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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11890 ***
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+Or
+
+The Young Rough Riders of the Plains
+
+
+
+BY
+
+FRANK V.  WEBSTER
+
+
+AUTHOR OF "ONLY A FARM BOY," "THE YOUNG TREASURE HUNTER,"
+"THE BOYS OF BELLWOOD SCHOOL," "TOM THE TELEPHONE BOY," ETC.
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATED
+
+NEW YORK
+CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+By FRANK V. WEBSTER
+
+ONLY A FARM BOY
+  Or Dan Hardy's Rise in Life
+
+TOM THE TELEPHONE BOY
+  Or The Mystery of a Message
+
+THE BOY FROM THE RANCH
+  Or Roy Bradner's City Experiences
+
+THE YOUNG TREASURE HUNTER
+  Or Fred Stanley's Trip to Alaska
+
+BOB THE CASTAWAY
+  Or The Wreck of the Eagle
+
+THE YOUNG FIREMEN OF LAKEVILLE
+  Or Herbert Dare's Pluck
+
+THE NEWSBOY PARTNERS
+  Or Who Was Dick Box?
+
+THE BOY PILOT OF THE LAKES
+  Or Nat Morton's Perils
+
+TWO BOY GOLD MINERS
+  Or Lost in the Mountains
+
+JACK THE RUNAWAY
+  Or On the Road with a Circus
+
+THE BOYS OP BELLWOOD SCHOOL
+  Or Frank Jordan's Triumph
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+  Or The Young Rough Riders of the Plains
+
+
+
+
+
+Copyright, 1910, by
+CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+
+Printed in U. S. A
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+CHAPTER
+
+    I  AN EXCITING ESCAPE
+   II  MR.  ALDEN BRINGS NEWS
+  III  WORD FROM THE WEST
+   IV  GUS MEGGET
+    V  THE HALF-MOON RANCH
+   VI  IN THE SADDLE
+  VII  A RACE IN THE MOONLIGHT
+ VIII  HORACE IN DANGER
+   IX  THE MESSAGE FROM CROSS-EYED PETE
+    X  THE RETURN TO THE RANCH
+   XI  PREPARATIONS FOB PURSUIT
+  XII  WHAT NAILS LEARNED
+ XIII  OUT ON THE PLAINS
+  XIV  ANOTHER DISCOVERY
+   XV  THE CONTESTED TRAIL
+  XVI  WHAT JEFFREYS KNEW
+ XVII  LOST!
+XVIII  A MYSTERIOUS CALL
+  XIX  A TERRIBLE PLOT
+   XX  THE PRAIRIE FIRE
+  XXI  A RIDE FOR LIFE
+ XXII  LAWRENCE'S PLAN
+XXIII  IN THE MOUNTAINS
+ XXIV  CAPTURING THE CATTLE THIEVES
+  XXV  HOMEWARD
+
+
+
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+AN EXCITING ESCAPE
+
+Twilight was settling on the land.  The forms of trees and houses
+loomed big and black, their sharp outlines suggesting fanciful
+forms to the minds of two boys hurrying along the road which like a
+ribbon wound In and out among the low hills surrounding the town of
+Bramley, in south-western Ohio.
+
+As the darkness increased lights began to twinkle from the windows
+of the distant farmhouses.
+
+"We're later than usual, Tom," said the larger of the two boys.  "I
+hope we'll get home before father does."
+
+"Then let's hurry.  The last time we kept supper waiting he said
+we'd have to give up playing ball after school if we couldn't get
+home before meal time."
+
+"And that means that we won't make the team and will only get a
+chance to substitute," returned the first speaker.
+
+As though such a misfortune were too great to be borne, the two
+young ball players broke into a dog trot.
+
+The boys were brothers, Tom and Larry Alden.  Larry, the larger,
+was sixteen and Tom was a year younger.  Both were healthy and
+strong and would have been thought older, so large were they.
+
+The only children of Theodore Alden, a wealthy farmer who lived
+about three miles from Bramley, unlike many brothers, they were
+chums.  They were prime favorites, and their popularity, together
+with their natural ability and cool-headedness at critical moments,
+made them leaders in all sports.
+
+As it grew darker and darker, the brothers quickened their pace.
+Talking was out of the question, so fast were they going.  But as
+they rounded a turn in the road, which enabled them to see the
+lights in their home, a quarter of a mile away, Larry gasped:
+
+"There's no light in the dining-room yet.  Father hasn't gotten
+home!"
+
+"Come on then for a final spurt," returned Tom.
+
+Willingly Larry responded, and the boys dashed forward as though
+they were just starting out instead of ending a two-mile run.
+
+On the right-hand side of the road a fringe of bushes hedged a
+swamp.
+
+The patter of the boys' feet on the hard clay road was the only
+sound that broke the stillness.
+
+Their goal, with the bright lights shining from the windows, was
+only about three hundred yards away when suddenly from the
+direction of the swamp sounded a sullen snarl.
+
+"Did you hear anything?" asked Larry.
+
+"I thought so."
+
+As though to settle all doubt, the growl rang out again.  This time
+it was nearer and sounded more ominous.
+
+For a moment the boys looked at each other, then, as with one
+accord, turned their heads and looked in the direction whence the
+startling noise had come.
+
+Just as they did so there came another howl, and an instant later a
+big black form, for all the world like a large dog, leaped from the
+bushes into the road.
+
+"Quick, quick!" cried Larry, seizing his brother's arm and pulling
+him along, for Tom had slackened his speed, as though fascinated by
+the sight of the strange animal.  "It must be that wolf father read
+about, the one that got away when the circus train was passing
+through Husted."
+
+And, Larry was right.  The animal was indeed a wolf that had
+escaped from its cage through the door, the fastener on which had
+been jarred out of place by the motion of the train, and had leaped
+to liberty.
+
+The circus people had reported the loss as soon as it had been
+discovered and it had been duly announced in the papers.
+
+Mr. Alden had read about it, but all had laughed at the thought of
+a wolf in placid Ohio and dismissed the story as a circus man's
+joke.
+
+Rejoicing in its freedom, the beast had wandered about till it
+struck the swamp and now the air brought to its keen nose the scent
+of the boys passing.  Ravenously hungry, the wolf hastened toward
+the lads.
+
+As it bounded into the road the glare from the lights of the
+farmhouse momentarily blinded it and it stood blinking.
+
+But only for an instant.  Instinctively realizing that it must
+catch them before they reached the lights, the wolf uttered a
+savage snarl and bounded forward.
+
+Larry's words to his brother had roused the boy, and together they
+were racing toward the welcome lights of their home.
+
+But the wolf with its leaps covered three yards to their one, and
+as the older of the boys looked over his shoulder he saw that the
+beast was gaining on them.
+
+Fifty yards ahead was the house and thirty yards behind them was
+the wolf.
+
+Well did the boys know they could not win the race.  But they did
+not lose their heads.
+
+"Father! Harry!" yelled Larry.  "Joe! The wolf! the wolf!  Get the
+rifle!"
+
+"The wolf! the wolf!" added Tom.  "Shoot the wolf!"
+
+The yells, breaking the stillness of the night, startled Mrs. Alden
+and the hired men, who were awaiting the coming of Mr. Alden and
+the boys.
+
+Unable to distinguish the words, the hired men rushed to the door
+and threw it open.  Peering along the path of the light, they saw
+the forms of the boys.
+
+"Quick!  The rifle!  The wolf's after us!" shouted Tom.
+
+Fortunately Mr. Alden always kept a loaded rifle on a rack on the
+kitchen wall with which to shoot foxes that attempted to raid his
+hen-roost.
+
+Hastily the hired man named Joe sprang for the weapon, seized it
+and dashed from the door, shouting:
+
+"Where is it?  Where is it?"
+
+Before the boys could answer, however, his keen eyes espied the
+black form.
+
+Joe had often amused himself shooting at a target with Larry and
+Tom and was able to make four bull's-eyes out of five, but never
+before had the opportunity to aim at a live mark come to him, and
+as he raised the rifle his hands trembled.
+
+"Shoot! shoot!" yelled Larry.  "No matter if you don't hit it,
+shoot!"
+
+Bang! went the gun, and as the report of the firearm died away the
+wolf was seen to stagger and fall.  Soon the beast arose again, but
+by that time the hired man was ready for another shot.  This
+finished the beast, and with a yelp it rolled over and breathed its
+last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+MR. ALDEN BRINGS NEWS
+
+Exhausted by their run and the excitement of their escape, Larry
+and Tom staggered into the house and dropped into chairs, their
+mother and the hired men pressing about and plying them with
+questions.  But it was several minutes before the boys recovered
+their breath sufficiently to speak.
+
+Tom was the first to get over his fright, and, as soon as he could
+control his voice, gave a vivid account of their attempt to reach
+home before their father, their hearing the uncanny sound from the
+swamp, the sudden appearance of the wolf behind them and their
+desperate race to get to the house before the beast should overtake
+them.
+
+"It's a good thing I practiced shooting last winter," exclaimed Joe
+as the story ended.  He was proud of what he had accomplished.
+
+"There's father," declared Mrs. Alden as a "whoa!" sounded from the
+yard.
+
+Quickly Larry picked up a lantern, and, followed by all but his
+mother, went out to help unhitch the horses and take them into the
+barn.
+
+"What's been going on?" demanded the farmer as the others joined
+him.  "I heard the rifle shot."
+
+Eagerly they all started to tell.
+
+"Don't all speak at once," interposed Mr. Alden.  "You're talking
+so loud and so fast I can't understand a word.  Tom, suppose you
+explain?"
+
+Excitedly the youngest of the brothers poured forth the tale.
+
+"A wolf in Bramley, eh?  Well, well!  It's a good thing you boys
+were so near home.  This is sure a great day for happenings.  My
+sons get chased into their own dooryard and I----"
+
+But as though to arouse their curiosity, the farmer did not finish
+his sentence.
+
+"You what?" asked Larry.
+
+"Never mind now.  Put the horses up.  You won't have to feed them;
+they're too hot.  Give them a little hay and then come in to
+supper."
+
+Knowing it was useless to try to get their father to satisfy their
+curiosity, for Mr. Alden, though a kindly man, was what his
+neighbors called "set in his ways," Tom and Larry ran to the barn
+to open the door, while the hired men followed with the horses.
+
+After rubbing the animals down and giving them some hay, the four
+returned to the house.
+
+But not until the supper was finished did the farmer deign to
+impart his news.  Then, tilting back in his chair, he looked at his
+wife and asked:
+
+"How would you like to take the boys to Scotland for the summer,
+ma?"
+
+"To Scotland?" repeated Mrs. Alden, as though scarcely believing
+her ears.  "Theodore Alden, are you going crazy?  What are you
+talking about?"
+
+"About going to Scotland," answered the farmer, grinning.  "And I'm
+not crazy."
+
+At the mention of the trip, Larry and Tom looked at their parent
+and then at each other in dismay, for they had planned a different
+sort of way for spending the summer.  But their attention was
+quickly drawn to their father again.
+
+"I've got to go to Scotland and we might as well all go," he was
+saying.  "The hired men can run the farm for the summer."
+
+Lapsing into silence as he watched the effect of his words, Mr.
+Alden enjoyed the looks of surprise and curiosity, then continued:
+
+"When I got to Bramley this morning I found a letter from a man
+named Henry Sargent, a Glasgow lawyer.  He said my uncle, Thomas
+Darwent, had died, leaving me the only heir to his estates.  Just
+how much money this means I don't know.  He said it might be ten
+thousand pounds."
+
+"Phew! that's fifty thousand dollars," interposed Larry, excitedly.
+
+"Just so," returned his father.  "It may be more.  I can't make out
+whether that's the amount of cash or if that's what it will come to
+when the land and houses are sold."
+
+"You can write and find out," suggested Mrs. Alden.
+
+"I can write, but I doubt if I can find out," chuckled the farmer.
+"Those lawyer chaps use such high-sounding words, you can't tell
+what they mean.  If Uncle Darwent made me his heir, I'm going to
+see I get all there Is to get.  No Scotchman is going to cheat
+Theodore Alden out of what's his.  Soon's I'd made up my mind to
+that, I drove over to Olmsted and made arrangements to sail from
+New York on Saturday."
+
+"Saturday?  Why that's only three days off!" protested Mrs. Alden.
+
+"Well, it'll only take a night and part of a day to get to New
+York.  That'll give you a day and a half to get ready, ma."
+
+The thought of a trip to Scotland delighted Mrs. Alden, and she
+immediately began to plan how she could get the boys, her husband
+and herself ready in such a short space of time.
+
+But Larry and Tom showed no signs of enthusiasm.
+
+Noticing their silence, their father exclaimed:
+
+"Don't you boys want to go?  I never knew you so quiet before when
+a trip was mentioned."
+
+"But the ball game with Husted is on Saturday," said Larry, giving
+voice to the thought uppermost in his mind.  Then, as though he
+realized that it was foolish to compare a trip to Scotland with a
+game of baseball, he added: "Besides, Tom and I were planning--that
+is, we were going to ask you if we couldn't go out to Tolopah and
+spend the summer with Horace and Bill Wilder on their ranch."
+
+With this announcement of a plan which the brothers had discussed
+over and over, wondering how they could bring it about, the boys
+anxiously watched their father's face.
+
+"So that's how the wind blows, eh?" he commented.  "Well, ma, what
+do you say?  Shall we take the boys with us or let them go to the
+ranch?"
+
+With her quiet mother's eye Mrs. Alden caught the appeal on her
+sons' faces and after a short deliberation replied:
+
+"I think they'd be better off with the Wilders--that is, if they'd
+like to have the boys visit them."
+
+"Hooray! hooray!" cried the boys together.
+
+"We can telegraph and ask Mr. Wilder tonight," said Larry.  "Can we
+go to Bramley and send the message, father?"
+
+"You can telephone the message to the station and the operator will
+send it."
+
+And while the boys puzzled over the wording of the telegram, their
+father re-read his letter from Scotland.
+
+"I've got the telegram ready," Tom exclaimed presently.  "Listen."
+And picking up the piece of paper on which he had been scribbling
+he read:
+
+  "BILL AND HORACE WILDER,
+    "Tolopah, New Mexico:
+  "We can leave Saturday to visit you.  Do you
+  want us?  Answer quick.  Father and mother
+  leave Friday for Scotland.  We'll have to go,
+  if you don't want us.
+    "LARRY AND TOM ALDEN."
+
+"You might make it shorter," chuckled the farmer.
+
+"And muddle it all up so they wouldn't understand it any better
+than you do your lawyer's letter," returned Larry.
+
+"That's a bull's-eye," grinned Joe, whose mind was running to
+shooting terms.
+
+And as neither their father nor mother interposed any objections,
+the boys telephoned the message to the operator at Bramley, who
+promised to send it at once.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+WORD FROM THE WEST
+
+Anxiously the two brothers waited for some news from the West and
+in the meantime got ready for the trip to Scotland.
+
+"Oh, I don't want to go to Scotland!" sighed Tom.  "I want to go to
+the ranch."
+
+"Well, we've got to take what comes," answered his brother.
+
+The boys went down to town and said good-by to their school chums.
+All were sorry they were going away and said they would be missed
+from the baseball team.
+
+Returning to the farm, their mother met them with a peculiar smile
+on her face.
+
+"Any news?" they asked eagerly.
+
+"Yes, word came over the telephone a while ago."
+
+"And what Is it, ma?"
+
+"The Wilders say to come and----"
+
+"Hooray!"
+
+"And not to bring a trunk," finished the mother.  "The idea of two
+boys going away all summer without a trunk!"
+
+"Of course we won't need a trunk!" declared Tom.  "From the time we
+reach the ranch till we start for home I don't intend to wear a
+white shirt or collar."
+
+"When we get out there we can buy some cowboy outfits," said Larry.
+"Hooray for Tolopah!"
+
+The receipt of the message, which had been telephoned by the agent
+at Bramley while the boys were on their way back from the town, was
+more of a relief than either Larry or Tom was willing to
+acknowledge.  And they ate their food with greater relish in the
+certainty that their dream of going to live on a ranch was to come
+true.
+
+Each was absorbed in his own thoughts when the voice of their
+father roused them.
+
+"Now that it's decided you are going West," he was saying, "I
+reckon I'll go over to Olmsted and make sure about our steamer
+tickets.  We won't have any too much time in New York.  You boys
+can go with me if you like."
+
+Glad of the opportunity, the boys finished their dinner quickly and
+were soon whirling over the hard clay road behind their father's
+span of spirited horses.
+
+"I've decided to give each of you two hundred and fifty dollars,"
+said Mr. Alden, as though expressing his thoughts out loud.
+
+"Phew! Two hundred and fifty dollars! That's more money than I ever
+had all at once," exclaimed Tom in delight.  "Think of having all
+that to spend, Larry."
+
+"But you mustn't spend it all," warned their father.  "I was going
+to say when you interrupted, Tom, that out of this money you must
+pay your railroad tickets, for your berths to sleep in, and for
+your meals.  These things will amount to about seventy-five
+dollars, I should think."
+
+"But that will still leave us one hundred and seventy-five
+dollars," declared Tom.
+
+"True enough, but don't forget it will cost seventy-five dollars to
+get back.  If I were you, when you get to the ranch, I would give
+the money for your return tickets to Mr. Wilder.  He'll keep it for
+you, so you'll be sure not to spend it.
+
+"It's a thing you ought always to remember when you take a trip of
+any distance--always save enough out of your money to carry you
+back home"
+
+The boys promised to do as their father suggested, and the farmer
+continued:
+
+"This will be your first experience with the world, and I don't
+want you to forget the things your mother and I have taught you.
+
+"It takes bad men as well as good to make up life, and somehow it
+seems as though the bad men had the easiest time of it.  You'll
+find gamblers and others who live by their wits in Tolopah.
+They'll try to be pleasant to you because you are young, and when
+they learn you are from the East they will try to get your money
+away from you.
+
+"You must also be careful to whom you speak on the train.  Under no
+conditions mention anything about the money you have with you.  A
+lot of people, when they have any substantial sum, either like to
+show it In some way or to talk about it, and then, if they happen
+to be robbed of it, they wonder.  Remember you can't recognize a
+thief by his clothes, and lots of the slickest of them travel about
+the country."
+
+With this and other advice Mr.  Alden counseled his sons, and so
+interested did they become in what he told them about the country
+of which they were soon to have their first glimpse that they were
+in Olmsted almost before they knew it.
+
+Going first to the bank, Mr. Alden drew out the money for his sons,
+obtained a letter of credit for himself and then arranged to
+purchase his steamship tickets in Pittsburg, whither all four
+travelers were going together.
+
+When they reached home Mrs. Alden had finished her packing and all
+was practically ready for the start on the morrow.
+
+After supper the farmer and his wife drove to Bramley to say
+good-by to their friends, but the two chums decided to stay at home.
+
+Eager to be on their way, it seemed to Larry and Tom that the hours
+never passed so slowly.  They tried to read, but in place of the
+print on the pages pictures of cowboys and bucking bronchos danced
+before their eyes, and they soon shut their books.
+
+"Wish we'd gone with father and mother," exclaimed Tom.  "It's more
+stupid here than saying good-by."
+
+But scarcely were the words out of his mouth when the door opened
+and in came an old friend named Silas Haskins, a former gold miner.
+
+"I got to go to Husted to-morrow, so I came over to-night to say
+'so long,'" he said in explanation of his call.
+
+Cordially the boys made him welcome, and the time passed quickly
+when they had led Silas round to talking about his adventures in
+the far West.
+
+When at last the gold miner rose to go he said:
+
+"I brung some presents for you.  They'll be useful in the West."
+
+And from his pockets Silas drew forth two fine big jackknives and
+two long pieces of thong.
+
+"They're both the same, so you won't need to quarrel about 'em," he
+smiled as he handed their presents to each.
+
+The boys were deeply touched by such evidence of friendship from
+their aged friend and were profuse in their thanks when he again
+put his hands in his pockets and produced two little bags made of
+buckskin and attached to a stout strip of the same strong material.
+
+"I don't know how you're intending to carry your money," he began,
+"but----"
+
+"Why in our pockets," interrupted Larry.
+
+"That's just what I supposed," grunted the old gold miner.  "Now I
+want you to put it in these two bags and hang 'em round your necks.
+There can't no one get to 'em without waking you up nor take 'em
+without giving you a chance to fight."
+
+Readily the boys promised to wear the money bags, and with a hearty
+handshake with each their aged friend went home.
+
+The night passed quickly and the morning was busily spent in
+getting the luggage to the station.
+
+As the family waited for the train the dingy little station was
+alive with people who had come to wish the Aldens pleasant
+journeys.  And as the train left the Bramley depot the members of
+the ball team gave three rousing cheers for Larry and Tom.
+
+The parting with their parents at Pittsburg was hard for the boys,
+but fortunately for them their train left first, and soon they were
+engrossed in watching their fellow passengers.
+
+These consisted of a German boy, who seemed about their own age;
+two elderly gentlewomen, and two big men, who would have seemed
+well dressed had they not worn so much jewelry.
+
+With interest the two chums watched the German youth and several
+times when they had turned to look at him they had found him gazing
+at them.
+
+It was only the memory of their father's advice to be careful as to
+whom they spoke to on the train that prevented them from striking
+up an acquaintance.  But when they found themselves at dinner
+seated at the same table with the foreigner they broke their
+reserve and told him their names.
+
+In return the German said he was Hans Ober.
+
+A speaking acquaintance thus established, Hans lost no time in
+asking questions about the United States and particularly the West,
+to which Larry and Tom replied as well as they were able.
+
+Evidently glad of their company, the German sat with them after the
+boys returned to their car from dinner.
+
+Once or twice Hans had tried to learn where the chums were going
+without asking directly, but they had given evasive answers, and at
+last, as though believing confidence would beget confidence, he
+announced that he was going to join his brother Chris, who had a
+store in Tolopah.
+
+As they heard their destination mentioned, Larry and Tom exchanged
+surprised glances, which did not need their words to let Hans know
+they were all three bound for the same place.
+
+This coincidence removed whatever of reserve was left and the three
+boys talked freely.
+
+Hans said he had come from Berlin and that his father had given him
+money to buy a share in his brother's business and told them of how
+his fears that he might lose the money had made him sit up the
+first two nights he was on the steamer.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+GUS MEGGET
+
+The boys were at breakfast the next morning when Hans, happening to
+look out the window, caught sight of the mighty river that almost
+divides the United States in half.
+
+"My eye! but that's a big river," he exclaimed.  "What do you call
+it?"
+
+"The Mississippi," returned the brothers.  They were too engrossed
+by their first glimpse of the "Father of Waters" to correct the
+German as he struggled to pronounce the name.
+
+"Oh, look at the funny boats!" exclaimed Tom, pointing to the long
+line of river steamers that were tied up at the levee.  "What are
+those things on the back end?"
+
+"They are the paddle wheels.  I know, because I've looked at
+pictures like them in my geography," replied Larry.  "They have the
+paddle wheels on the end because the water is so shallow in places."
+
+It was Just after noon that the two chums and Hans were vouchsafed
+a glimpse of real "dyed-in-the-wool" cowboys.
+
+The train had stopped at a crossing, as stations are known in
+Oklahoma, because of a hot-box on one of the wheels.
+
+Learning that it would be all of a quarter of an hour before the
+trouble could be repaired, the boys had left their car and were
+filling their lungs with the bracing air.
+
+It chanced that a gang of cowboys had ridden Into the town for a
+celebration and, as it was unusual for a train to stop for any
+length of time at the crossing, they rode up to find out the reason.
+
+For a few minutes they contented themselves with putting their
+ponies through all sorts of "stunts" to the great delight of the
+people on the train.
+
+At the sight of them, Larry, Tom and Hans walked toward the cowboys
+and stared at them in wonder and admiration.
+
+The cowboys had noticed the three lads, and, because they had been
+drinking bad "fire-water," suddenly decided to amuse themselves
+with them.
+
+"Whatcher lookin' at?" roared one of the cow-punchers, a big fellow
+with close-set eyes and a heavy jaw.
+
+The boys made no response.
+
+"Can't cher speak?  I'll teach you some manners then!" he bellowed.
+
+In a thrice he whirled his pony and rode for the boys at full speed.
+
+Ignorant of the roughness of cowboy fun, the three lads stood their
+ground, never thinking the fellow would hurt them.
+
+The cowboy was riding straight at Hans.  When the pony was within
+two leaps of the German, boy Larry cried to him to jump to one side.
+
+But Hans was too terrified to move, and the pony was almost upon
+him.  In another moment he would be run down.
+
+From the train rose shouts of warning and anger, changing in the
+next moment to cheers.
+
+Realizing that the German boy could not save himself, Larry threw
+up his hands right in the face of the pony, causing the animal to
+rear so suddenly that only its rider's expert horsemanship saved
+him from being unseated.
+
+At the same time Tom seized Hans and jerked him to one side just
+before the broncho's forelegs struck the ground again, almost on
+the very spot where the German boy had been standing.
+
+Furious at the interference with his so-called fun, the cowboy
+roared at Larry:
+
+"I'll teach you to scare Gus Megget's pony, you calf tenderfoot!"
+
+Black, indeed, did it look for the three lads.  The companions of
+the bullying cowboy who had announced himself as Gus Megget were
+riding up, yelling to him to make the "tenderfoot dance."
+
+His race very white, but every line of his body breathing defiance,
+Larry faced his tormentor.
+
+With a calmness that fairly took the breath away from the bully the
+elder of the brothers exclaimed in a voice loud enough to be heard
+by the other cowboys and the men about the train:
+
+"I didn't pick this quarrel with you, but if you will get off your
+horse so that you have no advantage over me; I'll give you all the
+fight you want!"
+
+An instant Megget glowered with rage at the mere stripling of a boy
+who had announced his willingness to fight him, then with a savage
+growl started to swing from his saddle.
+
+"I'll fix you, you whelp!" he roared.
+
+He aimed a savage blow at Larry, who ducked.
+
+"Hi! leave my brother alone!" cried Tom, coming to the spot.
+
+As Tom spoke Larry stooped and picked up a handful of dust.  This
+he hurled straight into the cowboy's face.
+
+"Good!" shouted Tom and did likewise.
+
+The dust caused the cowboy to sneeze, and some bystanders commenced
+to laugh.
+
+"He's got the best of you, Megget," observed another cowboy.
+
+"I'll eat him!" yelled Megget and rushed at Larry with blood in his
+eyes.
+
+But before he reached the boy a voice rang out:
+
+"Keep on your horse, Gus Megget!"
+
+Though Larry did not dare take his eyes from the bully, Tom and the
+cowboys looked to see who was taking a hand in the affair.  They
+beheld a quiet-looking little man pointing a finger at the leader
+of the ruffians.
+
+"I can't arrest you for driving off Jim Larson's cattle because
+we're in Oklahoma," continued the determined stranger.  "But if I
+ever get my hand on you in Texas it'll go hard with you!  Now
+vamoose before you try my patience too far!  Come on back, boys.
+Gus Megget won't bother you any more."
+
+"Prickly cactus! but it's 'Shorty,' the sheriff from Pawnee
+County!" gasped one of the band or cow-punchers.  "Come on, Gus; we
+must dig out of here!  Shorty may pass the word he's seen us."
+
+Fear of the law caused the bully and his companions to wheel their
+ponies.
+
+At this move the three boys turned and ran back toward the train,
+while the excited passengers hooted and yelled at the discomfited
+cowboys.
+
+The shouts of derision were more than Megget could stand.  He shook
+his fist at the crowd in general and then at Tom and Larry in
+particular, Then he whirled around and disappeared from view in a
+cloud of dust.
+
+Quickly the passengers all trooped to the cars and five minutes
+later the train was again in motion.
+
+All the passengers wanted to shake hands with Tom and Larry, and
+for several minutes the boys were at the mercy of their
+well-meaning admirers.  Again the sheriff came to their rescue.
+
+"Go back to your own cars," he commanded.  "The boys want to be
+left alone."
+
+But the people gave no sign of heeding his words.
+
+"Well, if you won't go at the asking, I'll make you go," he
+continued, and seizing the person nearest him, the sheriff turned
+him round and gave him a shove along the aisle of the car.
+
+After three or four of the passengers had been pushed none too
+gently away, the others began to leave of their own accord, and the
+two brothers were able to make their escape.
+
+"If it keeps on the way it has started, we're likely to have a
+lively summer," remarked Larry when he was again back in his seat.
+
+"I hope they don't come so quick for me," exclaimed Hans.  And his
+tone was so plaintive that the others could not help but laugh.
+
+"You'll either have to get some nerve or else stick mighty close to
+your friends here," declared the sheriff, who had remained to talk
+with the boys who had shown such pluck.
+
+"Maybe I'll go back to Germany," sighed Hans.
+
+"Oh, you'll get used to this part of the world after a while.
+Where are you going?"
+
+"Tolopah."
+
+"Well, that ain't the most refined place in the world," chuckled
+the man of the law, "but I don't believe you'll get as bad as what
+you got."
+
+Pondering over this none too reassuring remark, Hans lapsed into
+silence, while Tom and Larry plied the sheriff with questions about
+life on the ranches and the antics of the cowboys.
+
+As evening came on the boys grew restive.  Their train was due at
+Tolopah at nine the next morning, and despite the fact that it was
+rushing along at the rate of forty miles an hour, it seemed to them
+to be scarcely moving.  They had already passed two nights and two
+days on the train and the thought of putting another night in the
+berth, especially as it was very hot, seemed impossible, making
+them fretful and cross.
+
+"Who is he?" asked Larry of the conductor, after the sheriff had
+left the train.
+
+"What, you never heard of Sam Jenks, sheriff of Pawnee County?"
+
+"We come from Ohio," said Tom, as though apologizing for their
+ignorance.
+
+"That accounts for it.  If you lived between the Mississippi and El
+Paso you wouldn't ask such a question.
+
+"Sam Jenks, known to every cowboy as 'Shorty,' is the nerviest man
+I know.  There isn't a cattle thief or a bad man in this part of
+the country that won't run when he sees him--if he has the chance.
+
+"You saw how Gus Megget and his gang got scared.  It was just the
+sight of Shorty that scared him.  He's got a record of sending more
+cattle thieves and crooked gamblers to jail than any three other
+sheriffs in the country.  There never was anything he's afraid of,
+and he's just as tender-hearted as a kitten.  Why, I know one time,
+after he'd sent a train robber to prison, he took the money out of
+his own pocket to support the rascal's wife and baby till he could
+get her folks to take her home.  You sure made a friend that's
+worth having."
+
+On Hans' account, Larry and Tom kept up a lively chatter during the
+evening, and it was not until the brothers were in their berths
+that they broached the subject of what to do should the sheriff's
+suspicions prove true.
+
+Hans' unfitness for holding his own among the rough men of the
+plains made them sorry for him, and they discussed various plans,
+without arriving at any conclusion, till well into the night.
+
+"What's the use of worrying?" said Tom finally.  "Chris will
+probably show up all right.  Let's wait and see."  And with this
+understanding the boys dropped the matter.
+
+Despite the fact that the day was to see the end of their journey,
+the boys slept late.
+
+"You ge'mmen better hurry if you all wants yo' breakfas' befoh yo'
+gits to Tolopah," interrupted the porter.  "We'll be thar in half
+an hour."
+
+It was not a hearty meal the brothers and Hans ate, and soon they
+were back in their seats, looking to see that they had forgotten
+nothing before they closed their suit-cases.
+
+Bringing two big valises of the extending kind the German sat with
+Larry and Tom.  But their high spirits found no response in him,
+and as they neared their destination he could with difficulty keep
+back the tears, so worried was he.
+
+"Here we are!" exclaimed Larry as he caught sight of some houses
+and barns.
+
+And his words were verified by the porter, who came through the car
+calling:
+
+"All out for Tolopah!"
+
+Picking up their luggage, the boys hastened to the car steps.
+
+"Hello, Bill!  Hello, Horace!" cried the brothers eagerly as they
+caught sight of their friends on the station platform.
+
+At the greetings the Wilder boys hurried toward the car.
+
+In the pleasure of the meeting Tom and Larry forgot Hans.
+
+"Come on," commanded Horace, seizing Tom's suit-case.  "We won't
+dally here in Tolopah.  We must get to the ranch before it gets too
+hot."  And he led the way to where four bronchos stood tied to a
+railing.
+
+Quickly the Wilders made fast the suit-cases to their saddles and
+untied the ponies.
+
+"This is Blackhawk, Tom, and this is Lightning, Larry," said Horace
+as he handed the reins to the two boys.  "They're a couple of the
+best ponies in New Mexico, and while you're here they'll be yours.
+You can get acquainted with them on the ride to the ranch."
+
+Both animals were splendid creatures, well built and powerful.
+Blackhawk, as the name suggests, was jet black, his coat glistening
+in the sun, and Lightning was a roan.
+
+Already Bill and Horace were on their ponies, and the two brothers
+were just swinging into their saddles when a voice cried:
+
+"Tom!  Larry!"
+
+Turning their heads, the boys beheld Hans, the tears streaming down
+his cheeks, rushing toward them as fast as his valises would let
+him.
+
+No need was there to ask if he had found a trace of his brother.
+The tears told all too plainly that he had not.
+
+"Who in the world is that?" asked Horace in astonishment.
+
+"A German boy who traveled with us," explained Tom.  "Do you know
+any one in Tolopah by the name of Chris Ober?"
+
+"Struck out for old Mexico, prospecting for gold, three months
+ago," replied Bill.  "Why?"
+
+"That's his brother Hans, who has come from Berlin to visit him,"
+returned Tom.  And hurriedly he gave an outline of the German lad's
+story.
+
+"Phew!  Chicken-hearted, is he?" commented Horace.  "It won't do to
+leave him in Tolopah.  Luckily one of our men is in town with our
+grub wagon.  He can ride out to the ranch with him."
+
+When Tom imparted this information to Hans, the poor fellow was
+delighted and asked where he could find the outfit.
+
+"I'll show him.  You all ride on," said Horace.  But the others
+refused, declaring they would all go together.
+
+As the cavalcade started with Hans and his valises trying to keep
+up with them, many were the jests and laughs cast after them.
+
+But the boys paid them no heed, and in a few minutes the German
+youth was safe in the provision wagon.
+
+Putting their horses into a brisk canter, the four lads set out for
+the ranch.
+
+Many were the questions the Wilders asked about their friends back
+in Ohio, and so busy were Tom and Larry in answering, and in
+relating all the events of consequence that had transpired since
+the family had left Bramley two years before, that the twenty miles
+which lay between Tolopah and the ranch seemed scarcely one.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE HALF-MOON RANCH
+
+As the boys drew rein in front of the broad, vine-covered piazza of
+the ranch house they were greeted by Mr. and Mrs. Wilder,
+
+"Well, it does seem good to see some one from home," exclaimed the
+latter as she shook the hands of Tom and Larry.
+
+"It sure does," asserted her husband.  "Wish you'd brought your
+father and mother with you.  What in the world started them off to
+Scotland?"
+
+Quickly the brothers explained.
+
+"Well, well!  So Uncle Darwent really had some money," commented
+Mrs. Wilder.  "I'm real glad, though of course it isn't as though
+your father needed any more.  I should have thought you boys would
+have wanted to go with them."
+
+"Not when we could spend the summer on your ranch," returned Larry.
+"But we began to be afraid we would be obliged to go, and we should
+have if the telegram had been any later.  No time ever seemed so
+long as when we were waiting for your answer."
+
+"It was just luck we got your message," declared Horace.
+"Sometimes we don't go to town for a week.  But something seemed to
+urge me to ride in the other morning, and when I arrived Con Brown
+hollered to me he had a telegram.  When I read it, I didn't lose
+any time answering, and I made Con promise to rush it."
+
+"Con's our telegraph operator," explained Bill.  "Come on in and
+change your duds and then we'll look the ranch over."
+
+Nothing loath to remove their clothes, which still smelled of
+engine smoke, despite their ride over the plains, as the brothers
+seized their suitcases and followed their young hosts, Larry
+exclaimed laughingly:
+
+"You see we took your advice not to bring a trunk."
+
+"Glad of it," asserted Horace joyously.  "There's no need to dress
+out here.  It's just great!  You don't have to put on a collar from
+one week's end to another.  But if you had brought a lot of
+clothes, mother would have made us dress too.  That's why I
+mentioned the matter in my telegram."
+
+This explanation was given in a low tone that Mrs. Wilder might not
+know her son had taken such effective measures to prevent his being
+obliged to "dress up," and the boys laughed heartily at the
+harmless joke.
+
+The home of the Wilders was only one story high, but the rooms were
+big and comfortable.  Around three sides ran the piazza, from which
+French windows, extending from the floor to the ceiling, opened,
+admitting any breeze that might be stirring.
+
+The room assigned to the boys was on the west side of the house,
+and through the vines they could look across the plains to some
+mountains that towered in the distance.
+
+"Our room is the next one to yours," said Bill.  "We'll wait there
+till you are dressed.  If you want anything, sing out."
+
+Hastily Tom and Larry took off the clothes in which they had
+traveled, and bathed, glad of the opportunity to remove the cinders
+which had caused them no little discomfort.
+
+"Bill and Horace seem just the same as when they lived in Bramley,"
+observed Tom when they were alone.  "Horace hasn't grown a bit."
+
+"They are tanned up till they look like Indians, that's the only
+change I can see," returned his brother.  "Horace always will be
+short, but Bill's tall enough for two."
+
+"You can't wear those caps," declared Bill as Tom and Larry
+appeared with the light baseball caps they had brought with them.
+
+"But that's all we have," protested Larry, "except, of course, our
+straw hats.  You don't expect us to knock round in those, do you?"
+
+"Sure not.  But if you wore those caps you'd get sunstruck out on
+the plains.  We've got some sombreros you can take."
+
+As the boys trooped out onto the piazza Tom espied a five-bar fence
+about a hundred yards from the house.
+
+"That's the horse corral," explained Horace, noting the direction
+of his friend's gaze.  "We don't keep our ponies in barns out here.
+The horses are all out on the range now, except eight we keep at
+home for ourselves."
+
+Passing from the cool veranda, the boys walked toward a long
+building some thirty yards away.
+
+"This is the bunk-house, where the cowboys stay when they're home,"
+announced Bill.  "There are ten of them, the best boys in this part
+of the country, but they are a lively lot.  It's a good thing they
+are with the cattle.  You'll have a chance to get used to ranching
+before they come in or they might amuse themselves at your expense.
+Politeness isn't a cowboy's long suit."
+
+"So I gathered," said Larry as he thought of his experience at the
+crossing in Oklahoma.  But his mind was quickly diverted by his
+brother.
+
+"What's that half-moon over the door mean?" asked the younger of
+the Alden boys as he caught sight of a gilded crescent that
+sparkled in the sunlight.
+
+"Oh, tenderfoot! oh, tenderfoot!  It is indeed fortunate the boys
+are away," exclaimed Bill in mock solemnity.
+
+"That is the brand of this ranch.  Every horse, every steer, cow
+and calf we own bears a half-moon because this is the Half-Moon
+Ranch.  When any of our ponies or cattle go astray or mix with
+others, the only way we can tell which belong to us is by the
+brand."
+
+"How do you put it on?" asked Tom.
+
+"Burn it into the flesh with hot irons.  If you can stay till fall,
+when we have a round-up, you can see how it's done," said Horace.
+
+Feeling that they were indeed ignorant of ranch life, the two
+brothers decided to use their eyes and ask no more questions than
+were necessary.
+
+Entering the bunk-house, they saw a long table covered with white
+oilcloth and a line of bunks built in two tiers against the wall
+opposite the door.  A big stove stood at one end, and there were
+pegs for saddles, bridles and lassoes all about.
+
+From the bunk-house the boys went to the wagon sheds, which
+contained three or four farm wagons and also a buckboard.
+
+"That's for mother," explained Bill.  "She doesn't like to ride,
+but she can though if it's necessary.
+
+"Here's where your saddles are," he continued, pointing to a beam
+into which pegs had been driven.  "You want to remember them,
+especially when the boys are home.  They don't like to have any one
+else take their saddles."
+
+"We'll remember," declared Tom and Larry meaningly.
+
+"I suppose we'll find our ponies in the corral?" hazarded Tom.
+
+"Sure thing.  And here's something else to keep in mind.  Father
+always insists that each man put his pony in the corral himself.
+Of course this morning he did it for us, but he won't again."
+
+"How do you get the horses when  you want them?  Call 'em?" asked
+Tom.
+
+"Sometimes that will work--after a pony has come to know its
+master--but the quickest way is to take some oats in a pan,"
+declared Horace.  "We keep the oats here," and he opened a bin at
+one side of the wagon shed.
+
+"You can use oats on Blackhawk and Lightning and our own ponies,
+but when we want a strange horse we rope him.  That makes me think,
+I've saved a couple of dandy lariats for you.  Cross-eyed Pete, one
+of our boys, made them for me out of rawhide.  They are in my room.
+Come on, we'll get them and then show you how to use them."
+
+"Is it hard to learn?" inquired Larry.
+
+"Yes, to throw one every time," replied Bill.  "Horace and I have
+been practicing ever since we came out.  We can do pretty well.
+But you ought to see Cross-eyed Pete!  He's the best of all the
+boys.  He's so good, he can drop a noose over a rattlesnake, and
+that's going some."
+
+Before the lads could get the lassoes, however, Mrs. Wilder called
+them to get ready for dinner.
+
+As the two visitors took their seats at the table a Chinaman, clad
+in white, glided noiselessly into the room and took his place
+behind Mr. Wilder's chair, ready to serve.
+
+"Hop Joy, this is Mr. Larry and this is Mr. Tom," said Mrs. Wilder.
+"Whatever they ask you to do, you must do it."
+
+The celestial, who was cook, washman and general factotum on the
+Half-Moon Ranch, bowed gravely to each of the boys.
+
+"That sounds very fine," laughed Mr. Wilder, "but you must be
+careful what you ask Hop Joy to do.  If you disturb him when he's
+cooking he's apt to throw a pail of water at you."
+
+"Hop's all right, father," declared Horace loyally.  "He only
+throws water when the boys try to steal his doughnuts.  Um--m, but
+Hop can make doughnuts!  You two just wait till you're riding all
+day and then see if they don't taste good."
+
+"So that explains the reason you keep on the right side of Hop Joy,
+eh?" answered Mr. Wilder, smiling.  "I've often wondered why you
+were so willing to help him when the boys are home."
+
+After the laughter this sally evoked had subsided Mrs. Wilder asked
+the boys about their journey.
+
+In amazement the Wilders listened as the experiences were related,
+and when Larry finished the account of his mix-up with the
+cow-punchers Bill exclaimed:
+
+"And here Horace and I have been making fun of you for tenderfeet.
+The joke seems to be on us."
+
+"That's what it is," asserted their father.  "There are not many
+men, let alone lads, who can say they have faced Gus Megget and got
+the best of him."
+
+It was the chums' turn to be surprised as they heard this statement.
+
+"Then you know him?" queried Tom.
+
+"I know of him," corrected the ranchman, and the boys noted that
+the kindly expression of his face disappeared as he spoke.  "Gus
+Megget is a very bad man.  He hasn't done an honest day's work for
+five years.  People say he is a train robber, and I've always
+believed he was a cattle thief, too.  From what you tell me, that's
+Shorty Jenks' opinion.  If the truth were known, I think Megget
+would prove to be the head of a gang of cattle thieves."
+
+And how true were Mr. Wilder's suspicions, they were all destined
+to learn.
+
+The recital of their adventuresome journey recalled to the boys
+that they had entirely forgotten to tell about Hans' coming.
+
+Each of the four apparently thought of the timid German boy at the
+same time and looked at one another uneasily.
+
+And their anxiety was not lessened when Mrs. Wilder asked:
+
+"What became of Hans?  Did you call him?  Did his brother meet him?"
+
+"No, he didn't," said Larry.  Then, determined to get the matter
+settled at once, he continued: "Mr. Wilder, I'm afraid I have
+imposed on your kindness, but I asked Bill and Horace to let the
+German boy come to your ranch until we could decide what he should
+do.  He's so--so scared, I did not like to leave him alone in
+Tolopah."
+
+"I asked to have him come, too," declared Tom, as though unwilling
+his brother should bear all the blame, if blame there was to be.
+
+"That was right, quite right," said Mr. Wilder, after a quick
+glance at his wife.  "Tolopah wouldn't agree with him very well.
+We've plenty of room and perhaps he will get over his fear.  I can
+use another hand very well, if he wants work."
+
+It was a great relief to all the boys to have the matter settled so
+pleasantly, and they resumed their laughter and chatter.
+
+When dinner was finished they all went out onto the piazza, where
+Tom and Larry were initiated into the mysteries of throwing a
+lasso.  Then the visitors were taken around and shown many sights
+new to them.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+IN THE SADDLE
+
+"How far away are those mountains?" asked Tom, gazing in their
+direction as they walked to the corral the next day.
+
+"About forty miles," replied Bill.  "They are called the 'Lost
+Lode' hills, because there is said to be a rich silver mine in them
+somewhere that the Spaniards worked hundreds of years ago.  Just
+where it is, though, no one has ever been able to discover."
+
+"Wouldn't it be great if we could find it?" exclaimed Larry
+eagerly.  "Do you suppose your father would let us go and try?
+Have you ever been over to the hills?"
+
+"Lots of times on hunting trips.  But we never explored them very
+much.  The trouble is no one knows whether the mine is on this side
+or the other."
+
+"But haven't they searched for it?" queried Tom, to whose mind a
+silver mine suggested unlimited wealth.
+
+"Lots of men have tried, but no one who has gone to find it has
+ever been seen again," returned Bill.  "They say the mine is
+haunted by the ghosts of the old Spaniards who discovered it and
+that they kill any one who goes near it."
+
+At the suggestion of phantom Spaniards guarding the mine and
+despatching those who found it the brothers laughed.
+
+"You surely don't believe in ghosts?" inquired Tom, a tone of scorn
+in his voice.  "Who started the story about the ghosts, anyhow?"
+
+"I don't know," responded the elder of the Wilder boys, rather
+disappointed that the legend did not make more of an impression on
+his friends.  "We heard it when we came here.  The cowboys all
+believe it, and nothing would make them pass a night in those hills
+if they could help it."
+
+But ghosts were something in which the two brothers had been taught
+not to believe, and Tom exclaimed:
+
+"Huh!  I'll bet some one has found the mine and started these
+stories to keep other people from going there.  Maybe there are
+three or four mines," he added as his lively imagination began to
+work.
+
+"It's all right for you to laugh; you haven't been in the hills,"
+snapped Horace.  "If you'd heard Cross-eyed Pete tell about the
+night he was camping there and was scared away by hearing men
+shooting you might think differently."
+
+"Just the same, I'd be willing to go and hunt for it," persisted
+Tom.
+
+"And so would I," chimed in his brother.  "I say," he continued,
+"why can't we go on a hunting trip?  We needn't say anything about
+trying to find the mine.  Then, if we didn't, no one could laugh at
+us and say we got scared."
+
+The refusal of the boys from Ohio to believe in the haunted mine
+had at first nettled Bill and Horace, but they had always been keen
+to hear or see phantoms, and at Larry's proposal of the hunting
+trip they became enthusiastic.
+
+"It will be great sport, if father will let us," assented Horace.
+"Come on, we'll ask him."
+
+And abandoning their intention of roping ponies, they turned back
+to the house in search of Mr. Wilder.
+
+Finding him on the piazza, they lost no time in laying their plan
+for a hunting trip before him.
+
+As he beheld the eager faces and noted the lithe, supple bodies of
+the boys, in whose eyes shone the light of fearlessness, the
+ranchman replied:
+
+"I have no objection, if you don't go beyond the foothills.  Bill,
+you remember the trails I showed you last spring, don't you?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"All right, keep to them.  You boys certainly ought to be able to
+take care of yourselves.  Go and tell Hop Joy to put up some grub
+for you.  You had better camp on the plains to-night, so you won't
+be able to shoot your food."
+
+Delighted at the thought of going on a hunting trip, the boys
+hurried away to the Chinaman.
+
+"Golly!  You boyee go shootee?" exclaimed the celestial when he had
+received the orders to pack their food.  "No flaid ghostee?"
+
+"Of course not," replied Horace.  "There's no such thing as ghosts,
+Hop Joy."
+
+"Mebbe so, mebbe not; no be too sure," grunted the Chinaman.
+"Plete, him say they be."
+
+But the boys did not linger to argue the matter, and only waiting
+to see that Hop Joy put in a quantity of doughnuts, went to get
+their rifles and shells ready.
+
+To their surprise, when they returned to the piazza, they found the
+ranchman busily overhauling his guns.
+
+"I reckon I'll go with you," he explained.  "I haven't been hunting
+for some time, and as everything is quiet I can get away for three
+or four days as well as not."
+
+"Oh, good! Hooray!" exclaimed the boys.
+
+And Horace added: "Now we won't have to worry about getting lost."
+
+Not long did it take the lads to clean their rifles and fill their
+cartridge belt with shells.
+
+"Have you two got any knives?" inquired Mr. Wilder, looking at Tom
+and Larry.
+
+"Sure," replied Larry, and he told of the old gold miner's presents
+and his advice about always carrying the pieces of thong with them.
+
+"Silas is no fool," smiled the ranchman.  "If you remember all he
+told you, you won't get into trouble.  Still, I think it would be
+just as well for you to let me put your money in my safe.  Then you
+surely can't lose it."
+
+"That's what father told us to do," said Larry as he and Tom
+removed their buckskin money bags and gave them to the ranchman.
+"We forgot it, though."
+
+"Speaking about forgetting, what about the German boy?" asked Mrs.
+Wilder, who had come to learn the cause of the preparations.
+
+At the mention of Hans the four lads looked at one another in
+dismay.  But the ranchman came to the rescue, saying:
+
+"From all Larry and Tom say, I don't reckon he'll be keen on
+hunting.  You can let him help Ned."
+
+"Ned's our handy man," explained Horace in a whisper.  "He drives
+the grub wagon to Tolopah, and to the boys in their camps."
+
+"Well, here comes the wagon now," observed Mrs. Wilder as she
+caught sight of the big white-covered wagon, called a prairie
+schooner in the old days, bobbing over the plains about a mile away.
+
+"Oh, don't let's wait," protested Horace.  "We can saddle up and go
+and meet them.  I'll make my pony dance and perhaps that will scare
+Hans so he won't care to go."
+
+"All right," laughed Mr.  Wilder.  "Bring up the ponies.  Get
+Buster for me."
+
+Running to the wagon shed, the boys gathered the saddles, bridles,
+some oats and pans and started for the corral.
+
+Opening the big gate, they entered, closed it and then threw their
+saddles on the ground.
+
+"Always close the gate before you start to get your ponies,"
+instructed Bill.   "Sometimes they cut up, and if they get out onto
+the prairie it's the old Harry of a job to catch them again.
+
+"Now put your oats in your pans.  Watch Horace and me and you'll
+see what to do."
+
+When they had prepared the oat bait, the two Wilder boys began to
+beat on the pans, calling Buster and the other ponies by name.
+
+The animals, which were at the farther end of the corral browsing,
+lifted their heads and then came trotting toward them, halting
+about ten feet away.
