out usin' the wrong word, Sandy. A woman's sensitive about them
things."

Sam smote Mormon between the shoulders before Sandy could make answer.

"Fo' a man who's had yore experience, you're deef, blind, dumb an' lost
to all sense of touch or motion," he shouted. "Remember what I said
about the stenographer? Mirandy's jealous of the Nicholson woman. Plumb
jealous! You better wear blinders while she's here, Mormon. If she's a
good-looker, Gawd help you! Mirandy won't."

CHAPTER XVI

EAST AND WEST

When Miranda Bailey heard the news she announced her determination of
coming over to the Three Star to prepare for the visitors.

"I reckon my reputation'll stand it," she said, "seein' I'm older than
two of you an' the third is still a married man. That spineless
governess'll be writin' back to the Keith woman about everything she
sees, eats, sits or sleeps on. Pedro's cookin' is enough to give any
easterner dyspepsy. The whole house wants reddin' up, it ain't been
swept proper fo' a year."

Abashed, the partners gave her full sway. They lived on the porch in
their spare waking moments, they ate cold victuals, and the lives of
Pedro and Joe were made miserable. But the ranch-house was scoured from
top to bottom. Miranda's car brought over curtains for the windows,
flowers for the window-sills, odds and ends that made the place look
homely, cheerful, inviting. Pedro was given lessons at the stove that he
at first took sulkily but, being praised and his wages raised, took
pride in.

"He'll do," vouchsafed Miranda at last, the evening before the arrival.
"He's no hand at cookies or doughnuts an' never will be, but I'll bring
them over from time to time. He can make a pie an' biscuit an' he can
broil meat. I've taught him to mash his pertaters with milk 'stead of
water an' to put butter in his hot cakes. I'm stayin' over till supper
ter-morrer to see everything has a good staht."

"She's stayin' over to git a good look at the Nicholson party," Sam said
to Mormon. "All this ain't jest for Molly."

"There's nothin' between Miss Mirandy an' myse'f," replied Mormon with
dignity. "She's a wonderful housekeeper."

"She sure is. Me, I'm so I'm afeard to come into my own house, it's so
golderned clean. If that third wife of yor'n...."

The long-suffering Mormon turned upon his partner. They were seated on
the broad top rail of the breaking corral, waiting the call to supper.
Mormon clutched Sam by his collar and jer