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and tried to stop me。



〃'What you doing?〃 he says。



〃'Divorcin' you and me;' I says。 'I'm headin' for tall timber

and where I belong。'〃



〃'No you don't;〃 he says; reaching for me to stop me。 〃The

cooking has got on your head。 You listen to me talk before you

up and do anything brash。'〃



〃'But I pulled a gun…a little Colt's forty…fourand says;

〃This does my talkin' for me。'〃



〃'And I left。'〃



Trefethan emptied his glass and called for another。



〃Boys; do you know what that girl did? She was twenty…two。 She

had spent her life over the dish…pan and she knew no more about

the world than I do of the fourth dimension; or the fifth。 All

roads led to her desire。 No; she didn't head for the

dance…halls。 On the Alaskan Pan…handle it is preferable to

travel by water。 She went down to the beach。 An Indian canoe

was starting for Dyeayou know the kind; carved out of a

single tree; narrow and deep and sixty feet long。 She gave them

a couple of dollars and got on board。



〃'Romance?' she told me。 'It was Romance from the jump。 There

were three families altogether in that canoe; and that crowded

there wasn't room to turn around; with dogs and Indian babies

sprawling over everything; and everybody dipping a paddle and

making that canoe go。' And all around the great solemn

mountains; and tangled drifts of clouds and sunshine。 And oh;

the silence! the great wonderful silence! And; once; the smoke

of a hunter's camp; away off in the distance; trailing among

the trees。 It was like a picnic; a grand picnic; and I could

see my dreams coming true; and I was ready for something to

happen 'most any time。 And it did。



〃'And that first camp; on the island! And the boys spearing

fish in the mouth of the creek; and the big deer one of the

bucks shot just around the point。 And there were flowers

everywhere; and in back from the beach the grass was thick and

lush and neck…high。 And some of the girls went through this

with me; and we climbed the hillside behind and picked berries

and roots that tasted sour and were good to eat。 And we came

upon a big bear in the berries making his supper; and he said

〃Oof!〃 and ran away as scared as we were。 And then the camp;

and the camp smoke; and the smell of fresh venison cooking。 It

was beautiful。 I was with the night…born at last; and I knew

that was where I belonged。 And for the first time in my life;

it seemed to me; I went to bed happy that night; looking out

under a corner of the canvas at the stars cut off black by a

big shoulder of mountain; and listening to the night…noises;

and knowing that the same thing would go on next day and

forever and ever; for I wasn't going back。 And I never did go

back。'



〃'Romance! I got it next day。 We had to cross a big arm of the

oceantwelve or fifteen miles; at least; and it came on to

blow when we were in the middle。 That night I was along on

shore; with one wolf…dog; and I was the only one left alive。'



〃Picture it yourself;〃 Trefethan broke off to say。 〃The canoe

was wrecked and lost; and everybody pounded to death on the

rocks except her。 She went ashore hanging on to a dog's tail;

escaping the rocks and washing up on a tiny beach; the only one

in miles。



〃'Lucky for me it was the mainland;' she said。 'So I headed

right away back; through the woods and over the mountains and

straight on anywhere。 Seemed I was looking for something and

knew I'd find it。 I wasn't afraid。 I was night…born; and the

big timber couldn't kill me。 And on the second day I found it。

I came upon a small clearing and a tumbledown cabin。 Nobody had

been there for years and years。 The roof had fallen in。 Rotted

blankets lay in the bunks; and pots and pans were on the stove。

But that was not the most curious thing。 Outside; along the

edge of the trees; you can't guess what I found。 The skeletons

of eight horses; each tied to a tree。 They had starved to

death; I reckon; and left only little piles of bones scattered

some here and there。 And each horse had had a load on its back。

There the loads lay; in among the bonespainted canvas sacks;

and inside moosehide sacks; and inside the moosehide

sackswhat do you think?'〃



She stopped; reached under a comer of the bed among the spruce

boughs; and pulled out a leather sack。 She untied the mouth and

ran out into my hand as pretty a stream of gold as I have ever

seencoarse gold; placer gold; some large dust; but mostly

nuggets; and it was so fresh and rough that it scarcely showed

signs of water…wash。



〃'You say you're a mining engineer;' she said; 'and you know

this country。 Can you name a pay…creek that has the color of

that gold!'



