Chapter 19 Chapter 4 Sekel City

We know that the rich gold deposits north of the Dominion and Alaska were not confined to the Klondike region.That's great for those who like a strong thrill, because while the gold mines in the Klondike are far from exhausted, they're becoming increasingly expensive and only the powerful can get them, and soon everyone else will be. Impossible to have.As a result, some prospectors have had to extend their search north, either in groups or alone.They went down the Mackenzie River and then the Porcupine River. It should be noted that since then various rumors have drawn miners to the early days of development in these remote areas, much less known in northern Australia, California and the Transvaal.Some news came, I don't know who sent it, and I don't know where it came from.The news spread mainly because of the tribes of Indians who roamed the vast and inhospitable regions along the coast of the Arctic Ocean in the north.Unable to mine gold themselves, these Aboriginal people tried their best to attract immigrants to the northern regions.According to them, rivers bearing golden sands are everywhere in North America beyond the Arctic Circle.Sometimes, Indians use as samples gold nuggets found near St. Dawson City, claiming to have picked them at 64 degrees north latitude.We can understand that the miners, many in number and often dashed in their hopes, took these discoveries to heart.

In this way, Ben Rado is very clear: the existence of the Golden Volcano has been circulated in the Klondike in the form of legend.Perhaps it was these vague rumors that prompted the Frenchman Jacques Ledin to venture far to the north.At present, there is no sign that anyone wants to follow in his footsteps. However, the legend of the Golden Volcano has many people who believe it, because some miners are going to make a fortune in the north of the Dominion. Perhaps the current idea will soon become a reality. Exploration to the east and west is equally active.The Dom area had been divided into smaller pieces, and in the opposite direction, an army of pickaxes was pawing the ground around the city of Sekel.

It was here that two Texans, Hunter and Malona, ​​began their prospecting career, which was interrupted by some tragic event.They did not do well with the development of the Huami River, and they came to Lot 131 until the disaster on August 5 forced them to leave. Hunter, Malona, ​​and none of their men died.People thought they were all dead, because they went to Sekel city as soon as they saw the loss was irreparable. Under such circumstances, Hunter no longer considered a duel with Sammy Skin, as did the latter.According to the actual situation, this matter was resolved by resignation. The mining season was nearly two months away when the Texans returned to the gold mines at Circle City.They re-operated abandoned gold mines.It's true, though, that they had bad luck getting new plots.Their income was not much more than their expenses. If Hunter hadn't had some savings, he and his friends would have had a very hard time in winter.

A special circumstance relieved them of this trouble. These fierce men can only create discord and disputes around themselves.They are tyrannical and unreasonable in their will to impose their will, respecting no one's authority, and everywhere setting themselves up as rulers, resulting in constant trouble.Everyone has seen the ins and outs of things on the Sishilihe plot.The same is true of Huami Riverside.That is, there are no foreigners, and their countrymen are deceived and insulted by them. In the end, the Alaska government had to intervene.First the police, then the judiciary.Hunter's group were all arrested after clashing with official representatives, sentenced to 10 months in prison, and held in the prison in Sekel City.

The problem of food and lodging for the Texans and their cohorts in winter was solved at once.Hunt and Malona were also forced to give up their big-city pleasures.There was no sign of these two venerable gentlemen in the casinos of Skagway, Dawson or Vancouver all season long. In prison, Hunter and Malone had plenty of time to think about their futures.When they are released from prison after serving their sentences, it is just in time for the coming of the beautiful season.What would they and their men do then?Operating the Forty Mile River parcel was out of the question, and the gold mines in Sekel City were doing little; if nothing good happened to them, their savings would soon be exhausted.The people under them were recruited from different areas. The common feature of these areas is that there is insufficient police force. Therefore, most of these people are outlaws who are loyal and obedient to these two adventurers.But to give an order means to have a plan and a goal.Will they be able to spot the target?Is there a chance for them to get out of their current predicament?

This opportunity has come, the following is the specific situation. Among the prisoners serving with Hunter, he noticed an Indian named Clarak, who also seemed to pay special attention to Hunter.This is a very natural gesture of friendliness.Hooligans also appreciate each other.The two men understood each other naturally, and soon became intimate and talked about everything. Clarke was about 40 years old, stocky, stocky, with fierce eyes and a hideous face; his character was certainly fond of Hunter and Malona. He is originally from Alaska and has traveled all over the area since he was young, so he knows the area very well.He would have been an excellent guide, and one would have believed in his wit, were it not for the sudden suspicion of his appearance.Such misgivings were fully justified.Every one of the mine owners who employed him complained that it was because he stole a lot of goods from the gold mines on the Birch River that he could be put in the prison in Sekel City.

During their first month in prison, Hunter and Clarke had certain reservations about each other.They observe each other.Hunter understood that Clarak wanted to tell him something important, and was waiting for him to make up his mind. His estimate was spot on.Sure enough, one day, before going straight to the point, the Indian told him about his long trek in an unknown area of ​​North America. , Fortress Macpherson and the Arctic Ocean. At first, Clarke only talked about the general situation, and only said a little to whet Hunter's appetite; however, gradually, he talked more. "In the north, by the ocean," he assured one day, "there is a lot of gold. Not long ago, there were thousands of miners by the sea."

"There's only one thing to do," replied Hunter, "and that's to get ahead of them." "Of course," Clarak replied, "however, we need to know the distribution of the gold deposits." "Do you know this?" "Knows a few goldfields. Difficult area, though...could be disoriented for months, passing some valuable plots and not seeing them...one wonderful plot...ah! How wonderful it would have been if I hadn't been imprisoned! . . . " Hunter stared at him face to face. "What would you do if you were free?" he asked.

