GhostMiner

Remember what the Shaman told Jacob.

June 30 1937 Part Four There were about ten men inside the building. They all looked to be mine workers. I quickly stated that I was not there to hurt any of them but to rescue my two partners. Then I heard Will give a yell and looked towards the far corner. He was standing there with Hudson. They came running forward and I gave Will my 45 and Hudson a rifle. As we ran out of the building John was just coming down off the rock outcropping towards us. There was no time to talk and we hightailed it back up into the rocks. I could still hear Luther yelling on the trail outside of camp. It looked like most of the guards had gone over in that direction leaving just two of them near the building. John said that if we don’t take them out they will be back up to our camp for revenge. I wasn’t so sure but we had to make a quick decision now, either take them out or try to get back to my truck. My mind was racing. I wasn’t afraid of a gunfight but we also had a chance to leave unharmed. They probably wouldn’t see us in the dark but Luther might tell them where the truck was parked. I told John that we needed to get back to the truck but if we were followed we would shoot it out with the gang. We made a run for the truck following the rock outcropping near the trail and watching our backs as we went. Luther had gone quiet now and he had probably told the guards where our truck was. We needed to move quickly as we had little time to waste. As the truck came into view some shots rang out. TO BE CONTINUED .................

June 30 1937 Part Three At dusk all four guards were changed. This told us there were at least eight and likely more. From where our lookout post was they looked to be carrying rifles. Some of them had sidearms as well. We decided to use Luther as a diversion. We put him down on the trail just outside of camp as the night set in. We instructed him to call out for help and warned him that if he tried to warn the gang of miners he would be shot dead. John stayed with him while I worked my way around the back side of the camp. There was a big wooden structure where it appeared the workers were being held. There was only one guard back there. I had told John to give me ten minutes and then have Luther Holler out for help. Then John would try to Join up with me at the back of the camp. We were hoping that Will and Hudson were in there. I layed flat out on the gravel waiting for Luther to holler out. It seemed like forever but finally I heard him. The lone guard I was watching turned quickly to see what all the fuss was about and worked his way around the far corner of the building. As he did so I snuck up to the building. The area was dimly lit with a couple of lanterns. I inched my way along the wall of the building until I was three feet behind him. I brought the but of my Thompson down hard on the back of his head. He made a slight cry that was covered up by Luther hollering for them not to shoot and the guard dropped to the ground motionless. I went over and checked the door of the building. It was unlocked and I swung it open with the Thompson pointing inside and ready to open fire. TO BE CONTINUED ..............

June 30 1937 Part Two We were forced to leave the camp and mine unguarded. Our gold is well hidden so we are not worried about that. We drove out of California and into the heat of the Nevada desert using the directions and map Luther had given us. When we got close to the location we got Luther out of the back of the truck. He was half baked to death under the tarp and we gave him water. We untied his legs and parked the truck behind some large boulder outcroppings. We would need to hike into the area and be careful doing it. John and I had our Thompsons and 45’s as well as two rifles. We were packed heavy with ammo. When Luther told us we were getting close we headed off the rough trail and up onto a rock ledge that was about thirty feet above the mine. We could see activity at their camp and there looked to be four guards with one on each side of the camp which was close to the entrance of a mine tunnel tunnel. It looked like they were keeping a tight watch on everything. We would need to make a quick plan of action and wait for dark. John wanted to just go straight on in with guns blazing. TO BE CONTINUED ..............

June 30 1937 Part One We kept Luther at our camp and Dan headed back to town after our meeting last night. He would need to stay in town as there was no other law. John and I would be on our own. We would take Luther with us to make sure of the location and would need to bring him back alive if possible but he was not a priority. Once we had Will and Hudson we were getting the hell out of Nevada but not until all of the rif raf associated with the mine out there were dealt with. We planned to take no prisoners. We would take my truck with Luther tied up under a tarp in the back. We’d have to go in on foot for the last mile according to Luther. We will pack heavy as far as weapons and possibly fight our way in. John and I will figure all that out after we scout the place. We had a big breakfast and started to load up the truck for the trip. We will rescue our partners or die trying. TO BE CONTINUED ............

