oming right down to brass tacks now, Miss Haydock informed me that she
owned pretty nearly all this Pontico Hills district up here. She had
taken it some years back simply as an investment, and was holding it in
hopes that some fine day a projected railroad would go through here,
when it must become valuable property.

"Latterly she had been bothered by a nephew of hers, a man from New York
City by the name of Mr. Maurice Dangerfield, who had been trying to get
her to allow him to have an option on the entire strip of land, under
the plea that he believed he had a customer who would purchase.

"As the price he offered was considerably more than what she had paid,
Miss Haydock was almost tempted to agree. On thinking the matter over,
however, she came to the conclusion not to be too hasty about deciding.
She happened to know this Dangerfield was a clever individual, who had,
as a rule, made his living by being smarter than most people. He told
her he was in great need, and that the commission he expected to
receive, should the deal go through, would save him possibly from
becoming a bankrupt. He was working upon her generous nature, you see,
boys; but it happened that she knew a number of things not to his
credit, and so concluded to go slow about the matter.

"So she wanted me to get a couple of my chums and spend several weeks up
in the Pontico Hills camping, the only provision being that we should
take a lot of pictures to show her what the country looked like. And I
was to keep a sharp eye out for any sign of Mr. Maurice, as well as
learn, if I could, just what he was up to.

"She showed me a picture of her smart nephew, and of course as soon as
Toby here described the gentleman who came into camp that day, looking
so sour, I just knew it must be he.

"Now, when Toby and myself today discovered a man poking about, and
using a pickax now and then, as though searching for minerals, I
suspected instantly that we were on the verge of a discovery, and it
turned out that way. We hid in the bushes, and I even managed to snap
off the party, with his pick over his shoulder.

"When he had gone, Steve, we went over to see why he had been scratching
the soil as he did, and showing so many evidences of excitement. Well,
tell him what we found, Toby."

"Oil!" ejaculated Toby, theatrically, and Steve almost fell over, such
was his astonishment.

"Do you mean petroleum--crude oil?" he gasped.

"Why, in some places the grou