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'Who'll make it four-cornered? demanded Barbee. 'Short, but lively while she lasts. Little old game, name of stud horse? Two of the Mexicans, having hesitated and then looked to Barbee, came forward and deposited themselves carelessly in the two chairs. Barbee shuffled, cut, shuffled again and put the cards down. 'Cut for deal, he ordered.

"Barbee!" cried the old man. "Barbee! That yellow canary-bird? Meaning him?" "Yes," retorted Steve a trifle stiffly. "Anything wrong with him?" "I didn't roll them fifty miles to talk about jay-birds an' canary-birds an' such," growled his grandfather. "But here's one thing I've got to say: This ranch is goin' to be mine real soon; that's in the cards, face up. It's as good as mine now.

He now had, and he realized to the full his strategic position in that no one else could have his secret knowledge, a pair of kings and a pair of aces. The two biggest pairs in the deck! He looked with renewed interest at the other cards. Chavez now had two tens exposed; before Barbee lay no pair at all, just a jack, an ace and a five. There was but one more card to be dealt.

The strange thing, thought both Barbee and Packard, was that even ten seconds could pass without these two men at each other's throats. But, a supreme moment his at last, Bill Royce found himself grown miserly in its expenditure; he would dribble the golden seconds through his fingers, he would draw out the experience, tasting its joy fully.

'Look here, said Howard impatiently. 'I'm just asking a question, and I'll get out of your way. Where did they go? 'Who? asked Barbee. 'The Longstreets. 'Dunno, Barbee shrugged. Then, as an afterthought, 'Sanchia Murray could tell you; she's been sticking tight to them. She's got a tent up yonder, back of the Courtot House on the edge of town. Howard hurried on.

A pair beats a stiff, two pair beat a pair, threes beat two pair and so on. It was simplicity itself and here was he, Professor Edward Longstreet, measuring his judgment against that of Mexican Mendoza, Mexican Chavez and Yellow Barbee, cowpuncher.

'One of the things, Longstreet corrected him with twinkling eyes. 'And the other? 'Another gold mine! As our young friend Barbee puts it, I'm all loaded for bear this trip, partner! 'And you haven't told Miss Helen? Or Carr? 'Never a word.

The two Mexicans lifted their brows at him, looked to Barbee, and then with a splendid show of nonchalance both came in. Barbee chinked his silver dollar down upon the others and dealt the third card. Longstreet waited breathlessly. This time there came to him another king, the king of spades, and his little exclamation of genuine delight was a pretty thing to hear.

Helen laughed her disbelief. 'I rode first of all to the place where your cabin used to stand, he went on, his big hat crumpled in his hands. 'You had left, and I was afraid you had gone East. I rode into the mining-camp to get word of you. I saw Barbee; he said that Sanchia Murray knew where you had moved. I asked her. When she said she was coming up this way, I did not wait for her.

The man whom, over the card-table, Barbee had addressed as Spotty and whose nickname had obviously been gained for him by the peculiar tufts of white hair in a young, tousled head of very dark brown, cleared his throat and so drew all eyes to himself at his side of the room.