+
+"Swish your pans so they can hear the oats," whispered Bill.
+
+Slowly the ponies approached, as though deciding whether they
+preferred their oats or their liberty.
+
+"Come, Blackhawk!  Come, Buster!" called Horace.
+
+The boys set the pans on the ground.  For a moment the ponies eyed
+them and then trotted up, the eight crowding one another to get at
+the four measures.
+
+"Now's the time," breathed Bill.
+
+In a trice the bits were thrust into the ponies' mouths and the
+leather over their ears.
+
+Lightning plunged back, but Larry grabbed the reins just in time
+and held him.
+
+"Push the pan to him," directed Horace, and, as he smelled the
+oats, the pony grew still and was soon munching contentedly.
+
+After catching his own mount, Bill had bridled Buster, and as soon
+as the oats were devoured, all five were saddled with little
+trouble and the boys were quickly on the backs of four of them,
+Bill leading the pony for his father.
+
+It required but a few minutes to make fast the saddle bags Hop Joy
+had filled with food, tin plates, cups, knives and forks, coffee
+pot, sugar and coffee and to tie on their sleeping blankets.
+
+Then they buckled on their cartridge belts, slung their rifles
+across their shoulders and again mounted.
+
+By the time they were ready, however, the grub wagon was coming
+into the yard.
+
+"Where's Hans?" gasped Larry, the first one to discover that there
+was only one occupant.
+
+With a broad grin suffusing his face, the driver cried:
+
+"Whoa!"
+
+As the horses stopped Mr. Wilder, fearing that the boy had been
+made the butt of some mad prank, said severely:
+
+"If anything happened to that lad, I shall hold you responsible,
+Ned.  Where is he?"
+
+"Gone with his brother Chris."
+
+"His brother!" cried Tom.  "Did his brother come back?"
+
+"He did--yesterday.  Hans found him, and such a meeting nobody ever
+see before.  The brother is going to another town and Hans with
+him.  They started to-day."
+
+The knowledge that Hans had found his brother was a great relief to
+Tom and Larry, and they lost no time in saying so.
+
+"If you feel that way, then it surely is all right," declared the
+ranchman.  "We're going into the hills for a few days hunting, Ned.
+If you need me, you'll find me somewhere on the 'Lost Lode' trail."
+
+"With them tenderfeet?" inquired the handy man, eyeing Tom and
+Larry doubtfully.
+
+"Don't take them for easy, Ned.  They put the laugh on Gus Megget,
+so I reckon they can take care of themselves in the hills and on
+the Half-Moon, too," he added with an emphasis which was to act as
+a warning to be passed along to the cowboys.
+
+"So it's them two I heard 'em talkin' about in Tolopah?  Howdy,
+gents!  I sure takes off my bonnet to you," and Ned swept his
+sombrero good naturedly from his head.  "Say, you two are the only
+topic of conversation in Tolopah about now.  Couple of passengers
+told what you all done, and now everybody's telling everybody else.
+So it was you kids put the kibosh on Gus Megget.  Phew!  I hope I
+don't get you riled up."  And clucking to his horses, Ned drove on
+to the wagon shed.
+
+"When you go into Tolopah, you'll own the town," smiled Mr. Wilder,
+looking at the brothers.  "You see, you are famous already."
+
+But Larry and Tom only laughed, while the latter exclaimed:
+
+"I'd rather find the Lost Lode than fight Megget."
+
+"So my boys have told you about the mine and the ghosts, eh?"  And
+shaking his bridle, the ranchman waved good-by to his wife and
+cantered away, followed by the others.
+
+For a few minutes they rode without talking, the Wilder boys a
+trifle envious of the reputation their friends had achieved and the
+chums trying to get accustomed to riding with a rifle bumping their
+backs.
+
+They soon got the swing of it, however, and, as the ponies settled
+into an easy, steady lope, Tom exclaimed:
+
+"Larry, we're in the saddle and on the plains at last."
+
+"Like it, what?" queried Horace.
+
+"It's what we've been dreaming of for months," declared Larry.
+"Only, I say, Mr. Wilder, let's drop Megget.  All we did was to get
+away from him."
+
+"As you like," smiled the ranchman, "but that's something."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+A RACE IN THE MOONLIGHT
+
+Now through waving grass up to their knees, now through stretches
+of sage brush the hunters rode.  Three or four times they caught
+sight of cattle in the distance, which Horace eagerly declared
+belonged to the Half-Moon, explaining that the biggest herds were
+in Long Creek bottoms, about fifty miles southwest, where the
+cattle could find water as well as good grazing ground.
+
+"Fifty miles, gracious!  Do you own so much land?" asked Larry of
+Mr. Wilder.
+
+"No.  We have a thousand acres, more or less.  But my neighbors and
+I have leased the rights to graze in Lone Creek."
+
+"Neighbors?" repeated the elder of the brothers in surprise.  "Why
+I can't see any house but yours.  In fact, I haven't seen any since
+we left Tolopah."
+
+"And there isn't any within thirty miles.  There are two on the
+south and more north, even farther away.  But we call them
+neighbors just the same.  Anybody within a day's ride is a
+neighbor," explained the ranchman.  And as he noted the look of
+amusement that appeared on the faces of the brothers, he added:
+"You won't think so much of distances after you've been out here a
+while."
+
+At the end of two hours, as they mounted the crest of a great roll
+in the prairies, the dried-up course of a stream was disclosed.
+
+"If you follow that, it will lead you to Lone Creek," explained
+Horace.  "Down about ten miles there's a place called the Witches'
+Pool, where we go fishing.  It's so deep it never dries.  We'll go
+there some day."
+
+"More ghosts?" inquired Larry as he repeated the name of the pool.
+
+"No, no ghosts," laughed Mr.  Wilder, "just the _ignis fatuus_, or
+will-o'-the-wisps.  All cowboys are very superstitious, you must
+remember.  The land round the pool is swampy and at night you can
+sometimes see the lights dancing about.  I suppose some one saw
+them, and, finding no person there, immediately decided the pool
+was a gathering place for witches."
+
+"Pete says it's the bodies of the men who have died of thirst on
+the plains searching for water," declared Horace in an awed tone.
+
+"That's an ingenious explanation, but it is not the truth, my boy.
+The lights are caused by certain gases that come from the marshy
+ground and glow when the atmosphere is in a certain condition.
+Over in Scotland, on the peat bogs, they call them 'friars'
+lanterns.'"
+
+"My, but I'd like to see one," sighed Tom.
+
+"Then I'm afraid you'll be obliged to camp by the pool.  You might
+go there a hundred nights and never see a sign of one," returned
+the ranchman.  And then, as the shadows cast by the mountains were
+reaching farther and farther out onto the prairie, he thought it
+best to turn the minds of the boys into other channels.
+
+"Shall we camp in the open or would you rather push on to the
+foothills?" he asked.  "It'll be dark by the time we get there."
+
+"I vote to keep going," answered Larry.
+
+"How far is it?" inquired Tom, who was beginning to feel the
+effects of the many miles in the saddle.
+
+"About fifteen, which means two hours at least, because the darker
+it gets the slower we'll be obliged to go till you two get more
+used to riding the plains," responded Bill.
+
+"If we keep on, and I feel stiff in the morning, we'll be there and
+I shall not be compelled to cover the fifteen miles," mused the
+younger of the brothers as much to himself as to the others.  "I'm
+for pushing on, too."
+
+Laughing at their guest's discomfort, the others readily
+acquiesced, and they crossed the stream bottom.
+
+Save the noise made by themselves, the twitter of birds, and the
+occasional cry of some prairie dog routed out by their approach,
+the silence of the plains was intense.  At first Tom and Larry did
+not notice it, but as they rode mile after mile they began to feel
+its depression.
+
+"It often drives men crazy," asserted the ranchman when Larry
+mentioned his feeling.  "That's why we never send a man out alone
+to herd.  Having some one to talk to it a big relief, I can tell
+you, after you've been a week or so on the prairies with nothing
+but a bunch of stolid cattle.  The very monotony of their grazing
+and chewing their cuds gets on your nerves."
+
+As darkness came on, however, the awful silence was broken.  From
+all sides came the barking of coyotes, as though they were
+signaling one another their whereabouts.
+
+"That howling would scare me a great deal quicker than any ghosts
+or witches," observed Tom.  "My, but it's mournful! Do they keep
+that up all night?"
+
+"Indeed they do," replied Horace, delighted to think one thing had
+been discovered which the two visitors feared, "only it gets worse
+the darker it grows.  Besides, when they are hungry, they'll follow
+you and attack you."
+
+"That wouldn't be so bad so long as you had a gun with you,"
+interposed Larry.  "I'd like to get a shot at one."
+
+"Then there's your chance, over on the left," exclaimed Mr. Wilder.
+
+Unslinging his rifle, the elder of the Alden boys looked eagerly in
+the direction indicated.  But it was so dark he could see nothing
+and he said so.
+
+"Can't you see those two little balls of fire right opposite you?
+If you can't, say so.  I'll stop him myself," returned the ranchman.
+
+Yet even as he spoke the coyote turned and fled.
+
+"It's just as well," added Mr.  Wilder after he had announced the
+fact.  "You'll have a chance to shoot at something better than a
+measely prairie wolf to-morrow, I hope."
+
+"Or perhaps to-night," chimed in Horace.  "Maybe a ghost'll attack
+our camp."
+
+"That will do, youngster.  If you talk any more about ghosts, I'll
+make you ride back to the ranch in the dark.  If you keep on,
+you'll work yourself up so you'll think every sound you hear is a
+Spaniard from the mine, and there will be no sleep for any of us."
+
+This command had the desired effect, and Horace gave up the attempt
+of trying to frighten his friends.
+
+For a time the darkness grew more and more intense till it was all
+the riders could do to make out the forms of one another.  But at
+last the clouds passed over, revealing the stars, and soon the moon
+rose, full and brilliant, changing the swaying grass into a seeming
+sea of silver with its light.
+
+In wonder the brothers gazed at the transformation and Larry said:
+
+"I wish the plains could be like this always.  They don't seem half
+so terrible."
+
+But the boys soon had other things to think about.  They were so
+close to the mountains that they could see the great cliffs
+glistening in the moonlight above the trees from which they rose,
+sheer.
+
+"I don't wonder they say these mountains are haunted," exclaimed
+Tom.  "I can almost believe I see men moving along the top of that
+middle cliff."
+
+"Better curb your imagination then," chided Mr. Wilder.  "It's a
+good thing we've got to pitch camp pretty soon or you'd all get the
+nerves."
+
+At Tom's words the other boys had sought the middle cliff with
+their eyes and suddenly Bill exclaimed:
+
+"Tom's right, father!  There are men moving along the top of the
+precipice!"
+
+Mr. Wilder had been intent on searching the base of the mountains
+for a place to camp for the night.  But at his elder son's
+statement he looked up quickly, drawing rein that he might be sure
+the motion of his horse played no trick on his eyes.
+
+Breathlessly the others waited his decision.
+
+The cliff at which they all were staring so intently was about half
+way up the mountain and above it rose another wall of rock.  And it
+was against the base of this latter that the objects which
+attracted Tom's attention were silhouetted.
+
+"By jove! They are men," exclaimed Mr. Wilder excitedly.  "I never
+knew there was a trail along the base of that cliff before."
+
+The boys were tremendously stirred up as they heard this
+confirmation.
+
+"Perhaps they are the men going to guard the Lost Lode for the
+night," Horace whispered.  "They wouldn't need a trail to walk on,
+father."
+
+"Steady, boy, steady," returned the ranchman.  "Those men are flesh
+and blood, don't worry about that.  Who they are I don't know.
+Probably some hunters like ourselves."
+
+"That couldn't be the way to the mine, could it?" hazarded Larry,
+whose eagerness to discover a silver mine had received new impetus.
+"Can't we go there to-morrow and find out?"
+
+"We'll see when to-morrow comes," declared Mr. Wilder.  "But
+there's no occasion to get excited.  The mountains are full of men
+hunting and prospecting all the time.  Come on, we'll camp under
+that big tree up there to the right.  Whoever gets there first will
+be boss of the camp."
+
+The challenge for a race, with the honor of being in command of the
+hunt as the prize, served to take the boys' thoughts from the
+mysterious men on the trail as nothing else could, and quickly they
+leaped their ponies forward.
+
+The spot selected by the ranchman for their night's bivouac was
+about a quarter of a mile away and in the opposite direction from
+the cliffs.
+
+Yelling like young Indians, the boys urged their jaded ponies to
+greater efforts.
+
+Tom and Horace, being lighter than the others, had not tried their
+mounts so much, and rapidly they drew ahead.
+
+"We simply must beat them," called Bill to Larry.  "If they get in
+first, they'll make us haul all the water and wash dishes--at least
+Horace will, if he wins."
+
+Leaning over their ponies' necks and rising in the saddles to
+lighten their weight as much as possible, the two elder boys set
+out to overtake their brothers.
+
+With spur and lariat end they belabored their mounts and gamely the
+horses responded.
+
+Leap by leap they cut down the lead, were soon abreast of the
+others and then forged ahead, shouting in triumph as they opened
+clear ground between them.
+
+Only about a hundred yards were the leaders from the tree.
+
+Feeling his pony tiring under him, despite his urging, Horace
+gasped at Tom:
+
+"Hit Blackhawk with the end of your lasso and then hang on for dear
+life!"
+
+Instantly Tom obeyed.
+
+As the big black felt the blow he uttered a snort of rage, jerked
+forward his head and seemed to fly over the ground.
+
+Like a flash he caught Bill and Larry.  Frantically they strove to
+keep up with him, but in a few bounds he had passed them.
+
+"Tom wins!" yelled Horace with glee.
+
+But his delight at the success of his ruse was shortlived.
+
+Blackhawk was not accustomed to being beaten and, though ordinarily
+he had a good temper, when he was angry he could be very mean.
+Accordingly, as though reasoning to himself that he had done his
+share in carrying his rider so many miles, when he felt the sharp
+cut of the lariat he resented it.  And his resentment took the form
+of a vicious lunge forward of his head, which enabled him to get
+the bits in his teeth, with which advantage no one could control
+him.
+
+Despite his greater weight, the ranchman had been close up with the
+boys and had noted Blackhawk's action.
+
+Realizing that it would be hopeless to try to overtake the runaway,
+and fearing that some injury might befall Tom, Mr. Wilder shouted:
+
+"Rope the black, Bill! He's got the bit!"
+
+Loosening his lariat as quickly as possible, the elder of the
+Wilder boys began to whirl it round his head.
+
+"Throw it! throw it!" roared the ranchman, "Can't you see you're
+losing ground every second?"
+
+Never before had Bill been called on for so important a cast of his
+lasso, and for a moment his hand trembled.
+
+"Steady! Let her go now!" counseled his father.
+
+At the word Bill put forth all his strength and the rope shot from
+his hand, the noose opening perfectly as it sped through the air.
+
+Fascinated, the others watched as it hung a moment in the air and
+dropped directly over Blackhawk's head.
+
+"Pretty cast!" praised the ranchman.  "Now ride along.  Don't pull
+up too soon."
+
+But his words were too late.
+
+The pony which his elder son rode was perfectly trained to rope
+steers.  As it caught the sharp hiss of the lariat the animal had
+slackened its stride, and the instant it felt the rope tighten had
+stiffened its legs and braced, almost squatting back on its
+haunches.
+
+And the next moment Blackhawk was jerked from his feet, measuring
+his length on the ground, while Tom went sailing through the air,
+alighting about twenty feet away.
+
+"Hold as you are!" ordered Mr. Wilder of Bill and then dashed for
+the kicking black, with Larry and Horace at his heels.
+
+"Tom! Tom! are you hurt?" called his brother.
+
+For a second there was no reply, and then their anxiety was
+relieved by seeing Tom stand up.
+
+"Any bones broken?" asked Mr. Wilder, who had reached the black and
+was dismounting.
+
+"No.  I'm all right, thanks to the prairie grass," replied the
+younger of the brothers.  "Is Blackhawk hurt?"
+
+"I don't think so.  Ease up, Bill.  I've got him by the bridle."
+
+Quickly the elder of the Wilder boys rode forward, and as the
+prostrate pony felt the rope loosen he bounded to his feet.
+
+With skilled eye the ranchman looked him over and there was a world
+of relief in his voice as he said:
+
+"We got out of that scrape mighty luckily.  There isn't a scratch
+on Blackhawk, and if Tom's----"
+
+"There's no scratch on me either," returned the boy.  "But what
+about the race, do I win or not?"
+
+"Considering you flew from Blackhawk's back almost to the tree, I
+reckon you do," declared Mr. Wilder.
+
+And looking up, Tom noticed that he was, indeed, standing under the
+branches of the tree that marked the goal.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+HORACE IN DANGER
+
+As the others reached the tree they dismounted, unbuckled the
+saddle bags and removed the saddles.
+
+"Well, commander, do you wish me to select a place to hobble the
+ponies?" asked Mr. Wilder, addressing Tom.
+
+"Yes, sir.  I never was in charge of a camp before, so you must
+tell me what to do."
+
+"Oh, make me your lieutenant and I'll tell you," pleaded Horace.
+"I know all about it."
+
+"You can give orders all right," grunted Bill, "there's no doubt
+about that.  I see myself lugging wood."
+
+All laughed heartily at this reference to Horace's fondness for
+commanding, and the younger of the comrades replied;
+
+"All right, Horace, you may be my lieutenant.  Only you must tell
+me what there is to be done, and I will give the orders."
+
+Although by this arrangement the youngest of the party would be
+deprived of most of his powers, he readily agreed, saying:
+
+"Wood must be collected for the fire, the food and dishes must be
+unpacked, supper cooked and water located."
+
+"Better put me on the job of getting water, because I shall picket
+the horses where they can get a drink," declared the ranchman.
+
+"Then, Larry, you and Bill build the fire and get supper ready.
+Horace, I'll put you in charge and you must arrange the place for
+us to sleep.  I can see some pine trees yonder.  Break off some
+limbs and spread them on the ground.  Then put the blankets over
+them.  I'm going with Mr. Wilder to bring the water and to learn
+how to hobble the horses."
+
+"You're a fine commander to be lieutenant for--not," declared
+Horace.  "Gave me the meanest job of all."  Yet he lost no time in
+obeying.
+
+Quickly each one set about the work assigned to him, for the sight
+of the doughnuts and other good things to eat, after their long
+ride, made them hungry.
+
+"Get the coffee pot and then sling the reins of Lightning and
+Buster on your arm and come with me, Tom," said Mr. Wilder.  "I'll
+take Blackhawk, because he's still cranky, and the other two."
+
+The ranchman, however, let the ponies lead him more than he led
+them, for he knew their instinct would take them to the nearest
+water.
+
+Yet there was no need of their guidance, for in a few minutes the
+ears of the hunters caught the sound of running water.
+
+"That's a brook," declared Mr. Wilder, and quickly he led the way
+to a spot where they found a fair-sized pool formed by a stream
+coming from the hills.
+
+The coffee pot was a monster, holding all of two gallons, and this
+the ranchman directed Tom to fill before allowing the ponies to
+satisfy their thirst.
+
+As the animals were drinking Mr. Wilder took the lariats he had
+brought and tied an end around the left ankle of each pony, making
+another noose round the hind ankle on the same side at such a
+distance that there was about three feet of the rope between the
+hoofs.
+
+"Such a short line makes it impossible for them to run or even walk
+very well," he explained, "so they will just stay here and browse,
+
+"Now we'll remove the bridles.  Always remember to hobble your pony
+before unbridling."
+
+"But the rope ends?" asked Tom.
+
+"In a place like this, where there are no rocks between which they
+can get bound, you can let them drag.  When it is rocky, you can
+wind the rope loosely round their necks."
+
+Before the task was finished they heard Horace calling.
+
+"Hey, you!  Hurry with that coffee pot!" he shouted.  "We want to
+start it boiling."
+
+"Then come and get it," replied his father.
+
+But Tom had already picked it up and was carrying it toward the
+camp fire, which was blazing cheerily beneath the big tree.  Taking
+the bridles, Mr. Wilder soon followed.
+
+Larry had spread a blanket on the ground for a tablecloth and
+arranged the plates, knives and forks.  In the middle he had made a
+pile of doughnuts and around them set three pies.
+
+To Bill had fallen the task of cooking, and he was busy frying eggs
+and bacon in a long-handled pan, which he rested on a bed of coals.
+
+At the sight of Tom and the coffee pot, he called:
+
+"Tell Horace to pour some water into the drinking cups, put the
+coffee in the pot and set it in the fire.  Supper'll be ready
+before the coffee unless you hurry."
+
+But Tom was not a boy to shirk work, and directing his brother to
+bring the cups, he sent his aide for the coffee while he prepared a
+good hot bed of coals.
+
+The odor from the sputtering bacon whetted their appetites, and all
+but Bill devoted their energies to hurrying the coffee and to such
+good purpose that they disproved the old saying, "A watched pot
+never boils."
+
+At last all was ready, and the hunters squatted tailor fashion on
+the ground, each before his plate of eggs and bacon and a steaming
+cup of coffee.
+
+"My, but this tastes better than anything I ever ate before,"
+declared Larry.
+
+"Because the ride has given you a keen appetite," said the ranchman
+with a smile.
+
+The others were too busy eating to offer any comment, and the meal
+progressed in silence till almost the last bit of food had
+disappeared.
+
+"Hop Joy certainly can cook," complimented Tom as he reached for
+another doughnut from the fast vanishing pile.
+
+"That's what I told you," returned Horace.  "From the way they are
+going, it's a good thing I went back and put in an extra supply
+when Hop wasn't looking."
+
+"He'll fix you when we get back!" cried Bill.  "Tom, who does the
+dishes?  For your benefit and before my young brother gets a chance
+to speak, I'll tell you that the cook never washes the dishes."
+
+"Oh, what a whopper!" cried Horace.  "Tom, the cook always washes
+them.  That's all he does, wash dishes and cook."
+
+"Well, we'll all help," declared the youthful commander of the camp.
+
+This arrangement met with laughing approval, and because of the
+many hands, the task was soon finished.
+
+"And now, as we must be up with the dawn if we are going to get a
+shot at any deer, I suggest that we turn in," remarked Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Where did you put the pine boughs, Horace?  I don't see them."
+
+"I left them over by the tree," replied the lieutenant, grinning.
+"I didn't know how many each of you would want, so I thought the
+best way was to let you pick out all you pleased."
+
+"Lazy bones!  Lazy bones!" shouted the other boys, and Tom cried:
+
+"That trick won't work this time.  Now, hurry and tote the boughs
+over."
+
+Making a face at his superior, Horace Jumped tip and soon came
+back, dragging a monster pile of fragrant pine branches, which he
+quickly separated into five heaps.
+
+"Does the honored general wish me to wrap and tuck each one in his
+bed or will they do that themselves?" he asked, bowing in mock
+deference.
+
+"The honored general sentences you to do the dishes in the morning
+for that," returned Tom with assumed dignity, and in rare good
+humor they quickly placed their saddles as pillows and unrolled
+their blankets.
+
+Fixing the fire so that it could not spread and cause any harm, Mr.
+Wilder bade the boys turn in, and soon they were sound asleep.
+
+Exhausted from the excitement of their arrival and the long ride,
+Tom and Larry were so deep in slumber that though Mr. Wilder called
+them when he himself got up, they did not wake.
+
+His own sons, however, heard his call and quickly crawled from
+their blankets.
+
+"Come on, we'll get breakfast.  Let Tom and Larry sleep," exclaimed
+their father.  "Remember, they are not so accustomed to riding as
+you two are."
+
+This caution was uttered just in time, for Horace was in the very
+act of yanking the youthful commander by the foot when his father
+spoke.
+
+Not long did it take to prepare the food, and Bill was just pouring
+the coffee when Mr. Wilder aroused his guests.
+
+"Wh--what is it?" gasped Larry, sitting up and staring about him
+dazedly.
+
+"It's breakfast, that's all," said Horace.  "Hey, Mr. Commander,
+you'll be court-martialed if you miss grub."  And he proceeded to
+drag Tom from his bed of boughs by the heels.
+
+Chagrined to think they had not helped with the meal, Tom and Larry
+quickly arose and ran to the brook to wash.
+
+As they stood at the pool they forgot their ablutions in the beauty
+of the scene before them.
+
+The grass of the prairie was heavy with dew and in the rose glow of
+the sky the particles of moisture sparkled and glistened like
+countless crystals.
+
+"Seems like fairyland," whispered Tom, as though afraid if he spoke
+out loud the scene would vanish.
+
+A call from Horace, however, roused them to action, and in a few
+minutes they were, eating heartily.
+
+"What sort of a brook is that?" asked Larry.  "I didn't see any
+outlet, yet water keeps running into the pool all the time."
+
+"There must be some underground stream into which it empties,"
+replied the ranchman.  "There are two such subterranean rivers in
+these hills, and, I suppose this pool connects with one of them."
+
+Discussion of such phenomena was prevented by his continuing:
+
+"Hurry now and pack up.  I'll bring up the ponies while you are
+getting ready."
+
+Eager to begin the ascent of the hills, the boys worked rapidly,
+and by the time Mr. Wilder appeared with the horses everything was
+in the saddle bags, though Horace had dispensed with the formality
+of wiping the dishes.
+
+It was the task of but a few minutes to make fast the saddle bags
+and blankets, and just as the sun flooded the plains with its
+golden light the hunters swung into their saddles.
+
+Riding southward, Mr. Wilder followed the base of the hills for a
+good mile till he came to a well-worn trail.
+
+"We'll follow this run for a while," said he.  "Bill, you and Larry
+can ride at the rear.  I'll keep Horace and Tom with me, so they
+won't be tempted to spoil our sport by shooting at the first deer
+they see, no matter how far out of range it is.  For the benefit of
+you two," he added, addressing the brothers, "I will say that when
+you are riding a trail, and especially a mountain trail, always let
+your pony have plenty of rein.  It's easier for him.  He won't be
+so likely to stumble and fall, and a pony can generally keep a
+trail better than a man."
+
+These instructions delivered, Mr. Wilder turned his pony into the
+run and the others followed in Indian file, the two elder boys
+bringing up the procession.
+
+For an hour they rode, now with their ponies scrambling over rocks,
+now up such steep ascents that the comrades feared the animals
+would fall over onto them.
+
+But by leaning far forward at such times, they had no mishaps and
+at last rode out onto a plateau from which they looked down into a
+vale some two hundred yards below.
+
+A mist hovered over the basin, rendering it impossible for them to
+see the bottom.
+
+The boys were disappointed and said so.
+
+"On the contrary, it is lucky," declared Mr. Wilder.  "There is a
+brook down there and it is a favorite drinking ground for deer.
+Under the cover of the mist we shall be able to go down, and it
+will act as a blanket to keep our scent from the sensitive-nosed
+beauties."
+
+"Going to ride down?" queried Tom, looking about for some trail.
+
+"No, we'll leave the ponies here.  Lively now and hobble them and
+don't talk."
+
+The plateau was some hundred yards long by half as many wide, and
+quickly the hunters rode their horses to where the mountain again
+rose, turning the horses loose in some delicious grass.
+
+"Be very careful, very careful in descending," cautioned the
+ranchman.  "The ground is wet and the rocks are slippery, and if
+you once start to fall, there's no knowing where you will land."
+
+All the boys had hunted enough to know that the safest way to carry
+a loaded gun is with the muzzle pointed to the ground, the butt
+resting against the back of the right shoulder, with the arm
+akimbo, thus forming a rest for the barrel.
+
+And in this fashion they set out.
+
+After a few minutes' search Mr. Wilder exclaimed:
+
+"Here's the run the deer use.  Steady now.  Mind your feet.  Don't
+make a sound."
+
+With almost no noise, the party descended.  Now and then one of the
+lads slipped, but there was always a rock or a sapling at hand
+which they could grasp to steady themselves and no one fell.
+
+As he reached the edge of the mist, Mr. Wilder held up his hand as
+a signal to halt.
+
+Turning his head, he listened intently for some sound that might
+give him an inkling as to the whereabouts of the deer.
+
+In his eagerness to locate them, Horace moved away from the trail
+to the left and then stopped.
+
+Barely had he halted when a loud sneeze rang out from directly in
+front of him.
+
+So sudden and so near was it that Horace cried out in fright.
+
+At the same moment the antlers of a big buck appeared from the mist
+and then vanished as quickly, only to reappear a moment later,
+followed by its head and shoulders.
+
+Whether the buck or the hunters were more surprised it would be
+hard to say.  For several seconds they stared at one another.
+
+Larry, Tom and Horace were trembling like leaves, victims of "buck
+fever," a species of stage fright which makes it impossible for any
+one to hold a gun steady, and Bill was in such a position behind
+the others that he could not aim his rifle unless he put it between
+the heads of the others.
+
+The ranchman alone was where he could bring down the buck, and he
+hesitated, unwilling to risk a chance to get several other deer by
+dropping the one in front of him.
+
+It was the buck himself that put an end to the remarkable
+situation.  Of a sudden, with a snort of rage, he lowered his sharp
+pronged antlers and charged at Horace.
+
+With a yell of terror the boy turned to flee and stumbled.
+
+In an instant the scene had changed from one of comedy to one of
+possible tragedy should the infuriated beast reach his victim.
+
+But Mr. Wilder was equal to the occasion.  Throwing his rifle to
+his shoulder, he fired.
+
+True was his aim and the buck threw up his head, staggered and then
+toppled over.
+
+The sound of the shot had galvanized Tom and Larry into action, and
+with a lightning movement they both stooped, seized their friend
+and pulled him to them just as the body of the buck struck the
+ground.
+
+So unnerved were they all by the narrowness of the escape that for
+several moments no one spoke.
+
+Then Mr. Wilder rallied them by exclaiming:
+
+"See! see!  The mist has lifted.  There go three more deer up the
+valley.  Come on!  Let's see who can bring one down."
+
+The chance for a shot brought even Horace out of his fright, and in
+a thrice the boys had sighted their rifles and fired.  But no deer
+dropped.
+
+"I hit one, I know I did!" declared Bill.  "Let's follow."
+
+"No, shoot again," returned his father.  "We have the advantage
+here from being above."
+
+Again the rifles cracked, and this time one of the deer gave a
+bound in the air and dropped flat.
+
+"Hooray! We've got another!" cried the lads,
+
+"Don't fire any more.  The others are out of range," declared the
+ranchman.
+
+"Please, just one more," begged Horace.
+
+But his father refused, telling him that a good hunter never shot
+when there was no hope of bringing down his game.
+
+"Never mind, we've got two," said Larry.  "I call that pretty good
+luck."
+
+And speculating as to whom the credit of hitting the second
+belonged, they all hastened to where it lay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+THE MESSAGE FROM CROSS-EYED PETE
+
+The shells shot by the rifles belonging to the two chums
+were .44-.50, while those of the Wilder boys were .30, so that
+it would only be possible to tell whether the boys from Ohio
+had proved better marksmen than the Westerners.  Yet the boys
+were eager to settle the question.
+
+Chaffing each other good naturedly, they tramped along, and when
+they saw the size of the antlers and body of the second buck they
+forgot all rivalry.
+
+"He's a beauty!" cried Horace.  "I'm glad it wasn't he that made a
+jump for me.  His prongs stick out a yard."
+
+Though this was an exaggeration, the branches of the antlers were,
+indeed, surprisingly long.
+
+"And there are fourteen of the prongs," ejaculated Tom, who had
+been counting the sharp points.
+
+"Which makes him fifteen years old," asserted Bill.  "Just look at
+their spread; they must be all of four feet."
+
+"Easily," said his father.  "He's the biggest buck I ever saw.  Ah,
+here's the bullet-hole, right back of the shoulder.  It certainly
+was a splendid shot."  And as he bent closer to examine it, the
+others awaited his decision as to which party the trophy belonged.
+
+"Ohio wins!" he declared at last.
+
+"Then Tom probably got him.  He's a better marksman that I am,"
+asserted Larry.
+
+Though the Wilder boys were naturally disappointed, they made the
+best of it, and Bill exclaimed:
+
+"Come on, Larry.  Let's go into the woods and search.  I'm positive
+I hit a deer the first time I fired.  Can we go, father?"
+
+"Surely, only don't get lost.  It will take me some time to dress
+the two bucks.  If you are not back by the time I am finished, come
+to the plateau.  We'll wait for you there."
+
+Promising not to wander far, the elder boys entered the woods while
+the others assisted in dressing the monster buck.
+
+After skinning the animal, the ranchman cut out the most savory
+parts and placed them in the pelt.
+
+"Shall we take the antlers?" asked Horace.
+
+"They'd be fine to have mounted, but they'll be awfully in the way
+while we're hunting.  What do you think, Mr. Wilder?"  And Tom
+appealed to him as to their proper disposal.
+
+"They will be awkward to carry, that's a fact," assented the
+ranchman.  "If you want them very much, though, we can leave them
+here and then stop on our way home.  They'll be safe enough till we
+get back."
+
+Readily Tom agreed, and he and Horace were just stooping to pick up
+one end of the hide, containing the deer meat, when Horace let out
+a cry.
+
+"Oh, what's that thing up by my buck?"
+
+"It looks like a tiger," exclaimed Tom, and then added: "But you
+don't have tigers out here, do you?"
+
+"No.  That's a mountain lion, which is almost the same thing,
+though," answered Mr. Wilder.  "Now's your chance to show your
+marksmanship, Horace.  Take a good aim and see if you can't knock
+him over."
+
+No urging did his son need.  Raising his rifle to position, the lad
+squinted along the barrel carefully and then fired.
+
+Above the report of the shot rang out an ear-splitting howl, and
+the mountain Hon turned to face the direction of the sound.
+
+"Give him another, son.  You hit him, but not in a vital spot,"
+said his father.
+
+Again Horace aimed and fired, this time with better success, for
+the lion dropped in its tracks.
+
+"Good work," praised Tom heartily.  "That was a mighty long shot to
+make.  Now if Bill and Larry only get something, we'll have bagged
+a trophy."
+
+Elated at his success, Horace was starting toward his prize when
+his father called him back to help carry the pelt.
+
+"My, but he's a beauty!" declared the younger of the chums when
+they reached the carcass.  "I should hate to come across one
+suddenly."
+
+"They are not pleasant customers to meet," smiled Mr. Wilder.  "I'm
+glad this fellow didn't visit us last night.  Though why he passed
+the horses by I don't know.  Mountain lions are great ones for
+horse or cattle flesh.  While I am dressing the buck you boys had
+better climb up to the plateau and see that our ponies are all
+right.  Take some of the meat with you and then we won't be obliged
+to make so many trips."
+
+With a piece of meat in one hand and a rifle in the other, the lads
+started up the trail and, though they went bravely enough, each in
+his heart was a bit frightened.
+
+"Pete says mountain lions usually travel in pairs, so keep your
+eyes peeled," advised Horace.
+
+But though they imagined several times they heard the purr of one
+of the prowlers, they reached the plateau without adventure.
+
+The ponies were huddled together, tails to the rocks, and were
+sniffing the air in obvious uneasiness.
+
+"Steady, boys, steady," called Horace soothingly.  And setting down
+his meat, he patted each reassuringly.
+
+The presence of the boys was an evident relief to the ponies, and
+after a few minutes they began to champ grass again.
+
+"That lion must have come quite near, to scare 'em so," asserted
+the young rancher.  "Pete says ponies are almost as good as dogs
+for watching, and I believe him.  They can smell things, oh, way
+off."  And sitting down, Horace entertained his companion with
+stories of the keen scent of horses, which lost none of their color
+because of his lively imagination.  Indeed, he succeeded in getting
+them both so worked up that when Mr. Wilder's hat appeared above
+the edge of the plateau each boy seized his rifle and aimed at it.
+
+"What are you going to do, hold me up?" laughed the ranchman as he
+saw the barrels leveled at him, and then, as he noted the alarm on
+their faces, he added: "Steady!  Put your guns down carefully."
+
+Laughing nervously, the boys obeyed.
+
+"You are a fine lot, you are," he chided, "to leave me to bring up
+all the meat alone.  Why didn't you come back?"
+
+In explanation Horace told how they had found the ponies and said
+they had stayed to quiet them.
+
+"And I'll wager you've been relating some wonderful yarns for Tom's
+benefit, judging from the way you received me.  Now, boys," he
+continued seriously, "when you are in the mountains you must never
+talk about things that will excite you.  There are so many things
+that can happen.  A man always needs to be cool and collected, so
+that if emergency does arise he can think quickly and well."
+
+This bit of advice made a deep impression on the lads and they
+promised to remember it.
+
+The sun was high in the heavens and its heat was becoming terrific.
+
+"Fetch the horses and come into the woods," commanded Mr.  Wilder.
+"We'll get dinner ready and wait for Bill and Larry where it's
+cool."
+
+"Why it's a quarter of twelve," said Tom, looking at his watch.  "I
+had no idea it was so late."
+
+"Time flies when you are hunting," returned the ranchman, "a fact
+that you should remember, and with it that darkness falls quickly
+in the mountains."
+
+The ponies were nothing loath to move from the broiling plateau to
+the cooler woods and stood contentedly, now and then nibbling the
+leaves and tender twigs from the trees near them.
+
+Lighting a fire, Mr.  Wilder soon had a choice slice of venison
+broiling In the saucepan, and the aroma was so good that the boys
+could hardly wait to taste the meat.
+
+At last it was ready, and they ate it ravenously.  "How much better
+it tastes when you've shot it yourself," declared Tom.  "I've had
+venison before, but it wasn't nearly so good as this."
+
+"A keen appetite and the mountain air certainly do give a zest to
+your food," smiled the ranchman.
+
+"I reckon I'll put another slice on the fire so it will be ready
+for the boys when they come."
+
+But it was fully an hour later before they heard the others hail.
+
+"Up here in the woods," called back Tom and Horace, running to the
+edge of the forest to guide them to the camp.
+
+It was several minutes before Larry and Bill came in sight, and
+before they did the others had learned that they had found the deer
+Bill thought he had hit.
+
+"I ran across it," explained Larry.  "It's hind leg was broken and
+it was lying down when I came upon it.  The poor thing tried to
+jump up, but it couldn't very well."
+
+"But I didn't hear any shot," interrupted Tom.  "I've been
+listening, too."
+
+"Good reason why, because it was way over in another basin,"
+answered his brother.  "It must have been all of three miles from
+here, don't you think so, Bill?"
+
+"Easily."
+
+"Then how did you follow it?" demanded Horace.
+
+"By its blood and where its leg dragged."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you found the poor creature and put it out of
+misery," declared his father.  "That's the only objection I have to
+deer hunting--the animals have such wonderful vitality that they
+travel miles and miles after being crippled and then drop from
+exhaustion, like this one.  As a usual thing, I don't allow any one
+to fire at a deer unless at short range.  I made an exception this
+morning, but I never will again."
+
+"We didn't bring much of the meat back, it was too long a haul,"
+said Bill after he had partially satisfied his hunger.
+
+"We have plenty," returned his father.  "In fact, we have so much
+that we won't fire at any more deer."
+
+"Then what can we hunt?" protested Horace.
+
+"Bear," returned his father.
+
+"Oh, goody! and mountain lions!  Say, you deer slayers, you may
+have knocked over some bucks, but it took me to stop a mountain
+lion."
+
+"So you were the one who got him, eh?" asked Bill.  "He must have
+been asleep.  You can't hit a deer, and yet you got a mountain
+lion, which is smaller."
+
+"He wasn't asleep, and I made a dandy long shot.  Tom said so,"
+declared his brother hotly.
+
+"You certainly did well, son," interposed his father.
+
+"Then we've all bagged something, if you can call my getting the
+deer Bill wounded a hit," said Larry.  "This is sure Jim dandy
+hunting.  Back home you can tramp all day without even seeing a
+woodchuck."
+
+Heartily the others laughed at this statement of the difference in
+hunting grounds, and for an hour or so they talked and joked.
+
+"Are we going to camp here for the night?" inquired Horace at last
+of his father.
+
+"No.  I reckon we'll go farther into the mountains.  We'll have a
+better chance for bear there.  This is a little too near the
+plains."
+
+Well rested, the boys were eager to be on the move and gladly they
+made ready to advance.
+
+In and out among the hills the trail wound, and sundown found them
+entering a basin similar to that where they had captured their
+deer.  On two sides walls of rocks towered and dense forests formed
+the others.
+
+Lonesome, indeed, was the spot, and this effect was heightened by
+the rapidly descending darkness.
+
+"Commander, I think we'll hobble the horses right here," said Mr.
+Wilder, dismounting in the center of the vale.  "It would also be a
+good idea to have our camp fire close beside them.  Then, if any
+prowler smells the deer meat or the horses, it can't reach either
+without our knowing it.  And, because we must keep a fire all
+night, we shall need a lot of wood."
+
+Recalled to the fact that he was in charge of the camp, Tom said:
+
+"You fellows come with me and get the wood.  I guess Mr. Wilder
+will attend to the horses, and we four can gather enough before it
+gets real dark."
+
+Quickly the boys dismounted and ran to get dry limbs and branches,
+making a monster pile.
+
+"I reckon that's enough, commander," said the ranchman at last,
+"and, besides, supper is ready or will be when the coffee is
+poured."
+
+"Coffee!  Where did you get the water to boil it?" queried Larry.
+
+"From the canteens.  I filled them this morning."
+
+"And here I've been wondering where we could look for water.  I was
+surprised you didn't tell Tom to send some of us."
+
+Being less tired than the night before, the boys sat round the camp
+fire after supper, talking and listening to the stories the
+ranchman told about his life as a soldier.
+
+When at length they were ready to turn in, they rolled themselves
+up in their blankets and formed a circle about the fire.
+
+Without adventure they passed the night, sleeping till long after
+sunrise, there being no occasion for getting an early start.
+
+Indeed as they ate breakfast they were debating whether to push on
+or stay where they were and set a bear trap when they were
+surprised to hear Mr. Wilder's name called.
+
+Shouting in return, they jumped to their feet, trying to see who
+had hailed them.
+
+"It's some one on horseback.  I can hear the click of horseshoes on
+the stones," declared Larry.
+
+"Some one from the ranch probably," asserted Mr. Wilder, and the
+next moment his opinion was confirmed by Horace, who had run to the
+trail and was returning, yelling:
+
+"It's Nails! It's Nails!"
+
+"He's one of our boys," explained Bill to the chums.  "What do you
+suppose he can want, father?"
+
+"Wait till he tells us.  There are so many possibilities, it's no
+use trying to guess."
+
+Their suspense was short-lived, for in a few moments the cowboy
+called Nails dashed into the basin, his pony in a lather.
+
+Realizing from this condition of his mount that something serious
+was amiss, Mr. Wilder asked:
+
+"What's wrong, Nails?"
+
+"Cattle thieves!" gasped the cowboy.  "Cross-eyed Pete said to get
+everybody you could and meet him at the Witches' Pool to-morrow
+morning.  He's driving up the herds from the Long Creek bottoms."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE RETURN TO THE RANCH
+
+The knowledge that his herds had again been raided by cattle
+thieves made Mr. Wilder very angry.
+
+"This makes the third time some of my cattle have been stolen.  The
+thieves will find it is three times and out.  I'll take their trail
+this time and stick to it till I round them all up."
+
+Never had Bill and Horace seen their father so wrought up, and they
+wisely held their peace while the cowboy who had brought the news
+of the raid busied himself removing the saddle and bridle and
+wiping the lather from his pony.
+
+Before Nails had finished the task, however, the ranchman had
+regained control of himself.
+
+"I am glad Pete is driving the cattle home," he said quietly.
+"They will graze about the Witches' Pool without watching, so I can
+take all the boys with me, and the more there are of us the less
+trouble we will have.  Sit down and eat breakfast, Nails, and then
+tell me about the raid."
+
+No urging did the cowboy need, for he had not tasted a mouthful
+since he had left the herd, twenty-four hours before.  He had
+expected to find the ranchman at his home, and when he learned Mr.
+Wilder had gone on a hunting trip he only stopped long enough to
+change ponies and then started again to find him.
+
+Attentively the boys waited on him, impatient to hear his story.
+
+"It was night before last it happened," said Nails, after having
+eaten more than it seemed possible for one man.  "All during the
+day the cattle had been restless and we boys were kept on the jump
+holding 'em together.  But with the darkness they quieted down and
+we all turned in.
+
+"When morning came, nary a steer was in sight.  It didn't take us
+long to get after 'em, and in about an hour we found them.  But the
+short-horned Durhams were missing."
+
+"The best cattle in the herd," interrupted Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Just what Pete said, but not in the same words," grinned Nails.
+
+"But how do you know they were stolen?" asked Bill.  "Perhaps they
+only wandered off.  You said the herd had been restless."
+
+"A hundred head don't all go together," replied the cowboy.
+"Besides, after looking around, we found the hoofprints of seven
+ponies."
+
+"Which way did they drive?" demanded the ranchman.
+
+"Toward old Mex.  But I reckon that's only a bluff.  It's my idea
+the headquarters of this gang are right in these mountains,
+somewhere.  Pete thinks so, too.  That's why he set the pool as the
+meeting place.  There's an old trail he knows and he wants to
+strike it, you agreeing of course," he added, looking toward the
+ranchman.
+
+"We'll decide about that later.  But if Pete suggested it, he has
+some good reason.  Still, I can't see the necessity of getting any
+of the neighbors.  It will only take time, and we can save
+twenty-four hours by riding straight to the pool from here."
+
+"The reason for getting others is because the Half-Moon isn't the
+only herd that's been raided."
+
+At this statement the Wilders were amazed.
+
+"By the tracks from the direction of the Three Stars there must
+have been two hundred, at least, lifted from them."
+
+"Then Jim Snider and his outfit are on the trail by this time,"
+declared the ranchman.
+
+"No, they aren't.  I saw Sandy the other day, and he said they were
+all going up to Tolopah to bring down a herd Snider brought from
+Montana, It's my idea the thieves knew this and planned a wholesale
+raid."
+
+"H--m.  That sounds likely," commented Mr. Wilder.  "Who do you
+think is at the head of it, Nails?"
+
+"Gus Megget.  He's the only one with the nerve to pull it off."
+
+At the mention of the ruffian cow-puncher the boys looked at one
+another and then at their father, who said:
+
+"That can't be, Nails.  Megget tried some of his funny business
+with these two boys, Larry and Tom Alden, up in Oklahoma the other
+day."
+
+"And they made a monkey of him," interposed Horace gleefully.
+
+"What, them two?" returned the cowboy, looking at the brothers with
+keen interest.
+
+"They certainly did," smiled the ranchman.  "So I reckon we can't
+blame Megget for this raid."
+
+"But he could have come by train, the short line, you know."
+
+"We'll find out in time.  There's no use arguing, Nails," said the
+ranchman.  "Bill, bring up Buster and Blackhawk.  Tom, you will
+have to take Nails' pony.  We must get back to the ranch as soon as
+possible and that other horse is too played out.
+
+"You boys can pack up and follow as fast as you can.  Be at the
+house by the middle of the afternoon, at the latest.  Mind now, I
+have enough to think of without worrying about you."
+
+Nails was helping Bill with the ponies, and almost as soon as Mr.
+Wilder had finished his instructions the animals were ready.
+
+Vaulting into the saddle, the ranchman again cautioned the boys to
+be careful, shook out his reins and rode from the basin at a
+gallop, the cowboy close behind.
+
+With a will the four comrades went to work packing the saddle bags,
+and less than an hour after the others had left were following them.
+
+The raid, the pursuit, wonder if they would be allowed to go on the
+man-hunt and speculation as to whether the thieves would be
+captured formed topics for endless conversation as they rode.
+
+"Do you suppose those men I saw on the cliff are part of the gang?"
+hazarded Tom.
+
+"They may be.  I never thought of them," declared Bill.  "I must
+remember to speak about them to father.  Still, I hardly think they
+could have had a hand in it.  It is all of thirty miles from where
+we saw them to the Long Creek bottoms, and no sizeable herd of
+cattle could be driven through the hills that far in a day.  Twenty
+miles on the prairies is a stiff hike and half that far would be a
+good drive in the mountains."
+
+When they were obliged to ride Indian file over the trail much
+talking was not attempted, and each boy busied himself with his own
+thoughts.
+
+Because of his knowledge of the route, Bill led and Larry brought
+up the rear.  Their advance was slow, however, as they wished to
+give the pony Tom rode as much chance to rest as possible before
+they reached the plains.
+
+With eyes and ears alert, they proceeded, and without mishap
+finally rode out onto the prairie.
+
+[Illustration: "With eyes and ears alert, they proceeded."]
+
+"Let's eat now," suggested Horace.  "That will give Whitefoot more
+rest, and by the time we have finished he'll be as good as new.
+He's a tough one and can stand sixty miles, day in and day out."
+
+"Which is about half as much as he'll get this time," added Bill.
+"Still I think Whitefoot's good for it, especially as he hadn't
+been ridden for a week till Nails took him last night."
+
+The halt was made and the boys ate as heartily as though they had
+not breakfasted only three hours before.
+
+When they were ready to start again Larry said:
+
+"So long as Whitefoot is tired and Horace is the lightest, don't
+you think he'd better ride him instead of Tom?"
+
+"Good idea," acquiesced Bill, and the shift in mounts was made,
+after which the boys headed for the ranch house.
+
+As they were starting on the long forty-mile ride, Mr. Wilder and
+Nails were ending it.  Though forced to ride carefully so long as
+they were on the mountain trail, when the latter reached the plains
+they had "cut loose." Both were expert horsemen and the ponies
+under them were mettlesome.  Indeed, Blackhawk had not entirely
+recovered his temper since his roping and it was he that set the
+pace.  Yet the riders did not allow the ponies to run themselves
+out in the first few miles, holding them down to a long, steady
+lope that covered the ground rapidly.
+
+"Where do you suppose we are the most likely to strike the outfit
+from the Three Stars, at home or in Tolopah?" asked Mr. Wilder
+after a time.
+
+"At home.  They were to get the cattle day before yesterday, and
+Sandy told me they planned to stay at the ranch to-day to pack grub
+so as to save a trip of the wagon."
+
+"Then we ought to find the whole crew at home."
+
+"That's just what Pete and I were banking on," returned Nails.
+
+This point settled, the ranchman refused further conversation, to
+the disappointment of his companion, occupying himself with mapping
+out his campaign.
+
+After a time the ponies began to slacken their stride, but the
+vigorous rowelling they received from the spurs of the men on their
+backs told them they were bound on pressing business, and they
+responded gamely.
+
+"I hope Ned is at home," Mr. Wilder exclaimed suddenly.  "If he
+isn't, there won't be any but slow ponies in the corral.  And that
+means it will take me the whole afternoon to get to the Three
+Stars."
+
+"No, it don't," asserted Nails.  "I kinder thought you might be off
+somewhere, so I cut out three ponies from the bunch and brought
+them up with me.  When they told me you were hunting with the kids,
+I naturally knew you wouldn't go far into the mountains, so I left
+the best ones at the Half-Moon."
+
+This foresight of his cowboy pleased the ranchman, and he commended
+him heartily.
+
+"You seem to have a pretty level head, Nails.  What do you make of
+these raids on my herd?  This makes the third.  It rather seems to
+me as though the thieves had marked me for their particular victim."
