What did John Byro say to the boys about the horse in "The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse"?

In the story, John Byro is the owner of the horse that Mourad and Aram have stolen. One day, as the boys are making their way to a deserted vineyard, they come across John Byro.

After saying good morning, John Byro studies the horse for some time, then he asks what is the horse's name. Mourad tells him the name before Byro comments that this horse looks exactly like his missing horse. He then asks if he can look inside the horse's mouth to inspect its teeth.

After looking at the teeth, he says,

"'Tooth for tooth,' he said. 'I would swear it is my horse if I didn't know your parents. The fame of your family for honesty is well known to me. Yet the horse is the twin of my horse. A suspicious man would believe his eyes instead of his heart. Good day, my young friends.'"

Clearly, John Byro knows that this horse is really his, but he does not want to accuse the boys of theft. After all, their tribe is well-known for its honesty. Perhaps he wants to give the boys the chance to do the right thing.

Whatever the case, the boys do the right thing. They return the horse to John Byro the very next day.

In "The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse", did John Byro know the boys had his horse?

Using evidence from the text, the reader can find indications that John Byro suspected the boys had his horse in “The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse” by William Saroyan.

John Byro was not part of Aram and Mourad’s Armenian family. He was a lonely man who learned the Armenian language in order to communicate with and relate to the family. One day, after his horse was gone for a month, Byro walked ten miles to visit with Aram’s mother and uncle. He explained that his horse was missing, which rendered his surrey useless. The uncle becomes animated and tells John Byro to pay no mind to his missing horse. If a man walks ten miles just to have coffee and a smoke but brings up his missing horse in conversation, it is a good indication there was more to his visit than just a friendly discussion.

Then another visitor arrived, a farmer named John Byro, an Assyrian who, out of loneliness, had learned to speak Armenian. My mother brought the lonely visitor coffee and tobacco and he rolled a cigarette and sipped and smoked, and then at last, sighing sadly, he said, my white horse which was stolen last month is still gone. I cannot understand it.

Another indication that John Byro knows the boys have his horse arises when the boys meet the man as they are walking with the horse. As he closely examines the horse, he tells the boys the horse they are walking seems to be a twin to his horse. Yet, he never insists the horse is his or turns the boys in for having the horse. Byro understands the family’s honor and knows that once the boys are cornered, they will return his horse, which they do.

I could swear it is the horse that was stolen from me many weeks ago. May I look into its mouth?

Of course, Mourad said.

The farmer looked into the mouth of the horse.

Tooth for tooth, he said. I would swear it is my horse if I didn't know your parents. The fame of your family for honesty is well known to me. Yet the horse is the twin of my horse.