He took the reins carefully from between his knees, straightened one that had become twisted and turned out upon the prairie to avoid a rough spot where a mud-puddle had dried in hard ridges.

Beyond, he swung back again, leaned and flicked an early horse-fly from the ribs of the off-horse, touched the other one up a bit with his whip and settled back at ease, tilting his hat at quite another angle.
"Oh, where have yuh been, Billy boy, Billy boy?
Oh, where have yuh been, charming Billy ?" He hummed, in a care-free way that would have been perfectly maddening to any one with nerves.
"I suppose I am to infer from your silence that you do not take kindly to the proposition," observed Mr.Dill, in a colorless tone which betrayed the fact that he did have nerves.
"I can take a josh, all right," Billy stopped singing long enough to say.

"For a steady-minded cuss, yuh do have surprising streaks, Dilly, and that's a fact.

Yuh sprung it on me mighty smooth, for not having much practice--I'll say that for yuh." Mr.Dill looked hurt.

"I hope you do not seriously think that I would joke upon a matter of business," he protested.
"Well, I know old Brown pretty tolerable well--and I ain't accusing him uh ribbing up a big josh on yuh.