But before Johnnie could get to Crane and Keith, Crane and Keith came to Scattergood.

“You’ve got some kind of a proposition in mind,” said Keith, who did the talking because he could keep his temper better than Crane.  “What do you want?”

“Make me an offer,” said Scattergood.

“We’ll buy your provision company—­and give you a decent profit.”

“Don’t sound enticin’,” said Scattergood, reaching down and loosening his shoe.  It was too cold to omit the wearing of heavy woolen socks, so he could not twiddle his toes with perfect freedom, but he could twiddle them some, and that helped his mental processes.

“Well, what do you want?”

“I’ll sell the provision company’s stock of provisions—­and nothin’ more....  At a profit.  You got to buy, ’cause you can’t make arrangements to git in grub before I bring on a famine for you....  And I got the grub stored in warehouses.  That’s part of it.  Second, I’ll lease you my river for three years.  You wasn’t calc’latin’ to pay for the use of it.  So you be obleeged to pay in advance.  I figgered my profits on drivin’ at about two thousand this year.  Give you a three-year lease for five thousand.  I hain’t no hog....  Yes or no.”

There was a brief conference.  “Yes,” was the answer.

“Cash,” said Scattergood.

“You’ll have to come to the city for it,” Keith said, which Scattergood was not unwilling to do.  He returned with a certified check for twenty-six thousand five hundred and twenty-four dollars and nineteen cents, of which five thousand was rental of his river, and four thousand and odd dollars were his profits on his provisions.  Not a bad profit from a dust-throwing project!

Meantime Johnnie paid his visit to Crane and Keith, and came home to report.

“It hit them between wind and water,” he said.

“Uh-huh!...  What did you judge they had in mind?”

“They wanted to buy me out....  Of course I wouldn’t sell.  My clients wanted that timber, and were going to work to build their mill....  The last they said was that they were coming up to see me.”

“Uh-huh!  When they come, you mention about that strip of fifteen thousand acres you couldn’t buy, eh?  Let on you couldn’t get it.”

Johnnie held Scattergood as he was going out.  “I want to account for that five thousand dollars you placed in my name.”

“Go ahead.  I hain’t perventin’ you.”

“I got options on eighteen thousand six hundred acres of timber.  The options cost me twenty-one hundred and seventy dollars, and my expenses were sixty-one dollars and a half.”

“Um!...  Cheap enough.  What did the land cost an acre?”

“Averaged a dollar and seventy-five cents.”

“Huh!...  Not so bad.  Now tend to Crane and his quiet friend.”

They arrived in due time, accompanied by their lawyer.

“Mr. Bones,” said the lawyer, “you have certain options that my clients wish to purchase.  Undoubtedly they were taken in good faith, but we would like, before going farther, to know whom you are acting for.”