New-York tribune., 1909-09-12

| one OF the servingmen with a nod and directed
him 10 fetch the piece of Jade for 20 examine
Ii was the piece YOU lunmoXes have been SD
| InquiSitIve about
| You like inquired Little Pete, falling
| into another abbreviated ChInk phrase as l
/ examined the carving of the 1ade.
| 80 Who wouldn't ike l asked him, setting
/ the Jade piece down
| He IS yours said Little Pete waving his
| clawINe little yellow hand toward the piece Of
| Jade.
Il said nothing. knew there'd be some
thing popping to explain 1t all soon, and was
| willing 70 wait, because the dinner was IN class
| by itself and because a lot OF other things.
| AT the coffee Little Pete said something 10
/ the head SeTVInguan, who went out. presently
| returning with obloug box of carved IVORY
| about SIX inches in height. Little Pete opened
| this and took from II an IVORY affair of about
| the shape and size OF an ostrich egg. This lie
/ unScrewei IN The middle and took from II an
| other egg of slightly smaller size. There were
| eight OF these middle threaded ivory eggs one
/ within the other and when Little Pete got
/ down 70 the last one he leaned over tow ard me
| as he unScrewed It.
He took of the top half Of this little ivory
/ egg. and there under the flare of light, and
\ nesting IN dab of snowy fleece. was the biggest
| pigeon blood ruby l ever had peek at. 1t
| almost to be sqUiruing IN its nest of fleece. l
colddn' I hold IN an exclamation
Like him' Little Pete asked me- Iooking
| up with his slow spreading grin.
i 1
and such like sand l. maybe a little ornate un-
/ der the glow of the wine.
60 Yours then said Little Pete, and he
| screwed all the eggs together one within the
other, placed the big egg in the oblong IVORY
| box, and stood 1t alongside my plate
| THAT'S when l pushed my plate back
don't like to have to wait too long for the
/ answer 10 puzzle.
| What for' | asked him. Why mine2 Let
me IN on this. What for''
| Little Pete leaned back in his chair. lit a
/ cigarette, blew a few eddieS of smoke at the
/ ceiling studied me turtively before beginning
and then said in a matter Of fact tone:
| Is this Mazatlan SO good, them
| How should know | asked him.
| hat appeared to puzzle him bit; but he
went ahead. 'Mazatlan could lose. couldn't he2'
Iou' We got me out on the limb again. Pete
/ sand /. Any nag can lose of course. ANY nag
/ does. sometimes. at that But what good Is my
| opinion OF tins Mazatlan skate, | never even
saw him
HE gave distinct start at that. Then he
! leaned forward IN his chair and eyed me keenlv
Never saw your own horSe2' he SAID To me. and
there was hoarscncSS IN his voice that hadn't
noticed before. on make a Joke them
NV horSer said l. Quit YOUR foo1in0
good host don't own a hair of Mazatlau'S tail
Don't own any kind of a race horse Never
owned one IN my htc. Where did YOU get that''
You are Clint Blank'' said Little Pete
leaning Stll farther forward in his chair as he
Named the man the house detective of the
Palace had mentioned to me as being the
owner OF the horse Nazatlan
Not any; Not none rebated right back.
lor the thing was pretty pellucjd % me bv thar
time / understood why Little Pete was for
loading me with gifts OF wives and r,lbies and
Jade carvings and things I'm Turk O'FlIlon.
student OF men. cities, and money: though.
speaking OF the latter, I'm oftener broke than
not Pretty comfortably broke now for th,
matter Of that Not So much broke, thouFh
that Ia he accepting a lift from a Chinau1n
who Tor a sure thing mistakes me for somebody
else
A IL Cinnamon are game losers Little Pete
knew all about his mistake before the
W'TdS were half ont of my mouth lie sni,-
mSly offered me a cigarette and then leaned
comfortably back IN his chair Whatever ,,,,r-
tiity1tlon he tcIt he swallowed Wcchattc,l f,r
Htte while longer IL all wcavrd through my
hlnd as we Chdttcd Somebody had pyintrI
me out To- Little Pete in the Palace lobby 3s
MdzitIdn owner or, IN the pointing out Iittl.
V'e eve had caught the wroug man. thar
same pelng me. He was used u brihins owners
"i race horses TO channel affairs his wav lie
wanted L. make bumper bet on some other
morse IN the hlg stake race of the morrow and