at such a price. They are willing to
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Speaker 1: deal liberally with the Utes, but not to give as
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Speaker 1: much as would buy twenty hills. They will give this,
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Speaker 1: and he enumerated a list of articles amounting to about
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Speaker 1: one quarter of the Indian's demands. The bargaining now went
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Speaker 1: on in earnest and finally it was settled that a
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Speaker 1: quantity of goods amounting to about half the Indian's first demand,
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Speaker 1: should be accepted, and both parties returned to their friends
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Speaker 1: well satisfied. A certain amount of goods had been brought
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Speaker 1: out with a view to such a contingency, and half
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Speaker 1: the amount claimed was handed over to the Utes. They
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Speaker 1: had indeed more than enough to satisfy the demands, but
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Speaker 1: Leaping Horse had suggested to Harry that only a portion
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Speaker 1: should be given, as otherwise the Indians might suppose that
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Speaker 1: their wealth was boundless. It would be better to promise
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Speaker 1: to deliver the rest in three months time. A dozen
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Speaker 1: of the principal men of the Utes came over, the
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Speaker 1: goods were examined and accepted, The calumet of peace was smoked,
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Speaker 1: and a solemn covenant of friendship entered into and by
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Speaker 1: the next morning the Indians had disappeared. One end of
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Speaker 1: the hut had been partitioned off for the use of
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Speaker 1: the leaders of the party, and the gold obtained each
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Speaker 1: day was carried by them there and deposited in a
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Speaker 1: strong iron box, of which several had been brought by
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Speaker 1: Pete Hoskings from Denver. The day after the Indians left,
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Speaker 1: a wagon was sent off under the escort of eight
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Speaker 1: mounted laborers to Bridger, and this continued to make the
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Speaker 1: journey backward and forward regularly, with the boxes of gold,
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Speaker 1: Jerry and Pete Hoskins taking it by turns to command
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Speaker 1: the escort. Harry and Pete had had a talk with
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Speaker 1: the officer in command at Bridger on the evening before
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Speaker 1: they had started on the expedition. You think you are
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Speaker 1: going to send in a large quantity of gold, the
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Speaker 1: officer asked. If the mines are such as we think major,
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Speaker 1: we may be sending down two or three hundredweight a month.
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Speaker 1: Of course, the gold will be perfectly safe as long
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Speaker 1: as it is in the fort, but if it gets
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Speaker 1: known how much there is, you will want a strong
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Speaker 1: convoy to take it across to the railway, and it
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Speaker 1: would not be safe even then. Of course, the bulk
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Speaker 1: is nothing, I should say. At any rate, you had
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Speaker 1: better get it in here with as little fuss as possible.
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Speaker 1: If you will keep it here for a while, Pete said,
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Speaker 1: we will think over afterwards how it is to be
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Speaker 1: taken further. The officer nodded. It mayn't turn out as
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Speaker 1: difficult a business as you think, he said, with a smile.
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Speaker 1: You were both old hands enough to know that mines
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Speaker 1: very seldom turn out as rich as they are expected
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Speaker 1: to do. We both know that, Pete Hoskins agreed. I
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Speaker 1: dun'no as I ever did hear of a mind that
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Speaker 1: turned out anything nigh as good as it ought to
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Speaker 1: have done from samples. But I reckon that this is
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Speaker 1: going to be an exception. Within a few miles of
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Speaker 1: the fort, the escort always placed their rifles in the
16:28
Speaker 1: wagon and rode on some distance ahead of it, only
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Speaker 1: one or two with their leader remaining by it. The boxes,
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Speaker 1: which were of no great size, were covered by a
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Speaker 1: sack or two thrown down in the corner of the wagon,
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Speaker 1: and on its arrival in the fort, it was taken
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Speaker 1: first to the store, where a considerable quantity of provisions, flour, molasses,
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Speaker 1: bacon tea and sugar, currants and raisins and other articles
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Speaker 1: were purchased and placed in it. This was the ostensible
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Speaker 1: purpose of the journey to the fort. Later in the evening,
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Speaker 1: Jerry or Pete, whichever happened to be the leader, and
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Speaker 1: one of the men carried the boxes across to the
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Speaker 1: major's quarters and stored them in a cellar beneath it.
