Philosopher Jack Part 14

"O Watty!" cried Jack, leaping down to the rescue with his drawn hunting-knife.

But before Jack reached him, or the bear had time to recover himself, Watty was on his active legs, and sprang up a tree like a monkey. Jack caught a branch of the same tree, and by sheer strength swung himself up, but on this occasion with so little time to spare, that the bear, standing on its hind legs, touched his heel lovingly with its protruded lips, as he drew himself out of reach.

We need scarcely say it was with beating and thankful hearts that the two friends looked down from their perch of safety on the formidable and b.l.o.o.d.y foe who kept pawing at the foot of the tree and looking hungrily up at them.

"What a mercy that the grizzly can't climb!" panted Watty, who had not yet recovered breath.

"But he can watch and keep us here all night," said Jack, "and we have no means of killing him. I fell and lost my gun in escaping, and yours is doubled up. We're in for a night of it, my boy. Why didn't you do what I bade you, get up into the tree with your gun when you saw us coming, and then we could have shot him at our leisure?"

"Why didn't you lend me your own cool head and clear brain," retorted the other, "and then we might have done something of the sort? But surely the shot I gave him must tell in the long-run."

"Pooh!" said Jack, "it's not much more to him than an over-dose of mustard would be to a cat. However, we've nothing for it but to wait.

Perhaps Buckley may have heard our shots."

In this conjecture Jack was right. The gold-miner was enjoying an unsocial cup of tea at the time, and fortunately heard the distant shots and shouting. Buckley was a prompt man. Loading his double barrel with ball as he ran, he suddenly made his appearance on the field, saw at a glance how matters stood, and, being a good shot, put two b.a.l.l.s in the bear's carca.s.s with deadly effect. Grizzly bears are, however, remarkably tenacious of life. This one at once turned on his new foe, who, getting behind a tree, re-loaded as quickly as possible. As the animal pa.s.sed he put two more b.a.l.l.s in its heart and killed it.

"Splendidly done!" cried Jack, leaping to the ground and shaking Buckley by the hand, as he thanked him for his timely aid. Almost in the same breath he told of their unexpected good fortune.

"Now, then," he added, "we'll cut off the claws of this fellow as a trophy, and then to camp and supper."

"Stop a bit, not so fast," said Wilkins, who had descended the tree and was sitting on the ground with a most lugubrious countenance; "we must gather up my nuggets before going. Besides, it strikes me there's something wrong with my ankle."

This was found to be too true. In scrambling into the tree Watty had sprained his ankle badly, and in jumping down had made it so much worse that he could not bear to put even his toe to the ground. He was compelled, therefore, to accept the services of Jacob Buckley, who carried him into camp on his back.

Despite his sufferings poor Wilkins rejoiced that night with his comrades at their good fortune, and it was long before he or they could cease to talk over future plans and take needful rest. At length Buckley rolled himself in his blanket, and lay down.

"Poor fellow," said Jack, seeing Watty wince a little, "does it hurt much?"

"Yes, rather, but I'll be all right to-morrow. Now, Jack, I'm going to sleep. Do me a favour before turning in. Just make a pile of my nuggets close to my pillow here, with the big one on the top. There, thanks."

"What a covetous little wretch you are becoming!" said Jack with a laugh, as he lay down. "Have a care, Watty, that you don't become a miser."

Watty made no reply, but in the night, when he thought his comrades were asleep, he was overheard muttering in a low tone: "Yes, my dear old dad, you shall have them every one, big 'un as well; at least I'll send you every rap that they will fetch. Not that you need it. You're rich enough as it is, but this will show you, perhaps, that my first thoughts after my first luck were of you."

A long sigh followed the remark. Looking up soon afterwards, Jack saw that Watty was sound asleep, with the point of his nose reposing on the big nugget.

The poor lad's idea of a sprain was not quite correct. Instead of being "all right" next day, he found himself to be hopelessly lame, and was unable to move from the camp for a couple of weeks. During that period Jack and Buckley went forth to the new diggings every morning, and returned at night laden with gold, so that in a short time they had gathered as much as they could conveniently carry. Then they resolved to go for their comrades and return with them to continue their labours at what they named Grizzly Bear Gulch. As Watty was still unable to walk without great pain, they made a sort of litter of a blanket between two poles. In this contrivance they carried him, with their gold and their other belongings, back to the old diggings.

But here, on arrival, they found a wonderfully altered state of affairs.

"Immediately after you left," said Captain Samson, over a cup of tea, while Polly, who presided, listened with sympathetic delight, "we bought a new claim or two, without much hope, however, of bettering our circ.u.mstances. One of these claims we bought for you, Jack, with part of the money you left in our charge, one for Buckley, and another for Wilkins. Well, these claims all turned out splendidly, and we've been makin' our fortunes ever since! As you were off prospecting, as much for our benefit as your own, we agreed that it was the least we could do to work a little for you, so we gave your claims a rummage day about, and thus we've made your fortunes too, or part of 'em anyhow. We've bin sendin' home bills of exchange too, and knowin' your wish to help your father, Jack, I took upon me to send a small sum to him with your love.

I did right didn't I?"

"Right!" exclaimed Jack, seizing the captain's hand and squeezing it; "need you ask? I'm only sorry I didn't dig the gold out with my own hand, and enclose the bill in my own letter. How much did you send?"

"Only 1000 pounds," replied the captain.

"Come, don't joke. I'm anxious to know, because he was very hard up when I left."

"More shame to you for leaving him, my young Philosopher," returned the captain, "but I tell you the truth; I sent him 1000 pounds sterling, and I believe there's as much lyin' here in gold-dust and nuggets that belongs to you. We've all done equally well, I'm thankful to say, and, better than that, good fortune seems to have brought us good health.

