Show BLACK I 1 ON Z iti SHEERS I 1 iti j R GOLD by i A iti in n e beatrice grimshaw 0 n C S si copyright by hughes hugh C co W A WHO arvies igl cco CC 1 CHAPTER X 17 jt it waft waa curing ten la Is late in tbt morning for rf rie at five and ogo oct my J head carrier and ewt 1 I were r e at the end of afi a long job we bad left the other ather carriers busy wooding and watering above had gonei gone down onto the flat bringing with Us pick shovel paga 0 o prospecting dish and long ing steel measuring tape worked ked about a bit among among the rif fiffles riffles fles made by half bait sunken rocks rock rockland gand and I 1 taken sand hand and gin gravel ve from promising spots spots I 1 hid had wa washed out a dewi ew dishes and found them xo go something like three ounces of fine gold to a dish with nuggets to spare over and above on an average about fifteen pounds worth to every dish we washed it was a veritable jewelers shop you could hick the band up with your toes toe sand and see eee it glitter I 1 had a right its as discoverer for prace grace and his partner partner had bad never actually found faun d gold to peg out for or my self celt one larea area of a hundred feet by fifty an and d i a pro prospecting specking spec ting claim aveto due to me as discoverer of a field forty miles from any others other of bf thirty further farther claims this left little for any one else who might come along my troubles bles I 1 I 1 said let them wait they meant to let m me some of the ground judged by wha we k washed was a little richer than the rest iest I 1 picked that measured pegged nailed op p my notice and was done the warden of the field when appointed would hove faveto to check and con firm the work but for all practical pur I 1 had my grou ground i nd secure the sun was high n now w and aid down m in the airless bottom of the pit it had grown hot so hot that that the sweat ran in streams down my arms armi and d dripped upped alty from my forehead into ul my mouth smoke esmoke on oh I 1 said to ogo contemplating with pleasured plea surat suret the neat white pegs that marked off my fortune we wa cad get pigs ln t plenty or t 1 I told him puffing at a welcome edg arette rette fl well shoot all yon jou like going to stop here a week for I 1 hiis was minded to load a carrier or two with rith gold they were traveling tight light now having paten eaten up a great part dart of their loads ogo pia drew at bis bamboo pipe he was wa h happy appy at ease resting from tedious and unnecessary work 1 I watched him as an 1 I sat perched beached on al a rock jock my face towards the longbard long hard way by which we had climbed down aown ans up the east side odthe of the basin toward the ranges A change came oyer oer his face it came very quickly t it seemed emed in an in instant to set get his bis faatu features res stilt stiff like filie water frazen byan by an an icy alfi what do you see ogo I 1 ailred him not turning my y tend Tau Tou bada he answered answered sitting i up on the sand me se see two white men flenty new guinea man he come I 1 looked behind me now up the long slopes that ran to eastward I 1 could see nothing ot first then 1 I 1 could sep see some gome way nay down the sides of the baglai basin dark I 1 doto dots moving white dots doti following them thein they were derego go ing fast making the best of their i way toward the bott bottom oin like s ugar sugar ints ants raiding i a i bowl and very anxious to td getto get to the n sugar bikar as an quickly as pos poa bible it vidis waa beyond all doubt salcer calion and their cirri carriers banters can ers for when I 1 thought of spicer salcer and we bit patron of all thattie the brute must have known and of the silence paid silence hence doubtless afi that he be had and kept of how he be had balked W me e once and had just junt fallen short of ruining me now well it t was not hot astonishing that my fingers halt half consciously ay iy crept toward my left hinand hip and the stock of the revolver without which DO wise man travels th through roush unknown papua I 1 have said that my mind like my bodyl body had bad come to maturity on the red fields loath of the e win war there are thousands near my age who will under stand junt juat what that means the war la Is dead forgotten as are its millions of dead dea dand and forgotten lighters fighters put but the personalities shaped by it remain it has never been possible for me to regard killing inevitably as murder i when spicer ind and come came fairly into sight AI little later when they alley were were well within rifle riffe shot nothing restrained me e row picking off the tall fair ma man I 1 a with it b tho awkward tread and ridding earth of a brute as little fit to live ax as himself had been saye enve the anc knowl adga that I 1 should certainly hang forli for it and that if I 1 hanged I 1 1 I could not dot marry pla laurier they did not hurriah hur hurry rias as I 1 had bad done they did not leap onto the gravelly vat flat that held more re asure than ban all the older gold goldfields fields of new guinea put together we met at lelure leisure in the midst of the