+
+"That's my idea exactly," declared the cowboy.  "And that's what
+makes me so sure Gus Megget had a hand in the raid."
+
+"But what grudge has Megget against me?" asked Mr. Wilder in
+surprise.
+
+"You are the one who leased the Long Creek bottoms, aren't you?"
+returned Nails, answering the question, Yankee fashion, by another.
+
+"To be sure.  But what has that to do with it?"
+
+"Everything.  Megget's been rustling cattle for years, and the Long
+Creek bottoms were where he used to drive the cattle he'd lifted.
+If any one jumped him, he could either cross the line into old Mex
+or strike out for the mountains.  Maybe you don't know it, but
+there's a greaser just across the line--they call him Don
+Vasquez--who makes a fat living buying stolen cattle.  He's got
+some old Indian remedy for making hair grow, and he cuts out the
+old brands, makes hair grow out and then burns in his three
+crosses."
+
+"And so my leasing the bottoms has spoiled this criminal dealing?"
+
+"That's what.  I heard a greaser down in El Paso last winter
+boasting you'd sell your ranch inside of two years."
+
+"Why didn't you tell me?" demanded Mr. Wilder severely.
+
+"Didn't think it was necessary.  Fatty and I fixed him so he
+wouldn't brag any more."
+
+Deeming it unwise to inquire Into the means taken for silencing the
+Mexican, the ranchman lapsed into silence for a few minutes and
+then declared:
+
+"No cattle thieves can drive me out of business, Nails.  I have the
+right on my side, and right always triumphs."
+
+"We boys are with you, Mr. Wilder.  You've always played more than
+fair with us, which is more than we can say of some folks, and we
+appreciate it.  Cowboys have feelings same as other people, though
+there seem to be a lot of folks who don't think so.  And I'm
+speaking for the other boys of the Half-Moon as well as myself.  We
+talked it all over before Pete sent me to the ranch.  But when you
+join 'em at the pool, don't say anything about what I've told you.
+Sentiment and hunting cattle thieves don't mix."
+
+This expression of the esteem in which his men held him, crude
+though it was, moved Mr. Wilder deeply, and reaching over, he
+seized the cowboy's hand and shook it warmly, an action that
+delighted Nails greatly.
+
+The statement about Megget gave the ranchman a new train of
+thought.  He realized for the first time that he was engaged in a
+cattle war which would only end with his ruin or the capture of the
+entire band of thieves.  And being a man who could not be
+frightened, the owner of the Half-Moon Ranch vowed to accomplish
+the latter alternative.
+
+The hard ride was tiring the ponies, wiry though they were, and the
+men on their backs were obliged to resort to almost continual use
+of their spurs.  But at last the buildings of the ranch home came
+into view, and soon Mr. Wilder and Nails were at the corral.
+
+"Saddle the best of the bunch for me," ordered the ranchman as he
+dismounted.  "I'll go to the house for a bite and then start for
+the Three Stars."
+
+"What about me?" inquired the cowboy, disappointment in his voice
+at the thought of being left behind.
+
+"I want you to ride into Tolopah.  Don't say anything about the
+raid.  Just listen round and see if you can learn anything."  And
+turning on his heel, Mr. Wilder started for the house.
+
+"Where are the boys?  You didn't let them stay to hunt, did you?"
+inquired his wife anxiously as he sat down at the table and ordered
+Hop Joy to bring him something to eat.
+
+"No.  They'll be here during the afternoon.  I'm going to get Jim
+Snider and his outfit.  Nails says they are at home."  And briefly
+he told her of the information he had received from his cowboy.
+
+No longer than necessary did the ranchman linger at the table, and
+when he had finished a hasty meal went out, mounted the pony Nails
+held waiting and galloped away in the direction of the Three Stars
+Ranch, which lay to the east.
+
+Having far less to go, the cowboy ate leisurely and then rode
+toward Tolopah.
+
+In the meantime the four boys were making the best time they could,
+but before they had covered half the distance Whitefoot gave out
+completely.
+
+For a time they proceeded, with Horace riding now with one boy and
+now with another.  But it was slow work, and at last Bill suggested
+that he ride on ahead, get fresh horses and return.  After some
+argument, this plan was agreed upon.
+
+As she saw her elder son ride up alone, Mrs. Wilder was greatly
+alarmed, but he quickly reassured her, and with Ned's help caught
+two ponies, saddled them and went back to meet the others, all
+reaching the house a little later.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+PREPARATIONS FOR PURSUIT
+
+"Oh, dear!  Father and Nails have gone!" exclaimed Horace as he
+counted the ponies in the corral while the others were unsaddling.
+"Now we can't go with them.  I was afraid that was what father
+intended when he didn't wait for us."
+
+"But Buster and Blackhawk are here, and there is one more pony than
+before," returned Larry.
+
+"That doesn't prove anything.  Ned told me Nails brought in three
+extra ponies with him," said Bill.
+
+"Then you have known all the time that father and Nails were gone
+and never told us?" demanded Horace.
+
+"It was because I didn't know for certain where they had gone that
+I said nothing," replied his brother.  "Ned was away when they
+arrived and departed.  Here comes mother; you can find out from
+her."
+
+After returning Mrs. Wilder's greetings and giving her a brief
+account of the trip, Horace asked:
+
+"How long have father and Nails been gone?  I think it was mean of
+them to give us the slip like that."
+
+"But they haven't gone to the hills yet," returned his mother.
+"Your father has ridden over to the Three Stars and Nails has gone
+to Tolopah."
+
+"Oh, goody!" exclaimed Horace.  "We may be able to go, after all.
+Momsy, won't you try to make father take us?"
+
+It was only with this last question that Mrs. Wilder understood the
+purpose of her son's eager inquiries, and the disclosure did not
+tend to quiet the anxiety she felt over the outcome of the pursuit.
+Yet she only said:
+
+"That is a question for your father to decide.  I think, though,
+that you would want to stay here and protect me."
+
+"But you are in no danger, Momsy.  Besides, Ned and Hop Joy are
+here."
+
+The thought of the Chinaman as a protector made the other boys
+laugh, and realizing that they could not count on her espousal of
+their cause, they went off to the wagon sheds to devise a plan to
+win permission from the ranchman.
+
+As the owner of the Half-Moon galloped up to the ranch house of the
+Three Stars his horse literally dripping water, Jim Snider and his
+cowboys ran up from all directions to learn the cause of such
+evident hard riding.
+
+To the accompaniment of various exclamations of anger and surprise
+Mr. Wilder hurriedly told his neighbors of the raid.
+
+"That's Megget's work!" ejaculated Snider as the story was
+completed.  "He's the only one cute enough and with nerve enough to
+do it.  I didn't suppose any one knew my herd was unwatched, yet
+the minute my boys ride in the gang raids it.  Wilder, if you and I
+are to stay on our ranches, we must round up these cattle thieves."
+
+"That's my idea exactly," declared the owner of the Half-Moon.
+"That's why I rode over.  My boys and I start to-morrow morning,
+and I want to know how many from the Three Stars will go with me."
+
+"Every man jack of us, save the cook and grub man," replied Snider.
+"That makes nine."
+
+"Good! We'll ride back to the Half-Moon for supper and then go to
+the pool.  The sooner we start the better.  If you'll lend me a
+fresh pony, I can travel faster."
+
+Without waiting for orders from their master, the boys of the Three
+Stars ran to the corral, all agog with the excitement at the
+unexpected turn of affairs.
+
+When the two ranch owners were alone Mr. Wilder imparted his
+information about Megget's enmity and the Mexican, Don Vasquez.
+
+The facts amazed the proprietor of the Three Stars and the two men
+were discussing the evident declaration of a cattle war, especially
+against the Half-Moon, when the cowboys trotted up with the ponies.
+
+Deeming the information too important for general discussion with
+the men, the ranch owners swung into their saddles, changing their
+topic of conversation to the trails that would be the most likely
+to be taken by the raiders.
+
+Never sparing their mounts, they reached the Half-Moon just at dusk
+and their arrival threw the boys into great excitement.
+
+"Has Nails returned?" asked Mr. Wilder of Ned.
+
+"Not yet."
+
+"Send him to me when he comes.  Make the boys from the Three Stars
+at home in the bunkhouse and tell Hop Joy to give us supper as soon
+as he can.  Also have him pack some bacon, sugar, coffee, crackers
+and doughnuts, enough to last the Half-Moon outfit a week.  When
+it's ready, hitch up and carry it to Pete at the Witches' Pool.
+
+"Hello! Glad you lads arrived all right," he added as he caught
+sight of the boys.  "Any trouble?"
+
+"Nothing, only Whitefoot gave out.  I had to come on and get
+another pony," replied Bill.
+
+"Good!  Snider, I want you to know Larry and Tom Alden," continued
+Mr. Wilder, introducing the boys, adding in a low voice: "They are
+the lads about whom I told you."
+
+"I'm sure glad to meet you," declared the owner of the Three Stars,
+giving each of the lads a grip that made their hands ache.
+
+Upon arrival he had exchanged greetings with Bill and Horace, and
+altogether they trooped onto the veranda, whence they were summoned
+to supper before the lads had the opportunity to ask Mr. Wilder
+whether they could accompany him or not.
+
+Evincing a lively Interest in the two Eastern boys, the Three
+Stars' owner plied them with questions about Ohio and was so
+impressed with their answers that he extended a cordial invitation
+to them and the Wilder boys to pay him a visit at his ranch,
+promising to have his men give an exhibition of "broncho busting"
+for their special benefit, an invitation which all four eagerly
+accepted.
+
+Just as they were ready to rise from the table Hop Joy glided in.
+
+"Nail, he backee," he announced.  "Say he got heap talkee."
+
+"Tell him to come round to the veranda," ordered Mr. Wilder.  "By
+the way, how are you coming along with the cooking, Hop Joy?"
+
+"Allee lightee.  Bymeby, two hours maybe."
+
+"Well, don't be any longer.  The sooner Ned can start, the sooner
+he'll reach the Pool."
+
+In answer the celestial bowed low, then turned and left the room.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+WHAT NAILS LEARNED
+
+While the ranchmen and Mrs. Wilder made themselves comfortable in
+chairs, the boys squatted or stretched out on the piazza, their
+restlessness proclaiming the expectancy with which they awaited the
+"heap talkee" Nails desired to impart.
+
+The cowboy soon appeared, and, after seating himself at Mr.
+Wilder's bidding, launched into an account of what he had learned
+in Tolopah.
+
+"There are twenty of them in the gang," he said, "and Megget has
+joined them by this time, though he wasn't with them when they made
+the raids.  As near as I could make out, their headquarters are in
+the Lost Lode Mine.  There are three trails to it, one leading in
+somewhere near the trail you all took on your hunting trip and the
+others to the south, along which they drive the cattle they steal.
+I----"
+
+"Mr. Wilder, you don't suppose that could be the trail where I saw
+those men crossing the face of the cliff, do you?" interrupted Tom.
+
+"I shouldn't doubt it a bit.  I'd forgotten about them entirely."
+And he briefly told Snider of the figures they all had seen,
+adding: "Much obliged for reminding me, Tom.  That may have been
+Megget and the fellows you met with him.  Go on, Nails; anything
+more?"
+
+"Nothing but that it's my opinion they have a spy in Tolopah who
+keeps 'em mighty well informed on the happenings at the Half-Moon
+and Three Stars ranches."
+
+At the words Mr. Wilder and his neighbor exchanged significant
+glances.
+
+"What makes you think so?" the latter asked.  "Where did you learn
+all this, anyhow?"
+
+"Oh, just nosing round," drawled Nails, but his tone suggested that
+he was sure of his information and at the same time unwilling to
+disclose its source.
+
+"You certainly did well, Nails," complimented his master.  "Knowing
+how many there are in the gang will enable us to lay definite plans
+for action.  Now go and get your supper.  I suppose you have seen
+the boys from the Three Stars in the bunkhouse?"
+
+"I could hear 'em half way to Tolopah." "Then tell them we'll
+start.  At what time do you think Pete will reach the pool?"
+
+"About midnight."
+
+"Good.  Be ready to move by ten o'clock."
+
+"And tell my outfit to make less noise," added Mr. Snider.
+
+Until they could hear the other cowboys greeting Nails the two men
+were silent, and then Mr. Wilder declared:
+
+"I had no idea Megget had twenty men with him.  It's a good thing
+we found out.
+
+"Let's see, there are nine of you from the Three Stars; nine of my
+boys and myself.  That makes nineteen."
+
+"And the four of us, that makes twenty-three," added Horace,
+deeming the moment auspicious for settling the question that was
+uppermost in the minds of all the lads.
+
+"Your arithmetic is better than your facts," laughed his father.
+
+"Oh, can't we go, please?  If Megget should see Larry and Tom, he
+might run and----"
+
+"On the contrary, I'm afraid he might try to wipe out the disgrace
+they put upon him.  No, my son, it's going to be a hard trip.  If
+you were along I should be worrying about you all the time.
+Besides," he added, noting the keen disappointment his refusal
+brought, "I shall need you here so you can ride down to the pool
+every day and see that the cattle and horses are all right."
+
+"That's well enough for the others.  They would be in the way, but
+I wouldn't," protested Bill.  "I'm old enough and strong enough to
+go, and the experience would do me good.  If you take it, it will
+make just twenty on both sides."
+
+"What do you think, Jim, shall we take Bill or not?"
+
+As the boys awaited the answer of their friend, it was so still the
+fall of a pin could have been heard.
+
+But their suspense did not last long.
+
+With a drawl that was tantalizingly deliberate the owner of the
+Three Stars Ranch replied:
+
+"I reckon we might as well.  Bill's got a level head on his
+shoulders, and some day he'll be boss of the Half-Moon.  If
+anything like this happens then he'll know how to act.  Yes, I
+think we'd better take him."
+
+Aware that it would be useless to try to persuade Mr. Wilder to
+change his mind in respect to taking them, Tom, Larry and Horace
+made the most of the fact that they were to inspect the herd daily.
+But it was poor recompense, and in a few minutes they went on to
+see how near Ned was ready to start, stopping to sample Hop Joy's
+cooking on the way.
+
+"You goee?" asked the Chinaman as the trio entered his kitchen.
+
+"Going to eat," grinned Horace, helping himself to a doughnut and
+just managing to dodge a potato that Hop Joy tossed at him.
+
+"Shoo! shoo!  Lun out!  Me bigee hully.  No plague! no plague!"
+
+"Poor fellow!  It must be some job to get enough food ready for
+twelve men.  Come on, let's leave him alone," said Larry.  "I'd
+like to go down to the bunk-house."
+
+"That's so.  Maybe Sandy or some of his boys know the trail to the
+Lost Lode," agreed Horace.  And to the Chinaman's surprise they
+left him in peace.
+
+The men from the Three Stars were lying in the bunks and sprawling
+on the benches, getting what rest they could in anticipation of
+many long hours in the saddle, laughing and talking the while.
+
+At the entrance of the trio the chatter ceased and the cowboys
+stared at the two Eastern boys with undisguised interest.
+
+"Boys, these are the famous cowboy tamers, Larry and Tom Alden,"
+said Horace, bowing in feigned deference and indicating his friends
+with a wave of his hand.
+
+"Don't be afraid, though.  We won't try our hands on you unless you
+get gay with us," declared Larry seriously.
+
+"Thankee, thankee kindly, on behalf of me and my men," bowed Sandy
+gravely, and then they all burst into a roar of laughter.
+
+Cowboys love a joke, and the words and manner of the brothers,
+together with their clean-cut faces and manly bearing, appealed to
+them, winning the way to their good graces as nothing else could.
+
+All reserve thus broken, the men bade the lads sit down.
+
+"I s'pose you'll be going with us?" hazarded Sandy.
+
+"No, father won't let us.  He thinks we're only babies.  Says he's
+afraid we'll be in the way.  So we've got to stay home and watch
+the herd at the Witches' Pool."
+
+"You may have your hands full at that," declared one of the cowboys.
+
+"Keep quiet," growled Sandy, frowning at the speaker.
+
+But the remark had suggested all sorts of possibilities to the
+lads, and, glancing at Tom and Larry, Horace asked:
+
+"What makes you think so?"
+
+Again Sandy cast a look full of meaning at his fellow and the
+cowboy answered:
+
+"Oh, nothing in particular.  I was just talking."
+
+The boys had noted Sandy's glances, however, and the reply only
+whetted their curiosity.
+
+Drawing himself to his full height and striving to be as severe as
+possible, Horace said:
+
+"If any of you men know of any trouble that may come to the
+Half-Moon herd, it is your duty to tell my father before he goes
+away."
+
+The words and the seriousness of the boy standing before them sent
+the men into another roar of laughter.
+
+But Sandy hastened to say:
+
+"There's nothing we know, kid.  Skinny was only joking."
+
+Horace was about to reply when Hop Joy poked his head through the
+door, saying:
+
+"Glub all leady, Ned."
+
+"All right, Hop."  And springing from his bunk, Ned went out to
+harness his horses, accompanied by several of the cowboys.
+
+For an hour or so the chums stayed in the bunkhouse, listening to
+stories of marvelous feats of broncho-busting and whatever else the
+men pleased to tell them, only leaving when Nails announced it was
+time to go to the corral and saddle up.
+
+"Aren't you going with them?" asked Tom.
+
+"No," returned Horace.  "We are liable to get hurt, it's so dark.
+We couldn't see anything if we did go.  Besides, father may have
+some orders to give us."
+
+The only instructions Mr. Wilder had to give, however, were to be
+careful not to do anything that would cause his wife to worry about
+them.
+
+"Suppose the herd gets in trouble, what shall we do?" persisted
+Horace, on whose excited mind the words of the Three Stars' cowboy
+had made a lasting impression.
+
+"Use your own judgment.  But don't let your imagination play tricks
+on you.  The cattle will be all right--unless you get them
+restless."
+
+"Oh, we won't do that," quickly declared Larry.  "We'll take such
+good care of them, you will want to hire us as cowboys when you get
+back."
+
+The shouts from the corral told the ranchmen that the time for the
+start had arrived, and quickly they made themselves ready, while
+Hop Joy appeared to say he had sent saddle bags with food for Mr.
+Wilder and Bill by Ned.
+
+With a great clatter of hoofs, the cowboys rode up.  The Wilders
+and Mr. Snider bade a hurried good-by, mounted and galloped away
+into the darkness of the night, with the wishes of Mrs. Wilder and
+the boys for success and a speedy return ringing in their ears.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+OUT ON THE PLAINS
+
+Unlike the night when the hunting party had ridden over the plains,
+black clouds covered the sky, making the darkness so intense that
+the riders could not see fifty feet ahead of them.  But Mr. Wilder
+and Nails knew the route well, so that the absence of the moon made
+no great difference.
+
+That they need not tire their mounts by hard riding, Mr. Wilder had
+purposely set the start early and, with Snider on one side and Bill
+on the other, he led the cavalcade, setting the pace at a slow lope.
+
+Now and then the cowboys talked or laughed, but for the most part
+they were silent, the creak of the saddle leathers and the swish of
+the horses' legs as they brushed through the grass being the only
+sounds to tell that a body of men were riding through the darkness.
+
+So lonesome was the ranch house after the departure of the party
+that, though they made several attempts to talk, Horace and the two
+Eastern lads finally decided to go to bed, to the evident relief of
+Mrs. Wilder.
+
+But sleep did not come to Larry and Tom, and as they lay tossing
+and turning, the former asked:
+
+"Do you think that fellow they call Skinny really meant there was
+any danger threatening the herd at the Witches' Pool?"
+
+"I don't believe so," replied Tom.  "I suppose there is always the
+chance that a lot of things may happen to a big herd like that.
+Some of them might try to wander away or they might get frightened
+and stampede.  I read about a stampede once where the cattle ran
+right over the edge of a cliff."
+
+"Well, they couldn't do that at the pool, because there aren't any
+cliffs near there," replied Tom.
+
+Larry was not satisfied, however, and said:
+
+"I wonder what cowboys do to stop a stampede?  I wish we'd thought
+to ask Mr. Wilder."
+
+"Don't always be looking for trouble, Larry," protested his brother.
+
+"Still, we ought to know.  He said he'd hold us responsible for the
+cattle."
+
+"We can ask Ned when he gets back, if you really want to know.  But
+don't, for goodness sake let Horace hear you.  His imagination is
+so lively that he would think it was a stampede every time the
+cattle moved.  I think it was because Horace is so excitable that
+Mr. Wilder had us stay home.  He probably thought we were older and
+could steady him down.  Now don't try to think up any more things
+that might happen.  I'm tired and want to go to sleep."  And
+turning his back to his brother, Tom refused to talk any more.
+
+Out on the prairie the body of horsemen were riding silently and
+steadily.
+
+"I hope we shall not be obliged to wait long for Pete," said Bill,
+giving voice to his thoughts.
+
+"He'll be on hand, barring accidents," returned his father.
+
+This confidence of the owner of the Half-Moon in his foreman was
+justified, when, at the end of another hour, the men caught the
+flare of a camp fire in the direction of the pool.
+
+"Must have hurried some," asserted Snider.
+
+But this comment elicited no other response than a quickening of
+the pace.
+
+When they were within a mile of the fire Mr. Wilder drew rein.
+
+"You boys wait here," he commanded.  "I haven't any doubt but that
+it's Pete's fire.  Still, it won't pay to take any chances.  Snider
+and I will ride ahead to reconnoiter.  If we are not back within
+half an hour, you'll know it's all right and can follow."
+
+Little relishing the enforced halt, the cowboys, however, obeyed,
+some of them dismounting and stretching out in the grass.
+
+Riding a rod or so from the others, Bill, Nails and Sandy eagerly
+peered through the darkness, listening intently for any sound that
+should indicate danger.
+
+The two ranch owners, being experienced in the art of scouting,
+rode to the left into a roll of the plains, one crest of which shut
+them off from the light.  For they were aware that should they ride
+in its glare they would be seen by whoever was about the fire, and
+they wished to make sure it was Pete and his men at the pool before
+disclosing themselves.
+
+But their caution was unnecessary.  When they had covered only a
+little more than half the distance the lowing of cattle broke on
+their ears.
+
+"That's the Half-Moon outfit, sure enough," declared Snider.  And
+putting spurs to their ponies, the ranch owners galloped straight
+for the fire.
+
+"Queer we can't see any of the boys," muttered Mr. Wilder in a low
+voice.  "I know they are tired.  But, all things considered, one of
+them at least ought to be on watch if for nothing else than to keep
+the cattle from breaking away.  That they are restless, you can
+tell from their lowing.
+
+"It's no wonder the raiders were able to cut out my short-horned
+Durhams if the boys didn't keep better watch."
+
+His tone showed deep annoyance, and he was on the point of speaking
+again when a sharp challenge rang out from their left:
+
+"Who goes there?"
+
+Instantly Mr. Wilder's anger vanished as he recognized the voice of
+his foreman and replied:
+
+"Don't get excited, Pete.  It's only Jim Snider and me."
+
+In response to his master's greeting the cowboy sprang to his feet
+and a movement of his hand toward his belt showed both ranchmen
+that he had been prepared to dispute their advance should they have
+proven foes instead of friends.
+
+"Where are the others?  You two didn't come alone, did you?  I told
+Nails to have you get as many as you could," said the foreman.
+
+"We left them back yonder," returned the owner of the Half-Moon.
+"Nails said we were to meet you in the morning, and when we saw the
+fire Jim and I thought we'd make sure it was you."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you've come," responded Pete.  "Now we can get on
+the trail so much the sooner.  How many did you bring?"
+
+"Nine from the Three Stars, including Jim, Bill, Nails and myself.
+With your boys that will make twenty, just the number of the
+raiders."
+
+As he uttered the last words Mr. Wilder expected his foreman to
+evince surprise, but instead he and Snider were the ones to be
+taken aback as Pete remarked:
+
+"So Nails found out, did he?  What else did he?  What else did he
+learn?"
+
+Briefly the owner of the Half-Moon reported the information Nails
+had gleaned at Tolopah and then told him of the opinions he and the
+proprietor of the Three Stars had formed.
+
+"You got the lay of the land down to the last sage brush," declared
+the foreman.  "But we will put a crimp in Megget's plans that he
+will not forget.  My men are asleep by the fire, so there is no use
+waking them till we've decided what to do."
+
+"Then we must get down to business," returned his master.  "I told
+the boys to ride up unless we returned in half an hour."
+
+A moment there was silence, as though each were waiting for the
+other to make some suggestion as to the best course to pursue, and
+then Mr. Wilder said:
+
+"So long as we know the headquarters are in the Lost Lode Mine, it
+seems to me we had better strike for it direct.  Nails told me you
+knew some trail."  And he looked at Pete.
+
+"I know trails enough, but which is the one that leads to the Lost
+Lode, I can't say.  That's just the trouble.  It would take a month
+of Sundays to ride them all down.  While we were driving the cattle
+up here, I was trying to figure out which trail to take in case
+Nails found the mine was the place."
+
+"You have tried some of the trails, haven't you, Pete?" inquired
+the owner of the Three Stars.
+
+"Sure.  There are six I know that don't lead to the mine.  That
+leaves three between the pool and the Long Creek bottoms, and it
+may be any one of them."
+
+"Why do you think so?" asked his master.
+
+"Because I know the right trail is between the pool and the
+bottoms."
+
+Again the men lapsed into silence, which Mr. Snider broke by
+inquiring:
+
+"What was it that young Alden mentioned about men crossing the
+dirt?"
+
+"That's so.  I'd forgotten it again," and quickly Mr. Wilder
+narrated the incident to his foreman.
+
+"Probably that was Megget," asserted Pete.  "But that doesn't help
+us much.  We don't know where that trail breaks on the plains.
+Besides, while we practically know the headquarters are near the
+old mine, we don't know they are driving the cattle there.  They
+may be heading straight for Don Vasquez's ranch.
+
+"The plan that I kind of made up was to follow the trail from the
+bottoms till we were sure which way the raiders were headed.  If
+it's for the mine, we can ride back along the plains and try out my
+three trails."
+
+"But why not follow the cattle?" interrupted Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Because I'd rather head them off than creep up on them.  The
+raiders will be expecting us from behind.  By riding on the prairie
+we can cover ten miles to their one, which will give us time to try
+out the three trails, and, when we find the right one, we can get
+in ahead and block the trail."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+ANOTHER DISCOVERY
+
+For several minutes the ranch owners discussed the suggestion and
+finally decided to act on it unless circumstances should make a
+change advisable.
+
+Having settled the matter, they rode to the fire and aroused the
+sleeping cowboys, being joined a few minutes later by Bill, Sandy
+and the others.  Soon the men of the Half-Moon were saddling their
+ponies.
+
+"Queer we don't meet Ned anywhere," Bill exclaimed.  "I see from
+the bags he's been here, Pete."
+
+"He got here all right, but he didn't like to go back very well.
+Had a bad case of nerves, so he took down the white awning."
+
+"It's just as well," returned Mr. Wilder.  Then, finding that the
+men were impatient to be on the move, he gave the command to start
+and they rode toward the Long Creek bottoms.
+
+When Tom and Larry awoke it was bright daylight.
+
+"Why it's nine o'clock," exclaimed Larry in amazement as he looked
+at his watch.
+
+Hastily the brothers dressed and then went to see if Horace was in
+his room or had played some joke on them in letting them sleep.  To
+their relief, they found him in bed.
+
+"Hey, you, get up!" cried Tom.  "You're a fine one to be in charge
+of the Half-Moon Ranch.  If you stay in bed much longer, it will be
+dark."
+
+Deeply chagrined to think he had overslept, Horace leaped to the
+floor, and soon the three boys were ready for breakfast.
+
+At the sound of their voices Mrs. Wilder had ordered Hop Joy to
+bring in their food, and as the lads entered the dining-room she
+was awaiting them.
+
+"Why didn't you call us?" protested Horace.
+
+"Because I thought you were all tired and that sleep would do you
+good."
+
+"And I suppose if Larry or Tom hadn't happened to wake up, you
+would have let us sleep all day?"
+
+"I suppose I should," said his mother, smiling.  "When you are in
+bed I know that you are safe."
+
+"You must not worry about us, Mrs. Wilder," interposed Larry.  "I
+always tell mother that we are old enough to take care of
+ourselves.  So I wish you would feel the same.  I think it would
+save you no end of anxiety."
+
+"Undoubtedly.  But I never can think of my Horace except as my
+baby."
+
+"Huh!  I'm a pretty husky baby," grunted the boy.  "See here,
+mother, I'm fifteen now, so I wish you'd stop calling me your baby.
+When a fellow has been put in charge of the Half-Moon herd he
+doesn't like to be called a baby."
+
+"I'll try to remember," returned Mrs. Wilder gently.  Yet there was
+a wistfulness in her voice that caused Horace to look up, and, at
+the sight of her face, he left his chair, ran and put his arm
+around her neck, exclaiming:
+
+"If you want to call me baby, you can, Momsy!  I don't care.  Tom
+and Larry are the right stuff and they won't laugh."
+
+Ere either of the brothers could reply Hop Joy appeared.
+
+"Ned he goee pool," he announced.  "Say if you boys wantee go, you
+hully."
+
+"Tell him to bring up Blackhawk, Lightning and Lady Belle.  Then
+put up some food for us, Hop Joy.  Plenty of it, mind."
+
+As the Chinaman glided from the room Mrs. Wilder asked:
+
+"Why do you take anything except for lunch, son?"
+
+"Because I think we will spend the night at the pool.  Larry and
+Tom want to see the will-o'-the-wisps, and we maybe able to catch
+some fish early to-morrow morning.  You know father always says
+early morning is the only time to fish in the pool."
+
+"Well, I don't suppose it will do any harm for you to be gone over
+night.  Only be careful.  I shall worry if you are not back before
+dusk tomorrow night."
+
+Permission to pass the night obtained, the comrades quickly
+collected their rifles and some fishing tackle, mounted the ponies
+Ned had brought up and rode away.
+
+After learning from their companion that he had found Pete and the
+herd at the pool when he arrived, the lads indulged in speculation
+as to when and where the pursuers would come across the raiders and
+the chances of recovering the cattle.
+
+Of a sudden, remembering his discussion, with his brother the night
+before, Larry asked:
+
+"How do you stop a stampede, Ned?"
+
+"You generally don't," replied the man with a grin.
+
+"But you try, don't you?  I'm sure I've read of cowboys stopping
+stampedes."
+
+"I guess they do it easier in story books then than on the plains.
+The best way to stop a stampede is not to let it start.  Still, if
+there's enough boys on hand, I suppose it could be done.  The only
+way, though, would be to ride down the leaders and turn them round.
+
+"As I said, if there are enough boys on hand when the trouble
+breaks, they can get them to milling, which is going round and
+round in a circle until the cattle get tired out.  But it takes a
+mighty lively bunch of cow-punchers to do it."
+
+After riding for two hours they came in sight of the cattle, and
+the two brothers quickened their pace, eager to see them at close
+range.
+
+"Steady now.  Don't go riding at them like a pack of Indians or you
+will have all the stampede you want to see," exclaimed Ned.  "My,
+but they surely are restless!"
+
+This last remark was caused by some of the steers which raised
+their heads at the approach of the riders, then turned and dashed
+back to the body of the herd.
+
+"Oh, dear! I'm afraid we've started them," said Horace.
+
+"Pull in your horses!" commanded Ned.  "The main bunch is all
+right.  If we come up to them slow, there won't be any trouble."
+
+Obeying instantly, the boys reined their horses to a walk and
+reached the pool without causing further alarm among the cattle.
+
+"So this is where the ghosts live, is it?" asked Tom, gazing from a
+little knoll at a placid body of water about one hundred feet long
+by twice as many wide, surrounded by reeds.
+
+"Maybe you won't laugh so much to-night," declared their friend and
+then, because he did not like to be joked about his belief that the
+place was haunted, he added: "Come on, let's see if we can find
+which direction father and the boys took."
+
+The chance to try if they could track any one on the prairie
+appealed to the others, and they started to ride around the pool.
+
+"I can see where they had a camp fire!" cried Tom, pointing toward
+a pile of white ashes.
+
+"Here's where the grass is all tramped down.  Look, there's a
+regular path right for the mountains."
+
+"No, this is the way they went, to the south, here," returned Larry.
+
+Each boy was firm in his declaration that he had found the trail
+and to prove it they dismounted and began to examine the ground.
+
+"I'm right.  I can see horse tracks!" cried Larry.  "This is the
+way they took, isn't it, Ned?" Thus appealed to, both Horace and
+the man rode up.
+
+"Larry's right," announced Ned, after a few moments observation,
+
+"Then what caused my tracks?" demanded Tom.  "Here are horse
+tracks, too, only most of the hoofprints are made by cattle."
+
+"Oh, you can't tell a cow from a pony print," taunted Horace.
+
+"Come over and see for yourself," retorted Tom.
+
+Examination proving that he was right, his friend exclaimed:
+
+"That was made by the boys coming up."
+
+"But the tracks are all going toward the mountains.  They certainly
+wouldn't drive any cattle away with them.  You don't--you don't
+suppose it's another raid, do you?" and Tom glanced at Ned.
+
+"Yes."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE CONTESTED TRAIL
+
+The thought that the cattle thieves should have dared to make still
+another raid on the very night when the outfits of the Half-Moon
+and Three Stars ranches had set out to run them to cover was so
+startling that for several minutes after Tom had suggested it no
+one spoke.
+
+Larry was the first one to recover from the shock of surprise.
+
+"There's no use in trying to guess," he declared.  "We must find
+out.  The only way to do that, so far as I can see, is to follow
+the trail and discover where it leads."
+
+This proposition received the excited endorsement of the other two
+boys, and Horace added:
+
+"Wouldn't it be dandy if we could round up Megget and his men
+before father and the others?  Come on!"
+
+"Don't be in too much of a hurry," urged Tom.
+
+"Oh, if you are afraid to go, you needn't.  I'll go alone," sneered
+Horace.
+
+Flushing at the taunt of cowardice, Tom bit his lips that he might
+not say anything he should regret.
+
+"You ought to know, Horace, that neither Larry nor I are afraid,"
+he responded.  "I was only thinking about your mother.  We promised
+her we would be back by to-morrow night.  The idea of our going in
+pursuit of Megget by ourselves is foolish.  The thing to do is to
+make sure this trail leads into the mountains and then go and try
+to find your father and his men."
+
+"Now you're talking sense," interrupted Ned.
+
+"To find them will certainly take us longer than until to-morrow
+night.  In order that Mrs. Wilder need not worry, we must let her
+know of the change in our plans."
+
+"That's so," agreed Larry.  "Still there is no reason for our all
+going back; one is enough.  Let's draw lots to see who it shall be."
+
+"Not much," returned Horace.  "So long as father and Bill are away,
+I am in charge of the Half-Moon.  The rest of you must do as I say.
+Ned is the one to go back!"
+
+"But you boys don't know anything about the trails," protested the
+man.  "You will get lost."
+
+"We certainly can follow this one," retorted Horace hotly.  "And we
+can always find our way back.  Just tell mother we shall join
+father."
+
+In vain the driver of the grub wagon endeavored to dissuade the
+lads, but the thought of taking part in the pursuit of the raiders,
+after all, made them deaf to all his arguments, and at last Horace
+exclaimed impatiently:
+
+"You are only delaying us, Ned.  I say you are to return to the
+ranch.  That settles it.  Larry and Tom and I are going to take the
+trail."  And, without further ado, he shook out his pony and headed
+for the mountains, the two brothers at his side.
+
+The pace at which Horace rode was terrific, and because of the hot
+sun, the horses were soon covered with lather.
+
+"Look here, we've got to go at a slower gait," announced Larry.
+"If we keep up this clip, our ponies will give out.  They can't
+stand it and the heat, too.  And if they do give out, it will be
+sure to be just at the very time we need them most."
+
+"But we'll soon be in the mountains, and then it will be cooler,"
+asserted Horace.  "I want to overhaul the raiders before night.
+Won't father and the others feel small when they learn that we
+three, whom they left behind because we were too young, have
+rounded up Megget?"
+
+"You don't mean to say that you intend for us three to tackle the
+raiders alone?" exclaimed Tom.
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"Because we wouldn't stand one chance in a thousand--no, nor in ten
+thousand--of being able to capture them.  We don't know the trail
+at all, and they probably are familiar with every rock and turn in
+it.  If they should discover that we were pursuing them, all they
+would need do would be to lie in wait for us and capture us when we
+came along."
+
+The truth of what the younger of the chums said was so evident that
+even the impetuous Horace was forced to admit it.
+
+"Then what shall we do?" he asked.  "If you have any better plan to
+suggest, out with it."
+
+Tom, however, could think of nothing feasible and was silent.
+
+The boys had pulled their ponies down to a walk and for several
+minutes none of them spoke.
+
+Of a sudden Blackhawk raised his head, sniffed the air and then
+uttered a low whinny.
+
+The sound, coming so unexpectedly, scared the lads, and they looked
+at one another in alarm.
+
+"He smells something," exclaimed Horace in a whisper, as though
+fearing to speak out loud.
+
+The boys were in the lowland between two crests of the rolling
+plains.
+
+"Perhaps it's the cattle.  They may be on the other side of that
+rise in the plains," returned Larry.
+
+Anxiously the three boys gazed toward the crest.  The thought that
+they might be close upon the very men they were chasing startled
+them, and they were at a loss as to the best thing to do.
+
+"If it is the raiders and the cattle Blackhawk scented, then
+they'll be on the lookout for us," murmured Tom.  "They could hear
+that whinny for----"
+
+"By jove! it is they," cried Larry excitedly.  "See those horses'
+ears bobbing?" And he pointed to the south.
+
+Following his finger, his companions beheld two sharp points
+steadily advancing from the farther side of the crest.
+
+"Be ready to give it to 'em," breathed Horace, at the same time
+unslinging his rifle.
+
+But before he could get it to his shoulder the head of the horse
+came into view and the next instant the head and shoulders of a man.
+
+In a flash the chums seized their rifles.
+
+The horseman was only about one hundred yards away, and as he
+caught sight of the rifles pointed toward him he pulled his pony to
+its haunches.
+
+"Throw up your hands!" yelled Horace.  "If you make a move, we'll
+drop you.  You are a prisoner of the Half-Moon Ranch!"
+
+As the horseman heard the name he shouted:
+
+"Steady, there! I'm Jim Jeffreys.  What are you up to, anyhow?"
+
+"Who's Jim Jeffreys?" demanded Larry of Horace.
+
+"He's one of our neighbors, if it's him."
+
+"Well, don't you know?  Can't you recognize him?"
+
+Having recovered from his fright, the boy stared at the man who had
+caused it and then announced:
+
+"Yes, it is Jim."
+
+"It's a pity you couldn't have recognized him before!" snapped Tom
+as he and his brother lowered their rifles.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+WHAT JEFFREYS KNEW
+
+Jeffreys, as soon as he understood his identity had been
+established, leaped his pony toward the boys and was soon beside
+them.
+
+"You are a fine lot to be packing rifles!" he snorted, his anger
+rising as the danger passed.  "You may think it's a good joke to
+cover anybody you meet on the plains, but some one may turn the
+joke on you by firing before you get your aim.  You aren't what you
+call 'quick on the trigger.'"
+
+"Which is fortunate for you--in this case," declared Larry,
+resenting the manner and tone of the stranger.
+
+The sight of the two serious-faced boys, whose eyes showed them to
+be keen and alert, brought Jeffreys to his senses.
+
+"I reckon you're right," he exclaimed.  "But what's up, Horace?  If
+you and your friends are out for a little excitement, just take my
+tip and turn your attention to jumping a coyote or you may----"
+
+"We are not after excitement," retorted the boy from the Half-Moon
+Ranch.  "We don't have to go looking for it.  We've got all we
+want.  Some of Megget's gang have raided our herd."
+
+"No?  It must have been them I saw over near the hills early this
+morning."
+
+"Where were they?"  "Which way were they going?"  "How many were
+there of them?" demanded the lads, each one asking a question.
+
+"It was just after sun-up.  I was too far away to recognize the
+cattle, but I counted four men.  As they only had about fifty head
+with 'em, I sort of suspected something was wrong, so I got out of
+sight before they could see me.  Leastways, if they did, they
+didn't make any move to get me."
+
+"Where have you been?"
+
+"I've been up in the hills for a few days prospecting."
+
+"Did you find the mine?" inquired Tom, forgetting the raid and
+pursuit in his eagerness to learn about the Lost Lode.
+
+"No, I didn't.  I just learned another trail, which isn't the right
+one."
+
+Larry, however, was more interested in the cattle thieves and
+brought the conversation back to them.
+
+
+"Were the men near the hills when you saw them?" he asked.
+
+"About a quarter of a mile away."
+
+"Then come on.  We must get to the hills so we can find their
+trail," declared Horace.
+
+"You kids sure ain't going after 'em alone?" exclaimed Jeffreys
+incredulously.
+
+"But if there are only four of them?"
+
+"To you three, and they are men, don't forget that."
+
+"But you'll make four," suggested Tom.
+
+"Providing I was going with you, which I ain't, I'd like to, but I
+reckon I'd better ride back to my own ranch and see they haven't
+lifted any of my cattle.  If they have, I'll get my boys and take
+up the trail."
+
+Realizing from the expressions on their faces that the lads were
+surprised as well as disappointed at his refusal to accompany them,
+the horseman said:
+
+"You all just take my advice and don't try to follow those raiders
+into the mountains.  What you want to do is to find Wilder and
+Snider as quick as you can, providing you won't go back to your
+ranch, where you ought to be."
+
+"Which you can bet your whole outfit we won't!" snapped Horace.
+"We started on this chase and we're going to stay on it."
+
+Jeffreys smiled at the determined manner of the young rancher,
+
+"Then join your father as soon as you can.  Don't try any fool
+stunt like going into the mountains.  Remember, when you are on the
+prairie you can sec on all sides of you."
+
+"Except when you're behind a crest," chuckled Tom.
+
+At this reference to the recent contretemps Jeffreys frowned,
+started to say something and instead dug his spurs into his pony,
+galloping away without even so much as looking back.
+
+"He's a fine neighbor--not," declared Larry as the trio resumed
+their way.  "I should have thought he would be only too glad to
+help your father and Mr. Snider get back their cattle."
+
+"He isn't very keen for the Half-Moon," rejoined Horace.  "Father
+beat him in a law case over a boundary line once and he's never
+forgotten it."
+
+"And I reckon he won't forget his meeting with us to-day," said
+Tom, grinning.
+
+At the memory of the reception they had given, Jeffreys the
+comrades had a hearty laugh.
+
+"Still, he gave us some good advice," asserted Larry.  "I agree
+with him that the thing for us is to find the Half-Moon and Three
+Stars crowd as soon as we can."
+
+"Which seems to be a pretty big order in itself," mused Tom.  "I
+say we go and see where they drove the cattle into the hills and
+then decide."
+
+This suggestion met with no opposition, and as the boys rode toward
+the mountains, the wooded sides of which looked inviting because of
+the relief they promised from the torrid heat of the plains, they
+discussed various plans, only to discard them.
+
+At last they reached the hills.  Dismounting, they hobbled their
+ponies, removed the saddles and bridles sticky with lather, and
+then broke out some lunch which they ate ravenously, despite the
+fact that their mouths were almost parched.
+
+Greatly refreshed by the food, the boys decided to follow the trail
+of the cattle till they could get some idea of its direction.
+
+"Let's go on foot," suggested Tom.  "The ponies will be all right,
+the rest will do them good, and we can get through the brush and
+over the rocks with less noise."
+
+Readily his companions agreed, and picking up their rifles, they
+quickly found the tracks made by the cattle.
+
+For some distance the trail seemed more like an abandoned wood road
+than anything else.  But gradually it began to grow narrower and at
+last became no more than a path winding in and out among the rocks.
+
+Several times some sound caused the boys to raise their guns to
+their shoulders and peer about in all directions, but nothing could
+they see save the trees and rocks, and they ascribed the noises to
+some denizen of the forest roaming about.
+
+Of a sudden Tom, who was in the lead, stopped.
+
+"I smell something awful queer," he whispered.
+
+The trail wound along the edge of a sharp descent and just ahead
+was an abrupt turn.
+
+Ere either Larry or Horace could reply to their companion's
+announcement all three were dumb-founded to see a big, shaggy brown
+head appear round the turn in the trail.
+
+"It's a bear!" gasped Horace.
+
+At the sight of the three boys the big head had paused in surprise.
+Then its lips began to curl, disclosing a wicked looking set of
+teeth, and finally it broke into a savage snarl, at the same time
+rising in the air.
+
+"He's getting to his hind legs.  That means fight!" breathed
+Horace.  "Come on, let's run!"
+
+"But he'd overtake us and beat us down with his paws," returned
+Larry.  "We've got to kill him."
+
+Less time did the action consume than is required to describe it,
+and the boys were standing terror stricken when the bear charged
+upon them, making vicious lunges at them with his huge paws.
+
+Roused from his fright by the imminence of his peril, Tom raised
+his rifle, only to have it knocked from his hands by a swing of one
+of the bear's paws.
+
+[Illustration: The rifle was knocked from his hand.]
+
+"Drop down! drop down so I can shoot!" yelled Larry as he saw the
+desperate situation in which his brother was placed.
+
+Instantly Tom obeyed, throwing himself to one side as he fell.
+
+But as the younger of the brothers dropped the bear, as though
+singling him out for his particular antagonist, also dropped to all
+fours, and Larry's shot went over him.
+
+Horace, however, shot lower, and a terrible roar told them that the
+bullet had struck home.
+
+In the fury of his pain the bear seemed to think that the boy lying
+flat on the rocks was the cause of his suffering, and, with mouth
+distended, charged upon him.
+
+In a frenzy lest they might not be able to save Tom, Larry and
+Horace both fired.
+
+At the impact of the bullets the bear rose on his hind legs, swung
+wildly with his paws at the steel barrels that were pouring the
+terribly painful things into him and fell prone, the huge carcass
+missing Tom by less than a foot.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+LOST!
+
+From the moment when his brother had cried to him to drop, Tom had
+kept his eyes on the bear, and when he saw the beast plunge forward
+and realized that it was dead, he leaped to his feet, his pale face
+telling of the awful strain under which he had been.
+
+The reaction from their excitement made Larry and Horace tremble
+and, for the time, they could only look from their companion to the
+carcass of the bear, too unnerved to speak.
+
+Tom was the first to recover from the fright, and he thanked the
+others for what they had done.
+
+"Let's not talk about it," interposed Larry.  "The thing for us to
+do is to get out of here lively.  The reverberations from those
+shots are echoing yet.  The raiders must have heard them, and
+they'll know some one is on their trail, so they will either come
+back to sec who it is or else hide to waylay us."
+
+Tom and Horace were perfectly willing to give up following the
+trail farther, and all three were retracing their steps when the
+elder of the chums cried:
+
+"The rifle!  Tom, you forgot to pick up your rifle."
+
+"Which shows I was some scared," and he smiled apologetically.
+
+"But it's a worse one on Larry and me," protested Horace.  "There's
+some excuse for you.  But the bear wasn't charging us."
+
+"Oh, well there's no harm done," returned Larry, pleased at the
+spirit Horace's words showed.  "We can go back and get it.  It's a
+mighty good thing, though, that we thought of It before we reached
+the ponies.  From the looks of the sky and the shadows it won't be
+long before dusk, and Mr. Wilder told us night comes quickly in the
+mountains."
+
+Ere Larry had finished speaking they had started back to the scene
+of their encounter.
+
+Yet when they reached the spot Tom's rifle was nowhere to be seen.
+
+In dismay the boys looked at one another.  Already the mountains
+were turning purple-black in the twilight, the shadows transforming
+the trees and rocks into weird figures.
+
+"Perhaps it's under the bear," hazarded Horace, his low voice
+evidencing the awe which the silence and the surroundings inspired
+in him.
+
+"Then give a hand while we move him," commanded Larry.  "It won't
+do to stay here long or we may lose our way as well as the rifle."
+
+Little relishing the thought of wandering through the woods in the
+dark, the boys seized one of the paws and pulled with all their
+might.
+
+But, to their surprise, they could move the carcass scarcely at all.
+
+"My, but he's a monster!" gasped Larry.  "It's only a waste of
+valuable time to try to lift him or even move him.  The only thing
+we can do is to try to feel under him with our hands."
+
+Dropping to their knees, the lads thrust their arms under the
+shaggy fur, being able to reach far; enough to make sure that the
+much-wanted rifle was not beneath the body of the bear.
+
+"Bet he knocked it over the cliff," declared Horace.  "From which
+side did he strike it, Tom?"
+
+"More than I know.  All I could see was paws.  The air was full of
+them and they seemed to come from all directions at once."
+
+This explanation brought laughter to Larry and Horace, which ceased
+abruptly, however, as from somewhere on the mountains there
+suddenly rang out a low wail, more like the howl of a coyote than
+anything else, yet with a certain difference that even the chums
+were able to distinguish.
+
+"Whatever that is, I don't care to meet it," exclaimed Horace.
+"Let's go back.  We've still got two rifles.  If we stick to the
+plains till we join father we can get along all right."
+
+"Suppose we don't meet your father, what then?" returned Larry.
+
+"Always looking for more trouble, as if we didn't have enough
+already," chided Tom.  "Of course we'll meet him.  Anyhow, this is
+no place to argue about it.  If you and Horace can't protect me,
+I'll take both your rifles and watch over the two of you."
+
+There was a suggestion of mockery in Tom's voice, but taking it
+good naturedly, Larry replied:
+
+"Oh, no you won't.  You can't throw your gun away every time you
+get scared and then take ours from us.  You just get in between
+Horace and me.  Horace, you lead because you know how to follow a
+trail better, and I'll keep off the bears and raiders," he added
+with a smile.
+
+The movements of the boys, however, were more rapid than their
+words, and they were traveling the trail once more ere Larry's
+joking allusion to the loss of the rifle and the protection he
+would afford.
+
+So long as their way lay among the rocks they followed the trail
+with little difficulty, but when they entered the woods their
+troubles began in earnest.
+
+None too self-possessed in the dark, even when going about the
+ranch, when he entered the inky darkness caused by the maze of
+boughs and foliage, Horace lost his head completely, and it did not
+take the comrades long to realize they had wandered from the trail.
+
+"Better let me take the lead, Horace; I'm taller," said Larry, at
+the same time giving his brother a poke In the ribs as a warning
+not to object.
+
+"Well, you'll have to be a giraffe to see your way over the tops of
+these trees," chuckled Tom.
+
+Their plight was too serious to admit of jest, however, and after
+wandering for half an hour, stumbling over dead limbs and running
+into trees and branches, they halted in despair.
+
+"I remember Si told us back home that when a man's lost he
+generally travels in a circle," said Tom.
+
+"So he did, and he said It was usually to the left, because a man
+takes a longer step with his right foot," added Larry.
+
+"That may help when you know which is the right and which is the
+left of the way you have been going, but here we've turned round to
+talk, so we don't even know that much," interposed Horace.
