initial commit of ebook 47491HEADmain

15 files changed, 26170 insertions, 0 deletions

diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6833f05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.gitattributes
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+* text=auto
+*.txt text
+*.md text
diff --git a/47491-0.txt b/47491-0.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..62accc9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/47491-0.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,4650 @@
+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 47491 ***
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrated book cover.
+      See 47491-h.htm or 47491-h.zip:
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h/47491-h.htm)
+      or
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h.zip)
+
+
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+      Villanova University Digital Library. See
+      http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+      Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
+
+      Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=).
+
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+No. 6 Apr. 3, 1909
+
+Five Cents
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR ON THE HIGH GEAR
+
+by
+
+STANLEY R. MATTHEWS
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Street & Smith,
+Publishers,
+New York.
+
+
+[Illustration: _"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
+the girl's aid, "dot pelongs to Moder Matt!"_]
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+_Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to
+Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of
+Congress, Washington, D. C., by_ STREET & SMITH, _79-89 Seventh Avenue,
+New York, N. Y._
+
+No. 6.      NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.      Price Five Cents.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR,
+
+ON THE HIGH GEAR.
+
+By the author of "MOTOR MATT."
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+  CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+  CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+  CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+  CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.
+  CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+  CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.
+  CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+  CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.
+  CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.
+  CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.
+  CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.
+  CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+  CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+  CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.
+  A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+  SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+  REELFOOT LAKE.
+  A FLOATING SLUM.
+  WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+
+
+CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.
+
+
+  =Matt King=, concerning whom there has always been a mystery--a lad
+  of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who has won
+  for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the popular name of
+  "Mile-a-minute Matt."
+
+  =Carl Pretzel=, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
+  fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.
+
+  "=Legree=," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about whom
+  something mysterious seems to hover.
+
+  "=Little Eva=," who turns out to be other than appearances would seem
+  to indicate.
+
+  "=Eliza=,"     }
+  "=Uncle Tom=," } other members of the unlucky road combination
+  "=Topsy=,"     } helped by Motor Matt.
+
+  =Brisco=,   } a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
+  =Spangler=, } Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
+
+  =O'Grady=, an inn-keeper.
+
+  =Lem Nugent=, the owner of the stolen runabout.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's in de ruvver! He
+drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit head first lak er frawg. He's
+drowndin', he sholey is! By golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis
+minyit! Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"
+
+Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she screeched for help she
+ran circles on the river-bank, tossing her hands wildly. If she had put
+some of her aimless energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed
+old negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off. He was
+floundering and thrashing and making a good deal of noise himself.
+
+"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got de crampus en
+mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off! Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's
+gawn down, en de nex' time Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f
+out none--doan' scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a coon
+whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh an'----"
+
+Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less, just then, and his
+language was submerged.
+
+"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back through the
+brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree. "Do something,
+somebody! Oh, I wish we had a rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she
+added encouragingly; "we'll get you out!"
+
+"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself around like
+dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me
+a pain. Can't y' swim?"
+
+Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.
+
+"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the bank and reaching
+out to throw the whip-lash toward the old negro, "grab hold of that and
+I'll snake you ashore too quick for any use."
+
+Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water from his eyes, saw
+the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon Legree laid back on the handle and
+pulled. Uncle Tom was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The
+water came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.
+
+"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say, give me a pair o'
+high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat roarin' torrent widou' never
+wettin' me kicks. How much water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle
+Tom? Oh, sister, what a jolt."
+
+Little Eva began to laugh.
+
+"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around on one foot to get
+the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an' show yo' ignunce. Dat didun'
+git away f'um me, nohow," and he threw a small tin box on the ground in
+front of Legree.
+
+Eliza stooped and picked up the box.
+
+"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle Tom must have been
+careless. What were you and Topsy walking along by the river for?" he
+added, turning to the old negro.
+
+"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy, pointing to the
+ground where a stick with a fish-line attached to its end had been
+dropped.
+
+"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' see
+how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan' ketch er fish er kill er possum,
+er somepin lak dat. Mah goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah
+shoes. If a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han', Ah
+wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants tuh kin tote dat 'ar
+box. Ah done had enough ob it."
+
+"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to the next town we'll
+have something to eat."
+
+"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de money, huh?"
+
+"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in her voice,
+"and I'll pawn it."
+
+"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch, and I'll pawn
+that."
+
+"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's head
+wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I couldn't hand dat mutt a
+couple o' good ones if he was handy!"
+
+Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's ears--for "Little
+Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.
+
+"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the boy's father. "You
+can talk a lot without saying much, kid. Come on, everybody," he added.
+"The quicker we get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
+in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."
+
+"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle Tom. "De rheumatix
+is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun' if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif
+mahse'f."
+
+"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back toward the road.
+
+"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah kin do tuh walk
+at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered. Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus
+tough on er ole man, sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis
+country? Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons? Ah'd give
+a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a wagon."
+
+Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his wet sleeve and
+helped him along. In a few minutes they broke away from the river-bank
+into the road.
+
+Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced along with a pocket
+full of stones, and every once in a while he stopped to make a throw at
+a road-runner or a chipmunk.
+
+Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing so thickly that
+it was impossible to see very far into the timber. Eliza and Legree,
+talking over the difficulties in which they found themselves and trying
+to plan some way for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance,
+while Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little Eva
+was dodging around in between, now and then shying at something with a
+stone.
+
+The strange little party had not proceeded far before the boy heard
+a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he might find in such a wild
+country, he jumped into the thicket. And then he jumped out again,
+yelling like a Comanche.
+
+"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road. "Dere's somet'ing
+chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an' has a mout' like a church
+door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer lives!"
+
+The other four gave their immediate attention to Little Eva, and then
+changed it to something that rolled out of the undergrowth directly
+behind them.
+
+"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody climb a tree!"
+
+This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little Eva shinned up a
+sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into a scrub oak, and then started
+for a neighboring pine himself, and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous
+amount of reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.
+
+"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he fluttered,
+getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of the tree with both
+arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered, craning his neck to get a good look
+at the cause of the disturbance. "Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan'
+want no truck wif you."
+
+The bear was a grizzly--not a large grizzly, but plenty large enough.
+There were lots of bigger bears in that part of Arizona, but this was
+the biggest one Fate had to run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."
+
+Having gained a position about half-way up and down the line of treed
+actors, the bear sat down in the road and proceeded to enjoy the
+situation.
+
+"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of the pine: "is
+everybody all right?"
+
+"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right, dad," answered
+Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's all t' de good. But, say, I
+ain't feelin' real comfertable in me mind."
+
+"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy. "Hit ain't right
+tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when we's all tiah'd out."
+
+"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle Tom, "en tie dat whip
+erroun' his neck an' strangle de life outen him. Beah meat is mighty
+nigh as good as possum, an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."
+
+"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go away. I guess he's
+thinking more about making a meal off of us than letting us make one
+from him."
+
+"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling tones, by way of
+enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one
+yo' sholey is gwine tuh fin' anudder."
+
+"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin' down de road lak er
+singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah golly! We's all as good as daid--we's all
+gwine tuh be et up."
+
+Strange noises were coming from along the back track, coming rapidly
+and growing louder and louder.
+
+"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle Tom, climbing
+a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes is dat he ain't big enough tuh
+reach up en take me outen de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en
+mah bones."
+
+The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed to puzzle him. He
+sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly, and then dropped down on
+all fours and ambled into the brush.
+
+The next moment, to the astonishment of the four actors, a sparkling
+red automobile rushed into sight, coming from the direction of Ash Fork
+and headed toward Fairview.
+
+A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's seat; beside him
+was a young German in a "loud" suit and a red vest.
+
+"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"
+
+"Saved!" cried Eliza.
+
+The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the same place where
+the bear had recently held the fort.
+
+The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of amazement as they
+stared at the odd assortment of actors hanging in the trees.
+
+"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a jeerful pitzness
+und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I efer knowed it bossiple to
+pick actor-peoples oudt oof der drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor
+Matt?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+
+
+Motor Matt didn't know what to think. The queerest lot of people
+he ever saw were dropping out of the trees and hurrying toward the
+automobile.
+
+First, there was a young woman of seventeen or eighteen, wearing a
+dust-coat and gauntlets. There was a look of intense relief on her
+pretty face.
+
+Following her came a tall, slimly built man, whose clothes suggested
+the ruffian, but whose face was anything but vicious. He carried a
+blacksnake whip.
+
+A boy trailed after the man. He wasn't a handsome boy, by any means,
+but his eyes were bright and sharp and he had a clever look.
+
+From the other way along the road came an old darky in tattered, soggy
+clothes. A young negro girl hurried along beside him.
+
+"Well," breathed Motor Matt, "if this ain't a brain-twister I don't
+want a cent. Who are they, Carl? One of them seems to know you."
+
+"Sure I knows him," spoke up the boy. "Got wise t' Carl Pretzel in
+Denver. 'Pretzel an' Pringle, Musical Marvels.' W'ere's Pringle, Dutch?"
+
+"Don't say someding aboudt him," answered Carl. "I haf scratched him
+off my visiding-list, yah, you bed you. Pringle iss some pad eggs, und
+ve don'd ged along mit each odder. Matt, dis vas Liddle Efa, who blays
+mit a Ungle Dom's Capin Gompany. Ven he geds his leedle curly-viggies
+on, he looks fine--schust like some girls, yes. Who iss der odder
+peobles, Efa?"
+
+"Dis is me fader, Dutch," answered the boy; "he's de guy wot licks
+Uncle Tom in de show. De loidy is Eliza, an' say, she's got 'em all
+skinned w'en it comes t' jumpin' acrost de river on cakes of ice. Dat's
+Uncle Tom, scramblin' into de auto wit'out waitin' f'r an invite, an'
+de goil is Topsy."
+
+"Young man," said Legree, stepping forward and addressing Motor Matt,
+"we're what's left of Brisco's Uncle Tom's Cabin Company. Brisco took
+all the funds and left us in the lurch at Brockville, the station west
+of Ash Fork. The constable took our tent, and properties, and even the
+bloodhounds. We were left with the clothes we stood in, and that's
+all. Marks, and St. Clair, and the rest, made a raise and rode back to
+Denver in the train. They didn't have enough to help us out, and so
+we've started to walk as far as Flagstaff. When we get there, we're
+going to get up some sort of an entertainment and see if we can't pull
+down enough hard cash to see us through to Denver. Brisco owes all of
+us money. Barrin' the kid, here, he beat each one of us out of more'n a
+hundred dollars. But we're goin' to get him; you see if we don't."
+
+A grim look came to Legree's face.
+
+"Veil," said Carl, "be jeerful und don'd vorry. I haf der same kindt
+oof pad luck, den I met oop mit Modor Matt und der luck dook a shange.
+Meppy yours vill dake a shange, too."
+
+"We're going to Albuquerque," spoke up Matt, "and if you don't mind
+being crowded we can give you a lift as far as Flagstaff."
+
+A long breath of satisfaction broke from Uncle Tom.
+
+"Dat's fine," said he. "Dis niggah am sholy tuckered. Why doan' yo'-all
+git intuh de wagon? Dat beah am li'ble tuh come snoopin' an' pesterin'
+back."
+
+"Pear?" cried Carl. "Vat you say, huh? Iss dere a pear aroundt here?"
+
+"Dat's no dream, Dutch," answered the boy. "Wot did yous t'ink it was
+chased us up dem trees?"
+
+"Everythin's been goin' wrong with us ever since we hit Brockville,"
+said Legree. "A lot more'll happen, too, but I reckon we're done with
+the bear. This machine scared the brute away. How'll you have us in the
+car, Motor Matt?"
+
+"Little Eva, as you call him," said Matt, laughing a little as he
+looked at the boy, "had better get in front here with Carl. That will
+leave four of you for the tonneau. It won't be long until we get to
+Fairview, and we'll stop there for dinner."
+
+"Um-yum," said Topsy; "golly, but dat sounds good! Dinnah! Heah dat,
+Unc' Tawn?"
+
+Uncle Tom smacked his lips and rolled up the whites of his eyes.
+
+"Doan' say a wo'd, chile," he cautioned. "Dis seems jess lak er dream,
+dis ride in de debble-wagon, de dinnah, en all. Yo' speak too loud,
+Ah's fearin' Ah's done gwine tuh woke up."
+
+With his load of stranded actors aboard, all rejoicing in the good
+luck that had brought Matt and Carl along with the automobile at that
+particular time, the young motorist cranked up, threw in the clutch and
+started. Hardly were they under good headway when a sharp cry came from
+Eliza.
+
+"Stop! The box! I dropped it when I got up into that tree."
+
+Matt stopped the Red Flier.
+
+"Pox?" cried Carl; "vat iss dot?"
+
+"Dat's whut got me into de ruvver," said Uncle Tom. "Ah 'lows dat box
+is er heap mo' trouble dan hit's worf."
+
+"If we ever get hold of Brisco," returned Legree, "it'll be that box
+that does it for us. Wait here a minute, Motor Matt, and I'll go back
+and get it. I think I know right where it is."
+
+Legree got out of the car, went back along the road, and vanished among
+the bushes.
+
+"Is der money in der pox?" asked Carl.
+
+"We don't know what's in it," answered Eliza.
+
+"Dot's keveer. How vill dot pox helup you ged holt oof Prisco?"
+
+"Brisco always kept it by him," went on Eliza, "so we know he thinks
+it's valuable. He told Legree, once, he wouldn't lose the box for ten
+thousand dollars."
+
+"How did you come to get hold of it?" inquired Matt.
+
+"That's the queer part of it. Brisco left the Brockville hotel during
+the night----"
+
+"An' I picked it up by de door, next mornin'," chimed in the boy.
+"Brisco must have dropped it when he made dat getaway. It was blacker
+dan a stack o' black cats, dat night, an' he wasn't able t' use his
+lamps."
+
+"When Marks, and Harris, and St. Clair, and the rest of the company
+left Brockville," continued Eliza, "they told us to keep the box and
+not give it up until Brisco paid over what he owed. We lost our wages
+and everything else we had except the clothes on our backs."
+
+"Dot's me," spoke up Carl; "I vas fixed der same vat you are. Den,
+pympy, Modor Matt come along mit himseluf, shpoke some jeerful vorts
+mit me, dook me for a bard, und luck made a shange. Meppy dot iss how
+it vill be mit you."
+
+"Seems lak he was a long time findin' dat dere box," said Uncle Tom.
+"Ah's honin' fo' dat hotel in Fairview, an' fo' dat dinnah, an' fo' to
+dry dese clothes. Mistah Legree is a monstus long time, an' no mistake."
+
+"Stay here, all of you," said Matt, getting out of the car. "I'll go
+back and see if I can help find the box. If it's so important, it won't
+do to leave it behind."
+
+"I'll go 'long wit' yous," chirped the boy.
+
+Before he could get out of the car, the sharp, incisive note of a
+revolver echoed from the bushes at the trail-side, close to the place
+where Legree had vanished into them.
+
+Eliza stifled a scream.
+
+"Mah goodness!" fluttered Topsy. "Somebody's done gone tuh shootin'!"
+
+"It wasn't dad, dat's a cinch!" cried the boy. "He didn't have no gun!"
+
+"Stay there!" called Matt to the boy, as he whirled and hurried on.
+"Stand ready to crank up the machine, Carl," he added, "in case we
+have to start in a hurry." Matt had dropped into the troubles of these
+forlorn "Uncle Tommers" with bewildering suddenness. He hadn't had the
+remotest notion that there was going to be any violence, or shooting,
+and the report of the revolver had sent a thrill of alarm through him.
+
+Had Brisco been tracking the unfortunate actors, and had he attempted
+to make way with the tin box just as Legree was about to secure it?
+
+As Matt drew closer to the thicket, he heard sharp and angry voices.
+One voice he recognized as belonging to Legree, and the other struck a
+strangely familiar note in his ear. He had heard that voice somewhere
+before--but where?
+
+There were only two voices taking part in the talk, but the man who
+had intercepted Legree was armed. Matt knew it would stand him in hand
+to be cautious, so, instead of turning directly from the road into the
+brush, he darted for the timber some distance beyond the scene of the
+altercation. Then, making his way back warily, he pushed through the
+bushes.
+
+He made very little noise--so little that his approach was not heard
+by either of the two men. Legree, however, was standing in such a
+position that he could not help seeing Matt. He was facing the other
+man, and the latter had his back to the young motorist.
+
+There was something familiar about that back, but even yet Matt could
+not recall who the man was.
+
+The fellow was roughly dressed. In his right hand he was holding a
+revolver, pointing it squarely at Legree, and in his left hand he was
+holding a small tin box.
+
+"If ye think ye can fool Hank Brisco," the man with the weapon was
+saying, "ye're far wide o' yer trail. He's got a ottermobill, now, what
+kin shoot through the kentry like a cannon-ball, an' I reckon thar'll
+be some Cain raised on this part o' the range afore many moons. You
+take my advice an' hike out o' here without tryin' ter make Hank any
+trouble, er----"
+
+Just at that moment Motor Matt's opportunity came. Flinging himself
+forward suddenly, he grabbed the revolver out of the ruffian's hand.
+
+"Bully for you, Matt!" cried Legree.
+
+The next instant Legree's blacksnake whip had curled itself about the
+ruffian's left wrist, girdling the skin like a loop of fire.
+
+The man roared out an oath. The pain must have been intense, for his
+fingers curled away from the box and he caught his wrist with his other
+hand.
+
+Matt stared. When the ruffian had turned and rushed into the woods,
+cursing and vowing vengeance, Matt continued to stare.
+
+"Ever seen that man before, Matt?" asked Legree, surprised at the boy's
+manner.
+
+"I should say so!" exclaimed Matt. "Let's get back to the car. You've
+got back the box, but we haven't seen the last of this--not by a long
+shot."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+
+
+Shouts of relief went up from those in the Red Flier at sight of Matt
+and Legree sprinting down the road, Legree with the box and Matt with
+the revolver.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" jubilated Carl; "be jeerful, eferypody. Here dey come
+alretty, und mit more as dey vent to ged!"
+
+"Fo' de lan' sake!" chattered Topsy; "Ah sholy expected some one had
+done been kilt."
+
+"Git right in de kyah," urged Uncle Tom, "so we kin git erway f'om
+dis hyeh place. Beahs, en robbahs, en oddah spontaneous excitements
+is monstus tryin' to er niggah wif er empty stummick. Ah doan' lak
+shootin' nohow."
+
+"Was dat some guy t'rowin' a bullet at yous, dad?" inquired Little Eva.
+"How close did he come t' ringin' de bell?"
+
+"How many were there?" cried Eliza; "are they following us?"
+
+Matt jumped into his seat, and Legree scrambled for the tonneau.
+
+"Take this, Legree," called Matt, and dropped the revolver over the
+back of the seat.
+
+Carl, who had been posted at the front of the machine, had already
+"turned over" the engine. As she took the spark Carl crawled to his
+place beside Matt, and the Red Flier glided away.
+
+The young motorist was silent for a while, listening as Legree told
+how he had gone searching for the box and found it in the hands of
+a scoundrel whom he had never seen before. The Unknown had fired a
+revolver, but it had been more to intimidate Legree and keep him at
+a distance, for the bullet had not come anywhere near him. Legree
+finished with an account of how Matt had come up behind the ruffian and
+had saved the day.
+
+"Dot's der vay Modor Matt does pitzness," said the admiring Carl. "You
+bed my life he vas some virlvinds ven he leds himseluf oudt."
+
+"The name of the man who ran off and left your company stranded was
+Hank Brisco, was it?" asked Matt.
+
+"That was his name, Matt," replied Legree. "But who was that
+tough-looking citizen that had me cornered, there in the thicket?"
+
+"I'll have to tell you something that happened to Carl and me, a few
+days ago, in order for you to understand that part of it," answered
+Matt. "This touring-car belongs to Mr. James Q. Tomlinson, a wholesale
+jeweler who lives in Denver. He and his driver, Gregory, have been
+touring the Southwest in it. A gang of thieves, among whom was a fellow
+called Hank, and another called Spangler, robbed Mr. Tomlinson on the
+trail, several miles west of Ash Fork. Carl and I got mixed up in the
+trouble, and we had some exciting times racing the Red Flier against a
+high-powered runabout that the thieves stole from a wealthy cattleman
+named Lem Nugent.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson recovered his stolen property and went on to Albuquerque
+with his driver, Gregory, hiring me to take the touring-car from Ash
+Fork to Albuquerque. That's how we happened to come along in time to
+help you out, Mr. Legree."
+
+"If this man, Tomlinson, got back his stolen property," asked Legree,
+"what became of the thieves?"
+
+"Two of them, Hank and Spangler, got away with the cattleman's car. The
+stolen runabout can go like a blue streak, and is lighter and faster
+than the Red Flier. Now, the man that tried to get the tin box, back
+there in the thicket, was none other than Spangler; and the other
+villain, who was called by the name of 'Hank,' was the fellow who left
+you in the lurch at Brockville."
+
+"Shiminy grickets, how t'ings vill turn oudt mit demselufs, vonce und
+again!" clamored Carl. "Domlinson vould like more as he can dell to haf
+dose fellers ketched, and Nuchent vants pooty pad dot he geds his car
+pack some more. He vill gif fife huntert tollars to any vone vat vill
+findt der car, und he vill gif fife huntert more for Hank, und der same
+for Spangler." Carl leaned toward Matt with his eyes almost popping
+from his head. "Bard," he asked, "can ve scoop it in?"
+
+"I'd like to get back that runabout for Mr. Nugent," said Matt, "but I
+don't know as we ought to take the time to go fooling along on our way
+to Albuquerque."
+
+"Vell, Misder Domlinson say dot dere vasn't any hurry."
+
+"He also said," continued Matt, "that he wouldn't trust this car with
+everybody. If we should get to tearing around after Hank and Spangler,
+and damage the Flier, we would find ourselves in a hole."
+
+"You hadn't better bother trying to take us to Flagstaff, then," put
+in Legree, "for as long as we've got this tin box Brisco is going to
+keep on trying to get hold of it. If he chases us with that stolen
+runabout, which you say is a faster car than the Red Flier, you're
+goin' to run some risks with this machine."
+
+"If we work it right," said Matt, "I guess we can get you people to
+Flagstaff without being bothered much by Hank and Spangler. It's queer,
+though, to have it turn out that those two scoundrels are mixed up in
+these troubles of yours."
+
+"Ah's done had trouble enough," wailed Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' know
+how Ah could stand any mo'. Ah's er pretty ole niggah tuh go traipsin'
+erroun' afteh robbahs, en drappin' intuh rivvers, an' climbin' trees
+tuh sabe my hide from beahs. All de same, Ah 'lows some ob dat money
+fo' ketchin' dat 'ar Brisco would come mouty handy. But Mistah Legree,
+yo' listen hyeh. If Brisco sets sich er pow'ful store by dat 'ar box,
+mebby he'd buy hit offen de lot ob us, payin' us whut he owes jess tuh
+git holt ob hit. Why not, sah, entah intuh prognostications wif him wif
+de view ob settlin' ouah compunctions in er pleasin' manner?"
+
+A shadow of a grin wreathed itself around Legree's lips.
+
+"Well, Uncle Tom," he answered, "it's hard to prognosticate with a chap
+who's so hard to find as Brisco is."
+
+"Vere vas Hank vile Spangler vas looking for der pox, Matt?" asked Carl.
+
+"That's a conundrum, Carl."
+
+"Und vere vas der runaboudt?"
+
+"Another conundrum."
+
+"Vell, ditn't Spangler ride to der blace vere he come for der din pox
+in der runaboudt?"
+
+"I didn't see anything of the machine, but I was afraid it was
+somewhere around--which is the reason I was in such a hurry to make a
+fresh start for Fairview."
+
+"Ve don'd vas shased py der runaboudt, anyvay, und dot means dot it
+vasn't some blace around vere Spangler vas."
+
+"Chee!" came from Little Eva, as he pointed ahead. "Dere's de burg wot
+we're headin' fer. I'm a jay if it don't look almost big enough fer two
+'r t'ree people t' live in."
+
+From the rising ground on which the Red Flier and its passengers found
+themselves, at that moment, Fairview could be fairly viewed. Perhaps
+there were twenty-five or thirty houses in the place, the main street
+being bordered by half a dozen stores.
+
+"Doan' yo' go an' tell me dar ain't no hotel," faltered Uncle Tom.
+
+"No matter how small a town is, Uncle Tom," returned Eliza, "travelers
+can always find a place to stay. Our hardest work will be, I think, to
+discover some one who will lend money on our jewelry."
+
+"I'll furnish the jewelry, Eliza," said Legree. "This watch of mine is
+worth enough, I think, to furnish us with food and lodging while Motor
+Matt gives us a lift to Flagstaff."
+
+"If you're out of cash," spoke up Matt, in his usual generous style,
+"I'll foot the bills. Some time, when you get on Easy Street, you can
+pay me back."
+
+Uncle Tom's anxiety over the prospect fell from him like a wet blanket.
+
+"Yo's a gemman, Mistah Motah Matt," he declared, "yo' is what Ah calls
+a puffick gemman. Ah'm mos'ly independent in dese money mattahs--dis
+is de fust time since Ah can remembah dat Ah habn't had all ob two
+dollars in mah clo's--so hit is mouty spognoocious tuh mah pride, sah,
+to be fo'ced tuh accept a loan. Still, sah, Ah brings mahse'f to hit
+bekase yo' is so willin' an' so spendacious. In retu'n fo' dat, Mistah
+Motah Matt, Ah becomes on de spot yo' official mascot. Yassuh. Ah takes
+yo' luck en mah own han's, an' evah time what yo' do anyt'ing, Ah
+agrees tuh make yo' a winnah."
+
+"Much obliged, Uncle Tom," laughed Matt.
+
+"Go on wif yo'!" cried Topsy. "Why didun' yo' mascot dat 'ar company so
+dat Brisco couldn't do lak what he done? Mascot! Yah, yah, yah!"
+
+"Laff," returned Uncle Tom tartly, "laff an' show yo' ignunce! What yo'
+unnerstan' about luckosophy an' mascots? Yo' mouty triflin' an' tryin',
+dat's what yo' is. Wait twell yo' see what Ah does fo' Motah Matt."
+
+During this talk, the Red Flier had glided down a long slope into the
+little town. It did not take long to traverse the main street, and as
+they jogged onward all eyes looked carefully for a hotel.
+
+Finally they saw a sign with a picture of something that looked like a
+four-leaved clover. Under the picture were the printed words, "Shamrock
+House."
+
+"Dat 'ar fo'-leaved clovah means luck," averred Uncle Tom.
+
+"It's supposed to be a shamrock, Uncle Tom," said Eliza, "and not a
+clover-leaf."
+
+"Ah knows dat," went on Uncle Tom, "but hit sho' means luck. Ah done
+got de feelin'."
+
+Motor Matt and Carl Pretzel "got the feeling," too, for around at one
+side of the hotel they saw another automobile. There was no one around
+the car. Carl nearly dropped off his seat.
+
+"Vas I plind mit meinseluf," he whispered, "or iss it der real t'ing
+vat I see? Matt, dere iss der shtolen runaboudt, mit nopody aroundt!
+Fife huntert tollars saying it righdt oudt loud, 'Come, oh, come,
+somepody und pick me oop!'"
+
+Matt was astounded; yet there was not the least doubt about the
+runabout being the same car that had been stolen.
+
+"Is that the automobile Brisco ran away with?" demanded Legree, leaping
+energetically out of the tonneau. "That's the one!" declared Matt.
+
+"Then come with me, Matt, you and Carl," said Legree, starting for the
+hotel door. "Keep behind, though. I'm armed, now, and can meet Brisco
+in his own way if he shows fight."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+
+
+Matt, while following Legree toward the front of the hotel, was doing
+some quick thinking to account for this surprising discovery of the
+runabout.
+
+Very likely Brisco and Spangler were planning to recover the tin box.
+It must have been these plans that had brought them eastward from the
+vicinity of Ash Fork.
+
+Spangler had been dropped on the road to intercept the stranded players
+and get the box, while Brisco had come recklessly into Fairview.
+Possibly Brisco had been compelled to come into town after gasoline and
+oil.
+
+"Ah doan' want tuh be erroun' if dar's goin' tuh be any shootin',"
+palpitated Uncle Tom, rolling out of the tonneau with more haste than
+grace. "Ah used tuh be a reg'lar fire-eatah, en mah youngah days, but
+Ah dun kinder got ovah hit. Topsy, yo' an' Miss 'Liza come right along
+wif me, dis instinct. We'll go off whah dar's er safe place fo' me tuh
+do mah mascottin' fo' Motah Matt."
+
+Eliza and Topsy hurriedly descended from the car. Little Eva was
+already on the ground, but instead of going around the hotel with
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, he strolled over to the runabout. In their
+excitement, the others did not miss the boy.
+
+There were two windows in the hotel office--one in the front wall, a
+dozen feet from the door, and one just around the corner in the side
+wall. The window in the side wall overlooked the runabout.
+
+Matt, doing some quick figuring, jumped at the conclusion that Brisco,
+taken by surprise by Legree, would make a bolt through one of the
+windows, both of which were open.
+
+Close to the front window an eave-spout entered a rain-water barrel.
+Matt did not believe Brisco, if he tried to escape by a window, would
+come out at the front, but at the side, where he would be nearer
+the runabout. With this idea in mind, Matt placed Carl behind the
+water-barrel, while he went around the corner.