glacis of rocks that fringed the bo bottom of the pit cazon a silent ellent fellow always nodded sidewise I 1 biseto wi seto to me and aid eat awn down on a rock in pockets q surveying the oat flat I 1 a sharp harp professional essic onah eye which anurfo e ily did not cot giai my or ansi s li G py my notice sil salcer Icer crime up grinning j hold eld out his hand and quoted fatuous f ly IY DO doctor t r livingston I 1 presume T itt I 1 afi think that h at in the moment an defined presentiment of seized nae me I 1 suppose gup pose 11 must have felt 14 vaguely that ahls defeated had no reasonable right to took aher i nil ful certainly none to crack but MIAM if 1 alil feel anything atthe of the tort it wits was submerged bemy by my personal ahm like of himself I 1 wanted toi to abuse him stalk strike him what I 1 dial say MY war will only let leteany many any of the plums for you im afraid are there plums he said bald foolish alvas ly as it ir he fie had come u up into the heard of wild new guinea fur for a walk mai hla eyes eye were rollag ro ing while lie be spoke poke il 1 I saw them thela appt on my pg pegs jand aad for or ai a moment they opened wide and sho showed 1 as ninny many aily ugly th things ligias as the window of ii a ault it was cason caron alro spoke however what does it go to the dushl he 1 gewn did sit characteristically with legs flung wide apart und and arms arms alil oft ha pulled into bis eyes and insolent lip attic ir out of athe the few old time miners remain remaining ingin in new guinea I 1 had always liked the least net erthe elessa leBS I 1 answered him there was waa no notise nee denying patent facts acts about four foum ounces dunces pk to the dichtl dish isala I 1 aid let out a cackle 0 delight but made no sign 1 I suppose he sam presently we hud dietter better have dinner it was three oc loik they had us u T I 1 afterward heard camped part way down the cra grateron canter teron on the previous night and trav i f aled since do dawn Ill it was by a very ery short head that I 1 had won I 1 dined either some so we joined our messes it would lave have been coni con arary tw to now new guinea bush custom to do anything else and while we ate and drank andi and watched batche d each other slyly from under our ey eyelids elida there was just one thought in lii the minds of every everyone one gold goidl 1 but not very far from it I 1 think was the thought of the other thing that td maddens addens too when seen that cries out too when flung upon the ground blood bot better berbe be careful 0 accidents in ili the bush 1 I thought even as I 1 pressed i the two to to share my food its a big strain on any mans self restraint Noth nothing lilg open of course id ie respect that but so many little sneaky ways of killing are possible i what kept you back on the road 77 11 I 1 asked the 06 tw two I 1 wanted to know besides this silence was irritating me they looked sa so well pleased with themselves had bad so little right to be pleased sed foolery answered cason caron his mouth choked by biscuit spicer here wont realize that im leader and P 11 quite alte incorrect bleated bleared salcer in what I 1 fancy he be took to be an oxford accent at the he death of sir richard Kl chard the leadership I 1 devolved on me I 1 deela c d that the Inte interests interests ests of the would best be served byi by opening up what we had been leato led to understand was a probable of the very you on were out for cash to go on the spree same as myself commented cason and tf fired bred just about two more more shots into that crowd natives we met neither of Us tos would ever hive have been seen this place you started the whole crowd on on us aa and then I 1 to and we wein them out considerably of course we had to go round after that i the result of you alleged leadership 0 patronized spicer being tn sum that we have arrived after all the valuable ground Is pegged i tei yes said caron simply and buried i in his pint size alze I 1 knew the papuan miner too well to question him Butt But there bere was some thing about the whole deal that I 1 did not understand it matter I 1 thought if if they fancy they them can out me somehow or other in the bush they ye got another think coming 1 ive got the place in billbe of them all and ill keep beep lt i we had bad finish edour meal now ind and the two newcomers without further faither parley went i down to the flat and be gaar about it was fairly late gatei tn in the afternoon by now 1 less the pair started off on what was evidently a brief prospecting trip 1 I heard the clink of camons alek now and andini then ien and the sharp shai p tab lap of a hummer lv I 1 did not trouble much about thim them I 1 was too trusy making use of the opportunity tow aIh out a 8 few more dishes of gravel grivel th thare r a could could i be no quest question lon now naw of loading car 1 idlers with gold goldfon foche for the homeward trip but I 1 wanted ata least a good sample I 1 i I 1 do no not think I 1 shall ever forget I 1 i idt hat hour ecstasy of w ashing out dish i a after fter misfit dish lifted almost anywhere on oni the flat and finding sure as