barry tuxford was one of those clever, shrewd colonials who can turn their hands to almost anything, and make it pay. he would tackle any business or job with no fear of failure, and in his time he had followed many occupations. a hard worker himself, he expected the men in his employ to follow his example, and he was not at all slow at reminding them of their faults, when they had any that particularly annoyed him. he had travelled in many parts of australia and seen life on the gold fields when the miners' camps were rough and dangerous, and men sought for the precious metal with their lives in their hands. he had tried station life, and found it too slow, accordingly he changed it, and took an hotel in a mining township. here, much to his credit be it said, he held his own, conducted his house as respectably and orderly as could be expected in a community where customers pitched nuggets into a bucket in payment for "quenchers," and where the women caused even more trouble than the miners. the police respected barry, and he was wise enough to keep in their good books. he had a bullet wound in his arm, caused by a shot from an angry miner, at close quarters, across his counter; but he made light of it at the time, and went on with his business without interruption. his coolness and courage were unquestionable, and he might have been in more than one big thing in his time had his restless spirit not led him to seek new sources of labour.
barry tuxford had money; how much no one ventured to surmise, for it was difficult to reckon him up financially, he had a finger in so many pies. he could not have summed up his financial position in a few hours, it would take him months. his wealth fluctuated according as the enterprises in which he was engaged panned out, but he seldom lost much over his ventures, and was generally considered a lucky man. all his life he was of an uncertain age—he might be anything from forty to fifty, or more—he had fought for his own hand, and if the cards favoured him, so much the better. as a lad he had been turned loose in a mining camp when his mother died, and his father was shot in a brawl. at this time he was twelve years old, and knew as much almost as a man of twenty. miners are a rough lot, but the majority of them are straight goers, and dislike bouncers and blackguards. they are also generous when their luck is in. young barry tuxford was popular; his misfortunes touched the right chord in many a rough nature, and he lived a merry life in the camp for some years. he managed to secure a claim in a new rush, and it turned out fairly well. he sold it for a considerable sum and cleared out of victoria to western australia. it was one of the peculiar characteristics of barry tuxford that at this time he should have made his way to a colony about which very little was known, and that little anything but encouraging. advice was given him to go to new south wales, as it was a prosperous colony, while western australia was a desert sparsely populated. his reply was that he preferred the desert as there would be more room for him, and not so much chance of being crowded out. he had some difficulty in reaching perth, and when he arrived there was so disgusted at his prospects that he shipped with a pearler to batavia, and from there eventually found his way to north-west australia, and on to the lacepede islands, where there was such an abundance of green turtle that he wondered if anything else managed to live in the place. this pearl shelling expedition was not a success, so far as he was concerned; but he had never forgotten his experiences, or the probabilities held out if a rich lot of shell could be discovered. for many years after his return to perth he was too much occupied to put to any practical use these experiences of his early days, until a chance meeting decided him to try pearl fishing again on his own account. one jacob rank, a man barry had known in victoria, informed him that good pearls were to be had in a large bay some five hundred miles to the north of fremantle. how he came by his knowledge he imparted to him, and as it was a question of his having the money and his informant none, he made very good terms. unfortunately, jacob rank was drowned on the first trip of the pearling boats, and the men who accompanied him declared on their return that the whole thing was a hoax, and that there was no pearl shell in the bay.
barry tuxford paid them off, but did not believe their story. he had his doubts as to how jacob rank came by his end, for they were a rough crew he had with him. he kept his suspicions and his opinion to himself, but he meant to have those pearls. jacob rank had no reason to give him false information; on the contrary, it was to the man's interests to deal fairly by him. he even had his doubts about rank having been drowned, and thought it more than probable he had been deserted when absent from the schooner. the crew of the boats were only paid wages, and had no interest in the venture, so it was possible they determined to make the trip one of pleasure, and not toil, and accomplished this by leaving the leader of the expedition in the lurch. it was about this time barry tuxford received harry marton's letter, and it occurred to him he would be a useful, trustworthy representative to send out with a second fleet. it was not necessary he should know anything about the sailing of such vessels, all that would be required of him would be to see that everything was carried out in a satisfactory way. it was with this intention he wrote to him, and asked him to bring a chum if he wished. two such men would be better than one.
when he saw harry marton and jack on the "golden land," he was quite satisfied he had acted for the best. he at once took a fancy to them, and he was quick in his likes and dislikes. captain seagrave was an old friend, and he was ready enough to accept his invitation to dine on board, more especially as it would enable him to find out what manner of young men these were. the captain had so he said, "spread himself" in the matter of providing good entertainment for his visitor.
"it's well worth taking a little extra trouble over," he said, "and when a man has dined well he is generally in a good humour."
barry tuxford was a good talker. most men of his experience are. they have much to tell, and it is generally interesting. before dinner captain seagrave told his visitor how jack had ridden topsy turvy at lewes and wound up by saying—
"he's too good for pearl fishing, barry. take my advice, and let him manage and ride your horses, it will pay you well, and suit him better."
