The Mudded Gold Scam

The Mudded Gold Scam

They say a slick-tongued fast talker calling himself Harcourt Fenton Mudd—though most just call him “Harry Mudd”—blew into Blood Ax about a season ago with grand promises and an even grander hat. Claimed he’d discovered a miracle reagent that could “draw the gold right out of your tailings,” a concoction said to double any prospector’s yield by splitting rock as neat as a razor through cornbread. He sold bottles of it by the crate to the miners’ union, the tannery guild, and even the Blood Ax Wells & Fargo agent himself.

For a week, the local mines rang with pickaxes and hopeful shouting. Then the reagent started melting shovels, ruining smelting hearths, and turning a few unlucky men’s beards a permanent violet. When the mob came calling, Mudd vanished—along with the proceeds, several draft mules, and Sheriff DeRook’s prized mare.

Now there’s a standing bounty:

• 500 gold alive, 200 if dead, posted by the guilds collectively.
• The miners have added their own purse, swearing he’ll “stand in the sluice pan” if he’s caught—meaning they’ll dunk him repeatedly in icy creek water until he confesses where he stashed the gold.

If Blood Ax’s mayor ever sees him again, though, word is Mudd won’t face hanging or jail—he’ll be sold at auction, indentured to whoever lost the most coin, “until his debt is paid or his tongue wears out,” depending which story you believe. But knowing Harry, he probably already has a new batch of snake oil and a new name two towns over.