Page:Morley roberts--Painted Rock.djvu/143

 "What sort is he?"

"B'gosh," said Webb, "he's been hard and tough, and is yet. But what troubled me, Charlie, was that the life's tellin' on him too. I could see it. You cayn't be a bad man and a terror for nothin'. You hev to pay for it. I hear talk about iron narves, Charlie. You mark me, there ain't no iron narves, my son. I could guarantee to make a hero, built of chilled steel, tremble and cry in time. Holdin' your life in your hand breaks a man's narve in the end. That's clotted wisdom as thick as butter. But I threw out dark hints to Sage-brush that now was his time to do up Ben. They've been scared of each other this long time. I let on I reckoned Ben's narve was goin'. A man like Sage-brush Greet understands that, becos he hez his own experience to go on. Sage will be over here in a day or two. Lay low and say nothin'. I've told no one but Bob. Bob loves me like a son. I've been some good to Bob, because of his grandmother, pore thing."

The good old chap smoked quietly for a while, as we looked out over the darkening