"I'll let you in—jes' len' me ten—or five—or jes' one dollar—hit's a cinch—Lord! I can meck ten for one jist as easy—Dee don' know him—Dee think he ain' nuthing but a cur dawg—dats what I told 'em. And I'll meck you all de money in the worl'—I will dat."
"What are you talking about?"
"Well, you see, hits dthis away—I wouldn't bother you if dat yaller bar-keeper nigger hadn' clean me up wid them d——d loaded bones of hisn—jis' stole it from me—yes, suh—jis'——"
"Cleaned you up? When?"
"Dthis very evenin'—I had seventeen dollars right in my pocket, heah. You ax Mr. Wills if I didn't. He seen me have it—I had jes' got it, too——"
"You liar—you just now told me you hadn't had a cent in a month, and now you say you had seventeen dollars this evening." Jeams reared himself up.
"I toll you dthat?" He was now steadying himself with great gravity and trying to keep his eyes fixed on me.
"Yes."
"No, sir. I never toll you dthat in this worl'! 'Cause 'twould a been a lie—and I wouldn' tell you a lie for nuthin' on earth—I never had no seventeen dollars."
"I know you didn't—I know that's true, unless you stole it; but you said——"