"according to miners' law of this gulch or any other district," was declaring sol, "when a party can't work a lode claim by reason of lack of water or proper machinery, they've a right to let it lie a certain length of time; can go out, and come back to it again, in the meanwhile."

"yes, mebbe so," returned the giant. "but they got to give their intentions to the recorder, an' there ain't any such intentions on file."

"there are, too—or there ought to be," contradicted terry, freshly excited. "i told the recorder myself—didn't i, george? i told him what was the matter, and that we were going away, and i told him to record the claims, and he said he would till we got back."

"oh, you did, did you!" rasped the giant. "that'll do for talk, but whar's the proof?"

"when did you see the recorder, terry?" asked his father.

"the very night before we left. he said the books were locked up, but he'd remember."

"sure he was the recorder?"

"of course he was. he'd just been elected. he's the 'root hog or die' professor. i know him and so does harry."

"that's the man!" exclaimed harry. "i'll go and get him." and away sped harry.

"furthermore and besides and notwithstanding, we've regularly bought this hyar property, and thar's the witness to the transaction," continued the giant, pointing to george. "we paid the price and it's been accepted, and when money has changed hands, that settles things."

attracted by the dispute, other gulch people had begun to gather.

"that's right," pronounced two or three.

terry felt his heart sink. had he made a botch of the matter, with his hurry? george also was frightened, for he had paled.

"what property do you think you've bought, then?" demanded sol.

"everything: cabin and sluice and all. and you can't touch 'em."

"where's the bill of sale?"

"we don't need any bill o' sale to put us in possession. we've paid the money, an' hyar we air," replied pine knot ike. "an' we're bad when we're riled. nothin' riles us like bein' robbed, an' thar's nobody as bad as a man o' peace when once he's riled, stranger."

"but you couldn't buy that true blue prospect," rapped sol.

"why not? we took what was offered. the two claims go together. nothin' was said different."

"why not? because the golden prize and the true blue aren't owned by the same party; that's why. the true blue's the property of this girl here—has been transferred to her in due legal form, and her father holds it in trust for her, and these boys couldn't have sold it if they'd wanted to!"

"it is mine," piped virgie. "it's been given to me and it's written down and those mean men sha'n't touch it. they're getting it all wet!"

"whar are your papers an' whar are your witnesses?" challenged the giant.

"there's one witness," and mr. stanton pointed at george. "you heard the words when the claim was given to virgie, didn't you?" he asked.

"yes, i did," affirmed george.

"and that other boy was one of the owners who agreed, and here comes the second former owner who signed the transfer for both."

"down at denver, before a notary public," panted harry, arriving with the "root hog or die" professor. "and it's been recorded."

"that is true," nodded the "root hog or die" professor. "and i do acknowledge that i was asked to record this other claim also, and that i was told of the intentions and reasons when it was temporarily left unoccupied. i am responsible for there being no official memorandum, but i entirely forgot. however, the verbal agreement is sufficient. i remember perfectly."

"that remains to be seen," growled the giant—who seemed to be the spokesman for the pine knot ike party. "as for that other prospect, we don't fight gals. it's a dry claim, anyhow; hasn't any water of its own an' never will have. as for this claim we're standin' on, we'll keep it. it's been duly bought, paid for, an' it's workable, an' that's enough. ain't i right, boys?" he appealed to the gathering crowd. "when money's passed an' accepted, that binds the sale."

the crowd shifted and murmured. plainly, they were not very approving of the pine knot ike party methods, but they had a strong sense of legal rights.

"'pears like it was a deal in good faith," remarked somebody.

"you claim that cabin and everything in it, do you?" inquired sol.

"yes, sir! everything on this hyar ground—fixtures an' improvements, an' don't you touch a finger to 'em," boomed the giant. "you an' your gal have got that dry prospect. go over an' mine. mebbe you can mine an' mebbe you can't, for you'll be drier'n ever as soon as we move that sluice to whar it belongs."

"haw, haw!" gibed ike and the other man. "you can wait for a dew."

"no! you can wait for that sluice!" retorted sol. he spurred his horse and in a jiffy was beside it. "you dare to lay hand on this or interfere in any way and i'll show you what a californy forty-niner knows about protecting property."

"ain't that our sluice?"

"not an inch, now. you claim the cabin and all improvements on that other prospect—we claim the sluice and all improvements on this prospect. i reckon what is sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. this sluice is all on the true blue ground."

"hooray!" cheered the willing crowd.

"you'll have a sluice without water. mebbe that's how they mine in californy!" jeered pine knot ike. "that thar water's ourn as soon as it comes down the leetle draw ag'in. so we'll jest natterly turn it off on you."

