"You're right, Mike," laughed John. "If the gold is in that spot it is safe enough for a long time to come."
"I think this slide was the luckiest thing that ever happened to the girls," ventured Tom Latimer, thoughtfully.
"Why?" anxiously demanded Mr. Brewster, visions of his darling being carried away to school uppermost in his mind.
"When we are ready to bore for the gold, this trash will be an easy thing to burn and clear away. Meantime, it keeps off all claim-jumpers or thieves who need a little hard yellow metal."
"But you must admit that it is a tough proposition to mine here," said Mr. Brewster. "A land-slide is apt to happen any moment and bury all the apparatus. All previous efforts will be wiped out and you must begin all over again. Then consider the difficulty of transportation, from this peak down the long trail, and over miles of rough country to the Oak Creek railway."
"Hoh! a mere bagatelle, Mr. Brewster, when gold weighs in the other scale. Why, men will dig through the earth for gold! See what happened in Alaska. Once men found gold to be had for the pain and privation they would be forced to endure, they gladly gave up home, loved ones,—all—for the lust of gold.
"And see what that drive did for Alaska. Railroads opened, cities founded, people settled there, and all because men fought with odds against finding buried gold!"
"We wouldn't have to worry over this out-of-the-way mine if father would consent to have his cliffs utilized," hinted John.
"Not with my consent!" retorted Sam Brewster.
"Well, come on, Mike. Let's pitch camp and get something to eat," said John, resignedly.