"And others will have it as the engagement's broken off by reason of your losin' all your money in Johnny Rogers's smash?"
"And that," said Cai, "is just as true as the other. But who says that
Rogers has gone smash?"
"Everyone. I tackled Tabb upon the subject this mornin', and he couldn' deny it. The man's clean scat. He's been speckilatin' for years: I always looked for this to be the end, and when they told me the Saltypool wasn't insured, why, I drew my conclusions. As I was sayin' to Cap'n Hunken just now—"
"Eh? . . . Where is he?"
"Who?"
"'Bias Hunken. You said as you been speakin' with him—"
"Ay, to be sure, over his garden wall. I looked over and saw him weedin' among the rose-bushes, an' pulled up to give him the time o' day."
"You didn' tell him about the Saltypool?"
"As it happens, that's just what I did. He'd heard she was lost, but he'd no notion Rogers hadn't taken out an insurance on her, and he seemed quite fetched aback over it."
"The devil!"