Show n l w A i. i I II I r. r 4 l t vp r ri oi k w. w j Crr 9 tb s' s 3 At V w p But ut af Gloria ri clung clun- clun passionately to the one straw offered her Mark t- t King had come he had Imd s saved cd her If It only for tor the moment If It there thera were further a tI on It tt lay Iny In Mark Marlc Kin Lang King And so she came presently presently pres pres- to a n thought that made her sit bolt upright that set her heart racing that drought brought a n new look Into her eye eyes rust Just now It had seemed so 80 clear that only one thIn thing could save e her marriage her marriage with Gratton But ut Gratton was hone gone one and Mark King was here If It she married I still here ICing King I The Judge was I IJ v J What If she went to King sa saying to him straightforwardly Thus Thos and such Is m my predicament For or Formy Formy ormy my sake sake for for the sake of ot papas papa's daughter and ami hence for papas papa's sane sake no less will less-will will you ou go through the form of or marrying met me I shall be bel beno l no burden It will il make no difference difference differ differ- ence In your our life lite For Igor tomorrow I will wIlt go back to San Francisco and ands and's s 's you rou need never see me n again You Youcan grf r i can cnn let me hn have e a fl divorce you will have lost nothing 1 I shall have been saved er e everything Will Wilt you marry me Mark King Icing m King Icing was calling Will you come down now Everything's ready Coming Coining answered Gloria She glanced at her glass as she went out the color which had played etI hide and seek hide seek all day was again tinting her checks cheeks a delicate rose What were fatigue and hunger hunger hun I ger when hope atten attended e them But It happened that Glorias Gloria's in Inv I pulse which was at least honest and I frank was for a a 8 little tittle held In I abeyance and thus It came carne about that she lost the opportunity to appear ap ape pear before Mark King fang at a critical moment as being straight dealing direct and outspoken She thanked him with her eyes for the thc lunch he had bad set forth for Cor her tier she gave guye hit him hima I W C a quick little smile as he waited wafted i on her There was In his eyes a aHo aj j i c i I c Q i r y Ho He Will Do Whatever I Ask Him to toDo t Do Do Something Sang Within Her 4 t. t g i l look leok ok which he had no suspicion J was there the look of a mans man's ador adore i t atlon atlan He w will do whatever I ask him to todo do something sang within her You are so good to me She stirred her coffee com e and he saw only the lashes Inshes and their black shadows on her checks The human comedy had hud begun beun or orthe orthe the thc comedy begun long ago was renamed re- re re resumed named Burned smoothly In Its Us third act After that It was neither Gloria nor King who played the part of ot stage director that time-honored time responsibility was back In the tho hands of ot ott t the tho oldest of ot all stage managers Kroft saw 1 lying Ing on the table the I package done up In n an nu old cloth which she hind had brought Further he knew that he had seen It before and where he lie had seen It Ue Ile knew that I at last he had old Loony secret where ho lie could put out his LIs hand to It with none to gainsay him lie He knew that with It was a message from Crom his old oM friend Ben i that Ben Ilen himself lay at this moment mo aio- I ment went In Coloma hurt And yet set his hits eyes clung to the eyes of Gloria and aud all of ot these things were swept io aside aBIde In his mind There are urges which must be obeyed ell the urge of ot 1 1 spinning worlds worMs to circling suns the f urge of man mau to timid maid Gloria I 1 he said eald huskily Gloria 1 Yes Mark she raid MId quietly trying to speak very cry calmly and as 08 t thou though h she did not know oh sowell so sowell well all that tumult that lay Iny behind p his bis calling her name i lie Ue came to her ber swiftly She ro rose roseM u M swiftly y to her feet Like magnet mug mag net and steel they were swept to toe gether He lie felt her ber body tense but 4 unresisting In fn his arms i suddenly I she ha relaxed her head was waa against lima hl hi breast Gloria In his bin arms arms arms- Glo Gloria's Glorias a sweat face hidden n from kiln him ag against l his rough tough Si shift t- t Gloria 1 l Gloria he cried again She freed treed herself and while he let her go he stood watching her with the new look In her eyes ces Scar- Scar let faced she flashed her look at him from across the table PJ Please ase Mark as he moved moed toward toward toward to to- ward her You haven't read rend papas papa's letter yet et And And And-and and Im I'm d dying to know what Is In that funny package pack pack- age ag Arent Aren't you If uIt Im I'm dying at nt all he told her herI gravely ely though he found a smile to I answer her own own and and two very ery serious seI serious se se- I rious smiles they were were It It Is of ot otI I quite another complaint And this time time time- But please Mark I I am here all alone with alone with you you and and ul I 1 know I haven't n forgotten But Gloria Gloria- Some time you are going to give gl yourself to me arent aren't you dear While Is still