+
+Through the window on that side the young motorist stole a cautious
+look.
+
+Two men were leaning over a counter in the office. One was plainly an
+Irishman, and the proprietor of the place, and the other was as plainly
+Hank Brisco. Matt knew Brisco too well to be mistaken in him. Neither
+Brisco nor the Irish proprietor had heard the approach of the Red
+Flier, nor the entrance of Legree into the office.
+
+With a grim smile on his face, and the revolver in his hand, Legree was
+leaning against the wall, just inside the door, waiting for Brisco to
+turn around.
+
+"Begorry," the proprietor was saying, "fifty cints a gallon f'r th'
+gasoline is all I'm afther chargin' yez. Oi know av robbers around here
+who'd be chargin' yez a dollar a gallon, but that's not the way wid
+Terence O'Grady. Fifty cints is th' most Oi'll take from yez. Fifteen
+gallons at fifty cints is sivin-fifty; then wan dollar f'r oil makes
+eight-fifty. Eight-fifty from tin laves wan an a half, an' there yez
+are. Will yez shtay f'r dinner? Faith, we've as foine a male t'day as
+yez iver put tooth in, an' a dollar is all ut will cost yez."
+
+"I reckon I'll stay, O'Grady," replied Brisco, picking his change off
+the counter and sliding it into his pocket.
+
+Then he turned, and met the leveled weapon of Legree. Brisco's
+astonishment was ludicrous to behold. And O'Grady was fully as startled.
+
+"Phat th' blazes d'yez mean by thot?" and O'Grady jumped over the
+counter and stood glaring at Legree.
+
+"I'll explain," said Legree, with a coolness that filled Matt with
+admiration, "but while I'm talking, O'Grady, don't get between the
+point of this weapon and that man, there."
+
+"Is ut a hould-up?" demanded O'Grady.
+
+"Not at all. The man behind you knows me, and he knows that he owes me
+a hundred and twenty dollars."
+
+"I don't know anything of the kind," replied Brisco, every whit as cool
+as Legree. "You've made a mistake, my man; and, besides, even if I did
+owe you money, you're trying to collect it in the wrong way."
+
+"Roight yez are!" put in O'Grady. "Shtick thot pisthol in yer pocket
+an' go off wid yez. This is a dacint, rayspectible hotel, an' guns
+ain't allowed in th' place at all, at all. Av yez don't hike, begorry,
+Oi'll call in th' town marshal."
+
+"Call the marshal," said Legree; "he's the man I'd like to have here.
+That fellow who just bought gasoline and oil at this place is one of
+the gang who robbed Tomlinson, the Denver jeweler, over west of Ash
+Fork, and stole the automobile belonging to Nugent, the cattleman----"
+
+Brisco began to laugh.
+
+"What do you think of that, O'Grady?" he cried. "Why, that car you just
+helped me fill with gasoline is Tomlinson's car! I'm taking it east for
+him. Who this man is, or what game he's trying to play, is more than I
+know."
+
+Brisco was edging around toward the side window.
+
+"Look out, Mr. Legree!" called Matt, through the opening. "He's trying
+to get where he can drop out here."
+
+Matt's words caused Brisco and O'Grady to swerve their glances in his
+direction. A glint darted into Brisco's eyes at sight of Matt. Hank
+Brisco had good reason to remember the young motorist.
+
+"This looks like a put-up job, O'Grady," said Brisco, still keeping the
+whip-hand of himself.
+
+"Well, begob," cried O'Grady, "no pack av blackguards can come into
+th' Shamrock Hotel an' shtir up throuble f'r me customers. Clear out
+av here," he added, brandishing his fists, "or Oi'll be afther gittin'
+busy wid me hands."
+
+"Is that man the one who helped rob Tomlinson, Matt?" asked Legree,
+nodding his head toward Brisco.
+
+"He's the one," answered Matt. "I'd know him anywhere. Don't let
+him----"
+
+Just at that moment, O'Grady, wofully deceived, but thinking he was
+doing exactly what was right, kicked a chair at Legree.
+
+The chair struck Legree's shins with a force that hurled him back
+against the wall.
+
+"Now, then," roared O'Grady to Brisco, "make a run av it! Oi'll take
+care av this boonch av meddlers!"
+
+With that, he hurled himself upon Legree and the two began to struggle,
+falling over the chair and dropping heavily on the floor.
+
+They were directly across the doorway, and Brisco sprang for the front
+window and pushed himself through it.
+
+"Shtop a leedle!" whooped Carl, dodging around the rain-water barrel;
+"you don'd got avay so easy as dot, und---- Himmelblitzen!"
+
+Brisco had grabbed the barrel. That happened to be the dry season and
+the barrel was empty. Giving it a whirl, he threw it against the Dutch
+boy with a force that took him off his feet.
+
+Thrashing his arms wildly, Carl laid himself down on the rolling barrel
+and went caroming off toward the road.
+
+Meantime, Matt, seeing that Brisco was making for the window guarded by
+Carl, had rushed around to the front of the hotel. He reached the scene
+of the scrimmage just in time to be grabbed by O'Grady.
+
+The racket in the office had brought O'Grady's Chinese cook from the
+kitchen; and, while the Chinaman continued the tussle with Legree, the
+proprietor of the hotel had rushed out to see what more he could do for
+the man who had paid him so well for gasoline and oil.
+
+"Oi've got yez, yez meddlin' omadhoun!" shouted O'Grady. "Oi'll tach
+yez t' come interferin' wid dacint people!"
+
+With that he flung his arms around Motor Matt and hung to him with all
+his strength.
+
+"Hang onto him, O'Grady!" cried Brisco, dashing for the runabout.
+
+"Niver yez fret!" panted the Irishman reassuringly; "good-by t' yez.
+Next toime yez come we'll give yez betther treatment; there won't be so
+many hoodlums around t'----"
+
+"Let go!" shouted Matt. Then, suddenly freeing his hands, he struck the
+deluded Irishman a quick blow.
+
+O'Grady's hands relaxed for an instant. That instant gave Motor Matt
+his opportunity, and he tore himself free.
+
+About the same moment, Legree, hatless, angry, and chagrined, came
+running out of the office.
+
+"Where's Brisco?" he demanded.
+
+Just then the question was answered by Brisco himself. The runabout,
+leaping around the corner of the hotel, shot toward the road, a mocking
+laugh from Brisco trailing out behind.
+
+"Not this time, Legree!" called Brisco, over his shoulder. "Look out
+for me, from now on--you and Motor Matt!"
+
+The runabout was headed westward. In the rumble behind, lying partly
+over the rumble-seat, was a dust-coat. It undoubtedly belonged to
+Brisco, and he must have thrown it aside while attending to the
+automobile, a few minutes before.
+
+While Motor Matt and Legree stood staring at the receding car, the coat
+lifted a little and a hand was waved.
+
+"Great Scott!" cried Matt; "it's that boy."
+
+Legree, far from showing any consternation, leaned against the wall of
+the building and laughed softly.
+
+Matt was amazed.
+
+"What's the matter with you, Legree?" he demanded.
+
+"I'm just enjoying a situation that has a bad outlook for Brisco," was
+Legree's queer answer.
+
+"It has a bad outlook for the boy, too," said Matt.
+
+"Don't worry about Little Eva. I know him better than you do, and he'll
+take care of himself."
+
+At this moment the Chinaman came out of the hotel office and handed the
+revolver to O'Grady.
+
+"Oi've had about all Oi want av this rough-house!" shouted O'Grady,
+his temper badly warped by the disturbance and the blow Matt had dealt
+him. "Yez will shtay roight here, bedad, until Oi can have th' Chink go
+afther th' town marshal. Go f'r Jennings, Ping," he added, flourishing
+the weapon in the faces of Matt and Legree, "an hustle. We'll make this
+slab-soided roosther laugh on t'other soide av his face befure we're
+done wid him."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+
+
+Carl, having untangled himself from the barrel, brushed off his clothes
+and rubbed his sore spots, came bristling up to O'Grady.
+
+"You vas grazy," he cried, "so grazy as I don'd know. Oof you hatn't
+fooled mit us, t'ings vould haf peen tifferent. Ve lose vone t'ousant
+tollars py vat you do! Yah, so helup me! Pud avay der gun und ged
+reasonaple."
+
+"Huccome dat 'ar resolver change han's lak what Ah see?" inquired Uncle
+Tom, stepping gingerly around the corner of the hotel. "Didun' Ah do yo
+no good, mascottin' fo' yo', Motah Matt?"
+
+Eliza and Topsy followed Uncle Tom, peering about them excitedly and
+evidently expecting to find Brisco a prisoner.
+
+"Something went crossways, Uncle Tom," said Matt. "Brisco got away, and
+he took the stolen car with him. Mr. O'Grady, here, the proprietor of
+the hotel, didn't understand the case and helped the wrong side."
+
+By that time O'Grady was himself beginning to think that he had made
+a mistake. The sight of the big red touring-car, and of the odd
+assortment of passengers who had arrived in it, afforded him food
+for thought. So he was thinking, lowering the revolver meanwhile and
+grabbing Ping, the Chinaman, by the queue to keep him from going after
+the marshal.
+
+"Where did th' lot av yez come from?" O'Grady finally inquired.
+
+"Ash Fork," replied Legree.
+
+"Them colored folks come wid yez?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, mebby Oi did make a bobble, Oi dunno. Tell me something more
+about ut."
+
+Briefly as he could, Legree told of the robbery of Mr. Tomlinson and
+of the stealing of the cattleman's car, then wound up the recital by
+describing how Brisco had run off and left his theatrical company, and
+how Motor Matt had picked up those who were tramping along the road and
+was giving them a lift as far as Flagstaff.
+
+O'Grady seemed to take more stock in Motor Matt than in any of the
+others. He watched the boy out of the tails of his eyes while listening
+to Legree.
+
+"Faith," said he, "yez are a har-r-d hitter, me lad. Oi'm feelin' th'
+rap yez give me this minyit, an' me jaw'll be lame f'r a wake; but sure
+Oi desarved ut av so be Oi'm raysponsible f'r th' mon gittin' away. A
+good custhomer he was, an' Oi make ut a rule t' trate good custhomers
+wid ivery consideration. Oi supplied him wid gasoline out av me private
+barrel, an' sint th' Chinee f'r oil which Oi let him have at double th'
+proice Oi paid f'r ut. By th' same token, Oi felt loike tratin' th'
+mon white, d'yez see? Now, av yez won't say annythin' more about th'
+fracas, sure Oi won't, an' we'll let bygones be bygones. Was yez all
+thinkin' av takin' dinner at th' Shamrock?"
+
+"Dat 'ar was de notion we had, boss," spoke up Uncle Tom eagerly.
+
+"Then, begorry, Oi'll make yez a special rate av sivin dollars f'r th'
+six av yez."
+
+"I'll give you three," said Matt.
+
+"T'ree ut is," was the prompt rejoinder. "Th' ladies can go t' th'
+parlor, an' th' gintlemen will foind a wash-bench by th' kitchen dure.
+Hurry up wid th' meal, Ping," the proprietor added to the Chinaman.
+
+O'Grady handed the revolver to Legree, excused himself and went into
+the hotel.
+
+"It don't take him long to forget the trouble he made us," remarked
+Legree, with a wink. "He's wise, too, in being willing to overlook the
+matter if we are."
+
+Motor Matt couldn't understand Legree. He didn't appear to be worried
+in the least about the boy; on the contrary, he seemed pleased with the
+situation.
+
+"Where's the kid?" inquired Eliza.
+
+"He went away with Brisco," replied Legree.
+
+Startled exclamations came from Eliza, Uncle Tom, and Topsy.
+
+"Don't fret about him," went on Legree, with a calm confidence that was
+too deep for Matt, "for he'll come back. I'll have to stay here and
+wait for him, of course, and if Matt feels as though he has to pull out
+for Flagstaff before the kid gets here, why, we'll have to come along
+the best we can."
+
+"The boy's in danger," said Matt, "and I'm not going to leave Fairview
+until I try to do something for him."
+
+"Don't go to any trouble, Matt," returned Legree, "for I tell you again
+the kid's able to look out for himself. This work of his may result in
+the capture of Brisco and the recovery of the stolen car. After we eat,
+I'm going to find a cot, lie down, and take a snooze. I've got that
+coming to me, I think, considering what I've been through to-day. Let's
+hunt up that wash-bench and get ready for dinner."
+
+Matt was in a quandary. He knew, by his own experience, that Brisco was
+a desperate man, and Legree's firm conviction that the boy would keep
+out of trouble looked like the craziest kind of misjudgment.
+
+Following the dinner, to which they all did ample justice, Uncle Tom
+curled up on a door-step in the sun, Legree found a hammock in the
+shade, and Eliza and Topsy disappeared inside the hotel. Matt led Carl
+off to the Red Flier.
+
+"It's a queer layout, Carl," said Matt, nodding his head in the
+direction of the hotel. "Hasn't it struck you that way?"
+
+"Vell," returned Carl, running his fingers reflectively through his mat
+of tow-colored hair, "I vas making some reflections on der soobjeck.
+Leedle Efa don't seem to cut mooch ice mit Legree, hey? Or meppy he cut
+a whole lot dot ve don'd know aboudt."
+
+"You knew the boy in Denver?" went on Matt.
+
+"Yah, aber I forged vat his name vas, or vat he dit. Und I ditn't know
+vedder he hat a fader."
+
+"Well, I don't think we ought to go on to Flagstaff until we find out
+something as to what becomes of the boy."
+
+"Me, neider; aber how ve find oudt, hey?"
+
+"We'll take the Flier and see if we can't track the runabout."
+
+"Und oof ve come too close py der runaboudt, den vat?"
+
+"We'll take some old bottles along. If the runabout shows up and tries
+to chase us, we'll make a run of it and smash the bottles in the road
+behind us."
+
+Carl chuckled. That was an expedient to which Motor Matt had already
+had recourse--and with brilliant success.
+
+"Pully! I vill go findt der pottles, Matt, vile you ged der macheen
+retty."
+
+Carl went off toward a junk-pile back of the wood-shed. By the time
+Matt had made the Red Flier ready, Carl was back with an armful of
+bottles.
+
+"Ve vas on der high gear dis drip, you bed you," observed Carl, dumping
+the bottles into the tonneau. "I like dose oxcidements, yah, so. It vas
+goot for der nerfs und makes a fellow jeerful like nodding."
+
+As they got into the car, ready for the start, Eliza came hurrying out
+of the hotel. She carried the box in her hand and made straight for the
+automobile.
+
+"Where are you going, Matt?" she asked breathlessly.
+
+"We're not intending to run off and leave you," Matt laughed. "We want
+to see if we can't find out something about Little Eva, as you call
+him. It don't seem right to let the boy be carried off like this and
+not try to do something to help him."
+
+"He's a queer kid," said Eliza thoughtfully. "He and Legree were only
+with the company about two months, and they both had a queer way about
+them, sometimes. But if Legree isn't worried I don't know why we ought
+to be."
+
+"I don't know, either," said Matt, "but I am, all the same. Carl and
+I are going to see if we can't follow the trail of the runabout for a
+ways. I don't think we'll be gone more than an hour or two."
+
+"May I go along?"
+
+"Why, yes, if you want to; but hadn't you better leave that box here?"
+
+"Legree told me to keep it by me all the time," answered the girl.
+
+"Probably he didn't intend for you to take it out into the hills. Well,
+never mind. If it's so mighty valuable I guess Legree would be taking
+care of it himself. Jump in, Eliza."
+
+The girl climbed into the tonneau, and Carl closed the door. Matt
+started at low speed, getting into the road at the same place where
+Brisco had driven the runabout. The trail of the broad wheels was well
+defined in the dust, and led along the course followed by the Red Flier
+in coming into town.
+
+"Prisco vent oudt like ve come in," said Carl. "I'm vonderin' in my
+mindt oof he vent pack py Ash Fork?"
+
+"Give it up, Carl," answered Matt. "I don't know where he went. There's
+a whole lot about this business that's the rankest kind of guesswork."
+
+"Sure! Liddle Efa vas foolish mit himseluf for gedding indo der car;
+und he vas foolish some more for shtaying der car in ven he mighdt
+chump it off. Aber meppy he hat his reasons, hey?"
+
+"He must have had a reason for doing such a reckless thing, but he
+don't know Brisco so well as we do."
+
+"He ought to, Matt," spoke up Eliza; "he was with the company for two
+months."
+
+"At that time," Matt answered, "Brisco had the best part of his
+character uppermost. Carl and I have seen the worst side of him, and
+he's the biggest scoundrel out of jail."
+
+"Vorse as dot!" averred Carl.
+
+The tracks of the car led up the slope, out of the valley that
+contained the town, and on along the Ash Fork road.
+
+Matt held the Flier down to an easy pace. For several miles the little
+party had a pleasant ride, without any excitement whatever. But there
+was plenty of excitement in store, and when it arrived it came suddenly.
+
+A turn in the wooded road brought those in the car abruptly into a
+long, straightaway stretch. The instant they were able to look along
+the trail beyond the turn, a thrill shot through the nerves of all of
+them.
+
+Three mounted men were coming toward the car at a tearing clip.
+Evidently they had heard the pounding of the motor and had put their
+horses to top speed.
+
+"Prisco!" shouted Carl; "und dere iss Spangler, too. Durn aroundt,
+Matt! Durn aroundt so kevick as der nation vill let you! Shiminy
+grickets, aber dis vas sutten!"
+
+Motor Matt had recognized two of the riders as Brisco and Spangler,
+even before Carl had given his frightened yell.
+
+Where had Brisco exchanged his seat in the runabout to the saddle of
+the horse? And why had he changed, and where had he left the car?
+
+All this darted through the young motorist's mind as he halted the
+Flier, reversed, and began backing to make the turn.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+LOSING THE BOX.
+
+
+Matt had not dreamed of being pursued by horsemen. The Red Flier
+would have no difficulty in running away from anything on hoofs, and
+certainly she could leave these three riders behind providing she could
+turn and get under headway before being overhauled.
+
+Brisco, Spangler, and the other man were dangerously close before Matt
+got the Red Flier turned the other way. Just back from the bend there
+was a grassy hill, along the foot of which the road ran smoothly. It
+was an excellent place for speed, and Matt jumped from first to second,
+and from second to third with masterful quickness, considering the fact
+that he had to be careful about stripping the gear.
+
+As the car leaped away, like a spirited horse under the spur, Brisco
+was alongside the tonneau. A scream from Eliza called the attention of
+both boys. Matt, of course, was busy with his driving and could not
+turn to see what was the matter. Carl, however, got on his knees in his
+seat, face to the rear. What he saw brought an angry shout from his
+lips.
+
+Brisco, leaning from his saddle, was reaching over the side of the
+tonneau. He had caught hold of the tin box, and Eliza, hanging to it
+with both hands, was struggling to keep him from securing it.
+
+"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to the girl's aid;
+"dot pelongs to Modor Matt!"
+
+Carl was excited, but it wasn't excitement alone that caused him to
+say the box belonged to Matt. He knew Brisco was after a box he had
+once owned himself, and Carl had a hazy idea that if he said the box
+belonged to Matt it might be left alone.
+
+The gathering speed of the car carried it away from Brisco; and, as
+Brisco's one hand was stronger than the girl's two, the box remained
+with him.
+
+Carl got into the tonneau, head over heels and with a crash like the
+breaking of a dozen windows--for he fell into the heap of useless
+bottles. When he picked himself up, the three riders, with jeering
+laughs, had pointed their horses the other way.
+
+"It's gone, Matt!" cried the girl wildly; "the box is gone! Brisco
+snatched it out of my hands!"
+
+"Vat a luck it iss!" growled Carl, holding one hand to his face,
+where it had been cut by a piece of glass. "I got pack here so kevick
+as I couldt, Miss Eliza, aber dot Prisco feller was kevicker as me.
+Donnervetter! Matt, ve come oudt to look for dot poy und ve lose der
+pox! Dot vill be some nice t'ings to dell Legree."
+
+"Oh," cried the girl, half-crying; "I shouldn't have come! Even if it
+was all right for me to come I ought to have left the box at the hotel.
+Now we'll never be able to get our money from Brisco!"
+
+Matt slowed down the car and took a look rearward. The three men were
+out of sight beyond the turn.
+
+"Don't worry about it, Eliza," said Matt. "If any one is to blame,
+I'm the one. There's something queer about that tin box. If it's so
+valuable, why didn't Legree take care of it himself? Why did he trust
+it to you?"
+
+"Before I had it," returned the girl, "Uncle Tom was carrying it. He
+lost it in the river, and had to jump in after it."
+
+"More carelessness on Legree's part! Uncle Tom, as I figure it, is
+about the most irresponsible member of your party, and yet Legree
+allowed him to carry a box which, Brisco had said, was worth ten
+thousand dollars. It don't look reasonable to me."
+
+"Dot's vat it don'd!" exclaimed Carl. "Aber Prisco vanted dot pox pooty
+pad to go afder it like vat he dit. Meppy it vas vort' a lod to him,
+und nodding to Legree and der rest oof der parn-shtormers."
+
+"Just because it _was_ valuable to Brisco is the very reason I should
+have been more careful with it," went on the girl. "We might have made
+him pay us what he owed us, and then we could all have gone back to
+Denver. Now--now----"
+
+The girl began to cry.
+
+"Say," wheedled Carl, "I vouldn't do dot. You don'd helup nodding novay
+oof you cry. Don'd fret aboudt der olt pox. Matt und me vill gif you
+der money to go py Tenver. Jeer oop a liddle."
+
+"Take my word for it, Eliza," said Matt, as the girl lifted her head
+and got better control of her feelings, "that box isn't worth a whole
+lot or Legree wouldn't have taken chances with it like he did. I'm
+sorry Brisco got away with it, of course, and I'm going to hurry back
+to Fairview and do something I ought to have done before--and that is,
+find an officer and put him on Brisco's track."
+
+"Dot von't amoundt to nodding, Matt," said Carl, climbing back into
+the front seat. "Prisco vill ged off der horse und indo der runaboudt
+und der officer mighdt as vell dry to ketch some shtreaks oof greased
+lighdning."
+
+"It may be, Carl," speculated Matt, "that the runabout has broken down.
+I don't believe Brisco and Spangler would be able to fix the machine if
+anything very serious got the matter with it. Perhaps they had to leave
+the car and take to horses."
+
+"Vat's deir game, anyvay? Dot's vat I vant to know. Oof deir game vas
+to ged der pox, den it vas all ofer, und ve don'd haf nodding to do
+mit Brisco und Spangler some more. Py shinks! Dot knocks us oudt oof a
+t'ousand tollars, Matt."
+
+"All Legree was keeping the box for," quavered the girl, "was so that
+Brisco would follow us and try to get it. That would give us a chance
+to make Brisco pay what he owed us."
+
+"Legree ought to have hung onto the box himself," insisted Matt.
+
+"Prisco iss too schlick for Legree," asserted Carl.
+
+"I wish I understood what Brisco and Legree are up to," muttered Matt.
+"There's more to this than appears on the surface."
+
+"Yah, I bed you," agreed Carl, wagging his head. "Oof I knew as mooch
+as I vould like, den I vould tell you all aboudt it, vich I don'd. Den
+dere iss Efa. His monkey-doodle pitzness makes der t'ing vorse."
+
+A quarter of an hour later the Red Flier drew up in its old berth
+alongside the hotel. Eliza got out and ran hurriedly to tell Legree
+what had happened to the tin box.
+
+"I'm sorry for Eliza," said Matt, climbing slowly over the brakes as
+he got out of the car. "She's a nice girl, and it's too bad she has
+to feel all cut up over the way the box was taken from her. I've got
+a notion that Legree is fooling them all--and you and me into the
+bargain, Carl."
+
+"How you t'ink so, Matt?" asked Carl, opening his eyes wide.
+
+"I don't know how he's doing it, or why he's doing it, but it's just a
+hunch I've got."
+
+"How long ve going to shtay here?"
+
+"I don't want to pull out until we learn something more about this
+business. There are parts of it that have a crooked look to me."
+
+At that moment Legree issued from the hotel. He did not act at all
+excited, although he must certainly have learned from Eliza what had
+happened.
+
+"Eliza's been telling me what a time you've had," said he. "The
+principal thing is that Brisco has left the car and got onto a horse.
+I was surprised to hear that. I can't imagine why a rascal, who's as
+badly wanted as he is, should leave a swift automobile and take to
+horseback."
+
+"I should think, Mr. Legree," remarked Matt, "that you would be more
+interested in the loss of that box than in anything else."
+
+"Not at all. In fact, I haven't thought so much of that box since the
+lot of us left Ash Fork. It was a good thing to hang onto, but it
+wasn't so terribly important. I've told Eliza not to feel bad over what
+happened. I'd feel worse myself if the kid hadn't got away in that
+runabout, like he did."
+
+All that Legree said merely made the whole situation darker for Matt.
+And for Carl, too. The Dutch boy stood blinking at Legree, and running
+his fingers through the tangle of tow he called his hair.
+
+"You were keeping the box in the hope that Brisco would came after it
+and give you a chance at him, weren't you?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Yes," answered Legree.
+
+"Well, now that Brisco has got the box you can't expect him to come
+after it."
+
+"Hardly," and Legree gave a short laugh. Noting the perplexity of the
+two boys, he went on: "You miss one point, Matt, in sizing up this
+situation. We're not done with Brisco--not by a long chalk. It isn't
+the box, but what was in it, that Brisco is anxious to get."
+
+"Wasn't there anything in the box?" queried Matt.
+
+"No, and there hasn't been since we left Ash Fork. I opened the box on
+the q. t. in that town and took out what it contained. That object is
+in my possession. I intend to stay in this town, Matt, until Brisco is
+captured. I don't care anything about Spangler; Brisco is the man I
+want. If you've got time, you can stay and help me; and you can keep
+all you get for recovering the runabout for yourself."
+
+"What will you get for your work?"
+
+"Why, I'll send Brisco over the road. _The contents of that box will do
+it!_"
+
+Matt and Carl were dumfounded. The situation was clearing a little, but
+not much.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+
+
+"Do you know this cattleman in Ash Fork who had the runabout stolen
+from him?" asked Legree.
+
+"I know him by sight," answered Matt; "I'm not acquainted with him."
+
+"Are you sure that he will pay five hundred dollars for the recovery of
+his automobile?"
+
+"He said he would, and he's able to do it. And he offers to pay five
+hundred dollars apiece for the capture of Brisco and Spangler."
+
+"Then there's a chance for you to make fifteen hundred. I'd advise you
+to stay here and do it."
+
+Matt leaned against the car and went into a brown study.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson had not required him to get to Albuquerque in a hurry. He
+could take a reasonable amount of time for the trip. But Mr. Tomlinson
+_did_ expect the car to be brought safely to its destination. Would
+Matt in any way endanger the car by staying a short time in Fairview?
+That was the question that bothered him.
+
+"I t'ink, Matt," said Carl, "dot I could use some oof dot fifdeen
+huntert. Vy nod shtay und dry dem a virl?"
+
+"If I stay, Legree," observed Matt, "I won't be called on to use the
+Red Flier for chasing Brisco and Spangler, will I? The car doesn't
+belong to me and I can't take any chances with it."
+
+"You can do as you please about that, Matt. I'm after Brisco. If you
+get Spangler and the runabout, you'll have to do it in your own way.
+Spangler and Brisco, though, seem to be working together, just now, so
+my work ought to help you."
+
+"Why not get an officer here and----"
+
+"Do you want to divide with an officer what the cattleman is willing to
+pay?"
+
+"You know a lot that you're not telling me, Legree," said Matt quietly.
+
+"Well," grinned Legree, "when it comes to that, I know a lot that I'm
+not telling anybody--just now. You've heard more from me than any one
+else--excepting the kid."
+
+"I think I'll lay over here until to-morrow," said Matt.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" exulted Carl. "Be jeerful, everypody. I t'ink, Matt," he
+added, "dot I vill infest my haluf oof dot fifdeen huntert tollars in
+gofermend ponds, und----"
+
+"Don't invest it till you get it, Carl," interposed Matt dryly. "Pull
+off your coat, now, and we'll wash up the car and fill the tanks."
+
+For two hours the boys were more than busy. While in Motor Matt's
+hands, the machine was always as carefully groomed as a race-horse. Not
+only that, but after the day's run he made it a point to go over the
+machinery with a wrench and pliers, tightening up everything that had
+worked loose and making sure that every part was in complete working
+order.
+
+The water-tank was filled. Ten gallons of gasoline were needed for the
+gasoline reservoir, but before he bought any from O'Grady, Matt tested
+it carefully with a hydrometer. Finding it nearly the same grade as
+he had been using, he funneled it into the tank, not only straining
+it through wire gauze but through thin chamois skin as well. The oil
+supply was also replenished.
+
+When the boys were through, the Red Flier was as spick and span as
+when it had come from the shop. Not only that, but it was fit to take
+the road at a moment's notice and make a record run.
+
+To Matt's regret, there was no place in town where the car could be
+housed for the night. There were two or three old barns, but they were
+so foul and unclean that he would not take the machine into them. He
+preferred to leave it outdoors all night, sleeping in the tonneau and
+guarding against tampering.
+
+When supper was announced, Carl watched the car while Matt ate; and
+when Matt had finished, Carl went in for his own meal.
