Things moved too smoothly.
It looked as if there had been a rehearsal.

Poleon and the trader, however, seemed not to notice it, and Lee was wallowing to the waist in his own troubles, so the young man kept his eyes open and waited.
The surprise came when they had completed the organization of the district and had nearly finished adopting by-laws.

It was so boldly attempted and so crude in its working-out that it seemed almost laughable to the soldier, until he saw these men were in deadly earnest and animated by the cruelest of motives.

Moreover, it showed the first glimpse of Stark's spite against the trader, which the Lieutenant had divined.
Runnion moved the adoption of a rule that no women be allowed to locate mining claims, and one of the strangers seconded it.
"What's that ?" said Lee, raising his one eye from the note-book in which he was transcribing.
"It isn't right to let women in on a man's game," said Runnion.
"That's my idea," echoed the seconder.
"I s'pose this is aimed at my girl," said Gale, springing to his feet.
"I might have known you bums were up to some crooked work." Poleon likewise rose and ranged himself with the trader.
"Ba Gar! I don' stan' for dat," said he, excitedly.

"You want for jump Necia's claims, eh ?" "As long as I'm chairman we'll have no rough work," declared Stark, glaring at them.