The Boy from the Ranch; Or, Roy Bradner's City ExperiencesWebster, Frank V.
General
The Boy from the Ranch; Or, Roy Bradner's City Experiences
Webster, Frank V.
City and town life -- Juvenile fiction; Mystery and detective stories; Ranch life -- Juvenile fiction; Thieves -- Juvenile fiction
"What did I tell you?" asked Mr. Baker, lifting the shell and showing
that Roy was right.
"He's got you beat, Hynard," said Sutton.
"Well, I'll bet he can't do it again."
Roy did, much to his own amusement.
"I'll tell you what I'll do," said Hynard suddenly. "I'll bet you five
dollars I can do it this time, Baker."
"Very well, I'll go you."
The money was put up, the shells shifted, and Hynard made his choice.
He got the right shell.
"There's where I lose five dollars," said Mr. Baker, with regret,
passing the bill to Hynard.
"You try him," whispered Tupper to Roy. "You can guess right every
time. Bet him ten dollars. You can't make money easier."
All at once the real meaning of what had just taken place was revealed
to Roy. The men wanted him to gamble, under the guise of a trick. And
he was sharp enough to know that once he bet any money, the shell he
would pick out would have no ball under it. In fact, had he taken the
bait and bet, Mr. Baker, by a sleight-of-hand trick, would not have put
the ball under any shell so that, no matter which one Roy selected, he
would have been wrong, and would have lost, though they might have let
him win once or twice, just to urge him on. Understanding what the
trick was, he exclaimed:
"I don't think I care to bet any money. I have proved that I have
quick eyesight, and I think that's all you wanted to know," and,
turning away he went back to his chair, at the farther end of the car.
CHAPTER VIII
A STOP FOR REPAIRS
For a few seconds the four men were too surprised to say anything.
They stood looking at each other and, when they had gone to the smoking
room, with an angry glance at Mr. Baker, Sutton remarked:
"I thought you said the kid would bite at this game?"
"I thought he would."
"Well, you've got another 'think' coming."
"Yes, you've bungled this thing all the way through," added Hynard.
"I didn't blunder any more than you did. I'd like to know who first
made his acquaintance, and found out he had money."
"Well, you did that part of it, but he's got his money yet, and we
haven't," said Tupper.
"And we're not likely to get it," went on Hynard. "I think he'll be
suspicious of us after this."
"Maybe not," remarked Sutton, hopefully. "We may be able to get him
into some other kind of a game. If we can't--"
He did not finish, but the other men knew what he meant. Roy had
incurred the enmity of some dangerous characters, and it behooved him
to be on the lookout.
The boy had not been in his seat many minutes before an elderly
gentleman, the one who had been describing the various scenes of
interest, came up to him.
"Did I see you playing some game with those men just now?" he asked.
"They were showing me a game," answered Roy. "They said they wanted to
test my quick eyesight."
"What was it?"
"It was a game with three shells and a small ball."
"I thought so. My boy, do you know what that game is called?"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account