The Sisters Brothers

After the duel, Sally goes off to do some work and the brothers prepare to leave town. Eli decides to leave the woman a $5 coin under the bed clothes, which Charlie says is pointless, since, he claims, she never bothers to change the sheets and would thus not find it. However, as they ride away from the hotel, they see her clutching the coin and mouthing thanks. This leads Eli to resolve “to lose twenty-five pounds of fat and to write her a letter of love and praises” (75).

Having ridden through the day, the brothers camp in a small dark cave. Eli wakes in the middle of the night to find a black riderless horse outside. The horse accepts Eli’s bit and saddle, so he decides to take it as a replacement for Tub. Two miles away they discover a dead Native man, whom they take to be the horse’s previous owner.

Charlie and Eli arrive in the town of Jacksonville. Charlie heads to a saloon and Eli to get something to eat. In the restaurant, Eli tries to maintain his pledge to lose weight, ordering a less fatty meal than the one on the menu. This confuses the staff, so he ends up with a plate of boiled carrots with the green tops still attached.