the small settlement of golden flat was situated away out on the desert's fringe beyond kalgoorlie, and beyond the reach of any civilizing railway. it was essentially a pioneer's field, for no deep lodes had yet been discovered; indeed, at this time the history of golden flat was but a few days old. nuggety dick, a roving prospector and miner, had been lucky enough to find rich specimens of the coveted metal on the surface of the flat during one of his perambulating journeys through the silent bush, and instead of wildly rushing back to kalgoorlie to proclaim his "strike," he had quietly taken a note of the place and gone his way to inform his old associates, who were toiling with but little success on a worked-out alluvial patch near coolgardie.
such is the spirit of the bush; comradeship comes before all, and happy-go-lucky dick had never once thought of applying for the standing reward which a shrewd government had promised for discoveries of gold in such remote districts. had he claimed it, a rush would have been the immediate consequence, and the chances of dick's companions securing a favourable claim would have been reduced to a minimum; so he set out on his[pg 47] high-backed camel and rounded up the "boys," as he affectionately called them, and steered them back to the ironshot plain among the mulga scrub, which he had euphoniously, if ambitiously, termed "golden flat." and now, within a week after their arrival, the flat presented every appearance of industrious energy. further nuggets had been found all along the line of a scarcely perceptible depression in the land surface, which, nevertheless, most evidently marked the course of a very ancient waterway, long since silted up.
"it'll be an alluvial wash, boys," remarked dick, with happy satisfaction.
"it certainly looks mighty promising," agreed a lanky and lean individual, who rejoiced in the cognomen of the shadow. the shadow, so called because of his rather fine outline, was the youngest of the party; indeed, he was little more than a boy in years, yet his reputation as a skilled bushman and rough rider was great, and the strength concealed in his spare figure was marvellous.
"i say, mates," broke out another typical bushman, never never dave by name, popping his head out of a shaft near by, "i do believe i've struck the stuff on the ten-foot level."
he clambered out of his excavation and approached the party, who were at this moment assembled for the purpose of preparing lunch, displaying in his hand a white sugary-looking substance which he had evidently broken from the supposed wash. the shadow gave a whoop of delight, but was immediately checked by an old miner beside him, whose keen eyes and heavily furrowed face bespoke the hardy pioneer.
"don't yell out so soon, young 'un," he reproved[pg 48] sternly. "gold is a most deceitful phantom, and it's when you're sartin you've got it, that it ain't there."
"eight o!" sang out the irrepressible one, rushing to get a pan of water from the soak near by. "eight o, dead broke."
"when he reappeared he found them all examining the sample wash with critical interest; and as it was handed round for inspection, not a word was spoken; not a trace of joy or emotion showed in the rugged features of the men who depended so much on the result, and even the shadow, when he handled the specimen, felt constrained to copy the tactics of his neighbours. the conglomerate stone was literally studded with gold; it required neither the pan test nor the magnifying glass to prove that.
"it's too good to last, boys," commented nuggety dick, with a sigh.
that broke the spell.
"i've never seen anything like it," grunted dead broke dan, blinking furiously.
"hoorah for golden flat!" broke out the shadow, tossing his tattered hat into the air. "hip, hip, hip, hoorah!"
and, taking his lead, the silent group of a few minutes before broke into a lusty cheer that echoed and re-echoed over the plains. but it had scarcely died away when emu bill, a somewhat silent member of the party, astonished his associates by giving vent to a groan of deep disgust.
"look what's coming, boys," said he, nodding his head toward the west. "hang me if it isn't the beginning of a regular rush!"
look what's coming, boys
"look what's coming, boys!"
[pg 49]
all looked in the direction indicated, and sure enough there appeared to be ample reason for annoyance. cresting a slight eminence surrounding the flat, three figures hove into sight, pacing slowly alongside a heavily laden camel, and that they were coming to golden flat camp there could be no room for doubt.
"after me bein' so careful, too," complained dick, sorrowfully. "now i suppose we'll have all kalgoorlie sprinting up before sundown."
"look to your boundary-pegs, mates," warned dead broke dan, "an' stick up your miners' rights on the corner posts. they may be bush-lawyers for all we know."
in an instant the camp awoke to action, axes and spades were seized, measuring tapes were run along the boundary lines of their holdings, new pegs were driven into position, and miners' rights flaunted in the sunshine, marking a fluttering course of six hundred yards along the auriferous bed. in the midst of the confusion the three travellers arrived, and one of them, a strongly built individual, whose entire wardrobe consisted only of an open-necked shirt, and nether garments held in position by a well-filled cartridge belt, leaving his companions by the camel, stepped forward.
