ou,
but you can't run no blazer on me. And just because you chased me clean
down into Death Valley you don't need to think I'm afraid. I was just
showing you up as a desert-man, et cetery, but if any man had told me
you'd drink that poisoned water I'd've said he was crazy with the heat.
You're a lovely looking specimen of humanity! What's the matter--didn't
you like them Epsom salts?"

"There was arsenic in that water!" charged Pisen-face fiercely. "I had
it analyzed--you were trying to kill me!"

"Why, sure there was arsenic," returned Wunpost mockingly, "don't you
know that rank, fishy smell? But don't blame me--it was God Almighty
that threw the mixture together. And didn't I leave you a drink in that
empty can? Well, where is your proper gratitude?"

He ogled him sarcastically and Lynch took a step forward, only to halt
as Wunpost stepped to meet him.

"That's all right!" threatened Lynch, his voice tremulous with rage and
weakness. "You wait till I git back my strength. I'll fix you for this,
you dirty, poisoning coward--you led me to that spring on purpose!"

"Yes, and you followed, you sucker!" returned Wunpost insultingly; "even
your Injun had better sense than that. What did you expect me to
do--leave you a canteen of good water so you could trail me up and pot
me? No, you can consider yourself lucky I didn't shoot you like a dog
for following me off the trail. I gave you the road--what did you want
to follow _me_ for? By grab, it looked danged bad!"

"I'll go where I please!" declared Lynch defiantly. "You're hiding a
mine that belongs to Mr. Eells and my instructions were to follow you
and find it."

"Well, if you'd followed your instructions," returned Wunpost easily,
"you sure would have found a mine. Do you see these two bags? Plum full
of ore that I dug since I gave you the shake. Go back and report that to
your boss."

"You're a liar!" snarled Lynch, but his eyes were on the ore-sacks and
now they were gleaming with envy. And other eyes also were suddenly
focussed on the gold, at which Wunpost surveyed the crowd intolerantly.

"You're a prize bunch of prospectors," he announced as from the
housetops. "Why don't you get out in the hills and rustle? That's the
way I got my start. But you Blackwater stiffs want to hang around town
and let somebody else do the work. All you want is a chance to stake an
extension on some big strike, so you can sell it to some promoter from
Los!"

He grunted conte