With so dreadful a punishment for Jack, Wessner under arrest, and
warrants for the others, we can count on their going away and remaining.
As for anyone else, I don't think they will care to attempt stealing
my timber after the experience of these men. There is no other man here
with Jack's fine ability in woodcraft. He was an expert."

"Did you ever hear of anyone who ever tried to locate any trees
excepting him?" asked Freckles.

"No, I never did," said McLean. "I am sure there was no one besides
him. You see, it was only with the arrival of our company that the other
fellows scented good stuff in the Limberlost, and tried to work in. Jack
knew the swamp better than anyone here. When he found there were two
companies trying to lease, he wanted to stand in with the one from which
he could realize the most. Even then he had trees marked that he was
trying to dispose of. I think his sole intention in forcing me to
discharge him from my gang was to come here and try to steal timber. We
had no idea, when we took the lease, what a gold mine it was."

"That's exactly what Wessner said that first day," said Freckles
eagerly. "That 'twas a 'gold mine'! He said he didn't know where the
marked trees were, but he knew a man who did, and if I would hold off
and let them get the marked ones, there were a dozen they could get out
in a few days."

"Freckles!" cried McLean. "You don't mean a dozen!"

"That's what he said, sir--a dozen. He said they couldn't tell how the
grain of all of them would work up, of course, but they were all worth
taking out, and five or six were real gold mines. This makes three
they've tried, so there must be nine more marked, and several of them
for being just fine."

"Well, I wish I knew which they are," said McLean, "so I could get them
out first."

"I have been thinking," said Freckles. "I believe if you will leave one
of the guards on the line--say Hall--that I will begin on the swamp,
at the north end, and lay it off in sections, and try to hunt out the
marked trees. I suppose they are all marked something like that first
maple on the line was. Wessner mentioned another good one not so far
from that. He said it was best of all. I'd be having the swelled head if
I could find that. Of course, I don't know a thing about the trees, but
I could hunt for the marks. Jack was so good at it he could tell some of
them by the bark, but all he wanted to take that we've found so far have
just had a deep ch