be in
possession of more wealth than any of them had ever dreamed of
possessing. In the mean time, as they ascended the creek, and
consequently approached the site of the reef, it was only reasonable to
suppose that more pockets and patches of gold-bearing sand would be
discovered. Some might be as rich as that upon which they had chanced at
first; and then, even if they did not locate the mysterious mother-reef,
they would be able to make good wages, and be able to return to the
township and clear off their score with Marmot before setting out to
more recognized auriferous areas.

For two weeks they followed up the creek, tracing its course even when
it looped back upon itself so as to leave a tongue of land barely twenty
yards across between the bends. The bed, as they progressed, was rocky,
but free from quartz, and very little sand was found in the crevices of
the rock, while only a few specks of gold now and again rewarded their
perseverance and their toil.

As soon as the sun was up they were at work, and, except when they
stopped for meals, they worked incessantly till sundown, the fascination
of chance, the prospect of striking at any moment a patch of alluvial
which would, by its richness, wipe away all memory of earlier
disappointment, keeping them steadily going. At sunset they made their
camp for the night, and slept, rolled in their blankets, lulled to sleep
by the rippling stream flowing only a few yards away. As the first sign
of dawn was heralded by the melodious twitters of the bush birds they
were astir; the ashes of the fire, still smouldering, were raked
together, and the billy set to boil, while they spread their blankets
out to catch the first rays of the sun, and performed their simple
toilets in the running stream. Day after day they worked along the
creek, never finding anything more than specks of gold, and never seeing
any token of the reef Palmer Billy was so sure must be somewhere near
the higher reaches.

The stream had led them into more hilly and rugged country, sometimes
flowing between high and steep banks, but more frequently through open
country gradually ascending to higher levels. The size of the stream was
steadily maintained, and no tributary rills were found to run into it,
the long season of drought having apparently dried them all up. The fact
that the volume of water did not diminish suggested that the stream had
its origin in a series of springs higher up. Instead of this