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it is, boys," he said to George and Ralph, "this thing ain't just straight. You've got no right, in the first place, to give away a quarter of that property before you know what it's worth, and then, again, if you paid me ten times over for what I've done, it wouldn't amount to this. Now, if you think you'd feel better to pay me for my work, take back this deed, and so long as I have charge of 'The Harnett,' give me one barrel in every twenty you take out. That will be mighty big pay, and a good deal more than I am worth." "But I suppose you'd be glad to own a portion of a well, Bob, and especially as big a one as you insist this is going to be," said George. "So I would like to own one, and I'd rather have this one quarter, so far as money goes, than half of any well I know of. But you see this don't belong to me, for I haven't earned it, and you haven't the right to give away so much." "But we have given it away, and you can't insist upon the size of the gift, because none of us know whether, instead of being a benefit, it will not saddle a debt on you of one quarter of the expense of sinking the well," said Ralph. "I know that it won't!" cried Bob, earnestly, "and so do we all, for we're sure of striking a big flow." "Well, Bob, you've got the deed," interrupted George, "and since we want to make you one of the owners of 'The Harnett,' we'll say to you as we did to Mr. Simpson--you've got the deed, and you can't help yourself." Bob made no further reply; but five minutes later the boys saw him and Mr. Simpson perched high up on the wood-pile, talking very earnestly about something, which they quite naturally concluded was the gift they had just received, and on commenting upon it, Mrs. Harnett, although she knew there was very little necessity for it, advised the boys to insist upon the acceptance of the gift, for she believed both the recipients deserved what they considered such good fortune. Both Ralph and George were perfectly satisfied with what they had done, and in an hour after the presentation, all the partners were discussing the chances of striking oil, much as they had every day before when two of them had no idea they were to become part owners. The doctor's visits had grown less frequent since George had begun to recover so rapidly, and it had been three days since he had seen the patient. George had insisted that he was perfectly able to walk as far as "The Harnett," and would have
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