Chapter XXV: The Cave of Gold

There were no disturbances during the night; and the dawn of the next morning found everybody up and awaiting eagerly the moment when there would be sufficient light in the canyon to make the climbing of the Big Tree and the entrance into Crooked Arm Gulch safe. At last Mr. Conroyal declared that the great moment had come.

"But," and he glanced around the little group of eager faces, "Ham and I think, and I am sure you will all agree with us when you stop to consider the matter, that we ought to leave at least one man here to stand guard with Pedro. Now, under the circumstances, I had rather not say who that man shall be, but will ask for a volunteer. Who is willing to offer himself up as a sacrifice to the good of the public?" and Mr. Conroyal smiled.

For a moment all stood staring blankly into one another's faces. No one appeared to be in the least anxious to make this sacrifice. And no wonder! For, now at the very moment they were about to explore the mysteries of the dead miner's wonderful Cave of Gold, who would care to be left behind? Then, with a smile on his face, Frank Holt stepped forth.

"Reckon I'll stay and keep company with Pedro," he said. "I'm not as young as I once was, and crawling along that limb some twenty feet above the ground looks some dangerous to legs as old as mine. But I'd like to have one of you, if you find the cave all right, come and let me know," and the sparkle in his eyes told how great was his interest in the result.

"I'll come right back and relieve you, dad, just as soon as we find the cave and see what it is like," Rex Holt promised. "Then you can go and see for yourself. It was great of you to offer to stay. I'll be back soon. Good-by," and he hurried after the others, who were already climbing the Big Tree.

Pedro, all the morning, had been as feverish with excitement as had any of the others, and had watched their every movement, as a cat watches a caught mouse, and had tried to overhear every word uttered; but, at the first mention of a guard being left with him, he had muttered a Mexican oath and had turned angrily and sullenly away, all his excitement gone. Evidently he had counted a great deal on being left alone with the horses and the camp supplies, when the search for the Cave of Gold was made; and, consequently, the leaving of a guard with him had been a very great disappointment. But he was too cunning to allow this disappointment to be seen by his employers, and had turned quickly away to hide his feelings, until he was again his usual suave self; and so he did not hear the promise of Rex to hasten back as soon as the cave was found and relieve his father.

You may be sure that there were no laggards among the climbers up the Big Tree and along the limb and through the entrance into Crooked Arm Gulch; and soon all stood on the little shelf of rock, from which they had had their first view of the gulch the night before.

"Now, th' first thing tew dew is tew git down tew th' bottom," commented Ham, as the eyes of all eagerly searched the walls of the gulch.

"That looks easy! Right this way!" and Thure began excitedly clambering down the rocks.

The shelf of rock on which they stood was some fifty feet above the bottom of the gulch; and from it a series of shelves and jutting rocks made an easy pathway downward, for mountaineers as experienced as they were, and soon all our friends stood at the bottom of Crooked Arm Gulch.

"Now for the Golden Elbow!" shouted Thure. "I want to be the first one in the Cave of Gold," and he started up the gulch as fast as he could go, jumping and climbing over the rocks that nearly covered its bottom.

"Same here!" and, with a yell, Bud started after him.

In a moment all, even the gray-haired men, had joined madly in the race. Evidently Thure was not the only one who wished to be the first in the Cave of Gold.

The gulch was narrow, only about a couple of rods wide at the place where our friends had reached the bottom, and, some three hundred yards from here, it made a turn, like the crook in a man's bent arm. This was evidently the Golden Elbow, and the point for which all were racing.

Thure, owing to his start and his long legs, was the first to reach this spot, but Bud was not six feet behind him. Then came Rex and Dill and the others, with Dickson and his wife pantingly bringing up the rear. All had stopped directly in front of the point of the turn, and now stood staring excitedly around them, looking for the entrance to the Cave of Gold and looking in vain.

In front of them the wall of the gulch had been hollowed out into a great overhanging arch, seventy-five or more feet in height and some fifteen feet deep.

Could this be the miner's Cave of Gold?

Surely not; for there was no need of torch here, and the bottom certainly was not covered with gold nuggets, but with hundreds of pieces of broken rock, some of them as large as two strong men could lift.