"not by a jugful!" objected sol. "that girl's filed on her water rights in this little draw, when her claim was recorded." he ran rapid eye along the golden prize surface. "and i reckon there doesn't any water go with that other prospect, anyhow! i've an idee the hundred feet ends short of the water."

"so have i," asserted harry. "give me room, gentlemen. just to prove that my notion's correct i'll measure. that claim was only stepped off, in the beginning."

harry fished a surveyor's tape from his pocket (evidently he had come prepared) and from the first claim stake, near the cabin, measured the length of the golden prize ground. the one hundred feet ended three yards away from the little stream course!

"the two properties join, so that puts the natural water on the true blue ground," triumphantly proclaimed sol.

"mebbe, when thar is water; but thar won't be any after we've started to use again on our other workin's up at the head," retorted the giant.

"you tried that once, but you can't do it a second time. we've filed our rights on the water coming down this draw, and here it is, and by miners' law we're entitled to our share."

"so are we, then, by thunder!" shouted the giant. "as long as there's water flowin' past, we're goin' to have some of it. that's miners' law, too. we can ditch some of it over——"

"no, you can't!" a new voice struck in, and a new figure appeared. archie smith! he held his side and panted for breath.

"what you got to do with it? why can't we?"

"because you couldn't have bought this claim even if you paid over the money. do you want to sell? do you want them for neighbors?" demanded archie of harry.

"we should say not!"

"well, then," resumed archie, panting, and addressing the pine knot ike party, "you didn't buy the golden prize, because you couldn't. the boys didn't own it. they wouldn't take it from me; they said they'd work it while i was gone, and now i'm back and i won't sell—to you. and i order you to get off."

terry looked blankly at harry, harry smiled at terry.

"that's so." and it was so, now that they thought.

"b' gorry, the same thing happened to me," announced the voice of pat casey, "an' oi lost me diggin's. sure, it doesn't seem fair play—though oi'm a friend to the boys."

"it is fair play, in this case," asserted sol. "you see, gentlemen," he said to the crowd, "these two boys, harry and terry, came in here and proceeded to work this ground. they had the water and they hustled to put in a sluice, and were beginning to wash out pay dirt, when those mean whelps, suspecting these prospects were richer than they looked to be, turned off the water to which this ground naturally was entitled—just hogged it, made the waste run the other way, to render these claims useless so they might either be jumped or bought for a song. the same whelps sneaked around, prospecting, until they located some of the richest gold quartz you ever laid your eyes on; then they told the boys the ground was no good, anyway—mostly pockets and barren bed-rock, had no water, and all that sort of thing—and tried to get 'em to move, for $100. but the boys stuck, so as to pay off a debt. one of them sold pies and the other worked for a dollar and a half a day. then, while they were temporarily absent, these whelps jumped both claims—and look at the rock they've already taken out!"

"b' gorry, they ought to be hanged!" declared pat casey. "the lads are honest lads, oi'll say that for 'em. an' if somebody'll fetch a rope——"

"no, no, gentlemen," appealed sol, as the crowd began to surge angrily. "when the dirty deal was started there was no law in the camp; but you have laws now, and if those fellows want to fight we'll fight them with law. but they're licked, and they know it."

"waal," conceded pine knot ike, "if we're licked i reckon we're licked, an' no hard feelin's. we air men o' peace. we bought this hyar property in good faith, but bein' as the other party ain't satisfied we'll take our hundred dollars in dust an' move off."

"where's their dust, terry?" asked harry.

"hold on a bit," objected mr. richards. "hold on! how much gold have they taken out already, since they jumped these prospects? they've been running that sluice for at least a couple of days."

"we'll leave you that thar pile o' sluice tailin's; it's too coarse for washin'," replied the giant. "and thar's a clean-up waitin', in the sluice. but you got to give us back the hundred dollars' purchase price, an' do it mighty quick."

"don't rile us," warned ike.

"i'll tell you what i'll do, ike," spoke harry. "we'll be fair. i'll wrestle you for that $100. if you throw me, you can have it, and if i throw you we can keep it. you've already got more than that out of this ground—but we want to be fair."

"don't you do it, harry!" protested father richards. "there's no need of such foolishness."

"that's what i say," added mr. stanton. "we won't allow it."

"i know what i'm about," replied harry, with a wink at terry and george and the breathless archie.

"young feller," solemnly said ike, "i ekcept, ketch as ketch can, but keep back your dog. i air a tough proposition in a wrestle, but i don't aim to come to grips with man and dog at the same time."

harry alertly threw aside his hat and stepped forward; ike did the like.