"he looks uncommon smart, and he shall have his choice, but if i'm a judge he'll want to try the pearling first; it will be a change for him. he's out here to make money, i suppose, and i shall give them both an interest in the affair. that will be a sufficient inducement to him to try his hand at it," said barry. "if he cares to join me at racing when he returns i'll give him a look in, but he will not make much at that game."
after dinner barry tuxford placed his plans before them. he told them of his early adventures, and how jacob rank was supposed to have been drowned when the pearling vessels were in the bay.
"what i propose to do is to send two schooners to the place; you will be on one, harry marton on the other. you will be in charge, and i have found two reliable men who are willing to act under your orders. they are good seamen, and have made several voyages amongst the islands and elsewhere. you will be away about six months, perhaps more, and the schooners will be amply provisioned. there will be some roughish work, but i don't think you are the sort of men to shirk it. the divers are aborigines, and curious fellows to deal with. most of them thieve when they have an opportunity, and this you will have to guard against. some of them are treacherous, but i think i can pick a pretty even lot who will work well if you keep a strict watch over them. both the skippers have had experience of this work, and know what is required. it is much cheaper to send these divers than to go in for more modern methods, and i am not at all sure it is not the better way of getting the shell. if you agree to go i will pay you so much a month, and you shall also have a share of the profits. that is fair, i think."
they agreed with his proposal, and jack said—
"i may as well tell you i came out here with the intention of making a moderate fortune if possible. i have urgent reasons for doing so, and i feel that in meeting you the first move has been laid towards success. captain seagrave has told you i can ride, and i pride myself on being a good horseman. if that will be useful to me, i shall be glad of an opportunity to show what i can do."
"and you shall have it when you return. i have a few decent horses, but you can look them over and judge for yourself. if there is anything you fancy i will have him trained and got into first condition while you are away, then perhaps we can arrange for you to ride him in a race."
jack's face showed his pleasure, and he said—
"i shall be delighted to ride for you, and i hope win. is there much chance of making money here by speculating in mining shares?" he asked, changing the subject.
barry tuxford smiled as he replied—
"mines are queer things to touch if you do not understand them, or have no means of acquiring special information. occasionally i dabble in shares. i have done so this week in the great tom mine; i think it will pan out well. it's a pure speculation at present, but if they strike it rich, as i have every reason to believe they will, there's a lot of money to be made. the shares stand at a pound, and at that price they are worth buying."
jack was silent for some minutes. it was a risk. he had five hundred pounds and a draft for two hundred his sister had given him.
"i wish i had some cash to put into it," said sam slack.
barry laughed.
"i never knew a sailor to be overburdened with that commodity," he said.
"by jove, you are right," said job, "it's the worst paid job a man can go in for. look at me; here have i been in the line for how many years."
"fifty!" interrupted barry.
job shook his fist at him.
"half that, my boy; let us say half, and i have risen to be what?"
"skipper of the beautiful modern steamer, the 'golden land,'" said mac quietly.
"yes, mr. macdonald, you have hit it; that's the truth. i am the captain of this most admirable craft, and i have every reason to believe i shall end my days on her—at the bottom of the sea," said job.
"and yet with all its drawbacks and disadvantages i have never met a good sailor—like yourself, skipper—who wishes to give up the sea," remarked barry.
jack had made up his mind.
"i have five hundred pounds, will you invest it for me in the great tom mine?" he said quietly, and as though it was a matter of small importance. barry tuxford regarded him curiously; this was a proposal he was not prepared for. the great tom mine was all very well in its way, but for a "new chum," with none too much cash, it was hardly the kind of investment to recommend, although he had faith in it.
"five hundred is rather a large amount," he said. "i can get you the shares, but i think a hundred will be sufficient for you to risk. it is a mine that has not yet been fully worked, and the additional capital will no doubt enable the holders to prove its worth; yet there is such a thing as being over sanguine, also failure."
harry marton's experience of mining shares, as already stated, was not pleasant, and he strongly advised jack not to risk so much.
"take his advice, and buy a hundred," he said.
jack redland was, however, determined, and the sporting spirit in him roused. it was a big plunge, and he might lose the whole amount, but he made up his mind to take the risk.
"if you will purchase me five hundred shares i shall be much obliged," he said. "i am quite willing to take the risk, and i need hardly add i shall not blame you if i lose the lot. something, however, tells me this will be a lucky deal, i am almost certain of it."
"you are a good plucked one!" exclaimed barry admiringly, "and you will get on in our country. i'll do it for you, and i may add it is the exact number of shares i hold."
"buy me fifty," said captain seagrave.
"and me ten," chimed in sam.
"now, mac, how many do you want?" asked the captain.
mac muttered something about fools and their money, and was understood to say he'd see the great tom mine somewhere before he'd sink coin in it.
barry tuxford agreed to purchase the shares desired, and said when jack and harry were prepared to leave captain seagrave's hospitable ship, he would put them up until the schooners were ready to sail.
as he went down the gangway he said to jack—
"i believe you have done a good day's work. it would not surprise me if they struck it rich in the great tom mine before you come back from the fishing, and if they do, and the shares jump up, you can sell out or hold on as you think best. good luck!"
