"An' does ye think thar's any gold there, mate?" asked a stalwart miner, anxiously.
Bob nodded with easy confidence, "You'll very soon see," he replied.
Mackay was already engaged in the work of demonstration. Raising the shallow receptacle until it lay at a easy incline, he next gently tilted the contents of a kerosene tin full of water over the slope, and behold the muddy casing dissolved away, revealing a rich spangling yellow underneath. A roar of fierce joy burst from nigh on two hundred throats, and for about a minute pandemonium reigned. Hats were tossed into the air, and huzzahs long and loud echoed over the plains. The success of the process had been established beyond all doubt.
One of the first to congratulate the young discoverer was Nuggety Dick, but Never Never Dave and old Dead Broke were at his heels.
"You've saved the Flat, Bob!" cried Nuggety.
"An' you've saved us too," murmured Dead Broke, with emotion.
"What I want to know, young man, is by what means do you bring about the expulsion of the oily matter in the compound?"
The voice was patronizing in the extreme: the speaker was the erstwhile associate of Macguire.
Then Mackay's pent-up rage broke forth. "An' are ye sure that is all ye would like to know?" he stormed. "You mean, snivelling sneak, do ye think I don't know who ye are an' what ye're here for? Get out o' my sight, afore I do you damage."