t care much who he fights, so long as he's a good
showman, or he's got to take them all on as they come. All the hard
ones, and the harder the better, till one of 'em puts him to sleep."

Devereau's voice acquired a whine, the plaintive note of a man whose
sincere best efforts have gone unappreciated.

"And I had it all figured out. I been doing all the headwork for you.
I figured how we'd sidestep Montague and Holliday--all the tough
birds--just as long as we could stall 'em off. And pick up a nice
piece of change. Your share'd be enough so's you'd not need to worry.
And we'd made a great start. They were dead sick of Fanchette. The
papers were wild for somebody new. And they put you over better'n we
could have done it ourselves.

"But you gotta work different. They liked you at first. They ain't so
dead sure they give a damn about you now. You gotta be a good boy.
More of a mixer. The crowd has been waitin' a long time for you to
loosen up and slip 'em a piece of news that can be cashed. And they're
getting sulky. A'course that's my fault too. I admit it. But it
couldn't be helped. There wasn't much you coulda tipped 'em off to,
but you shoulda stalled 'em along. You should have promised 'em
something when the time was right. But it's right now, now that you're
matched with Hughie. You can tell 'em just how to get aboard. It's
time, before some of 'em get good and sore, and begin to holler for you
to meet Montague."

"I can whip Montague," said Perry. "Holliday I'm not so sure of. But
Montague I can whip, the best day he ever stood in shoes."

It maddened Devereau again. Just when he was beginning to congratulate
himself that his work was good.

"You can't lick him," he choked. "You couldn't lick him even if he was
handcuffed and shackled to a ball and chain." He tossed aloft his arms.

"Champion! You, champion! Oh, my Gawd!"

He strode across the room. But he came back swiftly to the boy who had
not moved in his chair.

"Get this now!" he barked. He was done with talk. Done with argument.

"Get this, because when I'm finished this time, I'm through. I've got
my coin in this thing and so has Dunham. And we're going to drag down
what we put in with a little something for interest. We're going to
get ours, and then you can fight Montague and be damned--or Holliday.
You can go throw your nice new title into the gutter as soon as you
please, for all of me, and try being first pr