nts, and as such he cared for them and
looked after them. He was always friendly in manner to them, always
ready to help and assist them, to attend to their wants, to listen to
their complaints, and settle the frequent disputes amongst themselves,
which they invariably brought to him for decision. If he had not
instilled affection into them, they felt an unlimited faith and
confidence in his absolute justice.

"He's hard, real hard," they said amongst themselves, "but he'll never
go back on you;" and that was the received opinion amongst them.

Although he was conscious now of the feeling growing up amongst his men,
he appeared to ignore it entirely. As long as his instructions and
commands were carried out, he affected to be in ignorance whether it was
with a smiling or a scowling face. He felt certain that the disaffection
owed its origin to the man Marley, and he expected every day that some
matter would bring this man and himself into a personal conflict, in
which he meant to conquer, and he preferred to wait for this to happen
than to, in any way, take an initiative step in bringing the covert
hostility to light.

It was his method. On the same principle, when one of his debtors,
having completely lost his head in blind rage against a quiet order that
he should pay what was due, shook his fist in the other's face and
threatened to wipe the floor with him, Talbot did not knock the man
down, as some might have done. He simply remarked in his dryest tone,
"You'd better try it," and for some reason or other the man did not.
Shortly after the money was paid.

So now he simply stood his own ground, saw that his work was properly
done, and waited until the man courted his own punishment. In the
meantime, the men mistook his forbearance, his quietness, his smoothness
of tones and manner for weakness, and Marley, a bully by nature, and
quite incapable of understanding his employer, grew elated and
triumphant.

Stephen had been back at the gulch a fortnight or more, when Talbot
found late one afternoon some of his tools broken, and this, combined
with other work he had to do in town, decided him to go down that
afternoon and return the following day before daylight failed. He got
ready, locked up his house, and called upon Stephen to say he was going.
Stephen looked quite surprised, Talbot went to town so seldom, and then
began to chaff him upon his motives and intentions.

"As it happens, I'm going about some mending