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Speaker 1: There was a real need of provisions at the mine,
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Speaker 1: for the population of the valley rapidly increased as the
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Speaker 1: season went on. The upper part of the bed of
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Speaker 1: the stream had been staked out into claims, the miners
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Speaker 1: and other men, each taking up one but below them.
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Speaker 1: The ground was of course open to all, and although
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Speaker 1: not nearly so rich as the upper grapple, it was
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Speaker 1: good enough to pay fairly for working. A stout palisading
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Speaker 1: now surrounded the ground taken up by the machinery and
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Speaker 1: the mine itself, and no one except those engaged by
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Speaker 1: the company were allowed to enter here. Considerable surprise was
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Speaker 1: felt in the camp when the first two or three
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Speaker 1: miners came up and staked out claims on the stream.
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Speaker 1: I wonder how they could have heard of it. Tom
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Speaker 1: said to his uncle. The fact that we were remaining
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Speaker 1: here is enough to show that we are doing something. Anyhow,
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Speaker 1: the men who go in are always strictly ordered to
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Speaker 1: say no word about what our luck is. But the
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Speaker 1: mere fact that they hold their tongues, and you may
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Speaker 1: be sure they are questioned sharply, is enough to excite curiosity.
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Speaker 1: And these men have come to find out and see
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Speaker 1: what the country is like, and to prospect the hills
18:22
Speaker 1: round where we are working. You will see a lot
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Speaker 1: of them here. Before long, as more came up, it
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Speaker 1: was determined to open a store. In the first place,
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Speaker 1: it furnished an explanation for the wagon going down so often,
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Speaker 1: and in the second the fact that they were ready
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Speaker 1: to sell provisions at cost prices would deter others from
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Speaker 1: coming and setting up stores. There was no liquor kept
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Speaker 1: on the mine, and Pete and Harry were very anxious
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Speaker 1: that no places for its sale should be opened in
18:51
Speaker 1: the valley. During the winter and spring, Tom had received
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Speaker 1: several letters from his sisters. They expressed themselves as very
18:59
Speaker 1: grateful for them money that he and their uncle had
19:01
Speaker 1: sent on their return to Denver, but begged them to
19:04
Speaker 1: send no more, as the school was flourishing, and they
19:07
Speaker 1: were perfectly able to meet all their expenses. It is
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Speaker 1: very good of you, Tom Carrie said, of course, we
19:14
Speaker 1: are all very pleased to know that you have been
19:16
Speaker 1: able to send the money, because it relieves our anxiety
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Speaker 1: about you. But we really don't want it, and it
19:22
Speaker 1: makes us afraid that you are stinting yourself. Besides, even
19:27
Speaker 1: if you are not, it would be much better for
19:29
Speaker 1: you to keep the money, as you may find some
19:31
Speaker 1: opportunity of using it to your advantage. While here it
19:35
Speaker 1: would only line the bank and do no good. It
19:37
Speaker 1: would be different if we had nothing to fall back
19:39
Speaker 1: upon in case of anything happening, such as some of
19:42
Speaker 1: us getting ill, or having a case of fever in
19:45
Speaker 1: the school, or anything of that sort. But as we
19:48
Speaker 1: have only used fifty pounds of mother's money, we have
19:51
Speaker 1: plenty to go on with for a very long time,
19:54
Speaker 1: so that really we would very much rather you did
19:56
Speaker 1: not send us any over. Now that we know you're
19:59
Speaker 1: at and can write to you at Fort Bridger, it
20:02
Speaker 1: seems to bring you close to us, But we have
20:05
Speaker 1: had two very anxious times, especially the first when we
20:09
Speaker 1: did not hear of you for six months. The second
20:13
Speaker 1: time was not so bad. As you had told us
20:15
Speaker 1: that it might be a long time before we should hear,
20:18
Speaker 1: and we were prepared for it. But I do hope
20:21
Speaker 1: it will never be so long again. There had been
20:24
Speaker 1: some discussion as to whether the mine should be shut
20:27
Speaker 1: down in winter, but it was soon decided that work
20:30
Speaker 1: should go on regularly. Six more stamps were ordered to
20:34
Speaker 1: be sent from the east with a steam engine powerful
20:37
Speaker 1: enough to work the whole battery, and in September this
20:40
Speaker 1: another machinery had reached the mine. Fresh buildings had been erected,
20:45
Speaker 1: a storehouse, a house for the officers, and a shed
20:49
Speaker 1: covering the whole of the machinery and yard. By the
20:52
Speaker 1: time this was already and in place, the valley below
20:55
Speaker 1: was deserted, the gravel having been washed out to the
20:58
Speaker 1: bed drop. No other lfe loads of sufficient richness to
21:01
Speaker 1: work had been discovered by the prospectors, and with winter
21:04
Speaker 1: at hand there was no inducement for them to stay longer.