"hullo, boys," he grunted affably, addressing every one in general who was disposed to hear. "i said 'hallo,'" he repeated sternly, after a moment's pause.
the rebuke was too much for emu bill, who had been calmly and leisurely engaged cutting his initials in his corner boundary-peg. he came forward quickly.
"hallo, mate," he said, eyeing the new-comer keenly. "mebbe ye'll excoose the boys for attendin' to government[pg 50] regulations afore rushin' to say how mighty glad they are to see ye——"
"ye insignificant son o' a gun," came the prompt interruption, "if ye dinna modify your insinuations, i'll—i'll, swipe the head off ye, an' it would hurt me sair to destroy ane o' my old comrades in cauld blood."
bill, at the dire threat against his person, had languidly begun to prepare for mortal combat, but on hearing the last part of the aggressive speech, he gazed at the stranger in incredulous amazement.
"by the great howling billy it's mackay!" he yelled, seizing his erstwhile enemy's hand and shaking it vigorously. "i thought you had gone home to the old country, you tough old rooster."
"i did have a trip home," said mackay, for it was he, smiling grimly. "but i discovered that civilization didna agree wi' me, so i came back."
by this time the rest of the miners had hastened up, and emu bill addressed them excitedly.
"boys, it's mackay!" he cried.
nuggety dick and his satellites hesitated a moment, then rushed forward with outstretched hands.
"what have you done with your whiskers, mac?" they cried almost in unison.
"that's it," roared emu bill, looking questioningly into the now welcome visitor's face, "and it nearly caused a funeral. hang it all, why didn't ye say who ye was? we thought you was the beginning of a rush, we did. fetch your mates along and let us have lunch at once. after that you may stake out where you like."
"beggin' your pardon, emu," broke in nuggety dick, "i has a double-barrelled-nineteen-carat-pleasant dooty to[pg 51] perform." he turned to mackay, and with grave dignity proceeded. "as discoverer o' this here golden flat, an' representin' the interests o' every scarecrow present, i say we welcome you and your mates wi' tearful emotion. am i right, boys?" he demanded confidently, looking at his companions.
"hoo-rah!" came the unanimous response.
mackay smiled just a trifle strangely, and beckoned to bob and jack, who had been watching the trend of events with somewhat anxious eyes.
it would have been hard to recognize in the two who now came forward the same young men who had inveighed so strongly against their restricted lot in the old country. dressed in the negligent attire of the bush, with broad brimmed hats shading their eyes from the scorching sun, they looked like young colonials fresh and fit for any effort that might be required of them. their journey from the coast to kalgoorlie had interested them exceedingly; the wide tracts of lonely bush land which stretched to north and south of the single line, gave them an impression of boundless scope which was dear to their hearts. here surely was a country where no man need jostle his neighbour. coming as they did from a tightly packed centre of commerce, it was little wonder that a sense of freedom entered their beings. and when they arrived at the strange hustling gold-mining city of the plains, their enthusiasm was great. mackay had been wonderfully reticent as to his immediate plans. "even here nothing stands still," said he, "and there may have been new gold discoveries since i left." but his inquiries in kalgoorlie seemed to please him greatly. "it's all right, my lads," he announced to them with great good[pg 52] humour when he returned to the exchange hotel where they were staying pending his investigations.
"the fact is," he whispered mysteriously, drawing the boys aside, "i found gold on one o' our last expeditions before we tackled the never never, a good bit to the east o' this, and though we never said a word aboot it to any one when we got back, i was afraid some sandgroping fossicker had bumped across the place while i was awa'. hooever, i've made judicious inquiry, and find there's been nary a rush in that direction, so we'll outfit at once and get a move on. i've been lucky enough to buy back my old camel, misery, for the journey."
so they arrived at golden flat, mackay never once hesitating in his course, though there were no landmarks to guide. the bushman's instinct was strong, unerringly it lead them to their goal; and now that they had reached the scene they had been picturing in their minds, the unexpected meeting with earlier arrivals disconcerted them not a little. they advanced at mackay's call somewhat sharply; they had not quite understood the wordy discourses of the miners, and they were aggressively prepared to stand by their friend should occasion arise.
