s, seh?" he said to a passenger.

"Don't trust the judgment of a man as hungry as I am!" exclaimed the
traveller, with a laugh. And he turned to his fellow-travellers. "Did
you ever enjoy supper at Delmonico's more than this?"

"Never!" they sighed.

"Why, look here," said the traveller, "what fools the people of this
town are! Here we've been all these starving days, and you come and get
ahead of them!"

"That's right easy explained," said the Virginian. "I've been where
there was big money in frawgs, and they 'ain't been. They're all cattle
hyeh. Talk cattle, think cattle, and they're bankrupt in consequence.
Fallen through. Ain't that so?" he inquired of the native.

"That's about the way," said the man.

"It's mighty hard to do what your neighbors ain't doin'," pursued the
Virginian. "Montana is all cattle, an' these folks must be cattle,
an' never notice the country right hyeh is too small for a range, an'
swampy, anyway, an' just waitin' to be a frawg ranch."

At this, all wore a face of careful reserve.

"I'm not claimin' to be smarter than you folks hyeh," said the
Virginian, deprecatingly, to his assistant. "But travellin' learns a
man many customs. You wouldn't do the business they done at Tulare,
California, north side o' the lake. They cert'nly utilized them hopeless
swamps splendid. Of course they put up big capital and went into it
scientific, gettin' advice from the government Fish Commission, an' such
like knowledge. Yu' see, they had big markets for their frawgs,--San
Francisco, Los Angeles, and clear to New York afteh the Southern Pacific
was through. But up hyeh yu' could sell to passengers every day like yu'
done this one day. They would get to know yu' along the line. Competing
swamps are scarce. The dining-cyars would take your frawgs, and yu'
would have the Yellowstone Park for four months in the year. Them hotels
are anxious to please, an' they would buy off yu' what their Eastern
patrons esteem as fine-eatin'. And you folks would be sellin' something
instead o' nothin'."

"That's a practical idea," said a traveller. "And little cost."

"And little cost," said the Virginian.

"Would Eastern people eat frogs?" inquired the man.

"Look at us!" said the traveller.

"Delmonico doesn't give yu' such a treat!" said the Virginian.

"Not exactly!" the traveller exclaimed.

"How much would be paid for frogs?" said Trampas to him. And I saw
Scipio bend closer to his cooking.

"Oh, I don