21:07
Speaker 1: There Only two or three of the men at the
21:10
Speaker 1: mine wished to leave when their engagement for the season terminated.
21:14
Speaker 1: All had been well paid and had, an addition, made
21:17
Speaker 1: money at gold washing. Their food had been excellent, and
21:21
Speaker 1: their comforts attended to in all ways Accordingly, with these exceptions,
21:26
Speaker 1: all were ready to renew their engagements. An arrangement was
21:30
Speaker 1: made with the Major at Fort Bridger for an escort
21:33
Speaker 1: under a subaltern officer to proceed with two wagons with
21:36
Speaker 1: the treasure to Denver. Pete, Hoskins and Jerry were to
21:40
Speaker 1: remain as managers of the mine throughout the winter. Harry
21:44
Speaker 1: and Tom had made up their minds to go to
21:46
Speaker 1: England and to return in the spring. The oar was
21:49
Speaker 1: now very much poorer than it had been at first.
21:53
Speaker 1: The load had pinched out below, and they had worked
21:56
Speaker 1: some distance along it. The falling off, however, was only
21:59
Speaker 1: really The mine was still an extraordinarily rich one, although
22:04
Speaker 1: it contained little more than a tenth of the gold
22:06
Speaker 1: that had been extracted from the first hundred and fifty
22:08
Speaker 1: tons crushed. None but Harry, Pete, Hoskings, Jerry and Tom
22:13
Speaker 1: had any idea of the amount of gold extracted in
22:17
Speaker 1: less than six months, although the miners were well aware
22:21
Speaker 1: that the amount must be very large. It was so indeed,
22:25
Speaker 1: for after repaying the amount expended in preliminary expenses, together
22:29
Speaker 1: with the new machinery, the wages of the men, provisions
22:33
Speaker 1: and all outgoings. They calculated the treasure sent down to
22:37
Speaker 1: be worth one hundred and twenty eight thousand pounds, while
22:41
Speaker 1: the mine, if sold, would fetch at least double that sum.
22:45
Speaker 1: After a hearty farewell to Pete and Jerry, Harry and Tom,
22:49
Speaker 1: with the two Indians, rolled with the last wagon down
22:52
Speaker 1: to Bridger. The iron boxes had been all sewn up
22:56
Speaker 1: in deer skins when they were sent down, and at
22:59
Speaker 1: night they were placed in the wagons by Harry and
23:01
Speaker 1: his companions. Over them were placed the provisions for the journey,
23:06
Speaker 1: as it was just as well that even the soldiers
23:09
Speaker 1: could not suspect the amount of treasure they were escorting.
23:13
Speaker 1: They encountered some severe snow storms by the way, but
23:16
Speaker 1: reached Denver without incident. The place had wonderfully changed since
23:21
Speaker 1: Tom had arrived there more than two years before. It
23:25
Speaker 1: had traveled in size, broad streets and handsome houses had
23:28
Speaker 1: been erected, and the town had spread in all directions.
23:32
Speaker 1: They drove straight to the bank to which Pete Hoskings
23:35
Speaker 1: had sent down a letter a fortnight before they had started,
23:39
Speaker 1: and the boxes were taken out of the wagon and
23:41
Speaker 1: carried down into the vaults of the bank. A handsome
23:44
Speaker 1: present was made to each of the soldiers of the escort.
