"But what is it, then?" demanded the fellow called Simsy; "if so be yuh know, tell us, Dolph? I ain't no coward, but I ain't no fool neither. An' if it comes tuh hangin' around, an' lettin' these jay cops git a strangle hold on me jest tuh show my grit, I tell yuh I ain't in it."
"Say, don't ye know the old loggin' road leads up here from the main line? I heard afore now o' fellers in cars mistakin' the way, or thinkin' they could cut off a heap of distance by startin' in on the side. All right, then; a fool is born every second, they say; an' one of 'em has just gone and got into trouble tryin' to foller that old loggin' road."
The tall tramp looked at his fat companion; and then both turned their eyes on Dolph as he finished speaking. Apparently his logic struck them as sound, for the expression of fear had already begun to vanish from their unwashed faces.
"D'ye really an' truly reckon that's what it be, Dolph?" asked the hobo who had answered to the name of Pete.
"'Cause we don't wanter take any chances, yuh see," added the tall one, shaking his little head to add emphasis to his remark.
"'Course it is," affirmed Dolph, with a laugh of scorn that did more to convince his mates than all his talking. "I tell ye that's some fool feller in a car. He's run into a tree, or some fool play like that, an' p'raps got hurted bad. Looky here, you two, how d'ye know this ain't jest the luckiest thing for us three coves that ever came down the pike?"
"What way?" growled Simsy.
"Yes, speak up an' tell us, Dolph," echoed the other. "Allers sed as how yuh had the brains o' the bunch. Me an' Pete likes the red licker too much. Right now we ain't all we orter be. How's it goin' tuh be lucky for us three?"
"Why," continued Dolph, with vehemence, "don't ye see, if so be this happens to be a rich guy what has got hurted, we can tote him in here, an' keep him along till he coughs up a nice little pile to his life savers. And if ye know a good thing when ye run across it, why both o' ye ought to put out to find him, and bring him back as quick as ye can."
At that Pete and Simsy again exchanged looks. The love of gain was rapidly overcoming their first fears; just as the artful Dolph had known it would.