“‘Now,’ exclaimed No. 2 to his companion, ’I am sure you will lose the wager; the fellow is imperturbable; nothing can move him.’

“‘Wait a bit; I’ll soon make him leave off,’ whispered the other, loud enough for Slick to hear him.

“‘Landlord,’ continued he, ’we trust to your honour to go on for half an hour; we will now have a talk with bonny Mrs. Slick.’  Saying this, they quitted the room without closing the door.

“Slick was not jealous; not he.  Besides, the bar was full of people; it was all a trick of the gents, who were behind the door watching him.  After all, they were but novices, and he would win their money:  he only regretted that the bet had not been heavier.

“Twenty minutes had fairly passed, when Slick’s own little boy entered the room.  ‘Pa,’ said he, ’there is a gemman what wants you below in the bar.’

“‘Another trick,’ thought the landlord; ’they shan’t have me, though.—­Here she goes, there she goes.’  And as the boy approached near to him to repeat his errand, Slick gave him a kick.  ’Get away.  Here she goes, there she goes.’

“The boy went away crying, and soon returned with Mrs. Slick, who cried in an angry tone, ’Now, don’t make a fool of yourself; the gentleman you sold the town-lot to is below with the money.’

“‘They shan’t have me, though,’ said Slick to himself.  And to all the invectives and reproaches of Mrs. Slick he answered only with, ’Here she goes? there she goes.’  At last the long needle marked the half hour, and the landlord, having won the wager, turned round.

“‘Where are they?’ said he to his wife.

“‘They?-who do you mean?’ answered she.

“‘The two gentlemen, to be sure.’

“‘Why, they have been gone these last twenty minutes,’

“Slick was thunderstruck.  ‘And the pocket-book?’ he uttered, convulsively.

“His wife looked at him with ineffable contempt.

“‘Why, you fool, you did not give them your money, did you?’

“Slick soon discovered that he was minus five hundred dollars, besides the price of the two dinners.  Since that time he never bets but cash down, and in the presence of witnesses.”

CHAPTER XXX.

We continued our route for a few days after we had left the buffaloes, and now turned our horses’ heads due east.  Having left behind the localities frequented by the wild herds, we soon became exposed to the cravings of hunger.  Now and then we would fall in with a prairie hen, a turkey, or a few rattlesnakes, but the deer and antelopes were so shy, that though we could see them sporting at a distance, we could never come within a mile of them.

The ground was level, and the grass, although short, was excellent pasture, and richly enamelled with a variety of flowers.  It was a beautiful country.  We had fine weather during the day, but the nights were exceedingly cold, and the dew heavy.  Having lost our blankets, we passed miserable nights.  There was no fuel with which we could light our fire; even the dung of animals was so scarce that we could not, during seven days, afford to cook our scanty meals more than thrice, and the four last grouse that we killed were eaten raw.