‘God bless you, Richard; God bless you, my brave boy.’

This, for some reason quite incomprehensible to the boy, caused a lump to swell in his breast and gave him an altogether uncalled-for inclination to blubber; but he swallowed it down with an effort, and then his mother hugged him in that billowy energetic way of hers.  After which Harry took his hand and shook it for quite a long time without speaking a word.  The detective alone was undemonstrative.

‘Now,’ said he, ‘what about this gold?  You hid it?’

‘Yes.  In our shaft.’

’Look here, Master Dick, why have you kept all this so quiet?  Why did you go down that mine in stead of running for help?  Come, there is something at the back of all this; out with it!

Dick’s lips closed in a familiar way, and their colourlessness indicated a stubborn defiance of all argument and persuasion.

‘Did you want to steal the gold yourself?’

‘No,’ cried the boy angrily.

’Then you were afraid of something.  By heaven!  I have it.  You rip! ’twas you gave warning to Ephraim Shine.  You deserve six months.’

‘Shame!’ murmured Mrs. Hardy.

‘’Tisn’t fair!’ expostulated Dick’s mother.  Dick’s lips were closed again, and he stared defiantly at the detective.

‘Well, well,’ groaned Downy, ’this is the most extraordinary thing in boys that I have ever encountered, but he’s a mass of grit—­for good or bad, all grit.  Shake hands, Dick.’

Dick brightened up, and shook hands cheerfully.

‘You’re quite sure about that gold?  You hid it securely?’ queried the detective.

‘Yes, I buried it under the reef quite safe.’

‘And nobody knows of this hole but yourself?’

‘Yes, Jacker knows, an’ Ted, an’ Billy Peterson, an’—­’

’Bless my soul, the whole township knows!  We won’t get an ounce of that gold—­not a colour.  We’d better make the search at once, Mr. Hardy.  You’ll need a rope and tools, I suppose.  Hunt up the men you spoke of as quickly as possible, will you?’

Harry and Dick started off together in quest of McKnight.  He was on the night shift, and they found him in bed.  Harry explained.  McKnight was scornful and profane.

‘What—­that boy Haddon again?’ he cried.  ’Now what’s his little game?  What devilment’s he up to?

‘But this looks all right,’ Harry expostulated.

‘All right, my grandmother’s cat!  You’ll be findin’ quartz reefs in a gum-tree next.’

‘You ask Jacker an’ Ted,’ put in Dick resentfully, hurt to find his well-intentioned efforts so ungraciously received.

‘Ask Jacker, is it?  If Jacker comes playin’ any of your monkey tricks with me, my lad, I’ll make him smell mischief, I tell you.’

‘But hang it all, Mack! you might as well come an’ see.  I own the chances o’ finding a shallow reef in that locality look blue, but you know there was talk o’ something of the kind years ago.’