"boys," said mackay, addressing the odd assembly, "allow me to introduce two young friends of mine from old england—robert wentworth and jack armstrong, bob and jack for short—they've come out here to make their fortune, and by the lord harry! they'll do it or i'm a dutchman."
with honest welcome beaming in their eyes, the rugged miners advanced one by one to greet their visitors, but nuggety dick must needs call them to order.
"can't ye wait fur me to interdooce ye in civilized[pg 53] manner, ye howlin' galoots," he admonished severely. "i hiv to blush fur yer ignorance, i has." then he hitched up his nether garments, ejected a quid of tobacco from his mouth, coughed discreetly, and began—
"as discoverer o' this 'ere golden flat——"
"you stop right there, nuggety," interjected mackay. "if ye'll take the trouble to look at the side o' that tree ahint your tent you'll observe that my autograph is carved thereon, together with the date of discovery. now, while you go and satisfy yoursel', i'll dae the introducin'. emu bill"—the tall bushman stepped forward and shook hands with the lads—"is a very decent sort o' indiveedual. a bit cantankerous, saving wi' his speech, and i would hae some hope for him if he wasna sae perneeciously given to makin' poetry——"
"get out, mac——"
"dead broke dan!" the veteran of the camp strode forward. "a guid solid and straight man who has done his best to mak' every man's fortune but his ain. never never dave"—that individual with the shadow had already anticipated the formal introduction, and was listening with delight for his qualifications—"is a weary wanderer, like mysel', only withoot my unquestionable abilities. and the shadow"—that guileful youth suddenly became engaged in earnest conversation with bob—"the shadow, i say, is a youth wha's greatest misfortune is his extraordinar' habit o' neglectin' the commandment which says, youngsters should be seen but never heard. for a' that he's a guid laddie——"
"say, boss," ejaculated the victim, smilingly, "if ye'll write that down i'll send it to my sunday-school teacher in melbourne."
[pg 54]
at this point nuggety dick returned somewhat crestfallen.
"you were quite right, mackay," said he. "is there any other place in the whole country you hasn't struck your name on?"
mackay's face relaxed into a broad smile.
"we'll divide the honours, nuggety, my man," he answered magnanimously; and with one accord they all made their way to the tree behind nuggety's tent to gaze at the symbol which justified mackay's claim. there it was, cut deeply into the hard wood, and almost obliterated with enclustering moss, "j. m. 1898."
bob examined the letters with something akin to awe. jack laughed gleefully; the others crowding round seemed ill at ease. mackay guessed their thoughts intuitively.
"my claim has lapsed, boys," he said quietly.
"not by a single peg," protested nuggety dick. "we don't need no government to tell us what to do. we know the ground is yours by the all-fired right o' discovery, a right which touches us right down on our most tender feelings."
"we've just struck it rich, but we'll git all the same," said never never dave; and a sympathetic murmur of approval greeted his words. the bushman's code of honour is spartan in its simplicity.
again mackay smiled, and all trace of hardness had gone out of his voice when he made answer.
"boys, ye have spoken as i knew ye would speak, and it does my heart good to look at you all again, and feel that the same old sympathies are with us still. but the true discoverer of golden flat was the leader of the expedition who piloted his party so well until the end,[pg 55] and i ken he wouldna have me turn you away. no, boys, there's room enough for us all; my mates an' me will peg out claims at the end o' the lead; the chances o' strikin' the wash are a' equal." he paused, and gazed sadly at the half-obliterated inscription on the tree, unheedful of the deep appreciation with which his words were received. "if it's my good fortune to make a rise on golden flat," he continued, with grave solemnity, "i mean to devote it a' on an expedition into the never never. i want to see again that mountain which kept me back. i want to have a word with the tribe that lives behind it...."
"i'll be with you, mac," quietly spoke emu bill.
"and me, fur a dead cert!" said nuggety dick.
"put never never dave's name on the programme," grunted that worthy.
"and mine," echoed dead broke dan.
"you can bet your shirt i'll be with you," cried the shadow.
"there's only you and me left, jack," said bob. "but we'll be there too."
"and now let us have lunch, boys," suggested nuggety dick, breaking the odd silence that ensued; and they walked away, leaving mackay still gazing at the fateful tree with unseeing eyes.