"Wal, I swun, if it don't look as if we was up ag'in it ag'in," and Ham stared excitedly around. "But, if thar is any cave here, it must be right in thar. Come, git busy," and he began clambering over the rocks toward the back wall of the arch. "I'll bet a coonskin that I can find it first."

"Take you!" shouted Thure and Bud, both clambering swiftly after him.

In a minute more all were searching excitedly for the hidden entrance to the cave, along the entire back wall of the arch; but the rocks of the bottom seemed to meet a solid wall of rock at the back.

"Say, but isn't it enough to make even a Job swear to be held up like this, right at the most exciting moment!" and Thure stopped in front of a large flat rock, that had fallen so that it stood nearly on edge, leaning against the back wall of the arch. "Come, give me a hand; and let's see what is behind this rock," and he turned to Bud, who stood near him. "It looks almost as if it might have been stood up there on purpose."

In a moment the strong arms of the two boys were tugging at the huge slab of rock; and, at last, with a mighty effort, they pulled it away from the wall and toppled it over backward, and it fell, with a crash, on the rocks between them, revealing a black opening in the solid rock.

"Hurrah!" yelled Bud.

"Found!" shouted Thure; and both excited boys made a dive for the hole, with the result that their bodies stuck tightly in the opening, the hole not being large enough to accommodate the entrance of both of them at the same time.

Ham and Mr. Conroyal pulled them out; and then Ham thrust his big body into the opening--he could just squeeze in--and began cautiously working his way forward. It was not a venture for an excited boy to make, the entrance into that black hole without a light.

In about five minutes Ham came backing hurriedly out.

"Who's got th' candles?" he cried excitedly. "Thar sart'in is a cave in thar; but it is as dark as the bottomless pit. We must have lights before we can enter. Give me a candle."

"Here, here they are!" and Mr. Conroyal who in the excitement of the moment had forgotten the package of a couple of dozen candles he had tied up and slung over his back just before climbing the tree that morning, quickly swung the package down on a rock in front of him and cut the strings.

Ham caught up one of the candles, and, hurriedly lighting it, again crawled into the hole, holding the candle out in front of him.

Thure and Bud both caught up candles and lighting them, looked imploringly at their fathers.

Both men nodded, and the boys dove into the hole; but this time separately.

"The rest of us had better wait outside until we hear from Ham and the boys," Mr. Conroyal said, staring anxiously into the hole.

For perhaps ten minutes, although to the anxious and excited watchers outside it seemed more like an hour, not a sound came from the hole into whose black depths the three men had vanished. Even the lights of their candles had disappeared. Then, suddenly, the excited voice of Thure was heard, booming out through the hole.

"It's the cave, the Cave of Gold!" he cried exultantly, his voice trembling with excitement. "Come in, all of you. There is room for all. I will hold my candle so that you can see."

"Here, Dickson, you go first, and, Mollie, you follow right behind him," and Mr. Conroyal pushed Mr. and Mrs. Dickson excitedly toward the cave opening, and motioned Rex and Dill and Mr. Randolph to follow them, he himself entering last.

The hole slanted downward for some ten feet, then, enlarging a little, turned to the right and ran straight ahead for some thirty feet, still slanting quite steeply downward, when it suddenly opened out into a large chamber, worn by the action of water, apparently, out of the solid rock.

In five minutes all our excited friends stood in this chamber or cave and were staring wonderingly around them. They found themselves in a room, some thirty feet long by twenty feet wide at the widest, with an oval slanting roof, shaped something like the inverted quarter of an egg-shell. The bottom of the cave was level and composed of a very coarse gravel, mixed with little rounded chunks of a yellowish metal, that glowed in the light of the candles like thousands of dull yellow coals of fire.

In an instant everybody was down on their knees examining these chunks of metal. For a couple of minutes no one spoke. Then Ham lifted his head and looked slowly around him, as if he were trying to convince himself that he was really awake.

"Gosh!" he said, in a voice hardly above a whisper. "It is gold!"

"It is gold!" and Mr. Conroyal looked up, his face white and his eyes shining. "It is gold; and enough of it to make us all rich beyond our fondest dreams. No wonder the miner called it the Cave of Gold."