June 29 1937 Part Seven He said two men had taken Will and Hudson to Nevada where there was an active mine in operation. They had considered them highly valuable as far as the operation of gold mines went and would be used as consultants and workers. They were prisoners there. The location was very remote and highly guarded. He said there were slave laborers kept there and about ten men who ran the operation as well as protecting the property. Dan told Luther he had betrayed his badge and was disgusted with him. I told Luther he was going to take us to the location and then he would be arrested and turned over to the custody of Dan. As long as he cooperated we would not harm him any further. I told him if he refused to cooperate we would hang him right here and now and bury him on the mountain where he would never be found. John said that we meant business and Luther believed us. He gave us the location which was on a map in his coat pocket. There were a few names on the paper as well. He said the only way in was by mule, horse, or on foot. The group that ran the mine were from back east and weren’t making much money. That’s why they figured Will and Hudson might be of help. They had also planned on getting me and John at some point. I told Dan we would need to plan a trip to the mine in Nevada. First,we needed to find out more from Luther about the details of the operation and how it was guarded. This was not going to be easy. TO BE CONTINUED ...............

June 29 1937 Part Six Dan Began to protest the treatment of Luther and hollered for us to stop. I told him to back off if he wanted to live. Luther was struggling for his very life at the end of a rope now. We stopped just short of lifting him off his feet. I told him to talk or it was over for him. He cried out and begged us not to hang him. He said he’d talk. I gave a nod to John and we eased the tension off the rope. I looked Luther in the eye from a foot in front of his face. I told him I was tired of playing around and this was his last chance. I told him I wanted to know what happened to my partners. He said that he and two other men from town had come out to camp. Will and Hudson had been taken by complete surprise. He figured that once they got rid of them they could get John and me next. Then they would have complete control of our mine. They intended to deal with Dan as well. He said that Dan was not involved. I asked him where my partners were and that they damn well better be alive. He hesitated for a few seconds and looked like he was stalling. I cracked him across the face with my 45. He let out a yell and blood was streaming out of his mouth. He begged me not to hit him again. I grabbed him by the throat and asked one more time where my partners were. He started to cry. TO BE CONTINUED ...................

See all you readers of the journal next year. Have a happy one!!

A song for Luther.

June 29 1937 Part Five I took the deputies' guns and tossed them into my tent. Then I began questioning them. Luther did not want to talk but Dan was more than willing. He said he had nothing to do with our partners disappearance and had already started an investigation. We turned our attention to Luther who had clammed up. Then he said he had nothing to do with Will and Hudson disappearing. Just by the way Dan had reacted I was leaning towards believing him but not Luther. John told them that he was ready to beat the truth out of them. There was little reaction. I gave a nod to John and told Luther to stand up which he did. John walked up to him and told him he wanted the truth and he wanted it now. There was no reaction from Luther. John backhanded the deputy across the face and told him to talk. He refused. Then John brought down a thunderous right hand which landed on the side of Luther’s face. He went down to his knees. Once again John told him to tell the truth or there would be more to come. John reached down and grabbed Luther’s shirt and pulled him back onto his feet. The deputy was beginning to shake. Then John drilled his fist into Luther’s stomach and the deputy let out a sick groan and collapsed on the ground. Dan was watching this without saying a word. I grabbed a rope and threw it over a tree limb. I told Luther we would hang him unless he talked. He still refused to say a word. I made a quick noose while John got him to his feet again. I placed it around his neck and pulled it tight. John tied his hands behind his back and we began to pull him up. TO BE CONTINUED .................

Happy New Year.

Yes, unless they put some heavy rocks in there lol. I think it was just for show until they confronted them.

June 29 1937 Part Four We didn’t do any mining today. The season was moving along and we had a big deposit to work but now we were short handed and unable to guard camp. There was an endless supply of rif raf out here that kept us distracted. John and I cleaned up some gravels that we hadn’t worked and we actually got an ounce out of them. They were the rich materials that had been left sitting in the bottom of the hopper. We put some sand and gravel into two small pouches and tied them up good. This would be the deputy's bonus. Then we had a good supper and stoked up the campfire just as the sun was setting. Sure enough, the deputies showed up as the night was setting in. I gave them each a small cup of whisky and set the fake gold pouches down on a log near the fire. They both took seats opposite to where John and I were. They were eyeing the pouches with pleasure. I noticed they were both carrying their sidearms. No sooner had they taken a seat and started to relax John and I stood up quickly with our 45’s pointing at them. They looked shocked and asked what was up. I told them to take their revolvers out of their holsters with their left hands and drop them on the ground. John now had his Thompson trained on them. They knew that if they made any moves they would be cut to ribbons. TO BE CONTINUED ............

