"I received your letter and got here as quickly as I could." "now I am going to tell you why I sent for you." "20 years ago my brother and I quarreled over a woman he married her. they relocated near Kennegamy house, northern Canada." "a child was born, a girl." "wife died" "I heard that my brother had strangely disappeared." "lately I have had a desire to see that niece of mine." "and find out just what happened to my brother." "that's why I sent for you." "I am afraid I couldn't stand a drift." "I will be glad to do everything I can." "you know, I haven't forgotten that you were dad's best friend." "you see my brother's name was John Ball... wife's name was, Marie." "more likely, that will be the girls name too." "its my hope that she will spend the remaining years of my life, here with me." "you know son ?" "some day she is going to inherit this here, the ranch of the pines." "I understand and I will do my best to find her." "couldn't ask no more than that." "when can you leave?" "on the morning train.." "Good!" "Rod Drew!" "what are you doing here ?" "well hello Bobby?" "where are you heading for?" "I am going home." "I just graduated." "that's nice!" "say, how is the old Alma Mater?" "oh, kind a quiet now... they haven't found any cows or goats in the dormitory since you left." "don't tell me the place has deteriorated into a school of learning." "sit down" "Oh, I cant now !" "my mind is in the middle of a poker game." "but I have a lot to tell you, I will be back later." "okay." "don't loose your shirt !" "No!" "I saw from where that one came from." "what are you doing, getting sore when you start to loose?" "you tin horn ..." "I didn't do it, Rod." "they framed me." "I caught him cheating and he pulled a gun on me." "its murder." "come on." "nice way to have a bath." "you shouldn't have done that Rod." "now you are in it, as much as I am." "don't worry about that, Bobby." "the main thing is to get out of here before they pick us up." "we are about a mile from Fort Minnetaki." "we should be able to buy a change of clothes there." "lets get started." "here you are, Mister." "come on, Bobby." "telegram for you Martial." "it must be that fellow who drifted down in this morning." "well, there they are now." "we are going to have a talk with them." "hey you fellas, wait a minute." "wait a minute there." "come on, Bobby." "that's them alright !" "come on lets run them down." "we got to jump for it." "It's our only chance." "they got away." "notify the Mountain police." "from Minetaki they have headed north." "one of them is half-breed, but we do not have any description of the other." " you better start at Fort Minnetaki." " Yes Sir !" "we can take a shortcut through Wabinosh House, its on the bend of the river." "once we make there, we will be safe for a while." "the cabin looks deserted." "we can camp there for the night." "Gold !" "It's a map." "they must have fought for it." "shows the location of their mine." "We, John Ball and Peter Plante..." "having discovered gold at this point do hereby agree to joint partnership in it and do pledge ourselves ... to forgot our past differences and work in mutual goodwill and honesty 'so help us God' signed John Ball and Peter Plante." "so this is what happened to John Ball." "John Ball?" "why are you interested in him ?" "he is one of the reasons I am up here." "and the other ?" "his daughter." "Bobby, when we get to Wabinosh House... we will make a search for this mine." "Well, Bobby!" "Bobby!" "FeIice!" "gee .." "I am glad to see you." "I am glad to see you, Bobby." "FeIice, this is Rod Drew." "my best friend in college." "Miss Newsome." "how do you do Miss Newsome?" "how do you do Mister Drew." "well how are you Bobby?" "glad to see you back." "I am glad to be back Mister Newsome." "Mister Newsome, this is Rod Drew." "How do you do Mister Newsome !" "howdy!" "are you going to be with us for some time?" "no, I am afraid not. we are only going to stay long enough to get supplies." "Oh!" "where are you going?" "well !" "you see .." "we were thinking of hunting wolves.." "and we want to get our trap plans plotted early" "Oh!" "in the mean time I have some things here I would like to leave with you for safekeeping." "would you please keep this safe?" "well, certainly !" "Benoit !" "place this in the safe." "Oui, monsieur." "FeIice will get