Pay Dirt

These days, when people think of Erle Stanley Gardner, they automatically thiink of Perry Mason...but Gardner was already a well-known author in the pulp magazines, e.g. *Argosy*, before the first Mason book was published. *Pay Dirt* is the second book of "Whispering Sands" stories, stories that first appeared in *Argosy*. Bob Zane is an old desert hand who serves as much as a commentator on desert life as he does as the narrator and main character in these stories. > "Singing Sand" tells how Bob Zane guided Harry Karg into Yaqui country. Lots of men went there but few have returned. Does Karg seek gold or a missing woman? The ending is ironic but expected. [Did those silver bullets inspire a radio serial?] >"The Land of Painted Rocks" explains why a yellow metal became a curse to the Navajo Indians. This story illustrates the perils of the desert to unwary strangers. >"The Big Circle" tells about gold mining in Nevada. An old prospector stumbles into a restaurant. Why would anyone want to hurt him? Could evidence be planted to convict the wrong man? >"Pay Dirt" begins with a man lost in the desert, dying of thirst and exposure to the sun. He made a new will naming Pete Harder as trustee. What will happen to the dead man's son? Can he unlearn the lessons of college? There is a surprise ending. >"The Land of Poisoned Springs" has Bob Zane being hired by George Fargo to lead a party to Burro Springs. Will they find fortune or failure? The story tells about treachery in the desert, and the triumph of rough justice. >"Stamp of the Desert" tells of a newcomer who travels out on the desert and makes mistakes. Hi-grading is the taking of gold by hired miners for their personal use. Could an innocent man be framed as a cover-up of the real hi-graders? >"Law of the Ghost Town" is a story about personalities, property, and the law. Could a tenderfoot swindle an old prospector? Could the swindled prospector even things up? >"The Law of Drifting Sand" explains the method of constructing railroads or highways in the desert. The story is how a young woman and her friend were able to find buried gold in spite of attempts of robbery and murder. >"The Whip Hand" tells how Bob Zane encountered a woman fleeing from a band of crooks who want to rob murder her for her gold claim. Zane misdirects the crooks and saves his life, the girl's life and her gold claim.