Henry's new, responsible, trusty foreman. This was the first act of his
administration. Once again he looked out at the departing missionary.
"Well," he vindictively stated, "I cert'nly ain't goin' to run afteh
him." And he looked at me again.

"Do you suppose the Judge knows?" I inquired.

He shook his head. "The windo' shades is all down still oveh yondeh."
He paused. "I don't care," he stated, quite as if he had been ten years
old. Then he grinned guiltily. "I was mighty respectful to him all
night."

"Oh, yes, respectful! Especially when you invited him to turn his wolf
loose."

The Virginian gave a joyous gulp. He now came and sat down on the edge
of my bed. "I spoke awful good English to him most of the time," said
he. "I can, yu' know, when I cinch my attention tight on to it. Yes,
I cert'nly spoke a lot o' good English. I didn't understand some of it
myself!"

He was now growing frankly pleased with his exploit. He had builded so
much better than he knew. He got up and looked out across the crystal
world of light. "The Doctor is at one-mile crossing," he said. "He'll
get breakfast at the N-lazy-Y." Then he returned and sat again on my
bed, and began to give me his real heart. "I never set up for being
better than others. Not even to myself. My thoughts ain't apt to travel
around making comparisons. And I shouldn't wonder if my memory took
as much notice of the meannesses I have done as of--as of the other
actions. But to have to sit like a dumb lamb and let a stranger tell yu'
for an hour that yu're a hawg and a swine, just after you have acted in
a way which them that know the facts would call pretty near white--"

"Trampas!" I could not help exclaiming.

For there are moments of insight when a guess amounts to knowledge.

"Has Scipio told--"

"No. Not a word. He wouldn't tell me."

"Well, yu' see, I arrived home hyeh this evenin' with several thoughts
workin' and stirrin' inside me. And not one o' them thoughts was what
yu'd call Christian. I ain't the least little bit ashamed of 'em. I'm a
human. But after the Judge--well, yu' heard him. And so when I went away
from that talk and saw how positions was changed--"

A step outside stopped him short. Nothing more could be read in his
face, for there was Trampas himself in the open door.

"Good morning," said Trampas, not looking at us. He spoke with the same
cool sullenness of yesterday.

We returned his greeting.

"I believe I'm late in congra