you what supplies you need." "we can put you up right here at the post." "thanks Mister Newsome, that will be fine." "you boys come along with me now and I will show you to your room." " Bonjour LaRocque." " Bonjour." "Eh!" "what have you got ?" "you wait I show you." "more bullets, eh?" "oui !" "when the winter catches in we will attack Wabinosh House... and bring them to knees with their our own ammunition, eh?" "." "oui, and she is coming in pretty quick now." "and the ammunition is very low." "but Newsome, he don't know that." "I emptied his box and put them back on the shelves." "good." "and now, I have the grand news for you." "two strangers have arrived at the post with a map full of gold." "a map of gold ?" "Oui." "where is it?" "Je ne sais pas." "I have only seen the word 'Gold' marked on the map." "Newsome had me put it into the safe." "you can open that safe ?" "do not know if I can do that." "you try?" "Oui." "I will give you two men." "you will go there tonight." "Oui." "it is of no use, I cannot get it." "but she can." "she knows the combination." "Ah!" "Benoit!" "get her." "Ah, ah!" "FeIice, FeIice!" "she is gone!" "Eh!" "who is this?" "its Abonga." " what are you doing here ?" "we found him wounded in Felice's room." "and she is gone." "FeIice gone ?" "Ah!" "LaRocque, eh?" "I have seen him before must have taken her to his place." "who is LaRocque?" "renegade trader stationed up in the river here been giving us plenty of trouble," "what were they after?" "there is nothing up here of value." "not even in the safe." "maybe its the map." " we got to find FeIice!" "we better head for LaRocque." "we can go by canoe." "No, you cannot go that way." "there's not enough water." "we might make it." "one thing for certain." "it sure would give them surprise if you did get through." "come on, lets try it." "I couldn't open the safe, but FeIice she knows the combination." "get her and bring her here." "Jules LaRocque!" "so you are behind all this ?" "you will tell us the combination of that safe and we will set you free." "I will tell you nothing." "lets see maybe you will." "take one of their guns and start something." "meet me at the back door." "Bobby!" "get him !" "My gosh, she is getting away" "Eh, Bobby!" "I have been thinking, maybe FeIice can help me with my quest." "so you are up here on a quest ?" "I didn't come here, just to hunt wolves." "I will be very careful, if I were you." "man-hunters are not exactly welcomed by most people around here." "its not a man I am looking for, its a woman." "a young woman." "she is just about your age." "that sounds interesting, tell me about it." "don't you think we better inform your father that you are safe ?" "perhaps you are right, Bobby." "you make big mistake when you bring that girl here." "I had too !" "she has seen me." "and now I cannot go back." "we will send Marie!" "she is not known there." "Oui, that's a good idea." "she can tell them she escaped from Kennegamy House." "he will need someone for my place." "that stranger have a map of gold that you must get." "but you must not tell him anything." " leave it to me." "I will get it." " I know." "excuse me , monsieur." "are you Mr. Newsome?" "Yes." "I am Marie LaFIeur from Kennegamy House." "I was a clerk there, and also took care of the accounts." "I am looking for work." "can you keep books?" "Oui monsieur." "well you have got a job right now as far as I am concerned." "if you can help me out of this mess." "that will be simple, monsieur." "I will go and have a room prepare for you right away." "thank you." "did you say your name was Marie?" "Oui monsieur." "I heard you say that you are from Kennegamy House." "have you lived along there long ?" "you are very inquisitive, monsieur." "I don't mean to be, but I am very interested." "I would like to have a talk with you." "if you wish." "what's the matter FeIice?" "I don't see why he should be so interested in that girl." "what do you care ?" "are you beginning to like him ?" "why no." "things haven't been the same between you and me Felice." "not since you met him," "I owe him my life." "but I am not going to let him come between us." "why Bobby!" "I never realized that you felt that way about me." "do you have your map, young man ?" "better not take any chances." "that LaRocque crowd is not giving up that easily." "we will