“You are?” Nick demanded interestedly. “Then—”
“And where one strike is made, another is likely to be found. That field has been hanging fire a long time. I barely remember—it’s such a long time ago—when they opened it up. Just like now, some one found a rich deposit of gold. Then it got the name Nugget Camp. From that time until now a few prospectors have been messing around with it. But they had no luck. Then here comes a man who finds a small fortune. At least, we think he had quite a load with him when he was shot down. By golly—”
Teddy gazed at his brother in surprise.
“Well, why by golly? It’s true—all you’ve said. What can we do? If the boys want to go, we can’t stop ’em. This is a free country. We’ll have to do the best we can, that’s all.”
“I was thinking,” Roy went on slowly, as though Teddy had not spoken, “that I’d like to join that rush myself.”
CHAPTER X
Silent Packs a Gun
During the next few days there was much to be done on the X Bar X. Three more men left for the promised land, and Mr. Manley had to recruit some help from other ranches, where the fever seemed to hit more lightly. Mr. Ball sent him three, among them Bug Eye. There were but four of the original punchers left on the X Bar X. Two of these were, of course, Pop Burns and Nick Looker.
Teddy and Roy were doing the ordinary work of wranglers, plus their job as bosses. Mr. Manley made frequent trips to Eagles, as he was negotiating with buyers in Chicago for the sale of a large herd of cattle on the hoof.
Finally the deal was completed and arrangements were made to ship the beeves the following week. With the additional hands Mr. Manley anticipated no real trouble in cutting out the cattle and getting them into the cars. Before the day set for the work to begin, he gave Pop permission to go to see his cousin, Jerry Decker, who was still at the 8 X 8.
Pop started early one morning and returned at nightfall. Bug Eye, Roy, and Teddy were sitting on the top rail of the corral as he drove into the yard, his tall, skinny figure looking strangely ghostlike in the dusk. He dismounted, watered, and fed his mount and turned it into the corral.