“Boys,” said Clay when the meal was finished, “we each of us know why the others are so silent. We have to decide a most important question today. A man who has lived in this country for years, and whose word I believe can be trusted, gave us some important advice. You have had time to think it over and arrive at a decision. Let each one speak up for himself. I’ll have my say last, so as not to influence any one. Go ahead and speak and let each one think of it as a matter concerning himself only.”
“I did my thinking last night.” said Ike quickly, before any of the others could reply. “I thinks so hard, I forgot to lock the door. I says to myself. ‘Ike, you come up here to see your uncle and you don’t want to go back to the States until you do see him. But there are those boys what you talked into coming up here and who have all been good friends of yours. What are you going to do about that?’ Then I thinks some more. I got plenty of money here,” slapping the seat of his pants dramatically, “so I says to myself, ‘If Alex goes back I pay his fare and the money for his share of the cargo. If Case wants to go home, I do the same. If Clay wants to go, also, I do the same.’ Course if all go, it take pretty near all my money, but I will own the stock, you understand, but I thinks uncle and I make good money on it. Of course I don’t own the boat, but if you go back I give you a bill of sale for my news stand for the boat. We trade back again news stand for Rambler if I bring back boat all right. And I tell you, boys, that news stand is worth more than that boat. She burn up money all the time while the news stand makes money always, but most of all in the winter, when folks are cold and in a hurry. They give you a nickel or a dime for a penny paper. If they don’t get their change quick, they hurry on without it. I make change very slowly in the winter time,” he added shrewdly. “Well, what you says, boys?”
For a moment they sat appalled at the heroic pluck of the little fellow who was willing to go through the perils of an Arctic winter all alone. It was Alex who spoke first.
“I made up my mind when the Kid was talking last night. I believe in what he says, ‘that a thing not worth finishing, it not worth starting.’”
“You can’t ship me back home to be laughed at by a lot of sapheads who have never been ten miles from Chicago in their lives. It’s me for the great silence and all the rest rather than that.”
“Can’t drive me back with a club, either,” announced Clay.
Ike danced up and down in glee. “I meant my proposal, you understand, but all the time my heart was like lead for fear you all go home.”
“I felt so sure of what you fellows would decide,” smiled Clay, “that I’ve made out a little list of things we had ought to buy here at Nome. They are mostly things we will not need until winter, but I’m sure that we can buy them cheaper here than up the river. They have larger stocks here and we will not have to pay the heavy river freights and the big profits to the dealer at the other end.”
“That’s good business, Clay,” said Ike admiringly. “Let me do the bargaining.”
“All right,” agreed Clay. “Case had better go with you. I can’t trust you and Alex together, you’d be sure to get into trouble right off.”