+
+Uncle Tom, feeling much better now that his physical necessities
+had been relieved, walked out to the car with Matt when he left the
+dining-room.
+
+There was something on the old negro's mind. He seemed flustered and
+backward about getting at it. Finally he broached the astonishing
+proposition, leading up to it by degrees.
+
+"Ah's done let out ob er job by de scan'lous actions ob dat 'ar Brisco,
+Marse Matt," said he moodily.
+
+"Hard luck, Uncle Tom," answered Matt sympathetically. "Where do you
+live when you're at home?"
+
+"Ah's one ob dem 'ar rolling stones, en Ah ain't had no home sense Ah
+was knee-high tuh a possum, no, suh. Fo' de las' few houahs, Marse
+Matt, Ah's been kind ob cogitatin' en mah haid an' I 'bout come tuh
+de conclusion dat yo' outlook in life is juberous, yassuh. Yo's a
+puffick gemman, but yo' take so many chances dat yo' prospecks am sholy
+juberous."
+
+"How can I help that, Uncle Tom?" asked Matt, enjoying immensely the
+old darky's vagaries.
+
+"Ah knows how dat kin be fixed, sah," went on Uncle Tom. "What yo' has
+got tuh hab is a official mascot, sah, tuh be wif yo' all de time an'
+wuk off de hoodoo. Ah 'lows, sah, dat I could fill dat job. How much
+yo' willin' tuh pay fo' an official mascot by de monf?"
+
+That was too much for Motor Matt. Laying back in the tonneau he laughed
+till he shook.
+
+"Doan' laff, Marse Matt," begged the old fraud; "hit's a mouty
+complexus bizness. Tu'n hit ober in yo' mind, sah, en if yo' t'ink Ah'm
+wuth mah bo'd an' keep, jess considah Ah'm engaged."
+
+"Why, Uncle Tom," said Matt, "I haven't much more than enough to board
+and keep myself, so I guess my prospects will have to continue to be
+'juberous.'"
+
+"Doan' say dat, sah; t'ink it ober. Ah'll hold mahse'f open fo' de
+engagemunt."
+
+Uncle Tom stumped back into the house, and Matt kicked off his shoes
+and snuggled down under a blanket which O'Grady had furnished him.
+
+Half an hour later, Carl came out with a blanket of his own.
+
+"What are you going to do, Carl?" asked Matt, rousing up and peering at
+his friend through the gloom.
+
+"Dis iss some games vot two can blay ad, my poy," chuckled Carl. "I
+vill shleep py der machine mit you."
+
+"Go on!" scoffed Matt. "What's the use of denying yourself a good bed
+when you can just as well have one?"
+
+"Vell, I dredder shtay mit you. Don'd say nodding, pecause it vasn't
+any use. My mindt iss made oop, yah, you bed you."
+
+"All right, then," said Matt. "Curl up on the steering-wheel and enjoy
+yourself."
+
+The front seat, of course, was divided into two sections, so it was
+impossible for Carl to stretch himself out in it; however, he wrapped
+his blanket around him and crowded down between the seat and the dash,
+head and shoulders over the foot-board on one side, and his feet
+tangled up in the foot-pedals and levers on the other.
+
+Just as Matt was getting to sleep a wild _honk, honk!_ brought him up
+like a shot out of a gun.
+
+"What's that?" called Matt.
+
+"Dot vas my feets," explained Carl coolly. "I hit dem against dot
+rupper pag vat makes a noise. Oof der car vas vider, den I vouldn't
+be too long for der blace vat I am. Meppy I puy somet'ing else don
+gofermend ponds mit dot money. Meppy, yah--so----" and Carl's words
+drifted off into a snore.
+
+Matt settled down again, and this time nothing disturbed him.
+
+Carl had some bad dreams that night. He thought his feet were caught
+in a giant clothes-wringer, and that a locomotive was hitched to his
+head. Some one would run him through the wringer, flattening him out up
+to the knees, and then the locomotive would back up and pull him out
+again. When his dreams had tired him out with that set of incidents,
+they shut him up in a little tin box, and three men on horseback
+played football with him; other experiences, too numerous to mention,
+followed, and at the wind-up Carl thought he dropped several miles
+through the air and smashed through a skylight. Starting up with a
+groan, he rubbed his eyes and looked around.
+
+It was morning. Carl was sitting up on the ground, chilled and
+chattering.
+
+At first he thought that skylight episode was not a dream, and he
+looked up to see the place he had come through. Instead of seeing
+anything so unsubstantial, his eyes encountered the face of Legree.
+
+"You sleep like a log, Carl!" exclaimed Legree. "Where's Motor Matt?
+What's become of the automobile?"
+
+Then, in a flash, Carl's hazy mind connected with the tangible things
+surrounding him when he went to sleep.
+
+"Vy," he cried, struggling to his feet and staring around, "I vas in
+der car mit Modor Matt! I vent to shleep in it mit him."
+
+"I know you did; but where are Matt and the car now?"
+
+Carl rubbed his eyes again, and then took a more careful look about him.
+
+He was standing in the very place where the car had stood. But there
+was no sign of the car! And no sign of Motor Matt!
+
+The blanket Carl had taken into the Red Flier with him was lying
+crumpled on the ground, a dozen feet away.
+
+"Vell, py shinks!" gasped Carl. "I don'd like dot. I don'd like some
+shokes vere sooch a monkey-doodle pitzness iss made mit me. Modor Matt
+nefer made dot shoke."
+
+"There's no joke, Carl," answered Legree; "I wish to gracious it _was_
+a joke. The Red Flier left here some time during the night. No one
+heard it. No one knew it was gone until I looked out of the window of
+my room. You were lying on the ground here, but neither the car nor
+Matt were in sight. Do you think Matt would pull out and leave you?"
+
+"Leaf me? Matt? Vell, he vas my bard, und how you figure oudt dot he do
+dot? No, py shinks! Oof he ain'd here he vas dook off, und oof he vas
+dook off id vas dot Prisco und Spangler vat dit it!"
+
+With that, Carl went over to the well and sat down. He was still
+confused, but slowly the realization of what had happened was growing
+upon him. And as the realization grew, his temper mounted with it.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+SPIRITED AWAY.
+
+
+Carl was not the only one who had been troubled with dreams that
+night. Motor Matt floundered through one of the worst nightmares he
+had ever had. The whole scheme of the thing was rather vague, but
+mighty depressing. He seemed to be engaged in some tremendous struggle,
+striking away and countering a thousand or more huge fists that leaped
+at him out of the gloom. One by one he put the clenched hands out of
+business, and when he had conquered the last of them he opened his eyes
+in bewilderment.
+
+The humming of a motor was in his ears. It was the Red Flier's motor,
+he could tell that instinctively. The stars were overhead, the cool,
+damp smell of the night was all around, and the glow of the acetylene
+lamps was glimmering and dancing in advance. The car was moving briskly
+through the silence.
+
+Matt had a queer, sick feeling at the pit of his stomach. Counting out
+the time he raced the limited train on his motor-cycle, collided with
+a freight-wagon and was laid up for a fortnight, he had never been
+confined to his bed for a week in his life.
+
+He wondered what ailed him, and his mind was sluggish and slow in
+working out the problem.
+
+He had felt just as he did then once before. That was the time he had
+been drugged and taken out of Phoenix to keep him from racing with the
+Prescott champion, O'Day.
+
+Had he been drugged now? If so, why, and by whom?
+
+By degrees the cool air cleared his befogged brain. He went back over
+the chain of events, picking it up where he had dropped it.
+
+The queer party of stranded actors--the arrival at Fairview--the escape
+of Brisco from the hotel--the ride into the hills to look for the
+boy--the pursuit by the horsemen and the loss of the tin box--all these
+events dragged through Matt's mind. He and Carl had gone to sleep in
+the automobile. Why was the car moving? Had Carl, giving rein to some
+wild impulse, cranked up the car and started for a night ride?
+
+Matt stirred. "Carl!" he called, "what are you trying to do?"
+
+Matt became aware, then, that there was some one beside him in the
+tonneau.
+
+"Carl, hey?" came a jeering voice, as a strong hand reached over and
+pushed Matt back in the seat. "Ye got another guess comin'. Thar ain't
+no Dutchman along, this trip."
+
+"Tuned up, has he?" asked a voice from the front seat.
+
+"Yep; he's got back ter airth, Hank."
+
+"Surprised?" The man in front laughed hoarsely as he asked the
+question.
+
+"Waal, kinder. He thought his Dutch pard was erlong."
+
+Matt, while this talk was going forward, realized with a shock that the
+two men in the car were Brisco and Spangler. Brisco was in the driver's
+seat, and Spangler was in the tonneau.
+
+With a quick gathering of all his strength, Matt flung himself toward
+the door of the tonneau. His first unreasoning impulse was to get away
+from his captors. The car must have been going forty miles an hour, and
+the roadside was lined with sharp stones. If Matt had succeeded in his
+desperate attempt, he could hardly have escaped without serious injury;
+but his rash move was nipped in the bud. Spangler, who was in the
+tonneau for the purpose, grabbed Matt and hurled him back into the seat.
+
+"None o' that!" he growled. "Want ter break yer bloomin' neck? Not as I
+keer much about yer neck, but Hank an' me hev got diff'rent plans fer
+ye."
+
+Matt was still dizzy and weak. The nausea at his stomach was leaving
+him slowly, but it made him feel as limp as a rag and utterly helpless.
+
+"Did you men run away with this car?" he asked.
+
+"Looks that-away, don't it?" returned Spangler.
+
+"Where's Carl?"
+
+"Didn't hev no time ter bother with the Dutchman, so we left him
+behind."
+
+"Was he hurt?"
+
+"Hurt? Nary, he wasn't hurt. We ain't opinin' ter hurt anybody this
+trip so long as we hev our way. The Dutchman was snoring like a house
+afire. All we did was ter lift him out o' the keer an' lay him on the
+ground. We give him a smell o' somethin' on a han'kercher, jest ter
+make him snooze a leetle harder, that's all."
+
+"You drugged both of us, then?"
+
+"That was the easiest way ter keep ye from makin' er noise."
+
+"Where are you taking me?"
+
+"Ye'll know afore long."
+
+It was a rugged road they were traveling, and the Red Flier negotiated
+it with many a juggling bump. Mountainous rocks, half-screened by
+bushes and trees, glided by, and there were dusky gashes and seams, and
+now and then a splash of falling water.
+
+Rougher and rougher grew the trail, and the reckless driving of Brisco
+caused Matt's nerves to thrill with fears for the car.
+
+"You'll rack the car to pieces if you keep driving like that!" Matt
+called sharply.
+
+"What's it to you?" taunted Brisco.
+
+"It means a whole lot to me. This car belongs to Mr. Tomlinson, and
+I've promised to take it safely to Albuquerque."
+
+"Be hanged to you and Mr. Tomlinson!" snarled Brisco. "We'll fix this
+car before we're done with it. If you ever take it to Albuquerque,
+you'll have to scoop up the pieces and tote 'em there in a
+lumber-wagon. That's part of what we're going to do to play even with
+you and him!"
+
+Matt's heart skipped a beat, and a cold chill ran through his body.
+Could the villains really mean to destroy the Red Flier?
+
+"You'd better think well about what you do," warned Matt. "If you ruin
+this car, Mr. Tomlinson will never let up on you till he puts you where
+you belong."
+
+Spangler brought his hand around in a sweeping blow. Matt dodged the
+hand so that the stroke was only a glancing one.
+
+"Shut up!" he cried savagely. "Ye ain't here ter make any threats, 'r
+throw any bluffs."
+
+At that moment, Brisco brought the car to a stop, putting on the brakes
+so suddenly that the wheels locked and slid.
+
+"I reckon this'll be far enough," said Brisco, turning in his seat.
+"Make him get out, Spang."
+
+"Hear that?" cried Spang. "Open the door and git down."
+
+"What's this for?" returned Matt, making no move to obey.
+
+For answer, Spangler, with an oath, seized him by the collar and jerked
+him roughly out of the tonneau.
+
+Matt was unable to make any resistance. As he stood in the road, the
+jagged uplifts by which he was surrounded seemed to swim about him in
+circles.
+
+Spangler got back in the car, as Matt staggered to a big boulder and
+leaned against it, and Brisco backed the car around until it was headed
+along the back course.
+
+"Wait!" cried Matt, as a thought of what all this might mean to him
+took shape in his brain.
+
+"We're going to wait--and for just about a minute," returned Brisco.
+
+"Are you going to steal that car?" asked Matt, "just as you stole
+Nugent's?"
+
+"You're too much of a meddler," snapped Brisco. "If you could go along
+and mind your own business, you'd be a whole lot better off. You had to
+tangle up with Tomlinson, back there at Ash Fork, and you hadn't any
+call to butt in. If it hadn't been for you, we'd 'a' won out on that
+game and been all to the good. I don't reckon we'd have bothered you at
+all, though, if you'd been content to carry out your orders and push on
+to Albuquerque. But you couldn't do that; oh, no. You're trying to be
+first aid to the weak and down-trodden wherever you run into them, so
+you had to mix up with that bunch of stranded actors.
+
+"When I drove the runabout into Fairview after gasoline and oil, I
+dropped Spangler off to lay for the tramps and get that tin box. You
+had to butt in, as per usual. I got away from Fairview by the skin
+of my teeth, picked up Spang at the place where he was waiting, and
+we went on to where our other pard had some horses. We side-tracked
+the runabout there, and slid back toward Fairview, intending to push
+through the timber--a move we couldn't make in the car. Then"--and
+here a swirling oath dropped from Brisco's lips--"we dropped into your
+little trap."
+
+"What trap?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Oh, no, you don't know a thing about that, do you? You weren't
+moseying out there just to give us a chance to lift that tin box,
+were you? And you hadn't the least notion it was empty, had you? If
+you hadn't turned that trick, my bantam, we wouldn't have turned this
+one. We're going to settle with you, all right. This is a part of
+the country that isn't traveled once a week, and you're seventy-five
+miles from Fairview. By the time you get back to town, we'll have got
+what was in that box, and have smashed the Red Flier into a heap of
+jack-straws. I know a nice little cliff alongside the road, and when
+we're through with the car we'll lash the wheel, open her up and let
+her go over the edge! I reckon that'll cook your goose with Tomlinson.
+He didn't calculate you were going to use his car transporting a lot
+of stranded actors, and mixing up in their affairs on the way to
+Albuquerque."
+
+For a space, Motor Matt's heart stood still.
+
+"You wouldn't dare do that!" he shouted.
+
+"Wouldn't I?" and a reckless, mocking laugh came with the words. "From
+what you know of me don't you think I would? Hope you'll have a nice,
+easy walk to Fairview, Motor Matt! There'll be some surprises in store
+for you when you get there. Good-by!"
+
+Spangler also shouted a jeering farewell.
+
+The car got in motion, the humming slowly decreased, and the glow of
+the tail light winked suddenly into darkness.
+
+Motor Matt had been abandoned.
+
+But, worse than that, the two scoundrels who had spirited him away from
+Fairview were bent on the wanton destruction of Mr. Tomlinson's car!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+
+
+Motor Matt came nearer being utterly cast down, at that moment,
+than ever before in his life. Weak and sick as he was, perhaps his
+discouragement was not to be wondered at. Sinking down at the foot of
+the boulder against which he had been leaning, he began finding fault
+with himself.
+
+It was all right to pick up the stranded actors and carry them on to
+Fairview. That was merely a kindness for which no one could blame
+him. But to jump into their troubles, at a time when he was engaged
+in work for Mr. Tomlinson and was not, strictly speaking, his own
+boss, that gave the affair another look. Now, because of his desire to
+help Legree, Eliza, and the rest, there he was, hung up in the hills
+seventy-five miles from Fairview, with the Red Flier in Brisco's hands
+and pointed for the scrap-heap.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson would be perfectly justified in laying the destruction of
+the car to Matt's own disregard of orders. And it was Mr. Tomlinson who
+had selected Matt to take the Red Flier to Albuquerque because he was
+satisfied the car would receive better care in his hands than in any
+other!
+
+There was enough in these reflections to make Motor Matt dissatisfied
+with himself. But he was not, and never had been, a "quitter." And the
+one cry of his soul had always been for Fate to keep him from joining
+the ranks of the "quitters."
+
+As a matter of fact, Motor Matt was a self-reliant American boy, and
+there was never the least danger of his going over to the useless crowd
+of mistakes and failures. Naturally, he might make a misplay now and
+then--running behind just enough to keep him "gingered up" for ultimate
+success in the big things.
+
+While he crouched at the foot of the boulder, the cool air clearing his
+brain and the sick feeling leaving him, he fell to planning for turning
+the tables against his enemies.
+
+What was there he could do, afoot and seventy-five miles from town?
+
+At first, the prospect seemed utterly hopeless; but Matt knew that a
+brave heart and a firm will had time and again snatched victory from
+seeming defeat.
+
+He would start for Fairview. Possibly, although the road was not much
+traveled, he might have the good luck to encounter some freighter who
+would give him a lift.
+
+Without losing a moment longer, he got up and started off in the
+direction taken by Brisco and Spangler.
+
+He wondered, as he swung along, what Carl would think when he came to
+himself and found the car missing--and Matt gone with it. And what
+would Legree think? And Eliza?
+
+But what those in Fairview might think was a minor consideration. The
+great point was the recovery of the Red Flier before the car's captors
+could wreck the machine.
+
+Brisco was the only one of the two scoundrels who could run a car, and
+even Brisco's knowledge was superficial. An hour's instruction, from
+the driver of Nugent's runabout, was all Brisco had had.
+
+Brisco now had two stolen cars and he could run only one of
+them--unless, indeed, the third man he had picked up knew something
+about motors.
+
+Matt, perhaps, had walked a mile through the gloomy hills, when he
+heard a noise as of some one in the road ahead. He halted, half-fearing
+that Brisco and Spangler were coming back.
+
+But that could not be, he reasoned. If they had wanted to come back,
+they would have used the car--and the noise Matt heard was of footsteps.
+
+He listened, straining his ears and eyes. Only one man was coming. He
+could not see, but hearing alone told him there was but one.
+
+Backing into the deep shadow of a nest of boulders, he continued to
+wait.
+
+The man, whoever he was, was coming hurriedly. Sometimes he ran, and
+occasionally he stumbled. As he drew closer, Matt saw that he was a
+small man, and as he came closer still the figure resolved itself into
+that of a mere boy.
+
+"Hello!" called Matt, stepping out into the road again.
+
+The figure gave a startled jump.
+
+"Chee!" it cried. "Say, who's dat?"
+
+Matt's pulses quickened, and a glow of hope ran through him.
+
+"Hello, kid!" he shouted. "What're you doing here?"
+
+"I'm a jay if it ain't Motor Matt!" came delightedly from the boy as he
+dashed forward. "How's dis f'r a come-off? Say, it sure knocks de wind
+out o' me! Where'd yous come from, yerself? Was yous on dat automobile
+wid Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+By then the boy was close enough to grab Matt's hand and give it a
+shake.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt; "I was on the car with them and they let me out
+and turned back."
+
+"How'd de mutts come t' git yous on de mat, hey?"
+
+Matt explained how he had been spirited away.
+
+"Well, on de level," breathed the boy, "dat's de rummest move I ever
+connected wit'. Raw? Oh, sister!"
+
+"Now tell me something about yourself," said Matt. "Why did you get
+into that car? And where have you been since you left Fairview?"
+
+"Easy, cull! T'ings is bein' pulled off in such a bunch it's hard t'
+straighten dem out. Le's do de ham-restin' act, right here on dis nice
+bunch o' rocks, while we chin a little."
+
+They sat down, side by side.
+
+"You must have had some reason, Eva, for hiking out with Brisco like
+you did, and----"
+
+"Cut out de 'Eva.' Fergit de styge name. I was on'y dat back o' de tin
+lamps, an' no more of 'em fer mine. Call me Josh. Not dat I'm a josher,
+understan', 'cause I ain't. An' here's somet'in' else I'm battin' up t'
+yous: Dere's a few t'inks rattlin' around in me block dat I can't let
+yous in on. Not bekase I ain't willin' meself, but bekase it ain't on
+de program. See?
+
+"First off, Matt, I crowded into dat car becase de idee looked good t'
+me. Dat's all yous is t' know about dat f'r now. I rode t' w'ere Brisco
+stopped de car an' took on Spang--about de place w'ere dad an' yous had
+de set-to on account o' dat box.
+
+"Den we moved on ag'in, me still under de coat an' wonderin' how long I
+could keep shy o' de lamps o' dem two dubs. You can bet yer lid, Matt,
+I didn't breathe on'y when necessary. I was de sly boy, all right.
+W'en we pulled up ag'in, we was clost t' t'ree horses, all saddled an'
+bridled, an' wit' a beer-faced guy on one o' dem.
+
+"De runabout was backed into de brush, an' Brisco an' Spang got onto
+two o' de horses an' all t'ree o' dat strong-arm bunch pulled deir
+freight back down de road. It was right den I wished dat I knowed how
+t' work dem cranks an' t'ings so'st I could make dat car go w'ere I
+wanted. But I didn't know de tail lamp from de carburetter, so I jess
+had t' lay low an' wait.
+
+"W'en dem jays got back, dere was yer Uncle John right under de coat,
+same as usual, an' still holdin' his breat'. If one o' de mugs lifted
+de coat, I was plannin' to work me pins an' head right into de weeds,
+like anot'er bear was on me trail.
+
+"But dey didn't look under de coat, none of dem. Dey was too mad. Chee!
+but dey was r'iled! Blatter, blatter, blatter, dey went, swearin' like
+a plumber wot's burned hisself wit' his torch. Say, de air was blue an
+smelt like de odder place. If dey'd piped me off den, dey'd have took
+me skelp, all right.
+
+"From de spiel dey was givin' each odder, I hooked onto de infermation
+dat dey'd got de box an' dat dere wasn't not'in' in it--w'ich I knowed
+all de time. Dey was crowdin' all deir swear-words onto Motor Matt.
+Yous had fooled dem, dey said, an' dey was goin' t' saw off even if it
+took a leg.
+
+"Brisco give de mug on de horse his orders to go t' some place w'ere
+Brisco an' Spang would go foist an' wait. Wid dat we started up
+ag'in--me on de job an' still sayin' me prayers back'ards, for'ards,
+an' sideways. I couldn't see where we went, but we was goin' f'r a
+hunderd years, seemed like, I was dat worked up t'inkin' I might git
+nabbed. Den we stopped, backed t'roo some brush, an' stopped ag'in, dat
+time t' stay.
+
+"I had drawn into me shell, listenin' w'ile Brisco an' Spang was
+rammin' around de place w'ere we was. After a w'ile, deir bazoos seemed
+t' move off, an' I stuck out me coco an' piped de layout.
+
+"We was in a well. Anyways dat's how it looked. De well was about
+fifteen feet acrost, steep rocks all around an' on'y one place w'ere
+dere was a break. De break was choked up wit' brush, an' I'm wise right
+off dat we'd backed t'roo it w'en we come into de well.
+
+"I see anot'er nice little clump of brush off t' de right, an' it
+looked so invitin' dat I slipped out from under de coat an' ducked f'r
+it.
+
+"I was in dat clump w'en de odder bloke, who dey called Klegg, blowed
+in t'roo de break wid de hosses; an' I was still dere w'en night come
+down, an' de t'ree of dem lighted up de runabout an' went away w'id it.
+
+"Couldn't git in de back seat den, kase Klegg was dere, so dey bumped
+off into de night an' left me in de well wit' de t'ree horses.
+
+"I kinked me thinker all up t'ryin' t' guess whedder I'd better stay
+right dere or borry one o' dem horses an' ride some place. Well, I
+didn't ride, not knowin' any good place t' ride to. Couldn't even make
+a guess which way de town was.
+
+"I went out t'roo de brush an' moseyed around in de dark till
+_chugetty-chug!_ along come dat runabout ag'in an' backed t'roo de
+brush into de well. But dere was on'y one man in it, an' it was Klegg.
+W'ere was Brisco an' Spang? Dat was wot fretted me. W'ile I was
+frettin', along comes dat red tourin'-car. I made out Brisco in front,
+an' Spang in de rear--an' dere was some odder mug in de rear wot I
+couldn't get next to. De tourin'-car went on past de well.
+
+"Chee, but I was rattled! Wot was happenin', I says t' meself, an' w'y
+was it happenin'? De tourin'-car come back ag'in an' in it was Brisco
+an' Spang, but de odder guy had been left somew'ere. De tourin'-car was
+backed into de well, w'ere de runabout had gone, an' I started dis way
+t' see wot I could find. Say, Matt, I was knocked stiff w'en I found
+yous! Great, ain't it, how luck takes a shoot, once in a w'ile? If
+dat---- Wot's de matter w'id yous? W'ere yous goin'?"
+
+Matt had jumped up, grabbed Josh by the arm and was pulling him down
+the road.
+
+"Come on!" said he. "We haven't got any time to lose!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+A DARING PLAN.
+
+
+"Say," panted Josh, as he and Matt traveled rapidly along the road,
+"put me wise to dis move, can't yous? Wot's in yer block, Matt?"
+
+"Do you know what Brisco intends to do with the Red Flier?" asked Matt.
+
+"He's layin' in a supply o' benzine-buggies t' start a garage, 'r
+somet'ing, ain't he?"
+
+"He ran off with that touring-car just to play even with me, Josh. He
+says I've meddled with his affairs long enough, and that he's going to
+run the Red Flier over a cliff just to pay me back for using the car to
+help you people."
+
+"Wouldn't dat frost yous?" muttered Josh.
+
+"And he said I was seventy-five miles from Fairview," went on Matt,
+"and that by the time I had walked to the town he would have finished
+his business there."
+
+"Brisco has got anodder guess comin'. He ain't so warm. Dad can show
+him a t'ing 'r two, an' don't yous fergit dat. Chee! Dat guy's de
+limit. But wot's yer game, cull?"
+
+"You say that both cars are in that 'well,' as you call it?"
+
+"Dat's w'ere dey was w'en I started for here."
+
+"Well, I'm going to get the Red Flier away from that outfit!"
+
+Matt spoke as confidently as though he had merely remarked that he was
+going over to the hotel after his dinner.
+
+"Say, cull," returned the boy, "I like yer nerve, all right, an' I
+marks yous up f'r de entry, but how yous goin' t' git under de wire?
+Dere's t'ree o' dem guys, an' dey've got a lot o' artillery. How we
+goin' t' git away wit' de car if dey don't want us to?"
+
+"I don't know," replied Matt, "but we've got to do it somehow."
+
+"Yous is a reg'lar lollypaloozer, Motor Matt, an' I'd back yous t' win
+any ole day, but dis looks like too big a load. But yous can count on
+me. Dad'll tell yous dat I'm big f'r me age an' no mutt in a getaway,
+so jest set yer pace an' I'll push on de reins."
+
+"How far is it to the place where the automobiles were left?"
+
+"We're close t' dere now. I'm wonderin' w'y Brisco dropped yous widin
+a short walk o' de hang-out--dat is, if he was fixin' t' stay at de
+place?"
+
+"I don't know," answered Matt; "but that's what he did and it's enough
+for me. I've got to recover that car, Josh. If I don't, and if anything
+happens to it, I'd look nice making my report to Tomlinson, wouldn't I?"
+
+"If yous hadn't picked up dat bunch o' tramps on de road yous wouldn't
+have got into dis fix."
+
+"I'm not sorry I helped you out, Josh."
+
+"Sure not. Yous ain't dat kind, Motor Matt. All de same, yous would
+have been peggin' along to'rds Albuquerque, nice as yous please, if
+it hadn't been for dat crowd o' Uncle Tommers. Dere'll be doin's in
+Fairview in de mornin', w'en dad finds out yous ain't w'ere yous ought
+t' be."
+
+"What can your father do?"
+
+"He can do a lot w'en he gits started. Don't yous never t'ink he's a
+slow one, Matt."
+
+Matt knew that Legree could keep a cool head in a pinch, but, for all
+that, he didn't see how he could do anything when he didn't have money
+enough even to pay his board-bill.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson has a lot of confidence in me," said Matt; "and, if that
+car is wrecked, I'll have----"
+
+"Sh-h-h!" whispered Josh, coming to a wary halt and laying a hand on
+Matt's arm. "Look ahead, dere. See dat black splotch on de side o' de
+hill by de road?"
+
+"Yes," answered Matt, straining his eyes in the direction indicated.
+
+"Dat's de brush dat hides de openin'. Are we bot' goin' t' blow in dere
+an' try t' make a run wit' de red car?"
+
+"We can't do the trick in such a hurricane way as that. We've got to
+lay some other plan. I'll go in and look the ground over, Josh, and
+maybe I can get hold of an idea."
+
+"I'll try t' git holt o' one, too, w'ile I'm waitin' fer yous. Don't
+make much noise w'ile yous is in de bushes, Matt, or dem terriers'll
+pepper yous."
+
+"I'm going to sneak into the place as quietly as I can. I don't think
+they'll hear me."
+
+Leaving the boy a little way from the dark patch of verdure clinging to
+the face of the hill, Matt went on carefully. As he approached closer
+to the vague blot it gradually took form under his eyes.
+
+The wall of the hill seemed to be cracked through from crest to base
+and wrenched apart until it formed a narrow opening. Up both sides of
+the opening grew the bushes, their branches spreading out and forming a
+thick screen.