23:47
Speaker 1: A brace of revolvers was given by Harry to the subaltern,
23:51
Speaker 1: and the handsomest watch and chain that could be purchased
23:54
Speaker 1: in Denver was sent by him to the Major with
23:57
Speaker 1: an inscription expressing the thanks of the company to him
24:00
Speaker 1: for his kindness. Well, Tom, I am thankful that that
24:04
Speaker 1: is off my mind, Harry said, I have had a
24:07
Speaker 1: good many troubles in the course of my life, but
24:10
Speaker 1: this is the first time that money has ever been
24:12
Speaker 1: a care to me. Well, we are rich men, Tom,
24:16
Speaker 1: and we shall be richer. For the mine will run
24:19
Speaker 1: another two or three years before it finishes up the
24:22
Speaker 1: load as far as we have traced it, and as
24:25
Speaker 1: we have now filed claims for a quarter of a
24:27
Speaker 1: mile further back, it may be good for aught, I know,
24:31
Speaker 1: for another ten years, not so good as it has
24:34
Speaker 1: been this year, but good enough to give handsome profits.
24:37
Speaker 1: Have you calculated what our share is? No, Uncle, I
24:42
Speaker 1: know it must be a lot, but I have never
24:44
Speaker 1: thought about what each share will be. Well, to begin with,
24:48
Speaker 1: a third of it goes to Pete Hoskins and his friends,
24:51
Speaker 1: that leaves eighty five thousand. The remainder is divided into
24:55
Speaker 1: seven shares. I was to have two the Indians, three
24:59
Speaker 1: between you one and Jerry one. This share is then
25:03
Speaker 1: about twelve thousand, which leaves seventy three thousand between you
25:07
Speaker 1: and me. Of course we shall divide equally. No, indeed, Uncle,
25:12
Speaker 1: that would be ridiculous. I had been of very little
25:16
Speaker 1: use through it all, and I certainly ought not to
25:18
Speaker 1: have as much as Jerry. You and the Chief discovered it,
25:22
Speaker 1: and it was entirely owing to you that any of
25:24
Speaker 1: the rest of us have a share in the profits.
25:27
Speaker 1: And of course your arrangement with the two Indians is
25:29
Speaker 1: only because the Chief is so fond of you, but
25:33
Speaker 1: partly that Tom, but chiefly because it is in accordance
25:37
Speaker 1: with red skin customs. They are hunters, fighters and guides,
25:41
Speaker 1: but they are not miners, and they never go in
25:44
Speaker 1: for shares in an enterprise of this sort. It went
25:47
Speaker 1: very much against the grain for Leaping Horse to take
25:50
Speaker 1: that three or four hundred pounds that came to him
25:52
Speaker 1: at the end of the last expedition, And he would
25:55
Speaker 1: be seriously offended if I were to press upon him
25:58
Speaker 1: more than his ordinary payment. Now he would say that
26:01
Speaker 1: he has been simply hunting this year, that he has
26:04
Speaker 1: run no risks and has had nothing to do with
26:07
Speaker 1: the mine. Tomorrow morning we will go out to see
26:10
Speaker 1: what there is in the way of horse flesh and denver,
26:13
Speaker 1: and will buy him and hunting Dog the two best
26:16
Speaker 1: horses in the town, whatever they may cost, with saddles, bridles,
26:20
Speaker 1: new blankets and so on. If I can get anything
26:24
Speaker 1: special in the way of rifles, I shall get a
26:26
Speaker 1: couple of them, and if not, I shall get them
26:28
Speaker 1: in New York and send them to him at Bridger.
26:32
Speaker 1: These are presents he would value infinitely more than all
26:35
Speaker 1: the gold we have stowed away in the bank. To
26:37
Speaker 1: day he is going back to his tribe for the winter,
26:41
Speaker 1: and he and Hunting Dog will be at the mine
26:43
Speaker 1: before us next spring. In the morning, Harry was two
26:47
Speaker 1: hours at the bank, where he saw the gold weighed
26:49
Speaker 1: out and received a receipt for the value, which came
26:53
Speaker 1: to within a hundred pounds of what they had calculated,
26:56
Speaker 1: as the dust had been very carefully weighed each time
26:58
Speaker 1: it was set off in accordance with the arrangement he
27:02
Speaker 1: had made with Pete Hoskins and Jerry the amount of
27:05
Speaker 1: their respective shares was placed to their credit at the bank,
27:09
Speaker 1: drawing a thousand pounds in cash. He received a draft
27:12
Speaker 1: for the rest upon a firm at New York, where
27:15
Speaker 1: he would be able to exchange it for one on London.
