hell, if I got a feel of
it."

There was a patent device of a twist and a loose ring in the center of
the bit he clutched, which Porter had devised for Diablo's hard mouth.

Shandy gave the bridle a swing, and it clattered to the floor from its
peg. Diablo snorted and pawed the planks of his stall nervously.

"All right, my buck," hissed Shandy, "you wait till to-morror; you'll
git the run of yer life, I'm thinkin', damn their eyes!" and he went
off into a perfect torrent of imprecation against everybody at Ringwood,
hushing his voice to a snarling whisper. Then he shut the door of the
saddle room, sat down on the floor and pulled from his pocket a knife
and stub of candle. He lighted the latter and held it flame down till
a few drops of wax formed a tiny lake; into this he stuck the candle
upright, shielding its flame with his coat. He opened the knife and
laying it down, inspected minutely the bridle which lay across his leg.

"It's Diablo's right enough," he said; "I couldn't be mistook on the
bit, nor them strong lines."

He picked up the knife, and holding the leather rein across the palm of
his left hand started to saw it gently with the blade. Almost instantly
he left off. "Of all the bloomin' ijits! God drat me fer a goat! He'd
feel that cut the first slip through his fingers the leather took."

He gathered in the rein until he had it six inches from the bit. There
he cut, stopping many times, and doubling the leather close to the light
to see how deep he had penetrated.

"There, Mr. Bloody Ned!" he exclaimed at last, as inspection showed that
only the outer hard shell of the leather remained intact. "That'll just
hold till the Black takes one of his cranky spells, an' you give him
a stiff pull. God help you then!" Even this was a blasphemous cry of
exultation; not a plea for divine assistance for the man he plotted
against.

His next move proved that his cunning was of an exceptional order. From
his coat pocket he brought forth a pill box. In this receptacle Shandy
dipped a forefinger, and rubbed into the fresh cut of the leather a
trifle of blackened axle grease which he had taken from a wagon wheel
before starting out. Then he wiped the rein with his coat tail and
looked at it admiringly.

"The bloke won't see that, blast him!"

He hung the bridle up in its place, put out the candle, dropped it in
his pocket and made his way from the stable.

As he passed Diablo's stall the big Black snorted agai