Suspecting that this was the situation, and doubtless sacrificing his
own private interests, he had uttered the vague but timely warning to
Barnes. The significance of this warning grew under reflection. The
mere fact that he could bring himself to the point of speaking to
Barnes as he did, established beyond all question that his position
was not inimical. He was, to a certain extent, delivering himself into
the hands of one who, in his rashness, might not hesitate to cast him
to the lions: the beasts in this instance being his own companions.
Barnes was not slow to appreciate the position in which O'Dowd
voluntarily placed himself. A word or a sign from him would be
sufficient to bring disaster upon the Irishman who had risked his own
safety in a few irretrievable words. The more he thought of it, the
more fully convinced was he that there was nothing to fear from
O'Dowd. The cause for apprehension in that direction was wiped out by
a simple process of reasoning: O'Dowd would have delivered his warning
elsewhere if he intended evil. While it was impossible to decide how
far O'Dowd's friendly interest would carry him, Barnes was still
content to believe that he would withhold his suspicions, for the
present at least, from the others at Green Fancy.
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