27:19
Speaker 1: He then inquired at the hotel as to who was
27:22
Speaker 1: considered to possess the best horses in the town, and
27:25
Speaker 1: as money was no object to him, he succeeded in
27:28
Speaker 1: persuading the owners to sell two splendid animals. These, with
27:32
Speaker 1: the saddles, were sent to the hotel. He then bought
27:35
Speaker 1: two finely finished sharps rifles of long range and two
27:40
Speaker 1: brace of silver mounted revolvers. Now, Tom, he said, I
27:44
Speaker 1: shall give one of these outfits to the Chief, and
27:47
Speaker 1: you give the other to hunting Dog. He has been
27:50
Speaker 1: your special chum since we started, and the presents will
27:53
Speaker 1: come better from you than from me. I expect them
27:56
Speaker 1: here in half an hour. I told him I should
27:58
Speaker 1: be busy all the morning. The two Indians were delighted
28:02
Speaker 1: with their presence, even the Chief being moved out of
28:05
Speaker 1: his usual impassive demeanor. My white brothers are too good.
28:10
Speaker 1: Leaping horse knows that straight Harry is his friend. He
28:13
Speaker 1: is not one presents to show him that, but he
28:16
Speaker 1: will value them because he loves his white brothers even
28:20
Speaker 1: more than for themselves. As for Hunting Dog, he was
28:23
Speaker 1: for a long time incredulous that the splendid horse, the
28:27
Speaker 1: rifle and pistols could really be for him, And he
28:31
Speaker 1: was so exuberant in his delight that it was not
28:33
Speaker 1: until Leaping Horse frowned him severely that he subsided into
28:37
Speaker 1: silent admiration of the gifts. Here, Paper's Chief, that you
28:41
Speaker 1: and Hunting Dog had better keep. They are the receipts
28:44
Speaker 1: for the two horses and two forms that I have
28:47
Speaker 1: had witnessed by a lawyer saying that we have given
28:50
Speaker 1: you the horses in token of our gratitude for the
28:53
Speaker 1: services that you have rendered. Possibly you may find them useful.
28:57
Speaker 1: You may fall in with rough fellows who may make
28:59
Speaker 1: a tents that the horses have been stolen. Oh yes,
29:03
Speaker 1: I know that you can hold your own. Still it
29:06
Speaker 1: may avoid trouble. They had now no further use for
29:09
Speaker 1: their horses, so these were sold for a few pounds.
29:13
Speaker 1: They purchased a stock of clothes sufficient only for their
29:16
Speaker 1: journey to England. You may as well put your revolver
29:19
Speaker 1: in your pocket. Tom Harry said, as they prepared to
29:22
Speaker 1: start the next day, I have sewn up the draft
29:25
Speaker 1: in the lining of my coat. But sometimes a train
29:28
Speaker 1: gets held up and robbed, And as we have six
29:31
Speaker 1: hundred pounds of gold and notes in our wallets, I
29:34
Speaker 1: certainly should not give it up without a fight. The
29:37
Speaker 1: Indians accompanied them to the station. Now, Chief, you'd take
29:40
Speaker 1: my advice and look out for a nice wife before
29:44
Speaker 1: next spring. You are fording, how and it is high
29:46
Speaker 1: time you thought of settling. Now, leaping horseful, think over it,
29:51
Speaker 1: the Seneca said gravely. It may be that in the
29:54
Speaker 1: spring he will have a wigwam in the valley. A
29:57
Speaker 1: few minutes later, the train started east, and five days
30:00
Speaker 1: later they reached New York. A steamer left the next
30:04
Speaker 1: day for England, and in this they secured two first
30:07
Speaker 1: class berths, and although Tom had managed very well on
30:11
Speaker 1: his way out, he thoroughly enjoyed the vastly superior comfort
30:15
Speaker 1: of the homeward trip. They went straight through to Southampton, for,
30:20
Speaker 1: as Harry said, they could run up to London and
30:22
Speaker 1: get their clothes any day, and he saw that Tom
30:25
Speaker 1: was in a fever of excitement to get home. Harriet
30:28
Speaker 1: came to the door of the little house at Southsea.