+
+"That's a fact," admitted the elder of the chums reluctantly as he
+realized that by facing one another they had lost all sense of
+direction.  "It's a good thing you thought of it, Horace, or we
+might have got ourselves into a worse mess than we're in now,"
+
+"If it weren't for all that good food cooked by Hop Joy back with
+the horses and the fact that I'm hungry, I'd be in favor of staying
+right where we are till morning," announced Tom.
+
+"I reckon that is the best thing we can do, anyhow," declared his
+brother.
+
+"Not with my appetite," retorted Tom.
+
+"This is no time to be funny," reprimanded Larry.  "If we keep on
+moving, we may never get out, while if we stay here we can climb
+into one of these trees and be safe till daylight shows us----"
+
+"By jove! That's the very thing!" exclaimed the younger of the
+chums, and there was such a tone of genuine enthusiasm in his voice
+that the others asked excitedly:
+
+"What?"
+
+"Why, the trees.  We won't need to sleep in them.  By climbing a
+tall one, we can get the lay of the land as soon as moonlight
+comes, which will show us at least how to get out onto the plains
+again."
+
+"Hooray!" cried Larry and Horace together.
+
+Each realized the plan was feasible, provided the night was not
+cloudy, and once on the prairie it would not be difficult for the
+young rancher to lead the way to the horses.  And, although they
+knew that the moon would not rise for two hours at least, they were
+so eager to try the plan that they began to discuss who should be
+the one to do the climbing.
+
+The two brothers claimed preference because they were both stronger
+and taller than their companion, but Horace silenced them by
+declaring that not only could he go higher because he was lighter,
+but that he would be able to recognize their whereabouts from his
+knowledge of the mountains.
+
+Restraining their impatience as best they could, the boys sat down.
+
+"When we do get out, which way shall we go to join Mr. Wilder and
+the others?" asked Larry.
+
+This question started further discussion.  One suggestion after
+another was made only to be rejected because of some obstacle, and
+finally they decided the safest thing to do would be to ride till
+they found the trail over which the cattle had been driven from the
+bottoms and follow that.
+
+Soon Horace climbed a convenient tree.
+
+"We sure are dubs!" he cried.
+
+"Why?  Is the moon up?" asked the two chums eagerly..
+
+"No, the moon isn't up.  I don't need it.  The stars are bright
+enough.  We've been sitting here fretting all this while within a
+hundred yards of the prairie!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A MYSTERIOUS CALL
+
+Horace and Larry having picked up their rifles, the three boys
+resumed their way, Larry leading slowly, taking care to make his
+steps of as nearly equal length as possible, and in due time they
+came onto the prairie.
+
+"My, but this stretch of level does look good," declared Tom, and
+his companions expressed their hearty agreement as they hastened
+toward the spot where they left their ponies.
+
+Finding them without difficulty, the lads broke out the food and
+ate ravenously,
+
+"Hey, go easy on the grub," cautioned Larry as he noted the amount
+his companions were eating.  "This is all we have to last us until
+we meet the others--or get back to the ranch," he added as the
+thought recurred to him that luck would play a large part in the
+success of their search for the pursuing party.
+
+"You can go easy if you like.  So long as there's anything to eat,
+I am going to eat," returned his brother.  "Don't worry.  We won't
+starve.  If worse comes to worse, I can get you some deer meat,
+provided you'll lend me your rifle."
+
+"Or I can get you some mountain lion meat," added Horace.
+
+"I notice neither of you mention bear meat," chuckled the elder of
+the chums.
+
+"Because it doesn't agree with us," returned Tom, and at this
+allusion to their recent adventure they all laughed merrily.
+
+In delight at the extrication from their dilemma the boys chatted
+and joked as they repacked the saddle bags, unhobbled their ponies
+and prepared to resume riding.
+
+"There's only one thing that could, add to my happiness," remarked
+Larry as he swung onto Lightning's back.
+
+"What's that?" Inquired his companions.
+
+"About a gallon of drinking water."
+
+"I'm some thirsty, too," said Horace, "but I don't know of a place
+where there is any water."
+
+"Then we'll leave it to the horses," asserted Tom.  "Mr. Wilder
+told me they would always locate water if there was any about.
+From the way Blackhawk acts, I think he scents some."
+
+"Scents water!" sneered Horace.
+
+"Just you wait and see," retorted the younger of the comrades, and
+giving free rein to his pony, he let him nose along through the
+grass for some distance when the animal turned abruptly and entered
+the woods, stopping beside a brook.
+
+"You'd better appoint me guide and captain of this company," smiled
+the boy as they dismounted and drank greedily of the cool water.
+
+"You'd be a fine captain without a gun," retorted Larry, and in
+high spirits they remounted.
+
+For a time the boys had the moon for company, but toward, midnight
+clouds gathered in the sky and a chilly wind began to blow.
+
+"How about pitching camp pretty soon?" suggested Larry.
+
+"Wait till we get to Elkhorn River," answered Horace".
+
+"How far is that?  I didn't suppose there was such a thing in these
+plains."
+
+"Oh, I should say it was fifteen miles from here," returned the
+young rancher.  "It isn't much of a river, but it's better than
+none."
+
+"Wouldn't ride fifteen--Hello! What's that glow in the sky right
+next the mountains?" exclaimed Tom, pointing to where a faint glare
+was visible against the dark background of trees.
+
+"It's a fire," asserted Horace, "a camp fire.  You can tell by the
+steadiness of the light."
+
+Excitedly they speculated as to whose it could be.
+
+"If it's raiders, we want to know it.  Perhaps we can round up some
+of them," declared Horace.
+
+And urging their ponies into a gallop, the boys rode forward.
+
+When they were near enough to distinguish the flames they
+dismounted, hobbled their horses in the underbrush and approached
+on foot.
+
+No sign of man or beast could they see, and their curiosity was
+further aroused.
+
+"Stoop down so your heads are In the grass," admonished Horace.
+"It may be they have seen us and are hiding among the trees.  Don't
+make any noise and stick close together."
+
+Crouching low, the trio advanced stealthily.  Nearer and nearer
+they drew, yet no sound could they hear.  Consumed with curiosity,
+Horace suddenly stood up, determined to learn if any one were
+sleeping beside the fire.
+
+Yet no sooner had he risen than a command rang out:
+
+"Throw up your hands!"
+
+The two brothers, ignorant of their companion's action, gasped at
+the words.  But Horace let out a whoop of joy.
+
+"Hooray!  It's father and the boys," he cried so loud that
+instantly a dozen figures bounded from about the fire.
+
+"Well, if it ain't them kids!" ejaculated Pete, who had been on
+guard.  "It's lucky you recognized my voice, Horace."
+
+By this time Tom and Larry had straightened up and all three were
+hastening toward the camp fire, thinking only of their good fortune
+in finding their friends.
+
+"Horace, what does this mean?" demanded his father sternly.  "I
+told you to stay at home, and yet we haven't been gone but
+twenty-four hours and you come tagging along."
+
+But the severity of his father did not dismay the young rancher.
+Looking straight at him, the boy hastily told of the ride to the
+pool and the discovery that more cattle had been driven away.
+
+The information excited the cowboys greatly, and emphatic were
+their opinions of the daring of the thieves in making another raid
+and within a few hours after the men pursuing them had set out.
+
+"They probably were watching us all the time," asserted the owner
+of the Three Stars.
+
+"Probably," agreed Mr. Wilder.  "But what have you boys been doing
+since you learned of the raid?  You could almost walk your ponies
+from the pool to here in all this time."
+
+Before any of them could reply, however, a long, low wail rang out.
+Surprised, the men glanced at one another,
+
+"That sounds like a coyote, but it ain't," asserted Pete.
+
+Again the cry broke on the air and was repeated twice.
+
+"Why, it's the very same sound we heard in the mountains!"
+exclaimed Larry.  And his companions confirmed him.
+
+"The same cry you heard in the mountains?" repeated Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Yes, sir," and in a few words the elder of the brothers related
+their adventures.
+
+"Then it's a signal," declared Pete.  "You boys have been followed.
+It's a mighty good thing we were camping here."
+
+"Those cries came from the plains.  Mebbe it's the thieves going
+for more cattle," declared Sandy.
+
+"We'll find out what it is.  Everybody to horse!" commanded Mr.
+Wilder.  "Pete, three or four of you go with Horace and the Aldens
+to get their ponies.  We'll ride up and join you."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+A TERRIBLE PLOT
+
+Quickly the men ran to the woods where they had concealed their
+ponies, unhobbled, saddled and mounted them, riding along till they
+came to where Pete and the boys were.
+
+"Which way shall we go?" inquired Sandy when all were In their
+saddles.  "That cry came from straight ahead of us on the plains,
+according to my judgment."
+
+Pete and the other cowboys agreed with him, and, trusting to their
+sense of direction, the owner of the Half-Moon said:
+
+"Then we'll ride due east.  Spread out abreast.  The more ground we
+can cover the better."
+
+"But don't get too far apart," interposed the rancher from the
+Three Stars.  "Keep close enough together so you can see the man on
+your right."
+
+Rapidly were these commands given, and within fifteen minutes after
+the mysterious calls had startled them the twenty-three horsemen
+were advancing over the prairie, eyes and ears alert for sound or
+sight of the men who had uttered the signals, the two Eastern boys
+and Horace riding between Mr. Wilder and Pete at the southern end
+of the line.
+
+But for once Sandy's ears had played him false.  Ignorant of the
+psychological fact that only when a man's head is turned can he
+correctly judge the direction of sound, it being impossible to
+distinguish between a sound coming from directly in front or
+behind, the foreman of the Three Stars Ranch had been deceived
+because he had been looking straight ahead out into the prairie.
+And instead of riding toward the men who had roused them by their
+cries, each bound of the horses was carrying them farther away.
+
+When Larry and his companions had met the bear, the four raiders
+with the cattle Jeffreys had seen were only about two miles in
+advance of them.  As the boys had thought, the reverberations of
+the shots had reached the ears of the men at the rear of the cattle
+and they had uttered the wail as a signal to those ahead, jumping
+to the conclusion that they were being followed.
+
+Making use of their knowledge of the mountains, the raiders had
+hurriedly driven the cattle into the forest, where they would be
+out of sight and so could not give warning of the whereabouts of
+the thieves, and had then hidden themselves behind some rocks along
+the trail.  From their ambuscade they would be able to shoot down
+their pursuers or capture them as they felt inclined.
+
+But as the reader knows, the boys doubled on their trail and so
+divided the trap.
+
+After waiting till dark without any sign of pursuers, the raiders
+grew fearsome.
+
+"We've got to find out for sure whether it's somebody on our trail
+or just some one that is hunting," declared one of them, who, if
+the two brothers could have seen him, they would have recognized as
+Gus Megget.
+
+"Considering we've waited more than two hours and no one has showed
+up, I say we ought to push onto the Lode, Gus," asserted another.
+
+"How can we drive cattle over this trail in the dark?" growled the
+chief of the raiders.  "You ought to have more sense, seeing the
+trouble we've had to get them as far as this in the daylight."
+
+"So long as we can't drive, we might just as well go back and find
+out who's been shooting."
+
+Realizing that it was futile to urge their leader to change his
+mind, the other raiders sullenly acquiesced, and, emerging from
+their places of concealment, went into the woods to get their
+horses and were soon riding stealthily back over the trail.
+
+Though they dared not refuse to go, the men, however, were not
+backward in expressing their disapproval of the move, declaring
+that they were tempting disaster by returning when they had made so
+successful a start.
+
+But Megget paid no attention to their grumblings and soon his
+companions lapsed into silence.
+
+Fate, however, which had saved the two brothers and the young
+rancher from stumbling into the ambush, was still favoring them.
+
+For when the raiders reached the edge of the prairie Megget ordered
+a halt that they might eat, and when again they resumed their ride
+the boys were far on their way toward the spot where they met their
+friends.
+
+Not long did it take their pursuers to discover the place where the
+three had eaten and then to find the direction in which they had
+departed.
+
+"What's the use of following any farther, Gus?" demanded one of
+them.  "So long as they have ridden to the south, and there are
+only three of them, anyhow, we are in no danger."
+
+But with a blind obstinacy the leader of the cattle thieves
+persisted in continuing the pursuit, and set the pace at a fast
+gallop.
+
+In due course of time, as the boys before them, they discovered the
+glare from the camp fire.
+
+"We'll ride into the mountains, dismount and then find out who it
+is that has the fire," declared Megget.
+
+"You're playing with trouble, Gus," protested his companions.
+"From what I know of Wilder, he won't let a bunch of his cattle be
+lifted without doing something.  That may be his fire."
+
+"All the more reason why we should go to it--to make sure," snapped
+the leader of the raiders.  "Wilder is a fool or he wouldn't leave
+his herd unguarded at the Witches' Pool."
+
+"You'll find he's smarter than you think.  I'll bet all my share of
+these raids will come to that the only reason the herd was alone
+was because his whole outfit is on the trail from the bottoms,"
+asserted another.
+
+"Well, the boys can take care of 'em if they are.  I said I was
+going to find out who built that fire, and I'm going to."  And
+without more ado, the leader of the raiders dashed into the woods.
+
+Riding cautiously among the trees until he thought he was about
+back of the fire Megget gave the word to dismount.
+
+A short distance to the south and above them was a ledge from which
+they would be able to command a view of the camp fire, and rapidly
+the raiders made their way to It.
+
+What they saw when they reached the top and gazed down caused them
+to exclaim in amazement.
+
+The cowboys were saddling their ponies, and instead of the three
+men they had expected to discover, Megget and his companions saw a
+dozen.
+
+"That's the Half-Moon bunch!" declared one of them.
+
+"There are too many of them," asserted another.  "We're in a pretty
+mess now.  Those three men we followed have evidently informed them
+of finding our trail and they are starting to pick it up."
+
+"Don't you worry about that," growled Megget.  And before his
+companions were aware what he intended to do, he uttered the calls
+that caused the ranch owners and cowboys to start out into the
+prairie.
+
+Eagerly the raiders watched them disappear and Megget chuckled:
+
+"I thought I could fool 'em.  It's easy when you are above any
+one."  And then he added: "You'll wish you had never started after
+me, Wilder!"
+
+Wondering at their leader's meaning, his fellows had no chance to
+ask, however, for even as he spoke Megget was descending from the
+ledge.
+
+Arriving at the camp fire, he glanced about for a few moments, then
+sent his men for the horses.
+
+As soon as he was sure he was alone, the leader of the raiders
+walked out on the plains, paused, wet his finger in his mouth, then
+raised his hand above his head.
+
+"Great!  I'm sure playing in luck," he muttered to himself.  "The
+wind is blowing from the west--straight out across the plains."
+And chuckling grimly, the cattle thief returned to the fire to
+await the horses.
+
+Mounting quickly when they arrived, Megget gave a curt order for
+his own men to follow and galloped in the same direction the ranch
+owners and cowboys had taken.
+
+At the end of a quarter of a mile he drew rein and again went
+through the performance of wetting his finger and raising it above
+his head, murmuring more to himself than his pals:
+
+"I didn't know but that the hills might have changed the direction
+of the wind.
+
+"Here, you," he added, turning to his men, "two of you ride a mile
+up and Squinty and I'll ride south.  When I give the call, fire the
+grass and then ride for the trail and drive the cattle to the mine.
+I'll cut across and warn Vasquez and the others."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+THE PRAIRIE FIRE
+
+As his men heard the words and realized their significance, they
+glanced at their leader and then at one another.
+
+Yet none of them moved.
+
+"Are you deaf?" roared Megget.  "Do as I say--and lively.  Squinty,
+come with me."  And clapping spurs to his pony, he dashed southward.
+
+Fearing to disobey, the two raiders delegated to ride to the north
+started.  But as soon as they were out of earshot one of them said:
+
+"Megget can fire the prairie if he wants to, I won't.  I'm none too
+stuck on cattle raiding, anyhow, but when it comes to starting a
+fire that will probably wipe out the Half-Moon outfit and perhaps
+even the herd, Bobby Lawrence balks!"
+
+"Showing the white feather, eh?" snarled his companion.  "I warned
+Gus you wasn't any good, but he wouldn't believe me.  You'll do
+what he says, though, as long as you're with Red Ike!"
+
+Red Ike was a giant in strength, the bully of the gang, and
+Lawrence had seen too much of him to care to risk an encounter with
+him, so with a growl he said:
+
+"All right.  Lead the way."
+
+"Not much.  I'll ride beside you, so you won't come any tricks."
+
+But though Lawrence had appeared to yield, it was only as a matter
+of policy, and his determination not to fire the prairie was as
+firm as before.  Yet how he could prevent it, he was at a loss to
+determine until suddenly he remembered that Red Ike had asked him
+for a match that afternoon.
+
+As the thought flashed through his mind that his companion had no
+means for carrying out Megget's instructions Lawrence put his hand
+to his belt, where he carried his tobacco outfit, and quickly
+unloosening it, let it fall into the grass.
+
+None too soon was his action, for even as he opened his hand to let
+go of the pouch that held his pipe, tobacco and cigarette papers
+Red Ike snapped:
+
+"I reckon we've gone a mile." And as he turned to look back the
+signal sounded, and in a trice he saw the flames, set by his
+leader, leap in the air.
+
+"Quick, Gus has touched off!" he cried, then added as he felt in
+vain for any matches, "Gimme some of your fire-sticks, mine are all
+gone."
+
+Suppressing the smile that came to his face at the words, for
+Lawrence bad feared his companion might have obtained a supply from
+one of the others, he replied:
+
+"Can't.  I haven't any."
+
+"What?" roared Red Ike.  "You can't come any such game on me.  You
+had plenty this afternoon.  Hand 'em over--and be lively!"
+
+As he spoke the bully edged his pony closer to the other.
+
+Lawrence, however, only repeated his statement calmly.
+
+"You won't gimme them, eh? Then I'll take 'em myself."  And like a
+flash his powerful fist shot out, striking his companion under the
+right side of his jaw with such terrific force that it lifted him
+from the saddle.
+
+Springing to the ground, Red Ike roughly searched the motionless
+body, and when he found that the tobacco pouch was indeed gone he
+realized the trick that Lawrence had played.
+
+For a moment the baffled raider glowered upon the man who had
+outwitted him.  Then his attention was distracted by the sound of
+hoof beats and, turning, he beheld the two horses racing toward the
+hills, having taken fright at the flames leaping over the plains.
+And never thinking of the man he had unhorsed, Red Ike dashed after
+them.
+
+Advancing cautiously, the ranch owners and their men were beginning
+to wonder if they could have mistaken the direction of the signals
+when they heard the call again.
+
+"That's back of us," declared Pete.
+
+Instantly the others turned in their saddles, and as they did so
+the flames bounded into the air.
+
+"They fooled us good and plenty!" growled Nails, while all the boys
+glared at the foreman of the Three Stars Ranch.
+
+"They did," asserted Mr. Wilder grimly, "but it's no use talking
+about it now.  We've got all we can do to get away from the fire."
+
+In terror the boy chums watched the flames spread as if by magic
+till in a few minutes a towering wall of fire was racing toward
+them.
+
+"Shall we start a back fire?" asked Bill.
+
+"No use," returned several of the cowboys, "the wind's in the wrong
+direction."
+
+"Then we've got to ride for it," asserted Snider.
+
+Well did the cowboys realize the danger, and with might and main
+they urged their ponies, each one bent only on saving himself.
+
+For a time the two brothers and Horace kept pace with them, but
+they were not skilled in the fine art of getting the most out of
+their ponies when the animals began to tire, and it was not long
+before they found themselves dropping behind.
+
+"Wait for us!" shouted Horace as he noticed the distance that
+separated them constantly increasing.
+
+For a moment it seemed to the terrified lads that their cry had not
+been heard, yet just when they began to despair three horses
+dropped behind, and as the boys came up with them they recognized
+the two ranch owners and Pete.
+
+"Take Horace, Pete; Snider, Tom; I'll take Larry," commanded Mr.
+Wilder, and each of the men leaped their horses to seize the bridle
+of the boy indicated.
+
+Not more than two miles behind them was the terrible wall of fire.
+In front of it coyotes and all other animals of the plains were In
+full flight, their cries of fear or pain as they fell victims to
+the all-devouring flames now and then rising above the sullen roar.
+
+"Oh, it's gaining! it's gaining!" wailed Horace.
+
+"Don't look behind.  Keep your eyes in front and _ride_!" commanded
+his father.
+
+Sparks borne by the wind began to fall all about, now and then
+starting blazes which the cowboys put out by beating with their
+blankets where they could, yet none checked his speed.  To the hot
+air was added smoke, and men and horses were breathing with
+difficulty, gasping and coughing.
+
+"If you've got handkerchiefs, jam them in your mouths!" cried
+Snider.
+
+Nearer, ever nearer drew the wall of flame.  It seemed to the chums
+that they must be breathing fire, so did the air burn their mouths.
+
+Time and again they swayed in their saddles and would have fallen
+had it not been for the men beside them, who had let go the bridles
+to steady the boys, at the same time rowelling their own mounts.
+
+Just when it seemed to the boys that the shirts on their backs
+would burst into flames a shout went up from in front:
+
+"The river! The river!"
+
+"One more spurt, everybody!"
+
+Gamely men, boys and horses responded.
+
+"Right over the bank!  Don't stop!" bellowed Pete.
+
+Ignorant of the height, caring little, eager only to gain the
+water, the boys felt their horses leap through the air and the next
+minute were sputtering and gasping as they sank below the surface
+of the river.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+A RIDE FOR LIFE
+
+Quickly the horses swam for the shore, and as the Elkhorn was only
+deep for a few rods, it was not many minutes before the cowboys
+were shaking and removing their wet garments.  But the boys were
+oblivious of their condition.
+
+In open-mouthed wonder they stared at the spectacle presented by
+the flames from whose devouring fury they had so narrowly escaped.
+
+The wall of fire had in reality been farther away than it had
+seemed.  For several minutes it advanced, the tongues of flames
+towering in the air.  A moment the livid wall paused as it reached
+the brink of the river, while jets of fire reached out as though
+striving to clutch the men who had escaped.  Then seemingly bent on
+overtaking them, the flames leaped over the edge, devouring the
+brush and grass to the water's edge, where, loath to admit defeat,
+the flames flickered uncertainly and then died away, leaving
+nothing but a pall of smoke to mark their course of destruction.
+
+"They came mighty near getting us that time," exclaimed Pete,
+looking back over the still glowing plains.
+
+"Too near," assented Mr. Wilder.  "But Megget's men will suffer for
+this trick, never fear."
+
+"They'll sure be surprised when they see us," chimed in the owner
+of the Three Stars.
+
+"That's just it," returned Mr. Wilder.  "Of course, they think we
+have perished in the flames, and when they see us riding in on them
+they will be so scared it will take all the fight out of them."
+
+None the worse for their experience, the cowboys were eager to be
+under way again that they might exact satisfaction upon the raiders
+for their unwilling flight.   But Mr. Wilder curbed their
+impatience by saying:
+
+"It's all right to want to get on the trail again, but if we should
+start now, while the plains are still hot, we run the risk of
+crippling some of our ponies.  We'll eat breakfast here and then in
+an hour I guess we can start.  What do you think, Jim?"
+
+"It will be all right to take grub and we can tell about the ground
+when we've eaten."
+
+Fate, however, was still on the side of the ranchers, for while
+they were at their meal it began to rain.
+
+With a shout the cowboys greeted the first drops, but their masters
+grew serious.
+
+"This rain will make it mighty hard to pick up the trail," observed
+the owner of the Three Stars.
+
+"But we won't need to search for it," interposed Tom.
+
+At his words all eyes were turned upon him, and Mr. Wilder voiced
+their sentiments by asking:
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I know the very place where Horace and Larry and I rode
+into the mountains.  I thought I might want to remember it, so I
+broke off some branches and cut a half moon in one of the trees
+with my jackknife."
+
+"That's all right, but why should we follow that trail?" demanded
+Bill.  "The men who set the fire were all of--how far, Horace, from
+Tom's trail?" and he looked at his brother.
+
+"A good twenty miles."
+
+"Why should we ride twenty miles when we can start right in at the
+hills back where the fire started?" continued Bill.
+
+Some of the cowboys laughed at this seeming evidence of Tom's lack
+of understanding of the situation, but the younger of the chums had
+his good reasons, as he quickly proved by replying:
+
+"Because that is where they drove fifty cattle in.  Mr. Jeffreys
+said it was a short cut.  Besides, it stands to reason the men
+wouldn't have gone that way unless the trail led to the mine where
+they could join the rest of the gang.  I may be from the East," and
+he glanced at the boys who had laughed at him, "but I'm not so much
+of a tenderfoot as not to know four men aren't going on a pleasure
+trip with a herd of fifty steers."
+
+"I reckon the kid is right," said the owner of the Half-Moon after
+the merriment this jibe evoked had subsided.  "Even if the
+'rustlers' didn't know we had started when they lifted the cattle
+from the pool, they'd know something was up when all the boys were
+away and that we could follow the trail to the mountains.
+Consequently, they being only four, would take the shortest route
+to join the main body."
+
+"That argument would have been all right before the fire, Jim, but
+things are different now," rejoined Bill.
+
+"Certain.  But the difference is the raiders will take more time in
+driving the cattle in the thought that there's no one to pursue 'em
+till the fact of the prairie fire reaches Tolopah."
+
+"And then that bow-legged sheriff will set out," grunted Skinny.
+"He couldn't catch a prairie dog.  There's only one man I'd like to
+see on the job besides the bunch we've got here."
+
+"Name him," cried several of the cowboys.
+
+"Shorty Jenks."
+
+"Why, that's our friend!" exclaimed Tom and Larry.
+
+"I don't know about his being a friend of yours, but there's
+nothing on two or four legs he's afraid of.  And he's great on
+tricks.  He'd think up a scheme in no time to land Megget."
+
+"I think Tom's idea is the right one," said Mr. Wilder.  "By riding
+that trail we can reach the Lost Lode probably in a few hours,
+while it might take days to find where the gang that set fire rode
+into the hills.  This rain has cooled off the ground, so we can
+start right away."
+
+No direct command to pack the food and saddle up did the cowboys
+need and as day dawned they again entered the Elkhorn River.
+
+Tom had been provided with an extra rifle Mr. Wilder had been
+carrying and great care did he and the other lads take to keep
+their arms and ammunition from getting wet a second time.
+
+Arrived at the top of the bank from which they had leaped to
+safety, the party beheld a long stretch of blackened ground.  As
+far as they could see, it stretched away to the north and in width
+it was about four miles.
+
+"Why didn't it burn everything, instead of cutting a sort of path?"
+asked Larry after a survey of the scene.
+
+"That's one of the things you can't explain," replied the owner of
+the Three Stars.  "It just don't, that's all.  Of course, the wind
+has to be right--that is, stay in the same direction as when the
+fire was started.  And when it does you can count on the fire's
+following pretty close to its lines.  You see this one was set in a
+sort of semi-circle, with the ends burning toward one another.  If
+you want a fire to spread, start it fan-shaped."
+
+"There's one way the fire helped us," said Horace.  "We can travel
+faster than we could through the grass, and it doesn't tire the
+horses so."
+
+"Just another proof it's an ill wind that doesn't do somebody
+good," quoted Mr. Wilder, smiling.
+
+"Maybe, but I'd rather go without the wind than have another
+experience like last night's," returned the owner of the Three
+Stars.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+LAWRENCE'S PLAN
+
+Realizing that they would be able to advance but slowly along the
+trail, giving their ponies a chance to rest, the men were riding a
+stiff lope.
+
+At first Mr. Wilder had insisted that the three youngest boys
+return to the ranch as soon as Tom had showed them the trail, but
+they had pleaded so hard, asserting they were entitled to accompany
+the pursuers because of their discovery of the trail, that he had
+finally consented, making the condition, however, that when they
+entered the hills the boys must ride next the rear, where in case
+of attack, they would not be in the brunt of it.
+
+Larry was following the edge of grass as they drew near the place
+where the fire had been started.  As his eyes roved over the
+billowy plains, they suddenly were attracted by a peculiar furrow
+that seemed to run through the grass like a channel.
+
+For the moment he was tempted to call the attention of the others
+to it, and then, fearing their ridicule, decided to find out what
+it was first.
+
+Accordingly he reined his pony to one side and was approaching the
+furrow when he was startled to hear a cry of delight:
+
+"I've got it!  I've got it!"
+
+Hastily unslinging his rifle, the elder of the chums pointed it in
+the direction whence the unexpected voice had come and shouted:
+
+"You there, in the grass!  Stand up before I count five or I'll----"
+
+But Larry had no occasion to complete his command.
+
+Unconscious that there was another soul within miles of him, the
+person addressed raised his head cautiously to see who had accosted
+him.
+
+"Stand up straight, I said!" ordered the boy.
+
+As the fellow obeyed, Mr. Wilder, Pete and the others, who had been
+almost as surprised at hearing Larry's words as the prisoner
+himself, dashed up, quickly followed by the cowboys.
+
+Intuitively each man felt they had captured one of the raiders, and
+without waiting for instructions, closed in on him in a circle,
+completely cutting off any chance for escape.
+
+"Who are you and what are you doing, sneaking along in the grass ?"
+demanded Mr. Wilder sternly.
+
+"I'm Bobby Lawrence, and I was hunting for my tobacco pouch,"
+returned the fellow, undaunted by the angry faces gazing at him.
+
+"That's the name of one of Megget's right-hand men," declared
+Nails.  "I found that out at Tolopah."
+
+With no gentle hands half a dozen of the cowboys searched Lawrence,
+taking from him his pistols and a long knife.
+
+When their prisoner was harmless Mr. Wilder resumed his questions.
+
+"Who set the fire last night?"
+
+"If I play fair with you, will you treat me square?" demanded
+Lawrence.
+
+"That depends," temporized the ranch owner.  "You belong to the
+gang that has been raiding my herds and last night tried to destroy
+us by fire.  You can't expect much leniency from us under the
+circumstances.  Still, if you give us any assistance in founding up
+Megget, we'll not forget it."
+
+"Well, I'll do all I can, honest I will, Mr. Wilder."
+
+"Don't trust him, Wilder," interposed the owner of the Three Stars,
+"When a man is so willing to turn on his pals, there's something
+wrong."
+
+"See here, Jim Snider, you keep out of this.  I'm talking to Mr.
+Wilder, not to you.  He's square.  If it was only you, all your
+ponies couldn't drag a word out of me!" snapped Lawrence.
+
+This retort angered the owner of the Three Stars, but before he
+could say anything the proprietor of the Half-Moon exclaimed:
+
+"If you can give me any reason why I should believe you, Lawrence,
+do so."
+
+"That's easy," returned the captive, and without wasting words, he
+related the incidents of the pursuit of the three boys, Megget's
+signals, the order to set the fire and his own action that alone
+had saved the herd at the pool from destruction.
+
+In silence, now looking at one another in amazement and then at the
+speaker, the cowboys listened.
+
+"That's a likely story, throwing your tobacco away," sneered Snider.
+
+"I believe it," announced Larry calmly.  "The only way I knew it
+was a man I'd discovered was because I heard him say twice I've
+found it.'"
+
+This confirmation of his words from the very one who had captured
+him gave Lawrence heart, and quick to see the advantage it gave
+him, he pressed it, saying:
+
+"There, you see, I'm telling you straight.  And everything else
+I've said is just as true."
+
+"Why didn't you strike for the hills when you recovered your
+senses?" asked Mr. Wilder.  "You would have been safe there, both
+from Megget and from us."
+
+"Because I wanted my tobacco."
+
+Whatever doubt was in the mind of the Half-Moon owner as to whether
+or not Lawrence had been telling the truth was dispelled by this
+answer.
+
+Indeed even the owner of the Three Stars was convinced by the
+answer, and after a whispered consultation with Mr. Wilder, the
+latter announced:
+
+"I have this proposition to make you, Lawrence.  Your act in
+refusing to obey Megget, which beyond doubt has saved my cattle at
+the pool, shows you are not thoroughly bad.  Therefore, if you will
+lead us by the shortest trail to the headquarters at the Lost Lode
+and help us round up Megget and his gang, I will give you a job on
+my ranch."
+
+For a moment Lawrence gazed at the ranchman as though unable to
+believe his ears, but the kindly light in Mr. Wilder's eyes
+reassured him and he replied:
+
+"Will I?  Say, Bobby Lawrence knows a white man when he meets one.
+Give me a horse and I'll have you at the Lost Lode before dark
+to-night!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+IN THE MOUNTAINS
+
+Openly the owner of the Three Stars objected to the proposition of
+providing the erstwhile raider with a pony.
+
+"If we're going to trust Lawrence to lead us to the mine, we can
+certainly trust him with a horse," declared Mr. Wilder.  "Horace,
+climb up behind Tom and let Lawrence have your mount."
+
+Quickly the change was made, and again the party advanced.
+
+"To think we were within two miles of meeting Megget again,"
+exclaimed Tom as they rode along.  "I'm afraid we would not have
+got away from him so well this time."
+
+As he heard the remark, Lawrence turned and looked the boy over
+from head to foot, finally saying with a smile:
+
+"So you are the lad Gus ran foul of up in Oklahoma?"
+
+"Yes, but my brother was with me."
+
+"Which is he?"
+
+"The one who found you."
+
+At this information Lawrence threw back his head and laughed
+heartily.  "My, but that is a good one," he ejaculated when he had
+recovered from his merriment.  "You tenderfeet make a monkey of Gus
+and then capture one of his men.  I'll let Gus know it was you who
+found me, if I never speak again.  It will make him more angry than
+anything else could."
+
+To their surprise, the ranchers learned that the Lost Lode was only
+about five miles from the plains and that it was at the foot of one
+of the mountains, instead of high up in them, with a splendid
+valley where the cattle could graze close beside it.
+
+"Why, I've ridden through that place at least twice," asserted Pete
+as he recognized Lawrence's description of the spot, "but never a
+sign of cattle or mine have I seen."
+
+"You noticed there was heavy woods on both sides, didn't you?"
+returned the former raider, smiling.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, that explains why you didn't learn anything, though of
+course it might be that no cattle were in the valley when you
+struck it."
+
+This explanation only served to arouse the curiosity of the hearers
+the more.
+
+"The woods are the thing," he continued.  "Every time any one comes
+along, we drive the cattle into them and no one would think to look
+for the entrance to a mine among the trees."
+
+"But how does it happen you have never been taken by surprise?"
+queried Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Because when we had steers in the valley we always kept a lookout.
+There's a cliff just above the mine from which a man can see the
+trail for at least two miles."
+
+"Then won't some one discover us?" asked Bill.
+
+"Not if we hurry.  Every man jack of Megget's gang is out on this
+raid.  All we need to do is to get there first."
+
+"How about that fellow who was with you?" Bill inquired.  "Won't he
+be on the lookout?"
+
+"Who, Red Ike?  Not much.  He'll be too anxious to tell Gus about
+me.  He knows his chief was going to cut across to join Vasquez and
+the others, and he'll follow.  They'll be so tickled at the thought
+you all were lost in the fire they won't hurry much.  Still, if
+we're going to round them up, we must get there before dark
+to-night.  There's a spot just before you enter the valley where we
+can lie in wait and get them all."
+
+"No, that won't do," declared Mr. Wilder.  "I want to capture them
+without resorting to firearms, if possible.  While, of course, if
+it should be necessary, I would sanction shooting, I much prefer to
+take the men prisoners and turn them over to the sheriff and the
+law."
+
+At first Lawrence could scarcely believe his ears.  His creed had
+been force, supported by quick use of weapons, not law, and it
+seemed incredible to him that a man who had suffered from the raids
+of the cattle thieves should not take justice in his own hands when
+opportunity presented.  But he suddenly realized that he was
+dealing with a new kind of man that he had never been brought in
+contact with, an honorable man, and his admiration for the owner of
+the Half-Moon increased a hundredfold.
+
+Some time, however, was required to reconcile himself to his new
+scheme of life, but of a sudden he burst into a roar of merriment.
+
+"We'll do it, and without a shot.  Say, Mr. Wilder, it will break
+Gus' heart to think he was caught without any gun play."
+
+"That's just it.  Most of the power men like Megget have is because
+of the fear the very mention of their names inspires.
+
+"But I don't mean to preach a sermon.  What I want to know is, How
+do you propose to capture Megget without trouble?"
+
+"Wait till they are asleep.  They'll have a celebration when they
+reach the mine and afterward we can hog-tie them and they will
+never know it."
+
+Without vouchsafing any comment, the owner of the Half-Moon reined
+away from the strange guide, and, as Snider joined him, discussed
+the situation thoroughly.
+
+The questioning of Lawrence, however, did not cease when the
+ranchmen left him.  The four boys had listened eagerly, and when
+the opportunity presented deluged him with inquiries.
+
+"Are there really ghosts in the Lost Lode?" queried Horace.
+
+"None but very live ones," grinned the former raider.  "Vasquez
+started that story to keep people from coming into the valley.
+Many a time we've chased men in the night when they came near."
+
+The chums, however were more interested in learning whether or not
+there was rich ore in the mine.
+
+"Probably there is," explained Lawrence, "but it would require a
+lot of drilling and sinking of shafts.  What silver could be got
+out, Vasquez has taken.  He was planning to use the money from the
+cattle captured in the raid to buy machinery and begin work."
+
+Disappointed to think they would not be able to pick up chunks of
+the ore, the comrades lapsed into silence till Tom suddenly
+bethought him of the men he had seen crossing the cliff on the
+night of their hunting trip, and he lost no time in asking if they
+were some of Megget's gang.
+
+"Must have been Gus and the boys who were with him up in Oklahoma,"
+declared the guide.  "There's a trail from that direction to the
+mine.  Now you mention it, I remember he spoke of having seen a
+party of horsemen.  It's a good thing for you he didn't know who it
+was.  If he had, he was so angry at your outwitting him that he
+would surely have made trouble."
+
+Further questioning, however, was prevented by the arrival of the
+troop at the trail.
+
+"There are my marks," exclaimed the younger of the chums, pointing
+to the branches he had broken.  But no one paid him heed, for with
+the arrival at the hills the serious work began and the ranchmen
+were busy issuing instructions.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+CAPTURING THE CATTLE THIEVES
+
+As they wound in and out among the hills and rocks, now ascending,
+now going down steep pitches, the silence of their surroundings and
+the realization that they were bent on a dangerous mission sobered
+the boys and few words did they speak.
+
+Once or twice the line halted as the leaders heard some sound that
+roused their suspicions, and several times Sandy and Nails dropped
+back.  But nothing untoward occurred, and late in the afternoon
+they descended into the valley that was the headquarters of the
+raiders.
+
+"We're in time; there's no one here," announced Lawrence after an
+examination of the ground for fresh horse or cattle tracks.
+
+Remembering their guide's statement about the cliff on which the
+lookout was posted when the raiders were at the mine, die boys
+sought it with their eyes.  But though they scanned both sides of
+the mountains, all they could see was trees.
+
+Horace was on the point of mentioning the fact when the word was
+passed back to dismount, and, leading their horses, they were soon
+within the protection of the woods.
+
+"Any of the ponies likely to whinny?" asked Lawrence as they halted
+in a glen.
+
+"Yes, Blackhawk," answered Horace.  "It was he that gave warning of
+Jeffreys' approach."
+
+"Then we'll take them all pretty well up into the woods.  He won't
+be able to scent when he's above where Megget and the others will
+enter the valley."
+
+"Which way will they come?" asked Mr. Wilder.
+
+"The opposite end from the way we did," responded the former
+raider.  "That's why I'm taking our ponies to a place on this side."
+
+"Seems to me we're leaving too much to this fellow who's gone back
+on his former pals," whispered the owner of the Three Stars to Mr.
+Wilder.  "It's all right if he plays fair, but if he doesn't we'll
+be in a pretty mess."
+
+"I believe he is acting square with us.  Still it won't do to take
+chances," returned the other ranchman, and calling to Lawrence, he
+asked where the mine was.
+
+"It's about two hundred yards to the right, Mr. Wilder.  I'll show
+you when we get up on top of the cliff.  There's a big dead tree in
+front of it, so you can't miss it, even in the night, for the bark
+has been peeled off it by lightning and the wind, so that it stands
+out like a white specter in the darkness."
+
+Deeming it inadvisable to unsaddle the horses, in case they should
+need them suddenly, the cowboys close-hobbled them on a plateau to
+which Lawrence guided them and then followed him to the ledge.
+
+No need was there for the tree that marked the mine to be pointed
+out to them, for as the men looked down each one saw it.
+
+To the east and to the west the ledge commanded a view of the
+trails, and as they gazed along them, the owner of the Half-Moon
+exclaimed:
+
+"I don't wonder no one can surprise Megget with such a lookout.
+Why, it's practically impossible to approach without being seen by
+a man on guard."
+
+"The only time is at night," returned Lawrence.  "And, thanks to
+the loneliness of the place and the stories of ghosts, no one has
+ever tried to pass through or even come in at night while I've been
+with the gang."
+
+"Don't start talking about ghosts or you'll get us all nervous,"
+said Mr. Wilder, fearing the effect on his men.  "Now that we've
+seen where the mine is, suppose you take us where you think we had
+better wait till we make the round-up."
+
+"That's right here," rejoined Lawrence.  "We can see Megget and the
+others when they arrive by being here."
+
+"True enough, but how about the guard they send up?"
+
+"There won't be any to-night, don't worry about that.  They'll be
+too busy celebrating your supposed loss in the fire last night."
+
+This grim reminder of their escape caused all of the ranchers to
+smile, and without further objection the men made themselves
+comfortable while they waited the arrival of the raiders.
+
+Huddled together, the boys sat where they could watch the trail.
+
+Of a sudden Tom grabbed his brother by the arm and pointed to where
+several specks were moving.
+
+In silence they watched as more and more came into view, and then
+Larry cried out:
+
+"Here they come!"
+
+Eager with excitement, the others crowded forward to catch a
+glimpse of the men who had caused them so much trouble.
+
+"Keep down!" snapped Lawrence.  "Vasquez has an eye like a hawk."
+
+No second warning did the cowboys need, and dropping flat on their
+stomachs, they watched the raiders draw nearer and nearer.
+
+Because of the cattle, their approach was slow, and it was fully an
+hour after the chums had sighted them before they reached the
+valley.
+
+"That's Vasquez and Gus in the lead," announced the man who had
+forsaken his life of wrong-doing.  And as the other raiders rode
+into sheltered grazing ground he mentioned them by name.
+
+"There are only nineteen of them.  I thought Nails said there were
+twenty," exclaimed Bill.
+
+"So there were till Lawrence joined us," rejoined his father.
+"Thank goodness, my short-horn Durhams are all right.  Now be
+quiet.  It would be too bad to spoil everything when things are
+going so well for us."
+
+Instantly the men obeyed, sitting with eyes and ears alert for any
+sight or sound that should proclaim the approach of a guard.
+
+But twilight fell and none came, as Lawrence had predicted.
+
+Sounds of revelry, broken now and then by the lowing of the cattle,
+were constant.  In due time the moon rose and with its coming the
+cowboys grew impatient.
+
+The ranchmen, however, refused to move till no sound from the
+raiders could be heard.
+
+"It's midnight," announced Mr. Wilder, looking at his watch.  "They
+must be asleep, by this time.  We'll chance it, anyhow.  Careful,
+every one.  Come, Lawrence."
+
+Overjoyed that the time for action had arrived, the boys followed
+their guide, halting at the edge of the valley.
+
+Ordering the others to wait, the owner of the Half-Moon and the
+former raider glided noiselessly toward the mine.
+
+All about were signs of the celebration in which the thieves had
+indulged, and their loud snores told how sound asleep they were.
+
+Confident the time was ripe for action, the two scouts returned to
+their impatient fellows.
+
+"Pete, Sandy, Nails, Skinny, Lawrence, you take the ropes and do
+the hog-tying.  The rest of you have your rifles ready for use.
+But don't shoot till I give the word," commanded Mr. Wilder.
+Opening the ropes so they could use them rapidly, the men selected
+for the binding of the raiders moved forward, closely followed by
+the others, guns ready for action.
+
+Signing to Sandy and Skinny to tie the men lying outside, Lawrence
+led the others into the mine.
+
+More like a cavern did it seem to them than anything else as they
+cast a hurried glance about the rock-walled room which two
+flickering torches lighted.
+
+Sprawled upon the floor lay the raiders, and to them Pete and Nails
+turned their attention, while Lawrence glided among them, peering
+into their faces.
+
+Watching for the slightest move, stood a dozen of the cowboys, with
+Mr. Wilder and the four lads.
+
+Of a sudden Lawrence stooped down, worked his hand rapidly, then
+rose, a smile on his face, and continued his search till he found
+another form, when he repeated the operation.
+
+Gliding to the owner of the Half-Moon, he whispered:
+
+"I've bound Megget and Vasquez.  If they wake up now it doesn't
+matter."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+HOMEWARD
+
+Having made fast the leaders, for he knew that with them rendered
+powerless no effective opposition would be made by the others
+should they be aroused, Lawrence returned to the task of
+"hog-tying," and in a few minutes every cattle thief in the cave
+had been securely bound.
+
+"Well, it has been easier to round up Megget and his gang than I
+ever imagined it could be, thanks to you, Lawrence," exclaimed Mr.
+Wilder as they left the mine to join the others.
+
+"It was no fun at all," protested Horace, and his opinion voiced
+the sentiments of the cowboys.  "Can't we wake them up or do
+something to let them know they've been captured?"
+
+"You'd have some trouble in rousing them, son," replied his father.
+"They've been drinking too heavily."
+
+"That's what," agreed the former raider.  "You could ride over them
+and they would not budge."
+
+"It's the only time I ever knew the drinking of too much liquor to
+do good," chuckled Mr. Wilder.  "That is, good to us.  I don't
+suppose our prisoners will share our opinion, though, when they
+awake."
+
+When the raiders had been bound the owner of the Three Stars had
+sent his men to bring down all the ponies, that the animals might
+be relieved of their saddles and enjoy the tender grass in the
+valley.  And no sooner had Blackhawk reached the open than he gave
+an ear-splitting whinny which was answered by several of the
+raiders' horses.
+
+At the racket two or three of the thieves awoke and tried to get up.
+
+For a moment the men blinked at the sight of the cowboys.  Then,
+their senses returning, they discovered they were tied hand and
+foot, and in a trice they were yelling like a band of Indians.
+
+"Go it! Go it!" howled the cowboys.
+
+The shouts roused the prisoners in the cave, and their yells of
+rage added to the pandemonium.
+
+"Come on in to see Megget," exclaimed Lawrence.  "I say, Mr.
+Wilder, can't Larry and Tom go in first alone?  You promised, you
+know."
+
+Willing that his men should have their fun, the owner of the
+Half-Moon laughingly consented.
+
+And with the others following close, the brothers went into the
+cave.
+
+Entering thoroughly into the spirit of the occasion, Larry
+approached the struggling chief.
+
+"Why, how do you do again, Mr. Megget?" he exclaimed, bowing in
+mock deference.  "What's the trouble?  You seem to be down and out.
+Quite a difference from when you were teasing me at that station in
+Oklahoma, eh?"
+
+As Megget recognized the brothers his face grew terrible to see,
+and, summoning all his strength, he leaped to his feet.
+
+But Lawrence had tied his ankles so tight he could not keep his
+balance, and the raider pitched forward while Mr. Wilder and the
+others rushed in to make sure he did not harm the boys.
+
+At the sight of the men he thought burned, the leader of the
+raiders lay trembling like a leaf.
+
+"You see you can't raid the Half-Moon herd with impunity,"
+exclaimed Mr. Wilder sternly.  "Come on, boys, let's go outside.
+These men are not pleasant companions."  And turning on his heel,
+he led the way from the mine.
+
+Appointing Pete, Sandy and two others to stand guard to make sure
+none of the prisoners broke their bonds, Mr. Wilder ordered the
+others to turn in.
+
+Some time it took them to get to sleep, but when they did they
+slept soundly, and it was broad daylight when they awoke.
+
+After a hearty breakfast, they were discussing the best way to get
+their prisoners to Tolopah when a body of horsemen galloped into
+the valley.
+
+For the moment the ranchmen and cowboys thought they were partners
+of the raiders and quickly they sprang for their guns.  But the
+next minute their alarm vanished.
+
+"It's Shorty Jenks and the sheriff of Tolopah!" yelled Skinny.  And
+such, indeed, it proved to be, together with a score of deputies.
+
+Hearty were the greetings exchanged by the sheriffs and the ranch
+owners, and the former were elated when they learned of the
+successful round-up of the cattle thieves.
+
+Deeming it unwise to start to drive out the cattle so late In the
+day, they whiled away the time exploring the mine, where, to the
+delight of the boys, they were able to dig out several small pieces
+of almost pure silver ore.
+
+Without adventure the day passed and at dawn the next morning the
+start was made.
+
+The prisoners, their legs tied together under their ponies and
+guarded by the deputies, led the procession, followed by the
+sheriffs, the ranch owners and the lads.  Behind them the cowboys
+drove the cattle.
+
+Able to travel faster than the steers, Mr. Wilder ordered his men
+to drive to the pool, picking up the fifty head on the way, after
+which he told them to come to the ranch for a jollification in
+honor of the capture.
+
+Reaching the plains In good season, the ranchmen and the boys
+separated from the sheriffs and, urging their ponies, arrived at
+the home in time for dinner.
+
+As they rode into the yard Mrs. Wilder greeted all joyfully.  After
+the flush of delight at their safe return she asked about the
+raiders, clapping her hands at the information they had all been
+captured and were on their way to Tolopah.
+
+"And now for some fun," said Bill the next day.
+
+With riding, hunting and fishing the chums passed many happy days.
+At the trial of Megget and his pals in Tolopah Tom and Larry
+attracted even more attention than the raiders, but they bore it
+like sensible boys, making light of their experience at the
+crossing and never referring to it when they could avoid so doing.
+
+Upon the completion of the trial, with long sentences for the
+cattle thieves, from which fate Mr. Wilder's influence saved
+Lawrence, the brothers returned to the ranch.
+
+Great favorites with all the cowboys, they learned many a trick of
+roping steers and riding, and they were never so happy as when,
+together with Bill and Horace, they were allowed to pass a few days
+herding.
+
+Upon the return from one of these trips Mr. Wilder handed Larry a
+telegram.  Opening it, he read:
+
+  "We arrived in New York this morning.
+  Received fifty thousand dollars from Uncle
+  Darwent.  We shall expect to meet you at
+  the Hotel Boswell in Pittsburg Saturday.
+    Love.        FATHER."
+
+"It's a good thing we came back to the ranch today," exclaimed
+Horace.  "To-morrow is Thursday, and you'll be obliged to start
+then to reach Pittsburg on Saturday."
+
+"Yes, I suppose it is," assented Larry.  "Still we've had such a
+good time we hate to go home."
+
+"And leave the life in the saddle for life in Ohio," added Tom.
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Comrades of the Saddle, by Frank V. Webster
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 11890 ***
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #11890 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11890)
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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Comrades of the Saddle, by Frank V. Webster
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Comrades of the Saddle
+       The Young Rough Riders of the Plains
+
+Author: Frank V. Webster
+
+Release Date: April 3, 2004 [EBook #11890]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK COMRADES OF THE SADDLE ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Al Haines
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+Or
+
+The Young Rough Riders of the Plains
+
+
+
+BY
+
+FRANK V.  WEBSTER
+
+
+AUTHOR OF "ONLY A FARM BOY," "THE YOUNG TREASURE HUNTER,"
+"THE BOYS OF BELLWOOD SCHOOL," "TOM THE TELEPHONE BOY," ETC.
