"Yu!" came the laconic reply. "Get down!"

"What's eating you?" Bill asked in no uncertain inflection. Had Tex been
less imperative and kept the insulting tone out of his words Bill might
have had time to become afraid, but the sting made him leap over fear to
anger; and genuine anger takes small heed of fear.

Tex motioned to one of his men, who instantly leaped to the ground and
ran to the turn, where he knelt behind a rock, his rifle covering the back
trail. Then Tex returned to the driver.

"Curiosity is eating me, yu half-breed!" he cried. "GET DOWN! d----n yu,
GET DOWN!! Don't wait all day, neither, do yu hear? What th' h--l do yu
think I'm a-talkin' for!"

"Well, I'll be blamed!" ejaculated Bill, wrapping the reins about the
back of his seat. "Anybody would think you was the boss of the earth to
hear you! You ain't no road agent, you're only a fool amature with more
gall than brains! But I'll tell you right here and now that if you _are_
playing road agent, I wouldn't be in your fool boots for a cool million.
And if you are joking you are showing d----d bad taste, and don't you
forget it. You're holding up a sack of U. S. mail, and if you don't know
what that means----"

"Shut yore face! Yu talk when I ask yu to!" shouted Tex as the driver
dropped to the ground. "But since yore so unholy strong on th' palaver,
suppose yu just explains why yu are so all-fired friendly to Th' Orphant?
Suppose yu lisp why yu take such a peculiar interest in his health and
happiness. Come now, out with it--this ain't no Quaker meeting."

"Warble, birdie, warble!" jeered one of the cowboys. "Sing, yu ---- ----!"

"We're shore waitin', darlin'," jeered another. "Tune up an' get started,
Windy."

"Well, since you talks like that," cried Bill, stung to reckless fury at
the cutting contempt of the words, "you can go to h--l and find out from
your fool friends!" he shouted, beside himself with rage. "Who are you to
stick me up and ask questions? It's none of your infernal business who
I like, you hog-nosed tanks! Why didn't you bring some decent men with
you, you flat-faced skunks? Why didn't you bring Sneed! White men would
a told you just what you are if you asked them to help you in your dirty
work, wouldn't they? Even a tin-horn gambler, a crooked cheat, would
give me more show for my money than you have, you bowlegged coyotes!
Ain't you man enough to turn the trick alone, Williard? Can't you play
a lone hand in ambush, you