It's what he used for working number 129 on the Fortymile. All we have to do is get ourselves there."

"But even that is something," replied Skim, "and we deserve every precaution-especially against the cold! Brrr! I feel chilled to the bone already."

"Come on, Summy. When we get to Dawson City, it will already be summer."

"If only we can get home before winter."

"Don't worry," replied Raddle. "Even in the winter you'll have everything you need. Good clothes, good food. You'll come home fatter than when you left."

"Ah, no. I don't ask for that much," said Skim, who had wisely decided to give in. "I warn you, if I'm going to put on as much as ten pounds, I'm staying home."

"Make light of it if you like, Summy, but trust me."

"Yes, of course, I have no choice but to trust you. On the second of April we'll start out like pilgrims on the road to Eldorado."

"Yes, the second of April. That'll give me time to make all our preparations."

"Well, Ben, since I have two free weeks, I'd like to spend that time in the country."

"All right, but the weather isn't very pleasant yet at Green Valley."

Summy Skim might have replied that the weather would be at least as pleasant as it would be in the Klondike. Besides, even though winter was still not over, it would be a great pleasure for him to spend a few days among his farmers, to see his fields again, even though they would be white with snow, the beautiful forests covered with hoarfrost, the nearby streams sheathed in ice, and the St. Lawrence solidly packed with ice jams. And then, the cold weather gives the hunter an opportunity to shoot a few fine furred or feathered trophies, not to mention the bears, cougars, and other wild beasts that prowl about the neighborhood. It would be Summy Skim's way of saying good-bye to all the inhabitants of the region. He was setting out on a journey that might be very long. Who could say when he would be back again?

"You should come with me, Ben," he said.

"Do you think so? And who would look after the preparations for our trip?"

The next day, Summy Skim took the train to Green Valley, found a well-equipped coach waiting for him at the station, and was at the farm that afternoon.

Needless to say, the farmers were somewhat surprised at his arrival, but pleased as well. As usual, he was deeply moved by the warm welcome he received. But when the farmers heard that their master would not be with them all summer, they could not hide their disappointment at the news.

"Yes, my friends," said Skim, "Ben Raddle and I are leaving for the Klondike. It's the devil's own country, and he holds it in his power. It's so far away that it takes four months to get there, and just as long to get back."

"And all that just to pick up some nuggets," said one of the peasants, with a shrug.

"Even supposing you do find any," added a philosophical old fellow, shaking his head discouragingly.

"You also have to he careful not to fall," said Skim, "because sometimes you can't get up again. But what can you do, my friends? It's like a fever, or perhaps an epidemic, that sweeps the world from time to time and carries off a great many victims."

"But why are you going out there, sir?" asked one of the farm women.

Skim replied that he and his cousin had just inherited a claim, fol lowing the death of their uncle, Josias Lacoste, and explained why Ben Raddle considered their presence in the Klondike indispensable.

"Yes," the old man went on, "we've heard about what goes on in the far outposts of the Dominion, especially about the hardships that take the lives of so many poor people. After all, Mr. Skim, it's out of the question for you to stay in that place. After you've sold your pile of mud, you'll come back."

"You can count on that, my friends. But, assuming that everything goes smoothly, five or six months will go by before we return, and the warm weather will be over. That means a whole summer wasted!"

"Yes, a wasted summer and an even sadder winter," said an old woman, crossing herself and adding, "May God protect you, sir."

After a week at Green Valley, Skim thought it was time to go back to his cousin. He had a few personal things to get ready. When he said good-bye to the good people on the farm, it was an emotional leave-taking for all concerned. In only a few weeks, he thought to himself, the April sun would be rising over the horizon at Green Valley, the first green sprouts of spring would be pushing up through all the snow, and if it were not for that damned journey, he would come back as he did every year and settle into the cottage until the first cold spells of winter. He was even hoping a letter from Ben might arrive at Green Valley, telling him there was no need to go ahead with their plan.