"I'm going where I was going before I was arrested," Clarak replied. "Where?" "In that place, the gold can be pushed with a cart!" the Indian said exaggeratedly. Hunter asked him many questions in vain, and Claraq's answers were evasive.Besides, he had said enough to arouse Hunter's greedy desire. Hunter and Malona were convinced that Clarak knew about the gold mines on the shores of the Arctic Ocean, and agreed that he should be allowed to reveal the truth so that it could be developed next season.After that, they talked endlessly, but the two Texans got nothing.The Indians had always been certain of the existence of the gold mines, but kept silent about their exact location.

As the last few weeks of April approached, a winter that was as cold in Circle City as it was in Dawson City came to an end.The prisoners suffered a lot.Hunt and his gang waited impatiently for their release, and they made up their minds to march to the north of the American continent. Thus, Clarak's help was essential, and it seemed unlikely that the man would refuse them.Unfortunately: Alaskan authorities objected to him following his natural preferences.It was true that Hunter and his men would be released shortly, which was not the case with the Indians.His obligations to the judiciary of his country obliged him to spend several years in the prison of Sekel.

There is still a way to escape.Escape was possible only by digging a passage under the prison wall; under the wall that was both the prison and the city's boundary.There is no way to dig a hole from inside, which would attract the attention of the guards.It's not too difficult a job, though, if you're careful outside at night. In this way, Hunter's help is necessary again.A deal between the two villains is quickly struck.Immediately after Hunter was released, he helped Clarak escape from prison, and the latter served Hunter after his freedom, taking them to the goldfields he knew in the northern Klondike. On May 13, Hunter and his cohorts completed their sentences.The Indians just had to keep an eye on what was going on around them.Since he wasn't locked up in a cell, he could easily have left the communal cell when the time came and slipped across the yard undetected. From the next night, he was lying under the corner of the wall waiting for the dawn. He had a chance to train his patience.Between sunset and sunrise, no sound reached his ears.Hunter and Malona were not yet able to act.They feared that the police might be surprised to see them not leaving Sekel at once, and would arouse suspicion; and they thought they should wait a day.They have no shortage of tools.They found the pickaxes left there in the hotel where they had been staying, and they lived there again after they were released from prison. The town already has a somewhat lively atmosphere.The operators of Alaska's gold mines on the lower Yukon, lured by the early season, began to flock to the town.The situation favored gangs of Texans who could easily disappear into the crowd. On the second night, from 10 o'clock, Clarak was in position under the corner.The night was dark, with a fair northerly wind. At about 11 o'clock, the Indian put his ear to the ground, and he understood that someone outside was saving him. He was right.Hunter and Malone hit the ground running.With picks they dug a passage under the corner without moving the stone. After confirming the location chosen outside, Clarak also began to dig the soil with his nails. No alerts.The guard's attention was not drawn to the courtyard.The biting north wind kept them indoors, and Clarak was not found indoors. Finally, just after midnight, the hole was large enough for a man of average build to pass through. "Come here," said a voice, Hunter's voice. "Is no one else out?" Clark asked. "No." After a few minutes, the Indian was free. Circle City sits on the left bank of the Yukon River, beyond which lies a vast plain with the last of the snow.The Ling period began, and there were ice blocks floating in the river.Even if Hunter might find a boat without arousing the suspicion of the police, there was no boating on the river. Indians are not people who are stumped by this difficulty.He can reach the right bank of the river by jumping from one piece of ice to another.After reaching the right bank, a vast plain spread out before him.By the time his escape was discovered, he had gone far. The key is that the jailbreaker must be out of danger before the sun rises.So hurry up and race against the clock. Hunter said to him: "Is everything settled?" "It's all settled," Clarak replied. "Where shall we meet?" "As promised: on the left bank of the Porcupine River, ten miles from Fort Yukon." This is indeed what the two of them agreed upon.Two or three days later, Hunter and his gang will leave the Yukon Fortress located on the upper reaches of the river in the northwest after Sekel City.As for the Indians, after he had crossed the river he went straight north and returned to his tribe. When we broke up. "Is everything settled?" Hunter repeated. "we have a deal." "Where are you taking us? . . . " asked Malone. "Go directly to the gold mine." Hunter couldn't help feeling a certain suspicion. "Go, then," he said, "and if you deceive us, you will not escape our grasp. Thirty men will follow you in the future, and they will find you." "I'm not lying to you," Clarke replied calmly. He pointed to the north and continued: "A fortune, a fortune, is waiting for us out there." The Indian approached the shore. "Where I'm going to take you," he said in a dignified voice, "is not a mine of gold, but a bag of gold, or a mountain of gold. You only have to load it into the carts. You load 100 carts." , 1000 cars, you can still leave me my part, and yours will not be reduced at all." Clarak jumped onto a block of ice that was immediately swept away by the river.A few moments later Hunter and Malona were able to see him leaping from one piece of ice to another, heading away to the right bank of the river.A few minutes later, he disappeared into the night. At this time, the Texans returned to the lodge.The next day they began preparations for the operation. Naturally, when the sun came up, the Indian escape was discovered.The police investigation was fruitless, and no one knew that Hunter was an accomplice. Three days later, Hunter and his accomplices, a total of 30 individuals carrying very limited supplies and equipment, took a flat-bottomed barge down the river directly to the Yukon Fortress. Having resupplied in this town on May 22, and loaded food onto sledges drawn by a team of strong dogs, the party set off northeastward along the left bank of the Porcupine River.Provided the Indian arrived at the rendezvous in time, he could be seen that evening. "Wish he was there!" said Malone. "He will go," replied Hunter, "if he tells a lie, fear will follow him; if he tells the truth, he will gain." The Indians were there indeed.Under his leadership, the group continued along the left bank of the Porcupine River towards the northernmost empty ice and snow world.