me that spot."

"Well, I will the next time I come across one. Good gracious! if I
didn't know any more about trailing than you do, I would never find that
nugget."

"How do you suppose your father came by it in the first place? He must
have got it in some honest way or he wouldn't have had it in his wagon."

"That is one thing that I don't know," answered Elam solemnly. "He got
it, and how it ever came noised abroad that it belonged to me beats my
time. I wish the man that started that story had it crammed down his
throat."

Elam was getting excited again, and we thought it best to leave him
alone until he got over thinking about the nugget. We didn't raise any
objections when he spurred up his horse and got out of sight of us in
the bushes. When we were certain that he had passed out of hearing, Tom
said:

"Why, it is two years since that man, whoever he was, made that trail
through here, and to think he can find some traces of it now! It bangs
me completely."

"There are two things which must be taken into consideration," said I.
"In the first place that man didn't know what he left of a trail; he
hoped nobody would ever find it. A twig may have been broken down and he
left it so, certain it would lead him back to the place where he had
buried his find. In the next place there is some little sign for which
Elam is looking that will lead him directly to the place he wants to
find; some branch of a tree that has been broken down and looks as
though somebody had been browsing there, and it will tell Elam that he
is hot on the trail. Do you see?"

"Yes, I see; but I don't see how a man can follow a trail two years old.
I wish you would show me his next camping ground. If I am a lucky omen,
I may be able to find the nugget."

I laughed and promised Tom that I would show him the next place I found;
but it was a long time before I found any. You could not have told that
a man had passed through there in one year or ten, the weather had so
completely done away with all his work. But it did not make any
difference to Elam. Sometimes he would be gone before we were up, but he
always came back to supper, which we took pains to have good and hot for
him. We never made any enquiries, for he knew just how impatient we
were, and he would not keep us waiting a moment longer than was
necessary. We had been in the canyon six weeks, and, to tell you the
truth, Tom and I were getting pretty tired of the search. It was the
sa