"Why don't you print it on a play-card that I'm engaged to Pharlina
Pike and hang it on the fence there?" the Colonel snorted, wrathfully,
whirling on the Cap'n. "Didn't it ever occur to you that some things
in this world ain't none of your business?"

The Cap'n sighed with the resigned air that he had been displaying
during the week past.

"Lemme see, where was I?" went on the Colonel, surlily. "I was sayin',
wasn't I, that I didn't see how I'd let you stick yourself into this
fam'ly as you've done? It's time now for you and me to git to a
reck'nin'. There's blamed liars round here snick'rin' in their
whiskers, and sayin' that you've backed me down. Now--"

Another man was at the fence, and interrupted with aggravating
disregard of the Colonel's intentness on the business in hand. This
stranger was short and squat, stood with his feet braced wide apart,
and had a canvas bag slung over his shoulder. His broad face wore
a cheery smile.

"I've beat nor'west from the railroad, fetched a covered bridge on
the port quarter, shipmates," he roared, jovially, "and here I be,
bearin's lost and dead-reck'nin' skow-wowed."

"Seems to be your breed," sneered Ward to the Cap'n. "What's that
he's sayin', put in human language?"

"I'm chartered for port--port"--he also referred to a folded
paper--"to port Furliny Pike, som'eres in this latitude. Give me
p'ints o' compass, will ye?"