rose
bud from a bush which had been trained against a column of the veranda.
It appeared that he had called, from over the fence, the attention of
one of the men to the neglected condition of the plant, and had obtained
permission to "come in and tie it up." The men, being merely hirelings
of the chief squatter, had no personal feeling, and I was not therefore
surprised to hear that they presently allowed Rutli to come in
occasionally and look after his precious "slips." If they had any
suspicions of his great strength, it was probably offset by his peaceful
avocation and his bland, childlike face. Meantime, I had begun the usual
useless legal proceeding, but had also engaged a few rascals of my own
to be ready to take advantage of any want of vigilance on the part of my
adversaries. I never thought of Rutli in that connection any more than
they had.

A few Sundays later I was sitting in the little tea-arbor of Rutli's
nursery, peacefully smoking with him. Presently he took his long
china-bowled pipe from his mouth, and, looking at me blandly over his
yellow mustache, said:--

"You vonts sometimes to go in dot house, eh?"

I said, "Decidedly."

"Mit a revolver, and keep dot house dose men out?"

"Yes!"

"Vell! I put you in dot house--today!"

"Sunday?"

"Shoost so! It is a goot day! On der Suntay DREE men vill out go to
valk mit demselluffs, and visky trinken. TWO," holding up two gigantic
fingers, apparently only a shade or two smaller than his destined
victims, "stay dere. Dose I lift de fence over."

I hastened to inform him that any violence attempted against the parties
WHILE IN POSSESSION, although that possession was illegal, would, by a
fatuity of the law, land him in the county jail. I said I would not hear
of it.

"But suppose dere vos no fiolence? Suppose dose men vos villin', eh? How
vos dot for high?"

"I don't understand."

"So! You shall NOT understand! Dot is better. Go away now and dell your
men to coom dot house arount at halluff past dree. But YOU coom, mit
yourselluff alone, shoost as if you vos spazieren gehen, for a valk, by
dat fence at dree! Ven you shall dot front door vide open see, go in,
and dere you vos! You vill der rest leef to me!"

It was in vain that I begged Rutli to divulge his plan, and pointed out
again the danger of his technically breaking the law. But he was firm,
assuring me that I myself would be a witness that no assault would be
made. I looked into his clea