He made an indescribable gesture, and through his strong fingers Donnegan had a vision of yellow gold pouring.

“But there is seldom a discovery of importance claimed by one man alone.  This was no exception.  A villain named William Lester, known as a scoundrel over the length and breadth of the cattle country, claimed that he had made the discovery first.  He even went so far as to claim that I had obtained my information from him and he tried to jump the claims staked by Jack Landis, whereupon Jack, very properly, shot Lester down.  Not dead, unfortunately, but slightly wounded.

“In the meantime the rush for The Corner started.  In a week there was a village; in a fortnight there was a town; in a month The Corner had become the talk of the ranges.  Jack Landis found in the claims a mint.  He sent me back a mere souvenir.”

The fat man produced from his vest pocket a little chunk of yellow and with a dexterous motion whipped it at Donnegan.  It was done so suddenly, so unexpectedly that the wanderer was well-nigh taken by surprise.  But his hand flashed up and caught the metal before it struck his face.  He found in the palm of his hand a nugget weighing perhaps five ounces, and he flicked it back to the colonel.

“He sent me the souvenir, but that was all.  Since that time I have waited.  Nothing has come.  I sent for word, and I learned that Jack Landis had betrayed his trust, fallen in love with some undesirable woman of the mining camp, denied my claim to any of the gold to which I had sent him.  Unpleasant news?  Yes.  Ungrateful boy?  Yes.  But my mind is hardened against adversity.

“Yet this blow struck me close to the heart.  Because Landis is engaged to marry my daughter, Lou.  At first I could hardly believe in his disaffection.  But the truth has at length been borne home to me.  The scoundrel has abandoned both Lou and me!”

Donnegan repeated slowly:  “Your daughter loves this chap?”

The colonel allowed his glance to narrow, and he could do this the more safely because at this moment Donnegan’s eyes were wandering into the distance.  In that unguarded second Donnegan was defenseless and the colonel read something that set him beaming.

“She loves him, of course,” he said, “and he is breaking her heart with his selfishness.”

“He is breaking her heart?” echoed Donnegan.

The colonel raised his hand and stroked his enormous chin.  Decidedly he believed that things were getting on very well.

“This is the position,” he declared.  “Jack Landis was threatened by the wretch Lester, and shot him down.  But Lester was not single-handed.  He belongs to a wild crew, led by a mysterious fellow of whom no one knows very much, a deadly fighter, it is said, and a keen organizer and handler of men.  Red-haired, wild, smooth.  A bundle of contradictions.  They call him Lord Nick because he has the pride of a nobleman and the cunning of the devil.  He has gathered a few chosen spirits and cool fighters—­the Pedlar, Joe Rix, Harry Masters—­all celebrated names in the cattle country.