"And the nearest railroad point?"
"Is Aspen. If I remember correctly, Garvin said it was about twenty miles across the range."
"Good. That accounts for the beginning of the race; they'll go to Aspen and take horses from there. But I don't understand why they took the long line. There are two railroads to Aspen, and one of them is an hour and twenty minutes longer than the other. That's your chance, and the only one,—to beat 'em to the end of the railroad run. How are you fixed?"
"For money, you mean? I have the wreck of a ten-dollar note and a hotel bill to pay."
Bartrow spun around on his heel and shot a sudden question at the hotel clerk, the answer to which was inaudible to Jeffard. But Bartrow's rejoinder was explanatory.
"Rooms over the bank, you say? That's lucky." This to the clerk; and then to Jeffard: "Come along with me; this is no time to stick at trifles. You've got to have money, suddenly, and plenty of it."
But Jeffard hung back.
"What are you going to do, Dick?"
"Stake you and let you try for a special engine over the short line. Those fellows took the long way around, as I say,—why, I don't know, because both trains leave at the same time. The running time the way they have gone is five hours and forty-five minutes. By the other line it's only four hours and twenty-five minutes. Savez?"