Next morning Captain Hampton went through the diggings; presently he came upon the man he had spoken to the evening before. He was working with two others. He looked up from his work and nodded.
'Taking a look round, mate?'
'Yes.'
'Do you want a job? We are a man short.'
'What are you giving?'
'Five dollars a day.'
Ned Hampton nodded.
'All right,' he said, 'I will come to work to-morrow. Is your claim a good one?'
'We hope it is going to be; we gave a thousand dollars for it. It is well in the middle of the line of the valley, and we reckon it will be rich as we get lower, though at present we are not doing much more than paying our expenses. Do you want to buy a share?'
'I will tell you after a few days,' Ned said. 'What do you want for it?'