A moment later Zeke beckoned to the man with the scar to approach. As he
came near the place, again Zeke doffed his hat and making a low bow said
to the boys, "I want to make you 'quainted with Mr. Pratt. We have been
waiting for Moultrie to come," he explained, "and I'm thinking we're about
ready to start."
"Where?" demanded Grant.
"You come along and you'll see," was all the explanation Zeke gave.
Dubious as the Go Ahead Boys were they nevertheless decided to follow the
suggestion of their guide and in a brief time the entire party, including
the two Navajos, set forth from the camp.
The tall stranger was the leader now and silently and swiftly he led the
way. Apparently he was fully aware of the destination he was seeking and
the most direct method of approaching it. Across the little plateau over
which they were moving he led his followers until at last they came to a
deep gulch or gully that had been worn into the side of the mountain.
Doubtless the torrents which had swept down the hill-side had worn their
way into the mountain-side, leaving this deep gulch as the evidence of
their power.
The excitement of the boys increased when Mr. Moultrie entered the gully.
It was manifest that he was no stranger here and as he swiftly advanced,
his followers found difficulty in keeping up with the pace that he set.
For fifteen minutes not a word was spoken although the excitement
increased with every passing minute. Indeed, it was manifest that the
interest of Zeke and the Navajoes was steadily increasing as they moved
farther into the gulch.
Fifteen minutes later the man who had been introduced to the boys as
Moultrie abruptly halted and said, "It is right here."
"What is here?" demanded Grant, who was now the spokesman for the Go Ahead
Boys.
"Simon Moultrie's claim," said the man simply.
"What!" demanded Grant. "Where is it? I don't see it. What have you to do
with it?"
"It's right before you," said the tall man, smiling as he spoke, "and the
reason why I am here is because that claim belongs to me. I am James
Moultrie, Simon's younger brother. After he found this place and filed his
claim he wrote me what he had done and said that he had made his will,
leaving the whole thing to me."
"And who is this man?" demanded Grant, turning to Moultrie's companion.
"His name is Pratt. Didn't Zeke introduce him?"
"Yes," answered Grant. "I know who he is but what is he?"
"He's a prospector who has been working around here not far from my
brother more or less for five years. My brother was almost insane and
Pratt knew it. He tried to keep a little watch over him, but Sime wouldn't
have him around. He was about here, however, when my brother died and he
helped me locate the claim."
"Were you the man who took our diary?" spoke up John.
"'Your' diary is good," laughed Mr. Moultrie. "Do you think it really was
yours?"
"We found it," said John doggedly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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