station and so was a favorite lounging place for the prominent
citizens of Blue Creek and the guests of the hostelry, seemed only
languidly interested.

"Thet's a powerful pile of baggage they're toting round," observed
"Shavings" Magoon, who owed his nickname to the peculiar color and
length of his hair, which looked as if it might have been gathered
up bodily from the floor of a carpenter's shop and transferred to
the top of his wrinkled countenance, about which it hung like a
dubious aureole.

"You say that the tall chap yonder is Jim, Bell?"

The question, asked with some appearance of interest, came from a
slender, dark-haired man in a blue shirt and leather "chaps," his
face overshadowed by a big sombrero, who up to this time had not
spoken. He had been leaning against the front wall of the National,
thoughtfully removing some more of its paint by scraping it with the
big rowelled Mexican spurs which he affected. These spurs, heavily
mounted with Silver, together with a red sash he wore in the Mexican
style about his waist, rather marked him out from his fellows on the
National's porch.

Cash Dallam looked round as if in astonishment at the voice.

"Why hal-lo, stranger," he said, "whar you bin hidin' all these
moons? Yes, that's Jim Bell, sure enough. Wouldn't think he wuz a
millionaire ter look at him, would yer?"

The other shook his head.