"Gold! Gold! Now Ruth shall have her breastpin nugget and gold necklace!" and Thure, with hands that trembled so that he could hardly hold the candle, began an excited search for the largest chunk of gold that he could find. In two minutes he had found one about the size and the shape of a robin's egg. "The very thing!" he cried. "That will make a magnificent breastpin," and he quickly picked it up and began searching for the nuggets to go into the promised necklace.

During this time Bud was quickly gathering up the largest nuggets he could find; for a similar purpose but for a different girl; and the fingers of all the others were busy in the same exciting way.

For half an hour all forgot everything, but the shining pellets that covered the bottom of the cave. Then Rex suddenly straightened up.

"Great Washington! I'm forgetting dad!" he exclaimed. "I must go to dad at once," and he started for the hole that gave passageway to the outer world.

Naturally Rex was greatly excited and made all possible haste to get back to his father with the good news. The distance was not great, and in ten minutes he had reached the hidden entrance to Crooked Arm Gulch, and, hurriedly crawling through the narrow opening, he pushed the concealing branches aside--and found himself looking directly into the red face of Bill Ugger.

"God in heaven!" and Rex struck out with all the strength of his strong right arm.

The face was not three feet away and the blow landed squarely on the broken nose. There was a low cry, the crash of broken branches, and the huge body of Bill Ugger plunged downward from the limb.

For an instant Rex stared blankly after the body; and then, suddenly realizing the value of every moment, if they would not all be caught in a trap from which there would be no escape, he whirled about and raced back to the Cave of Gold, almost wild with the thought of what might happen, if the gang of robbers should capture their horses and supplies and hold them captive in Crooked Arm Gulch, as they could easily do, once they secured possession of the Big Tree. Then there was his father. What had happened to him? No wonder his face went white, and he risked limb and life a dozen times in his mad scramble down the rocks and up the gulch and into the opening of the Cave of Gold.

"Quick! Everybody, back to the Big Tree!" he shouted, as he plunged into the cave, where our excited friends were still busily picking up the nuggets. "The robbers! They have got dad! Quick!" and he whirled about and rushed back.

In an instant the gold was forgotten. Every man jumped for his rifle, which had been left near the entrance to the cave, and sprang after Rex, leaving the startled and frightened Mrs. Dickson to follow as best she could.

There was not one of them but understood on the instant the seriousness of their peril. If the robbers secured their horses and supplies and held the entrance to Crooked Arm Gulch, they would be absolutely at their mercy; for, so far as they knew, the only way out of the gulch was by way of the Big Tree, and half a dozen men, armed with rifles, could hold this narrow opening against their most desperate efforts to get out, and in a few days, could starve them into surrender, for they had no food with them. They must at all costs, if it was not already too late, keep the entrance to Crooked Arm Gulch from falling into the hands of the robbers.

Hammer Jones, by desperate efforts, reached the side of Rex, just as he was about to plunge into the passageway between Crooked Arm Gulch and Lot's Canyon; and one of his great hands closed down on the excited man's shoulder just in time to stop the reckless act.

"Cautious! Cautious!" warned Ham, as he jerked Rex back. "If them skunks have got th' camp, 'twill be death to sot foot on that big limb."

"But, dad--"

"'Twon't help him none for you tew git killed. I'll take a look first," and the great strength of Ham forced Rex back, while he himself began cautiously, yet rapidly, crawling through the narrow opening.

In a moment he had reached the limb of the Big Tree, and, carefully parting the branches so as to make no noise, he cautiously looked down.

The camp had been pitched under the Big Tree almost directly beneath him; and the first look showed him everything apparently safe and undisturbed. The next look--and, with the cry: "Come on, everybody, as quick as th' Lord will let you," he sprang out on the limb and began working his way down the tree so recklessly that more than once he was in danger of falling. The moment he reached the ground he leaped toward an object that lay tightly bound up in a blanket on the ground near the trunk of the tree; and, with a swift hand began cutting the ropes that were tightly wound around it from head to foot, in a manner exactly similar to that in which they had found Mrs. Dickson on the night she had been so mysteriously bound in her tent.

By the time Rex had reached his side he had uncovered Frank Holt, with his hands bound behind him and a gag in his mouth, but otherwise unhurt, except for a big lump on the back of his head. In a moment more Rex had pulled the gag out of his father's mouth and Ham had freed his hands.