day at the bottom of every avery onea one arich orich a rich ment of yellow dust arid flakes na l l l 1 H R H H l t H 1 M l l 1114 1 1 1 4 haMdon had i done eAts iab wonlu my claim might be then them better for sluicing later on but at the moment one could collect enough toro akBany nian nan crazy drunk with ft ath gold lust luit out of tha via washing 2 hing of i a dozen ld dishes libes I 1 washed them collected the gold fold it was wa about thirty five ounkis ounces and fint attaway wone W in one on ot W swam tor for and spicer were froni I 1 is i auest ouest est and I 1 did thelmaa them to i aw bee my marvelous gains they tricy come came straight up 10 to ane vi I 1 deatly bently according to a preconceived tilling they looked tired and dirty als spice ric dragged pan anil tharel wo s im t a naty nasty look i abou pretty had bad leei wore thin than acs one before well idaa wax baa a be began it seems that the only thing thine i weiran doz do Z I 1 Na say ISay that again I 1 interrupted iland and say A mister flater amory 10 1 bel he corrected with I 1 scornful corn ful empl the only thin thing 9 i 1 1 w cje 1 tan can da jofto peg outa out what cleft left and go back ton understand lassof awe of the country I 1 suppose 11 was waa mi my an awer t 1 11 I do if he put in caron yvere yf ere not going to visit the minis mine department this thial trip ghibesi the bleat thing you banoo can do Is to conie ota t the loan 4 of ov erthe eithe whole business and an dwell well all allbe be safer nancyi shooting of basma has made dothe the busha bush a betl live ly I 1 reckon I 1 reflected caron was undoubted 1 iyan ly in the right joining forces and i carriers would be best tor for every one we could travel taster faster together be 5 cause caum ethere there would be plenty of hands toi to cut a road when wanted moret more safely because the natives would be I 1 slow blow to attack a big body of people I 1 there was nothing that I 1 need stay f for now that ahad I 1 had pegged my claim I 1 had only to go down to port moresby landset and land get it granted gi anted yit yet and yet jet when the n next t day 1 came came when the tents had lidd been ey struck and thel the carriers loads portioned outa out and thelong the long hird hard up upward tramp wasl was begin beginning allig I 1 could not do away with a al sense of ill defined anxiety on abel the surface everything aas was right I 1 hadl had won th the lo 10 race taken the treasure with irae h blei his callous allous greed i garding e everything in h life but gaan gaeni I 1 spicer greedy too weri were both A dei de J i featta feared that wiswell waa well what trient troubled me As far fai asi asil could deane matteri it was this they did not really iliad inexplicable that unsatisfactory that thought it wis was not bof no nothing so definite stayed saiyed wab me through the greater part of the trip to the romilly river nothing occurred to deepen it nothing on the other hand happened to make tt it less 41 I 1 could noi helli lob observing serving that my two white companions were almonti nervously anxious niclous lest I 1 should leave thel their r eight Th there theres ereis Is a streak of van 1 va ity ty in every man my streak led me to c conclude on clude that the two of them valued my company tn in view of abl dangerous country we were travers traversing ln more than I 1 bad supposed yet the puzzlement the anxiety were still alive somewhere i submerged in ii byj r i mind I 1 did not altogether t under j stands stand 1 who was endlessly troubled by spacers atlle it attempts tempts to be re 1 carded as as Iea leader dei had glyen orders that na no one white or black should jave leave the main party without hla his knowledge 1 jt it cost coat we me nothing t to 0 obey him I 1 knew that in their papuan alluan bush divided authority spells disaster i and whatever opinion I 1 might t have held of caron in his bis private privat e capacity I 1 knew him to be the best of ca bushmen men ori on one hernoon afternoon we had been climbing for some hours having taken a route slightly different from that of the outward h trip and intending to cut across a ridge this way brought as into 4 bit of new country and so it was that emerging suddenly agn on th the Q top of the ridge we came without any warning right apon upon 0 one lie of the villages odthe of the Tata Tat atnia tata tribe the people had heard us as long loing be 1 fore ford their women pigs babies i and collections of sli skulls tills were no doubet already carried off into the bush we found the themen men awaiting us plucky c haps chaps that they were thirty or forty naked aided creatures decked in feathers aad shells and dogs teeth armed I 1 with the formidable bow althe of the rac ran gersi gerst that can shoot you through at a liun hun i t dred yard sand and the stone club that smashes a skull aa anesly esly as a spoon smashes an egg not much to stand I 1 against out rifles but they know rifles 1 there was waa the trouble and caron and myself were equa equally iiii dis inclined to stake a massacre by way ta of teaching them TO abbt CONTINUED M I 1 11 M 1 l H I 1 it alli I 1 |