+
+On account of the darkness, Matt could not make a very close
+examination of the queer fissure, but he saw enough to convince him
+that Nature had contrived a secure retreat for Brisco and Spangler.
+
+The bottom of the opening, Matt judged, was all of ten feet in width.
+Dropping down on his hands and knees, he began crawling through the
+middle of the break, parting the bush branches from in front of him as
+he advanced.
+
+So wary was he that he made very little noise.
+
+He had gone perhaps a dozen feet through the brushy tangle, when a glow
+of light struck on his eyes. This acted as a sort of beacon, and served
+to guide him the rest of the way. A dozen feet more brought him to the
+opposite side of the opening and to the edge of the bushes.
+
+Crouching silently on the ground he proceeded to survey the peculiar
+niche in front of him.
+
+Josh's description, likening the place to a "well," was quite
+appropriate. The niche was circular in form and its walls arose steeply
+to a height of at least fifty feet. In the shadow of the walls the
+place was very dark, but the glowing lamps of an automobile enabled
+Matt to see enough to send a chill of disappointment through him.
+
+There was only one automobile in the niche!
+
+And that one was the runabout!
+
+Brisco and Spangler must have emerged and gone off somewhere with the
+Red Flier.
+
+Had they taken it away to destroy it?
+
+The three horses were not far from the runabout. They were secured to
+some bushes, and could be heard pawing and stamping.
+
+Matt could also hear something else, and that was the snoring of a man
+in deep sleep.
+
+After a moment's hesitation he continued to creep onward, redoubling
+his care and vigilance.
+
+He was upon the man before he was fairly aware of it, one of his
+groping hands coming in contact with an outstretched foot.
+
+The snoring ceased with an explosive grunt and Matt drew back
+breathlessly.
+
+The man did not rouse up. Shifting his position slightly he continued
+to snore.
+
+Making a détour, Matt got around the man--whom he knew was not Brisco
+or Spangler, and consequently must be Klegg--and reached the runabout.
+
+Pausing there, the young motorist let his mind circle about this new
+phase of the situation.
+
+If he couldn't get the Red Flier, why not take the runabout? That would
+afford himself and Josh a quick means for making the return trip to
+Fairview. Besides, no matter what happened to the Red Flier, there was
+something to be gained in getting the runabout away from the thieves.
+
+Close to the car was a heap of horse-trappings. Matt felt about among
+the saddles, bridles and blankets until he had found two coiled riatas.
+
+Could he, by quick work, get one of the ropes around Klegg's hands
+before he was thoroughly awake and able to struggle? Josh would have
+been of use in such an attempt, and Matt decided that he could not make
+it successfully unless he did have the other to help. He would go back
+after Josh, he decided; but first he would look over the runabout and
+make sure it was ready for the road.
+
+Laying the ropes in the front of the car, he arose to his feet, softly
+removed the tail lamp from its bracket, and flashed it into the rumble.
+
+The coat, used so cleverly by the boy, was still there, crumpled on
+the floor as though by a man's feet. Passing on to the forward part of
+the car, the pencil of light jumped from point to point, Matt's eyes
+following critically.
+
+Everything seemed to be shipshape and in good order.
+
+A small object on one of the front seats caught the youth's attention.
+It was pushed well back into the angle where the back joined the seat,
+and Matt picked it up and held it in the glow of light.
+
+It was a small bottle, and the label bore the written word,
+"Chloroform."
+
+Matt stifled an exclamation. Undoubtedly it had been some of that
+bottle's contents which had helped Brisco and Spangler get the better
+of him, in Fairview, and run off with the touring-car.
+
+Then a startling expedient darted through Matt's mind. Turn about was
+fair play. With the aid of the drug he could clear a passage for the
+runabout, and without resort to any violence.
+
+Setting the lamp down on the front seat, Matt drew the cork of the
+bottle, took a handkerchief from his pocket and proceeded to wet it
+with the chloroform. Then, re-corking the bottle and laying it aside,
+he went down on his hands and knees and started toward Klegg.
+
+A lightening of the sky over the steep walls that hemmed in the niche
+told of coming day.
+
+The darkness would be a help to Matt and Josh in getting to the road
+and away, and if advantage was to be taken of night Matt knew he would
+have to hurry.
+
+But he was well equipped to carry out his plans now, and lost no time
+in getting about them.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+ON THE ROAD.
+
+
+Kneeling beside Klegg, Matt leaned over and held the saturated
+handkerchief close to his face. The fumes were strong, and seemed to
+strangle him. With a gurgling grunt he shifted his position.
+
+Matt moved the handkerchief and again held it over his face. This time
+Klegg sputtered a little, but did not change his position. Evidently
+the narcotic was beginning to have its effect. After a moment, Matt
+allowed the handkerchief to drop on Klegg's face. He left it there
+for two or three minutes and then threw it aside. Klegg was breathing
+heavily and seemed to be completely under the influence of the drug.
+
+Catching hold of the blanket on which the man was lying, Matt began to
+pull it toward the wall of the niche.
+
+"Chee!" whispered a voice close to Matt's side. "Wot kind of a smell is
+dat, cull? Wot yous done to Klegg?"
+
+"I thought you were going to wait outside, Josh?" answered Matt.
+
+"Dat's wot I t'ought, but yous was so long in comin' dat I took de
+notion t' come in an' look yous up. Wot's de play?"
+
+"I found a bottle of chloroform in the runabout, and it must have been
+out of that same bottle that Brisco took the stuff that put me to
+sleep. Thought I'd see how it worked on Klegg."
+
+"Yous is a jim dandy, Matt!" laughed Josh delightedly. "But w'ere's
+Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+"They're not here, and neither is the touring-car."
+
+"Tough luck! Yous figgerin' on makin' a getaway wit' de runabout?"
+
+"Yes. We might use that for a quick run to Fairview and get the sheriff
+to hunt up Brisco and Spangler. I'll go with the sheriff and use the
+runabout. It's a faster car than the Flier, and we may be able to catch
+the two thieves before they wreck Mr. Tomlinson's car."
+
+"Yous has got a head on yous, Matt, an' no mistake," said the boy
+admiringly. "An' yous pulled all dis off yerself! Well, say, if yous
+ain't a winner dis heat yous ought t' be. Dat's right--on de level an'
+no stringin'. Dad would like t' have a guy like yous t' work wit' all
+de time. An' so would Little Eva, de child wonder. But it's gittin'
+daylight, Matt, an' if we're goin' t' pull our freight, let's be at it."
+
+It was already light enough so that they could see without the lamps.
+These were extinguished, and then Matt put the tail lamp back in its
+place, started the engine and got into the driver's seat.
+
+On the low gear they moved slowly across the bottom of the niche.
+
+Josh was still laughing softly to himself.
+
+"Chee, cull, but I'd like t' be around w'en Brisco an' Spang find dat
+Klegg feller!" he chuckled. "Dat would be as good as a circus. Dis is
+almost too good t' be true, ain't it?"
+
+"It will be, Josh," replied Matt, "if I can only get back the Red
+Flier."
+
+"Dem coves'll be careful o' dat odder machine when dey find dis one has
+been took away from dem."
+
+"I know that--providing they find out the runabout is gone before they
+destroy the Flier."
+
+Setting the runabout at the bushes, Matt drove through the undergrowth,
+Josh keeping the branches out of his face while he attended to the
+steering.
+
+"On de road ag'in!" jubilated the boy, as they emerged from the mouth
+of the opening and turned to the left.
+
+"All I wish is," answered Matt, "that I knew we were going right."
+
+"Dere's on'y two ways t' go, cull. One's up to'rds w'ere you was
+dropped by Brisco an' Spang, an' t'odder's de way we're headin'. It's a
+cinch we're hittin' it off about proper. W'ere d' youse t'ink dem odder
+mutts went wid de tourin'-car?"
+
+"I'm afraid they took it off to carry out their threat and make junk of
+it."
+
+"I hope yous ain't got it right. If dey did dat, it 'u'd put yous in a
+bad hole. Yous couldn't make Tomlinson take dis car f'r de odder, could
+yous?"
+
+"Hardly. This car belongs to Nugent, in Ash Fork."
+
+Something was rattling about the car, and it got onto Matt's nerves.
+Halting for a moment, he located the difficulty. The screw-cap of
+the gasoline-tank was loose. Taking a wrench out of the tool-box he
+tightened the cap, then dropped the wrench in the rumble and returned
+to his seat.
+
+"Yous don't like t' hear anyt'ing rattle, hey?" queried Josh.
+
+"Makes me nervous," laughed Matt. "Now hold onto your teeth, Josh. I'm
+going to let her out!"
+
+"De quicker we kin go de better. Let's see how fast de ole gal kin
+travel."
+
+They whirled around a turn in the narrow valley. The unexpected was
+lying in wait for them, for they came upon Spangler, on foot and
+walking toward the niche.
+
+Josh gave a startled yell. Spangler, dumfounded at sight of the
+runabout, charging toward him with Motor Matt and the boy in front,
+stood as though rooted to the ground.
+
+"Down, Josh!" cried Matt, advancing the spark; "get down behind the
+dashboard!"
+
+As Matt spoke he sounded the horn. Spangler climbed out of the way with
+more haste than grace, and the runabout dashed past him.
+
+"Yi-yip-ee!" tuned up the boy, waving his hand mockingly. "D'radder do
+dat dan git run down, hey?"
+
+"Drop!" yelled Matt, and in a tone that made Josh crumple down between
+the seat and the dash.
+
+Bang!
+
+Matt had expected a bullet, and he was not disappointed. But it went
+wide.
+
+Bang!
+
+The next one came closer, but still left a safe margin.
+
+There was no more shooting. Wondering at it, Josh rose up and looked
+backward.
+
+"Now wot d'youse t'ink o' dat!" he cried. "Wot's dat mug doin' dat for?"
+
+"What's he doing?" asked Matt.
+
+"W'y he's hustlin' a big stone into de middle o' de road. See 'im work!
+Chee! Wot's de meanin' o' dat?"
+
+The car whipped around another turn, wiping Spangler and his strange
+activities out of sight. Josh dropped down on the seat.
+
+"That's got a bad look," said Matt, coaxing the runabout to a still
+faster gait. "We've got to get out of this as quick as we can."
+
+"Chee!" cried the boy, holding to the seat with both hands, "we're
+goin' fast enough. Gid-ap! Wow! wot a spurt! Don't let anyt'ing slip a
+cog, cull. If de ole benzine-buggy hit a rock an' stopped, I'd go right
+on f'r a couple o' miles afore I landed. Oh, wot a clip! We've got de
+Cannonball Limited licked t' a frazzle!"
+
+Then they took another turn, the rear wheels skidding and Matt deftly
+catching the motor up and sending the car onward. The runabout did not
+follow the curve of the road, but made an angling turn--a hair-raising
+stunt copied after Oldfield, the daredevil racer.
+
+Josh gave a yell, and came within a hair of being heaved over Matt and
+into the road.
+
+Then, with a muttered exclamation, Matt cut off the power, applied the
+brakes and quickly reversed, backing for the side of the road.
+
+It all happened so quick that it took the boy's breath.
+
+"Wot's dat fer?" he asked.
+
+Matt was whirling the wheel and starting the car on the back track.
+
+"Brisco is heading us off," he answered--"Brisco in the Red Flier!"
+
+Josh turned to stare along the road.
+
+Matt was right.
+
+Brisco, still a long distance off, was whooping it up in their
+direction.
+
+"Wouldn't dat crimp yous?" gasped the boy, awed at the gathering
+perils. "Dey've got us f'r fair, Matt! W'y didn't yous keep on an' give
+Brisco de go-by?"
+
+"There wasn't room enough in the road to pass!" flung back Matt.
+
+"Dat's w'y Spang was rollin' dem stones in de road! He knew dat Brisco
+was comin', and dat he'd git us between him an' de rock-pile. Chee!
+We're It, dis time, an' no mistake."
+
+Matt, his face white and set and his gray eyes snapping, was leaning
+over the steering-wheel, watching every foot of road as they swept over
+it.
+
+"We've got to pass that rock-pile before it gets too big!" said he
+through his teeth.
+
+"Den w'ere'll we go?"
+
+"Anywhere, just so we keep away from Brisco. This car is a faster one
+than the Red Flier. We can show him our heels at any stage of the game."
+
+They fairly flew, and rocks rushed past them as though hurled by some
+giant hand.
+
+"There'll be some danger when we get to the place where Spangler is
+waiting, Josh," said Matt. "I'll slow down and you can get out, if you
+want to."
+
+"Wot d'youse take me fer?" cried the boy. "I'm wid yous, Matt, win
+'r lose. See? Make yer ole play. If Uncle Josh ain't wit' yous at de
+finish, den call him a quitter an' mark him off'n yer callin'-list."
+
+Hurling onward, and skidding around the turns, Matt kept straining his
+eyes constantly ahead.
+
+Their source of peril was now wrapped up in Spangler. If his pile of
+boulders did not block the road completely--if there was a chance for
+the runabout to get past the stones, or over them, there was still a
+fighting chance for escape.
+
+Half a minute later, as the car reached out for the place where
+Spangler had been at work, Matt's heart went down into his boots.
+
+Spangler was nowhere in sight, but he had worked to good purpose.
+
+A few big boulders were cunningly placed so as to make the road
+impassable. With a despairing cry, Matt brought the runabout to a quick
+stop.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+A CLOSE CALL.
+
+
+"Pile out, Josh, and get busy with those rocks!" yelled Matt.
+
+It was a forlorn hope, for the pounding of the Red Flier could be heard
+around the turn, coming up hand over fist. Long before the way could be
+cleared, Brisco would be upon them.
+
+And what had become of Spangler. Where had he gone? And _why_ had he
+gone?
+
+That was a conundrum, and Matt had no time to give to conundrums just
+then.
+
+Josh, eager to do all he could, was tugging and straining at the rocks.
+
+"It won't do, Josh!" shouted Matt. "Run for those boulders at the side
+of the road and wait for me."
+
+To think quickly in an emergency was Motor Matt's long suit. Many a
+time his cool head had helped him out of a bad difficulty.
+
+While he was shouting to the boy he was running back to the car.
+Snatching the wrench from where he had dropped it in the rumble,
+Matt went to work with lightninglike energy on the cap of the
+gasoline-reservoir.
+
+In record time he had the cap off. Bending down he scooped up a handful
+of sand from the road and dumped the most of it into the reservoir,
+then, as quickly as he had removed the cap, he replaced it, flung the
+wrench into the car and jumped for the boulders.
+
+Hardly was he back of the big stones that clustered along that edge of
+the valley, when the Red Flier shoved her nose through a cloud of dust
+and came scorching onward.
+
+Brisco must have been astounded to see the runabout, deserted and at a
+halt in the road. The way, of course, was blocked for him as well as
+for the runabout, and he halted the Red Flier at a good distance from
+the other machine, leaped out and came running to the other car.
+
+The stones in the road probably gave him a pretty good idea of what
+had happened, for he immediately began looking around him as though
+expecting to see some one--possibly Matt and Josh.
+
+"Spang!" he whooped. "Where are you, Spang?"
+
+"Here!" answered Spangler, appearing suddenly around the bend.
+
+"What you been doing?" demanded Brisco.
+
+"The dickens is ter pay, an' no mistake!" stormed Spang. "That young
+cub of a Motor Matt found out whar we'd cached the runabout, an' blamed
+if he didn't go in an' snake it right out from under Klegg's----"
+
+"Thunder!" broke in Brisco. "Don't you reckon I _saw_ the whelp? He was
+bearing down on me like a hurricane, slamming the runabout through for
+all she was worth."
+
+"He went past here gally-whoopin'," answered Spang, "while I was makin'
+fer that hole in the hill. Come mighty nigh runnin' me down at that.
+I got out o' the way, faced around an' sent a couple o' bullets arter
+him, but the brat's too lucky ter stop any lead----"
+
+"Depends on who throws the lead," snarled Brisco.
+
+"I kin throw it with ary man that walks! But I didn't take time ter
+throw much. I calculated the runabout would come up ferninst you, Hank,
+afore it got out o' the valley, an' that King would have ter turn
+around an' chase back this way. So what does I do but begin pilin'
+stones whar they'd do the most good. Jest got enough down ter do the
+biz, an' went ter see what had happened ter Klegg. Great jumpin'
+sand-hills! What d'ye think that infernal kid done ter him?"
+
+"What?" fumed Brisco.
+
+"Doped him, by thunder! Doped him out er the same bottle we used last
+night! Klegg's up thar in the notch, dead ter the world!"
+
+"What did you leave the hang-out for?" roared Brisco angrily. "Didn't
+I tell you, when I left, to stay there with Klegg? If you'd done as I
+said, this wouldn't have happened."
+
+"I come out ter see if that kid was moseyin' down the valley," was the
+sullen rejoinder from Spang. "Ye said I was ter watch out an' make sure
+he didn't blunder outer the notch."
+
+"Well, you made sure, didn't you?" taunted Brisco. "Where'd Legree's
+kid spring from? How'd he come to be along with King?"
+
+"How'd I know? Think I'm a mind-reader?"
+
+"Deuced funny thing! He was with King, and I'd like to know where he
+came from, and how he got here. There's a nigger in the fence, I'll
+bet. Where'd those boys go?"
+
+"I don't know that, nuther."
+
+"Did they pass you and go up the valley?"
+
+"Nary, they didn't!"
+
+"Then they must be hiding around here somewhere! Let's get 'em. If I
+lay hands on Motor Matt again he won't get off so easy."
+
+There was only one place in that vicinity where any one could hide, and
+that was among the scattered rocks not far from where the runabout was
+standing.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, making a hasty survey of the surroundings, at once
+hit upon the boulders as the place for them to look.
+
+"They're over thar," cried Spangler, "an' I'll bet money on it."
+
+As he spoke, he started at a run for the side of the valley, pulling a
+revolver as he went.
+
+"Don't do any shooting," called Brisco, starting after Spangler, "just
+grab 'em and hold 'em."
+
+"We'll tie King in that thar automobile when we run it over the cliff!"
+yelped Brisco viciously. "We'll l'arn him ter play his tricks on _us_!"
+
+Matt and Josh had heard all this conversation. They were not standing
+still, either, but were busily finding some place where they could stow
+themselves away.
+
+A fight with the two armed men was to be avoided, if possible. Matt
+knew that he and Josh would stand little chance in such a one-sided
+combat; and Matt had formed plans which he was eager to be carrying out.
+
+A little way up the steep hillside there was a ledge, with a recess
+back of it.
+
+Matt's quick eye picked out the spot, and he climbed briskly, hauling
+Josh along after him. The boulders shielded them from view while they
+were getting to the ledge, and Matt pushed Josh into the recess, and
+then rolled into it himself. From this position Matt was able to peer
+over the ledge and keep track of the movements of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+"Are they comin' dis way, cull?" whispered the boy.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt.
+
+"Got deir guns ready, eh?"
+
+"Of course, Josh. Scoundrels like Brisco and Spangler always draw and
+shoot if you give 'em half a chance."
+
+"Dey're hot at de two of us, an' dey'll sure lay out ter do us up."
+
+"We'll have to fight, if they force it on us."
+
+"Wot kin we do?"
+
+"There's a stone on the ledge. If they come too close I'll push it down
+on them."
+
+"Better give dat dere stone a push right off, bekase----"
+
+"Hist!" cautioned Matt.
+
+Silence fell between the boys. Matt drew in his head, fearing he
+would be seen. He listened intently, however, and could tell by the
+scrambling feet below just how near Brisco and Spangler were coming.
+When they came too close, Matt was intending to push the stone down on
+them.
+
+"Beats the deuce where those whelps went to!" grumbled the voice of
+Brisco.
+
+"They must be here. Thar wasn't any place else they could go. I wasn't
+gone from the road more'n five minits, Hank."
+
+"They wouldn't have had time to get past you?"
+
+"Nary, they wouldn't. They're here, I tell ye; they must be."
+
+"The whole side-hill is under our eyes. If you can see the cubs you can
+do better than I can."
+
+"Seems like there was a shelf up thar a ways. Mebby they're on the
+shelf?"
+
+"Gammon! That shelf isn't wide enough for a chipmunk to sit on."
+
+"Anyways, I'm goin' up an' take a look."
+
+Matt got ready to push out and roll the stone off the shelf. Before he
+could do that, however, a shout from Brisco halted him.
+
+"Say, you! There were three horses in the hang-out with Klegg!"
+
+"What o' that?" answered Spangler.
+
+"Why, those boys have gone there and are getting the horses."
+
+"How could they go thar, Hank? They didn't pass me."
+
+"They might have got there when you didn't see them. While we're
+wasting time here, I'll bet something handsome they're getting out
+those horses. Come on! Don't lose another second fooling around among
+those rocks!"
+
+"Waal, I don't reckon----"
+
+"Come on, I say!" roared Brisco.
+
+The two men were heard scrambling down the slope, getting farther and
+farther away.
+
+Back in the little recess Matt could hear the boy chuckling and talking
+to himself.
+
+"Come on, Josh!" whispered Matt, starting up. "Be careful, though! This
+is our day for luck, all right."
+
+"Well, I guess!" answered the boy, rolling over the ledge. "Chee, but
+dey're a pair o' dough-heads. Good t'ing f'r us, too. What next, Matt?"
+
+"We'll get to the Red Flier, turn it the other way along the trail, and
+ride back to Fairview."
+
+"Oh, Lucy!" giggled Josh. "Fer a kid dat ain't had not'in' t' eat since
+yesterday mornin' I'm feelin' some fine! We gits de Red Flier, after
+all, an' dem guys is beat, hands down."
+
+They were proceeding down the hillside while Josh was talking. When
+Matt reached the boulders that lined the road, he looked out.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, hurrying as fast as their legs could carry them,
+were just vanishing around the bend.
+
+"Now for the Red Flier--and Fairview!" said Matt, running out from
+among the boulders and laying a direct course for the red car.
+
+"Dat's de talk, cull!" laughed Josh, hustling along after Matt.
+
+Certainly it looked as though they were to have everything their own
+way, for a while at least--but they were not so lucky as they thought.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+CAR AGAINST CAR.
+
+
+It may be that Matt and Josh made too much racket getting down the
+rocks, or that Brisco had a premonition that something was wrong. Be
+that as it might, however, yet Brisco and Spangler turned back a minute
+after they had gone charging around the bend.
+
+Motor Matt, at that moment, was bending to the crank of the Red Flier,
+and it was Josh who excitedly announced the approach of their two
+enemies.
+
+The boy had done his jubilating too soon, and the sight of Brisco and
+Spangler filled him with panic.
+
+"Oh, chee!" he fluttered. "Dey're after us, Matt, like a couple o'
+grizzlies! Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks agin!"
+
+"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a whirl.
+
+One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with which the machine
+caught up its cycle; and it had been the same with Matt's twin-cylinder
+motorcycle. Half a turn of the pedal was enough for the little _Comet_,
+and one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's motor.
+
+While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and Spangler, Motor
+Matt ran around and vaulted into his old familiar place. He felt at
+home--much more so than he had when driving the runabout.
+
+Neither Brisco nor Spangler wasted any time with their revolvers.
+Both knew that the runabout was a faster machine than the Red Flier,
+and both felt confident that a quick start after the boys and a few
+minutes' chase would tell the tale.
+
+Spangler scrambled into the car. Brisco slipped as he rounded the front
+of the runabout to turn over the engine, fell sprawling and hit his
+head on the handle of the crank.
+
+He was not very much hurt, apparently, although from his flow of
+language his temper must have been severely injured. Besides, he had
+lost ten seconds--no very serious matter, considering the usual speed
+of the runabout--but Brisco was anxious for a rapid start and a quick
+finish for the chase.
+
+As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping from up the road sounding
+like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun. Motor Matt had turned the
+Red Flier with his customary celerity, and was off on the high gear
+with the muffler cut out.
+
+"By thunder," howled the frantic Spangler, "oncet I ketch that Motor
+Matt I'll wring his neck fer him!"
+
+"I'll help you," answered Brisco vindictively. There was a patch of
+skin gone from his forehead and a little dribble of red was flowing
+down his cheek.
+
+"If they wasn't out o' sight," growled Spangler, "I'd pepper 'em."
+
+"What's the use of peppering them?" scowled Brisco. "We'll climb right
+over 'em in less'n five minutes."
+
+"Do it!" cried Spangler, as they shot ahead recklessly.
+
+"Do what?" asked Brisco, just missing a boulder by a hair's breadth.
+
+"Why, climb over 'em," snorted Spangler. "Run 'em down an' shove 'em
+inter the rocks! Let's hev a smash, with that young whelp right in the
+middle of it. He's made us trouble enough!"
+
+"Don't be a fool, Spang!" returned Brisco. "If we ran into them we
+might smash the runabout. We've got use for this machine--after we
+clean up on Legree and this Motor Matt."
+
+"That's so, too," said Spangler. "We may hev use fer it even if ye
+don't clean up on Legree. With another pair o' shoes an' tubes, an' a
+place whar we kin keep a supply o' gasoline an' oil, an' them steel
+bottles o' compressed air, we could circle all around through this here
+Southwestern kentry, takin' our toll wharever we wanted ter pick it up."
+
+"Sure we could, and we _will_!"
+
+"I'm glad o' one thing," observed Spangler.
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"Why, thar won't be any more glass throwed in the road, same as thar
+was during t'other chase we had with that Red Flier. King had a lot in
+the red car, if ye remember, an' I dumped it all out."
+
+"We'll nip 'im this time," said Brisco, through his teeth.
+
+"We got ter, that's what. If we don't---- Tear an' ages, Hank! Be
+keerful!"
+
+The runabout had been hurled at a curve. There was no lessening of the
+speed, and the entire machine slid sideways to the edge of the road,
+banging into the rocks with a force that pitched Spangler against the
+dashboard. He came within one of going clear over upon the hood.
+
+"Get back in your seat and hang on!" yelled Brisco. "We haven't
+commenced to run yet."
+
+After that Spangler had no time to talk--he was too busy holding
+himself in the car.
+
+Meanwhile the Red Flier had been streaking it through the hills, Josh
+keeping a pair of keen eyes on the back track, and Matt giving his
+entire attention to the road ahead.
+
+"Chee, wot a bump!" cried Josh.
+
+He had seen the runabout skid across the road, take a welt at the rock
+wall and then leap onward like a bullet from a gun.
+
+"What's the matter?" shouted Matt.
+
+He had to shout, for the wind of their flight caught the words out of
+his teeth and flung them, a mere wisp of sound, far to rearward.
+
+"Brisco tried t' knock over a hill wit' his hind wheels," yelled Josh,
+"an' Spang tried t' turn a handspring over de bonnet. Wow! but dey're
+goin some, Matt!"
+
+"So are we," screamed Matt, "Fifty-eight miles an hour."
+
+"Ever race dat runabout afore?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"W'ch winned?"
+
+"The Flier--by a fluke. I scattered glass in the road--the runabout got
+into it and went lame."
+
+"Got any glass along now?"
+
+"Yes, in the tonneau; but----"
+
+"None dere now, cull."
+
+"Then Brisco must have thrown it out. It'll all right, though. This is
+going to be our race."
+
+"We'd better keep our lamps skinned f'r Fairview. It's on'y
+seventy-five miles from w'ere we started, an we're goin' so fast we
+might run past de place an' never see it."
+
+Josh felt hilarious. His panic was leaving him and his usual nerve was
+coming back.
+
+"How's the runabout coming?" roared Matt.
+
+"Gainin'!" whooped the boy. "Oh, sister, how she's comin'! Wisht I had
+some glass."
+
+"She'll never catch us, Josh!"
+
+"How's dat?"
+
+"Because I've fixed her so she won't."
+
+"I hope yous ain't shy in yer calkilations, Matt. Dem blokes'll sure
+kill us if we drops into deir hands."
+
+"Watch her, Josh! Tell me when her speed slackens, or when anything
+goes wrong."
+
+"She ain't slackenin' none yet, an' nuttin' ain't gone wrong."
+
+"Well, watch and tell me."
+
+Matt couldn't understand why the runabout wasn't beginning to develop
+trouble in the vicinity of the needle-valve. But it would come, sooner
+or later. Some of the sand was bound to get through the supply-pipe in
+time.
+
+The valley had widened considerably, and now it began to develop dips
+and rises which afforded Matt opportunity for nursing the motor and
+preventing overheating. He could cut off the power on the down grades
+and give the throbbing cylinders a breathing spell.
+
+Brisco had no such fine ability or discrimination. He took everything
+on the high gear.
+
+"Still gainin'!" announced Josh.
+
+"How far are they behind?"
+
+"A hundred feet. It's a wonder dey don't shake some bullets out o' deir
+guns dis way. One of 'em's tootin' his bazoo at us."
+
+"What does he say? Can you hear?"
+
+"He says ter stop 'r he'll put a bullet into one o' our tires. Chee! If
+he does dat----"
+
+Matt snatched one hand from the steering-wheel.
+
+Honk, honk! he answered derisively.
+
+Sping!
+
+The warning report was followed by the whistle of a bullet. It did
+not come anywhere near the Red Flier, but spatted harmlessly into the
+valley wall.
+
+Josh laughed wildly and waved his hand. The spirit of the race was
+surging through his veins and had wiped out all sense of fear.
