t no one knows anything about; and every once in a
while a man is found drowned and floating; _floating_ mind you!"

"What of that?" I asked; "drowned bodies usually float."

"There's no miner in these diggings but has gold enough in his belt to
sink him. If a man floats, he's been robbed, and you can tie to that
reasoning. And the fellows are all well mounted, and given to mysterious
disappearances."

"In other words," broke in the doctor, "they are an organized band of
cut-throats and highway robbers making this honest camp a headquarters."

"Pshaw, Doctor," said Randall, "that's by no means certain."

"It's certain enough," insisted the doctor.

"I should think the miners would drive them out," I said.

"Drive them out!" cried the doctor bitterly; "they're too busy, and
their own toes haven't been trodden on, and they're too willing to let
well enough alone so as not to be interrupted in their confounded
digging for gold."

"They're not organized and they are quite justly unwilling to get in a
row with that gang when they know they'd be killed," stated Randall
quietly. "They're getting on 'well enough,' and they'll continue to be
run by this lot of desperadoes until something desperate happens. They
want to be let alone."

The doctor recovered his equanimity with an effort.

"They present the curious spectacle," said he thoughtfully, "of the
individual man in a new untrammelled liberty trying to escape his moral
obligations to society. He escapes them for a while, but they are there;
and in the end he must pay in violence."

Randall laughed and arose.

"If the doctor is going to begin that sort of thing, I'm going," said
he.

Our visitors took their departure.

"Oh, Doctor, one moment!" I called; then, as he returned. "Tell me, who
and what is Danny Randall?"

"Danny Randall," said the doctor, a humorous twinkle coming into his
eyes, "is a gentleman of fortune."

"And now we know a lot more than we did before!" said Johnny, as we
watched the receding figures.

CHAPTER XXX

THE FIGHT

We ate a very silent supper, washed our dishes methodically, and walked
up to town. The Bella Union was the largest of the three gambling
houses--a log and canvas structure some forty feet long by perhaps
twenty wide. A bar extended across one end, and the gaming tables were
arranged down the middle. A dozen oil lamps with reflectors furnished
illumination.

All five tables were doing a brisk business;