here lIere wont won't you let him marry us It will give me the right to shut that fool Gratton's Orations mouth for him and andOh andOh and and- Oh Ob Gloria my dear my dear dear dear- Will wm you ou Gloria And then from lips which did not smile he heard the very faint but no longer elusive e Yes Now ow Gloria Yes Mark If you are sure that you want me She spoke humbly i at the Instant she was humble But But she added hastily still you ou haven't read poor pour papas papa's letter He lie lieI I was very ery anxious Let me go a mIm minute te Murk I l am nm going upstairs I I-I I I want to phone to mamma first And while I am gone you can read papas papa's letter and and u and Her face was hot with blushes And arrange with the Judge he said his own voice olce uncertain Yes Yea Gloria She ran ron b by him then He heard her going upstairs he heard a door closing after her Then like a u man mon who treads on air he went to the window and threw It up and called Jim I Tell the Judge not to go I have hn business with him I want him and you here In ten minutes And then when Jims Jim's voice had answered him he thought to take up the parcel on the table A hurried hur hur- ried letter from Ben and the parcel from Something here for tor which he had been seeking working for tor years remembered now only because Gloria had made the request that they be not for for- gotten But Bens Ben's words caught him when he he had read the first line Une He Be had opened the pac packet et ripping oft off theold the theold theold old encasement of ot cloth There was a book a Bible that looked to tobe tobe tobe be centuries old battered the covers cov cove ers era gone i Gaynor's letter was waa slipped into It DEAR MARK MARS dead rye Ive got grot his no- no cret But Brodie Brodle camo came near doinG me In Honeycutt dying dying- sent lent for me I got thero thoro just lust In time He gave me the Bible It was the parsons par sons cons and then Gus Ingles Ingle's As I Iwas Iwas Iwas was going golner out of ot the tho cabin Brodie Brodlo and two of his gang graner swooped down on me mo In the dark I pitched the Bible clear and they did not see 1500 it was WaR Just that near They came cam close to killing me when I cam came to toI toI I 1 found they'd been through my pockets I I dont don't know how much Brodie Brodle knows I do know he be Is working with Gratton Cratton the tho dirty crook I think you can cnn beat them to it ft It hands down And for tor Gods God's sake Mark and for my sake If It not for your own dont don't lot tho the grass grass grow I 1 Iam Iam am on the edge cde of absolute bankruptcy bankruptcy bankruptcy bank bank- laid up this way I dont don't see seea a a. chance chanco unless you find and what weve we've been boen after so eo long and find It quick Will you start without any delay As soon as you get this phone to Charlie Marsh at Coloma L Leave avo word for me And let that word be that nothing on earth will stop you you Then I wont won't go crazy here with worry BEN A bit of ot the time old interest swept back over oer King as ns he lie read the old I excitement raced through his blood He dropped Bens Ben's note Into the stove sto and en eagerly erh took up the old Bible There was the secret at last Gus last Gus Ingles Ingle's message come to dim Im across the dead years Good god I never nover see sec such gold nor no man neither and when ho hocomo come como Into camp you ou could read In n his hie look ha he had found It because no noman noman man could have looked at that Mother load toad aril and nd not look took like mee Jim Jim- my And big Brodlo Brodio grabbed him by the throat thront and shook him and nearly killed him until Jimmy told 1 W We went wont down the tho gorge to tho narrow place over on the big that had broke off ort and that was WM how bow we come to the First Calve and then w we come to Calve Calv number thre and two And for tor two weeks maybe thre wo we lost track of time timo until this grate big pile of gold was waa dug duE that I 1 am setting right on top of right rh-ht now how bow can a man eat gold when he Is dying of hunger and burn It when ho Is 19 freezing And It was big Brodie Brodle killed p pore r Manny I seen him And the next day or maybe It was two d days clays s 's Dago Davo ago was Will gone ono and never come back was It Manny's got him a and 11 dru drug him down the cliffs cliff screaming horrible horrible hor hor- and In the gorge gorge anyway anyway that was Two and 1 am nm all that la le left and I am going going J I to get ct out ani and the tho Dig Big storm me mc back bak andall and andall all aU J I cars can B su e lo Ia Id an sad Ihy poison parson If Ii I 1 had not of killer killed them they hey would killed me sure aura and hi big gone gODe he Is crazy and cant never make mako It ba back k k across the mountains In thIs storm and nd Baldy Winch he took a 8 big nugget and wont off orr un ho staled what handful handful handful hand hand- ful of grub there was If It I write all this In the Bible that was preach preach- rr tor Elsons and tie It up safe sate In tn oilcloth oIle oIl oIl- oil e cloth cioth oth and canvas ns and make moko a bote Dote out of a chunk chuD of ot wood and throw It In the river r r maybe It will m got to toone toone