ey, grub money; and he had brought the specimen along as a
teaser. He swore he hadn't mentioned the matter to a soul except me.
There wasn't any hurry either, he said, or danger. The prospect was forty
miles out on the desert from Tonopah, no railroad nearer, and no one was
interested there much as yet. If I'd advance him another thousand,
though--I'd been backing him a thousand dollars at a time--he'd go back
and file regular, and when I'd had an assay made, if the thing looked
good, he'd sell to me outright for five thousand cash."

For the first time the speaker halted, looked at the listener directly.

"Still interested, are you?" he queried. "It's all money, money from
first to last."

"Yes, go on. I think I saw this man Evans, didn't I, around with you for
several days?"

"Possibly. I kept him here while I was getting a report. I'd seen some
ore before and the scent looked warm to me. Besides, I knew Evans, and
under the circumstances I felt better to keep him in sight. I did for a
week, night and day. He never left me for an hour. He'd been eating my
bread and salt for a year, had every reason to be under obligation and
loyal, was so tentatively, his coming proved that; but, while one has to
trust others up to a certain point in this world, beyond that--I've found
beyond that it's better not to take chances, even on obligation.... Have
you ever known anything of the kind yourself?"

The girl was not looking at him now. "I've had little experience with
people," she evaded, "very little. Go on, please. I'm interested."

"Well, the report came the day I 'phoned you, on the last delivery. Evans
was killing time, as usual, about the office and I called him into my
private room and locked the door. I read it through to him aloud, every
word; and, he didn't seem to take it all in at first, again. All at once
the thing came over him, the full meaning of that assay of two hundred
dollars to the ton--and he went to pieces, like a fly-wheel that's turned
too fast. He simply caved. For ten years he'd been chasing the rainbow of
chance, and now all at once, when he'd fairly given up hope, he'd
stumbled upon it and the pot of gold together. It was too much for him.

"This was at five o'clock in the afternoon, I say. At six o'clock I
unlocked the door and things began to move definitely. What happened in
that hour doesn't matter. It wasn't pleasant, and under the circumstances
no one would believe me if I told; for I had