as some little sly comment,
thoroughly good-natured, over the metamorphosis which a year had made in
Ray, when suddenly the door opened and he bounded in.

"Give me a flask of good brandy, Muldoon; our driver is almost frozen."

Of course there was a ripple of laughing chaff over the unchristian
spirit which prompted people to search the Scriptures in such weather
and freeze the helpless victims of their piety,--the drivers. All this
Ray parried in his old jaunty way, his white teeth gleaming and his eyes
twinkling with merriment over some unusually good hit; but as ill luck
would have it Mr. Crane had been up too late or too early--or both--and
had managed to drink more than was prudent. He had always smarted under
the scoring Ray had given him in Arizona, and he saw, or murkily thought
he saw, a chance to say a stinging thing. The bar-keeper had just
wrapped the flask in paper and was handing it to Ray, when Crane thickly
began,--

"Makes a heap of difference in a man this gettin' spooney, don't it?
Year ago Ray would have sneered at fellow's going to church, an' now
he's doin' it--self. Next thing, by George, he'll be havin' 'ligious
scruples 'bout goin' Indian-fighting."

There were sharp, sudden growls of "Shut up, you idiot!" "Choke him off,
somebody!" but all too late. Ray heard every word of it, and his eyes
blazed in an instant. Every man saw the coming storm, and there was an
awkward rising from chairs and gathering about Crane as though to hustle
him out of the room. For a moment Ray stood there quivering with wrath,
seemingly making strong effort at self-control, then, with the old ring
and snap to every word, he first sent the bar-keeper out of the room,
telling him to take the flask at once to his quarters, then turned
quickly on Crane, who was stupidly shuffling at a pack of cards.

"This is the third time, Mr. Crane, that you have made it necessary for
me to bring you up with a round turn. You intimate that a year ago I
would have sneered at a man's going to church. Never, sir, in my whole
life has man or woman, boy or girl, heard from my lips one word of
ridicule or disrespect for religious faith or religious observances. You
are in no condition to-day to appreciate what I say, perhaps, so you may
have until to-morrow for complete apology and retraction; but this much
you _can_ understand, sir: if you fancy for one instant that religions
scruples, or any other kind, will interfere with my fighting n