Fact is, I'm
in somethin' of a hurry myself. I just stopped in to give you a chanct
to do me a good turn. I happened to be down this way an': 'there's
Johnson,' I says to myself, 'he's so free an' open-handed, a man's
welcome to anything he's got,' so I stopped in."
The ranchman regarded him with an intent scowl: "'Sth' matter with you,
you drunk?"
"Not yet. But I got a friend out here in the hills which he's lost his
slippers, an' tore his pants, an' got his shirt all dirty, an' mislaid
his hat; an' knowin' you'd be glad to stake him to an outfit I come
over, him bein' about your size an' build."
The ranchman's face flushed with anger: "What the hell do I care about
you an' your friends. Git offen this ranch, I tell you!"
"Oh, yes, an' while you're gettin' the outfit together just you slip in
a cinch, an' a quart or two of _hooch_, case we might get snake-bit."
Beside himself with rage, the man raised his foot to the stirrup. As
if suddenly remembering something he paused, lowered his foot, and
regarded the cowboy with an evil leer: "Ah-ha, I've got it now!" he
moved a step nearer. "I was at the dance night before last to Wolf
River." He waited to note the effect of the words on his hearer.
"Did you have a good time? Or did the dollar you had to shell out for
the ticket spoil all the fun?"
"Never mind what kind of a _time_ I had.
Pages:
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203