“I don’t care if yuh did tear yore pants,” he continued. “If yuh can’t take care of yoreself don’t blame me. I’ve shore treated yuh white, Ren Merton, and now yuh turns and bites th’ hand which feeds yuh!”
“Bites yore hand!” snorted Ren, shaking his forefinger under Sig’s nose. “Listen: any time I starts bitin’ you won’t confine yore diagnosis to hands, old timer. I orates openly that as soon as daylight comes I’m goin’ down and make uh crate and prepare Oscar fer shipment. Sabe? I ain’t concernin’ myself about that cat in th’ shed and hereby waives all rights to him, but I duly informs all present company that I’m uh close corporation when it comes to li’l’ Oscar. Let’s go to bed.”
“Not with you!” snarled Sig. “I’ll take uh blanket and go out in th’ woods or sleep in th’ shed with th’ cougar. I hereby refuses to share yore bed and I does it without malice in m’ heart. You grieves me deeply, Mr. Merton, and I’m sore at heart and meek-feelin’.”
“Hop to it!” grunted Ren, as he rolled into the bunk and stretched wearily. “Don’t go near Oscar ’cause I reckon he’s fond uh meek things.”
Sig took a blanket and went out, closing the door softly. As the door closed, Ren slid out of his bunk and peered out of the window. He chuckled as he saw Sig wander off into the trees, and he sat up and rolled a smoke and seemed to ponder deeply. Suddenly he slapped his leg and pinched out the light of his cigarette.
“By golly!” he chuckled, “won’t Sig go high, wide and handsome?”
The first tinge of morning showed in the east when Ren slipped out of the cabin and approached the shed. Ten minutes later a tawny figure glided out of the open shed and bounded off into the underbrush. Five minutes later an apparition in rags stumbled out of the shed and leaned uncertainly against the wall.
“Mama mine!” it mumbled. “I must be uh sight. Them danged things won’t go away when yuh gives ’em uh chance. I shore am scratched some artistic.”
He staggered into the cabin and painfully removed his torn clothing. He tore up some of the shirt for bandages, but there was too much space to cover and he was awfully tired. He sat on the bunk as naked as the day he was born and fumbled for a cigarette in the pockets he didn’t have on.