The Gold Hunter's Adventures Or, Life In Australia Volume 2 ( Of 2 ) - William H. Thomes (large screen ebook reader txt) 📗
- Author: William H. Thomes
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Depart, Although We Could Not Help Wondering What Was Meant By The
Threat Of Finding Fire For The Supposed Ghost. We Found Out, However,
Full Soon, And Owed The Scamp A Bitter Grudge For His Work.
The Shepherd Pretended To Walk Rapidly In The Direction Of The
Stock-House, But Concealed Himself Amid The Trees, And Waited Until He
Thought The Last Robber Had Retired From Sight, When He Again Joined Us,
And Received Our Hearty Congratulations For His Good Conduct.
"Now, Then, Let Us Have Another Search For The Treasure," Cried Mr.
Brown, Springing Into The Hole Which Day Had Excavated, After He Had
Frightened Us From The Island.
"And You Can't Be Too Quick About The Work, Neither," Muttered The
Shepherd.
I Asked For A Meaning To His Expression, But He Declined Answering, And
Seizing The Pick Began To Tear Up The Sods With Lusty Strokes, But
Before A Dozen Blows Wore Struck, I Heard The Point Of His Pick Strike
Something That Gave Forth A Metallic Sound.
"Hold On, Day," I Cried, "The Prize Is Within Our Grasp At Last."
I Carefully Removed The Dirt With My Hands, And Had The Satisfaction Of
Bringing To Light A Canvas Bag That Was So Decayed That It Barely
Supported The Heavy Weight Which It Contained.
Mr. Brown And The Shepherd Were Almost Frantic With Delight, And Would
Have Cheered Lustily, Had Not Fear Of Bringing The Bushrangers Upon Us
Again Restrained Them.
"Down With It, So That I Can Say I Have Seen Some Money In My Lifetime!"
Cried Day. "Empty It Out, And Let Me Feel Of It; Let Me But Touch The
Precious Yellow Boys With My Fingers, And Wonder How Many Splendid
Volume 2 Chapter 71 (Finding The Buried Treasure) Pg 173Funerals It Would Pay For."
I Took One Of His Sheepskins And Poured The Contents Of The Bag Upon It,
And Out Rattled Gold Dust, Sovereigns, Doubloons, A Number Of American
Gold Pieces--All Bearing The Date Of 1832--Articles Of Jewelry, Such As
Finger Rings And Watch Chains, And At The Bottom Of The Bag Was A Lady's
Gold Watch, Enamelled Back, And Half A Dozen Small Diamonds Set In The
Form Of A Cross Upon The Case. I Examined The Watch Carefully, And Saw A
Stain Near The Diamonds. Something Told Me That The Mark Was The Blood
Of The Unfortunate Owner. I Laid The Jewel Down With A Shudder, And
Thought Of The Cruelties To Which The Owner Had Undoubtedly Been Subject
Before She Met Her Death. Day, However, Partook Of None Of My Feelings,
For He Was Eager To Possess So Attractive A Trinket.
"Take It If You Desire It," I Said, Handing The Watch To The Shepherd,
"But You Will Always Recollect That There Is A Stain Of Blood Upon The
Case."
"Not I," He Replied, Handling The Article With As Much Pride And
Pleasure As A Boy Receives A New Toy; "I Didn't Shed Her Blood, And So
Shan't Trouble Myself About This Little Spot That Is On The Case. It's
As Pretty As A Mahogany Coffin, But It Don't Go."
"The Works Are Rusted, And It Will Be Necessary To Send It To Melbourne
For Repairs."
"Not I," Answered The Ghost, With A Chuckle; "Somebody Might See It And
Lay Claim To It, And Then Where Would Be My Watch, And Where Would I Be?
Another Term At The Hulks Is Not Agreeable To Think Of, And My Accounts
Of The Manner In Which I Got Hold Of The Thing Wouldn't Be Believed. No,
No; I'll Wear It Out Of Sight Until I Leave The Country, Or Am Rich
Enough To Escape Suspicion."
I Thought That Day's Course Was The Best, If He Desired To Retain
Possession Of The Property, For, As He Said, A Number Of Awkward
Questions Would Probably Have Been Asked Him At Melbourne, The Mere
Carrying Of A Watch By A Ticket Of Leave Man Being Looked Upon As
Suspicious By People Who Were Not So Honest As Day.
We Continued Our Examination Of The Treasure, And Were Delighted To Find
That It Exceeded Our Expectations, And So Engrossed Were We In
Speculating Upon The Nature Of The Dust That We Forgot The Hardships
Attendant Upon Obtaining It.
We Counted The Coins, And Found That We Had About Three Thousand
Dollars, And I Judged The Dust Was Worth About As Much More, As It Was
Of Good Quality, And Entirely Free Of Dirt. "Now, Day, How Much Shall
We Give You For Your Valuable Services?" Asked' Mr. Brown.
"O, I Am Satisfied With This," He Answered, Holding Up His Watch, Which
He Was Polishing On His Shirt Sleeve.
"But, Of Course, You Expect A Portion Of The Dust And Gold Coins?"
