Frank Gee Patchin 
Pony Rider Boys in Alaska Or, The Gold Diggers of Taku Pass [EPUB ebook] 

THROUGH ENCHANTING WATERS Captain, who are the four silent men leaning over the rail on the other side of the boat? asked Tad Butler. I have been wondering about them almost ever since we left Vancouver. They don’t seem to speak to a person, and seldom to each other, though somehow they appear to be traveling in company. They act as if they were afraid someone would recognize them. I am sure they aren’t bad characters.