be watching for them." "I am keeping my eye on them too." "getting too many of them to be comfortable." "I have to keep watch on them.." "Good-bye Mr. Newsome." "take care of yourself. well good luck !" " thank you." "Bobby, its not same without you." "Good-bye." "goodbye, FeIice." "goodbye, Rod." "goodbye Bobby." "goodbye, FeIice." "well, what you find out ?" "oh, he don't answer any questions." "I cant find out nothing from him about the map." "and this morning they start down the river." "it is too late." "no, I do not think it is yet too late." "I have another idea." "well ?" "they leave this morning." "yeah, I know. but what you found out at the mountain police post ?" "I found out plenty." "they are wanted men." "a mountain patrol left fort Minekati this morning to find them." "that is bad. if the police get them, we loose the map." "we must beat the police." "a mounty!" "get away from that gun." "you are under arrest." "hit the trail, you two." "we are heading for Kennegamy House." "not that way, this way." "I thought the Kennegamy House was south west of here." "I said we are heading this way." "so it is your little game, is it ?" "pretty clever, eh !" "almost as clever, the way you got FeIice." "I should kill you for that." "get the map !" "tie them up, put them in there." "line up against that wall." "so you are the real Mounty !" "I thought that other guy was a fake." "see we go up the Way Sugar to the Big Mackey." "come... we go !" "we got to get out of here." "LaRouque must be way ahead of us." " yeah !" "with our map." " that's where you are wrong." "I left the real one on my boot." "you are not turning him loose, are you ?" "he is the law !" "I am not going to live him here to die." "you can do what you want." "but if you turn me loose I will make arrest." "don't be crazy Rod." "you turn him loose and we don't have a chance." "he will have every man on the fort trailing us." "listen, we may be your prisoners, but you are coming along with us." "till we find out what this map leads us into." "that's white peak al right, and according to the map, it is right below us." "here it is." "there must be a small fortune in there." "what's this ?" "by Jove it looks like FeIice !" "why Bobby, is FeIice John Bali's daughter ?" "you knew it all the time, why didn't you tell me ?" "I knew, if you find out, you will take here with you and I loose her." "I know now, that she doesn't care for me." "well, we better get started." "LaRocque will know by now that he has been send into a wild goose chase." "and nothing will stop him." "it is not here." "we have been tricked." "we go back to the cabin." "hey look!" "maybe we will find them in the creek." "look, there they go." "keep rowing, Bobby!" "Oh, look !" "we got to stop it, the fall is just below there." "not good Bobby." "we have got to get him back to Wabinosh House." "three time they fooled us." "but no more." "you will bring all the men here." "this time we will fool them." "we will attack Wabinosh House for the gold and the furs." "and they will find the ammunitions all gone." "Ah, Mecogui!" "what did you find out ?" "20, 30 men hold big pow wow with LaRocque." "him come here quick." "they probably intend to attack." "thanks Mecogui," "I will get guns and ammunition ready." "come on Bobby!" "wait !" "there is a mounted police force at fort Mippigon... and I am deputizing you to and get there." "I will get them Ryan." "Mr. Newsome, these are empty !" "empty ?" "Benoit, to blame for this." " we cannot hold them forever." "Bryan intended that we get help from Fort Mippigon." "going after them." "hold up them as long as you can." "LaRocque gang is attacking Wabinosh House." "I have only three men here, but we are deputizing every men in the settlement." "call assembly." "everyone is ready?" "we go !" "someone must have tipped them off." "no matter, but they cannot hold for long." "you lead them to attack while I go for Marie." "Oui, beau." " good !" "everything there !" " yes, most of it." "wait I will get the rest." "not so fast, Marie!" "here they come !" "take cover, quick !" "well, Ryan, we are ready to go back anytime you are." "that wont be necessary." "the sergeant told me, the guy that Bobby had the fight, didn't die after all." "when he recovered consciousness he exonerated Bobby from shooting." "and you boys are free."