Volume 2 Chapter 71 (Finding The Buried Treasure) Pg 174
"No, I Don't Expect Any Thing, 'Cos I Volunteered My Services, And I'm
Always Happy To Accommodate, As The Man Said Who Was Willing To Be Put
In A Coffin Before He Was Dead. Never Mind Me, I'm Satisfied."
The Shepherd's Modesty Surprised Me, For I Had Anticipated, From His
Eagerness To Get Hold Of The Watch, That He Would Be Equally As Eager
For A Share Of The Gold, And Mr. Brown And Myself Were Both Aware That
He Deserved A Handsome Reward For The Dangers Through Which He Had
Passed To Free Us From The Inquisitiveness Of The Bushrangers.
Therefore, The More Backward Day Appeared The More Firmly Did We Insist
Upon Doing Justice To His Merits.
Mr. Brown And Myself Consulted Together For A Few Minutes, And Then
Concluded To Give Him A Thousand Dollars In Gold Coin; And When We
Announced Our Decision, The Shepherd Was Frantic With Delight.
"O, Luddy!" He Cried, "Wouldn't I Have A Time To-Night If I Was In
London And Had This Money In My Pocket? Wouldn't I Drink 'Alf And 'Alf
Till I Couldn't Speak, And Then Go To Bed With--"
So Elated Did Day Get With The Idea That He Clapped His Hands Together,
And Sprang Into The Air, Cutting Antics Of The Most Singular Kind. While
He Was Thus Expressing His Gratitude, And Even While His Face Was
Teeming With Pleasure, I Saw A Wonderful Change Come Over It. He Stopped
Speaking, And Muttered,--
"D----N 'Em; Now They Have Done It, And No Mistake!"
"What Is The Matter, Day?" Asked Mr. Brown, Rather Sternly, Thinking The
Remark Was Applied To Us.
The Shepherd Pointed With His Hand In The Direction Of The Main Land,
And One Look Was Sufficient To Convince Us That The Threat Which Sam Had
Uttered Was No Idle One, For A Cloud Of Black Smoke Was Issuing From The
Trees, Not In One Place Alone, But In Fifty, And Before We Could Recover
From Our Astonishment, A Sheet Of Flame Darted From The Woods, And
Gathering Headway As It Crept Along, Seized Upon The Dry Grass, And
Rapidly Approached The Peninsula.
Volume 2 Chapter 72 (The Escape From The Fire.) Pg 175All The Troubles Through Which We Had Passed Were Mere Child's Play
Volume 2 Chapter 72 (The Escape From The Fire.) Pg 176Compared To Our Situation At The Present Time, For A Forest On Fire Was
A Danger That Was Calculated To Test Our Energies To The Utmost If We
Expected To Escape With Whole Skins And Our Lives. For A Few Minutes,
Therefore, We Were Overwhelmed And Speechless, And Gazed Into Each
Other's Faces For Counsel. Our First Thoughts Were That We Could Remain
On The Island And Escape The Fury Of The Flames, And So We Might Have
Done Had We Possessed Water Sufficient To Quench Not Only Our Own Thirst
But That Of The Animals. A Moment's Reflection, However, Convinced Us
That We Could Not Exist For Half A Day Where We Were, With A Scorching
Sun Overhead And A Roaring Fire In Front, And That, If We Intended To
Escape, We Must Begin To Make Preparations Without Delay, As Every
Second The Flames Increased And Extended On All Sides.
"Pocket The Gold," Shouted Day, Setting Us An Example With His Share.
"We Will Try And Save That And Our Own Lives, But As For The Rest Of The
Baggage We Must Leave It Behind."
We Were Not Backward In Filling Our Pockets With The Dust And Coins And
By The Time We Had Secured The Last Scale Day Was Saddling The Horses
And Putting On Their Bridles.
"We Can Never Get The Animals Through The Fire," Mr. Brown Said, Well
Knowing The Reluctance With Which Horses Approach Flames.
"I've Thought Of That," Responded Day, "And Intend To Cover Their Eyes
With Sheepskins."
The Idea Was A Capital One, And Was Immediately Carried Into Effect The
Skins Which Day Had Used To Play The Ghost Were Now Employed To Cover
The Heads Of Our Restless Animals, For As The Fire Increased They Seemed
To Be Aware Of Their Danger, And Were With Difficulty Prevented From
Plunging Into The Bog, Where They Would Soon Have Been Smothered In
Defiance Of Our Exertions. The Instant That Their Eyes Were Blindfolded
They Became Perfectly Quiet, And Suffered Themselves To Be Led To The
Peninsula, Which They Crossed Without Accident, And While We Debated For
A Few Minutes Which Course We Should Take To Avoid The Danger, The
Animals Remained Motionless, As Though They Had Every Confidence In Our
Wisdom.
"We Must Look To You For Guidance Here," Mr. Brown Said, Turning To The
Shepherd, Who Was Attentively Watching The Course Of The Flames. "There
Is A Horse For Each Of Us, And A Few Blows Must Not Be Spared To Make
Them Carry Us Safe Through The Fire."
We Threw Ourselves Into The Saddles, And Left The Pack Horse,
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