chest of money at the foot of each of these blazed
trees."

"And pretty good hiding places, too, where the gold might have remained
forever if--"

"If you hadn't been hating me so that you lost your way!"

They stood with the heap of gold between them, the bewilderment of
discovery in their eyes.

"This is the end of the rainbow and the gold lies at our feet!" he
said, and he took her hands, and the one still wearing the bandage he
held very, very gently. "Love we know to be better than much fine gold;
and wouldn't it be a pity for the finding of these coins to mark the
very end, with nothing beyond! And life is so big and wonderful I want
your help to make mine of some use--"

She looked at him long and searchingly, and her eyes were so grave,
their questioning seemed so interminable, that he did not know until she
spoke that her lips had trembled into a smile.

"If you can forgive me," she said; and she laid her hands upon his
shoulders, lightly as though by their touch she were investing him with
her hope in life renewed and strengthened, and giving pledge that they
would walk together thereafter to the end of their days.

* * * * *

During his convalescence the matter of the sixty thousand dollars taken
from Seebrook at Cornford troubled the Governor greatly. While he had
not personally profited by that transaction it was, he said, his nearest
approach to actual larceny and he wished to make reparation, the more
particularly as Eliphalet complained that the sale of his stock was
frustrated by the mysterious substitution of Leary's stolen bills for
the money in Seebrook's trunk. Whereupon Archie bought the stock from
Eliphalet and sent it with ten thousand dollars in cash to Seebrook,
enclosing in the packet he confided to Briggs for delivery a note
explaining that the theft had been a mere bit of pleasantry for which
the guilty person offered the sincerest apologies.

Before he left the North the Governor made generous provision for all
who had shared his fortunes. Perky sold the _Arthur B. Grover_ to a
dredging company in Chicago and the proceeds were divided among the
crew. To each man's share the Governor made a substantial addition with
the stipulation that the recipient should engage thereafter in some
honorable calling. It may be said that in every instance of which the
present chronicler has knowledge the man thus endowed invested wisely in
a lawful business and so f