They agreed that Lovin
Child should not start off with one grain of gold that rightfully
belonged to some one else--but they agreed the more cheerfully
because neither man believed they would find any close relatives;
a wife or children they decided upon as rightful heirs. Brothers,
sisters, cousins, and aunts did not count. They were presumably
able to look after themselves just as old Nelson had done. Their
ethics were simple enough, surely.
Barring, then, the discovery of rightful heirs, their plan was
to take the gold to Sacramento in the spring, and deposit it
there in a savings bank for one Lovins Markham Moore. They would
let the interest "ride" with the principal, and they would--
though neither openly confessed it to the other--from time to
time add a little from their own earnings. Bud especially looked
forward to that as a compromise with his duty to his own child.
He intended to save every cent he could, and to start a savings
account in the same bank, for his own baby, Robert Edward
Moore--named for Bud. He could not start off with as large a sum
as Lovins would have, and for that Bud was honestly sorry. But
Robert Edward Moore would have Bud's share in the claims, which
would do a little toward evening things up.
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