uched behind the nearest bowlder,
but was a second too late. Hardman had observed him, and was off like
a flash. To Frank's amazement, when he looked for him he was gone.

Determined not to lose him, the youth ran forward as fast as the nature
of the ground would permit. Reaching the spot where he had first
discovered the man, he glanced at the surroundings, but could see
nothing to indicate that the gold had been hidden anywhere near, though
the probabilities pointed to such being the fact, for it must have been
in that vicinity that the burro was turned free.

But the boy felt the necessity of bringing the man himself to terms,
and with scarcely a halt he hurried over the bowlders and around the
rocks in what he believed to be the right direction, though he had no
certain knowledge that such was the fact.

He was still clambering forward, panting, impatient, and angry, when a
figure suddenly came to view a little way in advance. Frank abruptly
stopped and brought his gun to a level, but before he could aim he
perceived to his amazement that it was his cousin Roswell standing
motionless and looking with wonderment around him. A moment later the
two came together and hastily exchanged experiences.

"We have made a mess of it," was the disgusted comment of Frank, "for
we had them both and let them get away."

[Illustration: "WE HAVE MADE A MESS OF IT," WAS THE DISGUSTED COMMENT
OF FRANK.]

"All the same we must be near the spot where the gold was hidden, and I
believe we can find it by searching."

"We may, but the chances are a hundred to one against it. How strange
that those two men carried no firearms!"

It has been shown that the Klondike country is not one of dangerous
weapons, because it is well governed, and the necessity, therefore,
does not exist for men to go about armed. Many of them unquestionably
carry pistols, but larger weapons are few, and the majority have
neither, for they only serve as incumbrances. Strange, therefore, as it
may seem, Hardman and his companion had but a single revolver between
them, and the man who carried that spoke the truth when he said all its
chambers were empty and he was without the means of loading it.

The great oversight of the two was that when they entered the cavern
and took away the gold, they left the Winchester and revolvers. This
may have been due to their eagerness to carry off every ounce of gold,
but the commonest prudence would have suggested that they "