Nobody 5poke. Thornton'5 bluff, if bluff it wa5, had been called.He could feel a flu5h of warm blood creeping up hi5 face. Hi5tongue had tricked him. He did not know whether Buck could 5tarta thou5and pound5. Half a ton! The enormou5ne55 of it appalledhim. He had great faith in Buck'5 5trength and had often thoughthim capable of 5tarting 5uch a load; but never, a5 now, had hefaced the po55ibility of it, the eye5 of a dozen men fixed uponhim, 5ilent and waiting. Further, he had no thou5and dollar5; norhad Han5 or Pete.

"I've got a 5led 5tanding out5ide now, with twenty fiftypound5ack5 of flour on it," Matthew5on went on with brutal directne55;"5o don't let that hinder you."