Sothebishopread，andLinlistened。Andallthewhilethisgoodclergymanwasperplexedhowtospeak——orifindeedtospeakatthistimeatall——totheheartofthemanbesidehimforwhomtheparablehadgonesosorelywrong。Whenthereadingwasdone，Linhadnottakenhiseyesfromthebishop’sface。
“Howlonghasthattherebeenwrote？“heasked。
Hewastoldabouthowlong。
“Mr。Bishop，“saidLin，“Iain’tgotgoodknowledgeoftheBible，andI
neverfiguredittobeabookmuchontofacts。AndItellyouI’mmoreplumbbeataboutit’shavingthatelderbrother，andhimbeingangry，downinblackandwhitetwothousandyearsago，than——thanifI’dseenamanturnwaterintowine，forI’dhaveknowedthatain’tso。Buttheelderbrotherisfacts——dead-surefacts。Andtheyknowedaboutthat，andputitdownjustthesameaslifetwothousandyearsago!“
“Well，“saidthebishop，wiselyignoringthechallengeastomiracles，“I
amagoodtwentyyearsolderthanyou，andallthattimeI’vebeenfindingmorefactsintheBibleeverydayIhavelived。“
Linmeditated。“Iguessthatcouldbe，“hesaid。“Yes；afterthatyu’vebeena-readin’，andwhatIknowformyselfthatIdidn’tknowtilllately，Iguessthatcouldbe。“
Thenthebishoptalkedwithexceedingcare，nordidheaskuncomfortablethings，ormoralizevisibly。ThushecametohearhowithadfaredwithLinhisfriend，andLinforgotaltogetheraboutitsbeingaparsonhewasdeliveringthefulnessofhisheartto。“Andcometothink，“heconcluded，“itweren’thomeIhadwenttobackEast，layin’roundthembigcities，whereamancan’thelpbutfeelstrangealltheweek。No，sir!Yu’canblowinathousanddollarslikeIdidinNewYork，andit’llnotgiveyu’anymorehomefeelin’thanwhatcattlehasputinastock-yard。Noritwouldn’thaveinBostonneither。Nowthiscountryhere“hewavedhishandtowardstheendlesssage-brush，“seein’itoncedmore，Iknowwheremyhomeis，andIwouldn’tlivenowhereselse。
OnlyIain’tgotnofatherwatchingformetocomeupWindRiver。“
Thecow-puncherstatedthismerelyasafact，andwithoutanynoteofself-pity。Butthebishopsfacegrewverytender，andhelookedawayfromLin。Knowinghisman——forhadhenotseenmanyofthiskindinhisdesertdiocese？——heforboretomakeanytextfromthatlastsentencethecow-puncherhadspoken。Lintalkedcheerfullyonaboutwhatheshouldnowdo。Theround-upmustbesomewherenearDuNoirCreek。Hewouldjoinitthisseason，butnextheshouldworkovertothePowderRivercountry。
Morebusinesswasoverthere，andbetterchancesforamantotakeupsomelandandhavearanchofhisown。AstheygotoutatFortWashakie，thebishophandedhimasmallbook，inwhichhehadturnedseveralleavesdown，carefullyavoidinganypagethatrelatedofmiracles。
“Youneednotreaditthrough，youknow，“hesaid，smiling；“justreadwhereIhavemarked，andseeifyoudon’tfindsomemorefacts。Goodbye——
andalwayscomeandseeme。“
ThenextmorninghewatchedLinridingslowlyoutoftheposttowardsWindRiver，leadingasinglepack-horse。By-and-bythelittlemovingdotwentovertheridge。Andasthebishopwalkedbackintotheparade-ground，thinkingoverthepossibilitiesinthatuntrainedmanlysoul，heshookhisheadsorrowfully。
THEWINNINGOFTHEBISCUIT-SHOOTER
ItwasquitecleartomethatMr。McLeancouldnotknowthenews。Meetinghimto-dayhadbeenunforeseen——unforeseenandsopleasantthatthethinghadnevercomeintomyheaduntiljustnow，afterbothofushadtalkedanddinedourfill，andweretorpidwithsatisfaction。
IhadfoundLinhereatRiversideinthemorning。Atmyhorse’sapproachtothecabin，itwasheandnotthepostmasterwhohadcomeprecipitatelyoutofthedoor。
“I’mturrublepleasedtoseeyu’，“hehadsaid，immediately。
“What’shappened？“saidI，insomeconcernathisappearance。
Andhepiteouslyexplained：“Why，I’vebeenhereallalonesinceyesterday!“
Thiswasindeedall；andmyhastyimpressionsofshootingandacorpsegavewaytomirthoverthechildandhisinnocentgrievancethathehadblurtedoutbeforeIcouldgetoffmyhorse。
Sincewhen，Iinquiredofhim，hadhisowncompanybecomesuchashocktohim？
“Astothat，“repliedMr。McLean，athoughtruffled，“whenamanexpectslonesomenesshestandsitlikehestandsanythingelse，ofcourse。Butwhenhehasfiguredonfindingcompany——say——“hebrokeoffandvindictivenesssparkledinhiseye——“whenyou’reluckyenoughtocatchyourselfalone，why，Isupposeyu’justtakeachairandchattoyourselfforhours——You’venotseenanythingofTommy？“hepursuedwithinterest。
