"Yes, right here," said Willis, pointing. "The cabin is where these two trails cross each other."
In the center of the next volume, for there had been many claims located and recorded on the little stream, they found the record of a property belonging to Willis's father and a Mr. Kieser. The record showed the date of its refiling, after the country had become a part of the Pike's Peak Forest Reserve. The survey lines were given, but of course they could not be located on the map. Was the cabin on the property there recorded or not? Willis remembered that his mother had said not, so they pushed further into the books and came to the description of a lode claim, the corner of which, according to the record, was at the intersection of the two trails, just where the stream swings south. It was originally staked and recorded by a man named Briney as a placer claim. Six consecutive assessments were recorded, then two years later the claim was relocated by a Joseph H. Williams. Willis frowned as he made notes and took down the dates of the assessments.
"There you are," he said despondently; "just as I thought yesterday—Mr. Joseph H. Williams, my uncle, owner. Great chance of getting that cabin, isn't there?"
"Now, hold your horses," interrupted Mr. Dean. "Let's finish the rest of this record. Well, that's the strangest thing I ever heard of. His last assessment is dated last summer, August 3, 19—. This year's work hasn't been done yet. Why—well, anyway, there must be something worth while around that cabin. 'Claim jumped and re-recorded as a lode claim August 22, 19—.' Why, that's the day you started on the trip to look for a cabin!"
"You are right," exclaimed Mr. Allen. "Let's look at the list of records filed on August 22d last." The clerk showed them the page. It read as follows:
"Assessment on Joseph H. Williams lode claim, Cheyenne Mountain." Then followed the description. Directly under it was the following:
"Lode claim, Buffalo Park, located by Beverly H. Pembroke, as described on page 1162."
"The cabin then belongs, by right of relocation, to Beverly H. Pembroke," remarked Mr. Allen, "and we are just exactly four days late. Too bad we didn't start at this end of the trip."
"Who is Beverly H. Pembroke?" asked Mr. Dean. No one could tell. "Well, this much is clear," he went on: "there was some very good reason for the relocation of that claim, and it couldn't have been for that old cabin. Men don't locate claims to get possession of old, tumbled-down log cabins nowadays."
"Well, there's this much that isn't clear," returned Willis: "why that change was made the day we started over this route, and furthermore, how does it come that the same men worked the assessment on the two claims if they belong to different parties? No, sir, men, listen: my Uncle didn't want that cabin in his possession at this time for some reason, so he transferred the claim to this man, Pembroke. Anyway, I'm glad it doesn't belong to my uncle now, whether we get it for our purpose or not."