Part 17 (2/2)
”I ht have known you bums were up to soed himself with the trader
”Ba Gar! I don' stan' for dat,” said he, excitedly ”You want for ju as I' at them ”If you want trouble, you two, I reckon you can have it, but, whether you do or not, theto rule, and we'll make what laant to”
He took no pains now to an tothem, hastened to her father's side, for that which she sensed in the bearing of both ainst herself
”No, no, don't have any trouble,” she pleaded, as she clung to the trader ”For my sake, daddy, sit down” Then she whispered fiercely into his ear: ”Can't you see he's trying to ht? There's too many of them Wait! Wait!”
Burrell atte, turned upon him fiercely:
”Now this is one time when you can't butt in, Mr Soldier Man This is our business Is that plain?”
The Lieutenant realized that he had no place in this discussion, and yet their move was so openly brazen that he could restrain himself with difficulty A moment later he saw the futility of interference, when Stark continued, addressing the trader:
”This isn't aiirl, for a h to hold hteen,” declared the trader
”Not according to her story”
”Well, I can keep her claie”
”We've just fixed it so you can't,” grinned Runnion, cunningly ”No man can hold more than one claim on a creek You voted for that yourself”
Too late, Gale saw the trick by which Stark had used hihter If he and his two friends had declined to be a part of this , the others could not have held it, and before another assembly could have been called the creek would have been staked from end to end, from rim to rim, by honest men, over whom no such action could pass; but, as it was, his own votes had been used to sew him up in a mesh of motions and resolutions
”No Creek” Lee had the name of a man slow in speech and action, and one who roused his itself into a painful fury; but noas apparent that he was boiling over, for he stammered and halted and blurted explosively
”You're a bunch of rascals, all of you, tryin' to down a pore girl and get her ground; but who put ye wise to this thing, in the first place?
Who found this gold? Just because there's enough of you to vote that al, not by a daht, and it won't hold, because I won't write it in the book You--you--” He glared at the hisit, spat it out--”dressone up the creek with the three new ed the whole thing so that the new arrivals could immediately relocate each of Necia's clairound outside Lee's discovery, and the surest to be valuable--and that Stark would share in the robbery He or Runnion, or both of the cas; and now, as he revolved the situation rapidly in his ht Poleon had begun to speak, and froht not cease ords; moreover, it was further evident that they were all intent on the excited French around the corner of the cabin, and keeping the house between hi the utuess his purpose, or, worse yet, finish their discussion and adjourn before he could coed through the forest, runningfirst the upper clai a wide detour of the cabin, he caering fro from the strain He had covered nearly a rialad to take a hand on the side of the trader and the girl Co vote to adjourn It could not have terminated more opportunely had he held a stopwatch on it
From the look of triulance at Gale or Poleon or Necia to know that the will of the irl's importunities had restrained her advocates from a resort to violence She looked very forlorn, like a little child just robbed and deceived, with the shock of its first great disillusionment still fresh in its eyes
Runnion addressed the other conspirators loudly
”Well, boys, there are three good claims open for relocation I'm sorry I can't stake one of the,” said one of the undesirable citizens, starting to turn down-stream while his two companions made for the opposite direction But Burrell stopped the No! Don't get excited Whew! I had quite a run”
Gale paused in his tracks and looked at the young man queerly
”What do you mean?”