Ihadnot；andforthwithLinpouredouttomethepent-upcomplaintsandsociabilitywithwhichhewasbursting。Theforemanhadsenthimoverherewithasackfuloflettersforthepost，andtobringbacktheweek’smailfortheranch。Adaywasgonenow，andnothingforamantodobutsitandsit。Tommywasoverduefifteenhours。Well，youcouldhaveenduredthat，buttheneighborshadalllockedtheircabinsandgonetoBuffalo。ItwascircusweekinBuffalo。HadIeverconsideredthemoneytheremustbeinthecircusbusiness？Tommyhadtakentheoutgoinglettersearlyyesterday。Nobodyhadkepthimwaiting。Byallrulesheshouldhavebeenbackagainlastnight。MaybethestagewaslatereachingPowderRiver，andTommyhadhadtolayoverforit。Well，thatwouldjustifyhim。Farmorelikelyhehadgonetothecircushimselfandtakenthemailwithhim。Tommywasnotypeofmanforpostmaster。ExceptdrawingtheallowancehismotherintheEastgavehimfirstofeverymonth，hehadnevershownpunctualitythatLincouldremember。Neverhadanysecondthoughts，andawfulfewfirstones。Toldbiggerliesthanasmallmanought，also。
“Hassuccesses，though，“saidI，wickedly。
“Huh!“wentonMr。McLean。“Successes!Oneice-cream-sodasuccess。Andshe“——Lin’sstillwoundedmalepridemadehimplaintive——“why，eventhatgirlquithim，onceshegotthechancetoappreciatehowinsignificanthewasascomparedwiththesizeofhiswords。No，sir。Notoneof’emretainsinterestinTommy。“
Linwasunsaddlingandlookingaftermyhorse，justbecausehewasgladtoseeme。Sinceourfirstacquaintance，thatmemorablesummerofPitchstoneCanyonwhenhehadtakensuchgoodcareofmeandsuchbadcareofhimself，Ihadlearnedprettywellabouthorsesandcampcraftingeneral。Hewasanentireboythen。ButhehadbeenEastsince，Eastbyarouteofhisowndiscovering——andfromhisaccountofthatjourneyithadproved，Ithink，asortofspiritualexperience。Andthentheyearsofourfriendshipwerebeginningtorollup。Manhoodofthebodyhehadalwaysrichlypossessed；andnow，wheneverwemetafteraseason’sabsenceandspokethoseinvariablewordswhichalloldfriendsuponthisearthusetoeachotheratmeeting——“Youhaven’tchanged，youhaven’tchangedatall!“——IwouldwonderifmanhoodhadarrivedinLin’sboysoul。Andsoto-day，whileheattendedtomyhorseandexplainedthenatureofTommyasubjecthedearlylovedjustnow，Ilookedathimandtookanintimate，superiorprideinfeelinghowmuchmorematureIwasthanhe，afterall。
There’snothinglikeasenseofmeritformakingonefeelaggrieved，andonourreturntothecabinMr。McLeanpointedwithdisgusttosomefirewood。
“Lookatthosesorrowfultoothpicks，“saidhe：“Tommy’swork。“
SoLin，theexcellenthearted，hadangrilybusiedhimself，andchoppedapileofreallogsthatwouldlastaweek。Hehadalsocleanedthestove，andnailedupthebed，thepillow-endofwhichwasonthefloor。Itappearedthemasterofthehousehadbeensleepinginitthereversewayonaccountoftheslant。ThushadLincookedanddinedalone，suppedalone，andsatoversomeoldnewspapersuntilbed-timealonewithhissenseofvirtue。Andnowhereitwaslongafterbreakfast，andnoTommyyet。
“It’sgoodyu’comethisforenoon，“Linsaidtome。“I’dnothavehadthehearttogetupanotherdinnerjustformyself。Let’seatrich!“
Accordingly，wehadrichlyeaten，LinandI。Hehadgoneoutamongtheshedsandcaughtsomeeggsthatishowhespokeofit，wehadopenedanumberofthingsincans，andIhadmademyfamousdishofevaporatedapricots，inwhichImanagedtoflingasuspicionofcaramelthroughoutthestew。
“Tommy’llbehotaboutthese，“saidLin，joyfully，asweatetheeggs。
“Hedon’tmindwhatyu’useofhiscannedgoods——pickledsalmonandtruck。Heishospitableallrightenoughtillitcomestoanegg。Thenhe’lltellanylie。Butshucks!Yu’canreadTommyrightthroughhisclothing。’Makeyourselfathome，Lin，’sayshe，yesterday。Andheshowedmehisfreshmilkandhisstuff。’Here’sanewham，’sayshe；’toobadmydamnedhensain’tbeenlayin’。Thesons-o’gunshavequitonmeeversinceChristmas。’AndawayhegoestoPowderRiverforthemail。’Yousworetooheavyaboutthemhens，’thinksI。Well，IexpecthemayhavetravelledhalfamilebythetimeI’dfoundfournests。“
Iamfondofeggs，andeatthemconstantly——andinWyomingtheywerealwaysaluxury。ButIneverforgetthosethatday，andhowLinandI
enjoyedthemthinkingofTommy。Perhapsmanhoodwasnotquiteestablishedinmyownsoulatthattime——andperhapsthatisthereasonwhyitistheonlytimeIhaveeverknownwhichIwouldliveoveragain，thoseyearswhenpeoplesaid，“Youareoldenoughtoknowbetter“——andonedidn’tcare!