"poor old mac," muttered the shadow, sympathetically.
"did you know him before?" asked jack.
"i should say i did. why, he put me on to the only paying gold show i ever worked. that was two years back. he was one o' the coolgardie pioneers too, and, of course, every one who was there knows him."
"ah, that was a great old time," mused emu bill, entering into the conversation. "mackay made a bit o' a[pg 56] rise then, and he might have been a rich man now if he hadn't taken the never never fever."
"i'll tell you what, boys," said nuggety dick, hastily adding a handful of tea to the boiling billy, "mackay is the straightest man that ever chased nuggets, and this here camp will see that he doesn't tackle that miserable desert again without us skirmishin' alongside."
"let us drink good luck to golden flat, boys," cried the individual in question cheerily, coming up from behind, and seizing a pannikin of tea.
"good luck to golden flat—and to its discoverer!" replied they all, standing up and drinking the toast heartily.
shortly afterwards the three new-comers set off to peg out their claims on the golden channel, and erect their tent. the others would have accompanied them in a body to assist in the work, but mackay, while thanking them, firmly refused their services.
"i want to initiate my partners into the rules o' the business," he explained, "an' the best way to teach them is by showing the way and watching them do it. no, no, boys, you had better go and burrow in your shafts, we'll engineer our own funeral."
the slight depression which indicated the presence of the golden channel below, ran in a north and southerly direction, and could be traced without difficulty for fully five hundred yards, after which it merged into the open plain, but the line of workings did not extend much more than halfway down this length.
"these old water-courses," said bob, who had been thinking deeply, "must have belonged to a very ancient period, when the whole aspect of the country was different."
[pg 57]
"and how so?" queried mackay.
"because," returned bob, hesitatingly, "there are no mountains here now, no water-sheds at all, and the gold must have been carried by a flow of water from somewhere. the whole country must have been sunk under the sea, then, after a long time, upheaved again higher than it was before. the volcanic disturbances must have destroyed all its original features."
"do you ken, bob, my lad," said mackay, earnestly, "i like to hear you speak like that. it shows ye've got some pro-fundity o' thought, an' i quite agree wi' your argument."
a cry of delight from jack broke in on their geological discussion. that very eager youth had unconsciously adopted the tactics of the experienced prospector by eyeing the ground closely as he walked, and his keenness had not gone unrewarded, for he now displayed a dull yellow specimen between his finger and thumb.
"ay, it's gold, sure enough," was mackay's verdict, when he had glanced at it, "and it weighs fully an ounce if i'm any judge. jack, my boy, ye'll beat us a' at this game yet. that's five pounds ye've made in the time it would take to blink an eye. you'll mak' a grand prospector, jack. put that bit in your pocket, and keep it aye as a memento; you'll think a lot o' it afterwards."
"but it's really yours," said the lad, refusing to take it back. "i'm not going to take everything of yours and keep all i get too."
poor jack was embarrassed. his was one of those generous natures which can never forget a kindness, and mackay had behaved more like a brother than a mere friend.
[pg 58]
"i agree with you, jack," ventured bob.
"tut, tut, laddies," grunted mackay, "we're goin' to be partners wi' equal shares—and from what i can see already i think i'm vera fortunate in having you wi' me—but first specimens should be ootside the arrangement altogether. take the bittie gold, jack, and i hope i'll live to see it in your ain home years after this."
they had by this time reached the end of the channel, at least so far as surface indications were concerned, and bob once more propounded a theory.
"is it not right to assume," said he, "that though we cannot trace the water-course any further on the surface, it must be there all the same?"
"quite correct," answered mackay; "but it may have changed its direction, an' it may have divided into smaller channels."
"but just here where it apparently disappears," persisted bob, "may not some obstacle have deflected the current, or made the sand pile up and so raised the true bed upwards, making the original sides of the gully shallower at this point, and accounting for its being filled up level with the surrounding country before the deeper parts got wholly silted up?"
"go on, my lad," prompted mackay, patting the young man's shoulder, "allowin' what ye say to be right; what sort o' deduction do you arrive at?"
"i should think," said bob, with growing eagerness, "that the gold would stick on the rise more than on the level, and that if we sank our shaft just over the apparent break of the channel we would most likely strike it rich."