June 29 1937 Part Three My theory was that either one or both deputies had planned out a scheme to take over our mine. They had disposed of the rest of the Mexican gang as well as the sheriff and judge. Then they got rid of half the crew. There were only two people left standing in their way, John and I. We took my car into town and parked on the street in front of the sheriff station. Deputy Luther was inside when John and I walked in. He greeted us with a smile and asked what he could do for us. I told him that we wanted to give both he and Dan a big gold bonus in return for speeding up the investigation about the disappearance of Will and Hudson. He was beaming from ear to ear. I told him to bring Dan out to our camp tonight around sunset and we’d have their gold ready and discuss a plan to find our partners. Luther said they would be out there for sure. He was pretty excited about a gold bonus and suspected nothing. John and I shook hands with him and we headed back to camp. John said it was all he could do to restrain himself from smashing the deputies face in. I told John that he could do that later, after we gave them their bonus. The deputies didn’t know it, but the bonus would be their lives for information as to where Will and Hudson were hidden. Once we got our partners back, we would deal with the corrupt law dogs permanently. TO BE CONTINUED ....................

June 29 1937 Part Two I told John that I suspected Deputy Luther and possibly deputy Dan was also involved. Will & Hudson knew them and may have been taken off guard by one or both of them. They may have had others with them. They knew we had rich gold deposits. They had helped us get rid of the sheriff and judge and now had free reign of the county. I think Will and Hudson were easy victims and we were next on their schedule. The only thing I could think to do was to confront them and find out what was what. It would need to be a surprise to them. John said that we should contact them and offer them another bonus to help speed up the investigation of our partner's disappearance. Then we would have the upper hand of surprise. We decided to make a trip back into town.There was no time to waste and we needed to rescue Will and Hudson if they were still alive. TO BE CONTINUED ....................

Took a break from the weather today and hopefully get back to the journal. Here's an 11 min video of what Christmas was like up here on Lake Erie.

No worries LOL. Even I get them confused sometimes. Merry Christmas!

Thanks to all the readers & Merry Christmas from GM & Lindy.

I think you mean Will & Hudson. Dan is one of the deputies. Yes, The law dogs are looking suspicious.

June 29 1937 Part One This morning at breakfast John and I did some talking. I told him that I figured Will and Hudson had been kidnapped. I told him it had to be someone they knew and were taken by complete surprise. Otherwise, they would have put up one hell of a fight and there would have been shell casings everywhere. I went on to say that the camp was ransacked because the thugs were looking for gold and treasure but it was too well hidden for anyone to ever find it. I figured they’d be back at some point to look again and if we were in their way they would kidnap or kill us as well. I told John I had a strong suspicion of who the thugs were and possibly where Will and Hudson might have been taken. John looked at me and told me to continue. TO BE CONTINUED ...........

June 28 1937 Part Two When John and I got back to camp it was nearly evening. We built up a nice fire and I cooked up a good Hoover Stew. We sat at the fire and watched the light begin to fade away. I told John that something just didn’t seem right. I was thinking about Dan’s last statement. He had suggested we should clear out of here. Yet he and Luther were getting paid big money working for us. It just didn’t set right with me. John said he wasn’t sure and maybe it was just a suggestion coming from his concern. I told John that I don’t think anyone in this shithole county has any concern about anything but themselves. We were both dog tired. I told John to get some sleep and I would stand watch for a spell and then wake him up when the time came. He didn’t fight me on it and retired to his tent. I grabbed a bottle of whisky and went up to the lookout post to watch over camp. We were all alone out here and vulnerable. The dark of night settled in and I watched the campfire slowly die. I had a lot of thinking TO BE CONTINUED ..........

Any guesses as to what this bottle might have held? Whisky?

If you go out there, make sure you stay off this guy's claim.

Here you go.

This bottle was found at the old crew's camp. No markings except at bottom side where it says 18 OZ.