Then he drew a deep breath.
"It don't make no difference whether I do or not, fur's I can see," he said, gloomily.

"It's too late to start home now.

I don't know what time 'tis, but we must have been ridin' three or four hours--seems eight or ten year to me--and we ought to be pretty near to Bayport.

If we should turn back now we wouldn't get home till long after daylight, and everybody would be up and wantin' to know the whys and wherefores.

If we told 'em we'd been ridin' around together all night, and didn't give any reasons for it, there'd be talk enough to last till Judgment.