e
one thing that concerned him was the disappointment he must cause him.

"There's nothing like straight talk, Bill," he said, cordially. "I
allus like straight talk. You kind of know just where you are then.
There's not a doubt you've been real good to me," he went on, with
evident feeling, "and I'll never be able to forget it--never. I tell
you right here, if there was anything in the world I could do in
return, I'd do it."

He smiled quaintly and pushed his stubby fingers through his sparse
hair in his most helpless manner.

"If there was gold on my claim, I'd let you in all you need, and I
wouldn't want your dollars. Dollars? No, Bill, I don't want dollars
for doing anything for you. I sure don't. I mean that. Maybe you'll
understand, y'see I'm not a business man--never was."

The gambler averted his eyes. He could not look into the other's face
so shining with honesty and gratitude.

"But there ain't no gold found on that claim yet," Scipio went on.
"Leastways, not that I know of, so what's the use deceivin' you? An'
dollars, why, there's no question of 'em between us. You can stand in
ha'f my claim, Bill, an' welcome, but you ain't going to pay me
dollars for gold that ain't been found. Yes, you're sure welcome to
ha'f my claim, an' you ken set a man working for you. I'll not say but
I'll be glad of the help. But don't make no mistake, gold ain't been
found, as far as I know, an' there may be none there, so I'd be glad
if you don't risk a lot of dollars in the work."

The gambler felt mean as he listened to the quiet words ringing with
such simple honesty. Time and again his beady eyes lifted to the
steady blue ones, only to drop quickly before their fearless
sincerity. He stirred irritably, and a hot impatience with himself
drove him so that the moment Scipio finished speaking he broke out at
once.

"Here," he cried, without the least gentleness, "you're talkin' a heap
o' foolishness. I'm a bizness man offerin' a bizness proposition. I
don't want nuthin' given. I'm out to make a deal. You say there's no
gold there. Wal, I say there sure is. That bein' so I'd be a low down
skunk takin' ha'f your claim fer nix, jest because you guess you owe
me things--which I 'low you sure do, speakin' plain. I got a thousand
dollars right here,"--he pulled out a packet of bills from his hip
pocket, and held them up for the other's inspection--"an' them dollars
says ther's gold on your claim. An' I'm yearnin' to touch ha'