"it seems good sound logic, bob," commented mackay, in reflective mood, "but as i'm a practical man and no'[pg 59] much o' a theorist, i'll no' venture to say whether ye are richt or wrang. one matter, however, must be determined afore i can completely side wi' ye, and that is in what direction was the creek flowing?"
bob was for the moment nonplussed, and observing his hesitation, the man of practice seemed to be suddenly amused.
"that appears to be a tough proposition, doesn't it?" said he.
"it does," agreed bob, still pondering over a solution to the question.
"well, it isn't, my lad. the creek just flowed as you first allowed, in orthodox manner, from north to south. i'm vera pleased to notice how quickly you have got a grip o' things, an' i only asked the question so as to direct your attention to what must be the base o' your theory, for if the flow had been in the opposite direction the bottom would have been completely knocked oot o' your argument."
"but how can you tell how it was flowing?" asked bob, still somewhat mystified.
"easily enough; i had a look at never never dave's shaft and paid particular attention to the nature o' the gold wash below. every pebble o' the conglomerate stuff was water worn and mair or less wedge-shaped wi' the blunt ends facing in this direction. now do you savvy? observation is a grand virtue, bob——"
"i am afraid you have been laughing at me," spoke the young man, gravely.
"i'll prove to you that i havena," came the quick response. "jack, come here and do your geometry lesson."
[pg 60]
jack had been industriously searching for further treasure, but he hastened up at once.
"now," said his mentor, "i want you to mark out a rectangle five feet six inches by two feet six inches just on the break o' that meeserable apology for a creek. we'll start sinkin' our shaft there in the mornin'."
so it came about that bob planned the position of their first shaft, with jack assisting; and mackay walking a little way apart surveyed the pair with deep satisfaction.
"i can see," he soliloquized, "that my young friend, bob, is goin' to be a vera useful acquisition, and if jack develops along the lines in which his tastes lie, i have much need to congratulate mysel'. who would have thought it?..."
next after the lining out of the projected shaft came the pegging of the claims. for this four stout posts were required, thick enough when faced with an axe to present a surface at least four inches square. these were soon forthcoming, the mulga shrubs growing around being just of sufficient girth to meet with official requirements.
"and now, my lads," said mackay, in sprightly tones, "we're going to mark out three men's ground, a hundred feet by a hundred is the allowance per man, so that means we can take a hundred yards along the creek and one hundred feet across." he began to pace off the ground as he spoke. "we can check it with a tape after," said he, "but i have done this so often that i'm no' likely to be faur oot in my calculations."
soon the four pegs were sunk into position by jack and mackay, bob at the same time scooping out with pick and shovel short rectangular trenches at each corner to indicate plainly to any subsequent observer the[pg 61] position of the outlying boundaries. this done they gazed at their handiwork with serene contentment. the mercurial mackay was once more in the clutches of the gold fever, and his companions were no whit less affected.
"let us call it mackay's reward," cried jack, at length.
that gentleman shook his head. "this claim shall henceforth be known as the golden promise," he said.
next on the afternoon's programme was the erection of the tent, and jack at once volunteered to search the scrub for the two forked upright posts required to support the ridge or roof pole of the calico structure, mackay and bob meanwhile arranging the various stores and mining implements which they had unloaded from the camel. that wiry animal itself was not far off assiduously chewing clumps of saltbush and spinifex grass, varying this somewhat monotonous fare by occasional mouthfuls of the mulga twigs within its reach. five minutes, ten minutes passed, and no jack reappeared, nor was the sound of his axe heard in the near distance. mackay became uneasy.
"i do hope the laddie hasna gone far," he muttered, throwing down the pick handle he was fitting to the steel and looking around anxiously.
"but he'll know how to get back," reassured bob.
mackay grunted unbelievingly. "that's aye the way wi' new chums in the bush," he declared. "they never remember that everything is alike in this country, an' that only the sun can be taken as a guide." seizing his rifle he set off in the direction jack had taken, bob hastening at his heels; but they had not gone far before they were gazing at a most extraordinary spectacle. there was the delinquent indulging in fierce chase after a great yellow[pg 62] ungainly creature which scrambled around in a narrow circle, turning at intervals to snap savagely at its tormentor, who was aiming numerous but ineffective blows at his quarry with the axe he carried. round and round they went, and jack's energy seemed all but spent when mackay's hearty laugh attracted his attention.
