business I thought he might help me. He was there, but in
conference with his father and another man. There were several
people waiting, so I sat down. When the man they were talking to
came out, it was Pete, that driller who put down the first well
for us. He was glad to see me, and we had quite a talk, but I
noticed he was fidgety. He said he was running a rig over near
'Burk,' and had a fishing job on his hands. With all the
excitement and everybody running double 'towers' and trying to
beat the other fellow down to the sand, it struck me as queer that
a contract driller like Pete would be here in Wichita in
conference with Bell and Henry Nelson, when he ought to be out on
the lease fishing for a lost bit. It didn't sound right. The more
I got out of him, the queerer it sounded, for he had all the
fishing tools he needed, so I accused him of being a fraud. I told
him I'd bet he had a showing of oil and was trying to borrow money
to buy the offset or to get the Nelsons to buy it and carry him
for an interest."

"Where'd you pick up this lingo?" Tom inquired. "You talk like
them wild men at the Westland Hotel."

Barbara laughed delightedly. "Didn't I put down all our shallow
wells? If I didn't, I thought I did. Anyhow, I spent most of my
time around the rigs and Pete used to call me his boss. Well, that
wretched man turned all colors when I accused him, and tried to
'shush' me. He said I mustn't talk about things I knew nothing
about--somebody might overhear me. He declared the outfit he was
working for were no good and wouldn't pay a driller a bonus if he
made a well for them. He was sick of making other people rich and
getting nothing for himself.... It was time the drilling crews