Front matter
Reading edition
“I File the Claim!” Shouted Tad. Frontispiece.
The Pony Rider Boys in Alaska
OR
The Gold Diggers of Taku Pass
By
FRANK GEE PATCHIN
Author of The Pony Rider Boys in the Rockies, The Pony Rider Boys in Texas, The Pony Rider Boys in Montana, The Pony Rider Boys in the Ozarks, The Pony Rider Boys in the Alkali, The Pony Rider Boys in New Mexico, The Pony Rider Boys in the Grand Canyon, The Pony Rider Boys with the Texas Rangers, The Pony Rider Boys on the Blue Ridge, The Pony Rider Boys in New England, The Pony Rider Boys in Louisiana, etc., etc.
Illustrated
THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING COMPANY
Akron, Ohio New York
Made in U. S. A.
Copyright MCMXXIV
By THE SAALFIELD PUBLISHING COMPANY
PRINTED IN THE
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
CONTENTS
PAGE
Chapter I–Through Enchanting Waters11
The mystery of the Gold Diggers. The story of an Indian capture. The skipper gives himself a hunch. The lure of the yellow metal. The abode of an angry spirit.
Chapter II–The Boys Scent a Plot 29
Ned Rector puts his foot in. The man with the combustible whiskers. Tad overhears an exciting conversation. His duty not clear to him. Attacked by a desperado.
Chapter III–In Desperate Straits 40
Almost hurled overboard. Help comes in the nick of time. Tad accuses his assailant. Whiskers as evidence. Plotters are driven from the ship by young Butler.
Chapter IV–On the Overland Trail 48
“You have neglected your horse education.” Tad amazes a horse trader. Chunky wants no “quick” mules. Driving a keen bargain. The boys decide to guide themselves.
Chapter V–Traveling a Dangerous Mountain Pass59
The Professor tells the boys about the “great country.” When a fellow needs a bird’s eye. A toboggan slide that might reach to Asia. Pony Rider Boys hear a terrifying sound.
Chapter VI–Caught in a Giant Slide69
A pack mule swept from the ledge. Tad fires a humane shot. Taking desperate chances to rescue the pack. “I don’t propose to lose my lasso.”
Chapter VII–Going to Bed by Daylight 82
How the pack mule was buried. Heavy obstacles are overcome. A cure for cold feet. The fat boy knows his own capacity. Tents are swallowed up in the gloom of an Alaskan night.
Chapter VIII–An Intruder in the Camp 91
The fat boy’s singing brings disaster. Professor Zepplin wields his stick. A wild scrimmage in pajamas. The mystery of the lost ham. “There has been a prowler in this camp while we slept!”
Chapter IX–A Mystery Unsolved 103
“It was an Indian who did this job.” Stacy is roped out of bed. Two fish on one hook. Suspicion is directed toward Tad. Ned’s head suffers the loss of some hair.
Chapter X–In the Home of the Thlinkits 113
Ned Rector is full of fight. Stacy makes Tad Butler dance. Chunky plans revenge. The fat boy finds a food emporium. A mother squaw in a rage.
Chapter XI–The Guide Who Made a Hit 125
“Me heap big smart man.” Anvik refuses to “mush” because the spirits are abroad. “Him kick like buck caribou.” Tad Butler gets a new title. Off for the wilds.
Chapter XII–In the Heart of Nature 136
From trail to trackless wilderness. A grilling hike. Tad, in a fine shot, bags an antelope. “Hooray! Maybe that was a chance shot!” A ducking in an icy mountain stream.
Chapter XIII–A Pony Rider Boy’s Pluck 146
Tad carries the dead doe to camp. “Him heap big little man.” Stacy knows how to “skin the cat.” The antelope dressed by the Indian guide. Fresh meat in plenty now.
Chapter XIV–Stacy Bumps the Bumps152
The difficulty of leading a mule. Chunky and the animal go over the brink. Tin cans rattle down the mountain side. The fat boy hung up by one foot.
Chapter XV–The Story in the Dead Fire162
“White boy see almost like Indian.” Campers had left in a hurry. Stacy discovers something. Eating ice cream with a pickle fork. Surrounded by mysteries in the great mountains.
Chapter XVI–A Sign from the Mountain Top167
“Him white man smoke.” The wonders of mountain signaling. Friends or enemies? Overwhelmed by an avalanche of ice. A roar and an even more terrifying silence.
Chapter XVII–An Unexpected Meeting174
“Innua him mad.” Heap big ice nearly wipes out the Pony Rider Boys’ camp. Tad makes a morning excursion and meets an unpleasant surprise.
Chapter XVIII–An Unfriendly Reception178
Tad boldly faces his accusers. Threats from the prospectors. A man on Butler’s trail. Tad takes a pot shot and gets immediate results. “Stop that shooting, you fool!” The fat boy draws a bead.
Chapter XIX–The Professor in a Rage189
“It’s a lie!” thunders Professor Zepplin. Ordered out of the hills on penalty of being shot. “If you are looking for trouble you may have all you want!” A threat to punch the prospector’s nose.
Chapter XX–Tad Discovers Something198
Pony Rider Boys off for bear. The fat boy frightened by a totem pole. In a place of many mysteries. Tad makes a great find. A discovery that led to sensational results.
Chapter XXI–Conclusion203
Rifle shots fired into the Pony Rider Boys’ camp. Miners in a frenzy of joy. Butler makes a new find. Their boundary markings found destroyed. Tad starts on a desperate ride. His claim must be filed ahead of that of the enemy at whatever cost. A race through ice-clogged waters. A fight to the finish before the clerk’s desk. A triumph for the Gold Diggers of Taku Pass. The end of the long, long trail.