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Boston seemed to be getting worse and worse mixed while the Hen was rattling her stuff off to him and I reckon, all things considered, he wasn't to be blamed. He'd got a jolt to start with, when he come in and found what he took to be a preacher dealing faro; and he was worse jolted when his fool-talk and he not knowing how he'd done it run him so close up against a shooting-scrape.
Duane told her. "You're not a robber or rustler or murderer or some bad man come here to hide?" "No, I'm not," replied Duane, trying to smile. "Then why are you here?" "I'm on the dodge. You know what that means. I got in a shooting-scrape at home and had to run off. When it blows over I hope to go back." "But you can't be honest here?" "Yes, I can." "Oh, I know what these outlaws are.
Then I borrowed a good deal from those men I gambled with, but mostly from ranchers who knew my father would be responsible.... I had a shooting-scrape with a man named Elbert, in Smith's place at Elgeria. We quarreled over cards. He cheated. And when I hit him he drew on me. But he missed. Then I shot him.... He lived three days and died. That sobered me.
Despite his pose of "pacifism," he was certain to be armed, said Old Joe; yet we must take a chance, and do the job unarmed. If we should get into a shooting-scrape, they would certainly put it onto us; and they would make it a hanging matter, too. I named over the members of Carpenter's party who had stayed with him.
"Greaser shooting-scrape, wasn't it?" "Yep! Well, I noticed first off that he's gettin fat; high-livin' fat, too, all in one spot, like he was playin' both ends ag'in the centre. Also he wore di'mon's fit to handle with ice-tongs. "Says I, lookin' at his side elevation, 'What's accented your middle syllable so strong, Mexico? "'Prosperity, politics, an' the Waldorf-Astorier, says he.
Knowing what Santa Fé had set the boys up to, Wood said he pretty near laughed out when he heard it; but he held in, he said and told the little man, when he asked what it meant, that it didn't mean nothing in particular: being only some sort of a shooting-scrape, like enough the same as often happened along about that time in the afternoon.
An' I'd like a piece for myself," replied Wade. "Help yourself, man. An' say, come down an' eat with us fer supper." "Much obliged, boss. I sure will." Then the old rancher trudged back to the house. "Wade, it was bully of you!" exclaimed Jack, gratefully. "You see how quick dad's ready to jump me? I'll bet he thought I'd picked a shooting-scrape with one of the cowboys."
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