"Now it would be mighty curious," the old man went on, "if there was any connection between that charger and this sack of dust. I don't see how there could be, and I don't see how we are likely to find out anything about it; but anyhow, we'll go back there to-morrow and see."
Hugh covered the pan of gold with some robes, and told Jack and Joe to remain in the lodge while he went out. Half an hour later, he returned with a heavy double sack of buckskin into which the gold was poured, and this sack was put in a partly empty sack of flour, the flour being packed around the gold and on top of it, so that there seemed to be nothing but flour in the sack, which was then placed under the other property belonging to Hugh and Jack, between their beds.
CHAPTER XXV. THE RELIC OF A FIGHT.
The next morning the three started back to the place where the boys had found the gold. On their way there, Jack explained to Hugh in greater detail, that the dust had really been discovered by Joe, and asked him to whom, in his opinion, it belonged.
"Why," said Hugh, "you two boys are just like a couple of fellows that start out to prospect. You are partners, and whatever either partner finds, belongs to both, share and share alike. It would have been the same if you had found it instead of Joe, half of it would have belonged to him. Now here I'm going out with you this morning, if any of us would find anything to-day, I oughtn't to have as big a share of it as either of you two, because you found the place and are taking me there and showing it to me. I am more like a man that you have hired to work on your claim and so I only get what you choose to give me. You and Joe are the bosses, I'm the hired man."
"Seems to me," said Joe, "that White Bull ought to share in what we found yesterday. Because you see Jack and me didn't know what we'd found and we had to take it to somebody and ask, and maybe if we had taken it to some one else, he'd have cheated us out of it all, so I think we ought to divide that gold into three parts, and all three share it."
"Why, yes," said Jack, "that's the best yet."