“He say, have you got gold?”
“You say,” grinned Johnny, “that we have got gold. We don’t need a button-hook to button up our purse, but we’ve got gold. We pay gold. How much?”
The interpreter puckered up his brow and conveyed the message. The Mongol mumbled an answer.
“He say, how much you want pay?”
“Tell him for six cattle I pay one pound gold. All same.”
He drew from his pocket a small leather sack, and unlacing the strings held it open before the Mongol.
The crafty eyes of the trader half closed at sight of the glistening treasure. His greedy fingers ran through it again and again. Then he grunted.
“He say,” droned the interpreter, “how much cattle you want to buy?”
“Maybe three hundred,” stated Johnny casually.
The interpreter started, but delivered the message.