pony express rider, and turned to look at the man who had called to him.
Jack recognized him as a mining expert who did assaying. He had not lived
in Rainbow Ridge long, but he had done considerable work elsewhere for Mr.
Argent.

"What's that you said?" inquired the miner.

"I said, don't send those letters by Jack!"

The young pony rider felt the hot blood come into his cheeks. To him there
seemed to be but one meaning in the warning. He was being distrusted. The
service which he performed in riding at top speed from Rainbow Ridge to
Golden Crossing was under suspicion.

Was this because of the letter that had put his father under suspicion--the
Harrington epistle--or was it because of false reports being spread by
those who wanted Jack's place?

Something of what was passing through Jack's mind seemed to communicate
itself to the mining assayist, whose name was Payson Wayde. He smiled at
our hero, and said:

"Don't worry, my lad. It isn't that I think you wouldn't carry the mail
safely. It's that I have just heard something," he went on, turning to Mr.
Argent, "that makes it advisable to postpone the sending of those letters
now. Hold them until we can investigate a bit."

"Oh, that's different," the miner said. "I thought from the way you spoke
that you didn't want Jack to take them."