difficulty in identifying him by that."

"I wounded only a HAND," said Demorest. "But there was a HEAD in that
attempt that I never saw." He then revealed his own half-suspicions, but
how they were apparently refuted by the bravado of Steptoe and Whiskey
Dick.

"Then that was the reason THEY didn't gather at the fire," said Stacy
quickly.

"Ah!" said Demorest, "then YOU too suspected them?"

Stacy hesitated, and then said abruptly, "Yes."

Demorest was silent for a moment.

"Why didn't you tell me this this morning?" he said gently.

Stacy pointed to the distant Barker. "I didn't want you to tell him. I
thought it better for one partner to keep a secret from two than for the
two to keep it from one. Why didn't you tell me of your experience last
night?"

"I am afraid it was for the same reason," said Demorest, with a faint
smile. "And it sometimes seems to me, Jim, that we ought to imitate
Barker's frankness. In our dread of tainting him with our own knowledge
of evil we are sending him out into the world very poorly equipped, for
all his three hundred thousand dollars."

"I reckon you're right," said Stacy briefly, extending his hand. "Shake