"You ain't got a right to rob him, howsumever, and I'm not going to loaf around with my hands in my pockets and see you do it."
"Blather! What's a chink, anyhow?"
"A chap's got to be treated square," spoke up Matt, "no matter whether his skin's white, black, or yellow."
"Look here, Charley," persisted the man, "I'll give you fifty cold dollars for that boat."
"I'll give him seventy-five," put in another man. "If the launch is going at a bargain I might as well hand over a bid. What do you say, Charley?"
The China boy's little eyes began to snap and sparkle as the idea of profit drifted through his head.
"Let them bid, Charley," said Matt. "I'll give you ten dollars more than the highest bid they make."
This headed off any further attempt to get the better of the Chinaman. After lingering in the vicinity for a few minutes, the last of the crowd departed in the direction of the ferry house.
"You takee boat," said the Chinaman to Matt. "You ketchee, you takee. Huh?"
"For how much?" queried Matt. "I haven't any use for the craft, Charley, and I was merely bidding to keep those other fellows from robbing you."