CHAPTER XV.

SOMETHING WORSE THAN A GOLD CRISIS.

"What is the matter with your friend?" asked Overton, as Lyster stood

staring after Mr. Haydon, who walked alone down the way they had come from

the boats. "Is one glimpse of our camp life enough to drive him to the

river again?"

"No, no--that is--well, I don't just know what ails him," confessed

Lyster, rather lamely. "He went in with me to see 'Tana, and seems all

upset by the sight of her. She does look very low, Dan. At home he has a

daughter about her age, who really resembles her a little--as he does--a

girl he thinks the world of. Maybe that had something to do with his

feelings. I don't know, though; never imagined he was so impressionable to

other people's misfortunes. And that satanic-looking old Indian helped

make things uncomfortable for him."

"Who--Akkomi?"

"Oh, that is Akkomi, is it? The old chief who was too indisposed to

receive me when I awaited admittance to his royal presence! Humph! Well,

he seemed lively enough a minute ago--said something to Haydon that nearly

gave him fits; and then, as if satisfied with his deviltry, he collapsed

into the folds of his blanket again, and looks bland and innocent as a

spring lamb at the present speaking. Is he grand chamberlain of your

establishment here? Or is he a medicine man you depend on to cure

'Tana?"

"Akkomi said something to Mr. Haydon?" asked Overton, incredulously.

"Nonsense! It could not have been anything Haydon would understand,

anyway, for Akkomi does not speak English."

Lyster looked at him from the corner of his eyes, and whistled rather

rudely.

"Now, it is not necessary for any reason whatever, for you to hide the

accomplishments of your noble red friend," he remarked. "You are either

trying to gull me, or Akkomi is trying to gull you--which is it?"

"What do you mean?" demanded Overton, impatiently. "You look as though

there may be a grain of sense in the immense amount of fool stuff you are

talking. Akkomi, maybe, understands English a little when it is spoken;

but, like many another Indian who does the same, he will not speak it. I

have known him for two years, in his own camp and on the trail, and I have

never yet heard him use English words."

"Well, I have not had the felicity of even a two-hour acquaintance with

his royal chieftainship," remarked Lyster, "but during the limited space

of time I have been allowed to gaze on him I am confident I heard him use

five English words, and use them very naturally."

"Can you tell me what they were?"

"Certainly; and I see I will have to--and maybe bring proof to indorse me

before you will quite credit what I tell you," answered Lyster, with an

amused expression. "You can scarcely believe a tenderfoot has learned more

of your vagabond reds than you yourself knew, can you? Well, I distinctly

heard him say to Mr. Haydon: 'See! She looks at you.' But his other

mutterings did not reach my ears; they did Haydon's, however, and drove

him out yonder. I tell you, Dan, you ought to chain up your medicine men

when capitalists brave the wilds of the Kootenai to lay wealth at your

doorstep, for this pet of yours is not very engaging."

Overton paid little heed to the chaffing of his friend. His gaze wandered

to the old Indian, who, as Lyster said, was at that moment a picture of

bland indifference. He was sunning himself again at the door of Harris'

cabin, and his eyes followed sleepily the form of Mr. Haydon, who had

stopped at the creek, and with hands clasped back of him, was staring into

the swift-flowing mountain stream.

"Oh, I don't doubt you, Max," said Overton, at last. "Don't speak as if I

did. But the idea that old Akkomi really expressed himself in English

would suggest to me a vital necessity, or else that he was becoming weak

in his old age; for his prejudice against his people using any of the

white men's words has been the most stubborn thing in his whole make-up.

And what strong necessity could there be for him to address Mr. Haydon, an

utter stranger?"

"Don't know, I am sure--unless it is that his interest in 'Tana is very

strong. You know she saved the life of his little grandchild--the future

chief, you said. And I think you are fond of asserting that an Indian

never forgets a favor; so it may be that his satanic majesty over there

only wanted to interest a seemingly influential stranger in a poor little

sick girl, and was not aware that he took an uncanny way of doing it. Had

we better go down and apologize to Haydon?"

"You can--directly. Who is he?"

"Well, he is the great moneyed mogul at the back of the company for whom

you have been doing some responsible work out here. I guess he is what you

call a silent partner; while Mr. Seldon--my relation, you know--has been

the active member in the mining deals. They have been friends this long

time. I have heard that Seldon was to have married Haydon's sister years

ago. Wedding day set and all, when the charms of a handsome employee of

theirs proved stronger than her promise, and she was found missing one

morning; also the handsome clerk, as well as a rather heavy sum of money,

to which the clerk had access. Of course, they never supposed that the

girl knew she was eloping with a thief. But her brother--this one

here--never forgave her. An appeal for help came to him once from

her--there was a child then--but it was ignored, and they never heard from

her again. Haydon was very fond of her, I believe--fond and proud, and

never got over the disgrace of it. Seldon never married, and he did what

he could to make her family forgive her, and look after her. But it was no

use, though their regard for him never lessened. So you see they are

partners from away back; and while Haydon is considerable of an expert in

mineralogy, this is the first visit he has ever made to their works up in

the Northwest. In fact, he had not intended coming so far north just now;

he was waiting for Seldon, who was down in Idaho. But when I got your

letter, and impressed on his mind the good business policy of having the

firm investigate at once, he fell in with the idea, and--here we are! Now,

that is about all I can tell you of Haydon, and how he came here."

"Less would have been plenty," said Overton, with a pretended sigh of

relief. "I didn't ask to be told his sister's love affairs or his

brother-in-law's failings. I was asking about the man himself."

