“Name?” inquired the sergeant, seeing him quiet at last.

“My name, bah Jove?” exclaimed the other. “Chauncey Van Ren——”

Again Mark gave him a poke.

“Peter Smith,” said Chauncey.

“And yours?”

“John Jones,” said Texas.

“And yours?”

Mark glanced at the others with one last dying trace of a smile.

“Timothy O’Flaherty,” said he. “You understand,” he added, to ease his conscience, “they’re all fictitious, of course.”

The sergeant nodded as he wrote the names.