+
+
+
+ILLUSTRATED
+
+NEW YORK
+CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY
+
+
+
+
+BOOKS FOR BOYS
+
+By FRANK V. WEBSTER
+
+ONLY A FARM BOY
+  Or Dan Hardy's Rise in Life
+
+TOM THE TELEPHONE BOY
+  Or The Mystery of a Message
+
+THE BOY FROM THE RANCH
+  Or Roy Bradner's City Experiences
+
+THE YOUNG TREASURE HUNTER
+  Or Fred Stanley's Trip to Alaska
+
+BOB THE CASTAWAY
+  Or The Wreck of the Eagle
+
+THE YOUNG FIREMEN OF LAKEVILLE
+  Or Herbert Dare's Pluck
+
+THE NEWSBOY PARTNERS
+  Or Who Was Dick Box?
+
+THE BOY PILOT OF THE LAKES
+  Or Nat Morton's Perils
+
+TWO BOY GOLD MINERS
+  Or Lost in the Mountains
+
+JACK THE RUNAWAY
+  Or On the Road with a Circus
+
+THE BOYS OP BELLWOOD SCHOOL
+  Or Frank Jordan's Triumph
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+  Or The Young Rough Riders of the Plains
+
+
+
+
+
+Copyright, 1910, by
+CUPPLES & LEON COMPANY
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+
+Printed in U. S. A
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+CHAPTER
+
+    I  AN EXCITING ESCAPE
+   II  MR.  ALDEN BRINGS NEWS
+  III  WORD FROM THE WEST
+   IV  GUS MEGGET
+    V  THE HALF-MOON RANCH
+   VI  IN THE SADDLE
+  VII  A RACE IN THE MOONLIGHT
+ VIII  HORACE IN DANGER
+   IX  THE MESSAGE FROM CROSS-EYED PETE
+    X  THE RETURN TO THE RANCH
+   XI  PREPARATIONS FOB PURSUIT
+  XII  WHAT NAILS LEARNED
+ XIII  OUT ON THE PLAINS
+  XIV  ANOTHER DISCOVERY
+   XV  THE CONTESTED TRAIL
+  XVI  WHAT JEFFREYS KNEW
+ XVII  LOST!
+XVIII  A MYSTERIOUS CALL
+  XIX  A TERRIBLE PLOT
+   XX  THE PRAIRIE FIRE
+  XXI  A RIDE FOR LIFE
+ XXII  LAWRENCE'S PLAN
+XXIII  IN THE MOUNTAINS
+ XXIV  CAPTURING THE CATTLE THIEVES
+  XXV  HOMEWARD
+
+
+
+
+COMRADES OF THE SADDLE
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+AN EXCITING ESCAPE
+
+Twilight was settling on the land.  The forms of trees and houses
+loomed big and black, their sharp outlines suggesting fanciful
+forms to the minds of two boys hurrying along the road which like a
+ribbon wound In and out among the low hills surrounding the town of
+Bramley, in south-western Ohio.
+
+As the darkness increased lights began to twinkle from the windows
+of the distant farmhouses.
+
+"We're later than usual, Tom," said the larger of the two boys.  "I
+hope we'll get home before father does."
+
+"Then let's hurry.  The last time we kept supper waiting he said
+we'd have to give up playing ball after school if we couldn't get
+home before meal time."
+
+"And that means that we won't make the team and will only get a
+chance to substitute," returned the first speaker.
+
+As though such a misfortune were too great to be borne, the two
+young ball players broke into a dog trot.
+
+The boys were brothers, Tom and Larry Alden.  Larry, the larger,
+was sixteen and Tom was a year younger.  Both were healthy and
+strong and would have been thought older, so large were they.
+
+The only children of Theodore Alden, a wealthy farmer who lived
+about three miles from Bramley, unlike many brothers, they were
+chums.  They were prime favorites, and their popularity, together
+with their natural ability and cool-headedness at critical moments,
+made them leaders in all sports.
+
+As it grew darker and darker, the brothers quickened their pace.
+Talking was out of the question, so fast were they going.  But as
+they rounded a turn in the road, which enabled them to see the
+lights in their home, a quarter of a mile away, Larry gasped:
+
+"There's no light in the dining-room yet.  Father hasn't gotten
+home!"
+
+"Come on then for a final spurt," returned Tom.
+
+Willingly Larry responded, and the boys dashed forward as though
+they were just starting out instead of ending a two-mile run.
+
+On the right-hand side of the road a fringe of bushes hedged a
+swamp.
+
+The patter of the boys' feet on the hard clay road was the only
+sound that broke the stillness.
+
+Their goal, with the bright lights shining from the windows, was
+only about three hundred yards away when suddenly from the
+direction of the swamp sounded a sullen snarl.
+
+"Did you hear anything?" asked Larry.
+
+"I thought so."
+
+As though to settle all doubt, the growl rang out again.  This time
+it was nearer and sounded more ominous.
+
+For a moment the boys looked at each other, then, as with one
+accord, turned their heads and looked in the direction whence the
+startling noise had come.
+
+Just as they did so there came another howl, and an instant later a
+big black form, for all the world like a large dog, leaped from the
+bushes into the road.
+
+"Quick, quick!" cried Larry, seizing his brother's arm and pulling
+him along, for Tom had slackened his speed, as though fascinated by
+the sight of the strange animal.  "It must be that wolf father read
+about, the one that got away when the circus train was passing
+through Husted."
+
+And, Larry was right.  The animal was indeed a wolf that had
+escaped from its cage through the door, the fastener on which had
+been jarred out of place by the motion of the train, and had leaped
+to liberty.
+
+The circus people had reported the loss as soon as it had been
+discovered and it had been duly announced in the papers.
+
+Mr. Alden had read about it, but all had laughed at the thought of
+a wolf in placid Ohio and dismissed the story as a circus man's
+joke.
+
+Rejoicing in its freedom, the beast had wandered about till it
+struck the swamp and now the air brought to its keen nose the scent
+of the boys passing.  Ravenously hungry, the wolf hastened toward
+the lads.
+
+As it bounded into the road the glare from the lights of the
+farmhouse momentarily blinded it and it stood blinking.
+
+But only for an instant.  Instinctively realizing that it must
+catch them before they reached the lights, the wolf uttered a
+savage snarl and bounded forward.
+
+Larry's words to his brother had roused the boy, and together they
+were racing toward the welcome lights of their home.
+
+But the wolf with its leaps covered three yards to their one, and
+as the older of the boys looked over his shoulder he saw that the
+beast was gaining on them.
+
+Fifty yards ahead was the house and thirty yards behind them was
+the wolf.
+
+Well did the boys know they could not win the race.  But they did
+not lose their heads.
+
+"Father! Harry!" yelled Larry.  "Joe! The wolf! the wolf!  Get the
+rifle!"
+
+"The wolf! the wolf!" added Tom.  "Shoot the wolf!"
+
+The yells, breaking the stillness of the night, startled Mrs. Alden
+and the hired men, who were awaiting the coming of Mr. Alden and
+the boys.
+
+Unable to distinguish the words, the hired men rushed to the door
+and threw it open.  Peering along the path of the light, they saw
+the forms of the boys.
+
+"Quick!  The rifle!  The wolf's after us!" shouted Tom.
+
+Fortunately Mr. Alden always kept a loaded rifle on a rack on the
+kitchen wall with which to shoot foxes that attempted to raid his
+hen-roost.
+
+Hastily the hired man named Joe sprang for the weapon, seized it
+and dashed from the door, shouting:
+
+"Where is it?  Where is it?"
+
+Before the boys could answer, however, his keen eyes espied the
+black form.
+
+Joe had often amused himself shooting at a target with Larry and
+Tom and was able to make four bull's-eyes out of five, but never
+before had the opportunity to aim at a live mark come to him, and
+as he raised the rifle his hands trembled.
+
+"Shoot! shoot!" yelled Larry.  "No matter if you don't hit it,
+shoot!"
+
+Bang! went the gun, and as the report of the firearm died away the
+wolf was seen to stagger and fall.  Soon the beast arose again, but
+by that time the hired man was ready for another shot.  This
+finished the beast, and with a yelp it rolled over and breathed its
+last.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+MR. ALDEN BRINGS NEWS
+
+Exhausted by their run and the excitement of their escape, Larry
+and Tom staggered into the house and dropped into chairs, their
+mother and the hired men pressing about and plying them with
+questions.  But it was several minutes before the boys recovered
+their breath sufficiently to speak.
+
+Tom was the first to get over his fright, and, as soon as he could
+control his voice, gave a vivid account of their attempt to reach
+home before their father, their hearing the uncanny sound from the
+swamp, the sudden appearance of the wolf behind them and their
+desperate race to get to the house before the beast should overtake
+them.
+
+"It's a good thing I practiced shooting last winter," exclaimed Joe
+as the story ended.  He was proud of what he had accomplished.
+
+"There's father," declared Mrs. Alden as a "whoa!" sounded from the
+yard.
+
+Quickly Larry picked up a lantern, and, followed by all but his
+mother, went out to help unhitch the horses and take them into the
+barn.
+
+"What's been going on?" demanded the farmer as the others joined
+him.  "I heard the rifle shot."
+
+Eagerly they all started to tell.
+
+"Don't all speak at once," interposed Mr. Alden.  "You're talking
+so loud and so fast I can't understand a word.  Tom, suppose you
+explain?"
+
+Excitedly the youngest of the brothers poured forth the tale.
+
+"A wolf in Bramley, eh?  Well, well!  It's a good thing you boys
+were so near home.  This is sure a great day for happenings.  My
+sons get chased into their own dooryard and I----"
+
+But as though to arouse their curiosity, the farmer did not finish
+his sentence.
+
+"You what?" asked Larry.
+
+"Never mind now.  Put the horses up.  You won't have to feed them;
+they're too hot.  Give them a little hay and then come in to
+supper."
+
+Knowing it was useless to try to get their father to satisfy their
+curiosity, for Mr. Alden, though a kindly man, was what his
+neighbors called "set in his ways," Tom and Larry ran to the barn
+to open the door, while the hired men followed with the horses.
+
+After rubbing the animals down and giving them some hay, the four
+returned to the house.
+
+But not until the supper was finished did the farmer deign to
+impart his news.  Then, tilting back in his chair, he looked at his
+wife and asked:
+
+"How would you like to take the boys to Scotland for the summer,
+ma?"
+
+"To Scotland?" repeated Mrs. Alden, as though scarcely believing
+her ears.  "Theodore Alden, are you going crazy?  What are you
+talking about?"
+
+"About going to Scotland," answered the farmer, grinning.  "And I'm
+not crazy."
+
+At the mention of the trip, Larry and Tom looked at their parent
+and then at each other in dismay, for they had planned a different
+sort of way for spending the summer.  But their attention was
+quickly drawn to their father again.
+
+"I've got to go to Scotland and we might as well all go," he was
+saying.  "The hired men can run the farm for the summer."
+
+Lapsing into silence as he watched the effect of his words, Mr.
+Alden enjoyed the looks of surprise and curiosity, then continued:
+
+"When I got to Bramley this morning I found a letter from a man
+named Henry Sargent, a Glasgow lawyer.  He said my uncle, Thomas
+Darwent, had died, leaving me the only heir to his estates.  Just
+how much money this means I don't know.  He said it might be ten
+thousand pounds."
+
+"Phew! that's fifty thousand dollars," interposed Larry, excitedly.
+
+"Just so," returned his father.  "It may be more.  I can't make out
+whether that's the amount of cash or if that's what it will come to
+when the land and houses are sold."
+
+"You can write and find out," suggested Mrs. Alden.
+
+"I can write, but I doubt if I can find out," chuckled the farmer.
+"Those lawyer chaps use such high-sounding words, you can't tell
+what they mean.  If Uncle Darwent made me his heir, I'm going to
+see I get all there Is to get.  No Scotchman is going to cheat
+Theodore Alden out of what's his.  Soon's I'd made up my mind to
+that, I drove over to Olmsted and made arrangements to sail from
+New York on Saturday."
+
+"Saturday?  Why that's only three days off!" protested Mrs. Alden.
+
+"Well, it'll only take a night and part of a day to get to New
+York.  That'll give you a day and a half to get ready, ma."
+
+The thought of a trip to Scotland delighted Mrs. Alden, and she
+immediately began to plan how she could get the boys, her husband
+and herself ready in such a short space of time.
+
+But Larry and Tom showed no signs of enthusiasm.
+
+Noticing their silence, their father exclaimed:
+
+"Don't you boys want to go?  I never knew you so quiet before when
+a trip was mentioned."
+
+"But the ball game with Husted is on Saturday," said Larry, giving
+voice to the thought uppermost in his mind.  Then, as though he
+realized that it was foolish to compare a trip to Scotland with a
+game of baseball, he added: "Besides, Tom and I were planning--that
+is, we were going to ask you if we couldn't go out to Tolopah and
+spend the summer with Horace and Bill Wilder on their ranch."
+
+With this announcement of a plan which the brothers had discussed
+over and over, wondering how they could bring it about, the boys
+anxiously watched their father's face.
+
+"So that's how the wind blows, eh?" he commented.  "Well, ma, what
+do you say?  Shall we take the boys with us or let them go to the
+ranch?"
+
+With her quiet mother's eye Mrs. Alden caught the appeal on her
+sons' faces and after a short deliberation replied:
+
+"I think they'd be better off with the Wilders--that is, if they'd
+like to have the boys visit them."
+
+"Hooray! hooray!" cried the boys together.
+
+"We can telegraph and ask Mr. Wilder tonight," said Larry.  "Can we
+go to Bramley and send the message, father?"
+
+"You can telephone the message to the station and the operator will
+send it."
+
+And while the boys puzzled over the wording of the telegram, their
+father re-read his letter from Scotland.
+
+"I've got the telegram ready," Tom exclaimed presently.  "Listen."
+And picking up the piece of paper on which he had been scribbling
+he read:
+
+  "BILL AND HORACE WILDER,
+    "Tolopah, New Mexico:
+  "We can leave Saturday to visit you.  Do you
+  want us?  Answer quick.  Father and mother
+  leave Friday for Scotland.  We'll have to go,
+  if you don't want us.
+    "LARRY AND TOM ALDEN."
+
+"You might make it shorter," chuckled the farmer.
+
+"And muddle it all up so they wouldn't understand it any better
+than you do your lawyer's letter," returned Larry.
+
+"That's a bull's-eye," grinned Joe, whose mind was running to
+shooting terms.
+
+And as neither their father nor mother interposed any objections,
+the boys telephoned the message to the operator at Bramley, who
+promised to send it at once.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+WORD FROM THE WEST
+
+Anxiously the two brothers waited for some news from the West and
+in the meantime got ready for the trip to Scotland.
+
+"Oh, I don't want to go to Scotland!" sighed Tom.  "I want to go to
+the ranch."
+
+"Well, we've got to take what comes," answered his brother.
+
+The boys went down to town and said good-by to their school chums.
+All were sorry they were going away and said they would be missed
+from the baseball team.
+
+Returning to the farm, their mother met them with a peculiar smile
+on her face.
+
+"Any news?" they asked eagerly.
+
+"Yes, word came over the telephone a while ago."
+
+"And what Is it, ma?"
+
+"The Wilders say to come and----"
+
+"Hooray!"
+
+"And not to bring a trunk," finished the mother.  "The idea of two
+boys going away all summer without a trunk!"
+
+"Of course we won't need a trunk!" declared Tom.  "From the time we
+reach the ranch till we start for home I don't intend to wear a
+white shirt or collar."
+
+"When we get out there we can buy some cowboy outfits," said Larry.
+"Hooray for Tolopah!"
+
+The receipt of the message, which had been telephoned by the agent
+at Bramley while the boys were on their way back from the town, was
+more of a relief than either Larry or Tom was willing to
+acknowledge.  And they ate their food with greater relish in the
+certainty that their dream of going to live on a ranch was to come
+true.
+
+Each was absorbed in his own thoughts when the voice of their
+father roused them.
+
+"Now that it's decided you are going West," he was saying, "I
+reckon I'll go over to Olmsted and make sure about our steamer
+tickets.  We won't have any too much time in New York.  You boys
+can go with me if you like."
+
+Glad of the opportunity, the boys finished their dinner quickly and
+were soon whirling over the hard clay road behind their father's
+span of spirited horses.
+
+"I've decided to give each of you two hundred and fifty dollars,"
+said Mr. Alden, as though expressing his thoughts out loud.
+
+"Phew! Two hundred and fifty dollars! That's more money than I ever
+had all at once," exclaimed Tom in delight.  "Think of having all
+that to spend, Larry."
+
+"But you mustn't spend it all," warned their father.  "I was going
+to say when you interrupted, Tom, that out of this money you must
+pay your railroad tickets, for your berths to sleep in, and for
+your meals.  These things will amount to about seventy-five
+dollars, I should think."
+
+"But that will still leave us one hundred and seventy-five
+dollars," declared Tom.
+
+"True enough, but don't forget it will cost seventy-five dollars to
+get back.  If I were you, when you get to the ranch, I would give
+the money for your return tickets to Mr. Wilder.  He'll keep it for
+you, so you'll be sure not to spend it.
+
+"It's a thing you ought always to remember when you take a trip of
+any distance--always save enough out of your money to carry you
+back home"
+
+The boys promised to do as their father suggested, and the farmer
+continued:
+
+"This will be your first experience with the world, and I don't
+want you to forget the things your mother and I have taught you.
+
+"It takes bad men as well as good to make up life, and somehow it
+seems as though the bad men had the easiest time of it.  You'll
+find gamblers and others who live by their wits in Tolopah.
+They'll try to be pleasant to you because you are young, and when
+they learn you are from the East they will try to get your money
+away from you.
+
+"You must also be careful to whom you speak on the train.  Under no
+conditions mention anything about the money you have with you.  A
+lot of people, when they have any substantial sum, either like to
+show it In some way or to talk about it, and then, if they happen
+to be robbed of it, they wonder.  Remember you can't recognize a
+thief by his clothes, and lots of the slickest of them travel about
+the country."
+
+With this and other advice Mr.  Alden counseled his sons, and so
+interested did they become in what he told them about the country
+of which they were soon to have their first glimpse that they were
+in Olmsted almost before they knew it.
+
+Going first to the bank, Mr. Alden drew out the money for his sons,
+obtained a letter of credit for himself and then arranged to
+purchase his steamship tickets in Pittsburg, whither all four
+travelers were going together.
+
+When they reached home Mrs. Alden had finished her packing and all
+was practically ready for the start on the morrow.
+
+After supper the farmer and his wife drove to Bramley to say
+good-by to their friends, but the two chums decided to stay at home.
+
+Eager to be on their way, it seemed to Larry and Tom that the hours
+never passed so slowly.  They tried to read, but in place of the
+print on the pages pictures of cowboys and bucking bronchos danced
+before their eyes, and they soon shut their books.
+
+"Wish we'd gone with father and mother," exclaimed Tom.  "It's more
+stupid here than saying good-by."
+
+But scarcely were the words out of his mouth when the door opened
+and in came an old friend named Silas Haskins, a former gold miner.
+
+"I got to go to Husted to-morrow, so I came over to-night to say
+'so long,'" he said in explanation of his call.
+
+Cordially the boys made him welcome, and the time passed quickly
+when they had led Silas round to talking about his adventures in
+the far West.
+
+When at last the gold miner rose to go he said:
+
+"I brung some presents for you.  They'll be useful in the West."
+
+And from his pockets Silas drew forth two fine big jackknives and
+two long pieces of thong.
+
+"They're both the same, so you won't need to quarrel about 'em," he
+smiled as he handed their presents to each.
+
+The boys were deeply touched by such evidence of friendship from
+their aged friend and were profuse in their thanks when he again
+put his hands in his pockets and produced two little bags made of
+buckskin and attached to a stout strip of the same strong material.
+
+"I don't know how you're intending to carry your money," he began,
+"but----"
+
+"Why in our pockets," interrupted Larry.
+
+"That's just what I supposed," grunted the old gold miner.  "Now I
+want you to put it in these two bags and hang 'em round your necks.
+There can't no one get to 'em without waking you up nor take 'em
+without giving you a chance to fight."
+
+Readily the boys promised to wear the money bags, and with a hearty
+handshake with each their aged friend went home.
+
+The night passed quickly and the morning was busily spent in
+getting the luggage to the station.
+
+As the family waited for the train the dingy little station was
+alive with people who had come to wish the Aldens pleasant
+journeys.  And as the train left the Bramley depot the members of
+the ball team gave three rousing cheers for Larry and Tom.
+
+The parting with their parents at Pittsburg was hard for the boys,
+but fortunately for them their train left first, and soon they were
+engrossed in watching their fellow passengers.
+
+These consisted of a German boy, who seemed about their own age;
+two elderly gentlewomen, and two big men, who would have seemed
+well dressed had they not worn so much jewelry.
+
+With interest the two chums watched the German youth and several
+times when they had turned to look at him they had found him gazing
+at them.
+
+It was only the memory of their father's advice to be careful as to
+whom they spoke to on the train that prevented them from striking
+up an acquaintance.  But when they found themselves at dinner
+seated at the same table with the foreigner they broke their
+reserve and told him their names.
+
+In return the German said he was Hans Ober.
+
+A speaking acquaintance thus established, Hans lost no time in
+asking questions about the United States and particularly the West,
+to which Larry and Tom replied as well as they were able.
+
+Evidently glad of their company, the German sat with them after the
+boys returned to their car from dinner.
+
+Once or twice Hans had tried to learn where the chums were going
+without asking directly, but they had given evasive answers, and at
+last, as though believing confidence would beget confidence, he
+announced that he was going to join his brother Chris, who had a
+store in Tolopah.
+
+As they heard their destination mentioned, Larry and Tom exchanged
+surprised glances, which did not need their words to let Hans know
+they were all three bound for the same place.
+
+This coincidence removed whatever of reserve was left and the three
+boys talked freely.
+
+Hans said he had come from Berlin and that his father had given him
+money to buy a share in his brother's business and told them of how
+his fears that he might lose the money had made him sit up the
+first two nights he was on the steamer.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+GUS MEGGET
+
+The boys were at breakfast the next morning when Hans, happening to
+look out the window, caught sight of the mighty river that almost
+divides the United States in half.
+
+"My eye! but that's a big river," he exclaimed.  "What do you call
+it?"
+
+"The Mississippi," returned the brothers.  They were too engrossed
+by their first glimpse of the "Father of Waters" to correct the
+German as he struggled to pronounce the name.
+
+"Oh, look at the funny boats!" exclaimed Tom, pointing to the long
+line of river steamers that were tied up at the levee.  "What are
+those things on the back end?"
+
+"They are the paddle wheels.  I know, because I've looked at
+pictures like them in my geography," replied Larry.  "They have the
+paddle wheels on the end because the water is so shallow in places."
+
+It was Just after noon that the two chums and Hans were vouchsafed
+a glimpse of real "dyed-in-the-wool" cowboys.
+
+The train had stopped at a crossing, as stations are known in
+Oklahoma, because of a hot-box on one of the wheels.
+
+Learning that it would be all of a quarter of an hour before the
+trouble could be repaired, the boys had left their car and were
+filling their lungs with the bracing air.
+
+It chanced that a gang of cowboys had ridden Into the town for a
+celebration and, as it was unusual for a train to stop for any
+length of time at the crossing, they rode up to find out the reason.
+
+For a few minutes they contented themselves with putting their
+ponies through all sorts of "stunts" to the great delight of the
+people on the train.
+
+At the sight of them, Larry, Tom and Hans walked toward the cowboys
+and stared at them in wonder and admiration.
+
+The cowboys had noticed the three lads, and, because they had been
+drinking bad "fire-water," suddenly decided to amuse themselves
+with them.
+
+"Whatcher lookin' at?" roared one of the cow-punchers, a big fellow
+with close-set eyes and a heavy jaw.
+
+The boys made no response.
+
+"Can't cher speak?  I'll teach you some manners then!" he bellowed.
+
+In a thrice he whirled his pony and rode for the boys at full speed.
+
+Ignorant of the roughness of cowboy fun, the three lads stood their
+ground, never thinking the fellow would hurt them.
+
+The cowboy was riding straight at Hans.  When the pony was within
+two leaps of the German, boy Larry cried to him to jump to one side.
+
+But Hans was too terrified to move, and the pony was almost upon
+him.  In another moment he would be run down.
+
+From the train rose shouts of warning and anger, changing in the
+next moment to cheers.
+
+Realizing that the German boy could not save himself, Larry threw
+up his hands right in the face of the pony, causing the animal to
+rear so suddenly that only its rider's expert horsemanship saved
+him from being unseated.
+
+At the same time Tom seized Hans and jerked him to one side just
+before the broncho's forelegs struck the ground again, almost on
+the very spot where the German boy had been standing.
+
+Furious at the interference with his so-called fun, the cowboy
+roared at Larry:
+
+"I'll teach you to scare Gus Megget's pony, you calf tenderfoot!"
+
+Black, indeed, did it look for the three lads.  The companions of
+the bullying cowboy who had announced himself as Gus Megget were
+riding up, yelling to him to make the "tenderfoot dance."
+
+His race very white, but every line of his body breathing defiance,
+Larry faced his tormentor.
+
+With a calmness that fairly took the breath away from the bully the
+elder of the brothers exclaimed in a voice loud enough to be heard
+by the other cowboys and the men about the train:
+
+"I didn't pick this quarrel with you, but if you will get off your
+horse so that you have no advantage over me; I'll give you all the
+fight you want!"
+
+An instant Megget glowered with rage at the mere stripling of a boy
+who had announced his willingness to fight him, then with a savage
+growl started to swing from his saddle.
+
+"I'll fix you, you whelp!" he roared.
+
+He aimed a savage blow at Larry, who ducked.
+
+"Hi! leave my brother alone!" cried Tom, coming to the spot.
+
+As Tom spoke Larry stooped and picked up a handful of dust.  This
+he hurled straight into the cowboy's face.
+
+"Good!" shouted Tom and did likewise.
+
+The dust caused the cowboy to sneeze, and some bystanders commenced
+to laugh.
+
+"He's got the best of you, Megget," observed another cowboy.
+
+"I'll eat him!" yelled Megget and rushed at Larry with blood in his
+eyes.
+
+But before he reached the boy a voice rang out:
+
+"Keep on your horse, Gus Megget!"
+
+Though Larry did not dare take his eyes from the bully, Tom and the
+cowboys looked to see who was taking a hand in the affair.  They
+beheld a quiet-looking little man pointing a finger at the leader
+of the ruffians.
+
+"I can't arrest you for driving off Jim Larson's cattle because
+we're in Oklahoma," continued the determined stranger.  "But if I
+ever get my hand on you in Texas it'll go hard with you!  Now
+vamoose before you try my patience too far!  Come on back, boys.
+Gus Megget won't bother you any more."
+
+"Prickly cactus! but it's 'Shorty,' the sheriff from Pawnee
+County!" gasped one of the band or cow-punchers.  "Come on, Gus; we
+must dig out of here!  Shorty may pass the word he's seen us."
+
+Fear of the law caused the bully and his companions to wheel their
+ponies.
+
+At this move the three boys turned and ran back toward the train,
+while the excited passengers hooted and yelled at the discomfited
+cowboys.
+
+The shouts of derision were more than Megget could stand.  He shook
+his fist at the crowd in general and then at Tom and Larry in
+particular, Then he whirled around and disappeared from view in a
+cloud of dust.
+
+Quickly the passengers all trooped to the cars and five minutes
+later the train was again in motion.
+
+All the passengers wanted to shake hands with Tom and Larry, and
+for several minutes the boys were at the mercy of their
+well-meaning admirers.  Again the sheriff came to their rescue.
+
+"Go back to your own cars," he commanded.  "The boys want to be
+left alone."
+
+But the people gave no sign of heeding his words.
+
+"Well, if you won't go at the asking, I'll make you go," he
+continued, and seizing the person nearest him, the sheriff turned
+him round and gave him a shove along the aisle of the car.
+
+After three or four of the passengers had been pushed none too
+gently away, the others began to leave of their own accord, and the
+two brothers were able to make their escape.
+
+"If it keeps on the way it has started, we're likely to have a
+lively summer," remarked Larry when he was again back in his seat.
+
+"I hope they don't come so quick for me," exclaimed Hans.  And his
+tone was so plaintive that the others could not help but laugh.
+
+"You'll either have to get some nerve or else stick mighty close to
+your friends here," declared the sheriff, who had remained to talk
+with the boys who had shown such pluck.
+
+"Maybe I'll go back to Germany," sighed Hans.
+
+"Oh, you'll get used to this part of the world after a while.
+Where are you going?"
+
+"Tolopah."
+
+"Well, that ain't the most refined place in the world," chuckled
+the man of the law, "but I don't believe you'll get as bad as what
+you got."
+
+Pondering over this none too reassuring remark, Hans lapsed into
+silence, while Tom and Larry plied the sheriff with questions about
+life on the ranches and the antics of the cowboys.
+
+As evening came on the boys grew restive.  Their train was due at
+Tolopah at nine the next morning, and despite the fact that it was
+rushing along at the rate of forty miles an hour, it seemed to them
+to be scarcely moving.  They had already passed two nights and two
+days on the train and the thought of putting another night in the
+berth, especially as it was very hot, seemed impossible, making
+them fretful and cross.
+
+"Who is he?" asked Larry of the conductor, after the sheriff had
+left the train.
+
+"What, you never heard of Sam Jenks, sheriff of Pawnee County?"
+
+"We come from Ohio," said Tom, as though apologizing for their
+ignorance.
+
+"That accounts for it.  If you lived between the Mississippi and El
+Paso you wouldn't ask such a question.
+
+"Sam Jenks, known to every cowboy as 'Shorty,' is the nerviest man
+I know.  There isn't a cattle thief or a bad man in this part of
+the country that won't run when he sees him--if he has the chance.
+
+"You saw how Gus Megget and his gang got scared.  It was just the
+sight of Shorty that scared him.  He's got a record of sending more
+cattle thieves and crooked gamblers to jail than any three other
+sheriffs in the country.  There never was anything he's afraid of,
+and he's just as tender-hearted as a kitten.  Why, I know one time,
+after he'd sent a train robber to prison, he took the money out of
+his own pocket to support the rascal's wife and baby till he could
+get her folks to take her home.  You sure made a friend that's
+worth having."
+
+On Hans' account, Larry and Tom kept up a lively chatter during the
+evening, and it was not until the brothers were in their berths
+that they broached the subject of what to do should the sheriff's
+suspicions prove true.
+
+Hans' unfitness for holding his own among the rough men of the
+plains made them sorry for him, and they discussed various plans,
+without arriving at any conclusion, till well into the night.
+
+"What's the use of worrying?" said Tom finally.  "Chris will
+probably show up all right.  Let's wait and see."  And with this
+understanding the boys dropped the matter.
+
+Despite the fact that the day was to see the end of their journey,
+the boys slept late.
+
+"You ge'mmen better hurry if you all wants yo' breakfas' befoh yo'
+gits to Tolopah," interrupted the porter.  "We'll be thar in half
+an hour."
+
+It was not a hearty meal the brothers and Hans ate, and soon they
+were back in their seats, looking to see that they had forgotten
+nothing before they closed their suit-cases.
+
+Bringing two big valises of the extending kind the German sat with
+Larry and Tom.  But their high spirits found no response in him,
+and as they neared their destination he could with difficulty keep
+back the tears, so worried was he.
+
+"Here we are!" exclaimed Larry as he caught sight of some houses
+and barns.
+
+And his words were verified by the porter, who came through the car
+calling:
+
+"All out for Tolopah!"
+
+Picking up their luggage, the boys hastened to the car steps.
+
+"Hello, Bill!  Hello, Horace!" cried the brothers eagerly as they
+caught sight of their friends on the station platform.
+
+At the greetings the Wilder boys hurried toward the car.
+
+In the pleasure of the meeting Tom and Larry forgot Hans.
+
+"Come on," commanded Horace, seizing Tom's suit-case.  "We won't
+dally here in Tolopah.  We must get to the ranch before it gets too
+hot."  And he led the way to where four bronchos stood tied to a
+railing.
+
+Quickly the Wilders made fast the suit-cases to their saddles and
+untied the ponies.
+
+"This is Blackhawk, Tom, and this is Lightning, Larry," said Horace
+as he handed the reins to the two boys.  "They're a couple of the
+best ponies in New Mexico, and while you're here they'll be yours.
+You can get acquainted with them on the ride to the ranch."
+
+Both animals were splendid creatures, well built and powerful.
+Blackhawk, as the name suggests, was jet black, his coat glistening
+in the sun, and Lightning was a roan.
+
+Already Bill and Horace were on their ponies, and the two brothers
+were just swinging into their saddles when a voice cried:
+
+"Tom!  Larry!"
+
+Turning their heads, the boys beheld Hans, the tears streaming down
+his cheeks, rushing toward them as fast as his valises would let
+him.
+
+No need was there to ask if he had found a trace of his brother.
+The tears told all too plainly that he had not.
+
+"Who in the world is that?" asked Horace in astonishment.
+
+"A German boy who traveled with us," explained Tom.  "Do you know
+any one in Tolopah by the name of Chris Ober?"
+
+"Struck out for old Mexico, prospecting for gold, three months
+ago," replied Bill.  "Why?"
+
+"That's his brother Hans, who has come from Berlin to visit him,"
+returned Tom.  And hurriedly he gave an outline of the German lad's
+story.
+
+"Phew!  Chicken-hearted, is he?" commented Horace.  "It won't do to
+leave him in Tolopah.  Luckily one of our men is in town with our
+grub wagon.  He can ride out to the ranch with him."
+
+When Tom imparted this information to Hans, the poor fellow was
+delighted and asked where he could find the outfit.
+
+"I'll show him.  You all ride on," said Horace.  But the others
+refused, declaring they would all go together.
+
+As the cavalcade started with Hans and his valises trying to keep
+up with them, many were the jests and laughs cast after them.
+
+But the boys paid them no heed, and in a few minutes the German
+youth was safe in the provision wagon.
+
+Putting their horses into a brisk canter, the four lads set out for
+the ranch.
+
+Many were the questions the Wilders asked about their friends back
+in Ohio, and so busy were Tom and Larry in answering, and in
+relating all the events of consequence that had transpired since
+the family had left Bramley two years before, that the twenty miles
+which lay between Tolopah and the ranch seemed scarcely one.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+THE HALF-MOON RANCH
+
+As the boys drew rein in front of the broad, vine-covered piazza of
+the ranch house they were greeted by Mr. and Mrs. Wilder,
+
+"Well, it does seem good to see some one from home," exclaimed the
+latter as she shook the hands of Tom and Larry.
+
+"It sure does," asserted her husband.  "Wish you'd brought your
+father and mother with you.  What in the world started them off to
+Scotland?"
+
+Quickly the brothers explained.
+
+"Well, well!  So Uncle Darwent really had some money," commented
+Mrs. Wilder.  "I'm real glad, though of course it isn't as though
+your father needed any more.  I should have thought you boys would
+have wanted to go with them."
+
+"Not when we could spend the summer on your ranch," returned Larry.
+"But we began to be afraid we would be obliged to go, and we should
+have if the telegram had been any later.  No time ever seemed so
+long as when we were waiting for your answer."
+
+"It was just luck we got your message," declared Horace.
+"Sometimes we don't go to town for a week.  But something seemed to
+urge me to ride in the other morning, and when I arrived Con Brown
+hollered to me he had a telegram.  When I read it, I didn't lose
+any time answering, and I made Con promise to rush it."
+
+"Con's our telegraph operator," explained Bill.  "Come on in and
+change your duds and then we'll look the ranch over."
+
+Nothing loath to remove their clothes, which still smelled of
+engine smoke, despite their ride over the plains, as the brothers
+seized their suitcases and followed their young hosts, Larry
+exclaimed laughingly:
+
+"You see we took your advice not to bring a trunk."
+
+"Glad of it," asserted Horace joyously.  "There's no need to dress
+out here.  It's just great!  You don't have to put on a collar from
+one week's end to another.  But if you had brought a lot of
+clothes, mother would have made us dress too.  That's why I
+mentioned the matter in my telegram."
+
+This explanation was given in a low tone that Mrs. Wilder might not
+know her son had taken such effective measures to prevent his being
+obliged to "dress up," and the boys laughed heartily at the
+harmless joke.
+
+The home of the Wilders was only one story high, but the rooms were
+big and comfortable.  Around three sides ran the piazza, from which
+French windows, extending from the floor to the ceiling, opened,
+admitting any breeze that might be stirring.
+
+The room assigned to the boys was on the west side of the house,
+and through the vines they could look across the plains to some
+mountains that towered in the distance.
+
+"Our room is the next one to yours," said Bill.  "We'll wait there
+till you are dressed.  If you want anything, sing out."
+
+Hastily Tom and Larry took off the clothes in which they had
+traveled, and bathed, glad of the opportunity to remove the cinders
+which had caused them no little discomfort.
+
+"Bill and Horace seem just the same as when they lived in Bramley,"
+observed Tom when they were alone.  "Horace hasn't grown a bit."
+
+"They are tanned up till they look like Indians, that's the only
+change I can see," returned his brother.  "Horace always will be
+short, but Bill's tall enough for two."
+
+"You can't wear those caps," declared Bill as Tom and Larry
+appeared with the light baseball caps they had brought with them.
+
+"But that's all we have," protested Larry, "except, of course, our
+straw hats.  You don't expect us to knock round in those, do you?"
+
+"Sure not.  But if you wore those caps you'd get sunstruck out on
+the plains.  We've got some sombreros you can take."
+
+As the boys trooped out onto the piazza Tom espied a five-bar fence
+about a hundred yards from the house.
+
+"That's the horse corral," explained Horace, noting the direction
+of his friend's gaze.  "We don't keep our ponies in barns out here.
+The horses are all out on the range now, except eight we keep at
+home for ourselves."
+
+Passing from the cool veranda, the boys walked toward a long
+building some thirty yards away.
+
+"This is the bunk-house, where the cowboys stay when they're home,"
+announced Bill.  "There are ten of them, the best boys in this part
+of the country, but they are a lively lot.  It's a good thing they
+are with the cattle.  You'll have a chance to get used to ranching
+before they come in or they might amuse themselves at your expense.
+Politeness isn't a cowboy's long suit."
+
+"So I gathered," said Larry as he thought of his experience at the
+crossing in Oklahoma.  But his mind was quickly diverted by his
+brother.
+
+"What's that half-moon over the door mean?" asked the younger of
+the Alden boys as he caught sight of a gilded crescent that
+sparkled in the sunlight.
+
+"Oh, tenderfoot! oh, tenderfoot!  It is indeed fortunate the boys
+are away," exclaimed Bill in mock solemnity.
+
+"That is the brand of this ranch.  Every horse, every steer, cow
+and calf we own bears a half-moon because this is the Half-Moon
+Ranch.  When any of our ponies or cattle go astray or mix with
+others, the only way we can tell which belong to us is by the
+brand."
+
+"How do you put it on?" asked Tom.
+
+"Burn it into the flesh with hot irons.  If you can stay till fall,
+when we have a round-up, you can see how it's done," said Horace.
+
+Feeling that they were indeed ignorant of ranch life, the two
+brothers decided to use their eyes and ask no more questions than
+were necessary.
+
+Entering the bunk-house, they saw a long table covered with white
+oilcloth and a line of bunks built in two tiers against the wall
+opposite the door.  A big stove stood at one end, and there were
+pegs for saddles, bridles and lassoes all about.
+
+From the bunk-house the boys went to the wagon sheds, which
+contained three or four farm wagons and also a buckboard.
+
+"That's for mother," explained Bill.  "She doesn't like to ride,
+but she can though if it's necessary.
+
+"Here's where your saddles are," he continued, pointing to a beam
+into which pegs had been driven.  "You want to remember them,
+especially when the boys are home.  They don't like to have any one
+else take their saddles."
+
+"We'll remember," declared Tom and Larry meaningly.
+
+"I suppose we'll find our ponies in the corral?" hazarded Tom.
+
+"Sure thing.  And here's something else to keep in mind.  Father
+always insists that each man put his pony in the corral himself.
+Of course this morning he did it for us, but he won't again."
+
+"How do you get the horses when  you want them?  Call 'em?" asked
+Tom.
+
+"Sometimes that will work--after a pony has come to know its
+master--but the quickest way is to take some oats in a pan,"
+declared Horace.  "We keep the oats here," and he opened a bin at
+one side of the wagon shed.
+
+"You can use oats on Blackhawk and Lightning and our own ponies,
+but when we want a strange horse we rope him.  That makes me think,
+I've saved a couple of dandy lariats for you.  Cross-eyed Pete, one
+of our boys, made them for me out of rawhide.  They are in my room.
+Come on, we'll get them and then show you how to use them."
+
+"Is it hard to learn?" inquired Larry.
+
+"Yes, to throw one every time," replied Bill.  "Horace and I have
+been practicing ever since we came out.  We can do pretty well.
+But you ought to see Cross-eyed Pete!  He's the best of all the
+boys.  He's so good, he can drop a noose over a rattlesnake, and
+that's going some."
+
+Before the lads could get the lassoes, however, Mrs. Wilder called
+them to get ready for dinner.
+
+As the two visitors took their seats at the table a Chinaman, clad
+in white, glided noiselessly into the room and took his place
+behind Mr. Wilder's chair, ready to serve.
+
+"Hop Joy, this is Mr. Larry and this is Mr. Tom," said Mrs. Wilder.
+"Whatever they ask you to do, you must do it."
+
+The celestial, who was cook, washman and general factotum on the
+Half-Moon Ranch, bowed gravely to each of the boys.
+
+"That sounds very fine," laughed Mr. Wilder, "but you must be
+careful what you ask Hop Joy to do.  If you disturb him when he's
+cooking he's apt to throw a pail of water at you."
+
+"Hop's all right, father," declared Horace loyally.  "He only
+throws water when the boys try to steal his doughnuts.  Um--m, but
+Hop can make doughnuts!  You two just wait till you're riding all
+day and then see if they don't taste good."
+
+"So that explains the reason you keep on the right side of Hop Joy,
+eh?" answered Mr. Wilder, smiling.  "I've often wondered why you
+were so willing to help him when the boys are home."
+
+After the laughter this sally evoked had subsided Mrs. Wilder asked
+the boys about their journey.
+
+In amazement the Wilders listened as the experiences were related,
+and when Larry finished the account of his mix-up with the
+cow-punchers Bill exclaimed:
+
+"And here Horace and I have been making fun of you for tenderfeet.
+The joke seems to be on us."
+
+"That's what it is," asserted their father.  "There are not many
+men, let alone lads, who can say they have faced Gus Megget and got
+the best of him."
+
+It was the chums' turn to be surprised as they heard this statement.
+
+"Then you know him?" queried Tom.
+
+"I know of him," corrected the ranchman, and the boys noted that
+the kindly expression of his face disappeared as he spoke.  "Gus
+Megget is a very bad man.  He hasn't done an honest day's work for
+five years.  People say he is a train robber, and I've always
+believed he was a cattle thief, too.  From what you tell me, that's
+Shorty Jenks' opinion.  If the truth were known, I think Megget
+would prove to be the head of a gang of cattle thieves."
+
+And how true were Mr. Wilder's suspicions, they were all destined
+to learn.
+
+The recital of their adventuresome journey recalled to the boys
+that they had entirely forgotten to tell about Hans' coming.
+
+Each of the four apparently thought of the timid German boy at the
+same time and looked at one another uneasily.
+
+And their anxiety was not lessened when Mrs. Wilder asked:
+
+"What became of Hans?  Did you call him?  Did his brother meet him?"
+
+"No, he didn't," said Larry.  Then, determined to get the matter
+settled at once, he continued: "Mr. Wilder, I'm afraid I have
+imposed on your kindness, but I asked Bill and Horace to let the
+German boy come to your ranch until we could decide what he should
+do.  He's so--so scared, I did not like to leave him alone in
+Tolopah."
+
+"I asked to have him come, too," declared Tom, as though unwilling
+his brother should bear all the blame, if blame there was to be.
+
+"That was right, quite right," said Mr. Wilder, after a quick
+glance at his wife.  "Tolopah wouldn't agree with him very well.
+We've plenty of room and perhaps he will get over his fear.  I can
+use another hand very well, if he wants work."
+
+It was a great relief to all the boys to have the matter settled so
+pleasantly, and they resumed their laughter and chatter.
+
+When dinner was finished they all went out onto the piazza, where
+Tom and Larry were initiated into the mysteries of throwing a
+lasso.  Then the visitors were taken around and shown many sights
+new to them.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+IN THE SADDLE
+
+"How far away are those mountains?" asked Tom, gazing in their
+direction as they walked to the corral the next day.
+
+"About forty miles," replied Bill.  "They are called the 'Lost
+Lode' hills, because there is said to be a rich silver mine in them
+somewhere that the Spaniards worked hundreds of years ago.  Just
+where it is, though, no one has ever been able to discover."
+
+"Wouldn't it be great if we could find it?" exclaimed Larry
+eagerly.  "Do you suppose your father would let us go and try?
+Have you ever been over to the hills?"
+
+"Lots of times on hunting trips.  But we never explored them very
+much.  The trouble is no one knows whether the mine is on this side
+or the other."
+
+"But haven't they searched for it?" queried Tom, to whose mind a
+silver mine suggested unlimited wealth.
+
+"Lots of men have tried, but no one who has gone to find it has
+ever been seen again," returned Bill.  "They say the mine is
+haunted by the ghosts of the old Spaniards who discovered it and
+that they kill any one who goes near it."
+
+At the suggestion of phantom Spaniards guarding the mine and
+despatching those who found it the brothers laughed.
+
+"You surely don't believe in ghosts?" inquired Tom, a tone of scorn
+in his voice.  "Who started the story about the ghosts, anyhow?"
+
+"I don't know," responded the elder of the Wilder boys, rather
+disappointed that the legend did not make more of an impression on
+his friends.  "We heard it when we came here.  The cowboys all
+believe it, and nothing would make them pass a night in those hills
+if they could help it."
+
+But ghosts were something in which the two brothers had been taught
+not to believe, and Tom exclaimed:
+
+"Huh!  I'll bet some one has found the mine and started these
+stories to keep other people from going there.  Maybe there are
+three or four mines," he added as his lively imagination began to
+work.
+
+"It's all right for you to laugh; you haven't been in the hills,"
+snapped Horace.  "If you'd heard Cross-eyed Pete tell about the
+night he was camping there and was scared away by hearing men
+shooting you might think differently."
+
+"Just the same, I'd be willing to go and hunt for it," persisted
+Tom.
+
+"And so would I," chimed in his brother.  "I say," he continued,
+"why can't we go on a hunting trip?  We needn't say anything about
+trying to find the mine.  Then, if we didn't, no one could laugh at
+us and say we got scared."
+
+The refusal of the boys from Ohio to believe in the haunted mine
+had at first nettled Bill and Horace, but they had always been keen
+to hear or see phantoms, and at Larry's proposal of the hunting
+trip they became enthusiastic.
+
+"It will be great sport, if father will let us," assented Horace.
+"Come on, we'll ask him."
+
+And abandoning their intention of roping ponies, they turned back
+to the house in search of Mr. Wilder.
+
+Finding him on the piazza, they lost no time in laying their plan
+for a hunting trip before him.
+
+As he beheld the eager faces and noted the lithe, supple bodies of
+the boys, in whose eyes shone the light of fearlessness, the
+ranchman replied:
+
+"I have no objection, if you don't go beyond the foothills.  Bill,
+you remember the trails I showed you last spring, don't you?"
+
+"Yes, sir."
+
+"All right, keep to them.  You boys certainly ought to be able to
+take care of yourselves.  Go and tell Hop Joy to put up some grub
+for you.  You had better camp on the plains to-night, so you won't
+be able to shoot your food."
+
+Delighted at the thought of going on a hunting trip, the boys
+hurried away to the Chinaman.
+
+"Golly!  You boyee go shootee?" exclaimed the celestial when he had
+received the orders to pack their food.  "No flaid ghostee?"
+
+"Of course not," replied Horace.  "There's no such thing as ghosts,
+Hop Joy."
+
+"Mebbe so, mebbe not; no be too sure," grunted the Chinaman.
+"Plete, him say they be."
+
+But the boys did not linger to argue the matter, and only waiting
+to see that Hop Joy put in a quantity of doughnuts, went to get
+their rifles and shells ready.
+
+To their surprise, when they returned to the piazza, they found the
+ranchman busily overhauling his guns.
+
+"I reckon I'll go with you," he explained.  "I haven't been hunting
+for some time, and as everything is quiet I can get away for three
+or four days as well as not."
+
+"Oh, good! Hooray!" exclaimed the boys.
+
+And Horace added: "Now we won't have to worry about getting lost."
+
+Not long did it take the lads to clean their rifles and fill their
+cartridge belt with shells.
+
+"Have you two got any knives?" inquired Mr. Wilder, looking at Tom
+and Larry.
+
+"Sure," replied Larry, and he told of the old gold miner's presents
+and his advice about always carrying the pieces of thong with them.
+
+"Silas is no fool," smiled the ranchman.  "If you remember all he
+told you, you won't get into trouble.  Still, I think it would be
+just as well for you to let me put your money in my safe.  Then you
+surely can't lose it."
+
+"That's what father told us to do," said Larry as he and Tom
+removed their buckskin money bags and gave them to the ranchman.
+"We forgot it, though."
+
+"Speaking about forgetting, what about the German boy?" asked Mrs.
+Wilder, who had come to learn the cause of the preparations.
+
+At the mention of Hans the four lads looked at one another in
+dismay.  But the ranchman came to the rescue, saying:
+
+"From all Larry and Tom say, I don't reckon he'll be keen on
+hunting.  You can let him help Ned."
+
+"Ned's our handy man," explained Horace in a whisper.  "He drives
+the grub wagon to Tolopah, and to the boys in their camps."
+
+"Well, here comes the wagon now," observed Mrs. Wilder as she
+caught sight of the big white-covered wagon, called a prairie
+schooner in the old days, bobbing over the plains about a mile away.
+
+"Oh, don't let's wait," protested Horace.  "We can saddle up and go
+and meet them.  I'll make my pony dance and perhaps that will scare
+Hans so he won't care to go."
+
+"All right," laughed Mr.  Wilder.  "Bring up the ponies.  Get
+Buster for me."
+
+Running to the wagon shed, the boys gathered the saddles, bridles,
+some oats and pans and started for the corral.
+
+Opening the big gate, they entered, closed it and then threw their
+saddles on the ground.
+
+"Always close the gate before you start to get your ponies,"
+instructed Bill.   "Sometimes they cut up, and if they get out onto
+the prairie it's the old Harry of a job to catch them again.
+
+"Now put your oats in your pans.  Watch Horace and me and you'll
+see what to do."
+
+When they had prepared the oat bait, the two Wilder boys began to
+beat on the pans, calling Buster and the other ponies by name.