+
+"Wow!" he shouted. "Yous ought t' seen dat! Spang has been holdin' on
+t' de seat wit' bot' hands, but he let go wit' one t' fire at us. De
+runabout jumped sideways an' he lost his pepper-box overboard. Come
+clost t' goin' hisself! Say, I wisht he had!"
+
+The runabout was devouring the distance in remarkable style. It was now
+only twenty-five feet behind, and so near that the sand and pebbles
+kicked up by the flying rear wheels of the red car struck in the faces
+of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+Spangler lowered his head. Brisco jerked the goggles down over his eyes.
+
+"Stop!" he roared, "or I'll run into you!"
+
+Honk, honk! tooted Matt defiantly.
+
+Brisco swore and gritted his teeth. With his temper at fever heat, what
+did he care how he injured the runabout just so he evened his score
+with Motor Matt?
+
+Closer and closer came the runabout. Josh measured the decreasing
+distance with his eyes.
+
+"Ten feet! Five, Matt, _five_! She's up t' us, now--look out!"
+
+Not knowing what was to happen, Josh curled over the back of the seat
+and hung on with both hands.
+
+There was a slight jar, followed by a sudden slewing on the part of the
+runabout, a quick lessening of speed and the whirr of a racing engine.
+
+"Dey're stoppin'!" shouted the boy; "somet'ing has gone wrong wid de
+odder car!"
+
+"I knew _something_ would happen!" shouted Matt, as he slowed his speed
+a little to give the Red Flier a bit of a rest.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+
+
+"Dat engine o' deirs went wrong just at de right time t' save our
+bacon, Matt," said Josh.
+
+Matt tossed a look backward. The runabout was at a stop, and Brisco was
+on the ground, tinkering frantically.
+
+"If he knows what to do," said Matt, "he'll be able to come on again.
+But he'll have more trouble; and he'll continue to have trouble until
+he takes time to overhaul his fuel-tank."
+
+"What did yous do?" asked the boy.
+
+"Mixed a handful of sand with his gasoline."
+
+"W'en?"
+
+"While we were hung up in front of those rocks Spangler had laid for
+us."
+
+"Didn't dat geezer see yous?"
+
+"I got out of the way before Brisco showed up; and Spangler, at the
+time, was away looking for the man in the notch."
+
+"Chee, but you're a wonder! Motor Matt heads de percession an' carries
+de banner! Yous t'ought o' all dat while I was hustlin' t' git behind
+dem rocks! Did yous t'ink we was goin' t' have a race?"
+
+"I didn't know but we might. Anyhow, I thought it good policy to fix
+the machine so it wouldn't be reliable. What's the news from the rear,
+Josh?"
+
+"Brisco is gittin' back in his seat."
+
+"Is he coming on?"
+
+"Dat's wot."
+
+"Fast as ever?"
+
+"I don't see no diff'rence in de runnin'."
+
+"Well, something is sure to go wrong, just as it did before. One grain
+of sand clogged the needle-valve, Josh, and there's a thousand more
+grains to come down the supply-pipe. Face around a minute. The road
+forks here. Which one shall we take? Do you remember coming this way?"
+
+The boy flopped around in his seat. The Red Flier was rushing toward a
+place where the road forked. Both roads were bordered by rocky walls,
+and both had the appearance of being equally well traveled--which
+wasn't saying much for the travel, at that.
+
+"I don't remember nuttin'," answered the boy, "bein' scart stiff all de
+w'ile I was in de runabout. I'd say go t' de right. Dat's always a good
+t'ing t' do."
+
+"If we had the least notion which way Fairview lay we could shape our
+course a little better. But we don't know, so we'll take chances and go
+to the right."
+
+There was a slowing of speed while Matt made the turn. For a long
+distance this fork was a straightaway stretch and fairly level. Matt
+and Josh were congratulating themselves on the fact that they had made
+a fortunate choice, when suddenly they whirled out on a vista that
+surprised them.
+
+At the end of the straightaway stretch, a sudden angle brought the
+side of a steep mountain under the boy's eyes. The road could be
+seen clinging to the mountain's side, describing horseshoe after
+horseshoe--edging its way between dizzy chasms and high cliffs.
+
+"Wow!" gasped Josh, and collapsed in his seat. "Right here's w'ere we
+fall off de eart'."
+
+Matt took another look behind. The runabout, with the stern, relentless
+face of Brisco over the wheel, was surging toward them.
+
+"Here we go!" called Matt. "Hang on, Josh!"
+
+"I'm glued! Yous can't shake me!"
+
+The boy was game, and Matt flung the Red Flier at the mountainside and
+down the ribbon of treacherous road.
+
+There were places where a cliff overhung the trail, and the wheels on
+the left almost scraped the rocks, while those on the right barely
+tracked on the brink of a gulf.
+
+The boy's face went white, but his eyes glimmered brightly. He looked
+back from time to time and saw the runabout sliding after them.
+
+A quick fear had rushed to Matt's brain. Oddly enough, it was not a
+fear for his own safety, for he knew the Red Flier and knew what he
+could do with it; but the runabout! If that trickle of sand cut off the
+power and caused the machine to slew ever so slightly, it would go over
+the chasm's edge and carry Brisco and Spangler with it!
+
+The world would have been better off, perhaps, if such a mishap
+had come to pass; but Matt did not want it that way. His own
+instrumentality in the matter would have been too hideously clear.
+
+And yet, if something did not happen to the runabout, the machine might
+collide with the Red Flier and drive it over the brink.
+
+Matt knew he must keep ahead. Never had he driven more masterfully than
+then. His nerves were steady, his brain alert, and every inch of that
+curving, treacherous down grade was covered by his eyes.
+
+It was more like falling down a hill than riding down. The Red Flier
+quivered like a thing of life, seeming to realize what was expected of
+it, and responding nobly.
+
+Far off, over the level plain at the mountain's foot, could be seen the
+little cluster of houses that represented Fairview. It glowed in the
+morning sun like a toy village on a toy map.
+
+As the road curved, struck a short straightaway, then curved again, the
+town swept vividly into view and again as quickly vanished.
+
+At the most desperate part of the trail a rock had crumbled from the
+wall and rolled to the edge of the chasm. There it lay, almost under
+the nose of the rushing car.
+
+The boy cast a despairing look into Motor Matt's set, determined face.
+All he saw was a swift gleam of the gray eyes.
+
+Crash!
+
+The car, skilfully guided so that it touched the inward side of the
+boulder, forced it from the edge and sent it bounding and smashing
+downward into the gulf.
+
+A sharp breath tore through the boy's lips. Confidence again took
+possession of him. After that escape, what difficulty could come up
+that Motor Matt was not able to conquer?
+
+Matt seemed to be made of steel. With one foot on the brake and both
+hands on the wheel, he kept rigidly to his work.
+
+"How're they making it behind, Josh?" he called.
+
+The boy knelt in his seat and looked back up the steep incline.
+
+Fortune was riding with Brisco that day. But for that he must have been
+hurled from the trail in a dozen places.
+
+Driving a car was comparatively new work for him, and the chances are
+that never before had he been on such a dangerous piece of road. Yet he
+was naturally a man of iron nerve, and would not hold back where Motor
+Matt led.
+
+Spangler, from his appearance, was as frightened a man as there ever
+was in Arizona. A gray pallor had spread over his face, and his eyes
+were fairly popping from his head. Gripping his seat with both hands,
+he braced himself with his feet against the forward dip of the car.
+
+"Dey're slidin' after us, cull," reported the boy.
+
+"Gaining?"
+
+"Dat's wot, but not like dey did on de level road."
+
+"The foot of the mountain is just ahead of us. Can we get there before
+they overtake us?"
+
+"Well, mebby we kin, but I wish de foot o' de mountain was half a mile
+nearer dan wot it is."
+
+Facing about in his seat, Josh looked at the foot of the mountain for
+himself.
+
+They were dropping toward it swiftly. There were no more
+curves--nothing but a straight fall, a shoot between bordering rocks
+and then a cheerful reach of road over the plain.
+
+"We're in luck t' git out o' dis widout a broken neck," said Josh.
+"Chee, but dat level place looks good t' me."
+
+"The Flier's a dandy car!" declared Matt.
+
+"She's got a dandy driver, an' dat's no dream. W'ere'd we been widout
+Motor Matt at de steerin'-wheel? Yous is a four-time winner, an' dere's
+odders dat'll hear me say it."
+
+"The runabout will be hot after us as soon as we hit the level ground
+again."
+
+"Dey'll never ketch us, cull. I don't care how hot dey come, wit' yous
+handlin' de Flier."
+
+With a final spurt the red car rushed through the rocks, and, for the
+first time since it had taken that up-and-down trail, both ends were on
+a level.
+
+As they glided out onto the plain, Matt cast a look backward. There was
+a feeling of relief came over him at sight of the runabout charging
+through the rocks at the mountain's foot.
+
+But, as he looked, and just as the runabout was on the point of
+striking level ground, there was a jerk to the left, a crash, and a
+sudden stop.
+
+Brisco pitched forward over the wheel, shot clear past the hood, and
+doubled up and rolled along the stony trail.
+
+Spangler went out on the left side, ricochetting into the air and
+turning a couple of grotesque somersaults. Like Brisco, when he
+dropped, he lay still.
+
+A sharp breath escaped Matt's lips. Turning the Red Flier, he started
+back until he had come almost upon the silent form of Brisco; then he
+brought the Flier to a halt and jumped out.
+
+"Chee, Moses!" muttered Josh, awed by the abrupt termination of the
+chase. "Do yous t'ink dem guys is killed, Matt?"
+
+"That's what we've got to find out," flung back Matt, hurrying to
+Brisco and kneeling down beside him.
+
+Human enmity seemed a paltry thing to Matt as his hand went groping
+over Brisco's breast, feeling for the heart-beats. A thrill of
+satisfaction shot through him as he found that Brisco was alive.
+
+Hurrying on to Spangler, he was immensely relieved to find that worthy
+sitting up in the road and drawing a hand over his dazed eyes.
+
+"What--what happened?" faltered Spangler.
+
+"Nothing to what's going to happen now, Spangler," answered Matt, and
+picked up the second and last revolver which the ruffian had had about
+him.
+
+"There ought to be some ropes in the runabout, Josh," called Matt. "Go
+and get them."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+
+
+Josh hustled for the runabout. One of the coiled ropes Matt had put in
+the car was hanging over a lamp, and the other had been thrown into the
+road. Taking the one off the lamp, the boy hurried back to the place
+where Matt was training the revolver on Spangler.
+
+"Fine bizness!" laughed Josh. "Wot d'yous want me t' do, Matt? Put a
+bow-knot on his lunch-hooks?"
+
+"Stand up, Spangler!" ordered Matt.
+
+Spangler got lamely to his feet. He was still confused and bewildered.
+
+"Somethin' hit us," he mumbled. "From the way I was throwed it must hev
+been a landslide. Whar's Hank? Is he killed?"
+
+"Brisco will get along, I guess," said Matt. "Put your hands behind
+you, Spangler."
+
+Just then, for the first time, it began to dawn on Spangler that Matt
+was making a prisoner out of him. The ruffian, although practically
+uninjured, had been badly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was in condition
+to resist, and he leaped backward, swearing.
+
+"If ye think ye kin rope, down an' tie me," he cried, "jest bekase that
+thar machine bucked an' dumped me inter the road, ye got another----"
+
+"Come this way!" cut in Matt.
+
+The words, hard and keen, jumped at Spangler like so many knife-points.
+Motor Matt meant business, and showed it in every movement.
+
+Spangler stepped forward.
+
+"That's far enough," snapped Matt. "Now put those hands behind you."
+
+With the open end of his own gun staring him in the face, there was
+nothing for Spangler to do but to obey. His hands went meekly behind
+him.
+
+"Can you tie a good hard knot, Josh?" asked Matt.
+
+"T'ink I ain't good f'r nuttin'?" protested the boy.
+
+Passing behind Spangler, he used the free end of the rope for a few
+moments and then stepped back with the rest of the coil in his hands.
+
+"If he gits dem mitts out o' dat he's a good 'un," announced Josh.
+"W'ere d'yous want him, Matt?"
+
+"In the Red Flier. Step lively, Spangler. We've got to look after
+Brisco."
+
+"Get ap!" clucked Josh, shaking the rope.
+
+With a black scowl on his face, the baffled Spangler made his way to
+the touring-car.
+
+"Get in on the back seat," went on Matt.
+
+Spangler obeyed the order.
+
+"Now, Josh," pursued Matt, "cut the rope and tie a piece of it around
+his feet."
+
+The boy finished the work expeditiously, and when he and Matt drew
+away from the Red Flier they left Spangler helpless and fuming in the
+tonneau.
+
+Brisco was still lying where he had fallen, and he was still
+unconscious. Matt made a more thorough examination of him. His pulse
+was stronger and, so far as Matt could discover, there were no broken
+bones.
+
+"Wot keeps 'im in a trance?" asked the boy. "He's stayin' a long time
+in de Land o' Nod for not havin' nuttin' wrong wit' 'im."
+
+"Pick up his revolver, Josh," returned Matt briskly, "and then sit down
+beside him and wait till he gets his wits back. Don't let him get away
+from you."
+
+"Get away from me? Not on yer life, cull. I'd radder take dis mutt into
+Fairview dan pull down a t'ousan' in de long green. Dad wants _him_."
+
+Paying no attention to the boy's rather obscure remark, Matt went to
+the runabout. He was expecting to find the machine badly smashed, and
+was happily disappointed.
+
+Both front lamps were broken, and the mud-guard over the right wheel
+forward had been ripped away. The guard had fallen between the wheel
+and the rock, and undoubtedly had kept the wheel from being dished. The
+tire was punctured and the jolt had disabled the motor. For all that,
+however, the machine, with a few temporary repairs, could travel on its
+own wheels if not under its own power.
+
+Brisco had not yet corralled his wits. Aided by Josh, Matt dragged the
+man off to one side, where he would be out of the way; then, cutting
+about six feet of rope from the other riata, he threw it down where
+Josh could get at it.
+
+"When Brisco wakes up, Josh," said Matt, "just hold him steady till we
+put that rope on him."
+
+"Wot yous goin' t' do, Matt?" inquired the wondering Josh. "Yous is
+busier dan a monkey wit' his hand in a coconut."
+
+"We're going to haul the runabout into Fairview," said Matt. "But I've
+got to patch her up first."
+
+Getting into the Red Flier, Matt backed her as close to the disabled
+car as he could; then, hitching onto the runabout with the ropes, he
+pulled it down onto the level plain.
+
+With a jack taken from the touring-car he swung the runabout's wheel
+off the ground. The mud-guard, having been ripped off, was not in
+his way. After locating the puncture and marking it with chalk, he
+unscrewed the wing-nuts, pushed out the security-bolt, and then, with
+levers, dug out the inner tube.
+
+Perhaps he was an hour getting the hole patched up, tire back in place
+and reinflated. When he was through, the runabout was ready to be
+dragged to Fairview.
+
+"How's Brisco?" asked Matt, putting on his leather coat, which he had
+thrown off while working with the runabout.
+
+"Same as wot he was, cull," replied Josh. "He ain't twitched an
+eye-winker."
+
+"He may be shamming," said Matt, "in the hope of making a bolt for his
+liberty. We'll put him in the tonneau. You can ride with him and watch
+him every minute. I'll take Spangler in front with me."
+
+"We're goin' t' take de hull outfit into Fairview?" grinned Josh.
+
+"That's the idea."
+
+"A whale of an idee it is, too, an' no stringin'. Reg'lar line-up o'
+crooks an' stolen automobiles, wit' Motor Matt in charge o' de bunch.
+Wow! It's de biggest come-easy dat I ever mixed up wit'. Mebby dere
+won't be rejoicin' w'en we goes pokin' into town wit' all dis load.
+Well, I guess yes."
+
+Between them, Matt and Josh succeeded in carrying Brisco to the
+touring-car and getting him into the tonneau.
+
+Spangler, having been transferred to one of the front seats, had been
+chewing the cud of reflection.
+
+"Looky here, Motor Matt," said he, "ye ain't got no call ter kerry me
+ter Fairview. Think o' Klegg, down an' out an' mebby dyin' back thar in
+that notch. If anythin' happens ter him ye'll be responsible. Better
+turn me loose an' let me go back an' take keer o' him."
+
+"Don't do so much worrying over Klegg," answered Matt. "I intend to
+have him looked after. Just as soon as we get to Fairview I'll have the
+sheriff, or some other officer, go to the notch and see that Klegg gets
+all the attention he deserves."
+
+"Waal, even at that, ye ain't got no call ter lug me inter town. I
+ain't done a thing. Brisco was the feller that had it in fer you. It's
+him ye want ter git even with, an' not me."
+
+"You didn't have a hand in robbing Mr. Tomlinson, did you?" said Matt
+sarcastically. "There are a lot of other things you've done, too,
+and I'm going to turn you over to Lem Nugent, the man who owns the
+runabout, as soon as we reach Fairview. It won't take long to get
+Nugent up from Ash Forks."
+
+"Yous is a game loser, I don't t'ink," scoffed the boy. "W'ere's yer
+nerve, Spangler?"
+
+"Say," said Spangler, giving his attention to Josh, "where did you butt
+inter this game?"
+
+"I rode out o' Fairview wit' Brisco," grinned Josh. "He give me a ride."
+
+"Give ye a ride?" echoed Spangler.
+
+"Sure, on'y he didn't know it. I was under de coat in de back o' de
+runabout; an' I was still dere w'en yous mutts went t' dat hole in de
+wall. 'Course yous didn't see me. Yous was too mad at Motor Matt t' see
+anyt'ing."
+
+The whole situation rushed over Spangler with demoralizing clearness.
+He was able to understand how Josh and Matt, by the exercise of pluck
+and brains, had succeeded in balking the plans of Brisco.
+
+Spangler swore heartily. It seemed to be his only method for easing his
+feelings.
+
+"The worst move we ever made," he muttered savagely, "was takin' Motor
+Matt out o' town last night. I didn't want ter do it, but Brisco had
+made up his mind, an' that settled it. We ain't got no one ter blame
+but ourselves fer what's happened. Go on. The quicker we git ter
+Fairview an' hev this thing over with, the better I'll be suited."
+
+Spangler, resigning himself to the situation, sank back in his seat.
+
+Matt went around to the rear of the car to make the ropes attaching it
+to the runabout more secure. As near as he had been able to discover
+there was a level road all the way to Fairview. They were coming into
+the town from the north and east, and not along the Ash Fork road,
+where there was a hill to be descended in order to reach the valley.
+
+Having reassured himself about the ropes, Matt returned to the side of
+the Red Flier and mounted the running-board. Looking over the side of
+the tonneau, he swept his gaze over Brisco's unconscious face.
+
+"I can't understand what keeps him that way, Josh," said Matt.
+
+"Mebby he's badly shook up inside," answered the boy. "Wot he needs is
+a doctor."
+
+"Well, he'll have one before long. Stay right beside him and watch him
+every minute. If he's playing possum with us, we want to make sure he
+don't gain anything by it."
+
+"I'm right on de job," said Josh.
+
+Matt climbed into his seat and started on the low gear. There was a
+creaking of the ropes as they took the pull, and the runabout started.
+
+Everything worked smoothly, and Matt, with a load worth fifteen hundred
+dollars, set his face toward Fairview.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+The disappearance of Motor Matt and the Red Flier made Carl Pretzel
+not only bewildered but furiously angry. He was angry at Brisco and
+bewildered to account for the way he had pulled off his night raid.
+
+"Oof dot feller inchures a hair oof Modor Matt's headt," wheezed Carl,
+shaking his fist in the air, "I vill camp by his drail, py chimineddy!
+I vill go on some var-paths! I vill make him be sorry for vat he dit,
+yah, so helup me!"
+
+Leaving Carl to rant and vow vengeance, Legree rushed over to the
+railroad-station and sent a message. The message, owing to financial
+embarrassment on the part of Legree, had to go collect.
+
+  "LEM NUGENT, Ash Fork.
+
+  "Come at once to Fairview. Important developments regarding your
+  automobile.                                            MOTOR MATT."
+
+Legree signed the message with Matt's name because he knew the
+cattleman wouldn't know anything about a man named Legree; and he also
+felt sure that Motor Matt's name would secure the cattleman's instant
+attention.
+
+On his way back to the hotel he inquired for the sheriff. Fairview was
+too small to have a sheriff, but the town had a deputy sheriff. The
+deputy, however, was just then attending his father's golden-wedding,
+in Flagstaff, the marshal had gone with him, and the town was without
+an officer.
+
+As if this was not sufficiently discouraging, when Legree got back to
+the hotel he found a very disquieting state of affairs.
+
+The Uncle Tommers had been chased out of the hostelry by O'Grady and
+Ping Pong, his Chinese cook. They were gathered in a forlorn group in
+front, and Carl Pretzel was with them.
+
+"Mistah O'Grady, sah," Uncle Tom was saying with all the dignity he
+could work up, "Ah's de official mascot ob Motah Matt. While Ah's been
+stayin' in yo' 'stablishment, Ah's been mascottin' fo' him. He will
+come back, yo' ma'k what Ah say. Gib us ouah breakfus en yo' sho gits
+yo' money!"
+
+"Begorry, yez have got into me f'r all yez are goin' to," yelled the
+proprietor. "It's a passel av thramps yez are, iv'ry wan av yez! Av th'
+marshal was in town, Oi'd have yez all in th' cooler. Get out, befure
+Oi sic th' dog on yez! Scatther!"
+
+"What's the matter here?" demanded Legree, pushing to the front.
+
+"Py chincher," flared Carl, "dot Irish feller t'inks ve vas vorkin'
+some shkin games on him. He vas grazier as a pedpug, und he von't gif
+us some preakfast."
+
+"En we's all hongry es sin," piped Uncle Tom plaintively. "Ah been
+mascottin' fo' Motah Matt twell Ah's dat fagged Ah dunno whut Ah's
+about, no, sah."
+
+"I tried to get him to take my ring, Legree," put in Eliza, "but he
+won't. He says we're only a lot of dead beats, and never intend to pay
+him."
+
+"Ah tole him," spoke up Topsy, "dat Ah'd wuk in his kitchum fo' de
+price ob a breakfus, an' he wouldn' hab it. Ah's honest, dat's whut Ah
+is. Ah nebber stole a cent fum anybody en mah life."
+
+"See here, O'Grady," remarked Legree, "Motor Matt has money and he has
+offered to pay our expenses while we're stopping with you. I'll have
+money myself in a few days, and then I'll pay you. You're not taking
+any chances on this crowd."
+
+"Faith, an' yez are roight about thot," scowled O'Grady. "Oi'm takin'
+no more chances wid yez. Motor Matt! Why, he run aff lasht noight!
+Sure, he did! He shneaked away so he wouldn't have t' pay me f'r yer
+kape. Oi'm keen enough t' see thot!"
+
+"Py shinks," whooped Carl, dancing around and waving his fists, "don'd
+you say dod some more. I can lick der feller vat says somet'ings
+aboudt Modor Matt like dot. Ven he say he pay, he mean vot he say, und
+he do it, too. Yah, you bed you! Modor Matt vas my bard, und he don'd
+vas leafing a bard in der lurch like vat you say."
+
+"Av Motor Matt is yer pard," said O'Grady, "bedad but it's sthrange yez
+haven't money. Git out, Oi say! Oi'm done wid yez."
+
+"I tell you," went on Legree, "I'll have money myself in a few days."
+
+"Yez can't make me belave any cock-an'-bull shtory like thot. Niver
+again will Oi take in anny wan widout baggage. Shoo! Clear out befure
+Oi git violent."
+
+In O'Grady's present temper there was no reasoning with him, so Legree
+marshaled his comrades and led them off to a neighboring wood-pile,
+where they all sat down disconsolately.
+
+"Ah's been accustomed tuh bettah treatment," mourned Uncle Tom. "Ah's
+got de bigges' notion dat evah was tuh put a hoodoo on dat hotel. Ah
+could do hit, but Ah restrains mahse'f till Ah gits odahs fum Motah
+Matt."
+
+"Go 'long wif sich talk!" cried Topsy, out of patience. "'Peahs lak yo'
+done put dat hoodoo on de rest ob us. Nuffin' ain't gone right sence we
+left dat 'ar Brockville place."
+
+"There'll be some one here from Ash Fork before long, who, maybe, will
+help us," said Legree. "Just be as patient as you can, friends, and
+we'll hope for the best."
+
+"All de patience in de worl', Mistah Legree," answered Uncle Tom,
+"'doan' fill a pusson's stummick. Mah goodness, Ah didun' know Ah was
+so pesterin' hongry."
+
+"I tell you somet'ing," said Carl, "oof I knowed vich vay Modor Matt
+vas, I vould go und findt him. I vas madt as some vet hens ofer dis
+pitzness. Here ve vas, hung oop on a vood-pile mit nodding to eat, und
+not knowing vere Modor Matt vent mit himseluf. Chonny Hartluck iss
+hanging aroundt mit us."
+
+Leaving his disconsolate friends, Legree went back to the
+railroad-station. There he waited for four hours for the local train
+from Ash Fork. He was rewarded, however, by seeing a big man get off
+the train, stop on the platform, and look around expectantly.
+
+Legree walked up to the arriving passenger.
+
+"Mr. Nugent?" he asked.
+
+"You've hit it," replied the cattleman, staring the stranded actor up
+and down with an unfavoring eye.
+
+"Ah! Well, sir, my name's Legree. I suppose you're looking for Motor
+Matt?"
+
+"Another bull's-eye for you. I came here on a telegram from Motor
+Matt saying that there had been important developments concerning my
+automobile that was stolen from me near Ash Fork. Where's Motor Matt?"
+
+"He is unavoidably absent just now," answered Legree, "but I am
+confidently expecting him to appear at any moment. To be frank with
+you, sir, I sent that telegram and signed Motor Matt's name to it."
+
+The cattleman became indignant.
+
+"You're pretty fresh, seems to me!" said he. "What business had you
+doing a thing like that?"
+
+"Because I wanted you here. Your car was in town yesterday. One of the
+thieves brought it in for a supply of gasoline and oil. Motor Matt and
+I tried to capture the thief, but he got away from us and took the car
+with him."
+
+"Who are you, if you haven't any objection to answerin' a straight
+question?" demanded the cattleman.
+
+"Step into the waiting-room with me for a few moments," replied Legree,
+"and I'll explain."
+
+They went into the waiting-room and were gone possibly five minutes.
+When they came out on the platform once more, Nugent seemed to have
+developed a vast amount of confidence in Legree.
+
+"Why didn't you tell Motor Matt what you've told me?" asked the
+cattleman.
+
+"I wasn't telling anybody that, Mr. Nugent," answered Legree, "and
+I wouldn't be telling you now if I hadn't wanted to fix things with
+O'Grady so that I and my friends can continue to remain at his hotel."
+
+"I know O'Grady," said Nugent. "Come along with me and I'll fix things
+up for you."
+
+They went to the hotel at once. O'Grady, tilted back against the wall
+in front, was smoking a pipe and keeping a sharp eye on the wood-pile.
+
+Uncle Tom, with a red bandanna over his face, was leaning back against
+the wood and was apparently asleep. All the rest were hovering
+listlessly about, waiting patiently for something to happen.
+
+The sight of Lem Nugent, who was known throughout all that part of the
+country, wrought a great change in O'Grady. The cattleman and the actor
+were approaching together, and seemed to be on cordial terms.
+
+"O'Grady," said Nugent, after he had exchanged greetings with the
+proprietor, "this gentleman is a friend of mine, and his friends are
+my friends, understand? Take them all in and give them the best you've
+got. And don't bleed me, you shyster. I'll stand the damage, but I
+won't be robbed."
+
+"Whativer yez say goes wid me, Lem," said O'Grady. "Come on, all av
+yez," he cried, standing up and motioning toward the wood-pile. "Oi'll
+have th' Chink put a male on th' table f'r yez to wanst."
+
+Uncle Tom may have been asleep, but he heard those welcome words and
+was up like a shot.
+
+"Ah was mascottin fo' dat very t'ing," he admitted, as he ran toward
+the hotel. "Layin' back dar wid mah bandannah ober mah face, Ah was
+wukin' lak er hiahed man, yassuh. Now, den, yo' Topsy, yo' see what Ah
+kin do when Ah lays mahse'f out!"
+
+Just as they were starting into the hotel, a shout from Carl brought
+them all to a halt and an about-face.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" yelled Carl, dancing around and throwing his cap in the
+air. "Look vonce ad vat's coming! Vat dit I say? Here vas a drain oof
+cars, mit Modor Matt pringing dem in. Ach, himmel, I peen so habby as I
+can't dell! Modor Matt iss coming!"
+
+Under the startled eyes of those in front of the hotel two cars could
+be seen coming along the road. The Red Flier, with Matt and three
+passengers, was in the lead, and towing behind was the runabout.
+
+"My car, by thunder!" shouted Nugent, starting for the road.
+
+"And Spangler is with Motor Matt," cried the amazed Legree, "and
+Brisco, and the kid! How in blazes do you think that happened?"
+
+A disgusted look crossed Uncle Tom's face.
+
+"How yo' t'ink dat happened!" he muttered sarcastically; "en me
+a-mascottin' fo' Motah Matt all de time!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+CONCLUSION.
+
+
+Whether O'Grady really thought Motor Matt had taken French leave during
+the night or not, is a question. Certainly he was as surprised to see
+Matt traveling into town as were any of the rest of them.
