Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1907-12-10
BY REX e. BEACH.

FlQlcule were to be his. III he should
be downed, discredited and discourag-
ed, then perhaps he would turn to her
as he had in the bygone days. He
was slipping away from! her-this was
her last chance. She began her du-
ties easily. and her alertness stimulat-
ed Bronco TIL his senses, too, grew
sharper, his observation more acute
and lightning Glenister swore be-
meath his breath that the cards were
bewitched. He was like drunken
man, now as truly intoxicated as
though the fumes of wine had be-
logged his brain. He swayed in his
seat. the veins of his neck thickened
and throbbed, his features We're con-
gested. After awhile he spoke.
II want a bigger limit. Is this some
boys game? Throw her open."'
The gambler shot a triumphant
glance at the girl and acquiesced. "All
right, the limit is the blue sky. Pile
your checks to the roof pole" He be-
gan to shuttle.
Within the crowded circle the air
was hot and fetid with the breath Of
men. The sweat trickled down Glen
ister's brown skin, dripping from his
jaw unnoticed. He arose and ripped
OF his coat, while those standing be-
hind shifted and scuffed their feet I'm
patiently. Besides Roy, there were but
three men playing. They were the
ones who had won heaviest at first.
Now that luck was against them they
were loath to quit.
Cherry was annoyed by stertorous
breathing at her shoulder, and glanced
back to find the little man who had
been SO excited earlier in the evening.
His mouth was agape. his eyes wide,
the muscles about his lips twitching.
He had lost back, long since, the hun
dreds he had won and more besides.
She searched the figures walling her
about and saw no women. They had
been crowded out long since. 1t
seemed as though the table formed the
bottom of a sloping pit Of human faces
eager, tense, staring. 1t was we'll
she was here, she thought, else this
task might fail. She would help to
blast Glenister, desolate him, humillate
him. All, but wouldn't she!
Roy bet 500 on the popular card.
On the third turn he lost. He bet $500
next and lost. He set out stack of
$500 and lost for the third time For
tune had turned her face. He ground
his teeth and doubled until the stakes
grew enormous, while the dealer dealt
monotonously. The spots flashed aud
disappeared, taking with them wager
after wager. Glenister became con-
scious- Of raging, red fury which he
had hard shift to master. 1t was not
his money! what If he did lose2 He
would stay until he won. He would
win. This luck would not, could not,
last-and yet with diabolic persistence
he continued to choose the losing cards.
The other men Jared better till he
yielded to their judgment, when the
dealer took their money also.
Strange to say, the tickle goddess had
really shifted her banner at last, and
the Bronco Kid was dealing straight
faro now. He was too good player
to force winning hand, md Glenis-
ter's i'll fortune became rs phenomenal
as his winning had been. The girl who
figured in this drama was keyed to the
highest tension. her eyes now on her
counters, now searching the profile OF
her victim. Glcnister continued to lose
and lose and lose, while the girl gloat-
ed over his swift coming ruin. When
/ at long intervals he won a bet, she
shrank and shivered for fear he might
escape. II only he would risk 1t all
everything he had. He would have to
come to her then!
The end was closer than she realized.
The throng hung GREATNESS upon each
move Of the players, while there was no
sound but the noise of shifting chips
and the distant jangle of the orchestra
The lookout sat far forward upon his
perch, his hands upon his knees, his
eyes frozen to the board, dead cigar
clinched between his teeth. Crowded
upon his platform We're miners tense
and motionless rs statues. When q
man spoke or coughed, a score Of eyes
| stared at him accusingly, then dropped
| to the table again.
Glenister took from his clothes a bun
die Of banlinotes SO thick that it re
quired his two hands to compass it
Onlookers saw that the bills wer,
mainly yellow. No one spoke while III
counted them rapidly, glanced at thu
dealer, who nodded, then slid then
forward till they rested on the king
He placed a copper on the pile. 4
Il great SIGH of in(lrawn breathS sven