His son and his best friends thought him the victim of his imagination and the lode a joke; but if I succeed, his dreams will be justified." Thirlwell said nothing for a minute or two; he saw that she was resolute and was moved by her staunch loyalty.

After all, Strange's story was not uncommon; Thirlwell had known men leave work and home to follow an elusive clue to mineral treasure in the barren solitudes.

Some had come back broken in fortune and courage, and some had not come back at all.
Then while he mused the harsh cry of the loon rang through the dark.

It fired his blood, and unconsciously he fixed his eyes on the North, for in summer the birds of the lakes and rivers push on towards the Pole.

He had done his duty and tried to persuade the girl, but after all she was stronger and finer than Strange.