in an
offhanded way.

"Here um nicee lillee tlick," he said, as he ran the cards up his arm in
a long string. "Evelybody no do lat, so be."

Then he let them go back again, and in doing so two or three of them
dropped to the floor.

Hop was on his knees gathering them up in a twinkling.

Then it was that he slipped a card in the bootleg of Roche again.

But he was not caught doing it, however.

He got the cards that had dropped and did the trick over again, this
time not losing any of them when they ran back to his hand.

Then he suddenly showed the jack of hearts again.

"Do you want to try the other trick again?" the man front Silver Bend
asked.

"You no givee poor Chinee um showee to play um tlick, so be," answered
Hop.

"What kind of a show do you want? There you are with the jack of hearts
in your hand. Now I'll bet you that you can't get it into my bootleg
again!"

He moved back from the table, so he would be entirely clear from the
Chinaman, as he said this.

Hop let all hands have a look at the jack of hearts, and then he allowed
it to flip up his sleeve.

He shuffled the pack, laid it on the table and brought his fist down
upon it with considerable force.

"Lere um go!" he exclaimed. "Me bettee you hundled dollee you gottee um
jack of hearts in you bootleg, so be!"

"What!" cried Roche, as he looked down at his feet. "Do you mean that,
you heathen?"

"Me allee samee meanee," was the reply. "Me wantee givee you chancee to
gittee square, so be."

The villain had a hundred dollars out in a hurry.

"There you are!" he exclaimed. "Cover that!"

"Me covee allee samee pletty quickee, so be."

Hop did cover it, too; and then, folding his arms, he looked at Roche
and remained silent for a moment.

"Search me, somebody," said the latter, looking around. "Here, Sam! He
bet that the jack of hearts was in my bootleg again. You look and see."

"All right, Cap," answered the miner.

The leader of the outlaws stretched out his limbs and gave the man a
good chance to make the search before the eyes of the lookers-on.

He found the card the first thing, and, with a look of amazement on his
face, he held it up.

"There she is, Cap!" he exclaimed, with a shake of his head. "I didn't
think it was there; I thought ther Chinee was jest goin' ter let yer git
your money back. But there's ther jack of hearts, an' it sartinly was in
your boot!"

"Well, by ginger!" cried Roche. "I reckon I'm done with t