“If you had what was coming to you, there’d be a striped suit on you, instead of the one you’re wearing,” declared Jerry, and Bill only scowled. He knew how true this was.
“What does it all mean?” asked Jim Nestor, as he looked over the paper. “I can’t make head or tail out of these law terms.”
“It means that you can’t work the mine any more until the dispute is decided,” said the deputy. “It seems that there is a defect in the title, and the statute of limitations is somehow involved. These people—Noddy Nixon and his crowd—learned of it, they bought the rights of a man who used to own some shares in it, before the mine was a paying proposition, and now they are suing you under that claim for their share.”
“But I thought that was all settled,” remarked Jerry, for once before Noddy and his cronies had tried the same kind of a game.
“It was, in a way, and yet it wasn’t,” answered Malone. “There are so many loopholes in the law that these fellows have found one, and are sort of firing on you through it. So you lose possession for a while.”
“Too bad, just as we uncovered a rich vein,” sighed Jim.
“Oh, we’ll work it all right,” sneered Tom Dalsett, who had gradually drawn nearer.
“No, you won’t!” cried Mike Malone quickly. “Don’t you fool yourself. This mine, from now on, is in possession of the Supreme Court of Arizona, and I’m its representative. Nobody can take an ounce of gold from these workings until this dispute is settled forever.”
“Do you mean that we can’t work our mine?” cried Noddy.