The Desire of the Moth; and the Come On

Cash, and let

erica. Therefore-The syllogism may he imperfectly stated, but the conclusi

of thirty-six blameless hours he perceived that he was looking through a glass darkly, in the Business Man

FERES WITH YOUR B

erriment smote across the loneliness. A h

ll you walk into my

the door, closing it, through sheer inadvertence,

he Eminent Person. A wight of high renown and national, this last, who had attained to his present bad Eminence through superior longevity. As he was still in the prime of life, it should perhaps

ing up chip-stacks. "How much?" he queried. The Judge and

egan. He was cut short by a torrent

to come in-all y

her v

and sleep in

uter goes for ac

spare handy and go to bed.

flush the

go to the

is money are

the rest of the night to get even!" Thus,

the Eminent Person, gravely admonitory. "And

d poker, lo! these many years, and no one ever called me a gambler once. The best I get is, 'Clear out, you blamed sucker. Come back when you g

colors and made a memorandum. The Five howled mockery and derision, the cards danced and beckoned luringly in the mellow

y enough," he quoted inaccurately. "I'll have s

ll that he could not be bluffed out. The betting was fierce and furious. Steve, "on velvet," played brilliantly. But he was in fast company-too fast for h

ransactions of his chief, a frenzied but by no means verdant copper magnate, to whom he, the Judge, was Procureur-General, adviser legal and

remunerative Federal position as a tribute to his ambidextrous versati

a goodly sum might well be abstracted from these reckless and capricious persons; pr

aturally incensed that they were not more. Yielding to his half-formed resolve, he dug up his herd of cat

after a one-card draw all around, he became obsessed with the fixed idea that they were both bluffing and afraid to show down. When

ting, parrot-wise, "That's good-give me another stack." His pers

he pot. "I drawed out on you. Sometimes the cards run against a fel

ve. "You're liable to go home talking to

ood. Now he was smiling, easy, serene, his mind working smoothly, like a well-oiled machine.

bets with wary respect. Men of his type are never so formidable as in defeat. Things had come to such a pass that

opened for two hundred. The Transient stayed, as did the Merchant and the Judge, the latt

tion." He scrutinized his cards, contributed his quota, and raised for double the amount. "I'll just

t a show for this much," he said, pushing back the side money. "And a pretty good o

three sevens, of diam

n of hearts?" he wond

and carefully, drew ou

Merchant, replac

and raised it to a thousand. "To dissuade you all from drawing out

ent. The Judge hesitated, swore

al corroborative inspection, scratched his head an

p, blue sea. One thousand bucks. Much money. Ugh! One thousand days, each day of twenty-four golde

f them things!" su

ight flush when there's such a chance for acti

ge, critically. "Your lips get pale and give you away when you try to screw your courage up. Of cours

nor's got one of them same things his black self. You might b

y," said Steve. "Want to split the

dge corrected himself hastily-"I mean, I've got the money

on. But I'll save out a hundred with you, Ste

Faint heart never won a jackpot. Here goes nothin'!" said Steve, pushing the money in. "One from t

ong left arm and flipped the cards from the pack with a jerk of the wrist. "Cards and spades? (I'm pa

aymen will please recall that, as already specified, a straight flush was, in this game, the Best.) As th

e pack. "Hold on!" he cried. "Look at this!" He made a motion as if to spre

Stockman. "You know you've no right to an exp

Nothing worse'n dumb, idiotic thumb-hand-sidedness. I specially don't want no one else to get mixed up in this," with a glance at the Stockman. "So you and the Judge needn't feel called upon to act as seconds. But I'm vexed. I'm vexed just about

" said the d

turns up, protect yourself, or somebody's widow'll be in a position to collect life insurance, and I ain'

dropped the card over. No slightest motion from either man,

in concert by the quartette

nerve and integrity alike. Nevertheless, he now ran that hand slowly through his hair and wiped his forehead. "That was one long fi

ed from a thousand big round dollars to draw a card and then got it turned over, you wouldn't have car

h them. The Judge was casually examining the chandelier with

aiting for, Thompson? I pass

while ago, you're not obliged to call this

his hand with careful adjustment and alignment. After much delay, he symmetr

too-before the draw," he remarked at

dubious. "It might have taken second

?" he said confidentially-"do you know, I was actua

till you get something?" He laid his hand down. "Four tens and most five! The Curse of Scotland

of spades lightly. "So that's why I coul

throwing good money after bad. I would

the button, and I'll do the rest," said Steve. He removed the side-money, placidly ignoring the "pot" of

ropped in unaffected

fingers on the table

w a grea

have treated this Court with the greatest contemptibility!" He p

dewy-eyed catamaran! Wha

over the eight of hearts; then, after a pause, the ace, king, queen and jack of spades; and resum

ation went up; the Tra

ry!" bellowed the Judge

my checks! I'm going t

"No sleep till morn where youth and

is chips, folded the bills

th you, you old fool?

onately. "You

easy game," he declaimed, "I must now remove myself from your big midst. For a Lalla-Cooler can only be played once in one night. Besides,

d the Stockman, chin on hand, rais

ment of chance to decide the destinies of nations. Heads, I order an assortment of vines and fig trees, go back to the Jornado and become a cattl

id the Merchant, picking it up. "I must warn my fr

ouvenir of the joyful

now, and we'l

do you? Thought not. Without there! Ho, varlet!" He thumped on the table, demanding writing m

efreshments, the Judge read wi

ge & Atwood, 25 Broad

tle

undee, New Mexico. You will kindly consider yourself

or go his bail, as the case may be, furnish him with pocket-m

ever his wishes are crossed, having been raised a pet. Therefore, you will be doing yourself a great favor by acceding to any request he may make, however unreasonable it may seem. It i

*

. Steve pocketed it gravely. "Thank you," he said. "W

! Tomorro'sh tangle to the winds reshign. Come, all ye midnight roish-roishterers! A few more kindly cupsh for Auld Lang

a flush a

ney was ne

nsh rosh ov

houldn't have

*

; finally taking to the vestibule as affording better conveniences for observations. He was, however, not so absorbed in the scenery but that he took sharp note of the cowboy's unsophisticated garb and gui

grape, where they vied with each other in liberality, and one who naively imparted his private history without reticence. A lumberman, who had risen

to New York parties-the Copper-bottom, just to the left of the High Line Trail from Anaconda to Philipsburgh; receiving $10,000 down for a quarter interest, giving option on two-thirds remainder for $50,000, if, after six months' development work, the mine justified its promise. It had proved all his f

the salient points of his past, present and future; embellished by a flood of detail and personal reminiscence. It is to be regretted that

er after knowledge; it is better to siphon than to be

acquaintance might not have their first view of the metropolis in company. But he had promised his aged parents to come to them directly, by way of Albany. However, he was a day ahead of his schedule; neither of them had seen Niagara; if Thompson would excuse him, he would write his father, that the

n mailed at Buff

MIT

gha

lingto