Cinder Path Tales

THE HOLLOW HAMMER 55 must havestruck a stone and knocked offa piece." Despite our seriousness, this in­ genious explanation was too much forus, and the whole crowd laugheduntil it couldlaugh no more, Duffy sneaking off in the confusion. Old man MacNab became almost delirious in his joy at savinghis money inthis miracu­ lous way, for Duffy's disqualification put the lank Scott second; and after he had loaded me with acknowledgments, he left, with the laudable ambition of getting outside all the whiskey onthe premises. The last I saw of him, his long legs were swinging gayly to the notes ofthe Highland fling,with a fair prospect ofwinning theprize. As the crowd flocked back to the hotel, Fraser thanked me for my firmness which had led to the discovery ofthe fraud, andI ^ declined to acceptany, as Ihad only watched ' my money. I did agree to take the light hammer, andhe gave it to me together with another which had been picked up from un­ derneath the feet of the crowd. On the way home MacLeod and myself compared them carefully, and were greatly puzzled. They were almost identical; the size and form of the heads, the turn of the handles, andthe initials " P. D." burnedinto the endswere alike in both. We could not understand where the difference in the weights