They were upon the opposite side from the town, with no gleam of lights visible, prairie and sky blending together into spectral dimness, with no sound audible but the continued quarrel in the front room of the jail.

Keith crept along to the end of the building from where he could perceive the lights of the town twinkling dimly through the intense blackness.

Evidently the regular evening saturnalia had not yet begun, although there was already semblance of life about the numerous saloons, and an occasional shout punctuated the stillness.

A dog howled in the distance, and the pounding of swift hoofs along the trail told of fresh arrivals.

An hour later and the single street of Carson City would be alive with humanity, eager for any excitement, ready for any wild orgy, if only once turned loose.