“It seems to be an important bit of evidence,” the scout admitted. “Yaw, I pedt you!” gulped the German. “I’m allowin’ et seems ter be,” Nomad added. “You’ll all come round to my opinion of that feller after a while,” the sheriff declared confidently. “I’m goin’ to---- But I forgot, Cody, that you asked me to keep my hands off him; that you wanted to handle that part of the thing yourself.” “That is my wish,” the scout admitted. “You knew that Gopher Gabe is interested in the Casino?” said the woman. “Yes,” the scout told her. “The two are connected. The waiters go from the saloon to the wine rooms back of the Casino through an alley leading from the rear of the saloon. The distance is but a few steps.” The scout nodded. “And of course if the waiters can go through there other people can, from the wine rooms to the saloon. My suggestion is, if you could get a man in there as one of the waiters, and have him watch, some revelations would come that would surprise you.” “It might be done,” said Shepard, straightening up in his chair as the idea struck him; “though jest now I don’t know how we could work it to get a man in there.” She laughed unpleasantly, and suggested, as if she did not mean it, that some night they might rap one of the waiters on the head, and then put a man in his place. Nomad, who was sitting near the door, now made a sudden dive at it, breaking the conversation abruptly; then flung the door open and raced along the hall. They heard the click of his revolver as he cocked it, and his bawling command to some one to stop; and heard, likewise, the pattering of feet. The incident brought up every one in the room. Buffalo Bill and Shepard jumped to the door; the baron tumbled out of his chair, dropping his pipe; and the woman stood up nervously. Nomad soon returned, grunting and fuming. “Waugh!” he breathed. “Thar was a critter out thar eavesdrappin’. I heard him breathin’, by the lower aidge o’ the door, as he listened, and jumped fer him; but he was too quick fer me. I might ’a’ shot him as he skedaddled, but I didn’t hardly want ter do et; an’ when I got ter the foot o’ the stairs, he was clean gone.” “An eavesdropper!” the woman cried, shaken with the agitation of sudden fear. “I guess we’ll have to loaf round out in the hall while we continue this talk,” the scout said to Nomad. “It’s a thing we ought to have done before.” “Wonder who the skunk was?” puffed the sheriff. “Some one who had a good reason for wanting to know what was being said in here, you may be certain,” the scout told him. “Vale, he vor shure heardt vot you vos saying apoudt putting somepoty in der blace uff one uff dose vaiters,” the baron reminded. “Yes, I reckon he must have heard that,” admitted Shepard. “Which means that we’ll not be able to do it now,” said the scout. “If he was a friend of Gopher Gabe, which seems likely, of course Gabe would be looking for a trick of that kind now, and block it promptly.”