r of seeing the phantom horse and his
rider."

"Possibly," said Miss Gladden, "it would be well for us to adjourn for
the night, or we may have a glimpse of the phantoms; it must be after
ten o'clock."

"After ten, impossible!" exclaimed Rutherford, springing to his feet;
"I beg your pardon, ladies, for having detained you so long; I never
dreamed it was so late."

"The long twilight here deceives one, I have hardly become accustomed
to it myself," said Miss Gladden.

"The ladies will surely pardon us," said Houston, "since it is through
their making the time pass so pleasantly that we have trespassed."

They separated for the night, and a little later, Mr. Blaisdell and
Haight came up from the office, but Morgan did not return until
daylight was beginning to tinge the eastern sky.

CHAPTER IX.

A number of days passed uneventfully. Houston was occupied in getting
familiarized with the work at the office, having first created an
epoch in the history of that institution by having the windows
thoroughly cleaned.

One of the noted characters of the mining camp was a small boy who,
when he could scarcely walk, had, on account of his fearless spirit
and indomitable pluck, been dubbed with the name of "Bull-dog." The
name was so appropriate, and the little fellow himself so proud of it,
that as he grew older it was forgotten if he ever had any other; if he
had, no one knew what it was. He was now nearly twelve years of age,
as small as most boys of eight or nine, but he possessed the same
spirit as of old. Bull-dog was the oldest of five children; his
parents lived at the Y, a worthless, disreputable pair; he spent very
little time under the parental roof, and filial respect was entirely
left out of his composition, and no wonder! He was a favorite among
the miners, spending much of his time in the camp, and the shrewd
little fellow was very observant of what went on around him, and very
keen and worldly-wise in his judgment of human nature as he found it.

He speedily made the acquaintance of Houston, and when the latter came
down to the office on his second morning, he found the boy awaiting
him, and an idea occurred to him.

"Say, Bull-dog, can you wash windows?" he asked.

"Bet yer life," was the laconic reply, accompanied by a grin.

"What will you charge me for washing these four?"

The small individual surveyed the windows critically, then answered:

"Six bits."

"Go ahead," said Houston, "l