"Well, maybe so," qualified De Lancey; "but when it comes to getting in supplies—"
"Not a bit of trouble in the world," said the old man crabbedly. "Not a bit."
"Well," came back De Lancey, "what's the matter, then? What is the proposition, anyway?"
Henry Kruger blinked and eyed him intently.
"I've stated the proposition to Hooker," he said, "and he refused it. That's enough, ain't it?"
De Lancey laughed and turned away.
"Well, yes, I guess it is." Then, in passing, he said to Bud: "Go ahead and talk to him."
He walked away, lighting a cigarette and smiling good-naturedly, and the oldtimer turned to Bud.
"That's a smart man you've got for a pardner," he remarked. "A smart man. You want to look out," he added, "or he'll get away with you."
"Nope," said Bud. "You don't know him like I do. He's straight as a die."