Salmon，apricots，eggs，wedealtwiththemallproperly，andIhadsomecigars。Itwasnowthatthenewscamebackintomyhead。
“Whatdoyouthinkof——“Ibegan，andstopped。
Ispokeoutofalongsilence，theslack，luxurioussilenceofdigestion。
Igotnoanswer，naturally，fromthetorpidLin，andthenitoccurredtomethathewouldhaveaskedmewhatIthought，longbeforethis，hadheknown。So，observinghowcomfortablehewas，Ibegandifferently。
“Whatisthemostimportanteventthatcanhappeninthiscountry？“saidI。
Mr。McLeanheardmewherehelayalongthefloorofthecabinonhisback，dozingbythefire；buthiseyesremainedclosed。Hewaggledonelimp，openhandslightlyatme，andtorporresumedherdominionoverhim。
“Iwanttoknowwhatyouconsiderthemostimportanteventthatcanhappeninthiscountry，“saidI，again，enunciatingeachwordwithslowclearness。
ThethroatandlipsofMr。McLeanmoved，andasulkysoundcameforththatIrecognizedtobemeantfortheword“War。“Thenherolledoversothathisfacewasawayfromme，andputanarmoverhiseyes。
“Idon’tmeancountryinthesenseofUnitedStates，“saidI。“Imeanthiscountryhere，andBearCreek，and——well，theranchessouthwardforfiftymiles，say。Importanttothissection。“
“Mosquitoes’llbedueinaboutthreeweeks，“saidLin。“Yu’mightleaveamanresttillthen。“
“Iwantyouropinion，“saidI。
“Oh，misery!Well，araiseinthepriceofsteers。“
“No。“
“Yu’saidyu’wantedmyopinion，“saidLin。“Seemslikeyu’merelyfigureongivin’meyours。“
“Verywell，“saidI。“Verywell，then。“
ItookupacopyoftheCheyenneSun。Itwasfiveweeksold，andIsoonperceivedthatIhadreaditthreeweeksago；butIreaditagainforsomeminutesnow。
“Iexpectarailroadwouldbemoreimportant，“saidMr。McLean，persuasively，fromthefloor。
“Thanariseinsteers？“saidI，occupiedwiththeCheyenneSun。“Ohyes。
Yes，arailroadcertainlywould。“
“It’sgottobemoney，anyhow，“statedLin，thoroughlywakened。“Moneyinsomeshape。“
“Howlittleyouunderstandtherealwantsofthecountry!“saidI，comingtothepoint。“It’sagirl。“
Mr。McLeanlayquitestillonthefloor。
“Agirl，“Irepeated。“Anewgirlcomingtothisstarvedcountry。“
Thecow-punchertookalong，gradualstretchandbegantosmile。“Well，“
saidhe，“yu’caughtme——ifthat’smuchtodowhenamanishalf-wittedwithdinnerandsleep。“Heclosedhiseyesagainandlaywithaspeciousexpressionofindifference。Butthatsortofthingisasolitaryentertainment，andpalls。“Starved，“hepresentlymuttered。“Wearekindo’starvedthatwayI’lladmit。Moredollarsthangirlstothesquaremile。Andtothinkofallofusnice，healthy，young——betyu’Iknowwhosheis!“hetriumphantlycried。Hehadsatupandlevelledafingeratmewiththethrow-downjerkofamarksman。“Sidney，Nebraska。“
Inodded。Thiswasnotthelady’sname——hecouldnotrecallhername——buthisgeographyofherwasaccurate。
OnedayinFebruarymyfriend，Mrs。TayloroveronBearCreek，hadreceivedaletter——nocommoneventforher。Therefore，duringseveraldaysshehadallcallersreaditjustasnaturallyasshehadthemallseethenewbaby，andbabyandletterhadbothbeenbroughtoutforme。
Theletterwassigned，“Everyourafectionitefrend。