"What's the good of coming to a place like this?" Hamar demanded, as soon as he had freed himself from Kelson's clutches. "We can't get breakfast here." "Matt's mad, that's what's the matter with him," Curtis added in disgust. "Let's get out." He turned to go--then, halted--and stood still. He appeared to be listening. "What's up with you?" Hamar asked. "Both you fellows are behaving like lunatics this morning--there's not a pin to choose between you." "They're playing cards, that's all," Curtis said. "Can't you hear them?" Hamar shook his head. "Not a sound," he said. "Just look at Matt!" While the other two were talking, Kelson had followed the girl to the bar, and catching her up, just as she entered it, said in a manner that was peculiar to him--a manner seldom without effect upon girls of his class--"I beg your pardon, miss, are we too early to be served? Jerusalem! Haven't I met you somewhere before?" The girl looked him square in the eyes and then smiled. "As like as not," she said. "I go pretty near everywhere! What do you want?" "Well!" Kelson soliloquized; "breakfast is what we are particularly anxious for--but I suppose that is out of the question in a dive!" "Then why did you come here?" the girl queried. "Because of you! Simply because of you," Kelson replied. "You hypnotized me!" "That being so, then I reckon you can have your breakfast," the girl laughed, "though we don't provide them as a rule before nine. Indeed, the management have only just decided--this morning--on providing them at all." "How odd!" "Why odd?" the girl questioned, taking off her hat and arranging her curls before a mirror. "Why, that I should have happened to strike the right moment! Had I come here yesterday it would have been useless. As I said, you hypnotized me. Evidently fate intended us to meet." "Do you believe in fate?" the girl asked, shrugging her shoulders. "I believe in nothing--least of all in men!" "You say so!" Kelson observed, before he knew what he was saying. "And yet you have just got engaged to one. But you've got a bad attack of the pip this morning, you have had enough of it here--you want to get another post." The girl ceased doing her hair and eyed him in amazement. "Well!" she said. "Of all the queer men I've ever met you are the queerest. Are you a seer?" "No!" Hamar observed, suddenly joining in. "He's only very hungry, miss. Hungry body and soul! hungry all over. And so are we." "Well, then, go into the room over there," the girl cried, pointing in the direction of a half-open door, "and breakfast will be brought you in half a jiffy." "Who's that playing cards?" Curtis asked. "How do you know any one is playing cards?" the girl queried with an incredulous stare. "You can't see through walls, can you?"