, despite his years, leaped in lightly. He took the pick
from Jim's hand, and, with a few vigorous strokes, loosened some of
the gravel. He scrutinized it carefully, first with the naked eye, and
then with a strong pocket lens.

"Well?" asked Jim, impatiently.

"Where are the other prospects?" The "Wizard's" kindly tone had
vanished. He was now a mining expert, at his work. Personalities had
faded. Geological questions, only, had weight.

Silently Jim led him up the slope, Jameine and Clem following.

Despite the veiling snow, the old prospector located hole after hole
with unfailing accuracy, until seven had been found and examined. The
last one was half-way up the cliff.

At each prospect the "Wizard" loosened a small handful of gravel,
examined it carefully and put it in a small buckskin bag, pencilling
each bag in order. His expression changed not at all; he bore the true
Western "poker face."

"What overlies this gravel?" he asked abruptly.

"Slate," said Jim.

"Let's see it!"

They climbed upwards.

On arriving at the stratum which lay above the gravel, dipping down
at a sharp slope, the expert examined carefully the carbonaceous slate
of which it was composed.

"We'll go back, now," he said at last.

But he expressed no opinion.

"What do you think of it, Mr. Juneau?" queried Owens, when the four
climbers returned to the glory-hole. His tone seemed to suggest that
he half hoped for an unfavorable answer.

"I'll tell you presently," was the non-committal answer.

Then he turned to the prospector.

"Show me that lignite outcrop, now!"

"Kick the snow away with your feet!" answered Jim, curtly.

Every one kicked vigorously. Under the snow was a thin layer of soil,
and, below that, not more than two inches beneath the surface, was the
brown-black gleam of a low-grade lignite. Owens broke off a piece from
the outcrop and his expression cleared slightly. Certainly Jim's
statement about the coal was justified, though it was of too low-grade
a quality to be worth exportation; possibly his story about the gold
might prove to be true, also.

Then the "Wizard," still without a word which might be construed
either as hopeful or as discouraging, brought from the boat the heavy
piece of machinery. He fitted it with a handle and bade Otto turn. The
machine proved to be a small but very powerful crushing-mill, so
devised that the hardest quartz could be ground to powder by hand.
Besides which, it contai