+
+All those around the hotel flocked to the road.
+
+"Hello, Matt!" called Nugent, reaching up his hand. "It looks like
+you'd been accomplishing something."
+
+Matt's acquaintance with the cattleman had been of exceedingly brief
+duration, and never before had he been hailed by him in that cordial
+tone.
+
+"How are you, Mr. Nugent?" he returned, taking the cattleman's hand.
+"How did you happen to come over this way?"
+
+"Got a telegram from you----"
+
+"From me?" echoed Matt.
+
+"I sent it, Matt," put in Legree, "and signed your name to it. When you
+disappeared last night I knew something had to be done, and that there
+ought to be a man with money to do it. So I sent for Nugent."
+
+"It's all right, my boy," said Nugent, "and I'm tickled to death
+because I came. You're bringing in my car, I see, and the two fellows
+that took it away from me. Good! If we don't put 'em through for their
+crooked work, my name ain't Nugent."
+
+"You'll have to send for a doctor for Brisco," said Matt. "He's been
+unconscious for two hours, and I don't know whether he's badly hurt or
+not. You see----"
+
+At that moment Brisco proved that he was far from being badly hurt.
+With a jump he got out of the tonneau and started at a run toward the
+edge of town. Uncle Tom happened to be in his way, and was knocked
+heels over head.
+
+"Dere he goes!" yelled Josh excitedly. "Clear out o' de way so I kin
+git a shot at 'im!"
+
+But Josh was not allowed to carry out his warlike intentions. Legree
+took after the escaping ruffian, overhauled him before he had gone far,
+grabbed him by the shoulders, and hurled him to the ground.
+
+O'Grady, rushing to Legree's assistance, lent a willing hand. Brisco
+had been a good customer of O'Grady's, but the situation had changed
+somewhat since the Uncle Tommers had been staying at the Shamrock Hotel.
+
+"I reckon, Matt," remarked Lem Nugent dryly, "that the fellow ain't
+very badly hurt. How did you happen to get hold of the scoundrels?"
+
+"They were chasing us," answered Matt. "We were in the Red Flier and
+they were in your car. Brisco ran into the rocks, and he and Spangler
+were thrown out. Neither of them seemed very much hurt, and Josh and
+I captured Spangler before he had fully got back his wits. Brisco
+appeared to be all right, but he was unconscious. I had an idea that he
+might be shamming. Probably he came to himself just as we got here, and
+thought the best thing for him to do would be to make a break."
+
+"His break didn't help him any," said Legree, as he and O'Grady came
+marching back with Brisco between them. "Go up to my room, Josh,"
+Legree went on, "and get those two plates. You'll find 'em under the
+northeast corner of the carpet. Front room, boy."
+
+"Dat's me," answered Josh, handing Brisco's weapons to his father and
+bounding away.
+
+"I'm going to tell you people something," proceeded Legree, "that will
+no doubt surprise you. And I think," he finished grimly, "that Brisco
+will be as much surprised as anybody."
+
+Josh presently returned with a couple of flat, square packages. Leaving
+O'Grady to take care of Brisco, Legree took the packages in his hands.
+
+"A crook by the name of Denver Denny, alias James Trymore," went on
+Legree, "escaped from the authorities at Denver and came to this part
+of the country. Denver Denny was a clever counterfeiter, and worked
+in conjunction with Hank Brisco. At least, following the output of
+the 'queer' as it trailed along in the wake of that Uncle Tom's Cabin
+Company, I came to that conclusion.
+
+"Denny owned a set of very fine plates for the manufacture of bogus
+five-dollar silver certificates. When he was captured in Denver those
+plates were nowhere to be found. I conceived the notion that they
+might be in Brisco's possession, and in order to make sure, I became
+letter-perfect in the part of Legree, and Josh here got the part of
+Little Eva by heart, and we arranged to join Brisco's company of
+barn-stormers.
+
+"We were with them for some time, watching Brisco all the while. Brisco
+was not shoving any of the 'queer' while we were with him, and I was
+inclined to think that I had made a mistake in connecting him with
+Denny's operations. However, Brisco had a little tin box, of which he
+was very choice and careful. His solicitude for that box aroused my
+curiosity. When Brisco pulled out between two days in Denver, and left
+his company stranded, by some freak of chance he dropped the box. Josh
+found it. We opened the box in Ash Fork and found these two packages
+in it." Legree lifted the two flat parcels so all could see. "I knew
+perfectly well that Brisco would come after his box, so I continued to
+play the part of a stranded actor, hoping to get my hands on him.
+
+"Fate was kind to us," and here Legree turned and dropped a friendly
+hand on the young motorist's shoulder, "by bringing Motor Matt along.
+He came to the front gallantly and helped us. I should have captured
+Brisco sooner or later, even without his aid, but he has closed the
+affair in hurricane fashion and saved the government lots of trouble."
+
+Everybody, Uncle Tommers, Matt, Carl, and Brisco and Spangler, were
+astounded. Nugent was the solitary exception, for Legree had revealed
+his identity to the cattleman in the railroad-station.
+
+"These are the plates," went on Legree. "Brisco had them in the tin
+box."
+
+"And you are----" began Matt, staring at Legree.
+
+"A secret service man in the employ of the government."
+
+A cry of fierce anger escaped Brisco. He made a fierce attempt to get
+at Legree, but O'Grady restrained him.
+
+"Faith," said O'Grady, with cheerful disregard of his past actions, "Oi
+knowed yez was a bad egg th' minyit Oi set eyes on yez."
+
+"Dis," remarked Uncle Tom, with immense pride, "is de best job ob
+mascottin' whut Ah's done yit!"
+
+"Better give up, Brisco!" called Spangler from the touring-car.
+"They've got it on us an' we'll have ter take our medicine."
+
+"Got it on us, yes," stormed Brisco, "but they wouldn't have done it if
+it hadn't been for Motor Matt."
+
+"Not so quick, I'll admit," said Legree amiably, "but I'd have caught
+you sooner or later, Brisco. In my report I shall have something to
+say to the head of the department about Motor Matt. I'd like to hear,
+though, just how he happened to make this haul."
+
+"Josh helped me," said Matt.
+
+"Not enough so yous could notice it," returned Josh promptly; "Motor
+Matt was de man on de job from start t' finish. Yous take it from
+Little Eva, an' no stringin'."
+
+The boy turned to Matt with a wide grin.
+
+"Yous is wise t' why I went off wit' Brisco in dat runabout now, ain't
+yous? I wanted t' find out w'ere he had 'is hang-out so dad could turn
+a trick fer de gov'ment. But yous cut out dad, Matt."
+
+"Listen, vonce," cried Carl, who had been trying for some time to get
+in a few words, "Matt's der pest efer. He prings luck venefer he goes
+mit anypody. Yah, dot's righdt. I know, pecause he prought luck mit me."
+
+Uncle Tom was disposed to butt in with an objection, but the cattleman
+had something to say.
+
+"There's fifteen hundred of my money goes to somebody for all this,"
+said he. "Who gets it, Matt?"
+
+"Divide it up between all of us," answered the boy generously. "The
+Uncle Tommers need it."
+
+A shout of delight went up from the actor contingent.
+
+"You can leave Josh in the division," said Legree, "but cut me out of
+it. I'm working for Uncle Sam."
+
+Just at that moment the Chinaman stepped to the door and announced
+dinner.
+
+"We'll talk all this over while we eat," said Nugent. "Come on,
+everybody."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Motor Matt and Carl, having lost more time in Fairview than they could
+well afford, started for Albuquerque early in the afternoon.
+
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, now well supplied with money, were to
+proceed to Denver by train.
+
+The secret service man and Josh were to remain in Fairview for a few
+days with their prisoners, and then to take them to Denver for trial.
+
+"Matt," said Carl seriously, as the Red Flier leaped onward toward
+Albuquerque, "I vas a lucky feller to hook oop mit you. Vone oof dose
+tays, oof you don'd go pack on me, I vill vear tiamonts!"
+
+"I'll never go back on you, Carl," laughed Matt; "but I'm a little
+'juberous' about the diamonds."
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+  THE NEXT NUMBER (7) WILL CONTAIN
+
+  MOTOR MATT'S CLUE;
+
+  OR,
+
+  THE PHANTOM AUTO.
+
+
+  A Night Mystery--Dick Ferral--La Vita Place--The House of
+  Wonder--Sercomb--The Phantom Auto Again--Surrounded by Enemies--The
+  Kettle Begins to Boil--Ordered Away--A New Plan--A Daring
+  Leap--Desperate Villiany--Tippoo--In the Nick of Time--A Startling
+  Interruption--The Price of Treachery--The Luck of Dick Ferral.
+
+
+
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+THRILLING ADVENTURE MOTOR FICTION
+
+NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.
+
+
+TERMS TO MOTOR STORIES MAIL SUBSCRIBERS.
+
+(_Postage Free._)
+
+Single Copies or Back Numbers, 5c. Each.
+
+  3 months                    65c.
+  4 months                    85c.
+  6 months                 $1.25
+  One year                  2.50
+  2 copies one year         4.00
+  1 copy two years          4.00
+
+=How to Send Money=--By post-office or express money-order, registered
+letter, bank check or draft, at our risk. At your own risk if sent by
+currency, coin, or postage-stamps in ordinary letter.
+
+=Receipts=--Receipt of your remittance is acknowledged by proper change
+of number on your label. If not correct you have not been properly
+credited, and should let us know at once.
+
+  ORMOND G. SMITH, }
+  GEORGE C. SMITH, } _Proprietors_.
+
+  STREET & SMITH, Publishers,
+  79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York City.
+
+
+
+
+A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+
+By HORATIO ALGER, Jr.
+
+
+The snow had fallen to the depth of six inches during the night,
+filling in the yards and covering the door-steps, throughout the town
+of Conway. Among those who hailed the arrival of the snow with joy was
+Frank Taylor, a boy of fourteen, the son of the Widow Taylor, who lived
+in a miserable little tenement not far from the mill. Why he was glad
+to see the snow will soon appear.
+
+Early in the morning he shoveled a path to the street, and then putting
+his shovel over his shoulder, said to his mother:
+
+"I'm going over to Squire Ashmead's to see if he doesn't want me to
+shovel paths in his yard."
+
+"He's got a boy of his own," said Mrs. Taylor; "perhaps he will do it."
+
+Frank laughed.
+
+"Sam Ashmead is proud and lazy," he said. "You won't catch him
+shoveling paths. I think I shall get the job. I want to earn something
+so that you need not sit all day sewing. It is too hard for you."
+
+"I ought to think myself lucky to get employment at all," said the
+widow.
+
+"I wish I could get steady work somewhere," said Frank; "but I've tried
+and tried, and it seems impossible."
+
+"Willing hands will not want work long," said his mother.
+
+"I hope not, mother. But I must be going, or somebody will get the
+start of me."
+
+While Frank is on his way to Squire Ashmead's, a few words of
+explanation may be given. His mother had been a widow for two years.
+Her husband had been a man of some education, having at times taught
+school, but he had never succeeded in laying up any money, and his
+widow was left almost penniless. Frank, who was a stout boy, and a good
+boy as well, had earned something by doing odd jobs, but had failed
+to obtain permanent employment. The burden of their joint support,
+therefore, was thrown upon his mother, who was very industrious with
+her needle, but was compelled to labor beyond her strength. All this
+troubled Frank, who felt that, as a stout, strong boy, he ought to bear
+at least half the expense.
+
+In due time he reached Squire Ashmead's, and was glad to see that the
+snow remained undisturbed.
+
+He rang the bell, and asked if he might shovel the paths that were
+necessary.
+
+Squire Ashmead was absent in New York, to which city he had gone the
+morning previous on business, but his wife agreed to employ Frank.
+
+He went to work with a will, and soon had a path dug from the front
+door to the gate. A path was also required from the back door to the
+stable, which was situated in the rear of the house. This was quite a
+distance, and as Frank wished to do the work thoroughly, it required
+considerable time.
+
+He was about half through this portion of his task when a snowball
+whistled by his ear.
+
+Looking round quickly, he saw Sam Ashmead standing at the corner of the
+house, engaged in making a fresh snowball.
+
+"Don't fire any more snowballs, Sam Ashmead," said Frank.
+
+"I shall, if I please," said Sam.
+
+"I haven't time to fire back now," said Frank. "Wait till I get
+through, and we'll have a match if you like."
+
+"But I don't like," said Sam scornfully. "Do you think I would have a
+match with a beggar like you?"
+
+"I am no beggar, Sam Ashmead," said Frank, "and if I were I don't think
+I would beg of you."
+
+"Oh, you're mighty proud," sneered Sam, "considering that you live in
+an old hut not half as good as our stable."
+
+"Yes, I am poor, and I live in a poor house," said Frank calmly, "but
+that isn't a crime that I know of. Some time I shall live in a better
+house, I hope."
+
+So saying, he went back to work, and began shoveling the snow
+vigorously. He did not anticipate any further attack from Sam, but in
+this he soon found himself mistaken.
+
+In the course of a minute he felt a pretty hard blow in the center of
+his back, and looking round saw Sam Ashmead laughing insolently.
+
+"How does that feel?" asked Sam.
+
+"That's the second snowball you've fired at me," said Frank quietly,
+but there was a light in his eyes as he spoke. "I advise you not to
+fire another if you know what is good for yourself."
+
+"So you threaten me, do you? Suppose I fire again, what's going to
+happen?" demanded Sam, with an unpleasant sneer.
+
+"I think you will be sorry for it," said Frank.
+
+Sam hesitated a moment, but only a moment. He was a year older than
+Frank, and larger in size. Certainly he ought to be a match for him.
+But he did not believe that Frank would have the audacity to touch him,
+the son of Squire Ashmead, the richest man in the village. He therefore
+deliberately made another snowball, and firing it, struck Frank in the
+back of his head.
+
+Frank no sooner felt the blow than he threw down his shovel, and ran
+toward his assailant.
+
+"Keep off, you beggar!" said Sam.
+
+"It's too late," said Frank. "I warned you not to fire again."
+
+Sam placed himself in an attitude of defense, but found himself seized
+violently round the middle, and before he fairly knew what was going to
+happen he was lying in a snow-bank with Frank standing over him.
+
+He struggled to his feet mad with rage, and "pitched into" Frank, as
+the boys express it, and endeavored to retaliate in kind. But Frank was
+watchful and wary, and evading the attack, seized him again when his
+strength was half spent, and Sam found himself once more occupying an
+involuntary bed in the snow.
+
+A third struggle resulted in the same way. Sam was furious, but he saw
+that Frank was more than a match for him.
+
+Just then a servant called out from the door:
+
+"Master Sam, your mother says it's time for you to be going to school."
+
+To tell the truth, Sam was rather glad of the summons, as it gave him
+an excuse for retiring from the contest.
+
+"I'll be even with you yet," he said, shaking his fist at Frank. "I'll
+let my father know how you insulted me, you young beggar!"
+
+"If anybody has been insulted, I have," said Frank. "You must remember
+that you began it."
+
+Sam scowled vindictively, and brushing the snow from his coat went into
+the house. Before Frank finished the path at the back of the house he
+was gone to school.
+
+Mrs. Ashmead sent out fifty cents to Frank for his morning's work,
+with which he went home, well satisfied, wishing that he might earn as
+much every day. He wondered a little whether Sam would tell his father
+what had occurred between them. He did not speak of it to his mother,
+for she was nervous, and would be troubled by it, as she received
+considerable work to do from the Ashmead family which she might fear
+would be taken away.
+
+On the afternoon of the next day, however, Frank received a note, which
+proved to come from Squire Ashmead. It ran as follows:
+
+  "FRANK TAYLOR: Please call at my office to-morrow morning at ten
+  o'clock.                                            JAMES ASHMEAD."
+
+This note Frank thought best to show to his mother.
+
+"What does it mean, Frank? Have you any idea?" she asked.
+
+Frank thereupon told her the story of his difficulty with Sam.
+
+"It may be about that," he said.
+
+"Oh, dear," said the widow. "I'm afraid he's very angry. I hope you
+will apologize, Frank."
+
+"No, mother," said Frank, "I don't see why I should. I only defended
+myself from a bully. I should be ashamed to do anything else. I didn't
+hurt him, and didn't intend to, but I wanted to teach him that he
+couldn't insult me without having to pay for it."
+
+"I am afraid some harm will come of it," said the widow anxiously.
+
+"Don't trouble yourself, mother," said Frank soothingly. "If we do only
+what's right, God will take care of us."
+
+Still it was with some anxiety that Frank made his way the next morning
+to the office of Squire Ashmead. This gentleman was the agent of a
+large manufactory in the town, of which also he was a considerable
+owner, so that he received an income of over ten thousand dollars a
+year, which made him the most prominent and influential citizen in the
+town.
+
+When Frank entered the office, Squire Ashmead was conversing with a
+stranger on business.
+
+"Sit down," he said, turning to Frank. "I will be at leisure in a
+moment."
+
+"Well," he said, after the stranger had departed, "Sam tells me you and
+he have had a little difficulty."
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank. "I would like to explain how it occurred."
+
+"Very well. Go on."
+
+It will be unnecessary to give the explanation, as it was strictly in
+accordance with the facts.
+
+"Do you blame me for what I did?" asked Frank, at the end.
+
+"No, I do not," said the squire. "Sam acted like a bully, and was
+properly punished. Let that pass. Now let me ask you how you and your
+mother are getting along?"
+
+"Poorly, sir," said Frank. "If I could have steady work, it would be
+different, but that I cannot get. It troubles me to see my mother work
+so hard all day. I think it is too much for her."
+
+"How would you like to come into my office?"
+
+Frank's eyes sparkled.
+
+"I should think myself very lucky, sir, to get so good a chance."
+
+"I want some boy whom I can trust, who can grow up to the business, and
+after a time relieve me of a portion of my cares. I would take Sam, but
+I am sorry to say, though he is my own son, that he would not answer
+my purpose. I have heard good accounts of you from your teacher and
+the people in the village. I will take you at a salary of six dollars
+a week, to be increased from time to time if you will suit me. Can you
+come Monday morning?"
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank, "and I will do my best to give you
+satisfaction."
+
+"Very well, my lad. Good morning."
+
+Frank left the office, feeling as if his fortune was made. His mother,
+who was awaiting the result of the interview anxiously at home, was
+overwhelmed with astonishment at the unexpected good fortune of her
+son. Sam was disagreeably surprised, and tried to shake his father's
+resolution, but Squire Ashmead was a sensible man, and not to be moved.
+
+Frank commenced his duties the next Monday. He was so faithful that
+he was rapidly advanced, and at twenty-one was receiving twelve
+hundred dollars a year. At twenty-five, on the sudden death of Squire
+Ashmead, he succeeded to his agency, and now lives with his mother in
+the mansion at which he once thought himself lucky to be permitted
+to shovel the paths. As for Sam, he squandered the handsome property
+received from his father, and died at thirty from the effects of
+intemperate habits.
+
+
+
+
+SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+
+
+When a champion rifle shot fires blindfolded at a wedding-ring, or a
+penny held between his wife's thumb and finger, or, seated back to
+her, shoots, by means of a mirror, at an apple upon her head or on a
+fork held in her teeth, the danger of using a bullet is obvious. None,
+of course, is needed; the explosion is enough. The apple is already
+prepared, having been cut into pieces and stuck together with an
+adhesive substance, and a thread with a knot at the end, pulled through
+it from the "wings," so that it flies to bits when the gun is fired, is
+"how it is done."
+
+Generally, the more dangerous a feat appears the more carefully is all
+danger guarded against. In the "William Tell" act the thread is often
+tied to the assistant's foot. When, again, the ash is shot off a cigar
+which the assistant is smoking, a piece of wire is pushed by his tongue
+through a hollowed passage in the cigar--thus thrusting off the ash at
+the moment of firing.
+
+A favorite but simple trick is the shooting from some distance at an
+orange held in a lady's hand. Great applause is invariably forthcoming
+when the bullet drops out on her, cutting open the fruit. It is
+inserted by hand earlier in the evening.
+
+Another popular trick is that of snuffing out lighted candles. Half
+a dozen are placed in front of a screen in which as many small holes
+are bored, one against each candlewick. At the moment of firing, a
+confederate behind the screen sharply blows out each candle with a pair
+of bellows. This trick was accidentally exposed one evening by a too
+zealous assistant. The lady in the gallery pulled the trigger, but the
+rifle failed to go off; the candle, however, went out just the same.
+
+In most instances, where a ball or other object has to be broken on a
+living person's head, blank cartridge is used and the effect produced
+by other means. A special wig, with a spring concealed in it, worked
+by a wire under the clothes, is generally used, the confederate
+manipulating the spring simultaneously with the firing of the rifle. As
+the ball is of extremely thin glass, a mere touch suffices to shatter
+it.
+
+In these exhibitions some of the rifle "experts" invite gentlemen from
+the audience to testify that the weapon is indeed loaded. The cartridge
+shown looks very well, but it is a shell of thin wax blackened to
+resemble a leaden bullet. It would not hurt a fly.
+
+
+
+
+REELFOOT LAKE.
+
+
+The physical history of Reelfoot Lake, of night-rider fame, is not
+without a certain interest of its own. The lake came into existence as
+the result of a series of earthquakes, which began in December, 1811,
+and continued until June, 1812.
+
+Some authorities say that the earthquakes merely heaved up a great
+ridge of land across the path of the Reelfoot River, which runs
+into the Mississippi, and that this dam caused the water to back up
+and broaden out and form a lake; but the favorite account in the
+neighborhood is to the effect that the ground sank, springs were opened
+up, neighboring creeks diverted from their course, and the overflowing
+water of the Mississippi rushed in during the flood season of the
+spring of 1812.
+
+It is said that for an hour and a half the waters of the Mississippi
+flowed up-hill while filling up the depression caused by the
+earthquakes. Both accounts likely have this much of truth in them that
+the entire configuration of the ground was changed by the earthquakes.
+Big Lake, west of the Mississippi, in Arkansas, is said to have been
+formed in the same way at the same time.
+
+Reelfoot Lake is sixteen or eighteen miles long, very irregular in
+shape, and covers from 35,000 to 40,000 acres of land. It varies in
+width from a mile in some places to four or five miles in others.
+The northern end is extended by a series of sloughs and bayous into
+Kentucky.
+
+The most distinctive feature of the lake's appearance, the feature
+which first impresses and stays longest with the observer's fancy, is a
+certain grotesque effect, as if a set of crazy men had been operating
+a pile-driver there for the last century, for the trunks, stumps, and
+stark branches of dead trees stick out of it everywhere in desolate
+parody of some such human handiwork; far below the surface the fish
+dart among the boles and branches where the squirrels frolicked a
+hundred years ago.
+
+There are beautiful spots here and there, but the effect, as a
+whole, is not beautiful; at its best, when the mist rises and myriad
+protruding tree trunks are white and ghostly in the moonlight, it is
+weird; the general remembrance is of something uncouth. It is a kind
+of sloven lake that has preferred to sit down with its hair uncombed
+all day long, but at night it does manage to achieve a touch of wizard
+dignity.
+
+
+
+
+A FLOATING SLUM.
+
+
+Stand beside the imperial custom-house at Canton and let the eye
+range down the river toward Hongkong. As far as the sight can reach
+lie boats, boats, and again boats. These are no ordinary craft, mere
+vessels of transport plying hither and thither, but the countless homes
+of myriad Chinese, in which millions of human beings have been born,
+have lived, and have died. They are the dwellings of the very poor, who
+live in them practically free from rent, taxes, and the other burdens
+of the ordinary citizen.
+
+The Tankia--which means boat-dwellers--as the denizens of these
+floating houses are called, form a sort of caste apart from the rest
+of the Cantonese. The shore-dwellers regard them as belonging to a
+lower social order; and indeed they have many customs, peculiar to
+themselves, which mark them as a separate community. How the swarming
+masses of them contrive to support existence is a mystery, but their
+chief mode of employment is in carrying merchandise and passengers from
+place to place.
+
+
+
+
+WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+Horses are cheap in Nevada. On the government ranges, where they are
+protected by game-laws, droves of wild horses exist which in the
+aggregate are said to amount to fifteen thousand. Formerly there was a
+law in Nevada permitting the shooting of these wild horses for their
+hides, but there were hunters who were not particular, and the ranchers
+found their domestic horses disappearing if they let them out on the
+range. So their shooting was prohibited, and since that time the droves
+have grown to be exceedingly troublesome. They can be domesticated, but
+they are not needed there, and it costs too much to ship them East. It
+seems a pity that, while so many sections could use them to advantage,
+the transportation problem makes it impossible to get them at a price
+which they are worth.
+
+
+
+
+_ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+_A New Idea in the Way of Five-Cent Weeklies._
+
+
+Boys everywhere will be delighted to hear that Street & Smith are now
+issuing this new five-cent weekly which will be known by the name of
+MOTOR STORIES.
+
+This weekly is entirely different from anything now being published.
+It details the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a
+motor cycle. Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these
+swift little machines that scud about the roads everywhere throughout
+the United States? Is there a boy, therefore, who will not be intensely
+interested in the adventures of "Motor Matt," as he is familiarly
+called by his comrades?
+
+Boys, you have never read anything half so exciting, half so humorous
+and entertaining as the first story listed for publication in this
+line, called "=Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel=." Its fame is
+bound to spread like wildfire, causing the biggest demand for the other
+numbers in this line, that was ever heard of in the history of this
+class of literature.
+
+Here are the titles to be issued during the next few weeks. Do not fail
+to place an order for them with your newsdealer.
+
+  No. 1. Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.
+  No. 2. Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.
+  No. 3. Motor Matt's "Century" Run; or, The Governor's Courier.
+  No. 4. Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the _Comet_.
+
+  32 LARGE SIZE PAGES      SPLENDID COLORED COVERS
+
+PRICE, FIVE CENTS PER COPY
+
+
+AT ALL NEWSDEALERS, OR SENT POSTPAID BY THE PUBLISHERS UPON RECEIPT OF
+THE PRICE.
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+_THE BEST OF THEM ALL!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+IT IS NEW AND INTENSELY INTERESTING
+
+
+We knew before we published this line that it would have a tremendous
+sale and our expectations were more than realized. It is going with a
+rush, and the boys who want to read these, the most interesting and
+fascinating tales ever written, must speak to their newsdealers about
+reserving copies for them.
+
+=MOTOR MATT= sprang into instant favor with American boy readers and is
+bound to occupy a place in their hearts second only to that now held by
+Frank Merriwell.
+
+The reason for this popularity is apparent in every line of these
+stories. They are written by an author who has made a life study of
+the requirements of the up-to-date American boy as far as literature
+is concerned, so it is not surprising that this line has proven a huge
+success from the very start.
+
+Here are the titles now ready and also those to be published. You will
+never have a better opportunity to get a generous quantity of reading
+of the highest quality, so place your orders now.
+
+  =No. 1.--Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.=
+  =No. 2.--Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.=
+  =No. 3.--Motor Matt's Century Run; or, The Governor's Courier.=
+  =No. 4.--Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the "Comet."=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22nd
+
+  =No. 5.--Motor Matt's Mystery; or, Foiling a Secret Plot.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 29th
+
+  =No. 6.--Motor Matt's Red Flier; or, On the High Gear.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 5th
+
+  =No. 7.--Motor Matt's Clue; or, The Phantom Auto.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 12th
+
+  =No. 8.--Motor Matt's Triumph; or, Three Speeds Forward.=
+
+=Price, Five Cents=
+
+To be had from newsdealers everywhere, or sent, postpaid, upon receipt
+of the price by the publishers
+
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+      *      *      *      *      *      *
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+Added table of contents.
+
+Retained some inconsistent hyphenation (e.g. "motorcycle" vs.
+"motor-cycle").
+
+Retained some inconsistent spellings in dialect (e.g. "becase" vs.
+"bekase").
+
+Page 3, added missing comma after ""Vell, py shinks." Added missing
+apostrophe after "doan" in "Why doan' yo'-all git." Removed unnecessary
+quote after "Matt stopped the Red Flier."
+
+Page 4, removed unnecessary quote after "Legree was about to secure it?"
+
+Page 5, changed "as she pointed" to "as he pointed."
+
+Page 10, "would came after it" looks like a typo but has been retained
+in case it is intentional dialect.
+
+Page 12, replaced ligature in "Phoenix" with "oe." Ligature is retained
+in HTML edition.
+
+Page 14, removed unnecessary quote before "Matt's pulses quickened."
+
+Page 18, added missing period after "Josh turned to stare along the
+road."
+
+Page 19, changed "Mat" to "Matt" in "Matt was intending to push the
+stone."
+
+Page 20, the sentence "As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping
+from up the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun."
+seems incorrect, but it is reproduced as originally printed.
