
CHAPTER I - PRINCE OR BANDIT
CHAPTER II - INTO THE MOUNTAINS
CHAPTER III - A RESCUE
CHAPTER IV - CONGENIAL COMPANY
CHAPTER V - VAN'S PARTNERS
CHAPTER VI - THE BATTLE
CHAPTER VII - AN EXCHANGE OF QUESTIONS
CHAPTER VIII - A NIGHT'S EXPENSES
CHAPTER IX - PROGRESS AND SALT
CHAPTER X - THE LAUGHING WATER CLAIM
Nevada's sage‑brush valleys stretch beneath an ultramarine sky, the rugged mountains promising hidden gold. Beth Kent, a striking New Yorker, arrives with a petite German maid, driven to see her ailing half‑brother at Goldite camp and to join her fiancé, Searse Bostwick, on his hurried trek into the gold‑rich frontier. Their dusty car pulls into a modest roadside station where a wiry proprietor offers a quick tire change, setting the tone for a stark yet hopeful journey.
The scene captures the tension between ambition and an unforgiving landscape, hinting at the challenges that lie beyond the canyon‑cut valleys. Beth's luminous eyes and fierce love of adventure promise a test of both heart and resolve, while Bostwick's determined demeanor suggests the sacrifices required to chase fortune. Listeners are invited into a world where the lure of gold collides with raw nature, offering an early‑stage adventure that feels intimate and epic.
Language
en
Duration
~8 hours (488K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Al Haines
Release date
2005-08-31
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1869–1911
A Nevada-born writer with a feel for frontier life, he moved easily between Western fiction, adventure stories, poetry, and early speculative tales. His best-known books, including Bruvver Jim’s Baby and The Furnace of Gold, helped place him in the Sagebrush School of American literature.
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