louie swale's restaurant was full, choked with threshers agog for the result of the great struggle. almost every individual present had a stake involved. the building was a uniquely composite plant, comprising department store, café, bar, club, all under the solitary genius of the rotund and active swale. he combined the offices of proprietor, manager, floor-walker, bartender, chef, cashier, possessing an innocent smile of friendliest amenity and the obsequious deportment of a suave head-waiter. he had certain periodic fines to meet for the vending of ancient beverages that fell without the code. these he paid promptly with sanguine light-heartedness. louie swale was universally liked, as are all good fellows whom careless nature throws into life incomplete in the entire central osseous system of the vertebrate. he was a fat, juicy, even companionable earthworm.
the store carried a thorough line from roots to ribbons, occupying the front section of the building. out of the store one wandered into a long room, low and rectangular, where louie dispensed the quaffable and edible mysteries of his bar-café. the rear apartment was a blind room some twenty feet square, containing a few rough chairs and a round table covered with a green baize cloth. a well-thumbed pack on the centre of the table was the only purposeful article visible. there were two doors, both provided with heavy bars on the inside. one opened into the outshed; the other into the bar. this door was locally renowned as the green baize door, and was believed to secrete behind its baize-covered panels a barrel of mysteries unco', cabalistic and otherwise. since it was windowless, two dirty lamps did duty night and day. obviously, when the "square room" was occupied seriously the green baize door was to be found shut. at such times a peculiar knock was the sesame.
store and café were crowded with men anxious to hear the momentous decision of jack butte. suddenly there arose a stamping and shouting. the stakeholder had climbed up on a table and was calling order. glasses were set down and cards stacked.
"gentlemen!" he cried. "there is a little preliminary or two i must pull off before i can announce the winner of the threshing bout between rob mcclure and ned pullar. whatever the result, i appeal to the winners and losers to take their medicine. i want the word of both bosses that they will not stand for any sorehead business or rough house. i'll not hand out the totals until i get that word."
butte paused significantly.
"go ahead," said ned, with a grin. "we'll be good."
"agreed!" exclaimed mcclure. "my gang is no bunch of squealers. spit it out."
"thank you, gentlemen," said butte. "that is satisfactory. but there is another matter. before i hand out the stakes i want you to choose two rank outsiders from this crowd who shall go into the square room with me and verify my figures. when they have made an audit i will come out and give you the facts."
speedily the arrangement was effected and the three men went in behind the green baize door.
during the interim easy murphy shuffled close to snoopy bill baird. grinning insolently into his face he addressed him in a cavernous stage whisper.
"how's the buttercups, snoopy?" said he. "ye did not consarn yersilf wid a second bokay."
andy bissett, standing near, placed his hand deterringly on easy's shoulder.
"steady, lad!" he whispered. "ned's given his word. keep in line."
snoopy bill ruffled instantly at the thrust. with a quick snatch at his breast pocket he drew out a bunch of bills and fluttered them flauntingly in easy's face.
"how about a bokaa-y of these nice green shamrocks?" said he, with an exasperating laugh. "have you the eye for a fresh fifty?"
"indade, and they are the purty flowers," was the quick response. "they're to be had fer the pickin'. i'm wid ye, snoopy."
quickly he covered the bet, placing the stake with a bystander. the incident stimulated an emulation in the crowd, and by the time butte appeared again the excitement had risen to the point of explosion.
"hold your horses for a little!" he cried, smiling into the glaring eyes of the gamesters. "i'll go right to the point. for a month past these two gangs have been hammering away to roll up a big total, and i want to tell you they have done it. the gangs have worked twenty-seven full days and have made the record runs of the pellawa country."
butte's deliberate manner was too slow for his strained audience.
"cut the talk, jack! cough up the totals!" yelled a voice.
"hear, hear!" came an applauding roar.
"to resume," said butte, bowing pleasantly, "in estimating the oats i reduced them to a total weight and then dividing by sixty, found the equivalent in weight of wheat. the total is therefore stated in terms of wheat. this was agreed upon by the two bosses. rob mcclure's machine has turned out a total of seventy thousand, eight hundred and twenty-one bushels."
at the announcement the mcclure gang and their partisans lifted a shout of elation. above the ensuing hubbub rose the brogue of easy murphy:
"shure, johnny butte, 'tis a swell towtal. but ye'll hev till open yer mug wider, begobs, whin ye give the valley count."
in spite of the extreme tension a boisterous roar greeted the defy.