"Well, I don't know what to tell you about him; there doesn't seem to be

anything to say. He is T. J. Haydon, a man who inherited both money and a

genius for speculation. Not a plunger, you know; but one of those pursy,

far-seeing fellows who always put their money on the right number and wait

patiently until it wins. I might tell you that he was sentimental once in

his life, and got married; and I might tell you of a pretty daughter he

has (and whom he used to be very much afraid I would make love to), but I

suppose you would not be interested in those exciting details, so I will

refrain. But as to the man himself and his trip here, I can only say, if

you have made a strike up here, he is the very best man I know to get

interested. Better even than Seldon, for Seldon always defers to Haydon,

while Haydon always acts on his own judgment. And say, old fellow, long as

we have talked, you have not yet told me one word of the new gold mine. I

suspected none of the Ferry folks knew of it, from the general opinion

that your trip here was an idiotic affair. Even the doctor said there was

no sane reason why you should have dragged Harris and 'Tana into the woods

as you did. I kept quiet, remembering the news in your letter, for I was

sure you did not decide on this expedition without a good reason. Then the

contents of that letter I read the night Harris collapsed--well, it stuck

in my mind, and I got to wondering if your bonanza was the one he had

found before. Oh, I've been doing some surmising about it. Am I right?"

"Pretty nearly," assented Overton. "Of course I knew some of the folks

would raise a howl because I let 'Tana come along; but it was necessary,

and I thought it would be best for her in the end, else you may be

sure--be very sure--I would not have had her come. She--was to have gone

back--at once--the very next day; but when the next day came, she was not

able. I have done what I could, but nothing seems to count. She does not

get well, and the gold doesn't play much of a figure in this camp just

now. One-third of the find is hers, and the same for Harris and me; but

I'd give my share cheerfully this minute if it would buy back health for

her and let me see her laughing and bright again."

Lyster reached out his hand and gave Overton's arm an affectionate

pressure.

"Don't I know it, Dan?" he asked kindly. "Can't I see that you have just

worked and worried yourself sick over her illness--blaming yourself,

perhaps--"

"Yes, that is it--blaming myself for--many things," he agreed, brokenly,

and then he checked himself as Lyster's curious glance was turned on him.

"So you see I am in no fit condition to talk values with this Mr. Haydon.

All my thoughts are somewhere else. Doctor says if she is not better

to-night she will not get well. That means she will not live. Tell your

friend that something worse than a gold crisis is here just now, and I

can't talk to him till it is over. Don't mind if I'm even a bit careless

with you, Max. Look after yourselves as well as you can. You are

welcome--you know that; but--what's the use of words? Perhaps 'Tana is

dying!"

And turning his back abruptly on his friend, he walked away, while Lyster

looked after him with some surprise.

"I seem to be dropped by everybody," he remarked, "first Haydon and now

Dan. But I don't believe there is danger of her dying. I _won't_ believe

it! Dan has worried himself sick and fearful during these terrible days,

but I'll do my share now and let him get some rest and sleep. 'Tana die! I

can't think it. But I care ten times more for Dan, just because of his

devotion to her. I wonder what he would think if he knew why I wanted her

to go to school, or how much she was in my mind every hour I was gone. I

felt like telling him just now, but better not--not yet. He thinks she is

only a little child yet. Dear old Dan!"

He entered the cabin and spoke to Harris, whom he had not seen before, and

who looked with pleasure at him, though, as ever, speechless and moveless,

but for that nod of his head and the bright, quick glance of his eyes.

From him he went again to 'Tana; but she lay still and pale, with closed

eyes and no longer muttering.

"There ain't a blessed thing you can do, Mr. Max," said Mrs. Huzzard, in a

wheezing whisper; "but if there is, you may be sure I'll let you know and

glad to do it. Lavina says she's going to help me to a rest; and you must

help Dan Overton, for slept he has not, and I know it, these eight nights

since I've been here. And if that ain't enough to kill a man!"

"Sure enough. But now that I am here, we will not have any night watches

on his part," decided Lyster. "Between Miss Slocum and myself I think we

can manage to do some very creditable nursing."

"I am willing to do my best," said Miss Lavina, with a shrinking glance

toward Flap-Jacks, who just slouched past with a bucket of water; "but I

must confess I do feel a timidity in the presence of these sly-looking

Indians. And if at night I can only be sure none of them are very close, I

may be able to watch this poor girl instead of watching for them with

their tomahawks."

"Never fear while I am detailed as guard," answered Lyster, reassuringly.

"They will reach you only over my dead body."

"Oh, but--" and the timid one arose as if for instant flight, but was held

by Mrs. Huzzard.

"Now, now!" she said reprovingly to the young fellow, "it's noways

good-natured of you to make us more scared of the dirty things than we are

naturally. But, Lavina, I'll go bail that he never yet has seen a dead

body of their killing since he came in the country. Lord knows, they don't

look as if they would kill a sheep, though they might steal them fast

enough. It ain't from Dan Overton that you ever learned to scare women,

Mr. Max; you wouldn't catch him at such tricks."

"Now I beg that whatever you do, Mrs. Huzzard, you will not compare me to

that personage," objected Lyster; "for I am convinced that anything human

would in your eyes suffer by such a comparison. Great is Dan in the camp

of the Kootenais!"

Mrs. Huzzard only laughed at his words, but Miss Lavina did not. She even

let her eyes wander again to Akkomi, in order to show her disapproval of

frivolous comment on Mr. Overton; a fact Lyster perceived and was

immensely amused by.

"She has set her covetous maidenly eyes on him, and if she doesn't marry

him before the year is over, he will have to be clever," he decided, as he

left them and went to look up Haydon. "Serves Dan right if she did, for he

never gives any other fellow half a chance with the old ladies. The rest

of us have to be content with the young ones."