“Or a poor one, either. Look how those wildcat mining schemes are advertised. They catch lots of dupes every day.”
“That’s what they do. Well, it’s your turn now to wheel that barrow outside.”
Several days went by, and the boys began to have visitors from Rocky Gulch.
The mining operations at the creek had got abroad, and curiously disposed inhabitants of the Gulch came down to see what was going on.
Therefore, it wasn’t long before every person at the mining camp above knew that a copper lode had been discovered at Beaver Creek, and there was a hustle among some of the less fortunate ones to take up claims in the immediate vicinity of the Pandora, in line with the direction in which it was presumed the vein of ore was running.
Several prospectors who had been over the ground before for indications of gold turned up again and began new experiments to locate the existence of the copper deposits beyond the property lines of the Pandora.
Everybody, of course, examined with the greatest interest the sample load of ore on board the flat-boat, and the favorable comment its richness excited only spurred the boys on to greater efforts.
At last the boat was as full as Mr. Prawle had deemed prudent to load it.
The boys now grew impatient at the prospector’s continued absence.
“He’s been gone a week over the time he calculated to be away,” said Jack to Charlie, as they were eating supper one night after all labor in the mine had been discontinued. “I hope nothing has gone wrong.”