"david an' goliath!" cheered the crowd; and indeed the match did resemble that, with harry so slight and slim and the shaggy ike appearing to be a foot taller and a foot broader.

"has he any show? do you think he can throw him?" whispered archie—referring, of course, to harry.

"sure he can," asserted terry. "can't he, george?"

"he usually does what he sets out to do," agreed george.

now, arms half out-stretched and shoulders forward, harry and ike were circling each other, in watchful, eager fashion. ike rushed—"look out, harry!"—but harry dodged. ike rushed again; this time, quick as light, harry darted to meet him, and they were locked—locked with arms and legs, while they tugged and swayed and ike grunted, and their boots crunched upon the rocks and gravel.

"harry's got the under hold!" gasped terry.

"yes, but ike'll break him in two!" gasped george.

virgie was crying and calling, shep was barking, the spectators were shouting all sorts of advice. and swallowed in ike's great arms, harry seemed quite helpless, simply clinging to ike's waist, with his face pressed against ike's shirt, and letting ike dash him hither-thither, trying to upset him.

but somehow, harry always landed on his feet. once he was lifted clear in air—only to come down again with a thump. twice he was lifted—this time actually by the seat of the trousers! ike tried to pull him in and bend him backwards, but harry stiffened and bowed his back. then suddenly he did come in—but lightning fast, he side-stepped a little, thrust himself part way past ike, stopped farther, and, shifting his grip to ike's thighs, tilted and heaved.

up rose ike, pawing and kicking—up, a foot off the ground, and over harry he shot, almost horizontal, like a diver from a spring-board, to plough the ground beyond with his shoulder.

"ah!"

"ah!"

"that war a trick!" scolded ike, sitting up and rubbing his tousled head.

"all right," answered harry, panting and laughing. "we'll make it two falls out of three, then. i've a couple more tricks."

"no, young feller," grumbled ike, still rubbing his head. "i can wrestle a b'ar, but i ain't built for wrestlin' ary combination of eel an' alligator tail. if you're a schoolmaster, what'll you take to teach me that holt?"

"that's not for sale, either," laughed harry. "but here's your sack of dust. we don't want it, after all." thus saying, he tossed over the buckskin sack, and limped to get his hat from terry.

so the result was that the pine knot ike party left good-naturedly, and the crowd dispersed good-naturedly, and the golden prize and the true blue claims remained in undisputed possession of the victors; all of which was better than threats of further row.

harry shook hands with archie. it was his first opportunity.

"have you come back to stay? hope so. it's your mine, you know—and it's going to be a rich one; richer than you ever imagined, if that vein from the true blue extends through. we'll help you work it while we're working the true blue, but the true blue's enough for us."

"i don't care. it's yours, just the same. i gave it to you once and i give it to you again," insisted archie. "this time i'll make out a regular transfer. i'm here just for a little visit, and then i'm going back east to stay a while."

"where'd you find sol, harry?" asked george.

"down in denver and auraria. while i was dickering for duke he turned up. he'd been at pike's peak, and everywhere else. he turned up just in time."

"isn't mother coming? don't i see mother?" queried terry of his father.

"we may send for her and george's mother after we get things straightened out here. but you'll see her in denver, anyway. you and harry'll have to go down there for some clothes pretty soon. she wants to see you mighty bad."

"is this rock gold rock? doesn't look so. how do you know?"

"sol says it is. some of it, i mean. he knew as soon as he saw that piece virgie brought down. and we're lucky that he's with us. he's an expert."

sol had been tramping about with a spade, scraping here and there on both claims, and examining. he joined the group.

"there's considerable rotten quartz that can be sluiced, and probably some loose dirt to be washed; but there's a thundering fine vein or lode running right across. the best surface showing is on the true blue, where that piece of rock came from, but i reckon that when we get down into what those fellows pretended was the bed-rock on the golden prize we'll find it just as rich. so part of us can be sluicing, while the rest of us rig some sort of a contrivance to crush the quartz and wash it with mercury, till a regular quartz mill is 'stablished near us." and sol continued, using words and terms that only the men understood.

"shucks!" acknowledged terry. "we were looking for dirt; we didn't count the rock." so he turned to george, who was lifting virgie from her pony.

"you did it, virgie, with your piece of quartz. now you're going to be rich."

"i don't want to be rich all alone," objected virgie. "i don't want to be any richer than you or george or harry or sol or—or anybody of us."

she looked as if she were about to weep over it!

"of course not, virgie," called harry. "you won't have to be rich all alone. that's a miserable state. but you can share with your father and sol, and terry and father richards and i have a mine, too, you know; and just to make sure that nobody'll be any richer than anybody else in the crowd, we'll all join together and we'll name the company the virginia consolidated!"