Soon another voice broke in, and Whitey knew it as that of "Whiff" Gates, a puncher who was a constant smoker.

Then came another voice, that of Ham And.
Whiff Gates did not bear a good reputation, and it was only because of the scarcity of help that Bill Jordan kept him on.

As Whitey reflected on this, and the "birds of a feather flock together" idea, he kept very still.

His patience was soon rewarded, for as the men grew more earnest in their talk, their tones became louder, though Whitey could not hear as distinctly as he would have liked.
However, he gathered that String had returned from the mine on account of an injury to his foot, caused by a piece of rock falling on it.

That there had been some excitement at the mine, owing to a "bug hole" being discovered.