+
+The animals, which were at the farther end of the corral browsing,
+lifted their heads and then came trotting toward them, halting
+about ten feet away.
+
+"Swish your pans so they can hear the oats," whispered Bill.
+
+Slowly the ponies approached, as though deciding whether they
+preferred their oats or their liberty.
+
+"Come, Blackhawk!  Come, Buster!" called Horace.
+
+The boys set the pans on the ground.  For a moment the ponies eyed
+them and then trotted up, the eight crowding one another to get at
+the four measures.
+
+"Now's the time," breathed Bill.
+
+In a trice the bits were thrust into the ponies' mouths and the
+leather over their ears.
+
+Lightning plunged back, but Larry grabbed the reins just in time
+and held him.
+
+"Push the pan to him," directed Horace, and, as he smelled the
+oats, the pony grew still and was soon munching contentedly.
+
+After catching his own mount, Bill had bridled Buster, and as soon
+as the oats were devoured, all five were saddled with little
+trouble and the boys were quickly on the backs of four of them,
+Bill leading the pony for his father.
+
+It required but a few minutes to make fast the saddle bags Hop Joy
+had filled with food, tin plates, cups, knives and forks, coffee
+pot, sugar and coffee and to tie on their sleeping blankets.
+
+Then they buckled on their cartridge belts, slung their rifles
+across their shoulders and again mounted.
+
+By the time they were ready, however, the grub wagon was coming
+into the yard.
+
+"Where's Hans?" gasped Larry, the first one to discover that there
+was only one occupant.
+
+With a broad grin suffusing his face, the driver cried:
+
+"Whoa!"
+
+As the horses stopped Mr. Wilder, fearing that the boy had been
+made the butt of some mad prank, said severely:
+
+"If anything happened to that lad, I shall hold you responsible,
+Ned.  Where is he?"
+
+"Gone with his brother Chris."
+
+"His brother!" cried Tom.  "Did his brother come back?"
+
+"He did--yesterday.  Hans found him, and such a meeting nobody ever
+see before.  The brother is going to another town and Hans with
+him.  They started to-day."
+
+The knowledge that Hans had found his brother was a great relief to
+Tom and Larry, and they lost no time in saying so.
+
+"If you feel that way, then it surely is all right," declared the
+ranchman.  "We're going into the hills for a few days hunting, Ned.
+If you need me, you'll find me somewhere on the 'Lost Lode' trail."
+
+"With them tenderfeet?" inquired the handy man, eyeing Tom and
+Larry doubtfully.
+
+"Don't take them for easy, Ned.  They put the laugh on Gus Megget,
+so I reckon they can take care of themselves in the hills and on
+the Half-Moon, too," he added with an emphasis which was to act as
+a warning to be passed along to the cowboys.
+
+"So it's them two I heard 'em talkin' about in Tolopah?  Howdy,
+gents!  I sure takes off my bonnet to you," and Ned swept his
+sombrero good naturedly from his head.  "Say, you two are the only
+topic of conversation in Tolopah about now.  Couple of passengers
+told what you all done, and now everybody's telling everybody else.
+So it was you kids put the kibosh on Gus Megget.  Phew!  I hope I
+don't get you riled up."  And clucking to his horses, Ned drove on
+to the wagon shed.
+
+"When you go into Tolopah, you'll own the town," smiled Mr. Wilder,
+looking at the brothers.  "You see, you are famous already."
+
+But Larry and Tom only laughed, while the latter exclaimed:
+
+"I'd rather find the Lost Lode than fight Megget."
+
+"So my boys have told you about the mine and the ghosts, eh?"  And
+shaking his bridle, the ranchman waved good-by to his wife and
+cantered away, followed by the others.
+
+For a few minutes they rode without talking, the Wilder boys a
+trifle envious of the reputation their friends had achieved and the
+chums trying to get accustomed to riding with a rifle bumping their
+backs.
+
+They soon got the swing of it, however, and, as the ponies settled
+into an easy, steady lope, Tom exclaimed:
+
+"Larry, we're in the saddle and on the plains at last."
+
+"Like it, what?" queried Horace.
+
+"It's what we've been dreaming of for months," declared Larry.
+"Only, I say, Mr. Wilder, let's drop Megget.  All we did was to get
+away from him."
+
+"As you like," smiled the ranchman, "but that's something."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+A RACE IN THE MOONLIGHT
+
+Now through waving grass up to their knees, now through stretches
+of sage brush the hunters rode.  Three or four times they caught
+sight of cattle in the distance, which Horace eagerly declared
+belonged to the Half-Moon, explaining that the biggest herds were
+in Long Creek bottoms, about fifty miles southwest, where the
+cattle could find water as well as good grazing ground.
+
+"Fifty miles, gracious!  Do you own so much land?" asked Larry of
+Mr. Wilder.
+
+"No.  We have a thousand acres, more or less.  But my neighbors and
+I have leased the rights to graze in Lone Creek."
+
+"Neighbors?" repeated the elder of the brothers in surprise.  "Why
+I can't see any house but yours.  In fact, I haven't seen any since
+we left Tolopah."
+
+"And there isn't any within thirty miles.  There are two on the
+south and more north, even farther away.  But we call them
+neighbors just the same.  Anybody within a day's ride is a
+neighbor," explained the ranchman.  And as he noted the look of
+amusement that appeared on the faces of the brothers, he added:
+"You won't think so much of distances after you've been out here a
+while."
+
+At the end of two hours, as they mounted the crest of a great roll
+in the prairies, the dried-up course of a stream was disclosed.
+
+"If you follow that, it will lead you to Lone Creek," explained
+Horace.  "Down about ten miles there's a place called the Witches'
+Pool, where we go fishing.  It's so deep it never dries.  We'll go
+there some day."
+
+"More ghosts?" inquired Larry as he repeated the name of the pool.
+
+"No, no ghosts," laughed Mr.  Wilder, "just the _ignis fatuus_, or
+will-o'-the-wisps.  All cowboys are very superstitious, you must
+remember.  The land round the pool is swampy and at night you can
+sometimes see the lights dancing about.  I suppose some one saw
+them, and, finding no person there, immediately decided the pool
+was a gathering place for witches."
+
+"Pete says it's the bodies of the men who have died of thirst on
+the plains searching for water," declared Horace in an awed tone.
+
+"That's an ingenious explanation, but it is not the truth, my boy.
+The lights are caused by certain gases that come from the marshy
+ground and glow when the atmosphere is in a certain condition.
+Over in Scotland, on the peat bogs, they call them 'friars'
+lanterns.'"
+
+"My, but I'd like to see one," sighed Tom.
+
+"Then I'm afraid you'll be obliged to camp by the pool.  You might
+go there a hundred nights and never see a sign of one," returned
+the ranchman.  And then, as the shadows cast by the mountains were
+reaching farther and farther out onto the prairie, he thought it
+best to turn the minds of the boys into other channels.
+
+"Shall we camp in the open or would you rather push on to the
+foothills?" he asked.  "It'll be dark by the time we get there."
+
+"I vote to keep going," answered Larry.
+
+"How far is it?" inquired Tom, who was beginning to feel the
+effects of the many miles in the saddle.
+
+"About fifteen, which means two hours at least, because the darker
+it gets the slower we'll be obliged to go till you two get more
+used to riding the plains," responded Bill.
+
+"If we keep on, and I feel stiff in the morning, we'll be there and
+I shall not be compelled to cover the fifteen miles," mused the
+younger of the brothers as much to himself as to the others.  "I'm
+for pushing on, too."
+
+Laughing at their guest's discomfort, the others readily
+acquiesced, and they crossed the stream bottom.
+
+Save the noise made by themselves, the twitter of birds, and the
+occasional cry of some prairie dog routed out by their approach,
+the silence of the plains was intense.  At first Tom and Larry did
+not notice it, but as they rode mile after mile they began to feel
+its depression.
+
+"It often drives men crazy," asserted the ranchman when Larry
+mentioned his feeling.  "That's why we never send a man out alone
+to herd.  Having some one to talk to it a big relief, I can tell
+you, after you've been a week or so on the prairies with nothing
+but a bunch of stolid cattle.  The very monotony of their grazing
+and chewing their cuds gets on your nerves."
+
+As darkness came on, however, the awful silence was broken.  From
+all sides came the barking of coyotes, as though they were
+signaling one another their whereabouts.
+
+"That howling would scare me a great deal quicker than any ghosts
+or witches," observed Tom.  "My, but it's mournful! Do they keep
+that up all night?"
+
+"Indeed they do," replied Horace, delighted to think one thing had
+been discovered which the two visitors feared, "only it gets worse
+the darker it grows.  Besides, when they are hungry, they'll follow
+you and attack you."
+
+"That wouldn't be so bad so long as you had a gun with you,"
+interposed Larry.  "I'd like to get a shot at one."
+
+"Then there's your chance, over on the left," exclaimed Mr. Wilder.
+
+Unslinging his rifle, the elder of the Alden boys looked eagerly in
+the direction indicated.  But it was so dark he could see nothing
+and he said so.
+
+"Can't you see those two little balls of fire right opposite you?
+If you can't, say so.  I'll stop him myself," returned the ranchman.
+
+Yet even as he spoke the coyote turned and fled.
+
+"It's just as well," added Mr.  Wilder after he had announced the
+fact.  "You'll have a chance to shoot at something better than a
+measely prairie wolf to-morrow, I hope."
+
+"Or perhaps to-night," chimed in Horace.  "Maybe a ghost'll attack
+our camp."
+
+"That will do, youngster.  If you talk any more about ghosts, I'll
+make you ride back to the ranch in the dark.  If you keep on,
+you'll work yourself up so you'll think every sound you hear is a
+Spaniard from the mine, and there will be no sleep for any of us."
+
+This command had the desired effect, and Horace gave up the attempt
+of trying to frighten his friends.
+
+For a time the darkness grew more and more intense till it was all
+the riders could do to make out the forms of one another.  But at
+last the clouds passed over, revealing the stars, and soon the moon
+rose, full and brilliant, changing the swaying grass into a seeming
+sea of silver with its light.
+
+In wonder the brothers gazed at the transformation and Larry said:
+
+"I wish the plains could be like this always.  They don't seem half
+so terrible."
+
+But the boys soon had other things to think about.  They were so
+close to the mountains that they could see the great cliffs
+glistening in the moonlight above the trees from which they rose,
+sheer.
+
+"I don't wonder they say these mountains are haunted," exclaimed
+Tom.  "I can almost believe I see men moving along the top of that
+middle cliff."
+
+"Better curb your imagination then," chided Mr. Wilder.  "It's a
+good thing we've got to pitch camp pretty soon or you'd all get the
+nerves."
+
+At Tom's words the other boys had sought the middle cliff with
+their eyes and suddenly Bill exclaimed:
+
+"Tom's right, father!  There are men moving along the top of the
+precipice!"
+
+Mr. Wilder had been intent on searching the base of the mountains
+for a place to camp for the night.  But at his elder son's
+statement he looked up quickly, drawing rein that he might be sure
+the motion of his horse played no trick on his eyes.
+
+Breathlessly the others waited his decision.
+
+The cliff at which they all were staring so intently was about half
+way up the mountain and above it rose another wall of rock.  And it
+was against the base of this latter that the objects which
+attracted Tom's attention were silhouetted.
+
+"By jove! They are men," exclaimed Mr. Wilder excitedly.  "I never
+knew there was a trail along the base of that cliff before."
+
+The boys were tremendously stirred up as they heard this
+confirmation.
+
+"Perhaps they are the men going to guard the Lost Lode for the
+night," Horace whispered.  "They wouldn't need a trail to walk on,
+father."
+
+"Steady, boy, steady," returned the ranchman.  "Those men are flesh
+and blood, don't worry about that.  Who they are I don't know.
+Probably some hunters like ourselves."
+
+"That couldn't be the way to the mine, could it?" hazarded Larry,
+whose eagerness to discover a silver mine had received new impetus.
+"Can't we go there to-morrow and find out?"
+
+"We'll see when to-morrow comes," declared Mr. Wilder.  "But
+there's no occasion to get excited.  The mountains are full of men
+hunting and prospecting all the time.  Come on, we'll camp under
+that big tree up there to the right.  Whoever gets there first will
+be boss of the camp."
+
+The challenge for a race, with the honor of being in command of the
+hunt as the prize, served to take the boys' thoughts from the
+mysterious men on the trail as nothing else could, and quickly they
+leaped their ponies forward.
+
+The spot selected by the ranchman for their night's bivouac was
+about a quarter of a mile away and in the opposite direction from
+the cliffs.
+
+Yelling like young Indians, the boys urged their jaded ponies to
+greater efforts.
+
+Tom and Horace, being lighter than the others, had not tried their
+mounts so much, and rapidly they drew ahead.
+
+"We simply must beat them," called Bill to Larry.  "If they get in
+first, they'll make us haul all the water and wash dishes--at least
+Horace will, if he wins."
+
+Leaning over their ponies' necks and rising in the saddles to
+lighten their weight as much as possible, the two elder boys set
+out to overtake their brothers.
+
+With spur and lariat end they belabored their mounts and gamely the
+horses responded.
+
+Leap by leap they cut down the lead, were soon abreast of the
+others and then forged ahead, shouting in triumph as they opened
+clear ground between them.
+
+Only about a hundred yards were the leaders from the tree.
+
+Feeling his pony tiring under him, despite his urging, Horace
+gasped at Tom:
+
+"Hit Blackhawk with the end of your lasso and then hang on for dear
+life!"
+
+Instantly Tom obeyed.
+
+As the big black felt the blow he uttered a snort of rage, jerked
+forward his head and seemed to fly over the ground.
+
+Like a flash he caught Bill and Larry.  Frantically they strove to
+keep up with him, but in a few bounds he had passed them.
+
+"Tom wins!" yelled Horace with glee.
+
+But his delight at the success of his ruse was shortlived.
+
+Blackhawk was not accustomed to being beaten and, though ordinarily
+he had a good temper, when he was angry he could be very mean.
+Accordingly, as though reasoning to himself that he had done his
+share in carrying his rider so many miles, when he felt the sharp
+cut of the lariat he resented it.  And his resentment took the form
+of a vicious lunge forward of his head, which enabled him to get
+the bits in his teeth, with which advantage no one could control
+him.
+
+Despite his greater weight, the ranchman had been close up with the
+boys and had noted Blackhawk's action.
+
+Realizing that it would be hopeless to try to overtake the runaway,
+and fearing that some injury might befall Tom, Mr. Wilder shouted:
+
+"Rope the black, Bill! He's got the bit!"
+
+Loosening his lariat as quickly as possible, the elder of the
+Wilder boys began to whirl it round his head.
+
+"Throw it! throw it!" roared the ranchman, "Can't you see you're
+losing ground every second?"
+
+Never before had Bill been called on for so important a cast of his
+lasso, and for a moment his hand trembled.
+
+"Steady! Let her go now!" counseled his father.
+
+At the word Bill put forth all his strength and the rope shot from
+his hand, the noose opening perfectly as it sped through the air.
+
+Fascinated, the others watched as it hung a moment in the air and
+dropped directly over Blackhawk's head.
+
+"Pretty cast!" praised the ranchman.  "Now ride along.  Don't pull
+up too soon."
+
+But his words were too late.
+
+The pony which his elder son rode was perfectly trained to rope
+steers.  As it caught the sharp hiss of the lariat the animal had
+slackened its stride, and the instant it felt the rope tighten had
+stiffened its legs and braced, almost squatting back on its
+haunches.
+
+And the next moment Blackhawk was jerked from his feet, measuring
+his length on the ground, while Tom went sailing through the air,
+alighting about twenty feet away.
+
+"Hold as you are!" ordered Mr. Wilder of Bill and then dashed for
+the kicking black, with Larry and Horace at his heels.
+
+"Tom! Tom! are you hurt?" called his brother.
+
+For a second there was no reply, and then their anxiety was
+relieved by seeing Tom stand up.
+
+"Any bones broken?" asked Mr. Wilder, who had reached the black and
+was dismounting.
+
+"No.  I'm all right, thanks to the prairie grass," replied the
+younger of the brothers.  "Is Blackhawk hurt?"
+
+"I don't think so.  Ease up, Bill.  I've got him by the bridle."
+
+Quickly the elder of the Wilder boys rode forward, and as the
+prostrate pony felt the rope loosen he bounded to his feet.
+
+With skilled eye the ranchman looked him over and there was a world
+of relief in his voice as he said:
+
+"We got out of that scrape mighty luckily.  There isn't a scratch
+on Blackhawk, and if Tom's----"
+
+"There's no scratch on me either," returned the boy.  "But what
+about the race, do I win or not?"
+
+"Considering you flew from Blackhawk's back almost to the tree, I
+reckon you do," declared Mr. Wilder.
+
+And looking up, Tom noticed that he was, indeed, standing under the
+branches of the tree that marked the goal.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+HORACE IN DANGER
+
+As the others reached the tree they dismounted, unbuckled the
+saddle bags and removed the saddles.
+
+"Well, commander, do you wish me to select a place to hobble the
+ponies?" asked Mr. Wilder, addressing Tom.
+
+"Yes, sir.  I never was in charge of a camp before, so you must
+tell me what to do."
+
+"Oh, make me your lieutenant and I'll tell you," pleaded Horace.
+"I know all about it."
+
+"You can give orders all right," grunted Bill, "there's no doubt
+about that.  I see myself lugging wood."
+
+All laughed heartily at this reference to Horace's fondness for
+commanding, and the younger of the comrades replied;
+
+"All right, Horace, you may be my lieutenant.  Only you must tell
+me what there is to be done, and I will give the orders."
+
+Although by this arrangement the youngest of the party would be
+deprived of most of his powers, he readily agreed, saying:
+
+"Wood must be collected for the fire, the food and dishes must be
+unpacked, supper cooked and water located."
+
+"Better put me on the job of getting water, because I shall picket
+the horses where they can get a drink," declared the ranchman.
+
+"Then, Larry, you and Bill build the fire and get supper ready.
+Horace, I'll put you in charge and you must arrange the place for
+us to sleep.  I can see some pine trees yonder.  Break off some
+limbs and spread them on the ground.  Then put the blankets over
+them.  I'm going with Mr. Wilder to bring the water and to learn
+how to hobble the horses."
+
+"You're a fine commander to be lieutenant for--not," declared
+Horace.  "Gave me the meanest job of all."  Yet he lost no time in
+obeying.
+
+Quickly each one set about the work assigned to him, for the sight
+of the doughnuts and other good things to eat, after their long
+ride, made them hungry.
+
+"Get the coffee pot and then sling the reins of Lightning and
+Buster on your arm and come with me, Tom," said Mr. Wilder.  "I'll
+take Blackhawk, because he's still cranky, and the other two."
+
+The ranchman, however, let the ponies lead him more than he led
+them, for he knew their instinct would take them to the nearest
+water.
+
+Yet there was no need of their guidance, for in a few minutes the
+ears of the hunters caught the sound of running water.
+
+"That's a brook," declared Mr. Wilder, and quickly he led the way
+to a spot where they found a fair-sized pool formed by a stream
+coming from the hills.
+
+The coffee pot was a monster, holding all of two gallons, and this
+the ranchman directed Tom to fill before allowing the ponies to
+satisfy their thirst.
+
+As the animals were drinking Mr. Wilder took the lariats he had
+brought and tied an end around the left ankle of each pony, making
+another noose round the hind ankle on the same side at such a
+distance that there was about three feet of the rope between the
+hoofs.
+
+"Such a short line makes it impossible for them to run or even walk
+very well," he explained, "so they will just stay here and browse,
+
+"Now we'll remove the bridles.  Always remember to hobble your pony
+before unbridling."
+
+"But the rope ends?" asked Tom.
+
+"In a place like this, where there are no rocks between which they
+can get bound, you can let them drag.  When it is rocky, you can
+wind the rope loosely round their necks."
+
+Before the task was finished they heard Horace calling.
+
+"Hey, you!  Hurry with that coffee pot!" he shouted.  "We want to
+start it boiling."
+
+"Then come and get it," replied his father.
+
+But Tom had already picked it up and was carrying it toward the
+camp fire, which was blazing cheerily beneath the big tree.  Taking
+the bridles, Mr. Wilder soon followed.
+
+Larry had spread a blanket on the ground for a tablecloth and
+arranged the plates, knives and forks.  In the middle he had made a
+pile of doughnuts and around them set three pies.
+
+To Bill had fallen the task of cooking, and he was busy frying eggs
+and bacon in a long-handled pan, which he rested on a bed of coals.
+
+At the sight of Tom and the coffee pot, he called:
+
+"Tell Horace to pour some water into the drinking cups, put the
+coffee in the pot and set it in the fire.  Supper'll be ready
+before the coffee unless you hurry."
+
+But Tom was not a boy to shirk work, and directing his brother to
+bring the cups, he sent his aide for the coffee while he prepared a
+good hot bed of coals.
+
+The odor from the sputtering bacon whetted their appetites, and all
+but Bill devoted their energies to hurrying the coffee and to such
+good purpose that they disproved the old saying, "A watched pot
+never boils."
+
+At last all was ready, and the hunters squatted tailor fashion on
+the ground, each before his plate of eggs and bacon and a steaming
+cup of coffee.
+
+"My, but this tastes better than anything I ever ate before,"
+declared Larry.
+
+"Because the ride has given you a keen appetite," said the ranchman
+with a smile.
+
+The others were too busy eating to offer any comment, and the meal
+progressed in silence till almost the last bit of food had
+disappeared.
+
+"Hop Joy certainly can cook," complimented Tom as he reached for
+another doughnut from the fast vanishing pile.
+
+"That's what I told you," returned Horace.  "From the way they are
+going, it's a good thing I went back and put in an extra supply
+when Hop wasn't looking."
+
+"He'll fix you when we get back!" cried Bill.  "Tom, who does the
+dishes?  For your benefit and before my young brother gets a chance
+to speak, I'll tell you that the cook never washes the dishes."
+
+"Oh, what a whopper!" cried Horace.  "Tom, the cook always washes
+them.  That's all he does, wash dishes and cook."
+
+"Well, we'll all help," declared the youthful commander of the camp.
+
+This arrangement met with laughing approval, and because of the
+many hands, the task was soon finished.
+
+"And now, as we must be up with the dawn if we are going to get a
+shot at any deer, I suggest that we turn in," remarked Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Where did you put the pine boughs, Horace?  I don't see them."
+
+"I left them over by the tree," replied the lieutenant, grinning.
+"I didn't know how many each of you would want, so I thought the
+best way was to let you pick out all you pleased."
+
+"Lazy bones!  Lazy bones!" shouted the other boys, and Tom cried:
+
+"That trick won't work this time.  Now, hurry and tote the boughs
+over."
+
+Making a face at his superior, Horace Jumped tip and soon came
+back, dragging a monster pile of fragrant pine branches, which he
+quickly separated into five heaps.
+
+"Does the honored general wish me to wrap and tuck each one in his
+bed or will they do that themselves?" he asked, bowing in mock
+deference.
+
+"The honored general sentences you to do the dishes in the morning
+for that," returned Tom with assumed dignity, and in rare good
+humor they quickly placed their saddles as pillows and unrolled
+their blankets.
+
+Fixing the fire so that it could not spread and cause any harm, Mr.
+Wilder bade the boys turn in, and soon they were sound asleep.
+
+Exhausted from the excitement of their arrival and the long ride,
+Tom and Larry were so deep in slumber that though Mr. Wilder called
+them when he himself got up, they did not wake.
+
+His own sons, however, heard his call and quickly crawled from
+their blankets.
+
+"Come on, we'll get breakfast.  Let Tom and Larry sleep," exclaimed
+their father.  "Remember, they are not so accustomed to riding as
+you two are."
+
+This caution was uttered just in time, for Horace was in the very
+act of yanking the youthful commander by the foot when his father
+spoke.
+
+Not long did it take to prepare the food, and Bill was just pouring
+the coffee when Mr. Wilder aroused his guests.
+
+"Wh--what is it?" gasped Larry, sitting up and staring about him
+dazedly.
+
+"It's breakfast, that's all," said Horace.  "Hey, Mr. Commander,
+you'll be court-martialed if you miss grub."  And he proceeded to
+drag Tom from his bed of boughs by the heels.
+
+Chagrined to think they had not helped with the meal, Tom and Larry
+quickly arose and ran to the brook to wash.
+
+As they stood at the pool they forgot their ablutions in the beauty
+of the scene before them.
+
+The grass of the prairie was heavy with dew and in the rose glow of
+the sky the particles of moisture sparkled and glistened like
+countless crystals.
+
+"Seems like fairyland," whispered Tom, as though afraid if he spoke
+out loud the scene would vanish.
+
+A call from Horace, however, roused them to action, and in a few
+minutes they were, eating heartily.
+
+"What sort of a brook is that?" asked Larry.  "I didn't see any
+outlet, yet water keeps running into the pool all the time."
+
+"There must be some underground stream into which it empties,"
+replied the ranchman.  "There are two such subterranean rivers in
+these hills, and, I suppose this pool connects with one of them."
+
+Discussion of such phenomena was prevented by his continuing:
+
+"Hurry now and pack up.  I'll bring up the ponies while you are
+getting ready."
+
+Eager to begin the ascent of the hills, the boys worked rapidly,
+and by the time Mr. Wilder appeared with the horses everything was
+in the saddle bags, though Horace had dispensed with the formality
+of wiping the dishes.
+
+It was the task of but a few minutes to make fast the saddle bags
+and blankets, and just as the sun flooded the plains with its
+golden light the hunters swung into their saddles.
+
+Riding southward, Mr. Wilder followed the base of the hills for a
+good mile till he came to a well-worn trail.
+
+"We'll follow this run for a while," said he.  "Bill, you and Larry
+can ride at the rear.  I'll keep Horace and Tom with me, so they
+won't be tempted to spoil our sport by shooting at the first deer
+they see, no matter how far out of range it is.  For the benefit of
+you two," he added, addressing the brothers, "I will say that when
+you are riding a trail, and especially a mountain trail, always let
+your pony have plenty of rein.  It's easier for him.  He won't be
+so likely to stumble and fall, and a pony can generally keep a
+trail better than a man."
+
+These instructions delivered, Mr. Wilder turned his pony into the
+run and the others followed in Indian file, the two elder boys
+bringing up the procession.
+
+For an hour they rode, now with their ponies scrambling over rocks,
+now up such steep ascents that the comrades feared the animals
+would fall over onto them.
+
+But by leaning far forward at such times, they had no mishaps and
+at last rode out onto a plateau from which they looked down into a
+vale some two hundred yards below.
+
+A mist hovered over the basin, rendering it impossible for them to
+see the bottom.
+
+The boys were disappointed and said so.
+
+"On the contrary, it is lucky," declared Mr. Wilder.  "There is a
+brook down there and it is a favorite drinking ground for deer.
+Under the cover of the mist we shall be able to go down, and it
+will act as a blanket to keep our scent from the sensitive-nosed
+beauties."
+
+"Going to ride down?" queried Tom, looking about for some trail.
+
+"No, we'll leave the ponies here.  Lively now and hobble them and
+don't talk."
+
+The plateau was some hundred yards long by half as many wide, and
+quickly the hunters rode their horses to where the mountain again
+rose, turning the horses loose in some delicious grass.
+
+"Be very careful, very careful in descending," cautioned the
+ranchman.  "The ground is wet and the rocks are slippery, and if
+you once start to fall, there's no knowing where you will land."
+
+All the boys had hunted enough to know that the safest way to carry
+a loaded gun is with the muzzle pointed to the ground, the butt
+resting against the back of the right shoulder, with the arm
+akimbo, thus forming a rest for the barrel.
+
+And in this fashion they set out.
+
+After a few minutes' search Mr. Wilder exclaimed:
+
+"Here's the run the deer use.  Steady now.  Mind your feet.  Don't
+make a sound."
+
+With almost no noise, the party descended.  Now and then one of the
+lads slipped, but there was always a rock or a sapling at hand
+which they could grasp to steady themselves and no one fell.
+
+As he reached the edge of the mist, Mr. Wilder held up his hand as
+a signal to halt.
+
+Turning his head, he listened intently for some sound that might
+give him an inkling as to the whereabouts of the deer.
+
+In his eagerness to locate them, Horace moved away from the trail
+to the left and then stopped.
+
+Barely had he halted when a loud sneeze rang out from directly in
+front of him.
+
+So sudden and so near was it that Horace cried out in fright.
+
+At the same moment the antlers of a big buck appeared from the mist
+and then vanished as quickly, only to reappear a moment later,
+followed by its head and shoulders.
+
+Whether the buck or the hunters were more surprised it would be
+hard to say.  For several seconds they stared at one another.
+
+Larry, Tom and Horace were trembling like leaves, victims of "buck
+fever," a species of stage fright which makes it impossible for any
+one to hold a gun steady, and Bill was in such a position behind
+the others that he could not aim his rifle unless he put it between
+the heads of the others.
+
+The ranchman alone was where he could bring down the buck, and he
+hesitated, unwilling to risk a chance to get several other deer by
+dropping the one in front of him.
+
+It was the buck himself that put an end to the remarkable
+situation.  Of a sudden, with a snort of rage, he lowered his sharp
+pronged antlers and charged at Horace.
+
+With a yell of terror the boy turned to flee and stumbled.
+
+In an instant the scene had changed from one of comedy to one of
+possible tragedy should the infuriated beast reach his victim.
+
+But Mr. Wilder was equal to the occasion.  Throwing his rifle to
+his shoulder, he fired.
+
+True was his aim and the buck threw up his head, staggered and then
+toppled over.
+
+The sound of the shot had galvanized Tom and Larry into action, and
+with a lightning movement they both stooped, seized their friend
+and pulled him to them just as the body of the buck struck the
+ground.
+
+So unnerved were they all by the narrowness of the escape that for
+several moments no one spoke.
+
+Then Mr. Wilder rallied them by exclaiming:
+
+"See! see!  The mist has lifted.  There go three more deer up the
+valley.  Come on!  Let's see who can bring one down."
+
+The chance for a shot brought even Horace out of his fright, and in
+a thrice the boys had sighted their rifles and fired.  But no deer
+dropped.
+
+"I hit one, I know I did!" declared Bill.  "Let's follow."
+
+"No, shoot again," returned his father.  "We have the advantage
+here from being above."
+
+Again the rifles cracked, and this time one of the deer gave a
+bound in the air and dropped flat.
+
+"Hooray! We've got another!" cried the lads,
+
+"Don't fire any more.  The others are out of range," declared the
+ranchman.
+
+"Please, just one more," begged Horace.
+
+But his father refused, telling him that a good hunter never shot
+when there was no hope of bringing down his game.
+
+"Never mind, we've got two," said Larry.  "I call that pretty good
+luck."
+
+And speculating as to whom the credit of hitting the second
+belonged, they all hastened to where it lay.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+THE MESSAGE FROM CROSS-EYED PETE
+
+The shells shot by the rifles belonging to the two chums
+were .44-.50, while those of the Wilder boys were .30, so that
+it would only be possible to tell whether the boys from Ohio
+had proved better marksmen than the Westerners.  Yet the boys
+were eager to settle the question.
+
+Chaffing each other good naturedly, they tramped along, and when
+they saw the size of the antlers and body of the second buck they
+forgot all rivalry.
+
+"He's a beauty!" cried Horace.  "I'm glad it wasn't he that made a
+jump for me.  His prongs stick out a yard."
+
+Though this was an exaggeration, the branches of the antlers were,
+indeed, surprisingly long.
+
+"And there are fourteen of the prongs," ejaculated Tom, who had
+been counting the sharp points.
+
+"Which makes him fifteen years old," asserted Bill.  "Just look at
+their spread; they must be all of four feet."
+
+"Easily," said his father.  "He's the biggest buck I ever saw.  Ah,
+here's the bullet-hole, right back of the shoulder.  It certainly
+was a splendid shot."  And as he bent closer to examine it, the
+others awaited his decision as to which party the trophy belonged.
+
+"Ohio wins!" he declared at last.
+
+"Then Tom probably got him.  He's a better marksman that I am,"
+asserted Larry.
+
+Though the Wilder boys were naturally disappointed, they made the
+best of it, and Bill exclaimed:
+
+"Come on, Larry.  Let's go into the woods and search.  I'm positive
+I hit a deer the first time I fired.  Can we go, father?"
+
+"Surely, only don't get lost.  It will take me some time to dress
+the two bucks.  If you are not back by the time I am finished, come
+to the plateau.  We'll wait for you there."
+
+Promising not to wander far, the elder boys entered the woods while
+the others assisted in dressing the monster buck.
+
+After skinning the animal, the ranchman cut out the most savory
+parts and placed them in the pelt.
+
+"Shall we take the antlers?" asked Horace.
+
+"They'd be fine to have mounted, but they'll be awfully in the way
+while we're hunting.  What do you think, Mr. Wilder?"  And Tom
+appealed to him as to their proper disposal.
+
+"They will be awkward to carry, that's a fact," assented the
+ranchman.  "If you want them very much, though, we can leave them
+here and then stop on our way home.  They'll be safe enough till we
+get back."
+
+Readily Tom agreed, and he and Horace were just stooping to pick up
+one end of the hide, containing the deer meat, when Horace let out
+a cry.
+
+"Oh, what's that thing up by my buck?"
+
+"It looks like a tiger," exclaimed Tom, and then added: "But you
+don't have tigers out here, do you?"
+
+"No.  That's a mountain lion, which is almost the same thing,
+though," answered Mr. Wilder.  "Now's your chance to show your
+marksmanship, Horace.  Take a good aim and see if you can't knock
+him over."
+
+No urging did his son need.  Raising his rifle to position, the lad
+squinted along the barrel carefully and then fired.
+
+Above the report of the shot rang out an ear-splitting howl, and
+the mountain Hon turned to face the direction of the sound.
+
+"Give him another, son.  You hit him, but not in a vital spot,"
+said his father.
+
+Again Horace aimed and fired, this time with better success, for
+the lion dropped in its tracks.
+
+"Good work," praised Tom heartily.  "That was a mighty long shot to
+make.  Now if Bill and Larry only get something, we'll have bagged
+a trophy."
+
+Elated at his success, Horace was starting toward his prize when
+his father called him back to help carry the pelt.
+
+"My, but he's a beauty!" declared the younger of the chums when
+they reached the carcass.  "I should hate to come across one
+suddenly."
+
+"They are not pleasant customers to meet," smiled Mr. Wilder.  "I'm
+glad this fellow didn't visit us last night.  Though why he passed
+the horses by I don't know.  Mountain lions are great ones for
+horse or cattle flesh.  While I am dressing the buck you boys had
+better climb up to the plateau and see that our ponies are all
+right.  Take some of the meat with you and then we won't be obliged
+to make so many trips."
+
+With a piece of meat in one hand and a rifle in the other, the lads
+started up the trail and, though they went bravely enough, each in
+his heart was a bit frightened.
+
+"Pete says mountain lions usually travel in pairs, so keep your
+eyes peeled," advised Horace.
+
+But though they imagined several times they heard the purr of one
+of the prowlers, they reached the plateau without adventure.
+
+The ponies were huddled together, tails to the rocks, and were
+sniffing the air in obvious uneasiness.
+
+"Steady, boys, steady," called Horace soothingly.  And setting down
+his meat, he patted each reassuringly.
+
+The presence of the boys was an evident relief to the ponies, and
+after a few minutes they began to champ grass again.
+
+"That lion must have come quite near, to scare 'em so," asserted
+the young rancher.  "Pete says ponies are almost as good as dogs
+for watching, and I believe him.  They can smell things, oh, way
+off."  And sitting down, Horace entertained his companion with
+stories of the keen scent of horses, which lost none of their color
+because of his lively imagination.  Indeed, he succeeded in getting
+them both so worked up that when Mr. Wilder's hat appeared above
+the edge of the plateau each boy seized his rifle and aimed at it.
+
+"What are you going to do, hold me up?" laughed the ranchman as he
+saw the barrels leveled at him, and then, as he noted the alarm on
+their faces, he added: "Steady!  Put your guns down carefully."
+
+Laughing nervously, the boys obeyed.
+
+"You are a fine lot, you are," he chided, "to leave me to bring up
+all the meat alone.  Why didn't you come back?"
+
+In explanation Horace told how they had found the ponies and said
+they had stayed to quiet them.
+
+"And I'll wager you've been relating some wonderful yarns for Tom's
+benefit, judging from the way you received me.  Now, boys," he
+continued seriously, "when you are in the mountains you must never
+talk about things that will excite you.  There are so many things
+that can happen.  A man always needs to be cool and collected, so
+that if emergency does arise he can think quickly and well."
+
+This bit of advice made a deep impression on the lads and they
+promised to remember it.
+
+The sun was high in the heavens and its heat was becoming terrific.
+
+"Fetch the horses and come into the woods," commanded Mr.  Wilder.
+"We'll get dinner ready and wait for Bill and Larry where it's
+cool."
+
+"Why it's a quarter of twelve," said Tom, looking at his watch.  "I
+had no idea it was so late."
+
+"Time flies when you are hunting," returned the ranchman, "a fact
+that you should remember, and with it that darkness falls quickly
+in the mountains."
+
+The ponies were nothing loath to move from the broiling plateau to
+the cooler woods and stood contentedly, now and then nibbling the
+leaves and tender twigs from the trees near them.
+
+Lighting a fire, Mr.  Wilder soon had a choice slice of venison
+broiling In the saucepan, and the aroma was so good that the boys
+could hardly wait to taste the meat.
+
+At last it was ready, and they ate it ravenously.  "How much better
+it tastes when you've shot it yourself," declared Tom.  "I've had
+venison before, but it wasn't nearly so good as this."
+
+"A keen appetite and the mountain air certainly do give a zest to
+your food," smiled the ranchman.
+
+"I reckon I'll put another slice on the fire so it will be ready
+for the boys when they come."
+
+But it was fully an hour later before they heard the others hail.
+
+"Up here in the woods," called back Tom and Horace, running to the
+edge of the forest to guide them to the camp.
+
+It was several minutes before Larry and Bill came in sight, and
+before they did the others had learned that they had found the deer
+Bill thought he had hit.
+
+"I ran across it," explained Larry.  "It's hind leg was broken and
+it was lying down when I came upon it.  The poor thing tried to
+jump up, but it couldn't very well."
+
+"But I didn't hear any shot," interrupted Tom.  "I've been
+listening, too."
+
+"Good reason why, because it was way over in another basin,"
+answered his brother.  "It must have been all of three miles from
+here, don't you think so, Bill?"
+
+"Easily."
+
+"Then how did you follow it?" demanded Horace.
+
+"By its blood and where its leg dragged."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you found the poor creature and put it out of
+misery," declared his father.  "That's the only objection I have to
+deer hunting--the animals have such wonderful vitality that they
+travel miles and miles after being crippled and then drop from
+exhaustion, like this one.  As a usual thing, I don't allow any one
+to fire at a deer unless at short range.  I made an exception this
+morning, but I never will again."
+
+"We didn't bring much of the meat back, it was too long a haul,"
+said Bill after he had partially satisfied his hunger.
+
+"We have plenty," returned his father.  "In fact, we have so much
+that we won't fire at any more deer."
+
+"Then what can we hunt?" protested Horace.
+
+"Bear," returned his father.
+
+"Oh, goody! and mountain lions!  Say, you deer slayers, you may
+have knocked over some bucks, but it took me to stop a mountain
+lion."
+
+"So you were the one who got him, eh?" asked Bill.  "He must have
+been asleep.  You can't hit a deer, and yet you got a mountain
+lion, which is smaller."
+
+"He wasn't asleep, and I made a dandy long shot.  Tom said so,"
+declared his brother hotly.
+
+"You certainly did well, son," interposed his father.
+
+"Then we've all bagged something, if you can call my getting the
+deer Bill wounded a hit," said Larry.  "This is sure Jim dandy
+hunting.  Back home you can tramp all day without even seeing a
+woodchuck."
+
+Heartily the others laughed at this statement of the difference in
+hunting grounds, and for an hour or so they talked and joked.
+
+"Are we going to camp here for the night?" inquired Horace at last
+of his father.
+
+"No.  I reckon we'll go farther into the mountains.  We'll have a
+better chance for bear there.  This is a little too near the
+plains."
+
+Well rested, the boys were eager to be on the move and gladly they
+made ready to advance.
+
+In and out among the hills the trail wound, and sundown found them
+entering a basin similar to that where they had captured their
+deer.  On two sides walls of rocks towered and dense forests formed
+the others.
+
+Lonesome, indeed, was the spot, and this effect was heightened by
+the rapidly descending darkness.
+
+"Commander, I think we'll hobble the horses right here," said Mr.
+Wilder, dismounting in the center of the vale.  "It would also be a
+good idea to have our camp fire close beside them.  Then, if any
+prowler smells the deer meat or the horses, it can't reach either
+without our knowing it.  And, because we must keep a fire all
+night, we shall need a lot of wood."
+
+Recalled to the fact that he was in charge of the camp, Tom said:
+
+"You fellows come with me and get the wood.  I guess Mr. Wilder
+will attend to the horses, and we four can gather enough before it
+gets real dark."
+
+Quickly the boys dismounted and ran to get dry limbs and branches,
+making a monster pile.
+
+"I reckon that's enough, commander," said the ranchman at last,
+"and, besides, supper is ready or will be when the coffee is
+poured."
+
+"Coffee!  Where did you get the water to boil it?" queried Larry.
+
+"From the canteens.  I filled them this morning."
+
+"And here I've been wondering where we could look for water.  I was
+surprised you didn't tell Tom to send some of us."
+
+Being less tired than the night before, the boys sat round the camp
+fire after supper, talking and listening to the stories the
+ranchman told about his life as a soldier.
+
+When at length they were ready to turn in, they rolled themselves
+up in their blankets and formed a circle about the fire.
+
+Without adventure they passed the night, sleeping till long after
+sunrise, there being no occasion for getting an early start.
+
+Indeed as they ate breakfast they were debating whether to push on
+or stay where they were and set a bear trap when they were
+surprised to hear Mr. Wilder's name called.
+
+Shouting in return, they jumped to their feet, trying to see who
+had hailed them.
+
+"It's some one on horseback.  I can hear the click of horseshoes on
+the stones," declared Larry.
+
+"Some one from the ranch probably," asserted Mr. Wilder, and the
+next moment his opinion was confirmed by Horace, who had run to the
+trail and was returning, yelling:
+
+"It's Nails! It's Nails!"
+
+"He's one of our boys," explained Bill to the chums.  "What do you
+suppose he can want, father?"
+
+"Wait till he tells us.  There are so many possibilities, it's no
+use trying to guess."
+
+Their suspense was short-lived, for in a few moments the cowboy
+called Nails dashed into the basin, his pony in a lather.
+
+Realizing from this condition of his mount that something serious
+was amiss, Mr. Wilder asked:
+
+"What's wrong, Nails?"
+
+"Cattle thieves!" gasped the cowboy.  "Cross-eyed Pete said to get
+everybody you could and meet him at the Witches' Pool to-morrow
+morning.  He's driving up the herds from the Long Creek bottoms."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X
+
+THE RETURN TO THE RANCH
+
+The knowledge that his herds had again been raided by cattle
+thieves made Mr. Wilder very angry.
+
+"This makes the third time some of my cattle have been stolen.  The
+thieves will find it is three times and out.  I'll take their trail
+this time and stick to it till I round them all up."
+
+Never had Bill and Horace seen their father so wrought up, and they
+wisely held their peace while the cowboy who had brought the news
+of the raid busied himself removing the saddle and bridle and
+wiping the lather from his pony.
+
+Before Nails had finished the task, however, the ranchman had
+regained control of himself.
+
+"I am glad Pete is driving the cattle home," he said quietly.
+"They will graze about the Witches' Pool without watching, so I can
+take all the boys with me, and the more there are of us the less
+trouble we will have.  Sit down and eat breakfast, Nails, and then
+tell me about the raid."
+
+No urging did the cowboy need, for he had not tasted a mouthful
+since he had left the herd, twenty-four hours before.  He had
+expected to find the ranchman at his home, and when he learned Mr.
+Wilder had gone on a hunting trip he only stopped long enough to
+change ponies and then started again to find him.
+
+Attentively the boys waited on him, impatient to hear his story.
+
+"It was night before last it happened," said Nails, after having
+eaten more than it seemed possible for one man.  "All during the
+day the cattle had been restless and we boys were kept on the jump
+holding 'em together.  But with the darkness they quieted down and
+we all turned in.
+
+"When morning came, nary a steer was in sight.  It didn't take us
+long to get after 'em, and in about an hour we found them.  But the
+short-horned Durhams were missing."
+
+"The best cattle in the herd," interrupted Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Just what Pete said, but not in the same words," grinned Nails.
+
+"But how do you know they were stolen?" asked Bill.  "Perhaps they
+only wandered off.  You said the herd had been restless."
+
+"A hundred head don't all go together," replied the cowboy.
+"Besides, after looking around, we found the hoofprints of seven
+ponies."
+
+"Which way did they drive?" demanded the ranchman.
+
+"Toward old Mex.  But I reckon that's only a bluff.  It's my idea
+the headquarters of this gang are right in these mountains,
+somewhere.  Pete thinks so, too.  That's why he set the pool as the
+meeting place.  There's an old trail he knows and he wants to
+strike it, you agreeing of course," he added, looking toward the
+ranchman.
+
+"We'll decide about that later.  But if Pete suggested it, he has
+some good reason.  Still, I can't see the necessity of getting any
+of the neighbors.  It will only take time, and we can save
+twenty-four hours by riding straight to the pool from here."
+
+"The reason for getting others is because the Half-Moon isn't the
+only herd that's been raided."
+
+At this statement the Wilders were amazed.
+
+"By the tracks from the direction of the Three Stars there must
+have been two hundred, at least, lifted from them."
+
+"Then Jim Snider and his outfit are on the trail by this time,"
+declared the ranchman.
+
+"No, they aren't.  I saw Sandy the other day, and he said they were
+all going up to Tolopah to bring down a herd Snider brought from
+Montana, It's my idea the thieves knew this and planned a wholesale
+raid."
+
+"H--m.  That sounds likely," commented Mr. Wilder.  "Who do you
+think is at the head of it, Nails?"
+
+"Gus Megget.  He's the only one with the nerve to pull it off."
+
+At the mention of the ruffian cow-puncher the boys looked at one
+another and then at their father, who said:
+
+"That can't be, Nails.  Megget tried some of his funny business
+with these two boys, Larry and Tom Alden, up in Oklahoma the other
+day."
+
+"And they made a monkey of him," interposed Horace gleefully.
+
+"What, them two?" returned the cowboy, looking at the brothers with
+keen interest.
+
+"They certainly did," smiled the ranchman.  "So I reckon we can't
+blame Megget for this raid."
+
+"But he could have come by train, the short line, you know."
+
+"We'll find out in time.  There's no use arguing, Nails," said the
+ranchman.  "Bill, bring up Buster and Blackhawk.  Tom, you will
+have to take Nails' pony.  We must get back to the ranch as soon as
+possible and that other horse is too played out.
+
+"You boys can pack up and follow as fast as you can.  Be at the
+house by the middle of the afternoon, at the latest.  Mind now, I
+have enough to think of without worrying about you."
+
+Nails was helping Bill with the ponies, and almost as soon as Mr.
+Wilder had finished his instructions the animals were ready.
+
+Vaulting into the saddle, the ranchman again cautioned the boys to
+be careful, shook out his reins and rode from the basin at a
+gallop, the cowboy close behind.
+
+With a will the four comrades went to work packing the saddle bags,
+and less than an hour after the others had left were following them.
+
+The raid, the pursuit, wonder if they would be allowed to go on the
+man-hunt and speculation as to whether the thieves would be
+captured formed topics for endless conversation as they rode.
+
+"Do you suppose those men I saw on the cliff are part of the gang?"
+hazarded Tom.
+
+"They may be.  I never thought of them," declared Bill.  "I must
+remember to speak about them to father.  Still, I hardly think they
+could have had a hand in it.  It is all of thirty miles from where
+we saw them to the Long Creek bottoms, and no sizeable herd of
+cattle could be driven through the hills that far in a day.  Twenty
+miles on the prairies is a stiff hike and half that far would be a
+good drive in the mountains."
+
+When they were obliged to ride Indian file over the trail much
+talking was not attempted, and each boy busied himself with his own
+thoughts.
+
+Because of his knowledge of the route, Bill led and Larry brought
+up the rear.  Their advance was slow, however, as they wished to
+give the pony Tom rode as much chance to rest as possible before
+they reached the plains.
+
+With eyes and ears alert, they proceeded, and without mishap
+finally rode out onto the prairie.
+
+[Illustration: "With eyes and ears alert, they proceeded."]
+
+"Let's eat now," suggested Horace.  "That will give Whitefoot more
+rest, and by the time we have finished he'll be as good as new.
+He's a tough one and can stand sixty miles, day in and day out."
+
+"Which is about half as much as he'll get this time," added Bill.
+"Still I think Whitefoot's good for it, especially as he hadn't
+been ridden for a week till Nails took him last night."
+
+The halt was made and the boys ate as heartily as though they had
+not breakfasted only three hours before.
+
+When they were ready to start again Larry said:
+
+"So long as Whitefoot is tired and Horace is the lightest, don't
+you think he'd better ride him instead of Tom?"
+
+"Good idea," acquiesced Bill, and the shift in mounts was made,
+after which the boys headed for the ranch house.
+
+As they were starting on the long forty-mile ride, Mr. Wilder and
+Nails were ending it.  Though forced to ride carefully so long as
+they were on the mountain trail, when the latter reached the plains
+they had "cut loose." Both were expert horsemen and the ponies
+under them were mettlesome.  Indeed, Blackhawk had not entirely
+recovered his temper since his roping and it was he that set the
+pace.  Yet the riders did not allow the ponies to run themselves
+out in the first few miles, holding them down to a long, steady
+lope that covered the ground rapidly.
+
+"Where do you suppose we are the most likely to strike the outfit
+from the Three Stars, at home or in Tolopah?" asked Mr. Wilder
+after a time.
+
+"At home.  They were to get the cattle day before yesterday, and
+Sandy told me they planned to stay at the ranch to-day to pack grub
+so as to save a trip of the wagon."
+
+"Then we ought to find the whole crew at home."
+
+"That's just what Pete and I were banking on," returned Nails.
+
+This point settled, the ranchman refused further conversation, to
+the disappointment of his companion, occupying himself with mapping
+out his campaign.
+
+After a time the ponies began to slacken their stride, but the
+vigorous rowelling they received from the spurs of the men on their
+backs told them they were bound on pressing business, and they
+responded gamely.
+
+"I hope Ned is at home," Mr. Wilder exclaimed suddenly.  "If he
+isn't, there won't be any but slow ponies in the corral.  And that
+means it will take me the whole afternoon to get to the Three
+Stars."
+
+"No, it don't," asserted Nails.  "I kinder thought you might be off
+somewhere, so I cut out three ponies from the bunch and brought
+them up with me.  When they told me you were hunting with the kids,
+I naturally knew you wouldn't go far into the mountains, so I left
+the best ones at the Half-Moon."
+
+This foresight of his cowboy pleased the ranchman, and he commended
+him heartily.