"ho! ho! ho!" he chuckled, walking leisurely forward and interrupting the performance. bob at the moment could not see any reason for this display of humour, and certainly jack did not.
"it attacked me when i was cutting a tree," explained the baffled warrior, "and every time i stopped chasing it, it turned and chased me. i suppose the brute's tired now, or it would be at me again." he wiped the perspiration from his forehead, and eyed his enemy malevolently. the object of his wrath was a peculiar crocodile-like creature with an enormously long tail, short thick-set legs, and a narrow venomous-looking head. it must have measured fully five feet in length, and was certainly ugly enough to disconcert any one who did not know the nature of the beast. now it rested calmly by the foot of a tree, its head swaying gently and its abnormally elongated tongue shooting out and in with lightning rapidity.
"it's only a poor wee iguana, jack," consoled mackay. "it would dae you no harm, though i will admit it doesna look as peaceably inclined as it might; but watch me whistle to it." he strode forward, and kneeling beside the huge iguana—but as the boys noticed, beyond the reach of its sturdy claws—whistled unmelodiously a selection from a popular opera, and lo! ere the first two bars had been negotiated, jack's recent enemy's head began to nod[pg 63] rhythmically with the music! and its whole body took on an attitude of satisfied repose.
"well, i'm jiggered!" was all that jack could say, while bob exploded into uncontrollable mirth. then the musician ceased his labours.
"i'm no sayin' that anybody could charm the beastie like me," he admitted with exceeding modesty. "my whustle's got a wonderfu' movin' element in it——"
"it has," agreed the pair, with unanimous promptitude, shuddering with painful emotion. the big man laughed.
"i was sure ye would coincide wi' my statement," he blandly said. "and now let us get the happy home fixed afore sundown. the darkness will be on in two shakes o' a kangaroo's tail."
on returning with the necessary saplings to the clearing they had prepared as a site for their future dwelling, they found the shadow awaiting them somewhat anxiously.
"i was wondering where ye had got to," he remarked, apparently much relieved, "i saw some nigs in the district a couple o' days ago, and i was afraid they had scooped ye in."
"niggers, here?" cried mackay.
"they were both out watching me try to kill an iguana," said jack, with a laugh.
"but you shouldn't kill iguanas," reproved the shadow. "they never mean no harm, and they does wonderful good around a camp, killing snakes and centipedes and other crawlers."
"oh, i'll remember next time," assured jack; "i'll remember to run like smoke when i see one like the brute i tackled to-day. an ugly wobbly monster over[pg 64] five feet long, harmless!" it was clear that jack was by no means convinced.
that evening the entire population of golden flat gathered around the new-comers' camp fire, and did much to entertain the boys with their various anecdotes and reminiscences. desperate encounters with natives, thrilling tales of the early coolgardie days, and narratives of prospecting journeys through the waterless bush regions followed each other in quick succession. the intense heat of the day had now given place to an extraordinarily chill atmosphere, which was the more noticeable because of the sudden change, and all huddled closely to the glowing logs. but it soon became apparent that the cheerful warmth of the fire was attracting other and by no means welcome visitors, and though no one seemed to be in any way concerned, jack viewed the innumerable pests and crawling creatures that kept forcing their way into the flames with some apprehension. the conversation had narrowed down to a wordy discussion on the possibilities of gold being found in the far interior.
"every bushman believes that there's bound to be gold in the never never," reiterated emu bill, assisting a large-sized centipede into the fire with a sang froid that aroused jack's horror. but he was yet to be more surprised.
"don't move, jack," said the shadow's voice from somewhere behind him. "there's a black snake trying to snuggle into your trousers pocket. i'll spifflicate him in a jiff;" and he promptly gripped the intruding reptile by the tail, swung it once round his head, then cracked it as one might the lash of a whip, breaking its back in an instant.
"i suppose i'll get accustomed to it," said jack, with a shudder.
"i'll show you how to slaughter them yourself to-morrow," comforted the shadow.
"i say, mackay," said nuggety dick, from his distant corner, "ye haven't told us about your trip to the old country yet! how did ye take to it after your ten years' australian experience?"
but mackay would only commit himself to one statement. "it's a grand country, nuggety," said he, with impressive earnestness; "but it belongs to too few folk." which enigmatical reflection seemed to give his hearers some food for thought.
