LAST DAYS AT PENNOCK'S POST
The Indian family hung about the premises more or less, hoping, no
doubt, for more tea or another butter-can. They set steel traps in the
neighboring sand-banks, and caught many ground-squirrels, some of which
they offered to the white men for twenty-five cents a pair; but while
ducks, ptarmigan, and occasionally a wild swan or rabbit could be shot,
no one was inclined to buy. David and Roly thought, however, that it
would do no harm to catch ground-squirrels for themselves, and they set
about making snares.
These were simple, and consisted of a strong but slender willow branch,
fixed firmly in the bank high above the hole in a nearly horizontal
position, a stronger stick similarly set between the other and the
hole, and a piece of string with a slip-noose at one end. The other end
of the string was tied to the extremity of the upper willow branch,
which was then bent down until the noose hung over the hole. A small
loop, slipped over the point of the lower stick, held the noose in
position.
All being ready, it was expected that Mr. Squirrel, coming out to take
an airing, would run his head through the noose, carrying it along
with him until the loop slipped from the lower stick, thus releasing
the elastic upper stick, which would jerk poor Mr. Squirrel into the
air, and hang him for no greater fault than his ignorance. The theory
was perfect, but in practice Mr. Squirrel displayed more cleverness
than he had been given credit for. Sometimes he pushed the noose aside,
and again he would slip through it, and though occasionally a snare was
sprung, the denizens of the sand-bank always managed to get away.
The boys therefore decided to try to buy two traps from the Indians;
and one day, when the whole family was present, David gave them to
understand by signs what was wanted. He shut his hands together with a
snap, then held up two fingers. The old squaw quickly nodded her head,
and jabbered some unintelligible gutturals, which might have been taken
for a fit of choking, but it was evident that she was willing to sell
two traps, and on the following day she brought them.
"Probably," said David, as he gave her two fifty-cent pieces, "she is
giving me the oldest and rustiest she has."
"Yes," said Pennock, "you can depend upon that. Better see if they'll
work, before you buy 'em."
The boys therefore snapped them once or twice, to make sure that they
were in order.
"Now," said Roly, "we must get her to show us how to set them in the
holes,"--whereupon he made a number of signs, which she quickly
comprehended. She took the traps to the nearest hole and placed them in
the entrance, covering them with dry grass, so that the animals would
not hesitate to walk over them. The traps proved so old and worn that
very few squirrels were caught at first, but Mr. Bradford doctored them
one day with a file, after which they were quite effective.
Not many days later, the old squaw fell ill, and her consumptive son
and one of her daughters came down in haste to the cabin, in the hope
that the white men would aid them. It chanced that no one was at home
but Pennock, he who most of all detested the Indians.
The young woman, by signs and the few English words she knew, made
known the state of the case, and urged the white man to come in person,
while her brother, with a sweep of the hand toward the east, repeated
the word "gold" over and over. He well knew what white men most covet.
Pennock, however, did not believe the Indian knew any more about gold
than he did. Furthermore, he was not a medical man, and felt that he
could do no good by visiting the patient. But he made out that the
trouble was a cough, and so without more ado he looked over his slender
stock of medicines and picked out a mustard plaster, which he gave to
the young woman, showing her by signs to dampen it and lay it on her
mother's chest. The two Indians appeared genuinely grateful for the
plaster, and offered fifty cents in payment, which of course Pennock
refused. So they went off with light hearts, to try the white man's
remedy.
"Ah!" exclaimed Uncle Will later, when Pennock related what he had
done; "for all your blustering the other day, you've a soft spot under
your waistcoat, I see. That's what I call returning good for evil."
"Maybe it was," said Pennock. "I couldn't refuse the poor wretches."
Whether the mustard plaster proved effective or not, the dwellers in
the cabin never knew, for a day or two later the Indians disappeared,
probably continuing their journey toward Hootchi, a Stik village fifty
miles to the north.
For a time nothing was learned of the fortunes of the large party which
had toiled down the valley in April, beyond the fact that they had not
been able to drag their sleds more than three miles. This news was
brought by one of their number, who said that the sleds and most of the
goods had been cached, and he had been left in charge. The others had
taken from fifty to one hundred and twenty-five pounds, according to
their size and strength, and had pushed ahead.
A few small bands of Indians visited the cabin, but as they came from
the south they had no news of the gold-seekers. With one of these bands
were two dogs of moderate size, staggering under loads of forty and
fifty pounds, while their lazy masters carried absolutely nothing but
the clothes they wore. Another party brought fresh whitefish, which
they bartered for flour and coffee. Four cups of flour and a pound
of coffee were accepted in exchange for seven fish, and both parties
seemed pleased with the bargain.
This incident prompted the Bradford boys to fish in the creek and
river, but they met with no success, and concluded that it was yet too
early. Coffee Jack, however, made a most welcome contribution to the
larder one day, by coming in with his hat full of duck's eggs, which he
had found in a swamp.
At last, on the fifteenth of May, the leader of the Thirty-six returned
with five white men and four Indians. Some of them were so worn with
hunger and fatigue as to be hardly recognizable, and all were utterly
discouraged. Their hopes were dispelled; they had found no gold.
The big party had advanced more than fifty miles with their heavy
loads, and had built two cabins to serve as starting-points for further
explorations. The men who had remained there would have to draw on the
cache near Pennock's Post very soon, and the leader had given them
orders to raft these supplies down the river twenty-five miles to
the point where the stream turned westward from the trail, and there
establish a storehouse. Meanwhile, those with the captain were to go
to the Kah Sha River claims and help the four who had been originally
left there. The captain himself intended to go to Pyramid Harbor with
the Indians, and bring in a fresh supply of provisions on pack horses,
as soon as there was grass enough along the trail for the subsistence
of the animals.
The men were given a hearty supper at Pennock's, for they sorely needed
it. Indeed, they declared it was the first "square meal" they had
enjoyed in two weeks. After a good night's rest and breakfast, they
resumed their journey in better spirits.
Five days later came a startling piece of information. Mr. Bratnober,
a mining man well known on the Dalton trail, with a young man named
Onderdonk and two Indian packers, stopped at the cabin on his way
north. He said that war had broken out between the United States and
Spain in April, and that Admiral Dewey had won a great victory at
Manila.
As may be imagined, this news wrought David and Roly up to the highest
pitch of excitement.
"Just think," said they,--"war for a month, and we didn't know it!"
For a moment, they almost regretted that they had come to such a far
country, and they thought longingly of the stirring times at home.
Their father and uncle were also much moved, and their first impulse
was to drop everything and hasten back,--the one to protect his
family, the other to enter the army or navy. But as they talked the
matter over, they saw there was little likelihood that the Spaniards
could effect a landing on the American coast; and as to Uncle Will's
enlistment, though that would have just suited his roving temperament,
he decided, upon his brother's urgent request, to await fuller
information. All agreed, however, that it would be wise to return at
once to the Kah Sha River, a distance of thirty-five miles.
There were several reasons for this move. The first and most imperative
was the fact that their provisions at Pennock's would last but one
week more. In the second place, they had demonstrated to their entire
satisfaction that there was no gold worth mining in that vicinity, and
the Thirty-six had found none farther north. Thirdly, there certainly
_was_ gold on their Alder Creek claims, and Lucky's nugget was probably
now uncovered. Finally, they would be within thirty miles of Dalton's
Post, and likely to hear more news from incoming prospectors.