+
+"You seem to have a pretty level head, Nails.  What do you make of
+these raids on my herd?  This makes the third.  It rather seems to
+me as though the thieves had marked me for their particular victim."
+
+"That's my idea exactly," declared the cowboy.  "And that's what
+makes me so sure Gus Megget had a hand in the raid."
+
+"But what grudge has Megget against me?" asked Mr. Wilder in
+surprise.
+
+"You are the one who leased the Long Creek bottoms, aren't you?"
+returned Nails, answering the question, Yankee fashion, by another.
+
+"To be sure.  But what has that to do with it?"
+
+"Everything.  Megget's been rustling cattle for years, and the Long
+Creek bottoms were where he used to drive the cattle he'd lifted.
+If any one jumped him, he could either cross the line into old Mex
+or strike out for the mountains.  Maybe you don't know it, but
+there's a greaser just across the line--they call him Don
+Vasquez--who makes a fat living buying stolen cattle.  He's got
+some old Indian remedy for making hair grow, and he cuts out the
+old brands, makes hair grow out and then burns in his three
+crosses."
+
+"And so my leasing the bottoms has spoiled this criminal dealing?"
+
+"That's what.  I heard a greaser down in El Paso last winter
+boasting you'd sell your ranch inside of two years."
+
+"Why didn't you tell me?" demanded Mr. Wilder severely.
+
+"Didn't think it was necessary.  Fatty and I fixed him so he
+wouldn't brag any more."
+
+Deeming it unwise to inquire Into the means taken for silencing the
+Mexican, the ranchman lapsed into silence for a few minutes and
+then declared:
+
+"No cattle thieves can drive me out of business, Nails.  I have the
+right on my side, and right always triumphs."
+
+"We boys are with you, Mr. Wilder.  You've always played more than
+fair with us, which is more than we can say of some folks, and we
+appreciate it.  Cowboys have feelings same as other people, though
+there seem to be a lot of folks who don't think so.  And I'm
+speaking for the other boys of the Half-Moon as well as myself.  We
+talked it all over before Pete sent me to the ranch.  But when you
+join 'em at the pool, don't say anything about what I've told you.
+Sentiment and hunting cattle thieves don't mix."
+
+This expression of the esteem in which his men held him, crude
+though it was, moved Mr. Wilder deeply, and reaching over, he
+seized the cowboy's hand and shook it warmly, an action that
+delighted Nails greatly.
+
+The statement about Megget gave the ranchman a new train of
+thought.  He realized for the first time that he was engaged in a
+cattle war which would only end with his ruin or the capture of the
+entire band of thieves.  And being a man who could not be
+frightened, the owner of the Half-Moon Ranch vowed to accomplish
+the latter alternative.
+
+The hard ride was tiring the ponies, wiry though they were, and the
+men on their backs were obliged to resort to almost continual use
+of their spurs.  But at last the buildings of the ranch home came
+into view, and soon Mr. Wilder and Nails were at the corral.
+
+"Saddle the best of the bunch for me," ordered the ranchman as he
+dismounted.  "I'll go to the house for a bite and then start for
+the Three Stars."
+
+"What about me?" inquired the cowboy, disappointment in his voice
+at the thought of being left behind.
+
+"I want you to ride into Tolopah.  Don't say anything about the
+raid.  Just listen round and see if you can learn anything."  And
+turning on his heel, Mr. Wilder started for the house.
+
+"Where are the boys?  You didn't let them stay to hunt, did you?"
+inquired his wife anxiously as he sat down at the table and ordered
+Hop Joy to bring him something to eat.
+
+"No.  They'll be here during the afternoon.  I'm going to get Jim
+Snider and his outfit.  Nails says they are at home."  And briefly
+he told her of the information he had received from his cowboy.
+
+No longer than necessary did the ranchman linger at the table, and
+when he had finished a hasty meal went out, mounted the pony Nails
+held waiting and galloped away in the direction of the Three Stars
+Ranch, which lay to the east.
+
+Having far less to go, the cowboy ate leisurely and then rode
+toward Tolopah.
+
+In the meantime the four boys were making the best time they could,
+but before they had covered half the distance Whitefoot gave out
+completely.
+
+For a time they proceeded, with Horace riding now with one boy and
+now with another.  But it was slow work, and at last Bill suggested
+that he ride on ahead, get fresh horses and return.  After some
+argument, this plan was agreed upon.
+
+As she saw her elder son ride up alone, Mrs. Wilder was greatly
+alarmed, but he quickly reassured her, and with Ned's help caught
+two ponies, saddled them and went back to meet the others, all
+reaching the house a little later.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+PREPARATIONS FOR PURSUIT
+
+"Oh, dear!  Father and Nails have gone!" exclaimed Horace as he
+counted the ponies in the corral while the others were unsaddling.
+"Now we can't go with them.  I was afraid that was what father
+intended when he didn't wait for us."
+
+"But Buster and Blackhawk are here, and there is one more pony than
+before," returned Larry.
+
+"That doesn't prove anything.  Ned told me Nails brought in three
+extra ponies with him," said Bill.
+
+"Then you have known all the time that father and Nails were gone
+and never told us?" demanded Horace.
+
+"It was because I didn't know for certain where they had gone that
+I said nothing," replied his brother.  "Ned was away when they
+arrived and departed.  Here comes mother; you can find out from
+her."
+
+After returning Mrs. Wilder's greetings and giving her a brief
+account of the trip, Horace asked:
+
+"How long have father and Nails been gone?  I think it was mean of
+them to give us the slip like that."
+
+"But they haven't gone to the hills yet," returned his mother.
+"Your father has ridden over to the Three Stars and Nails has gone
+to Tolopah."
+
+"Oh, goody!" exclaimed Horace.  "We may be able to go, after all.
+Momsy, won't you try to make father take us?"
+
+It was only with this last question that Mrs. Wilder understood the
+purpose of her son's eager inquiries, and the disclosure did not
+tend to quiet the anxiety she felt over the outcome of the pursuit.
+Yet she only said:
+
+"That is a question for your father to decide.  I think, though,
+that you would want to stay here and protect me."
+
+"But you are in no danger, Momsy.  Besides, Ned and Hop Joy are
+here."
+
+The thought of the Chinaman as a protector made the other boys
+laugh, and realizing that they could not count on her espousal of
+their cause, they went off to the wagon sheds to devise a plan to
+win permission from the ranchman.
+
+As the owner of the Half-Moon galloped up to the ranch house of the
+Three Stars his horse literally dripping water, Jim Snider and his
+cowboys ran up from all directions to learn the cause of such
+evident hard riding.
+
+To the accompaniment of various exclamations of anger and surprise
+Mr. Wilder hurriedly told his neighbors of the raid.
+
+"That's Megget's work!" ejaculated Snider as the story was
+completed.  "He's the only one cute enough and with nerve enough to
+do it.  I didn't suppose any one knew my herd was unwatched, yet
+the minute my boys ride in the gang raids it.  Wilder, if you and I
+are to stay on our ranches, we must round up these cattle thieves."
+
+"That's my idea exactly," declared the owner of the Half-Moon.
+"That's why I rode over.  My boys and I start to-morrow morning,
+and I want to know how many from the Three Stars will go with me."
+
+"Every man jack of us, save the cook and grub man," replied Snider.
+"That makes nine."
+
+"Good! We'll ride back to the Half-Moon for supper and then go to
+the pool.  The sooner we start the better.  If you'll lend me a
+fresh pony, I can travel faster."
+
+Without waiting for orders from their master, the boys of the Three
+Stars ran to the corral, all agog with the excitement at the
+unexpected turn of affairs.
+
+When the two ranch owners were alone Mr. Wilder imparted his
+information about Megget's enmity and the Mexican, Don Vasquez.
+
+The facts amazed the proprietor of the Three Stars and the two men
+were discussing the evident declaration of a cattle war, especially
+against the Half-Moon, when the cowboys trotted up with the ponies.
+
+Deeming the information too important for general discussion with
+the men, the ranch owners swung into their saddles, changing their
+topic of conversation to the trails that would be the most likely
+to be taken by the raiders.
+
+Never sparing their mounts, they reached the Half-Moon just at dusk
+and their arrival threw the boys into great excitement.
+
+"Has Nails returned?" asked Mr. Wilder of Ned.
+
+"Not yet."
+
+"Send him to me when he comes.  Make the boys from the Three Stars
+at home in the bunkhouse and tell Hop Joy to give us supper as soon
+as he can.  Also have him pack some bacon, sugar, coffee, crackers
+and doughnuts, enough to last the Half-Moon outfit a week.  When
+it's ready, hitch up and carry it to Pete at the Witches' Pool.
+
+"Hello! Glad you lads arrived all right," he added as he caught
+sight of the boys.  "Any trouble?"
+
+"Nothing, only Whitefoot gave out.  I had to come on and get
+another pony," replied Bill.
+
+"Good!  Snider, I want you to know Larry and Tom Alden," continued
+Mr. Wilder, introducing the boys, adding in a low voice: "They are
+the lads about whom I told you."
+
+"I'm sure glad to meet you," declared the owner of the Three Stars,
+giving each of the lads a grip that made their hands ache.
+
+Upon arrival he had exchanged greetings with Bill and Horace, and
+altogether they trooped onto the veranda, whence they were summoned
+to supper before the lads had the opportunity to ask Mr. Wilder
+whether they could accompany him or not.
+
+Evincing a lively Interest in the two Eastern boys, the Three
+Stars' owner plied them with questions about Ohio and was so
+impressed with their answers that he extended a cordial invitation
+to them and the Wilder boys to pay him a visit at his ranch,
+promising to have his men give an exhibition of "broncho busting"
+for their special benefit, an invitation which all four eagerly
+accepted.
+
+Just as they were ready to rise from the table Hop Joy glided in.
+
+"Nail, he backee," he announced.  "Say he got heap talkee."
+
+"Tell him to come round to the veranda," ordered Mr. Wilder.  "By
+the way, how are you coming along with the cooking, Hop Joy?"
+
+"Allee lightee.  Bymeby, two hours maybe."
+
+"Well, don't be any longer.  The sooner Ned can start, the sooner
+he'll reach the Pool."
+
+In answer the celestial bowed low, then turned and left the room.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+WHAT NAILS LEARNED
+
+While the ranchmen and Mrs. Wilder made themselves comfortable in
+chairs, the boys squatted or stretched out on the piazza, their
+restlessness proclaiming the expectancy with which they awaited the
+"heap talkee" Nails desired to impart.
+
+The cowboy soon appeared, and, after seating himself at Mr.
+Wilder's bidding, launched into an account of what he had learned
+in Tolopah.
+
+"There are twenty of them in the gang," he said, "and Megget has
+joined them by this time, though he wasn't with them when they made
+the raids.  As near as I could make out, their headquarters are in
+the Lost Lode Mine.  There are three trails to it, one leading in
+somewhere near the trail you all took on your hunting trip and the
+others to the south, along which they drive the cattle they steal.
+I----"
+
+"Mr. Wilder, you don't suppose that could be the trail where I saw
+those men crossing the face of the cliff, do you?" interrupted Tom.
+
+"I shouldn't doubt it a bit.  I'd forgotten about them entirely."
+And he briefly told Snider of the figures they all had seen,
+adding: "Much obliged for reminding me, Tom.  That may have been
+Megget and the fellows you met with him.  Go on, Nails; anything
+more?"
+
+"Nothing but that it's my opinion they have a spy in Tolopah who
+keeps 'em mighty well informed on the happenings at the Half-Moon
+and Three Stars ranches."
+
+At the words Mr. Wilder and his neighbor exchanged significant
+glances.
+
+"What makes you think so?" the latter asked.  "Where did you learn
+all this, anyhow?"
+
+"Oh, just nosing round," drawled Nails, but his tone suggested that
+he was sure of his information and at the same time unwilling to
+disclose its source.
+
+"You certainly did well, Nails," complimented his master.  "Knowing
+how many there are in the gang will enable us to lay definite plans
+for action.  Now go and get your supper.  I suppose you have seen
+the boys from the Three Stars in the bunkhouse?"
+
+"I could hear 'em half way to Tolopah." "Then tell them we'll
+start.  At what time do you think Pete will reach the pool?"
+
+"About midnight."
+
+"Good.  Be ready to move by ten o'clock."
+
+"And tell my outfit to make less noise," added Mr. Snider.
+
+Until they could hear the other cowboys greeting Nails the two men
+were silent, and then Mr. Wilder declared:
+
+"I had no idea Megget had twenty men with him.  It's a good thing
+we found out.
+
+"Let's see, there are nine of you from the Three Stars; nine of my
+boys and myself.  That makes nineteen."
+
+"And the four of us, that makes twenty-three," added Horace,
+deeming the moment auspicious for settling the question that was
+uppermost in the minds of all the lads.
+
+"Your arithmetic is better than your facts," laughed his father.
+
+"Oh, can't we go, please?  If Megget should see Larry and Tom, he
+might run and----"
+
+"On the contrary, I'm afraid he might try to wipe out the disgrace
+they put upon him.  No, my son, it's going to be a hard trip.  If
+you were along I should be worrying about you all the time.
+Besides," he added, noting the keen disappointment his refusal
+brought, "I shall need you here so you can ride down to the pool
+every day and see that the cattle and horses are all right."
+
+"That's well enough for the others.  They would be in the way, but
+I wouldn't," protested Bill.  "I'm old enough and strong enough to
+go, and the experience would do me good.  If you take it, it will
+make just twenty on both sides."
+
+"What do you think, Jim, shall we take Bill or not?"
+
+As the boys awaited the answer of their friend, it was so still the
+fall of a pin could have been heard.
+
+But their suspense did not last long.
+
+With a drawl that was tantalizingly deliberate the owner of the
+Three Stars Ranch replied:
+
+"I reckon we might as well.  Bill's got a level head on his
+shoulders, and some day he'll be boss of the Half-Moon.  If
+anything like this happens then he'll know how to act.  Yes, I
+think we'd better take him."
+
+Aware that it would be useless to try to persuade Mr. Wilder to
+change his mind in respect to taking them, Tom, Larry and Horace
+made the most of the fact that they were to inspect the herd daily.
+But it was poor recompense, and in a few minutes they went on to
+see how near Ned was ready to start, stopping to sample Hop Joy's
+cooking on the way.
+
+"You goee?" asked the Chinaman as the trio entered his kitchen.
+
+"Going to eat," grinned Horace, helping himself to a doughnut and
+just managing to dodge a potato that Hop Joy tossed at him.
+
+"Shoo! shoo!  Lun out!  Me bigee hully.  No plague! no plague!"
+
+"Poor fellow!  It must be some job to get enough food ready for
+twelve men.  Come on, let's leave him alone," said Larry.  "I'd
+like to go down to the bunk-house."
+
+"That's so.  Maybe Sandy or some of his boys know the trail to the
+Lost Lode," agreed Horace.  And to the Chinaman's surprise they
+left him in peace.
+
+The men from the Three Stars were lying in the bunks and sprawling
+on the benches, getting what rest they could in anticipation of
+many long hours in the saddle, laughing and talking the while.
+
+At the entrance of the trio the chatter ceased and the cowboys
+stared at the two Eastern boys with undisguised interest.
+
+"Boys, these are the famous cowboy tamers, Larry and Tom Alden,"
+said Horace, bowing in feigned deference and indicating his friends
+with a wave of his hand.
+
+"Don't be afraid, though.  We won't try our hands on you unless you
+get gay with us," declared Larry seriously.
+
+"Thankee, thankee kindly, on behalf of me and my men," bowed Sandy
+gravely, and then they all burst into a roar of laughter.
+
+Cowboys love a joke, and the words and manner of the brothers,
+together with their clean-cut faces and manly bearing, appealed to
+them, winning the way to their good graces as nothing else could.
+
+All reserve thus broken, the men bade the lads sit down.
+
+"I s'pose you'll be going with us?" hazarded Sandy.
+
+"No, father won't let us.  He thinks we're only babies.  Says he's
+afraid we'll be in the way.  So we've got to stay home and watch
+the herd at the Witches' Pool."
+
+"You may have your hands full at that," declared one of the cowboys.
+
+"Keep quiet," growled Sandy, frowning at the speaker.
+
+But the remark had suggested all sorts of possibilities to the
+lads, and, glancing at Tom and Larry, Horace asked:
+
+"What makes you think so?"
+
+Again Sandy cast a look full of meaning at his fellow and the
+cowboy answered:
+
+"Oh, nothing in particular.  I was just talking."
+
+The boys had noted Sandy's glances, however, and the reply only
+whetted their curiosity.
+
+Drawing himself to his full height and striving to be as severe as
+possible, Horace said:
+
+"If any of you men know of any trouble that may come to the
+Half-Moon herd, it is your duty to tell my father before he goes
+away."
+
+The words and the seriousness of the boy standing before them sent
+the men into another roar of laughter.
+
+But Sandy hastened to say:
+
+"There's nothing we know, kid.  Skinny was only joking."
+
+Horace was about to reply when Hop Joy poked his head through the
+door, saying:
+
+"Glub all leady, Ned."
+
+"All right, Hop."  And springing from his bunk, Ned went out to
+harness his horses, accompanied by several of the cowboys.
+
+For an hour or so the chums stayed in the bunkhouse, listening to
+stories of marvelous feats of broncho-busting and whatever else the
+men pleased to tell them, only leaving when Nails announced it was
+time to go to the corral and saddle up.
+
+"Aren't you going with them?" asked Tom.
+
+"No," returned Horace.  "We are liable to get hurt, it's so dark.
+We couldn't see anything if we did go.  Besides, father may have
+some orders to give us."
+
+The only instructions Mr. Wilder had to give, however, were to be
+careful not to do anything that would cause his wife to worry about
+them.
+
+"Suppose the herd gets in trouble, what shall we do?" persisted
+Horace, on whose excited mind the words of the Three Stars' cowboy
+had made a lasting impression.
+
+"Use your own judgment.  But don't let your imagination play tricks
+on you.  The cattle will be all right--unless you get them
+restless."
+
+"Oh, we won't do that," quickly declared Larry.  "We'll take such
+good care of them, you will want to hire us as cowboys when you get
+back."
+
+The shouts from the corral told the ranchmen that the time for the
+start had arrived, and quickly they made themselves ready, while
+Hop Joy appeared to say he had sent saddle bags with food for Mr.
+Wilder and Bill by Ned.
+
+With a great clatter of hoofs, the cowboys rode up.  The Wilders
+and Mr. Snider bade a hurried good-by, mounted and galloped away
+into the darkness of the night, with the wishes of Mrs. Wilder and
+the boys for success and a speedy return ringing in their ears.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII
+
+OUT ON THE PLAINS
+
+Unlike the night when the hunting party had ridden over the plains,
+black clouds covered the sky, making the darkness so intense that
+the riders could not see fifty feet ahead of them.  But Mr. Wilder
+and Nails knew the route well, so that the absence of the moon made
+no great difference.
+
+That they need not tire their mounts by hard riding, Mr. Wilder had
+purposely set the start early and, with Snider on one side and Bill
+on the other, he led the cavalcade, setting the pace at a slow lope.
+
+Now and then the cowboys talked or laughed, but for the most part
+they were silent, the creak of the saddle leathers and the swish of
+the horses' legs as they brushed through the grass being the only
+sounds to tell that a body of men were riding through the darkness.
+
+So lonesome was the ranch house after the departure of the party
+that, though they made several attempts to talk, Horace and the two
+Eastern lads finally decided to go to bed, to the evident relief of
+Mrs. Wilder.
+
+But sleep did not come to Larry and Tom, and as they lay tossing
+and turning, the former asked:
+
+"Do you think that fellow they call Skinny really meant there was
+any danger threatening the herd at the Witches' Pool?"
+
+"I don't believe so," replied Tom.  "I suppose there is always the
+chance that a lot of things may happen to a big herd like that.
+Some of them might try to wander away or they might get frightened
+and stampede.  I read about a stampede once where the cattle ran
+right over the edge of a cliff."
+
+"Well, they couldn't do that at the pool, because there aren't any
+cliffs near there," replied Tom.
+
+Larry was not satisfied, however, and said:
+
+"I wonder what cowboys do to stop a stampede?  I wish we'd thought
+to ask Mr. Wilder."
+
+"Don't always be looking for trouble, Larry," protested his brother.
+
+"Still, we ought to know.  He said he'd hold us responsible for the
+cattle."
+
+"We can ask Ned when he gets back, if you really want to know.  But
+don't, for goodness sake let Horace hear you.  His imagination is
+so lively that he would think it was a stampede every time the
+cattle moved.  I think it was because Horace is so excitable that
+Mr. Wilder had us stay home.  He probably thought we were older and
+could steady him down.  Now don't try to think up any more things
+that might happen.  I'm tired and want to go to sleep."  And
+turning his back to his brother, Tom refused to talk any more.
+
+Out on the prairie the body of horsemen were riding silently and
+steadily.
+
+"I hope we shall not be obliged to wait long for Pete," said Bill,
+giving voice to his thoughts.
+
+"He'll be on hand, barring accidents," returned his father.
+
+This confidence of the owner of the Half-Moon in his foreman was
+justified, when, at the end of another hour, the men caught the
+flare of a camp fire in the direction of the pool.
+
+"Must have hurried some," asserted Snider.
+
+But this comment elicited no other response than a quickening of
+the pace.
+
+When they were within a mile of the fire Mr. Wilder drew rein.
+
+"You boys wait here," he commanded.  "I haven't any doubt but that
+it's Pete's fire.  Still, it won't pay to take any chances.  Snider
+and I will ride ahead to reconnoiter.  If we are not back within
+half an hour, you'll know it's all right and can follow."
+
+Little relishing the enforced halt, the cowboys, however, obeyed,
+some of them dismounting and stretching out in the grass.
+
+Riding a rod or so from the others, Bill, Nails and Sandy eagerly
+peered through the darkness, listening intently for any sound that
+should indicate danger.
+
+The two ranch owners, being experienced in the art of scouting,
+rode to the left into a roll of the plains, one crest of which shut
+them off from the light.  For they were aware that should they ride
+in its glare they would be seen by whoever was about the fire, and
+they wished to make sure it was Pete and his men at the pool before
+disclosing themselves.
+
+But their caution was unnecessary.  When they had covered only a
+little more than half the distance the lowing of cattle broke on
+their ears.
+
+"That's the Half-Moon outfit, sure enough," declared Snider.  And
+putting spurs to their ponies, the ranch owners galloped straight
+for the fire.
+
+"Queer we can't see any of the boys," muttered Mr. Wilder in a low
+voice.  "I know they are tired.  But, all things considered, one of
+them at least ought to be on watch if for nothing else than to keep
+the cattle from breaking away.  That they are restless, you can
+tell from their lowing.
+
+"It's no wonder the raiders were able to cut out my short-horned
+Durhams if the boys didn't keep better watch."
+
+His tone showed deep annoyance, and he was on the point of speaking
+again when a sharp challenge rang out from their left:
+
+"Who goes there?"
+
+Instantly Mr. Wilder's anger vanished as he recognized the voice of
+his foreman and replied:
+
+"Don't get excited, Pete.  It's only Jim Snider and me."
+
+In response to his master's greeting the cowboy sprang to his feet
+and a movement of his hand toward his belt showed both ranchmen
+that he had been prepared to dispute their advance should they have
+proven foes instead of friends.
+
+"Where are the others?  You two didn't come alone, did you?  I told
+Nails to have you get as many as you could," said the foreman.
+
+"We left them back yonder," returned the owner of the Half-Moon.
+"Nails said we were to meet you in the morning, and when we saw the
+fire Jim and I thought we'd make sure it was you."
+
+"Well, I'm glad you've come," responded Pete.  "Now we can get on
+the trail so much the sooner.  How many did you bring?"
+
+"Nine from the Three Stars, including Jim, Bill, Nails and myself.
+With your boys that will make twenty, just the number of the
+raiders."
+
+As he uttered the last words Mr. Wilder expected his foreman to
+evince surprise, but instead he and Snider were the ones to be
+taken aback as Pete remarked:
+
+"So Nails found out, did he?  What else did he?  What else did he
+learn?"
+
+Briefly the owner of the Half-Moon reported the information Nails
+had gleaned at Tolopah and then told him of the opinions he and the
+proprietor of the Three Stars had formed.
+
+"You got the lay of the land down to the last sage brush," declared
+the foreman.  "But we will put a crimp in Megget's plans that he
+will not forget.  My men are asleep by the fire, so there is no use
+waking them till we've decided what to do."
+
+"Then we must get down to business," returned his master.  "I told
+the boys to ride up unless we returned in half an hour."
+
+A moment there was silence, as though each were waiting for the
+other to make some suggestion as to the best course to pursue, and
+then Mr. Wilder said:
+
+"So long as we know the headquarters are in the Lost Lode Mine, it
+seems to me we had better strike for it direct.  Nails told me you
+knew some trail."  And he looked at Pete.
+
+"I know trails enough, but which is the one that leads to the Lost
+Lode, I can't say.  That's just the trouble.  It would take a month
+of Sundays to ride them all down.  While we were driving the cattle
+up here, I was trying to figure out which trail to take in case
+Nails found the mine was the place."
+
+"You have tried some of the trails, haven't you, Pete?" inquired
+the owner of the Three Stars.
+
+"Sure.  There are six I know that don't lead to the mine.  That
+leaves three between the pool and the Long Creek bottoms, and it
+may be any one of them."
+
+"Why do you think so?" asked his master.
+
+"Because I know the right trail is between the pool and the
+bottoms."
+
+Again the men lapsed into silence, which Mr. Snider broke by
+inquiring:
+
+"What was it that young Alden mentioned about men crossing the
+dirt?"
+
+"That's so.  I'd forgotten it again," and quickly Mr. Wilder
+narrated the incident to his foreman.
+
+"Probably that was Megget," asserted Pete.  "But that doesn't help
+us much.  We don't know where that trail breaks on the plains.
+Besides, while we practically know the headquarters are near the
+old mine, we don't know they are driving the cattle there.  They
+may be heading straight for Don Vasquez's ranch.
+
+"The plan that I kind of made up was to follow the trail from the
+bottoms till we were sure which way the raiders were headed.  If
+it's for the mine, we can ride back along the plains and try out my
+three trails."
+
+"But why not follow the cattle?" interrupted Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Because I'd rather head them off than creep up on them.  The
+raiders will be expecting us from behind.  By riding on the prairie
+we can cover ten miles to their one, which will give us time to try
+out the three trails, and, when we find the right one, we can get
+in ahead and block the trail."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV
+
+ANOTHER DISCOVERY
+
+For several minutes the ranch owners discussed the suggestion and
+finally decided to act on it unless circumstances should make a
+change advisable.
+
+Having settled the matter, they rode to the fire and aroused the
+sleeping cowboys, being joined a few minutes later by Bill, Sandy
+and the others.  Soon the men of the Half-Moon were saddling their
+ponies.
+
+"Queer we don't meet Ned anywhere," Bill exclaimed.  "I see from
+the bags he's been here, Pete."
+
+"He got here all right, but he didn't like to go back very well.
+Had a bad case of nerves, so he took down the white awning."
+
+"It's just as well," returned Mr. Wilder.  Then, finding that the
+men were impatient to be on the move, he gave the command to start
+and they rode toward the Long Creek bottoms.
+
+When Tom and Larry awoke it was bright daylight.
+
+"Why it's nine o'clock," exclaimed Larry in amazement as he looked
+at his watch.
+
+Hastily the brothers dressed and then went to see if Horace was in
+his room or had played some joke on them in letting them sleep.  To
+their relief, they found him in bed.
+
+"Hey, you, get up!" cried Tom.  "You're a fine one to be in charge
+of the Half-Moon Ranch.  If you stay in bed much longer, it will be
+dark."
+
+Deeply chagrined to think he had overslept, Horace leaped to the
+floor, and soon the three boys were ready for breakfast.
+
+At the sound of their voices Mrs. Wilder had ordered Hop Joy to
+bring in their food, and as the lads entered the dining-room she
+was awaiting them.
+
+"Why didn't you call us?" protested Horace.
+
+"Because I thought you were all tired and that sleep would do you
+good."
+
+"And I suppose if Larry or Tom hadn't happened to wake up, you
+would have let us sleep all day?"
+
+"I suppose I should," said his mother, smiling.  "When you are in
+bed I know that you are safe."
+
+"You must not worry about us, Mrs. Wilder," interposed Larry.  "I
+always tell mother that we are old enough to take care of
+ourselves.  So I wish you would feel the same.  I think it would
+save you no end of anxiety."
+
+"Undoubtedly.  But I never can think of my Horace except as my
+baby."
+
+"Huh!  I'm a pretty husky baby," grunted the boy.  "See here,
+mother, I'm fifteen now, so I wish you'd stop calling me your baby.
+When a fellow has been put in charge of the Half-Moon herd he
+doesn't like to be called a baby."
+
+"I'll try to remember," returned Mrs. Wilder gently.  Yet there was
+a wistfulness in her voice that caused Horace to look up, and, at
+the sight of her face, he left his chair, ran and put his arm
+around her neck, exclaiming:
+
+"If you want to call me baby, you can, Momsy!  I don't care.  Tom
+and Larry are the right stuff and they won't laugh."
+
+Ere either of the brothers could reply Hop Joy appeared.
+
+"Ned he goee pool," he announced.  "Say if you boys wantee go, you
+hully."
+
+"Tell him to bring up Blackhawk, Lightning and Lady Belle.  Then
+put up some food for us, Hop Joy.  Plenty of it, mind."
+
+As the Chinaman glided from the room Mrs. Wilder asked:
+
+"Why do you take anything except for lunch, son?"
+
+"Because I think we will spend the night at the pool.  Larry and
+Tom want to see the will-o'-the-wisps, and we maybe able to catch
+some fish early to-morrow morning.  You know father always says
+early morning is the only time to fish in the pool."
+
+"Well, I don't suppose it will do any harm for you to be gone over
+night.  Only be careful.  I shall worry if you are not back before
+dusk tomorrow night."
+
+Permission to pass the night obtained, the comrades quickly
+collected their rifles and some fishing tackle, mounted the ponies
+Ned had brought up and rode away.
+
+After learning from their companion that he had found Pete and the
+herd at the pool when he arrived, the lads indulged in speculation
+as to when and where the pursuers would come across the raiders and
+the chances of recovering the cattle.
+
+Of a sudden, remembering his discussion, with his brother the night
+before, Larry asked:
+
+"How do you stop a stampede, Ned?"
+
+"You generally don't," replied the man with a grin.
+
+"But you try, don't you?  I'm sure I've read of cowboys stopping
+stampedes."
+
+"I guess they do it easier in story books then than on the plains.
+The best way to stop a stampede is not to let it start.  Still, if
+there's enough boys on hand, I suppose it could be done.  The only
+way, though, would be to ride down the leaders and turn them round.
+
+"As I said, if there are enough boys on hand when the trouble
+breaks, they can get them to milling, which is going round and
+round in a circle until the cattle get tired out.  But it takes a
+mighty lively bunch of cow-punchers to do it."
+
+After riding for two hours they came in sight of the cattle, and
+the two brothers quickened their pace, eager to see them at close
+range.
+
+"Steady now.  Don't go riding at them like a pack of Indians or you
+will have all the stampede you want to see," exclaimed Ned.  "My,
+but they surely are restless!"
+
+This last remark was caused by some of the steers which raised
+their heads at the approach of the riders, then turned and dashed
+back to the body of the herd.
+
+"Oh, dear! I'm afraid we've started them," said Horace.
+
+"Pull in your horses!" commanded Ned.  "The main bunch is all
+right.  If we come up to them slow, there won't be any trouble."
+
+Obeying instantly, the boys reined their horses to a walk and
+reached the pool without causing further alarm among the cattle.
+
+"So this is where the ghosts live, is it?" asked Tom, gazing from a
+little knoll at a placid body of water about one hundred feet long
+by twice as many wide, surrounded by reeds.
+
+"Maybe you won't laugh so much to-night," declared their friend and
+then, because he did not like to be joked about his belief that the
+place was haunted, he added: "Come on, let's see if we can find
+which direction father and the boys took."
+
+The chance to try if they could track any one on the prairie
+appealed to the others, and they started to ride around the pool.
+
+"I can see where they had a camp fire!" cried Tom, pointing toward
+a pile of white ashes.
+
+"Here's where the grass is all tramped down.  Look, there's a
+regular path right for the mountains."
+
+"No, this is the way they went, to the south, here," returned Larry.
+
+Each boy was firm in his declaration that he had found the trail
+and to prove it they dismounted and began to examine the ground.
+
+"I'm right.  I can see horse tracks!" cried Larry.  "This is the
+way they took, isn't it, Ned?" Thus appealed to, both Horace and
+the man rode up.
+
+"Larry's right," announced Ned, after a few moments observation,
+
+"Then what caused my tracks?" demanded Tom.  "Here are horse
+tracks, too, only most of the hoofprints are made by cattle."
+
+"Oh, you can't tell a cow from a pony print," taunted Horace.
+
+"Come over and see for yourself," retorted Tom.
+
+Examination proving that he was right, his friend exclaimed:
+
+"That was made by the boys coming up."
+
+"But the tracks are all going toward the mountains.  They certainly
+wouldn't drive any cattle away with them.  You don't--you don't
+suppose it's another raid, do you?" and Tom glanced at Ned.
+
+"Yes."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV
+
+THE CONTESTED TRAIL
+
+The thought that the cattle thieves should have dared to make still
+another raid on the very night when the outfits of the Half-Moon
+and Three Stars ranches had set out to run them to cover was so
+startling that for several minutes after Tom had suggested it no
+one spoke.
+
+Larry was the first one to recover from the shock of surprise.
+
+"There's no use in trying to guess," he declared.  "We must find
+out.  The only way to do that, so far as I can see, is to follow
+the trail and discover where it leads."
+
+This proposition received the excited endorsement of the other two
+boys, and Horace added:
+
+"Wouldn't it be dandy if we could round up Megget and his men
+before father and the others?  Come on!"
+
+"Don't be in too much of a hurry," urged Tom.
+
+"Oh, if you are afraid to go, you needn't.  I'll go alone," sneered
+Horace.
+
+Flushing at the taunt of cowardice, Tom bit his lips that he might
+not say anything he should regret.
+
+"You ought to know, Horace, that neither Larry nor I are afraid,"
+he responded.  "I was only thinking about your mother.  We promised
+her we would be back by to-morrow night.  The idea of our going in
+pursuit of Megget by ourselves is foolish.  The thing to do is to
+make sure this trail leads into the mountains and then go and try
+to find your father and his men."
+
+"Now you're talking sense," interrupted Ned.
+
+"To find them will certainly take us longer than until to-morrow
+night.  In order that Mrs. Wilder need not worry, we must let her
+know of the change in our plans."
+
+"That's so," agreed Larry.  "Still there is no reason for our all
+going back; one is enough.  Let's draw lots to see who it shall be."
+
+"Not much," returned Horace.  "So long as father and Bill are away,
+I am in charge of the Half-Moon.  The rest of you must do as I say.
+Ned is the one to go back!"
+
+"But you boys don't know anything about the trails," protested the
+man.  "You will get lost."
+
+"We certainly can follow this one," retorted Horace hotly.  "And we
+can always find our way back.  Just tell mother we shall join
+father."
+
+In vain the driver of the grub wagon endeavored to dissuade the
+lads, but the thought of taking part in the pursuit of the raiders,
+after all, made them deaf to all his arguments, and at last Horace
+exclaimed impatiently:
+
+"You are only delaying us, Ned.  I say you are to return to the
+ranch.  That settles it.  Larry and Tom and I are going to take the
+trail."  And, without further ado, he shook out his pony and headed
+for the mountains, the two brothers at his side.
+
+The pace at which Horace rode was terrific, and because of the hot
+sun, the horses were soon covered with lather.
+
+"Look here, we've got to go at a slower gait," announced Larry.
+"If we keep up this clip, our ponies will give out.  They can't
+stand it and the heat, too.  And if they do give out, it will be
+sure to be just at the very time we need them most."
+
+"But we'll soon be in the mountains, and then it will be cooler,"
+asserted Horace.  "I want to overhaul the raiders before night.
+Won't father and the others feel small when they learn that we
+three, whom they left behind because we were too young, have
+rounded up Megget?"
+
+"You don't mean to say that you intend for us three to tackle the
+raiders alone?" exclaimed Tom.
+
+"Why not?"
+
+"Because we wouldn't stand one chance in a thousand--no, nor in ten
+thousand--of being able to capture them.  We don't know the trail
+at all, and they probably are familiar with every rock and turn in
+it.  If they should discover that we were pursuing them, all they
+would need do would be to lie in wait for us and capture us when we
+came along."
+
+The truth of what the younger of the chums said was so evident that
+even the impetuous Horace was forced to admit it.
+
+"Then what shall we do?" he asked.  "If you have any better plan to
+suggest, out with it."
+
+Tom, however, could think of nothing feasible and was silent.
+
+The boys had pulled their ponies down to a walk and for several
+minutes none of them spoke.
+
+Of a sudden Blackhawk raised his head, sniffed the air and then
+uttered a low whinny.
+
+The sound, coming so unexpectedly, scared the lads, and they looked
+at one another in alarm.
+
+"He smells something," exclaimed Horace in a whisper, as though
+fearing to speak out loud.
+
+The boys were in the lowland between two crests of the rolling
+plains.
+
+"Perhaps it's the cattle.  They may be on the other side of that
+rise in the plains," returned Larry.
+
+Anxiously the three boys gazed toward the crest.  The thought that
+they might be close upon the very men they were chasing startled
+them, and they were at a loss as to the best thing to do.
+
+"If it is the raiders and the cattle Blackhawk scented, then
+they'll be on the lookout for us," murmured Tom.  "They could hear
+that whinny for----"
+
+"By jove! it is they," cried Larry excitedly.  "See those horses'
+ears bobbing?" And he pointed to the south.
+
+Following his finger, his companions beheld two sharp points
+steadily advancing from the farther side of the crest.
+
+"Be ready to give it to 'em," breathed Horace, at the same time
+unslinging his rifle.
+
+But before he could get it to his shoulder the head of the horse
+came into view and the next instant the head and shoulders of a man.
+
+In a flash the chums seized their rifles.
+
+The horseman was only about one hundred yards away, and as he
+caught sight of the rifles pointed toward him he pulled his pony to
+its haunches.
+
+"Throw up your hands!" yelled Horace.  "If you make a move, we'll
+drop you.  You are a prisoner of the Half-Moon Ranch!"
+
+As the horseman heard the name he shouted:
+
+"Steady, there! I'm Jim Jeffreys.  What are you up to, anyhow?"
+
+"Who's Jim Jeffreys?" demanded Larry of Horace.
+
+"He's one of our neighbors, if it's him."
+
+"Well, don't you know?  Can't you recognize him?"
+
+Having recovered from his fright, the boy stared at the man who had
+caused it and then announced:
+
+"Yes, it is Jim."
+
+"It's a pity you couldn't have recognized him before!" snapped Tom
+as he and his brother lowered their rifles.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI
+
+WHAT JEFFREYS KNEW
+
+Jeffreys, as soon as he understood his identity had been
+established, leaped his pony toward the boys and was soon beside
+them.
+
+"You are a fine lot to be packing rifles!" he snorted, his anger
+rising as the danger passed.  "You may think it's a good joke to
+cover anybody you meet on the plains, but some one may turn the
+joke on you by firing before you get your aim.  You aren't what you
+call 'quick on the trigger.'"
+
+"Which is fortunate for you--in this case," declared Larry,
+resenting the manner and tone of the stranger.
+
+The sight of the two serious-faced boys, whose eyes showed them to
+be keen and alert, brought Jeffreys to his senses.
+
+"I reckon you're right," he exclaimed.  "But what's up, Horace?  If
+you and your friends are out for a little excitement, just take my
+tip and turn your attention to jumping a coyote or you may----"
+
+"We are not after excitement," retorted the boy from the Half-Moon
+Ranch.  "We don't have to go looking for it.  We've got all we
+want.  Some of Megget's gang have raided our herd."
+
+"No?  It must have been them I saw over near the hills early this
+morning."
+
+"Where were they?"  "Which way were they going?"  "How many were
+there of them?" demanded the lads, each one asking a question.
+
+"It was just after sun-up.  I was too far away to recognize the
+cattle, but I counted four men.  As they only had about fifty head
+with 'em, I sort of suspected something was wrong, so I got out of
+sight before they could see me.  Leastways, if they did, they
+didn't make any move to get me."
+
+"Where have you been?"
+
+"I've been up in the hills for a few days prospecting."
+
+"Did you find the mine?" inquired Tom, forgetting the raid and
+pursuit in his eagerness to learn about the Lost Lode.
+
+"No, I didn't.  I just learned another trail, which isn't the right
+one."
+
+Larry, however, was more interested in the cattle thieves and
+brought the conversation back to them.
+
+
+"Were the men near the hills when you saw them?" he asked.
+
+"About a quarter of a mile away."
+
+"Then come on.  We must get to the hills so we can find their
+trail," declared Horace.
+
+"You kids sure ain't going after 'em alone?" exclaimed Jeffreys
+incredulously.
+
+"But if there are only four of them?"
+
+"To you three, and they are men, don't forget that."
+
+"But you'll make four," suggested Tom.
+
+"Providing I was going with you, which I ain't, I'd like to, but I
+reckon I'd better ride back to my own ranch and see they haven't
+lifted any of my cattle.  If they have, I'll get my boys and take
+up the trail."
+
+Realizing from the expressions on their faces that the lads were
+surprised as well as disappointed at his refusal to accompany them,
+the horseman said:
+
+"You all just take my advice and don't try to follow those raiders
+into the mountains.  What you want to do is to find Wilder and
+Snider as quick as you can, providing you won't go back to your
+ranch, where you ought to be."
+
+"Which you can bet your whole outfit we won't!" snapped Horace.
+"We started on this chase and we're going to stay on it."
+
+Jeffreys smiled at the determined manner of the young rancher,
+
+"Then join your father as soon as you can.  Don't try any fool
+stunt like going into the mountains.  Remember, when you are on the
+prairie you can sec on all sides of you."
+
+"Except when you're behind a crest," chuckled Tom.
+
+At this reference to the recent contretemps Jeffreys frowned,
+started to say something and instead dug his spurs into his pony,
+galloping away without even so much as looking back.
+
+"He's a fine neighbor--not," declared Larry as the trio resumed
+their way.  "I should have thought he would be only too glad to
+help your father and Mr. Snider get back their cattle."
+
+"He isn't very keen for the Half-Moon," rejoined Horace.  "Father
+beat him in a law case over a boundary line once and he's never
+forgotten it."
+
+"And I reckon he won't forget his meeting with us to-day," said
+Tom, grinning.
+
+At the memory of the reception they had given, Jeffreys the
+comrades had a hearty laugh.
+
+"Still, he gave us some good advice," asserted Larry.  "I agree
+with him that the thing for us is to find the Half-Moon and Three
+Stars crowd as soon as we can."
+
+"Which seems to be a pretty big order in itself," mused Tom.  "I
+say we go and see where they drove the cattle into the hills and
+then decide."
+
+This suggestion met with no opposition, and as the boys rode toward
+the mountains, the wooded sides of which looked inviting because of
+the relief they promised from the torrid heat of the plains, they
+discussed various plans, only to discard them.
+
+At last they reached the hills.  Dismounting, they hobbled their
+ponies, removed the saddles and bridles sticky with lather, and
+then broke out some lunch which they ate ravenously, despite the
+fact that their mouths were almost parched.
+
+Greatly refreshed by the food, the boys decided to follow the trail
+of the cattle till they could get some idea of its direction.
+
+"Let's go on foot," suggested Tom.  "The ponies will be all right,
+the rest will do them good, and we can get through the brush and
+over the rocks with less noise."
+
+Readily his companions agreed, and picking up their rifles, they
+quickly found the tracks made by the cattle.
+
+For some distance the trail seemed more like an abandoned wood road
+than anything else.  But gradually it began to grow narrower and at
+last became no more than a path winding in and out among the rocks.
+
+Several times some sound caused the boys to raise their guns to
+their shoulders and peer about in all directions, but nothing could
+they see save the trees and rocks, and they ascribed the noises to
+some denizen of the forest roaming about.
+
+Of a sudden Tom, who was in the lead, stopped.
+
+"I smell something awful queer," he whispered.
+
+The trail wound along the edge of a sharp descent and just ahead
+was an abrupt turn.
+
+Ere either Larry or Horace could reply to their companion's
+announcement all three were dumb-founded to see a big, shaggy brown
+head appear round the turn in the trail.
+
+"It's a bear!" gasped Horace.
+
+At the sight of the three boys the big head had paused in surprise.
+Then its lips began to curl, disclosing a wicked looking set of
+teeth, and finally it broke into a savage snarl, at the same time
+rising in the air.
+
+"He's getting to his hind legs.  That means fight!" breathed
+Horace.  "Come on, let's run!"
+
+"But he'd overtake us and beat us down with his paws," returned
+Larry.  "We've got to kill him."
+
+Less time did the action consume than is required to describe it,
+and the boys were standing terror stricken when the bear charged
+upon them, making vicious lunges at them with his huge paws.
+
+Roused from his fright by the imminence of his peril, Tom raised
+his rifle, only to have it knocked from his hands by a swing of one
+of the bear's paws.
+
+[Illustration: The rifle was knocked from his hand.]
+
+"Drop down! drop down so I can shoot!" yelled Larry as he saw the
+desperate situation in which his brother was placed.
+
+Instantly Tom obeyed, throwing himself to one side as he fell.
+
+But as the younger of the brothers dropped the bear, as though
+singling him out for his particular antagonist, also dropped to all
+fours, and Larry's shot went over him.
+
+Horace, however, shot lower, and a terrible roar told them that the
+bullet had struck home.
+
+In the fury of his pain the bear seemed to think that the boy lying
+flat on the rocks was the cause of his suffering, and, with mouth
+distended, charged upon him.
+
+In a frenzy lest they might not be able to save Tom, Larry and
+Horace both fired.
+
+At the impact of the bullets the bear rose on his hind legs, swung
+wildly with his paws at the steel barrels that were pouring the
+terribly painful things into him and fell prone, the huge carcass
+missing Tom by less than a foot.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII
+
+LOST!
+
+From the moment when his brother had cried to him to drop, Tom had
+kept his eyes on the bear, and when he saw the beast plunge forward
+and realized that it was dead, he leaped to his feet, his pale face
+telling of the awful strain under which he had been.
+
+The reaction from their excitement made Larry and Horace tremble
+and, for the time, they could only look from their companion to the
+carcass of the bear, too unnerved to speak.
+
+Tom was the first to recover from the fright, and he thanked the
+others for what they had done.
+
+"Let's not talk about it," interposed Larry.  "The thing for us to
+do is to get out of here lively.  The reverberations from those
+shots are echoing yet.  The raiders must have heard them, and
+they'll know some one is on their trail, so they will either come
+back to sec who it is or else hide to waylay us."
+
+Tom and Horace were perfectly willing to give up following the
+trail farther, and all three were retracing their steps when the
+elder of the chums cried:
+
+"The rifle!  Tom, you forgot to pick up your rifle."
+
+"Which shows I was some scared," and he smiled apologetically.
+
+"But it's a worse one on Larry and me," protested Horace.  "There's
+some excuse for you.  But the bear wasn't charging us."
+
+"Oh, well there's no harm done," returned Larry, pleased at the
+spirit Horace's words showed.  "We can go back and get it.  It's a
+mighty good thing, though, that we thought of It before we reached
+the ponies.  From the looks of the sky and the shadows it won't be
+long before dusk, and Mr. Wilder told us night comes quickly in the
+mountains."
+
+Ere Larry had finished speaking they had started back to the scene
+of their encounter.
+
+Yet when they reached the spot Tom's rifle was nowhere to be seen.
+
+In dismay the boys looked at one another.  Already the mountains
+were turning purple-black in the twilight, the shadows transforming
+the trees and rocks into weird figures.
+
+"Perhaps it's under the bear," hazarded Horace, his low voice
+evidencing the awe which the silence and the surroundings inspired
+in him.
+
+"Then give a hand while we move him," commanded Larry.  "It won't
+do to stay here long or we may lose our way as well as the rifle."
+
+Little relishing the thought of wandering through the woods in the
+dark, the boys seized one of the paws and pulled with all their
+might.
+
+But, to their surprise, they could move the carcass scarcely at all.
+
+"My, but he's a monster!" gasped Larry.  "It's only a waste of
+valuable time to try to lift him or even move him.  The only thing
+we can do is to try to feel under him with our hands."
+
+Dropping to their knees, the lads thrust their arms under the
+shaggy fur, being able to reach far; enough to make sure that the
+much-wanted rifle was not beneath the body of the bear.
+
+"Bet he knocked it over the cliff," declared Horace.  "From which
+side did he strike it, Tom?"
+
+"More than I know.  All I could see was paws.  The air was full of
+them and they seemed to come from all directions at once."
+
+This explanation brought laughter to Larry and Horace, which ceased
+abruptly, however, as from somewhere on the mountains there
+suddenly rang out a low wail, more like the howl of a coyote than
+anything else, yet with a certain difference that even the chums
+were able to distinguish.
+
+"Whatever that is, I don't care to meet it," exclaimed Horace.
+"Let's go back.  We've still got two rifles.  If we stick to the
+plains till we join father we can get along all right."
+
+"Suppose we don't meet your father, what then?" returned Larry.
+
+"Always looking for more trouble, as if we didn't have enough
+already," chided Tom.  "Of course we'll meet him.  Anyhow, this is
+no place to argue about it.  If you and Horace can't protect me,
+I'll take both your rifles and watch over the two of you."
+
+There was a suggestion of mockery in Tom's voice, but taking it
+good naturedly, Larry replied:
+
+"Oh, no you won't.  You can't throw your gun away every time you
+get scared and then take ours from us.  You just get in between
+Horace and me.  Horace, you lead because you know how to follow a
+trail better, and I'll keep off the bears and raiders," he added
+with a smile.
+
+The movements of the boys, however, were more rapid than their
+words, and they were traveling the trail once more ere Larry's
+joking allusion to the loss of the rifle and the protection he
+would afford.
+
+So long as their way lay among the rocks they followed the trail
+with little difficulty, but when they entered the woods their
+troubles began in earnest.
+
+None too self-possessed in the dark, even when going about the
+ranch, when he entered the inky darkness caused by the maze of
+boughs and foliage, Horace lost his head completely, and it did not
+take the comrades long to realize they had wandered from the trail.
+
+"Better let me take the lead, Horace; I'm taller," said Larry, at
+the same time giving his brother a poke In the ribs as a warning
+not to object.
+
+"Well, you'll have to be a giraffe to see your way over the tops of
+these trees," chuckled Tom.
+
+Their plight was too serious to admit of jest, however, and after
+wandering for half an hour, stumbling over dead limbs and running
+into trees and branches, they halted in despair.
+
+"I remember Si told us back home that when a man's lost he
+generally travels in a circle," said Tom.
+
+"So he did, and he said It was usually to the left, because a man
+takes a longer step with his right foot," added Larry.
