The Haunted Mine

by Harry Castlemon

For the next hour Claus held his peace; but he noticed that his horse turned his head and looked down the gully as if he feared they were not going the right away. He did not remember that he had come that route before, but concluded that Bob was gradually leaving the trail behind them, and was veering around to get behind the camp at Dutch Flat. Then the mule which bore their pack-saddle began to be suspicious of it, too, for he threw up his head and gave utterance to a bray so long and loud that it awoke a thousand echoes among the mountains.

"Shut up!" exclaimed Jack, jerking impatiently at his halter. "I hope that bluff is not far away. We'll soon put a stop to your braying when we get there."

In another hour they came upon the bluff, one side of which was bounded by a deep ravine that seemed to extend down into the bowels of the earth, and the other was hemmed in by lofty mountains which rose up so sheer their tops seemed lost in the clouds above. Here again the mule became suspicious, for, in spite of the jerks which Jake gave at his halter, he set up another bray that sounded as if the mountains were full of mules.

"Hold fast to him, Jake, until I take his saddle off," said Bob, hastily dismounting from his horse; "I can soon stop that, if you can't. There—his pack is off. Take him by the foretop—don't let him get away from you. Now, then, look at you!"

The mule got away in spite of all Jake's efforts to hold fast to him. The moment the bridle was out of his mouth he dodged the grab that Jake made for his foretop, and with a flourish of his heels and another long bray made for the gully by which he had entered the bluff. The horses made a vain attempt to follow him, and the animal on which Claus was mounted seemed determined to go away, but he was finally stopped by his rider before he reached the gully. Bob and Jake were fairly beside themselves with anger. Bob stamped up and down so close to the ravine that the least misstep would have sent him over the brink, and Jake sat down on the ground and swore softly to himself.

"I tell you, this won't do!" said Bob, coming back to the horses. "Let us put them over without the least delay; and, mind you, we won't take their bridles off at all. That mule will be in camp in less than an hour, so we must make tracks. Let their saddles go, too."

The men went to work at pushing the horses over into the ravine as if they were in earnest. First Bob's horse went; then Jake's; and finally they took Claus's bridle out of his hands and shoved his horse over, too. Claus did not see any of this work. The animals went over without making any effort at escape beyond putting out their feet and trying to push themselves away from the brink; but the miners got behind them, and all their attempts to save themselves amounted to nothing. He heard the horses when they crashed through the branches of the trees below him, and then all was silent.

"What else could we do?" exclaimed Bob, who thought Claus looked rather solemn over it. "Dutch Flat is not a mile from here, and some one there would have heard their whinnying. I am sorry to do it, too, but when there is ten thousand dollars in sight, I don't stop at anything. Now pitch that mule's things over, also, and then we'll get away from here."

This being done, the three, with a small package of provisions on their shoulders, set out once more at a rapid pace, Bob leading the way.

For a long time no one spoke, the travelling being so difficult that it took all their breath to keep pace with Bob; but finally he turned about and made a motion of silence with his hand, and then they began to pick their way through the bushes with more caution. After a few moments he stopped, pushed aside the branches of an evergreen, and after taking a survey of the scene presented to his gaze he made another motion, which brought his companions up beside him.