The guest ate a grape, and perceiving he was seen through, smiled back rather miserably.
“Say, Shorty,” said Balaam, his head still slanted over, “what's the figures of your bank balance just now?”
“I ain't usin' banks,” murmured the youth.
Balaam put some more grapes on Shorty's plate, and drawing a cigar from his waistcoat, sent it rolling to his guest.
“Matches are behind you,” he added. He gave a cigar to the Virginian as an afterthought, but to his disgust, the Southerner put it in his pocket and lighted a pipe.
Balaam accompanied his guest, Shorty, when he went to the pasture to saddle up and depart. “Got a rope?” he asked the guest, as they lifted down the bars.
“Don't need to rope him. I can walk right up to Pedro. You stay back.”
Hiding his bridle behind him, Shorty walked to the river-bank, where the pony was switching his long tail in the shade; and speaking persuasively to him, he came nearer, till he laid his hand on Pedro's dusky mane, which was many shades darker than his hide. He turned expectantly, and his master came up to his expectations with a piece of bread.
“Eats that, does he?” said Balaam, over the bars.
“Likes the salt,” said Shorty. “Now, n-n-ow, here! Yu' don't guess yu'll be bridled, don't you? Open your teeth! Yu'd like to play yu' was nobody's horse and live private? Or maybe yu'd prefer ownin' a saloon?”