Bret Harte

Colonel Starbottle's Client Bret Harte

Book Excerpt: ...ad."Nor anything about his being killed over at Fresno?" said the stranger, with a desponding implication that the interview after all was a failure."If--er--if you could--er--give me a hint or two," suggested the Colonel blandly."There wasn't much," said the stranger, "if you don't remember." He paused, then rising, he gloomily dragged his chair slowly beside the table, and taking up a paperweight examined it with heavy dissatisfaction. "You see," he went on slowly, "I killed him--it was a quo'll. He was my pardner, but I reckon he must have drove me hard. Yes, sir," he added with aggrieved reflection, "I reckon he drove me hard."The Colonel smiled courteously, slightly expanding his chest under the homicidal relation, as if, having taken it in and made it a part of himself, he was ready, if necessary, to become personally responsible for it. Then lifting his empty glass to the light, he looked at it with half closed eyes, in polite imitation of his companion's examination of the paper..