much for that--is worth over five hundred dollars."

Gardiner enjoyed the look of amazement that slowly spread over Riles'
face. "He's been stuffin' you," said Riles at length, thinking of his
own extravagance when he paid ninety cents a yard for a carpet for
their front room at home. "He's been stuffin' you sure. There ain't
no mats worth any money like that."

"It's gospel," said Gardiner. "Why, man, he has a set of chess worth
more than the best team on your farm, and that statue affair up
there--you simply couldn't buy it. The place is just bristling with
valuables of one kind and another."

But Riles appeared suddenly agitated. He seized Gardiner by the arm,
saying, "If this stuff's worth's much as you figure, why don't we
make a clean-up here, when the duke, or whatever he is, is away?
That'd be safer, wouldn't it?"

"No, it wouldn't. It'd be easy enough to get away with the stuff, but
how'd you turn it into money? The police would get you sure on a game
like that. Of course, if you should decide to go in for culture,
without the 'agri' ahead, you might like to have the prayer-mat for
your own knees. No, you can't put over anything like that. And now we
better be getting down to business."

Gardiner drew a couple of chairs up to the carved table, opened a
drawer, and produced writing materials. "We can't get a letter away
to Harris any too soon. Nothing like making hay while the sun shines,
you know, and if he gets out here before we put our plan up to him,
it would be natural enough for him to want to see the mine-owner
himself. So hitch yourself to that pen there, and let us see what
kind of a hand you are at fiction."

Riles would rather have done a day's work in the field than write a
letter, but Gardiner insisted it must be done by him. Much of the
afternoon was spent in the struggle, and Gardiner's fertile
imagination had to be appealed to at several critical points. But at
last the letter was completed. It ran as follows:

"John Harris esq
"planvil man

"sir i take up my pen to let you no that i am all well hoppin this
will find you the same well this is a grate contry their is sure a
big out ov doors well mr Harris i think i see somthing here a hole
lot better than 3 years on a homstead homsteads is all rite for men
that Hasunt got any mony but a man with sum mony can do better i
wisht i Had sold my plase before i left i could ov done well here
their is lots ov chantez to make big mony their