30:31
Speaker 1: When they knocked, she looked surprised at seeing two gentlemen
30:35
Speaker 1: standing there. In the two years and a half that
30:38
Speaker 1: had passed since Tom had left, he had altered greatly.
30:42
Speaker 1: He had gone through much toil and hardship, and the
30:45
Speaker 1: bronze of the previous summer sun was not yet off
30:47
Speaker 1: his cheeks. He had grown four or five inches, and
30:51
Speaker 1: the man's work that he had been doing had made
30:54
Speaker 1: almost a man of him. Don't you know me, Harriet,
30:58
Speaker 1: Tom said. The girl at once recognized the voice, and
31:02
Speaker 1: with a loud cry of delight, threw her arms round
31:05
Speaker 1: his neck. The cry brought Carrie out from the parlor.
31:09
Speaker 1: Why Harriet, she exclaimed, have you gone mad? Don't you see?
31:13
Speaker 1: It's Tom, Harriet said, turning round, laughing and crying together.
31:18
Speaker 1: It is Tom, sure enough, Carrie, you need not look
31:22
Speaker 1: so incredulous, And this is uncle Harry. There were a
31:25
Speaker 1: few minutes of wild joy, then they calmed down and
31:29
Speaker 1: assembled in the sitting room. It is lucky the girls
31:32
Speaker 1: have all gone home to dinner, Carrie said, or they
31:34
Speaker 1: would certainly have carried the news to their friends that
31:37
Speaker 1: we were all mad. It is a half holiday too.
31:40
Speaker 1: Nothing could be more fortunate. Now we want to hear everything.
31:44
Speaker 1: Tom's letters were so short and unsatisfactory, Uncle, that he
31:48
Speaker 1: told us next to nothing except that you had found
31:51
Speaker 1: a mine, and that you were both working there, and
31:53
Speaker 1: that it was satisfactory. Well, my DearS, that is the
31:57
Speaker 1: pith of the thing, Harry said. The first thing for
32:00
Speaker 1: you to do is to send round notes to the
32:02
Speaker 1: mothers of these children, saying that from unforeseen circumstances you
32:06
Speaker 1: have retired from the profession, and that the school has
32:09
Speaker 1: finally closed from this afternoon. There was a general exclamation
32:13
Speaker 1: from the girls. What do you mean, Uncle? I mean
32:17
Speaker 1: what I say, girls, Tom and I have made our fortunes,
32:21
Speaker 1: and there is no occasion for you to go on
32:23
Speaker 1: teaching any longer. We have not yet made any plans
32:26
Speaker 1: for the future, but at any rate, the first step
32:29
Speaker 1: is that there is to be no more teaching. But
32:31
Speaker 1: are you quite quite sure, Uncle, Carry said doubtfully. We
32:35
Speaker 1: are getting on very nicely now and it would be
32:38
Speaker 1: a pity to lose the connection. Harry and Tom both laughed. Well,
32:42
Speaker 1: my girl, the former said, that is of course a
32:45
Speaker 1: point to be thought of. But as Tom and I
32:48
Speaker 1: have over thirty five thousand pounds apiece, and the mind
32:51
Speaker 1: will bring us in a good round sum for some
32:53
Speaker 1: years to come, I think we can afford to run
32:57
Speaker 1: the risk of the connection going. After that, it was
33:00
Speaker 1: a long while before they settled down to talk quietly again.
33:04
Speaker 1: A week later they all went up to London for
33:06
Speaker 1: a month, while what Harry called outfits were purchased for
33:10
Speaker 1: the girls as well as for him and Tom, and
33:13
Speaker 1: all the sights of London visited. Before their story came
33:17
Speaker 1: to an end, the grand consultation as to future plans
33:20
Speaker 1: had been held and a handsome house purchased at Blackheath.
