Page:J Allan Dunn--The Girl of Ghost Mountain.djvu/254

236 Circle S. But he did not feel inclined to suggest it to him. On the fifth trip Quong himself suggested that Bill could peel potatoes as his contribution to getting supper prepared. Sheridan went again to the cave mouth, to find the stars out, the air keen, the fight of the campfire reflected in the throat of Bonanza Canyon. He shouted Quong's instructions over and Bill acknowledged them with a hail.

They had brought one of the kerosene flares into the Chapel, leaving the other in the treasure cave, using the electric torches for the transportation process. The sheer toil, the growing familiarity with their find, had brought about a certain reaction. For the time the gold, as gold, had lost its magnetism; it was reduced to mere heavy metal. But they stuck doggedly to the job.

On the sixth trip Jackson suggested a bucket of water.

"I strike," he declared. "I'm drier than a horn-toad in a museum. No more moisture in me than a burned stick. I vote Bill brings over a pail of water. He's bin havin' it soft all afternoon. I'll go tell him."

He disappeared in the entrance shadows beyond the fight of the flare. The others stood about waiting for the cold water. At the moment it would be nectar to their dusty, parched throats.

They heard a shout from Jackson, the crack of a shot, followed by another and another. The cowboy Bill came reeling back into the cave, one hand clapped to his forearm just below the elbow, blood dripping through his fingers. Behind him, more