"Hello, Honey," came the friendly voice of a heavy-set woman of about thirty, who five years before had been the toast of the border because of her beauty, but who now had begun to show what the excess of Men, Beer and Hook Shops, too numerous to mention, can do to a woman who had sold herself to any man with the price, and had given herself just as quickly to a man whom she thought she liked. "I saw you over here last night and wondered who you were. Did you just come to town? Well, my name is Evelyn--the last name don't matter, but better known as Bar Fly Ev. I'll be glad to show you the ropes around here. Come on and let's get off here at the Tivoli and snatch a couple of shots of whiskey, and see if there's a dollar to be made here. Of course, it's a little early just yet. The best time to pick a live guy is about an hour before the bridge closes tonight, that's when they are looking for a girl to spend the night with, and they ain't too particular. That's how I manage. Of course, you won't have to do that--you're too fresh looking--they'll go for you like a Texas hog goes for swill." The Tivoli, the official gambling house of Juarez with any kind of a game you care to play, run square, but with the percentage so heavy for the house that a winning customer is a scarce thing. "Say, Ev, did you have to get a permit when you came to this town, before you could hustle on this side?" asked Pearl. "Hell, no, that's a lot of dirty gippery. The only permit I've got is the one that every woman has. Of course, I know what you have had to go through, and it's a damn shame that some louse didn't tip you off. That's the way them Mex's have of getting first pop at every girl that comes down here." "What'll you girls have?" asked the bartender. "Whiskey for me, Joe. What will you have, Dearie?" "The same, and a big one," answered Pearl. "Say, Dearie, by what name are you calling yourself?" "Excuse me for not telling you before, but it's Pearl--Pearl Jones--let's have another drink on it. "Well, that's as good a name as any, at least, it's good and common," smiled Evelyn, as she killed her second drink without a chaser. "You know the old saying, 'Common by name, common by nature.'" "I'm damned if you ain't O. K., and we'll have another drink on that one. Hey, Joe, two more drinks for two ladies." "Say, Ev, you must have something on your mind tonight the way you are starting off. You girls have a drink on the house, will you?" "Hell, Yes--I'll drink on anything. You know me, Joe--Bar Fly Ev, the girl without a limit--at anything. By the way, Joe, this is Pearl. She's a new girl in town." "Hello, Sister, glad to know you. Have another drink." "I'm glad to know you, and Ev and I will have another drink, possibly several more," answered Pearl, displaying her best smile.