Gold
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CHAPTER XXVI
WE SEND OUT OUR TREASURE
Though these Indian troubles had nothing to do with it, neverthelessthey marked the beginning of our change of luck. We suffered no definitemisfortunes; but things did not go well. The slight malarial attack ofDon Gaspar was the first of an annoying series. I suppose we had allbeen inoculated on the marshes of the Sacramento, and the disease hadremained latent in our systems. The hard work in the open air had keptus healthy; but the fever only awaited the favourable moment ofdepression or of overwork. The combination of ice cold water around ourlegs and burning sun on our heads was not the best in the world.Fortunately Yank, who came from an ague country, had had foresightenough to bring a supply of quinine. For two months one or the other ofus was ailing; and once for a few days five of us were down!
Then, too, I think the zest of the game was palling on us a little,strange as it may seem. We could dig gold from the soil almost at will.It would seem that this single fact would keep normally acquisitive menkeyed to a high pitch of endeavour all the time; but it was not so. Isuppose we needed a vacation. We began to discuss what we would do whenwe should see the city again. No one for a moment dreamed that we shouldquit these rich diggings. We were here to make our fortunes; and thefortunes seemed to be ready for the making. Only the novelty havingpassed, it had become hard work, just like the making of any other kindof a fortune.
The Pine family camped below us, used our corral, at our invitation, andset placidly to work. They were typical frontiersmen, and settled downin the well-built cabin which they quickly ran up as though they meantto make of it a permanent home. For two months, which brought us up tothe end of July, they lived a regular and leisurely life. Then onemorning, without any warning at all, they rode over to our cabin,leading their horses, fully packed. Old man Pine explained, while hisfive tall, steady-eyed sons sat their horses quite immobile in thebackground, that they had dug enough gold for their necessities, andthat they were now going down to the lower country to pick out some goodland. These men were the very first I happened to meet who had come intothe country with a definite idea of settling.
After the departure of this strong force, began our discussions as tothe safeguarding of our gold. It had now reached a very considerablesum--somewhere near thirty-five thousand dollars, as I remember it.Bagsby was very uneasy at its presence in camp.
"The Injuns are beginning to know it's wuth something," he pointed out."They don't know yet how much, but they know it will buy beads andbuttons and paint and whiskey and everything else an Injun wants. Andthey know that's what we're yere for; and that we must have a lot of it.I don't calc'late that lot we licked will bother us ag'in; but they'llspread the news we're yere. And there's lots of bandits and scoundrelsglad to take a chance at us. And while we come out all right before,they'll git us in the long run if we keep at it. I'd like to git rid ofthe stuff."
Don Gaspar agreed with him, as did also Yank, Buck Barry, and MissouriJones. McNally, Johnny, and I inclined to the belief that we would dobetter to keep our wealth by us until we finally left the diggings,maintaining always a proper guard. We could not quite see how thesending out of the gold would much reduce the likelihood of attack; butthe others seemed to think the gold would then be safe anyhow, and thatthe news of its delivery at Sutter's Fort would soon spread abroad.
About this time the discussion took a more practical turn from the factthat our provisions had run so low that we had put ourselves on halfrations. As we did not believe it desirable nor healthy to drop down toan exclusively game diet, it would soon become necessary to go for moreflour and coffee.
Buck Barry now brought up again strongly the advisability of sending ourtreasure out to a safe place. His argument was given point by thearrival in camp one evening of three evil-looking Mexicans, shabbilyclothed, but well-armed, and mounted on beautiful horses. We fed themwell, but saw to the caps of our revolvers and the security of ourcorral before turning in for the night. In the morning they departedbefore we were stirring, without so much as a word of thanks. Thesemysterious visitors had given us no faintest inkling of their businessor destination. Don Gaspar stated flatly that they had come to spy usout, having heard of our presence in the valley from the Indians.
"And I told them," said he triumphantly, "that essoon we would be sen'out for the food."
He went on to argue that thus he had prepared their minds for the factthat pack-horses would soon be going out. By distributing the gold itspresence would be unsuspected.
I suggested a strong guard, but both Bagsby and Don Gaspar opposed me.
"There's enough of these yere robbers to git us anyhow, even if we allwent," said Bagsby, "and that's why I want to send the stuff out now.The place they'll tackle will be right yere, if they tackle anything atall----"
I will not weary you with the pros and cons. At the time I thought, andI still think, the whole arrangement most ill advised; but against mewas the united opinion of nearly the whole camp, including the mostlevel-headed members of my own party. It was finally agreed that Yank,Buck Barry, and Don Gaspar should take out the gold.
They started very early in the morning, carrying the treasure insaddle-bags and across the horns of the saddle. I argued that Yank rodemuch the lightest and had the strongest horse, and managed to get theothers to confide to him a full half of the metal. At the last moment wehad modified the original plan to suit everybody. The horsemenencumbered by pack-animals were to push on as rapidly as possible inorder to reach by nightfall the settlement where dwelt the Italianfriend. Once there they could feel themselves reasonably safe. Johnny,Missouri Jones and I would ride with them until noon as a sort of escortfor the uninhabited portion of the journey. By that hour we figured weshould have reached the outskirts of the regular diggings, where, ourexperience told us, our companions would be safe.
Accordingly we pushed our mounts hard. Unhampered by pack-animals, andaided by knowledge of the route, we made great progress. By noon we hadpassed the meadow of our night's camp. After a hasty lunch weaccompanied our men a few miles farther, then said farewell andgodspeed, and hurried back in order to reach home before sunset.