this other cuss steps with her into the hall, an' Dickert turns an' says to
me, 'You git a thousand dollars each fer your land--you an' that woman,' he
says.

"I never liked the way he spoke--besides what he said; an' I says to him,
'The bargain was made fer five thousand dollars apiece,' says I, 'an' why
do we git less?'

"'Beca'se,' says he, a-swellin' up an' lookin' at me red an'
devilish,--'beca'se you take my leavin's--you fool! I bought the land of
you fer a thousand dollars each--an' there's my deed to it, that you jest
signed--I reckon you can read it. Ef I sell the land to the company--it's
none o' your business what I git fer it.'

"Well, I can't read--not greatly. I don't know how I knowed--but I did
know--that he was gittin' from the company the five thousand dollars apiece
that we was to have had. I seen his eye cut round to the hall door, an' I
thort he had that money on him (beca'se he was their agent an' they'd
trusted him so far) fer to pay me and Euola in cash. With that he grabbed
up the deed an' stuffed it into his pocket. Lord! Lord! I could 'a' shook
it out o' him--an' the money too--hit's what I would 'a' done if the fool
had 'a' kep' his mouth shut. But I reckon hit was God's punishment on him
'at he had to go on sayin', 'Yes, you tuck my leavin's in the money, an'
you've tuck my leavin's agin to-day.' Euola was jest comin' into the room
when he said that, an' he looked at her. I hit him." He gazed down the
length of his arm thoughtfully. "I ort to be careful when I hit out, bein'
stronger than most. But I was mad, an' I hit harder than I thort. I reached
over an' grabbed open the table drawer jest fer luck--an' thar was the
money. I tuck it. The other cuss he was down on the floor, sorter
whimperin' an' workin' over this feller Dickert; an' he begun to yell that