with his hands, too, even when
he was a little shaver?" he suggested tentatively. "But then I don't
suppose that any one of you ever dreamed that you had a world's
champion, right here at home, in the making, did you?"

The whole room leaned nearer. Even the late comer near the door forgot
himself entirely and took one step forward, his narrowing gray eyes
straining upon the Judge's face.

Judge Maynard again weighed his reply, word for word.

"We-e-ll, no," he admitted. "I don't believe I can say that I
downright believed that he'd make a world's champion. Don't believe's
I could truthfully state that I thought that. But I guess there isn't
anybody in this town that would ever deny but what I did say more than
once that he'd make the best of 'em hustle--ye-e-s, sir, the very best
of 'em, some day!"

The speaker turned to face the hushed room behind him, as if to
challenge contradiction, and Young Denny, waiting for some one to
speak, touched his dry lips with the tip of his tongue. But no
contradiction came. Instead Old Jerry, leaning across the Judge's
broad back, quavered breathlessly.

"That's jest it--that's jest as it was--right to a hair. It was system
done it--system right from the very beginning. And many's the time the
Judge says to me--says he----"

Old Jerry never finished, for Judge Maynard lifted one hand
majestically and the little white-haired old man's eager corroboration
died on his lips. He shrank back into abashed silence, his lips
working wordlessly.

"As I was saying," the Judge then proceeded ponderously, "I recognized
he had what one could call--er----"

"Class?" the man on the desk broke in again with his engaging smile.

"Well, yes," the other continued, "or, as I was about to call it,
talent. From the very first that was very apparent, but then, of
course, a man in my position in the community could scarcely have been
the one to encourage him openly. But he was pretty good, even as a
little shaver! Why, there was nothing among the boys that he wouldn't
tackle--absolutely nothing! Size, sir, never made any difference to
him--not a particle. Jeddy Conway fight----!"

Again he turned to the close-packed circle behind him as if mere words
were too weak things to do the question justice. And this time as he
turned his eyes met squarely those of the gray-shirted figure that was
staring straight back at him in a kind of fascination. For one
disconcerted instant Judge Maynard wavered; he