"That was a bad case, as one of the sheriff's men had been dangerously wounded and it was feared he would die. All our valuable machinery was ruined and all orders for the delivery of the lava jewels had to be cancelled, or postponed for a year. So the culprits each got twenty years and Oak Creek is quieter, by far, because more than a score of its worst citizens are safely housed in jail."
As Tom ended his story, Polly unclasped her hands which she had nervously clenched during the recital of the raids on her precious property.
"Oh, Tom! I never dreamed of all the trouble everyone would have because of those precious mines, the day Nolla and I filed our papers at Oak Creek," gasped Polly.
"No one does dream of these things--they only see the future in rosy hues," retorted Tom.
"And to think of the work and worry John and you have had in establishing this great undertaking, while I was in Europe taking life easy, and spending money without a thought of how it was being produced at home!" sighed Polly.
"That is as it should be, Polly. You were not squandering the money, but using it in ways to profit yourself for the future. John and I knew, when we started in on this mining venture, that the line would not lay in flower-strewn paths, but that it might force us over all sorts of snags, before we reached success."
"Well, it is fine of you to talk like this, Tom," admitted Polly, gratefully. "If it were not for you boys taking an interest in the work, I might as well say 'good-by' to the gold."
Tom laughed. "Polly, this is so insignificant a work to do for you--just taking an interest in your mine. Some day I hope to prove in some greater way, just what I want to, and can, do for you."
Tom's manner and looks again alarmed Polly and she changed the subject adroitly. "Tom, do you like the home in Pebbly Pit? Isn't it different from living in the city, in these apartments?"
Tom smiled, for he understood. "Yes, it is fine, Polly. It is a real home--with your blessed mother at the ranch-house. I have lived in adobe huts in Arizona, and out on sand wastes in New Mexico, you know, so that Pebbly Pit is great, in comparison."
"Mother told me how good it was to have Anne and you with her all summer, while I was abroad," said Polly, after a short interval of silence. "I feel that it was not so heartless of me to enjoy myself in Europe as I did, so long as mother and father were not lonely and homesick for me."