. Little, don't mind me," he muttered, groping for the bag
again. "I'm a little off color to-day. Ought not to chuck up the booze
so suddenly, I suppose. But I'll survive it. Go on."

"Only one thing I want explained," said Little slowly. "The rest can be
gathered from your books, I understand." The ex-salesman looked straight
into Gordon's furtive eyes and uttered his words very distinctly. "How
much of Houten's gold dust have you sent to Leyden? And where is the
accumulated result of the past six months of washing?"

Gordon's mouth twitched at the corners, imparting to his face the
expression of a partially decayed skull. The breath whistled from his
tightly drawn lips, while he fought with his nerveless legs for support.
At last he mastered himself and stood upright, for the moment seeming to
expand and straighten into something approximating a clean, complete
man.

"What Leyden has had can't be brought back," he said. "But you'll find
in that leather book--last entry, made this morning--the sum due to me
from Houten up to the end of this month. You'll find it entered in the
credit side of the trade account. If I'm permitted to remain here after
you've cleaned up, a similar sum will go down in the same column until
what Leyden had is paid for. The rest of the dust is packed in bags. It
was all ready for Leyden to call for. You get it now. The gargoyle-faced
dwarf at the gate will show you where it is. Now, if that's all, I'll
thank you both to get to blazes out of here and let me finish packing.
I'm still trader here until I pass out."

"Where are you going, Mr. Gordon?" asked Barry civilly. He was more and
more drawn to this self-wrecked human being, so obviously once a
gentleman. "There's a cabin aboard my ship, if you care to use it."

"It's none of your damned business where I'm going!" Gordon snarled,
with grinning teeth. Then his face softened, and he added: "Much obliged
for the invitation, though, skipper. I'm a beast. But please remember
that I'm a drunken beast trying to become a sober beast. Will you please
go now?"

"So long," Barry gave him shortly, and walked out. Little followed,
calling back: "Better take that cabin, Gordon. Hotels must be pretty
rotten here, hey? No? Well, so long, and good luck."

They passed out by the big gate and caught sight of the brown dwarf on
the parapet of the stockade. Pausing a moment, they debated whether to
immediately demand the gold bags or to go first to the s