After The Gold Rush a serial by Forrest Barriger

An incident in a barroom leads to the salting of a gold mine, with inevitable results.

Incident in a Barroom - The shotgun's blast was deafening, the hollow double boom multiplied by its confinement within the walls of the barroom. From where the gun was fired near the doorway, a thick cloud of smoke, grey-black, drifted out into the street. It thinned slowly in the cool, still air. 

TREASURE! - George Tiscovia, the speaker, sat slumped in his chair, booted feet thrust straight out before him under the table. The table was in the Magnolia, the biggest and busiest saloon in Coulterville. It was late in the fall of 1883, with a cold, raw wind blowing outside. Warm enough here, though, in the barroom.

SALT! - Big John was clearly annoyed when George led the two youngsters, after greetings and handshakes, to a table in the corner, too far from the bar to be overheard. Nor was John's mood improved by George's taking off and leaving him hanging, his curiosity unsatisfied, until the next day.