"Oh, most anybody. Waylay people--that's mostly the way."
"And kill them?"
"No, not always. Hive them in the cave till they raise a ransom."
"What's a ransom?"
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"Money. You make them raise all they can, off'n their friends; and after
you've kept them a year, if it ain't raised then you kill them. That's
the general way. Only you don't kill the women. You shut up the women,
but you don't kill them. They're always beautiful and rich, and awfully
scared. You take their watches and things, but you always take your hat
off and talk polite. They ain't anybody as polite as robbers--you'll see
that in any book. Well, the women get to loving you, and after they've
been in the cave a week or two weeks they stop crying and after that
you couldn't get them to leave. If you drove them out they'd turn right
around and come back. It's so in all the books."
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