all times be accounted for?
Only one man. Anton--Black Anton."

A pause ensued. Tresler had played a high card. If Jake refused to be
drawn it would be awkward. The pause seemed endless and he was forced
to provoke an answer.

"Well?" he questioned sharply.

"Well," echoed the foreman; and the other noted the quiet derision in
his tone, "seems to me you've done a deal of figgering."

Tresler nodded.

Jake turned away with something very like a smile. Evidently he had
decided upon the course to be pursued. Tresler, watching him, could
not quite make up his mind whether he was playing the winning hand, or
whether his opponent was finessing for the odd trick. Jake suddenly
became expansive.

"I'd like to know how we're standin' before we go further," he said;
"though, mind you, I ain't asking. I tell you candidly I ain't got no
use for you, and I guess it would take a microscope to see your
affection for me. This bein' so, I ask myself, what has this feller
come around with his yarn to me for? I allow there's two possible
reasons which strike me as bein' of any consequence. One is that,
maybe, some'eres in the back of your head, you've a notion that I know
a heap about this racket, and sort o' wink at it, seein' Marbolt's
blind, an' draw a bit out of the game. And the other is, you're
honest, an' tryin' to play the game right. Now, I'll ask you not to
get plumb scared when I tell you I think you're dead honest about this
thing. If I didn't--wal, maybe you'd be lit out of this shack by now."

Jake reached over to the table and picked up a plug of tobacco and
tore off a chew with his great strong teeth. And Tresler could not
help marveling at the pincher-like power with which he bit through the
plug.

"Now, Tresler, there's that between us that can never let us be
friends. I'm goin' to get level with you some day. But just now, as
you said, we can let things bide. I say you're honest in this thing,
and if you choose to be honest with me I'll be honest with you."

One word flashed through Tresler's brain: "finesse."

"I'm glad you think that way, Jake," he said seriously. "My object is
to get to the bottom of this matter."

It was a neat play in the game, the way in which these two smoothed
each other down. They accepted each other's assurances with the
suavity of practiced lawyers, each without an atom of credence or good
faith.

"Just so," Jake responded, with a ludicrous attempt at benignity. "An'
it's du