Ki Sing shook his head. "Long way," he answered.
"How did you happen to get so far away from it, then, I should like to know?" and he examined the face of his guide sharply.
But Ki Sing's broad face seemed utterly void of expression as, neglecting to answer the question, he reiterated his statement, "Housee long way."
"The man's a fool, Tom," said Mosely, turning to his companion.
"I should say so," was all the help he got from Hadley.
"Do you know what I mean to do, Hadley?—Here, you yellow mummy, go a little ahead." (The Chinaman did so.)—"There's a bonanza up there in that cabin, wherever it is. The Chinaman says that this man with the queer name had got out a good deal of gold before he met with an accident—broke his leg, likely. Well, it stands to reason he's got the gold now. There ain't no chance here of sendin' off the dust, and of course he's got it hid somewhere in his cabin. Do you see the point, Tom?"
"I should say so."
"And I should say so too. It strikes me as a particularly good chance. This man is disabled and helpless. He can't prevent us walking off with his gold, can he?"
"Suppose he won't tell us where it is?" suggested Tom Hadley with extraordinary mental acuteness.
"Why, we'll knock him on the head or put a bullet in him, Hadley. It's a pity if two fire-eaters like us can't tackle a man with a broken leg. What do you say?"