"against this," said the stakeholder amid a breathless silence, "the valley outfit have rolled up the huge total of seventy-one thousand, nine hundred and fifty-five bushels——"
his words were drowned in a wild ringing cheer. led by murphy's deep bass roar, the valley outfit let go. as the rumpus died down andy bissett lifted his cap and shouted:
"three cheers for rob mcclure's gang. they made a great run."
ere they could raise the shout mcclure yelled:
"no! saw off your blankety howl. we want none of it. you doped one of my men or you would never have turned the trick."
easy murphy's lips were framing a reply when ned spoke up.
"i want to state," said he with quiet deliberateness, "that as far as my knowledge goes, the valley gang has run this thing as straight as a whip. i appeal to jack butte. do we win on our merits?"
a chorus of applause greeted ned's words.
"gentlemen!" replied the stakeholder. "this game has been run on the square. my figures have been verified and are open to the public. the valley outfit are the undisputed champions of the qu'appelle. come up to the counter and i'll pay over the cash."
the convivial spirit ran high as the wagers were collected. in the rear of the room mcclure and his men held angry concourse. suddenly they pushed their way to the counter. mcclure spoke loudly, his face and eyes aflame.
"come, swale," commanded he. "we set up the drinks for the house. make it hard stuff all round."
his manner was offensive. ostensibly the host, he was really the bully. the valley outfit made no move to accept the proffered treat. ned pullar stepped up to his sullen opponent.
"no, rob mcclure!" was his crisp exclamation, accompanied by a flash of indignant eyes. "we don't drink with gentlemen who insult us in the same breath. the valley outfit, with their little thirty-six inch mill, beat you to a frazzle. you'll never have a chance like this again, for next fall will find the qu'appelle champions capering about the finest mill on the pellawa plains. you look, rob, almost mad enough to fight. very well. i have given jack butte my word to keep quiet. the valley outfit is going to get out and leave you the whole house. if you want to mix up with us, don't let us get away. if you are afraid of mussing up louie's joint we'll wait for you outside. meanwhile, will you accommodate us, gentlemen, by clearing away from that door?"
at the words he brushed past mcclure, who stood glowering at him with eyes that streamed a liquid hate. for all his rage mcclure was held from battle by a subtle enervation that baffled him.
"the valley outfit will leave at once," was ned's cry as he flung open the door. with his hand on the knob he waited for his men to pass out before him. with surprising promptitude they complied. easy murphy was the last to leave. pausing on the threshold he turned about.
"'tis a braw bunch ye are, mcclure, wid yer blower bunged and yer engine buckin'. begobs, i cud put the howl gang uv ye till slape on a wathurr wagon. come out intill the moonlight."
with that he went out, followed by a flying flask and the curses of mcclure.
"good-night, gentlemen!" said ned, a mocking light in his eye. "we'll hang around outside for ten minutes or so. if you can make it, why—the valley outfit would be delighted."
once out among his men they urged him to go back. but he shook his head.
"no, lads!" he said firmly. "i do not want to fight. if they come out we'll sail in. i think i've something better than even a good fight. i'll put you next when we pull away from louie's."
the ten minutes passed. the door opened once but shut again. the valley gang hooted derisively. they waited five minutes longer. mcclure had evidently passed up the challenge. though his men knew it not, ned was intensely relieved. he could scarcely understand. the fact was mcclure apprised the situation exactly notwithstanding his rage. he was no coward; nor was he a fool. he knew that gang for gang ned had him beaten in more ways than in the mere threshing. let the valley outfit pull off its bluff. he would nurse his chagrin and strike—later.
when ned got his men well out of ear-shot he addressed them in a sudden light-heartedness that surprised them.
"i want to thank you, lads, for holding yourselves so wonderfully when i know you were itching to get your hands on mcclure and his oary-eyed crew. this is a great night. we've threshed rob mcclure twice to-night. we've out-milled him for a month and gathered in the wager and we've handed him a mighty hard punch by forcing him and his gang to funk. we are now going to pull off a little stunt that will be remembered for many a day along the qu'appelle. easy will come with me. the rest of you get back to the caboose with andy. he'll put you next. we'll meet you there at eleven o'clock. you will all remember that to-night's hallowe'en."
by a mighty effort of self-restraint the men acceded to ned's request to leave the village. eleven o'clock found them waiting with andy, all agog for the next move.
