"Have you no relatives to whom your life is of value?"
"Yes," answered the young man. "I have a mother and sister."
"Would not your death affect them more than the loss of money?"
"Yes."
"It seems to me that to take your life would be to treat them cruelly."
The young man was evidently agitated by contending thoughts.
"I suppose you are right," he said, slowly; "but let me tell you all, and you can judge me better: I arrived in California six months since. My home is in Ohio, not far from Cincinnati. I was fortunate enough to commence mining at a point on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains where I was almost alone. I 'struck it rich,' and two days since arrived in San Francisco with over two thousand dollars in gold-dust."
"You were certainly in luck," said Ferguson, surprised.
"I turned it into money, and, in strolling about the city, was lured into that accursed den. I looked on and was fascinated. I thought I would try my luck. I began with a small stake, and kept on till I had lost every dollar. In one hour the fruits of six months' labor are gone. Do you wonder that I am reduced to despair?"