nd Dean, after hesitating a moment, replied that there was
so far no news of him or from him.

"I'm sorry for Armstrong," said Stranleigh, more as if talking to
himself than to anyone else. "Poor fellow, away from home all this time,
and yet compelled to support six stalwart loafers without commonsense
enough to do the obvious thing."

"What is the obvious thing?" asked Dean.

"Why, to work, of course. There's your mine; you've got plenty of
dynamite to go on with, and yet you lounge about here not earning enough
to keep yourselves in tobacco. If there is silver in that hole, you
could by this time have had enough out to buy the ranch and furnish your
own working capital. You say you are partners in the scheme, but you
seem to be merely a blunderheaded lot of hired men, determined not to do
any work."

Jim answered with acerbity--

"If you weren't a fool you'd know we'd gone already as far as hand work
can go. We need a steam engine and a crusher."

"A steam engine?" echoed Stranleigh. "What on earth would you have to
pay for coal, with railway haulage, and the cost of getting it out here
from the line? Why, right there, rushing past you, is all the power you
need. You've only to make a water-wheel, with a straight log, thrown
across the falls as axle, and there you are. Pioneers have done that
sort of thing since civilisation began, and here you don't need even to
build a dam."

Jim was about to make an angry retort when the company were scattered by
a roar and a heavy fall of soot on the log fire. The chimney was ablaze,
but that didn't matter in the least, as the house was fireproof. In a
short time the flames had died out, and the party gathered round the
fire once more.

"Well," said Jim, "go on with your pretty advice."

Stranleigh replied dreamily, gazing into the fire.

"Oh, well, I think my advice doesn't amount to much, as you hinted. It
is none of my affair. You are a most capable body of men, I have no
doubt, only the fact has been concealed from me up to date. I find I am
developing the vice of talking too much, so I'm going to turn in.
Good-night!"

But the fall of soot had suggested to Stranleigh a method of escape.

VII.--THE END OF THE CONTEST.

A wood fire is an evanescent thing, having none of the calm
determination of coal combustion. A wood fire requires constant
replenishing, and that in the bunk house did not receive this attention.
When the men, tired with doing nothing,