than one occasion, but it did me no harm, because then
I knew what the upshot would be, and merely stood by watching into which
hole the solitaire marble would find its end, and laughed. That first
time though, it hurt. It was badly done, too; badly and heartlessly,
and after a while John Denton stepped into my shoes. All this, of
course, took some little time; but it is commonplace enough, so I pass
over, it quickly.

"Well, I had learned a thing or two by then, so I made no sign that I
even felt I had been wronged. I took a leaf out of their book, and
professed great friendliness still. You know--the frank and
can't-be-helped sort of article. I meant to lie low and wait, but I
meant to be even with master John one of these days. So I went to
America, and led a strange, hard, knock-about life for some time. I was
in the thick of it through '66 and '67, when all the Plains tribes were
out on the war-path; and it was in one of those ructions that I came by
that queer double scar, for it was chipped out by an Indian arrow whose
tip had become curiously split.

"Well, I was watching my opportunity, and it came at last; came earlier
than I expected. Denton soon got into difficulties, for he was an awful
gambler, and lost pretty nearly all he was worth; all that should have
been mine. What easier than to induce him to come out West? There were
always openings there. For, mind you, I had remained on outwardly
friendly terms with him.

"He came, and from the moment he did so, I determined to kill him, not
as I eventually did, that was more than three parts accident, but in
fair stand-up fight. The worst of me is I am of the most vindictive
temperament in the world, I cannot forgive--still less could I then. We
went into all sorts of things together, but all the time I hated him--
all the time I was only watching my opportunity.

"I meant that he should meet me in fair fight, that we should stand an
even chance. But that night at Stillwell's Flat, when he came back
after a successful gamble, more self-sufficient, more overbearing than
ever, I could hold back no longer. I proposed to him that we should
fight it out--a duel _a outrance_. But he came at me unawares, swearing
I wanted to plunder him of his winnings; came at me with an axe. We had
a desperate struggle, an awful struggle. It was touch and go with
either of us, and then all the devils in me were let loose as I thought
of what he had done. I kil