If Any Man Sin

by H. A. Cody

He was anxious to hurry down to Rapid City, record the claim, and make ready to return up river as soon as the ice ran out of the stream. That this would not be long he was well aware, for the hot sun was making havoc with the ice, and the water was rising fast. The trail was abominable, but he did not seem to mind it now. A new spirit filled his soul and animated his whole being. His one great desire was to get back to the little cabin in the wilderness before Nance and her father should leave.

After several days of hard travelling, Dick reached Rapid City. He was very tired and hungry when he reached the place, but the first thing that he did was to record the claim he had staked in Tom Hendrick's name. That night all the men in the mining town came to his cabin, anxious to learn all they could about the prospects of the new "diggings."

"What about the old man who lives out there?" Sam Pelchie after a while asked.

"Where did you get your knowledge, Sam?" and Dick looked at him in surprise. "I haven't told you a word about him."

But the other only laughed, and tipped a wink to Dave Purvis, who grinned in return. Dick was about to tell what he knew about Martin when the action of these men caused him to hesitate.

Of all the miners at Rapid City these two had been the most troublesome during the past winter. They were noted for their laziness, and but for the good-heartedness of others they would have starved. They seldom did any hunting for their support. They were disliked by the men of Rapid City, but, as is so often the rule in a frontier camp, they received a share of all that was going. The sense of shame in living as parasites did not bother them in the least. Dick always managed to get along fairly well with "The Twins," as they were commonly called, although he believed them to be veritable scoundrels, who would turn against their best friends upon the least pretext.

Nothing more was said on this occasion about Martin, and so the conversation drifted off to the gold of the Quaska. But Dick determined to keep his eyes upon Pelchie and Purvis. He intended to keep his ears open as well in an effort to learn how they happened to know that Martin lived up river. He knew that they did not hear of him from the two prospectors who had made the discovery, as they had reported that only Indians lived up there. These men had already returned to the Quaska valley. Taku had gone with them, his dogs drawing a supply of provisions.

Dick went to bed that night wondering what The Twins meant by the winks they had passed to each other, and their mysterious manner. A sudden thought came into his mind, which caused him to toss to and fro, tired though he was. Was it possible that Pelchie and Purvis had heard about Nance and her remarkable beauty? He knew from what the men had said on former occasions that they had very little respect for women. In a land such as this where might was right, what chance would a beautiful young woman, innocent as a child, have against wily minions of Satan? What else, he asked himself, would make The Twins take such an interest in Martin? At length he fell into a troubled sleep, and dreamed that Nance was beset by cruel and terrible dragons, and that he was unable to go to her assistance.

Early the next morning a band of weary stampeders reached Rapid City, and recorded their claims. After breakfast Dick went over to the store, where he found a crowd of men gathered. Upon a small table in the middle of the room was a rough map, sketched with the point of a burnt stick, showing the new diggings. Around this most of the men were clustered, discussing it in a most animated manner. Small numbers marked the places where the stampeders had staked their claims. The old holes formed the boundary line of the valley, and the claims were marked "above" or "below," according to their situation.

"Where is the old man's cabin?" Pelchie asked, leaning over for a better view.