THE MAN WHO TOOK WATER
"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
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