Cinder Path Tales

56 CINDER-PATH TALES came in, until we arrived at my rooms. Here Iknocked out the handle of the light hammer, and found the centre of the head hollowed out in a most artistic manner, and the mystery was solved. I have no doubt but that Duffy did not use this until hewas forced to do so, and that he threw the full- weight hammer whichEraser tested for the first four trials. Only whenhe was sure that MacLeod, " the little Scottie," was a better man, and his (Duffy's) money was as good as gone, did he fall back on the artistic reproduction, which could have been easily handed to him by a friend in the crowd. I confess I made a very pretty penny out of this transaction, and it was all the more welcome because of the frightI had been in over it. Poor Mac was not so fortunate, for although he positively declined to take a penny from me, he was given credit at the church for having gambled disgracefully, and was near being expelled for it. If this should seem at all an improbable tale, I will assure you that much the same incident occurred among our gentlemanly friends, the college athletes, at a compara­ tively recent date,although it was kept quiet in deference to somebody's feelings, and not exploited as was the "hollow hammer " back in the late"sixties."