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The picks that had been driven in the ground were lying on the other side of the creek. The Creekers, convinced individually that they had effectually disposed of Gleeson, stood for a few moments, forgetful of the blows and bruises they had received in the scuffle, as they saw their victim standing unharmed before them.
Gleeson, only seeing him fall, thought an attack was imminent, and flashed out a revolver from his pocket. In a moment the attack was imminent, and in full swing. The Boulder Creekers had had many a quarrel and many a row amongst themselves, but never had a man drawn a revolver or a knife. Gleeson's action decided his chances.
That there were neither revolvers nor knives among the Creekers was more due to lack of means to purchase them than to moral superiority, or any religious qualms as to the shedding of another man's blood.
"When folks pay more than they've got to pay for a thing, it comes pretty near being a success. Why, there was a half a dozen said to me they didn't care for no change, and two of 'em were Cherry Creekers. What do you think of that? And Deacon Bliss, he paid three admissions with a five-dollar bill, and said it was all right." "How much do you think we've made, Joe?" Peggy asked.
The smiles vanished as Peggy approached the delicate point. The Cherry Creekers no longer looked virtuous, but rather defiant. "Now, I'm going to make a suggestion, Ladies and Gentlemen. Part of our audience has come quite a long way. We don't want them to go home without seeing what they came for. But you who live near could come out to-morrow night.
Palmer Billy moved a few steps towards the four, and the others, formed into an irregular line behind him, advanced at the same time. "Stop where you are, or " Gleeson cried, as he raised the revolver and covered Palmer Billy. There was silence amongst the Creekers, for the situation had changed since the moment when they yelled for revenge in unison with Palmer Billy.
"The darned dirty I-talyan" was alone and practically unprepared then he was back with his mates now; and while they were armed, the Creekers were not. Palmer Billy sized up the situation quickly and shrewdly. He turned slowly to his comrades, with one arm extended and pointing to the four. "What sort!" he exclaimed hilariously. "They've jumped the jumpers!
Even the Cherry Creekers wore an air of conscious virtue. "But, Ladies and Gentlemen, there is one little embarrassment we hadn't counted on, an embarrassment of riches, you might call it. There are too many people here for the schoolhouse. A number are standing, and it would be impossible for them to enjoy an entertainment as long as this without having seats."
For years the gully-rakers round Boulder Creek had been living and longing to hear such things, and the hungry eyes grew more hungry and the faces more alert. If four, why not forty? Why not "Where's the lay?" one of the Creekers asked sharply and shortly; and the room was silent till the answer came. "Over the ridge," the man answered, nodding towards the west. "How far?" some one inquired.
That they were in the possession of the men who had stumbled on payable gold within a day's march of the creek was a further incentive to envy on the part of the Creekers; hence the haste of each man to vent his anger on Gleeson. It was their very haste which defeated their object. Peters and Tony, standing back from the others, saw how it was going with Gleeson the moment he showed his revolver.
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