"Pedro!" Holt gasped and staggered a little dizzily to his feet. "He struck me down from behind, and tied and gagged me, as you found me. Where is Pedro?" and he looked excitedly and a bit wildly around. "Ah, now I remember," and his face cleared. "He has gone for the rest of the gang. I overheard him and another man, after I had recovered my senses and lay tightly bound up in the blanket, planning how he would go and get the rest of the gang, while the other man climbed the tree and kept guard over the narrow opening. Their plan was to capture the camp and hold the Big Tree, so that none of you could get out of Crooked Arm Gulch, and then starve you into surrendering everything; and they came mighty nigh doing it," and he glanced anxiously down the canyon. "They'll be due in about half an hour, I judge from what I overheard. They were not calculating on any of you getting back so soon," and he smiled grimly.

"But that other man? Where is that other man?" and Mr. Conroyal--by this time all, even Mrs. Dickson, had made their way down the Big Tree--looked anxiously around.

Rex started and glanced quickly toward the wall of the canyon, directly under the opening to Crooked Arm Gulch; and then his face cleared.

"I reckon that's him," and he pointed to a huddled heap that lay on the rocks. "I knocked him off the limb of the Big Tree. But, we had better make sure he is where he can do no harm," and he hurried to the body. "Dead as a stone. Neck broken," he declared, as he turned the corpse over.

"Broken-nose! It's Broken-nose!" and Thure, who had hurried up with Rex, started back, as the man's face came into view.

"Wal, th' world's better off by havin' one less scoundrel in it," and Ham scowled down on the face of Bill Ugger, ugly and repulsive even in death. "Now," and he turned quickly to Holt, "didn't you say that thar Mexican skunk, Pedro, had gone tew git th' rest of th' gang?"

"Yes," answered Holt; "and we must be ready for them, when they get here. They are camped down near the Devil's Slide; and I calculate it will take them about half an hour yet to get here."

"An' the skunks are a-calculatin' on findin' th' camp unguarded?" and Ham's eyes began to twinkle brightly.

"Yes, I heard Pedro tell the other fellow that he felt quite sure none of us would be back for two hours or more; but, to make things safe, Brokennose, as Thure calls him, said he'd climb the tree and knock the head off anyone that tried to come through the narrow opening into Crooked Arm Gulch. I reckon Rex got there just at the right moment to spoil that little game."

"I certainly did," and Rex smiled grimly. "A minute later, and he would have got me, instead of my getting him. But, we must be getting ready for the return of Pedro," and his eyes glanced anxiously down the canyon.

"Say," and Ham turned to Conroyal, "why can't we give them th' same kind of a s'prise they was a-calculatin' on givin' us? They ain't expectin' tew find us here, an' will come a rushin' up unsuspicious-like, an', if we hide, we can give 'em a mighty warm reception a-fore they know what's happenin'."

"Bully! Where'll we hide?" and Mr. Conroyal glanced eagerly around. "There, those rocks will be just the place," and he pointed up the canyon to where a row of big rocks stood up, almost like a rampart, something like a hundred feet from the Big Tree. "Now we must leave the camp looking just as it was when Pedro left it. Here, somebody, quick, we'll tie the body of Ugger up in the blanket, and leave it where we found Frank. That will sure fool them," and he hurried to where the corpse of Ugger lay; and, in a few minutes, the body was tightly bound up in a blanket and laid down on the exact spot where Ham had found Holt.

"All got plenty of powder and lead?" and Mr. Conroyal glanced swiftly from man to man.

All answered in the affirmative.

"Then get behind the rocks," and, with a final look around the camp to see that every suspicious sign had been removed, Mr. Conroyal led his little company to the rocky rampart to await the coming of Pedro and the band of robbers; and soon all had vanished from the sight of anyone coming up the canyon.

In front of them and the Big Tree there was a space some three hundred feet wide, clear of trees or underbrush or rocks large enough to shield a man.

"We will wait for them until they get out into the open," Mr. Conroyal said, pointing to this space. "Now everybody see that his rifle and pistols and knife are ready; and remember to keep down out of sight and on no account to fire until I give the word."