Even Ben Trench there is able to dig like the rest of us."

"Not exactly," said Ben with a pleasant smile at his old friend Wilkins, "but I'm very well, thank G.o.d, and able to do a little. I wouldn't have been what I am now but for the care of this dear little nurse."

Polly was quite pleased with the compliment, and made a liberal offer to supply more tea to any of the company who might want it.

All this, and a great deal more, was corroborated by every one present; moreover, it was told them that there were many other claims which had suddenly turned out well, and that the whole aspect of these diggings had changed for the better.

"And what of Mr Luke?" asked Jack, glancing round the circle.

"Gone," said the captain, "n.o.body knows where. He became gloomier and stranger than ever after you went away, and one morning announced his intention to leave us and return to San Francisco. He left, and has not been heard of since. Bob Corkey, too, is off. He got restless and disappointed at our bad luck, said he'd go away prospectin' on his own hook, and went."

"Good luck go with him! He was altogether too fond of argifying," said Simon O'Rook.

"He's not the only one," remarked Baldwin Burr, with a grin.

After much consideration and consultation, it was agreed that, in the meantime, the party should remain where they were, and, when their claims began to fail, go off to Grizzly Bear Gulch.

This being decided, Jacob Buckley rose, saying that he was going to visit his friends at Higgins' store. Jack followed him. When they were alone he said--

"Now, Jacob, don't go, there's a good fellow. You saved my life, I may say, and that gives me a claim on you." Buckley frowned, but said nothing. "If you get among your old mates," continued Jack, "and begin to _taste_, you're a gone man. G.o.d has been very good to us. He has made us rich. We may live to be useful, Jacob. Think of it."

A half sarcastic smile flitted over Buckley's face as he said, "You didn't use to be a preacher, Jack; what makes you now so keen to save me, as you call it?"

"I'm not sure what it is that makes me anxious now," replied Jack, "but I know what made me anxious at first. It was your poor brother Daniel.

That night he died, when he whispered in my ear, it was to make me promise to save you from drink and gambling if I could."

"Did he?" exclaimed the miner vehemently, as he clenched his hands. "O Dan! dear Dan, did you say that at such an hour? Look you, Jack," he added, turning sharply round, "I'll not go near the store, and if I _am_ saved it is Dan who has done it, mind that--not you."

And Buckley held to his word. For months after that he worked with the Samson party--as it was styled--and never once tasted a drop of anything stronger than tea.

During all that time success continued, but Philosopher Jack felt in his heart that no success in digging up gold was at all comparable to that of working with the Lord in helping a brother-sinner to turn from the error of his ways.

As their wealth acc.u.mulated, the different members of the party converted it into cash, sent some of it home to the a.s.sistance of friends or relatives, and the rest for safe and remunerative investment.

For the latter purpose they committed it to the care of Mr Wilkins senior, who, being a trusty and well-known man of business, was left to his own discretion in the selection of investments. Simon O'Rook, however, did not follow the example of his friends. He preferred to keep his gold in his own hands, and, as its bulk increased, stowed it away in a small chest, which, for further security, he buried in a hole in the tent directly under his own sleeping corner.

In addition to his remittances to Mr Wilkins for investment, Edwin Jack sent large sums regularly to his father, for the purpose not only of getting him out of his difficulties, but of enabling him to extend his farming operations. The wheel of fortune, however, had turned upwards with Jack senior, and he did not require these sums, as we shall see.

While things were going on thus prosperously at the other side of the world, a wonderful change--intimately connected with gold--took place in the "Old Country", which materially altered the circ.u.mstances of some of those personages whose names have figured in our tale.

CHAPTER NINE.

TREATS OF A CATASTROPHE AND RUIN.

We return once again to the cottage on the Scottish Border. It is not quite so lowly as it was when first introduced to our readers. Although not extensively changed, there is a certain air of comfort and prosperity about it which gives it much the appearance of a dirty boy who has had his face washed and a suit of new clothes put on. It has been whitewashed and partially re-roofed. A trellis-work porch with creepers has been added. The garden bears marks of improvement, and in one part there are four little plots of flower-beds, so conspicuously different in culture and general treatment as to suggest the idea of four different gardens. Inside of Mr Jack's abode there are also many changes for the better. The rooms are better furnished than they used to be. Several cheap oleograph copies of beautiful pictures adorn the walls, and the best parlour, which used to be kept in a condition of deadly propriety for state occasions only, is evidently used in the course of daily life. A brand-new piano, with a pretty little girl seated before it, suggests advancing refinement, and the expression of the child's face, while she attempts the impossible task of stretching an octave, indicates despair. There is another little girl seated at a table darning with all the energy of a Martha-like character. She is engaged upon a pair of juvenile socks, which have apparently been worn last by a cart-horse. Books and drawing materials and mathematical instruments on the table betoken progressive education, and, in short, everything without and within the cottage tells, as we have said, of prosperity.

It must not be supposed, however, that all this is due to Philosopher Jack's good fortune and liberality. When the first letter came from California, telling of the safety of our hero and his friends, Mr Jack was indeed in great material distress, but there was no money in that letter. It was despatched from San Francisco at the time of the arrival of the party, along with letters from the other members, informing their various relations of their deliverance. But if the letter had contained tons of the finest gold it could not have added a feather's weight to the joy of the old couple, who, like the widow of Nain or the sisters of Bethany, had received their dear lost one direct from the Lord, and, as it were, back from the dead. Then, after an interval, came Captain Samson's letter enclosing the bill for 1000 pounds, and explaining why Philosopher Jack himself did not write with it. Mr Jack senior thankfully used two hundred of the amount, which was quite sufficient to extricate him from all his difficulties. The balance he put into the nearest bank, to be kept for "the dear boy" on his return.