In the saloon, on the other side of the narrow partition, he overheard the conversation between Dyke and Caraher.

The door was open.

He caught every word distinctly.
"Tell us all about it, Dyke," urged Caraher.
For the fiftieth time Dyke told the story.

Already it had crystallised into a certain form.

He used the same phrases with each repetition, the same sentences, the same words.