He would have reached Esmeralda in time, but his horse broke down and he had to walk a great part of the distance.

And so it happened that as he came into Esmeralda by one road, I entered it by another.

His was the superior energy, however, for he went straight to the Wide West, instead of turning aside as I had done--and he arrived there about five or ten minutes too late! The "notice" was already up, the "relocation" of our mine completed beyond recall, and the crowd rapidly dispersing.

He learned some facts before he left the ground.

The foreman had not been seen about the streets since the night we had located the mine--a telegram had called him to California on a matter of life and death, it was said.