+
+"That may help when you know which is the right and which is the
+left of the way you have been going, but here we've turned round to
+talk, so we don't even know that much," interposed Horace.
+
+"That's a fact," admitted the elder of the chums reluctantly as he
+realized that by facing one another they had lost all sense of
+direction.  "It's a good thing you thought of it, Horace, or we
+might have got ourselves into a worse mess than we're in now,"
+
+"If it weren't for all that good food cooked by Hop Joy back with
+the horses and the fact that I'm hungry, I'd be in favor of staying
+right where we are till morning," announced Tom.
+
+"I reckon that is the best thing we can do, anyhow," declared his
+brother.
+
+"Not with my appetite," retorted Tom.
+
+"This is no time to be funny," reprimanded Larry.  "If we keep on
+moving, we may never get out, while if we stay here we can climb
+into one of these trees and be safe till daylight shows us----"
+
+"By jove! That's the very thing!" exclaimed the younger of the
+chums, and there was such a tone of genuine enthusiasm in his voice
+that the others asked excitedly:
+
+"What?"
+
+"Why, the trees.  We won't need to sleep in them.  By climbing a
+tall one, we can get the lay of the land as soon as moonlight
+comes, which will show us at least how to get out onto the plains
+again."
+
+"Hooray!" cried Larry and Horace together.
+
+Each realized the plan was feasible, provided the night was not
+cloudy, and once on the prairie it would not be difficult for the
+young rancher to lead the way to the horses.  And, although they
+knew that the moon would not rise for two hours at least, they were
+so eager to try the plan that they began to discuss who should be
+the one to do the climbing.
+
+The two brothers claimed preference because they were both stronger
+and taller than their companion, but Horace silenced them by
+declaring that not only could he go higher because he was lighter,
+but that he would be able to recognize their whereabouts from his
+knowledge of the mountains.
+
+Restraining their impatience as best they could, the boys sat down.
+
+"When we do get out, which way shall we go to join Mr. Wilder and
+the others?" asked Larry.
+
+This question started further discussion.  One suggestion after
+another was made only to be rejected because of some obstacle, and
+finally they decided the safest thing to do would be to ride till
+they found the trail over which the cattle had been driven from the
+bottoms and follow that.
+
+Soon Horace climbed a convenient tree.
+
+"We sure are dubs!" he cried.
+
+"Why?  Is the moon up?" asked the two chums eagerly..
+
+"No, the moon isn't up.  I don't need it.  The stars are bright
+enough.  We've been sitting here fretting all this while within a
+hundred yards of the prairie!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII
+
+A MYSTERIOUS CALL
+
+Horace and Larry having picked up their rifles, the three boys
+resumed their way, Larry leading slowly, taking care to make his
+steps of as nearly equal length as possible, and in due time they
+came onto the prairie.
+
+"My, but this stretch of level does look good," declared Tom, and
+his companions expressed their hearty agreement as they hastened
+toward the spot where they left their ponies.
+
+Finding them without difficulty, the lads broke out the food and
+ate ravenously,
+
+"Hey, go easy on the grub," cautioned Larry as he noted the amount
+his companions were eating.  "This is all we have to last us until
+we meet the others--or get back to the ranch," he added as the
+thought recurred to him that luck would play a large part in the
+success of their search for the pursuing party.
+
+"You can go easy if you like.  So long as there's anything to eat,
+I am going to eat," returned his brother.  "Don't worry.  We won't
+starve.  If worse comes to worse, I can get you some deer meat,
+provided you'll lend me your rifle."
+
+"Or I can get you some mountain lion meat," added Horace.
+
+"I notice neither of you mention bear meat," chuckled the elder of
+the chums.
+
+"Because it doesn't agree with us," returned Tom, and at this
+allusion to their recent adventure they all laughed merrily.
+
+In delight at the extrication from their dilemma the boys chatted
+and joked as they repacked the saddle bags, unhobbled their ponies
+and prepared to resume riding.
+
+"There's only one thing that could, add to my happiness," remarked
+Larry as he swung onto Lightning's back.
+
+"What's that?" Inquired his companions.
+
+"About a gallon of drinking water."
+
+"I'm some thirsty, too," said Horace, "but I don't know of a place
+where there is any water."
+
+"Then we'll leave it to the horses," asserted Tom.  "Mr. Wilder
+told me they would always locate water if there was any about.
+From the way Blackhawk acts, I think he scents some."
+
+"Scents water!" sneered Horace.
+
+"Just you wait and see," retorted the younger of the comrades, and
+giving free rein to his pony, he let him nose along through the
+grass for some distance when the animal turned abruptly and entered
+the woods, stopping beside a brook.
+
+"You'd better appoint me guide and captain of this company," smiled
+the boy as they dismounted and drank greedily of the cool water.
+
+"You'd be a fine captain without a gun," retorted Larry, and in
+high spirits they remounted.
+
+For a time the boys had the moon for company, but toward, midnight
+clouds gathered in the sky and a chilly wind began to blow.
+
+"How about pitching camp pretty soon?" suggested Larry.
+
+"Wait till we get to Elkhorn River," answered Horace".
+
+"How far is that?  I didn't suppose there was such a thing in these
+plains."
+
+"Oh, I should say it was fifteen miles from here," returned the
+young rancher.  "It isn't much of a river, but it's better than
+none."
+
+"Wouldn't ride fifteen--Hello! What's that glow in the sky right
+next the mountains?" exclaimed Tom, pointing to where a faint glare
+was visible against the dark background of trees.
+
+"It's a fire," asserted Horace, "a camp fire.  You can tell by the
+steadiness of the light."
+
+Excitedly they speculated as to whose it could be.
+
+"If it's raiders, we want to know it.  Perhaps we can round up some
+of them," declared Horace.
+
+And urging their ponies into a gallop, the boys rode forward.
+
+When they were near enough to distinguish the flames they
+dismounted, hobbled their horses in the underbrush and approached
+on foot.
+
+No sign of man or beast could they see, and their curiosity was
+further aroused.
+
+"Stoop down so your heads are In the grass," admonished Horace.
+"It may be they have seen us and are hiding among the trees.  Don't
+make any noise and stick close together."
+
+Crouching low, the trio advanced stealthily.  Nearer and nearer
+they drew, yet no sound could they hear.  Consumed with curiosity,
+Horace suddenly stood up, determined to learn if any one were
+sleeping beside the fire.
+
+Yet no sooner had he risen than a command rang out:
+
+"Throw up your hands!"
+
+The two brothers, ignorant of their companion's action, gasped at
+the words.  But Horace let out a whoop of joy.
+
+"Hooray!  It's father and the boys," he cried so loud that
+instantly a dozen figures bounded from about the fire.
+
+"Well, if it ain't them kids!" ejaculated Pete, who had been on
+guard.  "It's lucky you recognized my voice, Horace."
+
+By this time Tom and Larry had straightened up and all three were
+hastening toward the camp fire, thinking only of their good fortune
+in finding their friends.
+
+"Horace, what does this mean?" demanded his father sternly.  "I
+told you to stay at home, and yet we haven't been gone but
+twenty-four hours and you come tagging along."
+
+But the severity of his father did not dismay the young rancher.
+Looking straight at him, the boy hastily told of the ride to the
+pool and the discovery that more cattle had been driven away.
+
+The information excited the cowboys greatly, and emphatic were
+their opinions of the daring of the thieves in making another raid
+and within a few hours after the men pursuing them had set out.
+
+"They probably were watching us all the time," asserted the owner
+of the Three Stars.
+
+"Probably," agreed Mr. Wilder.  "But what have you boys been doing
+since you learned of the raid?  You could almost walk your ponies
+from the pool to here in all this time."
+
+Before any of them could reply, however, a long, low wail rang out.
+Surprised, the men glanced at one another,
+
+"That sounds like a coyote, but it ain't," asserted Pete.
+
+Again the cry broke on the air and was repeated twice.
+
+"Why, it's the very same sound we heard in the mountains!"
+exclaimed Larry.  And his companions confirmed him.
+
+"The same cry you heard in the mountains?" repeated Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Yes, sir," and in a few words the elder of the brothers related
+their adventures.
+
+"Then it's a signal," declared Pete.  "You boys have been followed.
+It's a mighty good thing we were camping here."
+
+"Those cries came from the plains.  Mebbe it's the thieves going
+for more cattle," declared Sandy.
+
+"We'll find out what it is.  Everybody to horse!" commanded Mr.
+Wilder.  "Pete, three or four of you go with Horace and the Aldens
+to get their ponies.  We'll ride up and join you."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX
+
+A TERRIBLE PLOT
+
+Quickly the men ran to the woods where they had concealed their
+ponies, unhobbled, saddled and mounted them, riding along till they
+came to where Pete and the boys were.
+
+"Which way shall we go?" inquired Sandy when all were In their
+saddles.  "That cry came from straight ahead of us on the plains,
+according to my judgment."
+
+Pete and the other cowboys agreed with him, and, trusting to their
+sense of direction, the owner of the Half-Moon said:
+
+"Then we'll ride due east.  Spread out abreast.  The more ground we
+can cover the better."
+
+"But don't get too far apart," interposed the rancher from the
+Three Stars.  "Keep close enough together so you can see the man on
+your right."
+
+Rapidly were these commands given, and within fifteen minutes after
+the mysterious calls had startled them the twenty-three horsemen
+were advancing over the prairie, eyes and ears alert for sound or
+sight of the men who had uttered the signals, the two Eastern boys
+and Horace riding between Mr. Wilder and Pete at the southern end
+of the line.
+
+But for once Sandy's ears had played him false.  Ignorant of the
+psychological fact that only when a man's head is turned can he
+correctly judge the direction of sound, it being impossible to
+distinguish between a sound coming from directly in front or
+behind, the foreman of the Three Stars Ranch had been deceived
+because he had been looking straight ahead out into the prairie.
+And instead of riding toward the men who had roused them by their
+cries, each bound of the horses was carrying them farther away.
+
+When Larry and his companions had met the bear, the four raiders
+with the cattle Jeffreys had seen were only about two miles in
+advance of them.  As the boys had thought, the reverberations of
+the shots had reached the ears of the men at the rear of the cattle
+and they had uttered the wail as a signal to those ahead, jumping
+to the conclusion that they were being followed.
+
+Making use of their knowledge of the mountains, the raiders had
+hurriedly driven the cattle into the forest, where they would be
+out of sight and so could not give warning of the whereabouts of
+the thieves, and had then hidden themselves behind some rocks along
+the trail.  From their ambuscade they would be able to shoot down
+their pursuers or capture them as they felt inclined.
+
+But as the reader knows, the boys doubled on their trail and so
+divided the trap.
+
+After waiting till dark without any sign of pursuers, the raiders
+grew fearsome.
+
+"We've got to find out for sure whether it's somebody on our trail
+or just some one that is hunting," declared one of them, who, if
+the two brothers could have seen him, they would have recognized as
+Gus Megget.
+
+"Considering we've waited more than two hours and no one has showed
+up, I say we ought to push onto the Lode, Gus," asserted another.
+
+"How can we drive cattle over this trail in the dark?" growled the
+chief of the raiders.  "You ought to have more sense, seeing the
+trouble we've had to get them as far as this in the daylight."
+
+"So long as we can't drive, we might just as well go back and find
+out who's been shooting."
+
+Realizing that it was futile to urge their leader to change his
+mind, the other raiders sullenly acquiesced, and, emerging from
+their places of concealment, went into the woods to get their
+horses and were soon riding stealthily back over the trail.
+
+Though they dared not refuse to go, the men, however, were not
+backward in expressing their disapproval of the move, declaring
+that they were tempting disaster by returning when they had made so
+successful a start.
+
+But Megget paid no attention to their grumblings and soon his
+companions lapsed into silence.
+
+Fate, however, which had saved the two brothers and the young
+rancher from stumbling into the ambush, was still favoring them.
+
+For when the raiders reached the edge of the prairie Megget ordered
+a halt that they might eat, and when again they resumed their ride
+the boys were far on their way toward the spot where they met their
+friends.
+
+Not long did it take their pursuers to discover the place where the
+three had eaten and then to find the direction in which they had
+departed.
+
+"What's the use of following any farther, Gus?" demanded one of
+them.  "So long as they have ridden to the south, and there are
+only three of them, anyhow, we are in no danger."
+
+But with a blind obstinacy the leader of the cattle thieves
+persisted in continuing the pursuit, and set the pace at a fast
+gallop.
+
+In due course of time, as the boys before them, they discovered the
+glare from the camp fire.
+
+"We'll ride into the mountains, dismount and then find out who it
+is that has the fire," declared Megget.
+
+"You're playing with trouble, Gus," protested his companions.
+"From what I know of Wilder, he won't let a bunch of his cattle be
+lifted without doing something.  That may be his fire."
+
+"All the more reason why we should go to it--to make sure," snapped
+the leader of the raiders.  "Wilder is a fool or he wouldn't leave
+his herd unguarded at the Witches' Pool."
+
+"You'll find he's smarter than you think.  I'll bet all my share of
+these raids will come to that the only reason the herd was alone
+was because his whole outfit is on the trail from the bottoms,"
+asserted another.
+
+"Well, the boys can take care of 'em if they are.  I said I was
+going to find out who built that fire, and I'm going to."  And
+without more ado, the leader of the raiders dashed into the woods.
+
+Riding cautiously among the trees until he thought he was about
+back of the fire Megget gave the word to dismount.
+
+A short distance to the south and above them was a ledge from which
+they would be able to command a view of the camp fire, and rapidly
+the raiders made their way to It.
+
+What they saw when they reached the top and gazed down caused them
+to exclaim in amazement.
+
+The cowboys were saddling their ponies, and instead of the three
+men they had expected to discover, Megget and his companions saw a
+dozen.
+
+"That's the Half-Moon bunch!" declared one of them.
+
+"There are too many of them," asserted another.  "We're in a pretty
+mess now.  Those three men we followed have evidently informed them
+of finding our trail and they are starting to pick it up."
+
+"Don't you worry about that," growled Megget.  And before his
+companions were aware what he intended to do, he uttered the calls
+that caused the ranch owners and cowboys to start out into the
+prairie.
+
+Eagerly the raiders watched them disappear and Megget chuckled:
+
+"I thought I could fool 'em.  It's easy when you are above any
+one."  And then he added: "You'll wish you had never started after
+me, Wilder!"
+
+Wondering at their leader's meaning, his fellows had no chance to
+ask, however, for even as he spoke Megget was descending from the
+ledge.
+
+Arriving at the camp fire, he glanced about for a few moments, then
+sent his men for the horses.
+
+As soon as he was sure he was alone, the leader of the raiders
+walked out on the plains, paused, wet his finger in his mouth, then
+raised his hand above his head.
+
+"Great!  I'm sure playing in luck," he muttered to himself.  "The
+wind is blowing from the west--straight out across the plains."
+And chuckling grimly, the cattle thief returned to the fire to
+await the horses.
+
+Mounting quickly when they arrived, Megget gave a curt order for
+his own men to follow and galloped in the same direction the ranch
+owners and cowboys had taken.
+
+At the end of a quarter of a mile he drew rein and again went
+through the performance of wetting his finger and raising it above
+his head, murmuring more to himself than his pals:
+
+"I didn't know but that the hills might have changed the direction
+of the wind.
+
+"Here, you," he added, turning to his men, "two of you ride a mile
+up and Squinty and I'll ride south.  When I give the call, fire the
+grass and then ride for the trail and drive the cattle to the mine.
+I'll cut across and warn Vasquez and the others."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX
+
+THE PRAIRIE FIRE
+
+As his men heard the words and realized their significance, they
+glanced at their leader and then at one another.
+
+Yet none of them moved.
+
+"Are you deaf?" roared Megget.  "Do as I say--and lively.  Squinty,
+come with me."  And clapping spurs to his pony, he dashed southward.
+
+Fearing to disobey, the two raiders delegated to ride to the north
+started.  But as soon as they were out of earshot one of them said:
+
+"Megget can fire the prairie if he wants to, I won't.  I'm none too
+stuck on cattle raiding, anyhow, but when it comes to starting a
+fire that will probably wipe out the Half-Moon outfit and perhaps
+even the herd, Bobby Lawrence balks!"
+
+"Showing the white feather, eh?" snarled his companion.  "I warned
+Gus you wasn't any good, but he wouldn't believe me.  You'll do
+what he says, though, as long as you're with Red Ike!"
+
+Red Ike was a giant in strength, the bully of the gang, and
+Lawrence had seen too much of him to care to risk an encounter with
+him, so with a growl he said:
+
+"All right.  Lead the way."
+
+"Not much.  I'll ride beside you, so you won't come any tricks."
+
+But though Lawrence had appeared to yield, it was only as a matter
+of policy, and his determination not to fire the prairie was as
+firm as before.  Yet how he could prevent it, he was at a loss to
+determine until suddenly he remembered that Red Ike had asked him
+for a match that afternoon.
+
+As the thought flashed through his mind that his companion had no
+means for carrying out Megget's instructions Lawrence put his hand
+to his belt, where he carried his tobacco outfit, and quickly
+unloosening it, let it fall into the grass.
+
+None too soon was his action, for even as he opened his hand to let
+go of the pouch that held his pipe, tobacco and cigarette papers
+Red Ike snapped:
+
+"I reckon we've gone a mile." And as he turned to look back the
+signal sounded, and in a trice he saw the flames, set by his
+leader, leap in the air.
+
+"Quick, Gus has touched off!" he cried, then added as he felt in
+vain for any matches, "Gimme some of your fire-sticks, mine are all
+gone."
+
+Suppressing the smile that came to his face at the words, for
+Lawrence bad feared his companion might have obtained a supply from
+one of the others, he replied:
+
+"Can't.  I haven't any."
+
+"What?" roared Red Ike.  "You can't come any such game on me.  You
+had plenty this afternoon.  Hand 'em over--and be lively!"
+
+As he spoke the bully edged his pony closer to the other.
+
+Lawrence, however, only repeated his statement calmly.
+
+"You won't gimme them, eh? Then I'll take 'em myself."  And like a
+flash his powerful fist shot out, striking his companion under the
+right side of his jaw with such terrific force that it lifted him
+from the saddle.
+
+Springing to the ground, Red Ike roughly searched the motionless
+body, and when he found that the tobacco pouch was indeed gone he
+realized the trick that Lawrence had played.
+
+For a moment the baffled raider glowered upon the man who had
+outwitted him.  Then his attention was distracted by the sound of
+hoof beats and, turning, he beheld the two horses racing toward the
+hills, having taken fright at the flames leaping over the plains.
+And never thinking of the man he had unhorsed, Red Ike dashed after
+them.
+
+Advancing cautiously, the ranch owners and their men were beginning
+to wonder if they could have mistaken the direction of the signals
+when they heard the call again.
+
+"That's back of us," declared Pete.
+
+Instantly the others turned in their saddles, and as they did so
+the flames bounded into the air.
+
+"They fooled us good and plenty!" growled Nails, while all the boys
+glared at the foreman of the Three Stars Ranch.
+
+"They did," asserted Mr. Wilder grimly, "but it's no use talking
+about it now.  We've got all we can do to get away from the fire."
+
+In terror the boy chums watched the flames spread as if by magic
+till in a few minutes a towering wall of fire was racing toward
+them.
+
+"Shall we start a back fire?" asked Bill.
+
+"No use," returned several of the cowboys, "the wind's in the wrong
+direction."
+
+"Then we've got to ride for it," asserted Snider.
+
+Well did the cowboys realize the danger, and with might and main
+they urged their ponies, each one bent only on saving himself.
+
+For a time the two brothers and Horace kept pace with them, but
+they were not skilled in the fine art of getting the most out of
+their ponies when the animals began to tire, and it was not long
+before they found themselves dropping behind.
+
+"Wait for us!" shouted Horace as he noticed the distance that
+separated them constantly increasing.
+
+For a moment it seemed to the terrified lads that their cry had not
+been heard, yet just when they began to despair three horses
+dropped behind, and as the boys came up with them they recognized
+the two ranch owners and Pete.
+
+"Take Horace, Pete; Snider, Tom; I'll take Larry," commanded Mr.
+Wilder, and each of the men leaped their horses to seize the bridle
+of the boy indicated.
+
+Not more than two miles behind them was the terrible wall of fire.
+In front of it coyotes and all other animals of the plains were In
+full flight, their cries of fear or pain as they fell victims to
+the all-devouring flames now and then rising above the sullen roar.
+
+"Oh, it's gaining! it's gaining!" wailed Horace.
+
+"Don't look behind.  Keep your eyes in front and _ride_!" commanded
+his father.
+
+Sparks borne by the wind began to fall all about, now and then
+starting blazes which the cowboys put out by beating with their
+blankets where they could, yet none checked his speed.  To the hot
+air was added smoke, and men and horses were breathing with
+difficulty, gasping and coughing.
+
+"If you've got handkerchiefs, jam them in your mouths!" cried
+Snider.
+
+Nearer, ever nearer drew the wall of flame.  It seemed to the chums
+that they must be breathing fire, so did the air burn their mouths.
+
+Time and again they swayed in their saddles and would have fallen
+had it not been for the men beside them, who had let go the bridles
+to steady the boys, at the same time rowelling their own mounts.
+
+Just when it seemed to the boys that the shirts on their backs
+would burst into flames a shout went up from in front:
+
+"The river! The river!"
+
+"One more spurt, everybody!"
+
+Gamely men, boys and horses responded.
+
+"Right over the bank!  Don't stop!" bellowed Pete.
+
+Ignorant of the height, caring little, eager only to gain the
+water, the boys felt their horses leap through the air and the next
+minute were sputtering and gasping as they sank below the surface
+of the river.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI
+
+A RIDE FOR LIFE
+
+Quickly the horses swam for the shore, and as the Elkhorn was only
+deep for a few rods, it was not many minutes before the cowboys
+were shaking and removing their wet garments.  But the boys were
+oblivious of their condition.
+
+In open-mouthed wonder they stared at the spectacle presented by
+the flames from whose devouring fury they had so narrowly escaped.
+
+The wall of fire had in reality been farther away than it had
+seemed.  For several minutes it advanced, the tongues of flames
+towering in the air.  A moment the livid wall paused as it reached
+the brink of the river, while jets of fire reached out as though
+striving to clutch the men who had escaped.  Then seemingly bent on
+overtaking them, the flames leaped over the edge, devouring the
+brush and grass to the water's edge, where, loath to admit defeat,
+the flames flickered uncertainly and then died away, leaving
+nothing but a pall of smoke to mark their course of destruction.
+
+"They came mighty near getting us that time," exclaimed Pete,
+looking back over the still glowing plains.
+
+"Too near," assented Mr. Wilder.  "But Megget's men will suffer for
+this trick, never fear."
+
+"They'll sure be surprised when they see us," chimed in the owner
+of the Three Stars.
+
+"That's just it," returned Mr. Wilder.  "Of course, they think we
+have perished in the flames, and when they see us riding in on them
+they will be so scared it will take all the fight out of them."
+
+None the worse for their experience, the cowboys were eager to be
+under way again that they might exact satisfaction upon the raiders
+for their unwilling flight.   But Mr. Wilder curbed their
+impatience by saying:
+
+"It's all right to want to get on the trail again, but if we should
+start now, while the plains are still hot, we run the risk of
+crippling some of our ponies.  We'll eat breakfast here and then in
+an hour I guess we can start.  What do you think, Jim?"
+
+"It will be all right to take grub and we can tell about the ground
+when we've eaten."
+
+Fate, however, was still on the side of the ranchers, for while
+they were at their meal it began to rain.
+
+With a shout the cowboys greeted the first drops, but their masters
+grew serious.
+
+"This rain will make it mighty hard to pick up the trail," observed
+the owner of the Three Stars.
+
+"But we won't need to search for it," interposed Tom.
+
+At his words all eyes were turned upon him, and Mr. Wilder voiced
+their sentiments by asking:
+
+"Why?"
+
+"Because I know the very place where Horace and Larry and I rode
+into the mountains.  I thought I might want to remember it, so I
+broke off some branches and cut a half moon in one of the trees
+with my jackknife."
+
+"That's all right, but why should we follow that trail?" demanded
+Bill.  "The men who set the fire were all of--how far, Horace, from
+Tom's trail?" and he looked at his brother.
+
+"A good twenty miles."
+
+"Why should we ride twenty miles when we can start right in at the
+hills back where the fire started?" continued Bill.
+
+Some of the cowboys laughed at this seeming evidence of Tom's lack
+of understanding of the situation, but the younger of the chums had
+his good reasons, as he quickly proved by replying:
+
+"Because that is where they drove fifty cattle in.  Mr. Jeffreys
+said it was a short cut.  Besides, it stands to reason the men
+wouldn't have gone that way unless the trail led to the mine where
+they could join the rest of the gang.  I may be from the East," and
+he glanced at the boys who had laughed at him, "but I'm not so much
+of a tenderfoot as not to know four men aren't going on a pleasure
+trip with a herd of fifty steers."
+
+"I reckon the kid is right," said the owner of the Half-Moon after
+the merriment this jibe evoked had subsided.  "Even if the
+'rustlers' didn't know we had started when they lifted the cattle
+from the pool, they'd know something was up when all the boys were
+away and that we could follow the trail to the mountains.
+Consequently, they being only four, would take the shortest route
+to join the main body."
+
+"That argument would have been all right before the fire, Jim, but
+things are different now," rejoined Bill.
+
+"Certain.  But the difference is the raiders will take more time in
+driving the cattle in the thought that there's no one to pursue 'em
+till the fact of the prairie fire reaches Tolopah."
+
+"And then that bow-legged sheriff will set out," grunted Skinny.
+"He couldn't catch a prairie dog.  There's only one man I'd like to
+see on the job besides the bunch we've got here."
+
+"Name him," cried several of the cowboys.
+
+"Shorty Jenks."
+
+"Why, that's our friend!" exclaimed Tom and Larry.
+
+"I don't know about his being a friend of yours, but there's
+nothing on two or four legs he's afraid of.  And he's great on
+tricks.  He'd think up a scheme in no time to land Megget."
+
+"I think Tom's idea is the right one," said Mr. Wilder.  "By riding
+that trail we can reach the Lost Lode probably in a few hours,
+while it might take days to find where the gang that set fire rode
+into the hills.  This rain has cooled off the ground, so we can
+start right away."
+
+No direct command to pack the food and saddle up did the cowboys
+need and as day dawned they again entered the Elkhorn River.
+
+Tom had been provided with an extra rifle Mr. Wilder had been
+carrying and great care did he and the other lads take to keep
+their arms and ammunition from getting wet a second time.
+
+Arrived at the top of the bank from which they had leaped to
+safety, the party beheld a long stretch of blackened ground.  As
+far as they could see, it stretched away to the north and in width
+it was about four miles.
+
+"Why didn't it burn everything, instead of cutting a sort of path?"
+asked Larry after a survey of the scene.
+
+"That's one of the things you can't explain," replied the owner of
+the Three Stars.  "It just don't, that's all.  Of course, the wind
+has to be right--that is, stay in the same direction as when the
+fire was started.  And when it does you can count on the fire's
+following pretty close to its lines.  You see this one was set in a
+sort of semi-circle, with the ends burning toward one another.  If
+you want a fire to spread, start it fan-shaped."
+
+"There's one way the fire helped us," said Horace.  "We can travel
+faster than we could through the grass, and it doesn't tire the
+horses so."
+
+"Just another proof it's an ill wind that doesn't do somebody
+good," quoted Mr. Wilder, smiling.
+
+"Maybe, but I'd rather go without the wind than have another
+experience like last night's," returned the owner of the Three
+Stars.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII
+
+LAWRENCE'S PLAN
+
+Realizing that they would be able to advance but slowly along the
+trail, giving their ponies a chance to rest, the men were riding a
+stiff lope.
+
+At first Mr. Wilder had insisted that the three youngest boys
+return to the ranch as soon as Tom had showed them the trail, but
+they had pleaded so hard, asserting they were entitled to accompany
+the pursuers because of their discovery of the trail, that he had
+finally consented, making the condition, however, that when they
+entered the hills the boys must ride next the rear, where in case
+of attack, they would not be in the brunt of it.
+
+Larry was following the edge of grass as they drew near the place
+where the fire had been started.  As his eyes roved over the
+billowy plains, they suddenly were attracted by a peculiar furrow
+that seemed to run through the grass like a channel.
+
+For the moment he was tempted to call the attention of the others
+to it, and then, fearing their ridicule, decided to find out what
+it was first.
+
+Accordingly he reined his pony to one side and was approaching the
+furrow when he was startled to hear a cry of delight:
+
+"I've got it!  I've got it!"
+
+Hastily unslinging his rifle, the elder of the chums pointed it in
+the direction whence the unexpected voice had come and shouted:
+
+"You there, in the grass!  Stand up before I count five or I'll----"
+
+But Larry had no occasion to complete his command.
+
+Unconscious that there was another soul within miles of him, the
+person addressed raised his head cautiously to see who had accosted
+him.
+
+"Stand up straight, I said!" ordered the boy.
+
+As the fellow obeyed, Mr. Wilder, Pete and the others, who had been
+almost as surprised at hearing Larry's words as the prisoner
+himself, dashed up, quickly followed by the cowboys.
+
+Intuitively each man felt they had captured one of the raiders, and
+without waiting for instructions, closed in on him in a circle,
+completely cutting off any chance for escape.
+
+"Who are you and what are you doing, sneaking along in the grass ?"
+demanded Mr. Wilder sternly.
+
+"I'm Bobby Lawrence, and I was hunting for my tobacco pouch,"
+returned the fellow, undaunted by the angry faces gazing at him.
+
+"That's the name of one of Megget's right-hand men," declared
+Nails.  "I found that out at Tolopah."
+
+With no gentle hands half a dozen of the cowboys searched Lawrence,
+taking from him his pistols and a long knife.
+
+When their prisoner was harmless Mr. Wilder resumed his questions.
+
+"Who set the fire last night?"
+
+"If I play fair with you, will you treat me square?" demanded
+Lawrence.
+
+"That depends," temporized the ranch owner.  "You belong to the
+gang that has been raiding my herds and last night tried to destroy
+us by fire.  You can't expect much leniency from us under the
+circumstances.  Still, if you give us any assistance in founding up
+Megget, we'll not forget it."
+
+"Well, I'll do all I can, honest I will, Mr. Wilder."
+
+"Don't trust him, Wilder," interposed the owner of the Three Stars,
+"When a man is so willing to turn on his pals, there's something
+wrong."
+
+"See here, Jim Snider, you keep out of this.  I'm talking to Mr.
+Wilder, not to you.  He's square.  If it was only you, all your
+ponies couldn't drag a word out of me!" snapped Lawrence.
+
+This retort angered the owner of the Three Stars, but before he
+could say anything the proprietor of the Half-Moon exclaimed:
+
+"If you can give me any reason why I should believe you, Lawrence,
+do so."
+
+"That's easy," returned the captive, and without wasting words, he
+related the incidents of the pursuit of the three boys, Megget's
+signals, the order to set the fire and his own action that alone
+had saved the herd at the pool from destruction.
+
+In silence, now looking at one another in amazement and then at the
+speaker, the cowboys listened.
+
+"That's a likely story, throwing your tobacco away," sneered Snider.
+
+"I believe it," announced Larry calmly.  "The only way I knew it
+was a man I'd discovered was because I heard him say twice I've
+found it.'"
+
+This confirmation of his words from the very one who had captured
+him gave Lawrence heart, and quick to see the advantage it gave
+him, he pressed it, saying:
+
+"There, you see, I'm telling you straight.  And everything else
+I've said is just as true."
+
+"Why didn't you strike for the hills when you recovered your
+senses?" asked Mr. Wilder.  "You would have been safe there, both
+from Megget and from us."
+
+"Because I wanted my tobacco."
+
+Whatever doubt was in the mind of the Half-Moon owner as to whether
+or not Lawrence had been telling the truth was dispelled by this
+answer.
+
+Indeed even the owner of the Three Stars was convinced by the
+answer, and after a whispered consultation with Mr. Wilder, the
+latter announced:
+
+"I have this proposition to make you, Lawrence.  Your act in
+refusing to obey Megget, which beyond doubt has saved my cattle at
+the pool, shows you are not thoroughly bad.  Therefore, if you will
+lead us by the shortest trail to the headquarters at the Lost Lode
+and help us round up Megget and his gang, I will give you a job on
+my ranch."
+
+For a moment Lawrence gazed at the ranchman as though unable to
+believe his ears, but the kindly light in Mr. Wilder's eyes
+reassured him and he replied:
+
+"Will I?  Say, Bobby Lawrence knows a white man when he meets one.
+Give me a horse and I'll have you at the Lost Lode before dark
+to-night!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII
+
+IN THE MOUNTAINS
+
+Openly the owner of the Three Stars objected to the proposition of
+providing the erstwhile raider with a pony.
+
+"If we're going to trust Lawrence to lead us to the mine, we can
+certainly trust him with a horse," declared Mr. Wilder.  "Horace,
+climb up behind Tom and let Lawrence have your mount."
+
+Quickly the change was made, and again the party advanced.
+
+"To think we were within two miles of meeting Megget again,"
+exclaimed Tom as they rode along.  "I'm afraid we would not have
+got away from him so well this time."
+
+As he heard the remark, Lawrence turned and looked the boy over
+from head to foot, finally saying with a smile:
+
+"So you are the lad Gus ran foul of up in Oklahoma?"
+
+"Yes, but my brother was with me."
+
+"Which is he?"
+
+"The one who found you."
+
+At this information Lawrence threw back his head and laughed
+heartily.  "My, but that is a good one," he ejaculated when he had
+recovered from his merriment.  "You tenderfeet make a monkey of Gus
+and then capture one of his men.  I'll let Gus know it was you who
+found me, if I never speak again.  It will make him more angry than
+anything else could."
+
+To their surprise, the ranchers learned that the Lost Lode was only
+about five miles from the plains and that it was at the foot of one
+of the mountains, instead of high up in them, with a splendid
+valley where the cattle could graze close beside it.
+
+"Why, I've ridden through that place at least twice," asserted Pete
+as he recognized Lawrence's description of the spot, "but never a
+sign of cattle or mine have I seen."
+
+"You noticed there was heavy woods on both sides, didn't you?"
+returned the former raider, smiling.
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, that explains why you didn't learn anything, though of
+course it might be that no cattle were in the valley when you
+struck it."
+
+This explanation only served to arouse the curiosity of the hearers
+the more.
+
+"The woods are the thing," he continued.  "Every time any one comes
+along, we drive the cattle into them and no one would think to look
+for the entrance to a mine among the trees."
+
+"But how does it happen you have never been taken by surprise?"
+queried Mr. Wilder.
+
+"Because when we had steers in the valley we always kept a lookout.
+There's a cliff just above the mine from which a man can see the
+trail for at least two miles."
+
+"Then won't some one discover us?" asked Bill.
+
+"Not if we hurry.  Every man jack of Megget's gang is out on this
+raid.  All we need to do is to get there first."
+
+"How about that fellow who was with you?" Bill inquired.  "Won't he
+be on the lookout?"
+
+"Who, Red Ike?  Not much.  He'll be too anxious to tell Gus about
+me.  He knows his chief was going to cut across to join Vasquez and
+the others, and he'll follow.  They'll be so tickled at the thought
+you all were lost in the fire they won't hurry much.  Still, if
+we're going to round them up, we must get there before dark
+to-night.  There's a spot just before you enter the valley where we
+can lie in wait and get them all."
+
+"No, that won't do," declared Mr. Wilder.  "I want to capture them
+without resorting to firearms, if possible.  While, of course, if
+it should be necessary, I would sanction shooting, I much prefer to
+take the men prisoners and turn them over to the sheriff and the
+law."
+
+At first Lawrence could scarcely believe his ears.  His creed had
+been force, supported by quick use of weapons, not law, and it
+seemed incredible to him that a man who had suffered from the raids
+of the cattle thieves should not take justice in his own hands when
+opportunity presented.  But he suddenly realized that he was
+dealing with a new kind of man that he had never been brought in
+contact with, an honorable man, and his admiration for the owner of
+the Half-Moon increased a hundredfold.
+
+Some time, however, was required to reconcile himself to his new
+scheme of life, but of a sudden he burst into a roar of merriment.
+
+"We'll do it, and without a shot.  Say, Mr. Wilder, it will break
+Gus' heart to think he was caught without any gun play."
+
+"That's just it.  Most of the power men like Megget have is because
+of the fear the very mention of their names inspires.
+
+"But I don't mean to preach a sermon.  What I want to know is, How
+do you propose to capture Megget without trouble?"
+
+"Wait till they are asleep.  They'll have a celebration when they
+reach the mine and afterward we can hog-tie them and they will
+never know it."
+
+Without vouchsafing any comment, the owner of the Half-Moon reined
+away from the strange guide, and, as Snider joined him, discussed
+the situation thoroughly.
+
+The questioning of Lawrence, however, did not cease when the
+ranchmen left him.  The four boys had listened eagerly, and when
+the opportunity presented deluged him with inquiries.
+
+"Are there really ghosts in the Lost Lode?" queried Horace.
+
+"None but very live ones," grinned the former raider.  "Vasquez
+started that story to keep people from coming into the valley.
+Many a time we've chased men in the night when they came near."
+
+The chums, however were more interested in learning whether or not
+there was rich ore in the mine.
+
+"Probably there is," explained Lawrence, "but it would require a
+lot of drilling and sinking of shafts.  What silver could be got
+out, Vasquez has taken.  He was planning to use the money from the
+cattle captured in the raid to buy machinery and begin work."
+
+Disappointed to think they would not be able to pick up chunks of
+the ore, the comrades lapsed into silence till Tom suddenly
+bethought him of the men he had seen crossing the cliff on the
+night of their hunting trip, and he lost no time in asking if they
+were some of Megget's gang.
+
+"Must have been Gus and the boys who were with him up in Oklahoma,"
+declared the guide.  "There's a trail from that direction to the
+mine.  Now you mention it, I remember he spoke of having seen a
+party of horsemen.  It's a good thing for you he didn't know who it
+was.  If he had, he was so angry at your outwitting him that he
+would surely have made trouble."
+
+Further questioning, however, was prevented by the arrival of the
+troop at the trail.
+
+"There are my marks," exclaimed the younger of the chums, pointing
+to the branches he had broken.  But no one paid him heed, for with
+the arrival at the hills the serious work began and the ranchmen
+were busy issuing instructions.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV
+
+CAPTURING THE CATTLE THIEVES
+
+As they wound in and out among the hills and rocks, now ascending,
+now going down steep pitches, the silence of their surroundings and
+the realization that they were bent on a dangerous mission sobered
+the boys and few words did they speak.
+
+Once or twice the line halted as the leaders heard some sound that
+roused their suspicions, and several times Sandy and Nails dropped
+back.  But nothing untoward occurred, and late in the afternoon
+they descended into the valley that was the headquarters of the
+raiders.
+
+"We're in time; there's no one here," announced Lawrence after an
+examination of the ground for fresh horse or cattle tracks.
+
+Remembering their guide's statement about the cliff on which the
+lookout was posted when the raiders were at the mine, die boys
+sought it with their eyes.  But though they scanned both sides of
+the mountains, all they could see was trees.
+
+Horace was on the point of mentioning the fact when the word was
+passed back to dismount, and, leading their horses, they were soon
+within the protection of the woods.
+
+"Any of the ponies likely to whinny?" asked Lawrence as they halted
+in a glen.
+
+"Yes, Blackhawk," answered Horace.  "It was he that gave warning of
+Jeffreys' approach."
+
+"Then we'll take them all pretty well up into the woods.  He won't
+be able to scent when he's above where Megget and the others will
+enter the valley."
+
+"Which way will they come?" asked Mr. Wilder.
+
+"The opposite end from the way we did," responded the former
+raider.  "That's why I'm taking our ponies to a place on this side."
+
+"Seems to me we're leaving too much to this fellow who's gone back
+on his former pals," whispered the owner of the Three Stars to Mr.
+Wilder.  "It's all right if he plays fair, but if he doesn't we'll
+be in a pretty mess."
+
+"I believe he is acting square with us.  Still it won't do to take
+chances," returned the other ranchman, and calling to Lawrence, he
+asked where the mine was.
+
+"It's about two hundred yards to the right, Mr. Wilder.  I'll show
+you when we get up on top of the cliff.  There's a big dead tree in
+front of it, so you can't miss it, even in the night, for the bark
+has been peeled off it by lightning and the wind, so that it stands
+out like a white specter in the darkness."
+
+Deeming it inadvisable to unsaddle the horses, in case they should
+need them suddenly, the cowboys close-hobbled them on a plateau to
+which Lawrence guided them and then followed him to the ledge.
+
+No need was there for the tree that marked the mine to be pointed
+out to them, for as the men looked down each one saw it.
+
+To the east and to the west the ledge commanded a view of the
+trails, and as they gazed along them, the owner of the Half-Moon
+exclaimed:
+
+"I don't wonder no one can surprise Megget with such a lookout.
+Why, it's practically impossible to approach without being seen by
+a man on guard."
+
+"The only time is at night," returned Lawrence.  "And, thanks to
+the loneliness of the place and the stories of ghosts, no one has
+ever tried to pass through or even come in at night while I've been
+with the gang."
+
+"Don't start talking about ghosts or you'll get us all nervous,"
+said Mr. Wilder, fearing the effect on his men.  "Now that we've
+seen where the mine is, suppose you take us where you think we had
+better wait till we make the round-up."
+
+"That's right here," rejoined Lawrence.  "We can see Megget and the
+others when they arrive by being here."
+
+"True enough, but how about the guard they send up?"
+
+"There won't be any to-night, don't worry about that.  They'll be
+too busy celebrating your supposed loss in the fire last night."
+
+This grim reminder of their escape caused all of the ranchers to
+smile, and without further objection the men made themselves
+comfortable while they waited the arrival of the raiders.
+
+Huddled together, the boys sat where they could watch the trail.
+
+Of a sudden Tom grabbed his brother by the arm and pointed to where
+several specks were moving.
+
+In silence they watched as more and more came into view, and then
+Larry cried out:
+
+"Here they come!"
+
+Eager with excitement, the others crowded forward to catch a
+glimpse of the men who had caused them so much trouble.
+
+"Keep down!" snapped Lawrence.  "Vasquez has an eye like a hawk."
+
+No second warning did the cowboys need, and dropping flat on their
+stomachs, they watched the raiders draw nearer and nearer.
+
+Because of the cattle, their approach was slow, and it was fully an
+hour after the chums had sighted them before they reached the
+valley.
+
+"That's Vasquez and Gus in the lead," announced the man who had
+forsaken his life of wrong-doing.  And as the other raiders rode
+into sheltered grazing ground he mentioned them by name.
+
+"There are only nineteen of them.  I thought Nails said there were
+twenty," exclaimed Bill.
+
+"So there were till Lawrence joined us," rejoined his father.
+"Thank goodness, my short-horn Durhams are all right.  Now be
+quiet.  It would be too bad to spoil everything when things are
+going so well for us."
+
+Instantly the men obeyed, sitting with eyes and ears alert for any
+sight or sound that should proclaim the approach of a guard.
+
+But twilight fell and none came, as Lawrence had predicted.
+
+Sounds of revelry, broken now and then by the lowing of the cattle,
+were constant.  In due time the moon rose and with its coming the
+cowboys grew impatient.
+
+The ranchmen, however, refused to move till no sound from the
+raiders could be heard.
+
+"It's midnight," announced Mr. Wilder, looking at his watch.  "They
+must be asleep, by this time.  We'll chance it, anyhow.  Careful,
+every one.  Come, Lawrence."
+
+Overjoyed that the time for action had arrived, the boys followed
+their guide, halting at the edge of the valley.
+
+Ordering the others to wait, the owner of the Half-Moon and the
+former raider glided noiselessly toward the mine.
+
+All about were signs of the celebration in which the thieves had
+indulged, and their loud snores told how sound asleep they were.
+
+Confident the time was ripe for action, the two scouts returned to
+their impatient fellows.
+
+"Pete, Sandy, Nails, Skinny, Lawrence, you take the ropes and do
+the hog-tying.  The rest of you have your rifles ready for use.
+But don't shoot till I give the word," commanded Mr. Wilder.
+Opening the ropes so they could use them rapidly, the men selected
+for the binding of the raiders moved forward, closely followed by
+the others, guns ready for action.
+
+Signing to Sandy and Skinny to tie the men lying outside, Lawrence
+led the others into the mine.
+
+More like a cavern did it seem to them than anything else as they
+cast a hurried glance about the rock-walled room which two
+flickering torches lighted.
+
+Sprawled upon the floor lay the raiders, and to them Pete and Nails
+turned their attention, while Lawrence glided among them, peering
+into their faces.
+
+Watching for the slightest move, stood a dozen of the cowboys, with
+Mr. Wilder and the four lads.
+
+Of a sudden Lawrence stooped down, worked his hand rapidly, then
+rose, a smile on his face, and continued his search till he found
+another form, when he repeated the operation.
+
+Gliding to the owner of the Half-Moon, he whispered:
+
+"I've bound Megget and Vasquez.  If they wake up now it doesn't
+matter."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV
+
+HOMEWARD
+
+Having made fast the leaders, for he knew that with them rendered
+powerless no effective opposition would be made by the others
+should they be aroused, Lawrence returned to the task of
+"hog-tying," and in a few minutes every cattle thief in the cave
+had been securely bound.
+
+"Well, it has been easier to round up Megget and his gang than I
+ever imagined it could be, thanks to you, Lawrence," exclaimed Mr.
+Wilder as they left the mine to join the others.
+
+"It was no fun at all," protested Horace, and his opinion voiced
+the sentiments of the cowboys.  "Can't we wake them up or do
+something to let them know they've been captured?"
+
+"You'd have some trouble in rousing them, son," replied his father.
+"They've been drinking too heavily."
+
+"That's what," agreed the former raider.  "You could ride over them
+and they would not budge."
+
+"It's the only time I ever knew the drinking of too much liquor to
+do good," chuckled Mr. Wilder.  "That is, good to us.  I don't
+suppose our prisoners will share our opinion, though, when they
+awake."
+
+When the raiders had been bound the owner of the Three Stars had
+sent his men to bring down all the ponies, that the animals might
+be relieved of their saddles and enjoy the tender grass in the
+valley.  And no sooner had Blackhawk reached the open than he gave
+an ear-splitting whinny which was answered by several of the
+raiders' horses.
+
+At the racket two or three of the thieves awoke and tried to get up.
+
+For a moment the men blinked at the sight of the cowboys.  Then,
+their senses returning, they discovered they were tied hand and
+foot, and in a trice they were yelling like a band of Indians.
+
+"Go it! Go it!" howled the cowboys.
+
+The shouts roused the prisoners in the cave, and their yells of
+rage added to the pandemonium.
+
+"Come on in to see Megget," exclaimed Lawrence.  "I say, Mr.
+Wilder, can't Larry and Tom go in first alone?  You promised, you
+know."
+
+Willing that his men should have their fun, the owner of the
+Half-Moon laughingly consented.
+
+And with the others following close, the brothers went into the
+cave.
+
+Entering thoroughly into the spirit of the occasion, Larry
+approached the struggling chief.
+
+"Why, how do you do again, Mr. Megget?" he exclaimed, bowing in
+mock deference.  "What's the trouble?  You seem to be down and out.
+Quite a difference from when you were teasing me at that station in
+Oklahoma, eh?"
+
+As Megget recognized the brothers his face grew terrible to see,
+and, summoning all his strength, he leaped to his feet.
+
+But Lawrence had tied his ankles so tight he could not keep his
+balance, and the raider pitched forward while Mr. Wilder and the
+others rushed in to make sure he did not harm the boys.
+
+At the sight of the men he thought burned, the leader of the
+raiders lay trembling like a leaf.
+
+"You see you can't raid the Half-Moon herd with impunity,"
+exclaimed Mr. Wilder sternly.  "Come on, boys, let's go outside.
+These men are not pleasant companions."  And turning on his heel,
+he led the way from the mine.
+
+Appointing Pete, Sandy and two others to stand guard to make sure
+none of the prisoners broke their bonds, Mr. Wilder ordered the
+others to turn in.
+
+Some time it took them to get to sleep, but when they did they
+slept soundly, and it was broad daylight when they awoke.
+
+After a hearty breakfast, they were discussing the best way to get
+their prisoners to Tolopah when a body of horsemen galloped into
+the valley.
+
+For the moment the ranchmen and cowboys thought they were partners
+of the raiders and quickly they sprang for their guns.  But the
+next minute their alarm vanished.
+
+"It's Shorty Jenks and the sheriff of Tolopah!" yelled Skinny.  And
+such, indeed, it proved to be, together with a score of deputies.
+
+Hearty were the greetings exchanged by the sheriffs and the ranch
+owners, and the former were elated when they learned of the
+successful round-up of the cattle thieves.
+
+Deeming it unwise to start to drive out the cattle so late In the
+day, they whiled away the time exploring the mine, where, to the
+delight of the boys, they were able to dig out several small pieces
+of almost pure silver ore.
+
+Without adventure the day passed and at dawn the next morning the
+start was made.
+
+The prisoners, their legs tied together under their ponies and
+guarded by the deputies, led the procession, followed by the
+sheriffs, the ranch owners and the lads.  Behind them the cowboys
+drove the cattle.
+
+Able to travel faster than the steers, Mr. Wilder ordered his men
+to drive to the pool, picking up the fifty head on the way, after
+which he told them to come to the ranch for a jollification in
+honor of the capture.
+
+Reaching the plains In good season, the ranchmen and the boys
+separated from the sheriffs and, urging their ponies, arrived at
+the home in time for dinner.
+
+As they rode into the yard Mrs. Wilder greeted all joyfully.  After
+the flush of delight at their safe return she asked about the
+raiders, clapping her hands at the information they had all been
+captured and were on their way to Tolopah.
+
+"And now for some fun," said Bill the next day.
+
+With riding, hunting and fishing the chums passed many happy days.
+At the trial of Megget and his pals in Tolopah Tom and Larry
+attracted even more attention than the raiders, but they bore it
+like sensible boys, making light of their experience at the
+crossing and never referring to it when they could avoid so doing.
+
+Upon the completion of the trial, with long sentences for the
+cattle thieves, from which fate Mr. Wilder's influence saved
+Lawrence, the brothers returned to the ranch.
+
+Great favorites with all the cowboys, they learned many a trick of
+roping steers and riding, and they were never so happy as when,
+together with Bill and Horace, they were allowed to pass a few days
+herding.
+
+Upon the return from one of these trips Mr. Wilder handed Larry a
+telegram.  Opening it, he read:
+
+  "We arrived in New York this morning.
+  Received fifty thousand dollars from Uncle
+  Darwent.  We shall expect to meet you at
+  the Hotel Boswell in Pittsburg Saturday.
+    Love.        FATHER."
+
+"It's a good thing we came back to the ranch today," exclaimed
+Horace.  "To-morrow is Thursday, and you'll be obliged to start
+then to reach Pittsburg on Saturday."
+
+"Yes, I suppose it is," assented Larry.  "Still we've had such a
+good time we hate to go home."
+
+"And leave the life in the saddle for life in Ohio," added Tom.
+
+
+THE END
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
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