〃I couldn't! There wasn't a trace of silver。 It was almost

pure; and I told her so。



〃'You bet;' she said。 'I sell that for nineteen dollars an

ounce。 You can't get over seventeen for Eldorado gold; and

Minook gold don't fetch quite eighteen。 Well; that was what I

found among the boneseight horse…loads of it; one hundred and

fifty pounds to the load。'



〃'A quarter of a million dollars!' I cried out。



〃'That's what I reckoned it roughly;' she answered。 'Talk about

Romance! And me a slaving the way I had all the years; when as

soon as I ventured out; inside three days; this was what

happened。 And what became of the men that mined all that gold?

Often and often I wonder about it。 They left their horses;

loaded and tied; and just disappeared off the face of the

earth; leaving neither hide nor hair behind them。 I never heard

tell of them。 Nobody knows anything about them。 Well; being the

night…born; I reckon I was their rightful heir。'



Trefethan stopped to light a cigar。



〃Do you know what that girl did? She cached the gold; saving

out thirty pounds; which she carried back to the coast。 Then

she signaled a passing canoe; made her way to Pat Healy's

trading post at Dyea; outfitted; and went over Chilcoot Pass。

That was in '88eight years before the Klondike strike; and

the Yukon was a howling wilderness。 She was afraid of the

bucks; but she took two young squaws with her; crossed the

lakes; and went down the river and to all the early camps on

the Lower Yukon。 She wandered several years over that country

and then on in to where I met her。 Liked the looks of it; she

said; seeing; in her own words; 'a big bull caribou knee…deep

in purple iris on the valley…bottom。' She hooked up with the

Indians; doctored them; gained their confidence; and gradually

took them in charge。 She had only left that country once; and

then; with a bunch of the young bucks; she went over Chilcoot;

cleaned up her gold…cache; and brought it back with her。



〃'And here I be; stranger;' she concluded her yarn; 'and here's

the most precious thing I own。'



〃She pulled out a little pouch of buckskin; worn on her neck

like a locket; and opened it。 And inside; wrapped in oiled

silk; yellowed with age and worn and thumbed; was the original

scrap of newspaper containing the quotation from Thoreau。



〃'And are you happy 。 。 。 satisfied?' I asked her。 'With a

quarter of a million you wouldn't have to work down in the

States。 You must miss a lot。'



〃'Not much;' she answered。 'I wouldn't swop places with any

woman down in the States。 These are my people; this is where I

belong。 But there are timesand in her eyes smoldered up that

hungry yearning I've mentioned'there are times when I wish

most awful bad for that Thoreau man to happen along。'



〃'Why?' I asked。



〃'So as I could marry him。 I do get mighty lonesome at spells。

I'm just a womana real woman。 I've heard tell of the other

kind of women that gallivanted off like me and did queer

thingsthe sort that become soldiers in armies; and sailors on

ships。 But those women are queer themselves。 They're more like

men than women; they look like men and they don't have ordinary

women's needs。 They don't want love; nor little children in

their arms and around their knees。 I'm not that sort。 I leave

it to you; stranger。 Do I look like a man?'



〃She didn't。 She was a woman; a beautiful; nut…brown woman;

with a sturdy; health…rounded woman's body and with wonderful

deep…blue woman's eyes。



〃'Ain't I woman?' she demanded。 'I am。 I'm 'most all woman; and

then some。 And the funny thing is; though I'm night…born in

everything else; I'm not when it comes to mating。 I reckon that

kind likes its own kind best。 That's the way it is with me;

anyway; and has been all these years。'



〃'You mean to tell me' I began。



〃'Never;' she said; and her eyes looked into mine with the

straightness of truth。 'I had one husband; onlyhim I call the

Ox; and I reckon he's still down in Juneau running the

hash…joint。 Look him up; if you ever get back; and you'll find

he's rightly named。'



〃And look him up I did; two years afterward。 He was all she

saidsolid and stolid; the Oxshuffling around and waiting on

the tables。



〃'You need 

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