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 47491 ***
diff --git a/47491-h/47491-h.htm b/47491-h/47491-h.htm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..072bc49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/47491-h/47491-h.htm
@@ -0,0 +1,5509 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
+    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+<head>
+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />
+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear, by Stanley R. Matthews</title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+
+body {
+    margin-left: 10%;
+    margin-right: 10%;
+}
+
+    h1,h2,h3,h4 {
+    text-align: center; /* all headings centered */
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+p {
+    margin-top: .51em;
+    text-align: justify;
+    margin-bottom: .49em;
+}
+
+hr {
+    width: 33%;
+    margin-top: 2em;
+    margin-bottom: 2em;
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+hr.tb   {width: 45%;}
+hr.chap {width: 65%}
+hr.r5  {width: 5%; margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;}
+
+table {
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+}
+
+    .tdl      {text-align: left;}
+    .tdr      {text-align: right;}
+    .tdc      {text-align: center;}
+
+.pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */
+    /*  visibility: hidden;  */
+    position: absolute;
+    left: 92%;
+    font-size: smaller;
+    text-align: right;
+} /* page numbers */
+
+.bb       {border-bottom: solid 2px;}
+
+.bt       {border-top: solid 2px;}
+
+.bbox     {border: solid 2px;}
+
+.center   {text-align: center;}
+
+.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
+
+/* Images */
+.figcenter   {
+    margin: auto;
+    text-align: center;
+}
+
+img { border: 0; }
+.huge { font-size: 200%; }
+.large { font-size: 150%; }
+.medium { font-size: 125%; }
+.small { font-size: 75%; }
+.chaptitle { text-align: center; }
+.sig { text-align: right; }
+
+    hr.full { width: 100%;
+              margin-top: 3em;
+              margin-bottom: 0em;
+              margin-left: auto;
+              margin-right: auto;
+              height: 4px;
+              border-width: 4px 0 0 0; /* remove all borders except the top one */
+              border-style: solid;
+              border-color: #000000;
+              clear: both; }
+    </style>
+</head>
+<body>
+<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 47491 ***</div>
+<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook, Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear,
+by Stanley R. Matthews</h1>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;margin: 0 auto;" cellpadding="10">
+  <tr>
+    <td valign="top">
+      Note:
+    </td>
+    <td>
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+      Villanova University Digital Library. See
+      <a href="http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205">
+      http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205</a>
+    </td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<a href="images/coverlarge.jpg"><img src="images/cover.jpg" width="400" height="562" alt="&quot;Leaf dot alone!&quot; yelled Carl,
+floundering to get to the
+girl's aid, &quot;dot pelongs to
+Moder Matt!&quot;" /></a>
+</div>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+<h1>MOTOR STORIES</h1>
+
+<table summary="scaffold">
+<tr>
+<td style="width: 50%; padding-right: 1.5em;" class="tdr">
+THRILLING<br />
+ADVENTURE
+</td>
+<td style="width: 50%; padding-left: 1.5em;" class="tdl">
+MOTOR<br />
+FICTION
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td class="bb bt tdl">
+NO. 6<br />
+APR. 3, 1909.
+</td>
+<td class="bb bt tdr">
+FIVE<br />
+CENTS
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td class="tdl large">
+MOTOR MATT'S<br />
+RED FLIER
+</td><td class="tdr large">
+<span class="small">OR</span> ON THE HIGH<br />
+GEAR
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td>&nbsp;</td>
+<td class="tdc">
+<br /><i class="medium">By <span class="smcap">Stanley R. Matthews</span>.</i><br /><br />
+<span class="smcap">Street &amp; Smith,<br />
+Publishers,<br />
+New York.</span>
+</td>
+</tr></table>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bbox">
+<tr><td colspan="2" class="tdc huge">MOTOR STORIES</td></tr>
+<tr><td class="tdr large" style="padding-right: .25em;">THRILLING ADVENTURE</td><td class="tdl large" style="padding-left: .25em;">MOTOR FICTION</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><i>Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress,
+Washington, D. C., by</i> <span class="smcap">Street &amp; Smith</span>, <i>79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York, N. Y.</i></p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bb bt">
+<tr><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdl">No. 6.</td><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdc">NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.</td><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdr">Price Five Cents.</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER</p>
+
+<p class="center">OR,</p>
+
+<p class="center large">ON THE HIGH GEAR.</p>
+
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+<p class="center">By the author of "MOTOR MATT."</p>
+
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+
+<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS</a></h2>
+
+<p class="center">
+<a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.</a><br />
+<a href="#A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT">A SNOWBALL FIGHT.</a><br />
+<a href="#SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING">SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.</a><br />
+<a href="#REELFOOT_LAKE">REELFOOT LAKE.</a><br />
+<a href="#A_FLOATING_SLUM">A FLOATING SLUM.</a><br />
+<a href="#WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA">WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.</a><br />
+</p>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+
+<div class="bbox">
+<h2><a name="CHARACTERS_THAT_APPEAR_IN_THIS_STORY" id="CHARACTERS_THAT_APPEAR_IN_THIS_STORY">CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.</a></h2>
+
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p><b>Matt King</b>, concerning whom there has always been a mystery&mdash;a
+lad of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who
+has won for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the
+popular name of "Mile-a-minute Matt."</p>
+
+<p><b>Carl Pretzel</b>, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
+fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.</p>
+
+<p>"<b>Legree</b>," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about
+whom something mysterious seems to hover.</p>
+
+<p>"<b>Little Eva</b>," who turns out to be other than appearances would
+seem to indicate.</p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" style="margin: 0;">
+<tr><td>
+"<b>Eliza</b>,"<br />
+"<b>Uncle Tom</b>,"<br />
+"<b>Topsy</b>,"
+</td><td style="font-size: 300%;">}</td>
+<td>
+other members of the unlucky road combination
+helped by Motor Matt.
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" style="margin: 0;">
+<tr><td>
+<b>Brisco</b>,<br />
+<b>Spangler</b>,
+</td><td style="font-size: 200%;">}</td>
+<td>
+a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
+Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><b>O'Grady</b>, an inn-keeper.</p>
+
+<p><b>Lem Nugent</b>, the owner of the stolen runabout.</p></blockquote>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."</p>
+
+
+<p>"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's
+in de ruvver! He drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit
+head first lak er frawg. He's drowndin', he sholey is! By
+golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis minyit!
+Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"</p>
+
+<p>Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she
+screeched for help she ran circles on the river-bank, tossing
+her hands wildly. If she had put some of her aimless
+energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed old
+negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off.
+He was floundering and thrashing and making a good
+deal of noise himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got
+de crampus en mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off!
+Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's gawn down, en de nex' time
+Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f out none&mdash;doan'
+scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a
+coon whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh
+an'&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less,
+just then, and his language was submerged.</p>
+
+<p>"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back
+through the brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree.
+"Do something, somebody! Oh, I wish we had a
+rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she added encouragingly;
+"we'll get you out!"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself
+around like dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles
+yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me a pain. Can't y' swim?"</p>
+
+<p>Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.</p>
+
+<p>"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the
+bank and reaching out to throw the whip-lash toward the
+old negro, "grab hold of that and I'll snake you ashore
+too quick for any use."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water
+from his eyes, saw the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon
+Legree laid back on the handle and pulled. Uncle Tom
+was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The water
+came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say,
+give me a pair o' high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat
+roarin' torrent widou' never wettin' me kicks. How much<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span>
+water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle Tom? Oh, sister,
+what a jolt."</p>
+
+<p>Little Eva began to laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around
+on one foot to get the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an'
+show yo' ignunce. Dat didun' git away f'um me, nohow,"
+and he threw a small tin box on the ground in front
+of Legree.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza stooped and picked up the box.</p>
+
+<p>"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle
+Tom must have been careless. What were you and Topsy
+walking along by the river for?" he added, turning to the
+old negro.</p>
+
+<p>"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy,
+pointing to the ground where a stick with a fish-line attached
+to its end had been dropped.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom,
+"en Ah doan' see how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan'
+ketch er fish er kill er possum, er somepin lak dat. Mah
+goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah shoes. If
+a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han',
+Ah wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants
+tuh kin tote dat 'ar box. Ah done had enough ob it."</p>
+
+<p>"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to
+the next town we'll have something to eat."</p>
+
+<p>"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de
+money, huh?"</p>
+
+<p>"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in
+her voice, "and I'll pawn it."</p>
+
+<p>"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch,
+and I'll pawn that."</p>
+
+<p>"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's
+head wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I
+couldn't hand dat mutt a couple o' good ones if he was
+handy!"</p>
+
+<p>Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's
+ears&mdash;for "Little Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.</p>
+
+<p>"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the
+boy's father. "You can talk a lot without saying much,
+kid. Come on, everybody," he added. "The quicker we
+get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
+in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."</p>
+
+<p>"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle
+Tom. "De rheumatix is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun'
+if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif mahse'f."</p>
+
+<p>"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back
+toward the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah
+kin do tuh walk at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered.
+Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus tough on er ole man,
+sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis country?
+Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons?
+Ah'd give a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a
+wagon."</p>
+
+<p>Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his
+wet sleeve and helped him along. In a few minutes they
+broke away from the river-bank into the road.</p>
+
+<p>Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced
+along with a pocket full of stones, and every once in a
+while he stopped to make a throw at a road-runner or a
+chipmunk.</p>
+
+<p>Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing
+so thickly that it was impossible to see very far into the
+timber. Eliza and Legree, talking over the difficulties in
+which they found themselves and trying to plan some way
+for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance, while
+Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little
+Eva was dodging around in between, now and then shying
+at something with a stone.</p>
+
+<p>The strange little party had not proceeded far before
+the boy heard a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he
+might find in such a wild country, he jumped into the
+thicket. And then he jumped out again, yelling like a
+Comanche.</p>
+
+<p>"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road.
+"Dere's somet'ing chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an'
+has a mout' like a church door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer
+lives!"</p>
+
+<p>The other four gave their immediate attention to Little
+Eva, and then changed it to something that rolled out of
+the undergrowth directly behind them.</p>
+
+<p>"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody
+climb a tree!"</p>
+
+<p>This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little
+Eva shinned up a sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into
+a scrub oak, and then started for a neighboring pine himself,
+and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous amount of
+reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he
+fluttered, getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of
+the tree with both arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered,
+craning his neck to get a good look at the cause of the disturbance.
+"Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan' want
+no truck wif you."</p>
+
+<p>The bear was a grizzly&mdash;not a large grizzly, but plenty
+large enough. There were lots of bigger bears in that
+part of Arizona, but this was the biggest one Fate had to
+run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."</p>
+
+<p>Having gained a position about half-way up and down
+the line of treed actors, the bear sat down in the road and
+proceeded to enjoy the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of
+the pine: "is everybody all right?"</p>
+
+<p>"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right,
+dad," answered Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's
+all t' de good. But, say, I ain't feelin' real comfertable
+in me mind."</p>
+
+<p>"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy.
+"Hit ain't right tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when
+we's all tiah'd out."</p>
+
+<p>"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle
+Tom, "en tie dat whip erroun' his neck an' strangle de life
+outen him. Beah meat is mighty nigh as good as possum,
+an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go
+away. I guess he's thinking more about making a meal
+off of us than letting us make one from him."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling
+tones, by way of enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak
+snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one yo' sholey is gwine tuh
+fin' anudder."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin'
+down de road lak er singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah
+golly! We's all as good as daid&mdash;we's all gwine tuh be
+et up."</p>
+
+<p>Strange noises were coming from along the back track,
+coming rapidly and growing louder and louder.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle
+Tom, climbing a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes
+is dat he ain't big enough tuh reach up en take me outen
+de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en mah bones."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed
+to puzzle him. He sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly,
+and then dropped down on all fours and ambled
+into the brush.</p>
+
+<p>The next moment, to the astonishment of the four
+actors, a sparkling red automobile rushed into sight, coming
+from the direction of Ash Fork and headed toward
+Fairview.</p>
+
+<p>A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's
+seat; beside him was a young German in a "loud" suit and
+a red vest.</p>
+
+<p>"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"</p>
+
+<p>"Saved!" cried Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the
+same place where the bear had recently held the fort.</p>
+
+<p>The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of
+amazement as they stared at the odd assortment of actors
+hanging in the trees.</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a
+jeerful pitzness und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I
+efer knowed it bossiple to pick actor-peoples oudt oof der
+drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.</p>
+
+
+<p>Motor Matt didn't know what to think. The queerest
+lot of people he ever saw were dropping out of the trees
+and hurrying toward the automobile.</p>
+
+<p>First, there was a young woman of seventeen or eighteen,
+wearing a dust-coat and gauntlets. There was a
+look of intense relief on her pretty face.</p>
+
+<p>Following her came a tall, slimly built man, whose
+clothes suggested the ruffian, but whose face was anything
+but vicious. He carried a blacksnake whip.</p>
+
+<p>A boy trailed after the man. He wasn't a handsome
+boy, by any means, but his eyes were bright and sharp
+and he had a clever look.</p>
+
+<p>From the other way along the road came an old darky
+in tattered, soggy clothes. A young negro girl hurried
+along beside him.</p>
+
+<p>"Well," breathed Motor Matt, "if this ain't a brain-twister
+I don't want a cent. Who are they, Carl? One
+of them seems to know you."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure I knows him," spoke up the boy. "Got wise t'
+Carl Pretzel in Denver. 'Pretzel an' Pringle, Musical
+Marvels.' W'ere's Pringle, Dutch?"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't say someding aboudt him," answered Carl. "I
+haf scratched him off my visiding-list, yah, you bed you.
+Pringle iss some pad eggs, und ve don'd ged along mit
+each odder. Matt, dis vas Liddle Efa, who blays mit a
+Ungle Dom's Capin Gompany. Ven he geds his leedle
+curly-viggies on, he looks fine&mdash;schust like some girls, yes.
+Who iss der odder peobles, Efa?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dis is me fader, Dutch," answered the boy; "he's de
+guy wot licks Uncle Tom in de show. De loidy is Eliza,
+an' say, she's got 'em all skinned w'en it comes t' jumpin'
+acrost de river on cakes of ice. Dat's Uncle Tom,
+scramblin' into de auto wit'out waitin' f'r an invite, an' de
+goil is Topsy."</p>
+
+<p>"Young man," said Legree, stepping forward and addressing
+Motor Matt, "we're what's left of Brisco's Uncle
+Tom's Cabin Company. Brisco took all the funds and left
+us in the lurch at Brockville, the station west of Ash Fork.
+The constable took our tent, and properties, and even the
+bloodhounds. We were left with the clothes we stood in,
+and that's all. Marks, and St. Clair, and the rest, made a
+raise and rode back to Denver in the train. They didn't
+have enough to help us out, and so we've started to walk
+as far as Flagstaff. When we get there, we're going to
+get up some sort of an entertainment and see if we can't
+pull down enough hard cash to see us through to Denver.
+Brisco owes all of us money. Barrin' the kid, here,
+he beat each one of us out of more'n a hundred dollars.
+But we're goin' to get him; you see if we don't."</p>
+
+<p>A grim look came to Legree's face.</p>
+
+<p>"Veil," said Carl, "be jeerful und don'd vorry. I haf
+der same kindt oof pad luck, den I met oop mit Modor
+Matt und der luck dook a shange. Meppy yours vill dake
+a shange, too."</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to Albuquerque," spoke up Matt, "and
+if you don't mind being crowded we can give you a lift
+as far as Flagstaff."</p>
+
+<p>A long breath of satisfaction broke from Uncle Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's fine," said he. "Dis niggah am sholy tuckered.
+Why doan' yo'-all git intuh de wagon? Dat beah am
+li'ble tuh come snoopin' an' pesterin' back."</p>
+
+<p>"Pear?" cried Carl. "Vat you say, huh? Iss dere a
+pear aroundt here?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's no dream, Dutch," answered the boy. "Wot
+did yous t'ink it was chased us up dem trees?"</p>
+
+<p>"Everythin's been goin' wrong with us ever since we
+hit Brockville," said Legree. "A lot more'll happen, too,
+but I reckon we're done with the bear. This machine
+scared the brute away. How'll you have us in the car,
+Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Little Eva, as you call him," said Matt, laughing a
+little as he looked at the boy, "had better get in front here
+with Carl. That will leave four of you for the tonneau.
+It won't be long until we get to Fairview, and we'll stop
+there for dinner."</p>
+
+<p>"Um-yum," said Topsy; "golly, but dat sounds good!
+Dinnah! Heah dat, Unc' Tawn?"</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom smacked his lips and rolled up the whites
+of his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' say a wo'd, chile," he cautioned. "Dis seems
+jess lak er dream, dis ride in de debble-wagon, de dinnah,
+en all. Yo' speak too loud, Ah's fearin' Ah's done
+gwine tuh woke up."</p>
+
+<p>With his load of stranded actors aboard, all rejoicing
+in the good luck that had brought Matt and Carl along
+with the automobile at that particular time, the young
+motorist cranked up, threw in the clutch and started.
+Hardly were they under good headway when a sharp cry
+came from Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop! The box! I dropped it when I got up into that
+tree."</p>
+
+<p>Matt stopped the Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>"Pox?" cried Carl; "vat iss dot?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's whut got me into de ruvver," said Uncle Tom.
+"Ah 'lows dat box is er heap mo' trouble dan hit's worf."</p>
+
+<p>"If we ever get hold of Brisco," returned Legree, "it'll
+be that box that does it for us. Wait here a minute, Motor
+Matt, and I'll go back and get it. I think I know
+right where it is."</p>
+
+<p>Legree got out of the car, went back along the road,
+and vanished among the bushes.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Is der money in der pox?" asked Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"We don't know what's in it," answered Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's keveer. How vill dot pox helup you ged holt
+oof Prisco?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco always kept it by him," went on Eliza, "so we
+know he thinks it's valuable. He told Legree, once, he
+wouldn't lose the box for ten thousand dollars."</p>
+
+<p>"How did you come to get hold of it?" inquired Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the queer part of it. Brisco left the Brockville
+hotel during the night&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"An' I picked it up by de door, next mornin'," chimed
+in the boy. "Brisco must have dropped it when he made
+dat getaway. It was blacker dan a stack o' black cats,
+dat night, an' he wasn't able t' use his lamps."</p>
+
+<p>"When Marks, and Harris, and St. Clair, and the rest
+of the company left Brockville," continued Eliza, "they
+told us to keep the box and not give it up until Brisco
+paid over what he owed. We lost our wages and everything
+else we had except the clothes on our backs."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's me," spoke up Carl; "I vas fixed der same
+vat you are. Den, pympy, Modor Matt come along mit
+himseluf, shpoke some jeerful vorts mit me, dook me
+for a bard, und luck made a shange. Meppy dot iss how
+it vill be mit you."</p>
+
+<p>"Seems lak he was a long time findin' dat dere box,"
+said Uncle Tom. "Ah's honin' fo' dat hotel in Fairview,
+an' fo' dat dinnah, an' fo' to dry dese clothes. Mistah
+Legree is a monstus long time, an' no mistake."</p>
+
+<p>"Stay here, all of you," said Matt, getting out of the
+car. "I'll go back and see if I can help find the box. If
+it's so important, it won't do to leave it behind."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll go 'long wit' yous," chirped the boy.</p>
+
+<p>Before he could get out of the car, the sharp, incisive
+note of a revolver echoed from the bushes at the trail-side,
+close to the place where Legree had vanished into
+them.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza stifled a scream.</p>
+
+<p>"Mah goodness!" fluttered Topsy. "Somebody's done
+gone tuh shootin'!"</p>
+
+<p>"It wasn't dad, dat's a cinch!" cried the boy. "He
+didn't have no gun!"</p>
+
+<p>"Stay there!" called Matt to the boy, as he whirled
+and hurried on. "Stand ready to crank up the machine,
+Carl," he added, "in case we have to start in a hurry."
+Matt had dropped into the troubles of these forlorn
+"Uncle Tommers" with bewildering suddenness. He
+hadn't had the remotest notion that there was going to
+be any violence, or shooting, and the report of the revolver
+had sent a thrill of alarm through him.</p>
+
+<p>Had Brisco been tracking the unfortunate actors, and
+had he attempted to make way with the tin box just as
+Legree was about to secure it?</p>
+
+<p>As Matt drew closer to the thicket, he heard sharp
+and angry voices. One voice he recognized as belonging
+to Legree, and the other struck a strangely familiar note
+in his ear. He had heard that voice somewhere before&mdash;but
+where?</p>
+
+<p>There were only two voices taking part in the talk, but
+the man who had intercepted Legree was armed. Matt
+knew it would stand him in hand to be cautious, so, instead
+of turning directly from the road into the brush,
+he darted for the timber some distance beyond the scene
+of the altercation. Then, making his way back warily, he
+pushed through the bushes.</p>
+
+<p>He made very little noise&mdash;so little that his approach
+was not heard by either of the two men. Legree, however,
+was standing in such a position that he could not
+help seeing Matt. He was facing the other man, and the
+latter had his back to the young motorist.</p>
+
+<p>There was something familiar about that back, but
+even yet Matt could not recall who the man was.</p>
+
+<p>The fellow was roughly dressed. In his right hand he
+was holding a revolver, pointing it squarely at Legree,
+and in his left hand he was holding a small tin box.</p>
+
+<p>"If ye think ye can fool Hank Brisco," the man with
+the weapon was saying, "ye're far wide o' yer trail. He's
+got a ottermobill, now, what kin shoot through the kentry
+like a cannon-ball, an' I reckon thar'll be some Cain
+raised on this part o' the range afore many moons. You
+take my advice an' hike out o' here without tryin' ter
+make Hank any trouble, er&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment Motor Matt's opportunity came.
+Flinging himself forward suddenly, he grabbed the revolver
+out of the ruffian's hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Bully for you, Matt!" cried Legree.</p>
+
+<p>The next instant Legree's blacksnake whip had curled
+itself about the ruffian's left wrist, girdling the skin like
+a loop of fire.</p>
+
+<p>The man roared out an oath. The pain must have
+been intense, for his fingers curled away from the box
+and he caught his wrist with his other hand.</p>
+
+<p>Matt stared. When the ruffian had turned and rushed
+into the woods, cursing and vowing vengeance, Matt
+continued to stare.</p>
+
+<p>"Ever seen that man before, Matt?" asked Legree,
+surprised at the boy's manner.</p>
+
+<p>"I should say so!" exclaimed Matt. "Let's get back
+to the car. You've got back the box, but we haven't
+seen the last of this&mdash;not by a long shot."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.</p>
+
+
+<p>Shouts of relief went up from those in the Red Flier
+at sight of Matt and Legree sprinting down the road,
+Legree with the box and Matt with the revolver.</p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" jubilated Carl; "be jeerful, eferypody.
+Here dey come alretty, und mit more as dey vent to
+ged!"</p>
+
+<p>"Fo' de lan' sake!" chattered Topsy; "Ah sholy expected
+some one had done been kilt."</p>
+
+<p>"Git right in de kyah," urged Uncle Tom, "so we kin
+git erway f'om dis hyeh place. Beahs, en robbahs, en
+oddah spontaneous excitements is monstus tryin' to er
+niggah wif er empty stummick. Ah doan' lak shootin'
+nohow."</p>
+
+<p>"Was dat some guy t'rowin' a bullet at yous, dad?"
+inquired Little Eva. "How close did he come t' ringin'
+de bell?"</p>
+
+<p>"How many were there?" cried Eliza; "are they following
+us?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt jumped into his seat, and Legree scrambled for
+the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>"Take this, Legree," called Matt, and dropped the revolver
+over the back of the seat.</p>
+
+<p>Carl, who had been posted at the front of the machine,
+had already "turned over" the engine. As she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span>
+took the spark Carl crawled to his place beside Matt, and
+the Red Flier glided away.</p>
+
+<p>The young motorist was silent for a while, listening
+as Legree told how he had gone searching for the box
+and found it in the hands of a scoundrel whom he had
+never seen before. The Unknown had fired a revolver,
+but it had been more to intimidate Legree and keep him
+at a distance, for the bullet had not come anywhere near
+him. Legree finished with an account of how Matt
+had come up behind the ruffian and had saved the
+day.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's der vay Modor Matt does pitzness," said the
+admiring Carl. "You bed my life he vas some virlvinds
+ven he leds himseluf oudt."</p>
+
+<p>"The name of the man who ran off and left your
+company stranded was Hank Brisco, was it?" asked
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"That was his name, Matt," replied Legree. "But who
+was that tough-looking citizen that had me cornered,
+there in the thicket?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll have to tell you something that happened to Carl
+and me, a few days ago, in order for you to understand
+that part of it," answered Matt. "This touring-car belongs
+to Mr. James Q. Tomlinson, a wholesale jeweler
+who lives in Denver. He and his driver, Gregory, have
+been touring the Southwest in it. A gang of thieves,
+among whom was a fellow called Hank, and another
+called Spangler, robbed Mr. Tomlinson on the trail, several
+miles west of Ash Fork. Carl and I got mixed up
+in the trouble, and we had some exciting times racing the
+Red Flier against a high-powered runabout that the
+thieves stole from a wealthy cattleman named Lem Nugent.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Tomlinson recovered his stolen property and
+went on to Albuquerque with his driver, Gregory, hiring
+me to take the touring-car from Ash Fork to Albuquerque.
+That's how we happened to come along in time to help
+you out, Mr. Legree."</p>
+
+<p>"If this man, Tomlinson, got back his stolen property,"
+asked Legree, "what became of the thieves?"</p>
+
+<p>"Two of them, Hank and Spangler, got away with the
+cattleman's car. The stolen runabout can go like a blue
+streak, and is lighter and faster than the Red Flier.
+Now, the man that tried to get the tin box, back there
+in the thicket, was none other than Spangler; and the
+other villain, who was called by the name of 'Hank,' was
+the fellow who left you in the lurch at Brockville."</p>
+
+<p>"Shiminy grickets, how t'ings vill turn oudt mit demselufs,
+vonce und again!" clamored Carl. "Domlinson
+vould like more as he can dell to haf dose fellers ketched,
+and Nuchent vants pooty pad dot he geds his car pack
+some more. He vill gif fife huntert tollars to any vone
+vat vill findt der car, und he vill gif fife huntert more for
+Hank, und der same for Spangler." Carl leaned toward
+Matt with his eyes almost popping from his head. "Bard,"
+he asked, "can ve scoop it in?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'd like to get back that runabout for Mr. Nugent,"
+said Matt, "but I don't know as we ought to take the
+time to go fooling along on our way to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, Misder Domlinson say dot dere vasn't any
+hurry."</p>
+
+<p>"He also said," continued Matt, "that he wouldn't trust
+this car with everybody. If we should get to tearing
+around after Hank and Spangler, and damage the Flier,
+we would find ourselves in a hole."</p>
+
+<p>"You hadn't better bother trying to take us to Flagstaff,
+then," put in Legree, "for as long as we've got
+this tin box Brisco is going to keep on trying to get hold
+of it. If he chases us with that stolen runabout, which
+you say is a faster car than the Red Flier, you're goin'
+to run some risks with this machine."</p>
+
+<p>"If we work it right," said Matt, "I guess we can get
+you people to Flagstaff without being bothered much by
+Hank and Spangler. It's queer, though, to have it turn
+out that those two scoundrels are mixed up in these
+troubles of yours."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's done had trouble enough," wailed Uncle Tom,
+"en Ah doan' know how Ah could stand any mo'. Ah's
+er pretty ole niggah tuh go traipsin' erroun' afteh robbahs,
+en drappin' intuh rivvers, an' climbin' trees tuh
+sabe my hide from beahs. All de same, Ah 'lows some
+ob dat money fo' ketchin' dat 'ar Brisco would come
+mouty handy. But Mistah Legree, yo' listen hyeh. If
+Brisco sets sich er pow'ful store by dat 'ar box, mebby
+he'd buy hit offen de lot ob us, payin' us whut he owes
+jess tuh git holt ob hit. Why not, sah, entah intuh prognostications
+wif him wif de view ob settlin' ouah compunctions
+in er pleasin' manner?"</p>
+
+<p>A shadow of a grin wreathed itself around Legree's
+lips.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Uncle Tom," he answered, "it's hard to prognosticate
+with a chap who's so hard to find as Brisco is."</p>
+
+<p>"Vere vas Hank vile Spangler vas looking for der pox,
+Matt?" asked Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"That's a conundrum, Carl."</p>
+
+<p>"Und vere vas der runaboudt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Another conundrum."</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, ditn't Spangler ride to der blace vere he come
+for der din pox in der runaboudt?"</p>
+
+<p>"I didn't see anything of the machine, but I was afraid
+it was somewhere around&mdash;which is the reason I was in
+such a hurry to make a fresh start for Fairview."</p>
+
+<p>"Ve don'd vas shased py der runaboudt, anyvay, und
+dot means dot it vasn't some blace around vere Spangler
+vas."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" came from Little Eva, as he pointed ahead.
+"Dere's de burg wot we're headin' fer. I'm a jay if it
+don't look almost big enough fer two 'r t'ree people t'
+live in."</p>
+
+<p>From the rising ground on which the Red Flier and
+its passengers found themselves, at that moment, Fairview
+could be fairly viewed. Perhaps there were twenty-five
+or thirty houses in the place, the main street being
+bordered by half a dozen stores.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' yo' go an' tell me dar ain't no hotel," faltered
+Uncle Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"No matter how small a town is, Uncle Tom," returned
+Eliza, "travelers can always find a place to stay. Our
+hardest work will be, I think, to discover some one who
+will lend money on our jewelry."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll furnish the jewelry, Eliza," said Legree. "This
+watch of mine is worth enough, I think, to furnish us
+with food and lodging while Motor Matt gives us a lift
+to Flagstaff."</p>
+
+<p>"If you're out of cash," spoke up Matt, in his usual
+generous style, "I'll foot the bills. Some time, when you
+get on Easy Street, you can pay me back."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom's anxiety over the prospect fell from him
+like a wet blanket.</p>
+
+<p>"Yo's a gemman, Mistah Motah Matt," he declared,
+"yo' is what Ah calls a puffick gemman. Ah'm mos'ly
+independent in dese money mattahs&mdash;dis is de fust time<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span>
+since Ah can remembah dat Ah habn't had all ob two
+dollars in mah clo's&mdash;so hit is mouty spognoocious tuh
+mah pride, sah, to be fo'ced tuh accept a loan. Still,
+sah, Ah brings mahse'f to hit bekase yo' is so willin'
+an' so spendacious. In retu'n fo' dat, Mistah Motah
+Matt, Ah becomes on de spot yo' official mascot. Yassuh.
