One morning in late winter, Sergeant Preston halted his team before the cabin of an elderly miner named Hannibal Jenkins. A boy and girl were playing together a short distance away, and they scooted over when they spotted their visitor. The kids had been staying with Hannibal since their father had passed away, and their mother was sick in the hospital. Hannibal's claim had petered out now, and he was worried that he was going to struggle to provide for his family.