33:25
Speaker 1: Tom did not return to Utah in the spring. His
33:28
Speaker 1: uncle strongly advised him not to do so. I shall
33:32
Speaker 1: go back myself, Tom, partly because I should feel like
33:35
Speaker 1: a fish out of water with nothing to do here,
33:38
Speaker 1: partly because I promised the Chief to go back for
33:41
Speaker 1: a bit every year. I am beginning to feel dull already,
33:44
Speaker 1: and am looking forward to the trip across the water.
33:47
Speaker 1: But it will certainly be better for you to stay
33:49
Speaker 1: at home. You left school early, see, and it would
33:53
Speaker 1: be a good thing for you to get a man
33:55
Speaker 1: to come and read with you for two or three
33:58
Speaker 1: hours a day for the next year or two. We
34:01
Speaker 1: have settled that the three younger girls are to go
34:03
Speaker 1: to school. And I don't see why you, Carrie and
34:06
Speaker 1: Janet should not go in the first place, for two
34:09
Speaker 1: or three months on to the continent. They have had
34:12
Speaker 1: a dull life since you have been away, and the
34:15
Speaker 1: trip will be a treat for them, and perhaps you
34:17
Speaker 1: do some good also. It will be time enough to
34:20
Speaker 1: settle down to reading when you come back. The mine
34:24
Speaker 1: returned large profits that year, the increased amount stamped making
34:28
Speaker 1: up to some extent for the falling off in the
34:30
Speaker 1: value of the ore, and the shares of the various
34:33
Speaker 1: proprietors were more than half what they had been at
34:36
Speaker 1: the end of the first season's work. The third year
34:39
Speaker 1: it fell off considerably. There was a further decrease the
34:42
Speaker 1: year after, and the fifth year it barely paid his expenses,
34:46
Speaker 1: and it was decided to abandon it. Harry Wade went
34:49
Speaker 1: over every season for many years, but spent only the
34:53
Speaker 1: first at the mine. After that he went hunting expeditions
34:56
Speaker 1: with Leaping Horse, who, to his amusement, had met him
34:59
Speaker 1: at his first returned to the mine with a pretty
35:01
Speaker 1: squaw and hunting dog had also brought a wife with him.
35:06
Speaker 1: Two wigwams were erected that year near the mine, but
35:09
Speaker 1: after that they returned to their tribe, of which Leaping
35:13
Speaker 1: Horse became the leading chief. Tom's sisters all in due
35:16
Speaker 1: time married, each being presented on her wedding day with
35:20
Speaker 1: a check for ten thousand pounds as a joint present
35:23
Speaker 1: from her uncle and brother. Tom himself did not remain
35:26
Speaker 1: a bachelor, but six years after his return to England
35:30
Speaker 1: took a wife to himself, and the house of Blackheath
35:33
Speaker 1: was none too large for his family. Harry Wade's home
35:37
Speaker 1: is with Tom, and he is still hale and hearty.
35:40
Speaker 1: Up to the last few years. He paid occasional visits
35:43
Speaker 1: to America and stayed for a while with his red
35:46
Speaker 1: brother Leaping Horse. When they lamented together over the disappearance
35:50
Speaker 1: of game in the extinction of the buffalo, hunting Dog had,
35:54
Speaker 1: at Harry's urgent advice, settled down in the ways of civilization,
35:59
Speaker 1: taking up a room branch and breeding cattle, of which
36:02
Speaker 1: he now owns a large herd. Jerry Curtis and Pete
36:05
Speaker 1: Hoskins made a journey together to Europe. After the closing
36:08
Speaker 1: of the mine, they stayed for a month at Blackheath,
36:11
Speaker 1: and ten years later Tom received a lawyer's letter from
36:14
Speaker 1: Denver saying that Pete Hoskins was dead and that he
36:18
Speaker 1: had left his large house and other property in Denver
36:22
Speaker 1: to mister Thomas Wade's children. Jerry still lives at the
36:26
Speaker 1: age of seventy five in that city. End of Chapter nineteen.
36:32
Speaker 1: End of In the Heart of the Rockies, A Story
36:35
Speaker 1: of Adventure in Colorado by G. A. Henty