one ono of ot the camps down h there and a good man will find It It and lie give him half hatt You come up the old trail put past where th the thre had their camp last lut year and over the big mountain strata ahead and about another seven saven miles strata strate on and thon then there Is I. the pass paIS with th the tb bl big bl black ck rocks rock on ono one side Id and streaks streak of white granite a on oa the other anc and down into the gorge gorio and strata up four or Ave miles where the tha old broke oft off and fell tell My MT God hero here goes GUS INGLE To any man who knew the Sierra hereabouts less Intimately than did dId Mark King iCing Gus Ingles Ingle's message would Ian have ve brought only tion But to King ICing now as ns to Ben Gaynor before him the secret lay bare Old names held on the time three Italians had given a name to what was now known as nB Italy Gulch I The caves were on a certain fork tork of ot the American river then and King had approximately the distances dis and direction He fie thrust the old Bible Into his shirt There were steps on the the porch Jim and the time Judge were coming coming- I I CHAPTER VI VIi i u IT T STRIKES me said Bald Summer Summer- A ling sarcastically that theres there's mighty funny tunny goings goings on on here tonight to to- night I 1 show up to marry one man manto manto I Ito to a a girl and nex thing I know know- Never uNe er mind that cut In King Icing hastily You are ore going to marry her after all Only tp another man Meanie you Mark demanded Jim For the life lite of ot him he couldn't I. I decide whether he or every everyone one else had gone crazy King flushed under the look took but nodded and managed a calm Yes Yea Jim He led and Jim Into the living room closing the door Now if you folks are ready said Ive I got a long loni ride ahead of me This time Ume Gloria did not keep them waiting She came down the staircase to Mark King standing at atthe atthe atthe the bottom In her pink dress like liken a n thistledown floating down to him He was waa thinking thInkIng she she she tOo rem remembered em how how for tor the first time they had bad met thus She smiled at him she put out her two hands to him as she had done that other time And right here they were married married on on Gua Qua In Ingles Ingle's es e's old Bible Its done donel 1 whispered Mark bending over her You are mine now mine for all time Ume Gloria And girl of ot mine he added reverently may God deal with me as I deal with you little littlevoice littlevoice Its lIts done donel In an awed voice came Glorias Gloria's response like an echo Mark Mar King had bad leen seen her across the Jim and the Judge Judie had gone ione They two were alone in the still lUll house Gloria was nervous Tell me about papas papa's letter she said hastily Had there not be been n that obvious topic she aha would have caught at another any other King put out his hand for hers and while Gloria looked into the fire and he looked into her face tace he told her At the end he brought out Gus Qua Ingles Ingle's Bible and nd read to her what was written In I It And you know where It Is I ul can cnn go to it as straight as a string Two days to get to it and to stake a claim two days das to come out ont with a couple of ot horses loaded to the guards And that Itself means a fortune If It its it's clean raw gold as would seem to be the case We need not fear tear the poorhouse you and I Mrs King I But Brodle Brodie And Mr Gratton They dont don't know where It is I They cant can't know v since weve we've got the Bible and Honeycutt Honecutt was dead before before before be be- fore they got him I If they knew v they would have ha been on their way already And Ill I'll be striking out b before before be be- fore tore dawn leaving no such trail that they can follow it In a hurry even if It they should seek seck to You ou are going so BO soon Papa wanted that He wanted me to telephone as soon as I got this He Be rose lingering linger ing lag over her We We mustn't forget torget him even en for tor our own happiness I I 1 I am going upstairs Mark called Gloria after atter him All right Queen of ot the World he answered her Im Just to phone in a message to him It wont won't take me five minutes to get It done Just to say Tell Ben that I start at dawn and that hes he's got my word for tor forit forit it that nothings nothing's going to stop me mel And that And that Ive I've Just married Gloria I 1 He got his message through and Gloria was still upstairs When time I passed and she did not come he heI I went up softly and to her ber door His knuckles had hardly brushed the door this door which he be approached approached approached ap ap- ap- ap In reverence Gloria had hadnot hadnot hadnot not even en heard him He e called softly softly soft soft- ly Iy his voice olce little above a whisper Gloria 1 He heard her move mo i for tor a moment she did not answer He could not know how s she he stood scarcely breathIng breath breath- log Ing her ber hands at her ber breast nor how now that the thc great step was taken en she was again half holt frightened fright ht eu ened d half regretful altogether bewildered bewildered bewildered be be- and uncertain Of Ot herself of him 0 of everything |