CHAPTER XXI
WHAT HAPPENED TO GABE
When Gabe Harrison started up the mountain, with the intention ofprospecting around a bit, seeking for indications of gold, he fullyexpected to be back within two hours. It was his idea that he might seesigns of a lead which would be better than the one he and the boys wereon.
Now if Gabe had had a horse that was used to mountain climbing severalthings in this story would not have happened. For a steed accustomed toscrambling over loose rocks, up steep slopes and down others stillsteeper, would have kept its footing, and not stumbled, as did Gabe'sanimal.
The old miner had ridden a few miles, and was convinced that no goldcould be found in that direction. He was on the point of returning whensomething happened.
The horse stepped on a loose rock, on the edge of a gully, tried torecover its balance, in obedience to the frantic calls of Gabe, and hisyankings on the bridle, and then pitched forward, throwing the old manoff its back.
When Gabe recovered his senses, after many hours of unconsciousness, hefound himself lying on the cold ground. He was quite wet with the dew,and lame and stiff. It was dark, and when he tried to move such a painshot through his left leg that he had to lie quietly.
"Well, I wonder what in the world happened to me," said Gabe, speakingaloud. Then it came back to him, how his horse had stumbled with him,and how he had fallen into the gully, the last thing he remembered beingwhen his head hit a stone.
"And I reckon I didn't hurt that rock as much as it hurt me," mused theold man, feeling of a large lump on the back of his head. "This is toughluck. My leg must be broken by the way it feels. Here I am, all alone inthese mountains, and nobody knows where I am. Even the boys can't findme in this place."
He managed to get to a sitting position, moving cautiously because ofhis leg. Then he felt in his pocket and got a match, which he struck. Bythe glare of it he looked around. He saw nothing but a bowlder-strewnexpanse. Then something moving, about a hundred feet away from him,attracted his attention.
"It's my horse!" he exclaimed. "If I can only get the animal over here,maybe I can crawl on his back and he'll take me to camp."
He called to the steed, but the animal gave no sign that it heard him.It continued to crop what scanty herbage there was.
"I've got to crawl over to it," mused poor Gabe, "and how I'm going todo it with a busted leg is more than I know. But it's got to be done.Something may happen to the boys. Here goes."
He started to crawl, but such an intense pain shot through his leg thatit made him sick and faint. He leaned back against a big rock with agroan.
"No use!" he murmured. "I'm done for, I guess. Old Gabe Harrison hasdone his last prospecting. I'll die here--all alone. If I only knew theboys were safe!"
Then the pain and exhaustion brought a merciful insensibility. When Gabeopened his eyes again it was morning, and the sun was shining brightly.The horse he had ridden, and which had been the innocent cause of hismisfortune, was now farther off, having gone to a little stream todrink.
"Oh, how I wish I had some of that water," thought poor Gabe. "My throatis parched. I wonder if the horse won't come to me now?"
He called, but the animal only raised its head, looked at him, and wenton feeding.
"I'm going to crawl and get a drink of water if it kills me!" exclaimedthe miner. "Might as well die in comfort if I've got to go."
He moved his leg cautiously. To his surprise the pain was not so greatas it had been. Then he felt of it. Though the limb was sore and tenderno bones seemed to be broken.
"Guess it's only a bad strain," he said. "There's some chance for me,after all. I'll try to catch the horse."
It was hard work, crawling along a few feet at a time, stopping to restevery now and then, to ease the pain, but Gabe accomplished it. Hereached the little mountain stream, and drank the cold water. That madehim feel better, and a little later he managed to catch the horse, andpull himself up into the saddle. Fortunately the animal seemed to knowthat the man was wounded, and kept still until the miner was mounted.
"Now it isn't so bad," said Gabe, "though my leg does hurt like allpossessed. But I guess I can get to camp, and the boys will take care ofme for a while. I'll be as good as ever in a few days, as long asnothing's broken."
Cautiously guiding his horse, Gabe made his way down the mountain trail.It took him twice as long to reach the camp as it had to make thejourney the night before, but finally he came to where he had left theboys and their horses.
To his surprise neither of the lads were there, nor were their horses.There was only some of the camp stuff, and the pack which Gabe hadremoved from his steed's back before setting off into the mountains.
"Well, this gets me!" he exclaimed. "Where can they have gone? I toldthem to stay here until I came back, and I'm sure they would, for theydon't know the trail. Their horses are gone too. I wonder----"
A sudden idea coming to him, he slowly dismounted from his horse, andcrawled to the stakes to which had been fastened the steeds of the twolads. The short ends of the ropes that remained showed they had beenbroken.
"Something's happened!" exclaimed Gabe. "Those horses have got loosewhile the boys were away. But why did Jed and Will go away? Could ithave been to look for me? If so, why aren't they here now? It's too muchfor me. Lucky my pack is left. I'm half starved."
By slowly crawling about he managed to get himself a meal. He feltbetter after that, and, having made a closer examination of his injuredleg, and finding there was only a strain, which was rapidly gettingbetter, he prepared to make himself as comfortable as possible in camp.
But he was sorely puzzled at the absence of the boys, and he made up hismind, as soon as he could travel with more safety, that he would setoff after them, if they did not return that night, which he hoped theywould do. But night came, and Jed and Will did not come back. Muchworried, Gabe prepared to spend the lonely dark hours in the desertedcamp.
Meanwhile, Jed and Will were flying from the pursuing gamblers. As theywent on along the valley, they found that the trail turned and went upthe mountain.
"Shall we take it?" asked Will.
"Nothing else to do," replied Jed. "We can't stand and fight thosescoundrels. The only thing to do is to keep on."
"But we may get lost in the mountains."
"That's happened already. We can't be much worse off that way. Neitherof us know where we are, nor how to get back to camp. The only thing todo is to keep on. We may distance them, and we may strike a mining camp,where we can get help."
Still behind them came the desperate men who half guessed at thetruth--that the boys had gold--and this gold the gamblers weredetermined to obtain.
"I think we're leaving them behind," remarked Will, after a pause,during which they rode hard.
"Seems as if we couldn't hear them quite so plainly," agreed Jed. "Butdon't stop. It'll soon be dark, and maybe we can give them the slip."
Whether this happened, or whether the pursuers knew the boys could notescape them, the lads did not know. Certainly when it got too dark totravel any more in safety on the uncertain mountain trail, there was nolonger the echo of hoofbeats behind them.
"Let's stop and make a sort of camp," proposed Jed. "We can't go on likethis all night. We'll eat a bit, rest, and start the first thing in themorning."
But in the morning they had hardly made a hurried breakfast, and startedalong the trail again, ere from behind came the sounds of pursuit.
"They're after us!" said Jed grimly.
"They want that gold," added Will, "but they're not going to get it!"