Jim laughed.
“I’m broke, Dan.”
“What!”
Dan nearly choked. Then he clapped his hand on his leg and roared with delight.
“Married. Wal, I guess she’s a lucky gal, even if you are bust. But how’d it happen?”
“Bad speculation. But I’m through with that. See here, Dan, I’m wantin’ to stake a couple of claims, but every darn piece of dirt seems pegged out.”
Dan stroked his beard.
“Yore late. I got wise to what it’d be like, so I hiked up here early. Staked twenty-two on Bonanza and sold out yesterday to the Syndicate. Five hundred thousand I got, and never thawed out more’n a square yard of dirt. And now I’m mushing for the bright lights.”
Jim’s face contracted.