Читать книгу Buffalo Bill, Peacemaker; Or, On a Troublesome Trail онлайн

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A dollar was flipped into the air to see which should throw first. Benner won the toss.

Meanwhile, Wild Bill had been working out a mental problem. He measured Benner’s height and guessed at the possible strength of his arm; then he guessed at the weight of the watch. With these items to work on, he found a place down the street where he believed Benner’s watch would land.

The Laramie man was prompted by curiosity alone. He wanted to see how much would be left of the expensive timekeeper when it hit the ground.

Benner drew back his arm. For a second, Wild Bill doubted whether he would keep his nerve and go on with his folly. But there was no backing down on the part of the cattle baron.

The hand came forward and the five-hundred dollar missile shot through the air, reflecting the sun like a live coal. It smashed to earth within a yard of where Wild Bill stood.

“Hooray for the man in black!” roared Wild Bill. “I had a notion he wouldn’t be fool enough to throw—but he was.”

“Hesh, neighbor!” said a Texan, who stood close to Wild Bill. “Don’t ye go fer ter git Lige Benner down on ye. He’s a power in these parts, an’ he won’t stand fer any funnin’.”