ighting for his head and hoping for some real
competition which never quite arrived. The black horse won by three
open lengths, won with wraps still on his jockey's wrists, and, as
the form chart stated, "did not bleed and was never fully extended."

"Well, anyhow," said Mr. Marx, as he wheezed back to his place of
business, "Curry won't get anything but the purse again and that'll
help some. If he brought a dead horse around here in a wagon, the
best he'd get from me would be 1 to 2!"

The judges, of course, were curious. They invited Old Man Curry into
the stand to ask him if he had bet on Jeremiah.

"Gentlemen," said he, removing his battered slouch hat, "I give you
my word, I never went near that betting ring but once to-day, and
that was to bet on a _real_ hoss. 'Elisha!' I says, and I shoved it
at 'em. Judges, they laughed at me. They wouldn't take a cent. Not a
cent! And I was so mad----"

"Yes, yes," said the presiding judge, soothingly, "but how do you
account for Jeremiah bleeding in his work this morning and running
such a good race this afternoon?"

"Gentlemen," said Old Man Curry, "I don't account for it. Solomon was
the smartest man that ever lived, I reckon, and there was a lot of
things he never figured out. I reckon now, if he'd been in this
business----"

"Good-bye, Mr. Curry," said the presiding judge, "and good luck!"

The Bald-faced Kid might see miracles with his eyes, but there was
that about him which demanded explanation. Chastened in spirit,
utterly humble and cast down, he called upon Old Man Curry. He found
him seated in his tackle-room, reading the Old Testament by the light
of a lantern.

"Come in, Frank.... Got the Lunacy Board with you?"

"Don't rub it in. And if you can spare the time, I wish you'd tell me
what you've been up to with Jeremiah."

"Oh, Jeremiah. Well, now, he's a better hoss than some folks think.
There wasn't anything wrong with him but just them little bleedin'
spells. When I got him cured of those----"

"Cured! Was he cured this morning? Didn't I see him bleed all over
the place?"

"You saw some blood, yes ... Frank, I wish't you wouldn't interrupt
me when I'm talkin'.... Well, about three weeks ago I met up with a
man that claimed he had a remedy to cure bleeders. I let him try his
hand on Jeremiah and he done a good job. Since then we've been
workin' the black rascal at two in the mornin' when all you wise
folks was in bed.... Of course, I didn't want