They did not have long to wait; for hardly had Mr. Conroyal uttered his last words of warning, when they saw Pedro coming around the bend in the canyon some two hundred yards below them. At first Pedro advanced very cautiously, darting from rock to rock and keeping his body concealed as much as possible; but, at last, coming to where he could get a clear view of the camp and seeing nothing to awaken his suspicions, he appeared to be satisfied that all was safe and turned and began beckoning excitedly with both his hands. In response a little company of heavily armed men instantly sprang into sight, coming from around the bend in the canyon, and hurried up to where Pedro stood awaiting them.

For two or three minutes they stood there, while Pedro, gesticulating excitedly and frequently pointing toward the quiet-seeming little camp under the Big Tree, appeared to be explaining the situation to them. Then all began advancing cautiously, yet rapidly toward the Big Tree, taking advantage of the rocks and trees and bushes to conceal their movements as much as possible.

"Here they come!" whispered Thure excitedly to Bud, as the men began their advance. He had his eye to a little opening between the two adjoining rocks behind which the boys were crouching. "I counted twenty of them and I think there are one or two more. Say, but won't we give them a big surprise?"

"You bet!" and Bud's jaws came together grimly.

"Keep down! Everybody keep down!" warned Mr. Conroyal in a whisper. "Don't shoot, until I give the order; and then jump to your feet and pick your man and fire as quick as the Lord will let you; but, be sure you have got the bead on the man before you pull the trigger. We must down as many of them as possible at the first volley. Now, everybody get ready. They will be out in the open in a minute or two," and he turned to give his attention to the advancing robbers.

By this time Pedro and his men had reached the line of rocks and bushes that faced the opening in front of the rocks behind which our friends lay concealed; and here they paused for a moment, each man behind a rock, and searched with careful eyes the camp under the Big Tree.

"There's Pockface!" excitedly whispered Bud, who now had his eye to the crack between the two stones, "behind that big rock straight in front of us, the skunk. Now, just wait, until we get the order to fire," and his lips closed tightly.

At this moment Ham, who crouched behind a rock by the side of Mr. Conroyal, whispered:

"I'll be durned if I don't believe we can capture the hull caboodle, if we jest wait 'til they git 'most up tew us, an' then jump up sudden an' point our guns at them an' yell, 'hands up!' an' that'll be a heap better'n tew let half on 'em git away tew bother us all the way back tew civilerzation."

"Right, I believe you are right. Anyway we will try it. Watch them, while I give the right instructions," and Mr. Conroyal crept swiftly to near the center of the little group behind the rampart of rocks.

"Men," he said, speaking low, yet loud enough for all to hear, "we are going to try to capture the whole bunch of scoundrels. At the word, every one of you jump to his feet and point his rifle at the skunks and yell 'Hands UP!' I reckon that will bring every hand up; but, if it don't and any of them act suspicious or make a break, shoot quick, and shoot to kill. Do you all understand?"

All nodded and Mr. Conroyal returned at once to his place by the side of Ham.

At this moment the robbers broke from the rocks and ran swiftly out into the open toward the Big Tree.

"Ready, everybody ready!" whispered Mr. Conroyal.

On came the robbers, until they were within seventy-five feet of the rocks behind which our friends were hiding.

"Now!" yelled Mr. Conroyal, and leaped to his feet, and leveled his rifle. "Hands UP!" he commanded.

And almost at the same moment all the others,--even Mrs. Dickson--leaped to their feet, and leveled their rifles, and yelled: "Hands UP!"

The robbers stopped, as if they had suddenly run into a stone wall, turned their startled eyes on the leveled rifles and the stern-faced men back of them--and then, every hand went up, as if worked by one shaft of machinery, every hand except the hands of Pockface, who, doubtless thinking that his capture would mean death anyway, whirled about suddenly and leaped toward the rocks behind him.

At the same instant Ham's rifle cracked; and the legs of Pockface doubled up under him, and he went down, like a shot rabbit.

That was enough for the rest of the men.

"Don't shoot. We surrender," they all yelled, holding their hands as high as they could above their heads.

"Rex, you and Dill get their guns and knives. The rest of you keep them covered with your rifles," commanded Mr. Conroyal.

Rex and Dill, with broad grins on their faces, instantly stepped forth, and soon had all the weapons of the robbers safely confiscated.

Fifteen minutes later, every robber lay on his back under the Big Tree, his hands and feet firmly bound with strong ropes. There were twenty-one of them; and our friends were too wise to take any needless chances.