the wily horse - dealer thought that he saw a chance of driving a good bargain . the stranger looked a man of some consequence ; so he named a good round sum . the old man tried to bargain with him ; but when he found that he had not much chance of succeeding . no one ever did succeed in inducing canonbie dick to sell a horse for a less sum than he named for it at first . he agreed to buy the animals , and , pulling a bag of gold from the pocket of his queerly cut breeches . he began to count out the price . as he did so , canonbie dick got another shock of surprise . the gold that the stranger gave him was not the gold that was in use at the time , but was fashioned into unicorns , and bonnet - pieces , and other ancient coins . it would be of no use to the horse - dealer in his everyday transactions . but it was good , pure gold . he took it gladly . he knew that he was selling his horses at about half as much again as they were worth . " so , " thought he to himself , " surely i can not be the loser in the long run . "
lead it over bowden moor after dark , and he was sure to meet the mysterious , white - headed stranger .
what did the horse-dealer do whenever he came across a suitable horse ?
what did the horse-dealer do whenever he came across a suitable horse ?