g notes of her insistent heralds proclaiming the south
wind, and bird calls and murmuring rivulets of melting snow. And when
she ceased and they finally permitted her to withdraw before dancing
again it was almost with a shock that they realized that the snow was
still falling outside.

It was then that Bob Flick turned at last to his two companions. "You've
seen?" was his brief, low-voiced comment. Both men nodded.

"Every deputy in the county here," said Seagreave in as low a voice as
the one Flick had used. "No exits for us anywhere. The sheriff has them
well stationed."

"Thank God, I came," muttered Gallito, "but I wish we knew their plan."

"That's easy," said Flick. "Hanson's so sure that he's won the game
before it's played that he's ready to tell any one that will listen to
him how it all happened, before it's begun. I guess I'll go over and
talk to him a little before Pearl comes on again."

He rose to his tall, languid height and sauntered in his laziest fashion
across the floor.

"Say, stranger," he began, resting his elbow on the back of a chair next
Hanson, and leaning his head on his hand, "haven't we met before. It
seemed to me a few moments ago when I caught your eye that your face was
more or less familiar."

"Well, now ain't that strange!" exclaimed Hanson in affected surprise.
"But I just had a sort of an idea that you'd recognize me to-night in
spite of my disguise. Yes, now you ask me, let me tell you, since your
memory is so poor, that we have met once or twice before, but it ain't
likely that we ever will again. Sad," he shook his head and sighed
heavily, "I hate to disappoint you by telling you so, but, someway, I
got that idea firmly fixed in my head."

"Is that so?" said Flick politely. "Well, maybe you're right. It does
kind of look so from the layout you've got here. How are you going to
play it, anyway? Both ends to the middle, I suppose."

"Correct," returned Hanson blithely. "We lined up outside to watch you
when you got out of the wagon. If you hadn't brought him with you we
wouldn't have disturbed you during the entertainment; just gone up the
hill and got him and then rounded the rest of you up afterward. But you
were kind enough to save us that trouble."

"Don't mention it," drawled Flick; "but I don't just sabe why you didn't
take us when we drove up. You had the whole bunch of us then."

"We're taking no chances," Hanson winked knowingly. "The boys up here
have been hav