boys?"

Inside of three minutes he had placed a hundred dollars. The terms of the
race were arranged and the money put in the hands of the foreman.

"Each man to ride his own caballo," suggested Hart slyly.

This brought a laugh. The idea of Ad Miller's two hundred and fifty
pounds in the seat of a jockey made for hilarity.

"I reckon George will have to ride the broomtail. We don't aim to break
its back," replied Miller genially.

His partner was a short man with a spare, wiry body. Few men trusted him
after a glance at the mutilated face. The thin, hard lips gave warning
that he had sold himself to evil. The low forehead, above which the hair
was plastered flat in an arc, advertised low mentality.

An hour later Buck Byington drew Sanders aside.

"Dave, you're a chuckle-haided rabbit. If ever I seen tinhorn sports them
two is such. They're collectin' a livin' off'n suckers. Didn't you sabe
that come-on stuff? Their pack-horse is a ringer. They tried him out
this evenin', but I noticed they ran under a blanket. Both of 'em are
crooked as a dog's hind laig."

"Maybeso," admitted the young man. "But Chiquito never went back on me
yet. These fellows may be overplayin' their hand, don't you reckon?"

"Not a chanct. That tumblebug Miller is one fishy proposition, and his