greater astonishment he replied. "It 'ud be only a neck and neck
race which would get to h-ll first," he said quietly. But we were
relieved--for he had SPOKEN! Almost simultaneously the wider turnpike
began to glimmer faintly as a visible track before us; the wayside trees
fell out of line, opened up, and dropped off one after another; we were
on the broader table-land, out of danger, and apparently unperceived and
unpursued.

Nevertheless in the conversation that broke out again with the
relighting of the lamps, and the comments, congratulations, and
reminiscences that were freely exchanged, Yuba Bill preserved a
dissatisfied and even resentful silence. The most generous praise of
his skill and courage awoke no response. "I reckon the old man waz just
spilin' for a fight, and is feelin' disappointed," said a passenger.
But those who knew that Bill had the true fighter's scorn for any purely
purposeless conflict were more or less concerned and watchful of him. He
would drive steadily for four or five minutes with thoughtfully knitted
brows, but eyes still keenly observant under his slouched hat, and
then, relaxing his strained attitude, would give way to a movement of
impatience. "You ain't uneasy about anything, Bill, are you?" asked
the Expressman confidentially. Bill lifted his eyes with a slightly
contemptuous surprise. "Not about anything ter COME. It's what HEZ
happened that I don't exackly sabe. I don't see no signs of Ramon's gang
ever havin' been out at all, and ef they were out I don't see why they
didn't go for us."

"The simple fact is that our ruse was successful," said an outside
passenger. "They waited to see our lights on the ridge, and, not seeing
them, missed us until we had passed. That's my opinion."