es a yellow envelope at me.

"'Well, Pierpont,' I says, 'what's the good word?'

"'Sign here. Two bits,' he says, yawnin'.

"I sees where it says 'charges paid,' 'n' I takes him by the back of
the neck 'n' he gets away to a flyin' start fur the gate. The message
is from Buck Harms.

"'Am at the St Charles, meet me nine a. m. to-morrow,' it says.

"This Harms duck is named right, 'cause that's what he does to every
guy he meets. He's so crooked he can sleep on a corkscrew. When there
ain't nobody else around he'll take money out of one pocket 'n' put it
in another. He's been ruled off twict 'n' there's no chance fur him to
get back. I wouldn't stand fur him only I'm in so bad I has to do
somethin'.

"'If he takes any coin from me he'll have to be Hermann,' I says to
myself, 'n' I shows up at the hotel the next mawnin'.

"Harms is settin' in the lobby readin' the dope-sheet. I pipes him off
'n' he don't look good to me fur a minute, but I goes over 'n' shakes
his mitt.

"'Well, Blister, old scout, how're they breakin'?' he says.

"'So, so,' I says.

"'That right?' he says. 'I hears different. Fishhead Peters tells me
they've got you on the ropes.'

"'What th' hell does that gassy Fishhead know about me?' I says.

"'Cut out the stallin',' he says. 'It don't go between friends. Would
you like to git a-holt of a new roll?'

"'I don't mind tellin' you that sooner 'n have my clothes tore I lets
somebody crowd a bundle of kale on to me,' I says.

"'That sounds better,' he says. 'Come on--we'll take a cab ride.'

"'Where we goin'?' I asks him, as we gets into a cab.

"'Goin' to look at a hoss,' he says.

"'What fur?' I says.

"'Wait till we git there 'n' I'll tell you,' he says.

"We rides fur about a hour 'n' pulls up at a barn out in the edge of
town. We goes inside 'n' there's a big sorrel geldin', with a blaize
face, in a box-stall.

"'Look him over,' says Harms. I gets one pike at the hoss--

"'Why! it's ole Friendless!' I says.

"'Look close,' he says. 'Wait till I get him outside.'

"I looks the hoss over careful when he's outside in the light, 'n' I
don't know what to think. First I think it's Friendless 'n' then I
think maybe it ain't.

"'If it ain't Friendless, it's his double!' I says at last. 'But I
think Friendless has a white forefoot.'

"'Well, it ain't Friendless,' says Harms as he leads the hoss into the
barn. 'And you're right about the white foot.'

"Now, Fri