Wild honeysuckle bells softly in a faint breeze, bright petals aflame in the afternoon sun. Tufted redbirds flitter among wolfberry bushes on the slopes while bluebirds swoop down from the sky in flat, shallow dives. Scattered throughout the vast valley are ranches and homesteads. Three or four cattle barons rule the whole of the valley. The room is filled with a blue tangle of smoke and the storm of voices.
Coins ring in a steady chorus along the bar.
The long bar is backed by a large mirror and occupies one side of the room. The barkeep, a heavyset man with sagging jowls, wears red garters on his sleeves and a friendly smile on his face. Opposite the bar is a faro table manned by the house dealer. Towards the rear are three tables, the center one covered with green felt. Dice clatter across the table as two gamblers buck the dice with savage stubbornness.