"No—no, not quite."
"Humph! Did you guess you'd find her here?"
"No," and his absent smile seemed to remove him leagues away. "No, not here."
"I could a' told you——" she began savagely. "I don't know for certain whether any—what you call good women come up here, but I'm dead sure none stay."
"When do you leave for home, Maudie?" he said gently.
But at the flattering implication the oddest thing happened. As she stood there, with her fists full of gold, Maudie's eyes filled. She turned abruptly and went out. The crowd began to melt away. In half an hour only those remained who had more hootch than they could carry off the premises. They made themselves comfortable on the floor, near the stove, and the greatest night Minóok had known was ended.
CHAPTER XVIII
A MINERS' MEETING
"Leiden oder triumphiren Hammer oder Amboss sein."—Goethe.