+Ah takes yo' luck en mah own han's, an' evah time
+what yo' do anyt'ing, Ah agrees tuh make yo' a winnah."</p>
+
+<p>"Much obliged, Uncle Tom," laughed Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Go on wif yo'!" cried Topsy. "Why didun' yo' mascot
+dat 'ar company so dat Brisco couldn't do lak what
+he done? Mascot! Yah, yah, yah!"</p>
+
+<p>"Laff," returned Uncle Tom tartly, "laff an' show yo'
+ignunce! What yo' unnerstan' about luckosophy an'
+mascots? Yo' mouty triflin' an' tryin', dat's what yo' is.
+Wait twell yo' see what Ah does fo' Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>During this talk, the Red Flier had glided down a long
+slope into the little town. It did not take long to traverse
+the main street, and as they jogged onward all eyes
+looked carefully for a hotel.</p>
+
+<p>Finally they saw a sign with a picture of something
+that looked like a four-leaved clover. Under the picture
+were the printed words, "Shamrock House."</p>
+
+<p>"Dat 'ar fo'-leaved clovah means luck," averred Uncle
+Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"It's supposed to be a shamrock, Uncle Tom," said
+Eliza, "and not a clover-leaf."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows dat," went on Uncle Tom, "but hit sho'
+means luck. Ah done got de feelin'."</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt and Carl Pretzel "got the feeling," too, for
+around at one side of the hotel they saw another automobile.
+There was no one around the car. Carl nearly
+dropped off his seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Vas I plind mit meinseluf," he whispered, "or iss it
+der real t'ing vat I see? Matt, dere iss der shtolen runaboudt,
+mit nopody aroundt! Fife huntert tollars saying
+it righdt oudt loud, 'Come, oh, come, somepody und pick
+me oop!'"</p>
+
+<p>Matt was astounded; yet there was not the least doubt
+about the runabout being the same car that had been
+stolen.</p>
+
+<p>"Is that the automobile Brisco ran away with?" demanded
+Legree, leaping energetically out of the tonneau.
+"That's the one!" declared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Then come with me, Matt, you and Carl," said Legree,
+starting for the hotel door. "Keep behind, though. I'm
+armed, now, and can meet Brisco in his own way if he
+shows fight."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.</p>
+
+
+<p>Matt, while following Legree toward the front of the
+hotel, was doing some quick thinking to account for this
+surprising discovery of the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Very likely Brisco and Spangler were planning to recover
+the tin box. It must have been these plans that
+had brought them eastward from the vicinity of Ash Fork.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler had been dropped on the road to intercept the
+stranded players and get the box, while Brisco had come
+recklessly into Fairview. Possibly Brisco had been compelled
+to come into town after gasoline and oil.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah doan' want tuh be erroun' if dar's goin' tuh be
+any shootin'," palpitated Uncle Tom, rolling out of the
+tonneau with more haste than grace. "Ah used tuh be
+a reg'lar fire-eatah, en mah youngah days, but Ah dun
+kinder got ovah hit. Topsy, yo' an' Miss 'Liza come right
+along wif me, dis instinct. We'll go off whah dar's er
+safe place fo' me tuh do mah mascottin' fo' Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>Eliza and Topsy hurriedly descended from the car.
+Little Eva was already on the ground, but instead of
+going around the hotel with Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle
+Tom, he strolled over to the runabout. In their excitement,
+the others did not miss the boy.</p>
+
+<p>There were two windows in the hotel office&mdash;one in
+the front wall, a dozen feet from the door, and one just
+around the corner in the side wall. The window in the
+side wall overlooked the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Matt, doing some quick figuring, jumped at the conclusion
+that Brisco, taken by surprise by Legree, would
+make a bolt through one of the windows, both of which
+were open.</p>
+
+<p>Close to the front window an eave-spout entered a
+rain-water barrel. Matt did not believe Brisco, if he
+tried to escape by a window, would come out at the front,
+but at the side, where he would be nearer the runabout.
+With this idea in mind, Matt placed Carl behind the
+water-barrel, while he went around the corner.</p>
+
+<p>Through the window on that side the young motorist
+stole a cautious look.</p>
+
+<p>Two men were leaning over a counter in the office.
+One was plainly an Irishman, and the proprietor of the
+place, and the other was as plainly Hank Brisco. Matt
+knew Brisco too well to be mistaken in him. Neither
+Brisco nor the Irish proprietor had heard the approach
+of the Red Flier, nor the entrance of Legree into the
+office.</p>
+
+<p>With a grim smile on his face, and the revolver in his
+hand, Legree was leaning against the wall, just inside
+the door, waiting for Brisco to turn around.</p>
+
+<p>"Begorry," the proprietor was saying, "fifty cints a
+gallon f'r th' gasoline is all I'm afther chargin' yez. Oi
+know av robbers around here who'd be chargin' yez a
+dollar a gallon, but that's not the way wid Terence
+O'Grady. Fifty cints is th' most Oi'll take from yez.
+Fifteen gallons at fifty cints is sivin-fifty; then wan
+dollar f'r oil makes eight-fifty. Eight-fifty from tin laves
+wan an a half, an' there yez are. Will yez shtay f'r dinner?
+Faith, we've as foine a male t'day as yez iver put
+tooth in, an' a dollar is all ut will cost yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon I'll stay, O'Grady," replied Brisco, picking
+his change off the counter and sliding it into his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>Then he turned, and met the leveled weapon of Legree.
+Brisco's astonishment was ludicrous to behold. And
+O'Grady was fully as startled.</p>
+
+<p>"Phat th' blazes d'yez mean by thot?" and O'Grady
+jumped over the counter and stood glaring at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll explain," said Legree, with a coolness that filled
+Matt with admiration, "but while I'm talking, O'Grady,
+don't get between the point of this weapon and that man,
+there."</p>
+
+<p>"Is ut a hould-up?" demanded O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"Not at all. The man behind you knows me, and he
+knows that he owes me a hundred and twenty dollars."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know anything of the kind," replied Brisco,
+every whit as cool as Legree. "You've made a mistake,
+my man; and, besides, even if I did owe you money,
+you're trying to collect it in the wrong way."</p>
+
+<p>"Roight yez are!" put in O'Grady. "Shtick thot pisthol<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span>
+in yer pocket an' go off wid yez. This is a dacint, rayspectible
+hotel, an' guns ain't allowed in th' place at all,
+at all. Av yez don't hike, begorry, Oi'll call in th' town
+marshal."</p>
+
+<p>"Call the marshal," said Legree; "he's the man I'd like
+to have here. That fellow who just bought gasoline and
+oil at this place is one of the gang who robbed Tomlinson,
+the Denver jeweler, over west of Ash Fork, and stole
+the automobile belonging to Nugent, the cattleman&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Brisco began to laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you think of that, O'Grady?" he cried.
+"Why, that car you just helped me fill with gasoline is
+Tomlinson's car! I'm taking it east for him. Who this
+man is, or what game he's trying to play, is more than I
+know."</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was edging around toward the side window.</p>
+
+<p>"Look out, Mr. Legree!" called Matt, through the
+opening. "He's trying to get where he can drop out
+here."</p>
+
+<p>Matt's words caused Brisco and O'Grady to swerve
+their glances in his direction. A glint darted into Brisco's
+eyes at sight of Matt. Hank Brisco had good reason to
+remember the young motorist.</p>
+
+<p>"This looks like a put-up job, O'Grady," said Brisco,
+still keeping the whip-hand of himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, begob," cried O'Grady, "no pack av blackguards
+can come into th' Shamrock Hotel an' shtir up throuble
+f'r me customers. Clear out av here," he added, brandishing
+his fists, "or Oi'll be afther gittin' busy wid me
+hands."</p>
+
+<p>"Is that man the one who helped rob Tomlinson, Matt?"
+asked Legree, nodding his head toward Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"He's the one," answered Matt. "I'd know him anywhere.
+Don't let him&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment, O'Grady, wofully deceived, but
+thinking he was doing exactly what was right, kicked a
+chair at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>The chair struck Legree's shins with a force that hurled
+him back against the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, then," roared O'Grady to Brisco, "make a run
+av it! Oi'll take care av this boonch av meddlers!"</p>
+
+<p>With that, he hurled himself upon Legree and the two
+began to struggle, falling over the chair and dropping
+heavily on the floor.</p>
+
+<p>They were directly across the doorway, and Brisco
+sprang for the front window and pushed himself through
+it.</p>
+
+<p>"Shtop a leedle!" whooped Carl, dodging around the
+rain-water barrel; "you don'd got avay so easy as dot,
+und&mdash;&mdash; Himmelblitzen!"</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had grabbed the barrel. That happened to be
+the dry season and the barrel was empty. Giving it a
+whirl, he threw it against the Dutch boy with a force
+that took him off his feet.</p>
+
+<p>Thrashing his arms wildly, Carl laid himself down on
+the rolling barrel and went caroming off toward the road.</p>
+
+<p>Meantime, Matt, seeing that Brisco was making for the
+window guarded by Carl, had rushed around to the front
+of the hotel. He reached the scene of the scrimmage just
+in time to be grabbed by O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>The racket in the office had brought O'Grady's Chinese
+cook from the kitchen; and, while the Chinaman continued
+the tussle with Legree, the proprietor of the hotel
+had rushed out to see what more he could do for the man
+who had paid him so well for gasoline and oil.</p>
+
+<p>"Oi've got yez, yez meddlin' omadhoun!" shouted
+O'Grady. "Oi'll tach yez t' come interferin' wid dacint
+people!"</p>
+
+<p>With that he flung his arms around Motor Matt and
+hung to him with all his strength.</p>
+
+<p>"Hang onto him, O'Grady!" cried Brisco, dashing for
+the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"Niver yez fret!" panted the Irishman reassuringly;
+"good-by t' yez. Next toime yez come we'll give yez
+betther treatment; there won't be so many hoodlums
+around t'&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Let go!" shouted Matt. Then, suddenly freeing his
+hands, he struck the deluded Irishman a quick blow.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady's hands relaxed for an instant. That instant
+gave Motor Matt his opportunity, and he tore himself
+free.</p>
+
+<p>About the same moment, Legree, hatless, angry, and
+chagrined, came running out of the office.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's Brisco?" he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>Just then the question was answered by Brisco himself.
+The runabout, leaping around the corner of the
+hotel, shot toward the road, a mocking laugh from Brisco
+trailing out behind.</p>
+
+<p>"Not this time, Legree!" called Brisco, over his shoulder.
+"Look out for me, from now on&mdash;you and Motor
+Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout was headed westward. In the rumble
+behind, lying partly over the rumble-seat, was a dust-coat.
+It undoubtedly belonged to Brisco, and he must
+have thrown it aside while attending to the automobile,
+a few minutes before.</p>
+
+<p>While Motor Matt and Legree stood staring at the
+receding car, the coat lifted a little and a hand was waved.</p>
+
+<p>"Great Scott!" cried Matt; "it's that boy."</p>
+
+<p>Legree, far from showing any consternation, leaned
+against the wall of the building and laughed softly.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was amazed.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter with you, Legree?" he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm just enjoying a situation that has a bad outlook
+for Brisco," was Legree's queer answer.</p>
+
+<p>"It has a bad outlook for the boy, too," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't worry about Little Eva. I know him better
+than you do, and he'll take care of himself."</p>
+
+<p>At this moment the Chinaman came out of the hotel
+office and handed the revolver to O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"Oi've had about all Oi want av this rough-house!"
+shouted O'Grady, his temper badly warped by the disturbance
+and the blow Matt had dealt him. "Yez will shtay
+roight here, bedad, until Oi can have th' Chink go afther
+th' town marshal. Go f'r Jennings, Ping," he added,
+flourishing the weapon in the faces of Matt and Legree,
+"an hustle. We'll make this slab-soided roosther laugh
+on t'other soide av his face befure we're done wid him."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.</p>
+
+
+<p>Carl, having untangled himself from the barrel, brushed
+off his clothes and rubbed his sore spots, came bristling
+up to O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"You vas grazy," he cried, "so grazy as I don'd know.
+Oof you hatn't fooled mit us, t'ings vould haf peen tifferent.
+Ve lose vone t'ousant tollars py vat you do!<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>
+Yah, so helup me! Pud avay der gun und ged reasonaple."</p>
+
+<p>"Huccome dat 'ar resolver change han's lak what Ah
+see?" inquired Uncle Tom, stepping gingerly around the
+corner of the hotel. "Didun' Ah do yo no good, mascottin'
+fo' yo', Motah Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>Eliza and Topsy followed Uncle Tom, peering about
+them excitedly and evidently expecting to find Brisco a
+prisoner.</p>
+
+<p>"Something went crossways, Uncle Tom," said Matt.
+"Brisco got away, and he took the stolen car with him.
+Mr. O'Grady, here, the proprietor of the hotel, didn't
+understand the case and helped the wrong side."</p>
+
+<p>By that time O'Grady was himself beginning to think
+that he had made a mistake. The sight of the big red
+touring-car, and of the odd assortment of passengers
+who had arrived in it, afforded him food for thought.
+So he was thinking, lowering the revolver meanwhile
+and grabbing Ping, the Chinaman, by the queue to keep
+him from going after the marshal.</p>
+
+<p>"Where did th' lot av yez come from?" O'Grady finally
+inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"Ash Fork," replied Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Them colored folks come wid yez?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, mebby Oi did make a bobble, Oi dunno. Tell
+me something more about ut."</p>
+
+<p>Briefly as he could, Legree told of the robbery of Mr.
+Tomlinson and of the stealing of the cattleman's car,
+then wound up the recital by describing how Brisco had
+run off and left his theatrical company, and how Motor
+Matt had picked up those who were tramping along the
+road and was giving them a lift as far as Flagstaff.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady seemed to take more stock in Motor Matt than
+in any of the others. He watched the boy out of the tails
+of his eyes while listening to Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Faith," said he, "yez are a har-r-d hitter, me lad.
+Oi'm feelin' th' rap yez give me this minyit, an' me jaw'll
+be lame f'r a wake; but sure Oi desarved ut av so be Oi'm
+raysponsible f'r th' mon gittin' away. A good custhomer
+he was, an' Oi make ut a rule t' trate good custhomers
+wid ivery consideration. Oi supplied him wid gasoline
+out av me private barrel, an' sint th' Chinee f'r oil which
+Oi let him have at double th' proice Oi paid f'r ut. By
+th' same token, Oi felt loike tratin' th' mon white, d'yez
+see? Now, av yez won't say annythin' more about th'
+fracas, sure Oi won't, an' we'll let bygones be bygones.
+Was yez all thinkin' av takin' dinner at th' Shamrock?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat 'ar was de notion we had, boss," spoke up Uncle
+Tom eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>"Then, begorry, Oi'll make yez a special rate av sivin
+dollars f'r th' six av yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll give you three," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"T'ree ut is," was the prompt rejoinder. "Th' ladies
+can go t' th' parlor, an' th' gintlemen will foind a wash-bench
+by th' kitchen dure. Hurry up wid th' meal, Ping,"
+the proprietor added to the Chinaman.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady handed the revolver to Legree, excused himself
+and went into the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>"It don't take him long to forget the trouble he made
+us," remarked Legree, with a wink. "He's wise, too, in
+being willing to overlook the matter if we are."</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt couldn't understand Legree. He didn't
+appear to be worried in the least about the boy; on the
+contrary, he seemed pleased with the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's the kid?" inquired Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"He went away with Brisco," replied Legree.</p>
+
+<p>Startled exclamations came from Eliza, Uncle Tom, and
+Topsy.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't fret about him," went on Legree, with a calm
+confidence that was too deep for Matt, "for he'll come
+back. I'll have to stay here and wait for him, of course,
+and if Matt feels as though he has to pull out for Flagstaff
+before the kid gets here, why, we'll have to come
+along the best we can."</p>
+
+<p>"The boy's in danger," said Matt, "and I'm not going
+to leave Fairview until I try to do something for him."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't go to any trouble, Matt," returned Legree, "for
+I tell you again the kid's able to look out for himself.
+This work of his may result in the capture of Brisco and
+the recovery of the stolen car. After we eat, I'm going
+to find a cot, lie down, and take a snooze. I've got that
+coming to me, I think, considering what I've been through
+to-day. Let's hunt up that wash-bench and get ready for
+dinner."</p>
+
+<p>Matt was in a quandary. He knew, by his own experience,
+that Brisco was a desperate man, and Legree's
+firm conviction that the boy would keep out of trouble
+looked like the craziest kind of misjudgment.</p>
+
+<p>Following the dinner, to which they all did ample justice,
+Uncle Tom curled up on a door-step in the sun, Legree
+found a hammock in the shade, and Eliza and Topsy
+disappeared inside the hotel. Matt led Carl off to the
+Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>"It's a queer layout, Carl," said Matt, nodding his
+head in the direction of the hotel. "Hasn't it struck you
+that way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Vell," returned Carl, running his fingers reflectively
+through his mat of tow-colored hair, "I vas making some
+reflections on der soobjeck. Leedle Efa don't seem to
+cut mooch ice mit Legree, hey? Or meppy he cut a whole
+lot dot ve don'd know aboudt."</p>
+
+<p>"You knew the boy in Denver?" went on Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Yah, aber I forged vat his name vas, or vat he dit.
+Und I ditn't know vedder he hat a fader."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I don't think we ought to go on to Flagstaff
+until we find out something as to what becomes of the
+boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Me, neider; aber how ve find oudt, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll take the Flier and see if we can't track the runabout."</p>
+
+<p>"Und oof ve come too close py der runaboudt, den
+vat?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll take some old bottles along. If the runabout
+shows up and tries to chase us, we'll make a run of it
+and smash the bottles in the road behind us."</p>
+
+<p>Carl chuckled. That was an expedient to which Motor
+Matt had already had recourse&mdash;and with brilliant success.</p>
+
+<p>"Pully! I vill go findt der pottles, Matt, vile you ged
+der macheen retty."</p>
+
+<p>Carl went off toward a junk-pile back of the wood-shed.
+By the time Matt had made the Red Flier ready,
+Carl was back with an armful of bottles.</p>
+
+<p>"Ve vas on der high gear dis drip, you bed you," observed
+Carl, dumping the bottles into the tonneau. "I
+like dose oxcidements, yah, so. It vas goot for der nerfs
+und makes a fellow jeerful like nodding."</p>
+
+<p>As they got into the car, ready for the start, Eliza came
+hurrying out of the hotel. She carried the box in her
+hand and made straight for the automobile.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going, Matt?" she asked breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"We're not intending to run off and leave you," Matt
+laughed. "We want to see if we can't find out something
+about Little Eva, as you call him. It don't seem right
+to let the boy be carried off like this and not try to do
+something to help him."</p>
+
+<p>"He's a queer kid," said Eliza thoughtfully. "He and
+Legree were only with the company about two months,
+and they both had a queer way about them, sometimes.
+But if Legree isn't worried I don't know why we ought
+to be."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, either," said Matt, "but I am, all the
+same. Carl and I are going to see if we can't follow the
+trail of the runabout for a ways. I don't think we'll be
+gone more than an hour or two."</p>
+
+<p>"May I go along?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, yes, if you want to; but hadn't you better leave
+that box here?"</p>
+
+<p>"Legree told me to keep it by me all the time," answered
+the girl.</p>
+
+<p>"Probably he didn't intend for you to take it out into
+the hills. Well, never mind. If it's so mighty valuable
+I guess Legree would be taking care of it himself. Jump
+in, Eliza."</p>
+
+<p>The girl climbed into the tonneau, and Carl closed the
+door. Matt started at low speed, getting into the road
+at the same place where Brisco had driven the runabout.
+The trail of the broad wheels was well defined in the
+dust, and led along the course followed by the Red Flier
+in coming into town.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco vent oudt like ve come in," said Carl. "I'm
+vonderin' in my mindt oof he vent pack py Ash Fork?"</p>
+
+<p>"Give it up, Carl," answered Matt. "I don't know
+where he went. There's a whole lot about this business
+that's the rankest kind of guesswork."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure! Liddle Efa vas foolish mit himseluf for gedding
+indo der car; und he vas foolish some more for
+shtaying der car in ven he mighdt chump it off. Aber
+meppy he hat his reasons, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"He must have had a reason for doing such a reckless
+thing, but he don't know Brisco so well as we do."</p>
+
+<p>"He ought to, Matt," spoke up Eliza; "he was with
+the company for two months."</p>
+
+<p>"At that time," Matt answered, "Brisco had the best
+part of his character uppermost. Carl and I have seen
+the worst side of him, and he's the biggest scoundrel out
+of jail."</p>
+
+<p>"Vorse as dot!" averred Carl.</p>
+
+<p>The tracks of the car led up the slope, out of the valley
+that contained the town, and on along the Ash Fork
+road.</p>
+
+<p>Matt held the Flier down to an easy pace. For several
+miles the little party had a pleasant ride, without any
+excitement whatever. But there was plenty of excitement
+in store, and when it arrived it came suddenly.</p>
+
+<p>A turn in the wooded road brought those in the car
+abruptly into a long, straightaway stretch. The instant
+they were able to look along the trail beyond the turn, a
+thrill shot through the nerves of all of them.</p>
+
+<p>Three mounted men were coming toward the car at a
+tearing clip. Evidently they had heard the pounding of
+the motor and had put their horses to top speed.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco!" shouted Carl; "und dere iss Spangler, too.
+Durn aroundt, Matt! Durn aroundt so kevick as der
+nation vill let you! Shiminy grickets, aber dis vas sutten!"</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt had recognized two of the riders as Brisco
+and Spangler, even before Carl had given his frightened
+yell.</p>
+
+<p>Where had Brisco exchanged his seat in the runabout
+to the saddle of the horse? And why had he changed,
+and where had he left the car?</p>
+
+<p>All this darted through the young motorist's mind as
+he halted the Flier, reversed, and began backing to make
+the turn.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">LOSING THE BOX.</p>
+
+
+<p>Matt had not dreamed of being pursued by horsemen.
+The Red Flier would have no difficulty in running away
+from anything on hoofs, and certainly she could leave
+these three riders behind providing she could turn and
+get under headway before being overhauled.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, Spangler, and the other man were dangerously
+close before Matt got the Red Flier turned the other
+way. Just back from the bend there was a grassy hill,
+along the foot of which the road ran smoothly. It was
+an excellent place for speed, and Matt jumped from first
+to second, and from second to third with masterful quickness,
+considering the fact that he had to be careful about
+stripping the gear.</p>
+
+<p>As the car leaped away, like a spirited horse under the
+spur, Brisco was alongside the tonneau. A scream from
+Eliza called the attention of both boys. Matt, of course,
+was busy with his driving and could not turn to see what
+was the matter. Carl, however, got on his knees in his
+seat, face to the rear. What he saw brought an angry
+shout from his lips.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, leaning from his saddle, was reaching over the
+side of the tonneau. He had caught hold of the tin
+box, and Eliza, hanging to it with both hands, was
+struggling to keep him from securing it.</p>
+
+<p>"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
+the girl's aid; "dot pelongs to Modor Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>Carl was excited, but it wasn't excitement alone that
+caused him to say the box belonged to Matt. He knew
+Brisco was after a box he had once owned himself, and
+Carl had a hazy idea that if he said the box belonged to
+Matt it might be left alone.</p>
+
+<p>The gathering speed of the car carried it away from
+Brisco; and, as Brisco's one hand was stronger than
+the girl's two, the box remained with him.</p>
+
+<p>Carl got into the tonneau, head over heels and with a
+crash like the breaking of a dozen windows&mdash;for he fell
+into the heap of useless bottles. When he picked himself
+up, the three riders, with jeering laughs, had pointed their
+horses the other way.</p>
+
+<p>"It's gone, Matt!" cried the girl wildly; "the box is
+gone! Brisco snatched it out of my hands!"</p>
+
+<p>"Vat a luck it iss!" growled Carl, holding one hand to
+his face, where it had been cut by a piece of glass. "I
+got pack here so kevick as I couldt, Miss Eliza, aber dot
+Prisco feller was kevicker as me. Donnervetter! Matt,
+ve come oudt to look for dot poy und ve lose der pox!
+Dot vill be some nice t'ings to dell Legree."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh," cried the girl, half-crying; "I shouldn't have
+come! Even if it was all right for me to come I ought
+to have left the box at the hotel. Now we'll never be
+able to get our money from Brisco!"</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Matt slowed down the car and took a look rearward.
+The three men were out of sight beyond the turn.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't worry about it, Eliza," said Matt. "If any one
+is to blame, I'm the one. There's something queer about
+that tin box. If it's so valuable, why didn't Legree take
+care of it himself? Why did he trust it to you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Before I had it," returned the girl, "Uncle Tom was
+carrying it. He lost it in the river, and had to jump
+in after it."</p>
+
+<p>"More carelessness on Legree's part! Uncle Tom, as
+I figure it, is about the most irresponsible member of your
+party, and yet Legree allowed him to carry a box which,
+Brisco had said, was worth ten thousand dollars. It don't
+look reasonable to me."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's vat it don'd!" exclaimed Carl. "Aber Prisco
+vanted dot pox pooty pad to go afder it like vat he dit.
+Meppy it vas vort' a lod to him, und nodding to Legree
+and der rest oof der parn-shtormers."</p>
+
+<p>"Just because it <i>was</i> valuable to Brisco is the very
+reason I should have been more careful with it," went
+on the girl. "We might have made him pay us what he
+owed us, and then we could all have gone back to Denver.
+Now&mdash;now&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>The girl began to cry.</p>
+
+<p>"Say," wheedled Carl, "I vouldn't do dot. You don'd
+helup nodding novay oof you cry. Don'd fret aboudt der
+olt pox. Matt und me vill gif you der money to go py
+Tenver. Jeer oop a liddle."</p>
+
+<p>"Take my word for it, Eliza," said Matt, as the girl
+lifted her head and got better control of her feelings,
+"that box isn't worth a whole lot or Legree wouldn't
+have taken chances with it like he did. I'm sorry Brisco
+got away with it, of course, and I'm going to hurry back
+to Fairview and do something I ought to have done before&mdash;and
+that is, find an officer and put him on Brisco's
+track."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot von't amoundt to nodding, Matt," said Carl, climbing
+back into the front seat. "Prisco vill ged off der
+horse und indo der runaboudt und der officer mighdt
+as vell dry to ketch some shtreaks oof greased lighdning."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be, Carl," speculated Matt, "that the runabout
+has broken down. I don't believe Brisco and Spangler
+would be able to fix the machine if anything very serious
+got the matter with it. Perhaps they had to leave the
+car and take to horses."</p>
+
+<p>"Vat's deir game, anyvay? Dot's vat I vant to know.
+Oof deir game vas to ged der pox, den it vas all ofer,
+und ve don'd haf nodding to do mit Brisco und Spangler
+some more. Py shinks! Dot knocks us oudt oof a
+t'ousand tollars, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"All Legree was keeping the box for," quavered the
+girl, "was so that Brisco would follow us and try to get
+it. That would give us a chance to make Brisco pay what
+he owed us."</p>
+
+<p>"Legree ought to have hung onto the box himself,"
+insisted Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco iss too schlick for Legree," asserted Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish I understood what Brisco and Legree are up
+to," muttered Matt. "There's more to this than appears
+on the surface."</p>
+
+<p>"Yah, I bed you," agreed Carl, wagging his head. "Oof
+I knew as mooch as I vould like, den I vould tell you all
+aboudt it, vich I don'd. Den dere iss Efa. His monkey-doodle
+pitzness makes der t'ing vorse."</p>
+
+<p>A quarter of an hour later the Red Flier drew up in
+its old berth alongside the hotel. Eliza got out and ran
+hurriedly to tell Legree what had happened to the tin
+box.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm sorry for Eliza," said Matt, climbing slowly over
+the brakes as he got out of the car. "She's a nice girl,
+and it's too bad she has to feel all cut up over the way
+the box was taken from her. I've got a notion that
+Legree is fooling them all&mdash;and you and me into the
+bargain, Carl."</p>
+
+<p>"How you t'ink so, Matt?" asked Carl, opening his eyes
+wide.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know how he's doing it, or why he's doing it,
+but it's just a hunch I've got."</p>
+
+<p>"How long ve going to shtay here?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want to pull out until we learn something
+more about this business. There are parts of it that have
+a crooked look to me."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment Legree issued from the hotel. He
+did not act at all excited, although he must certainly
+have learned from Eliza what had happened.</p>
+
+<p>"Eliza's been telling me what a time you've had," said
+he. "The principal thing is that Brisco has left the car
+and got onto a horse. I was surprised to hear that. I
+can't imagine why a rascal, who's as badly wanted as he
+is, should leave a swift automobile and take to horseback."</p>
+
+<p>"I should think, Mr. Legree," remarked Matt, "that
+you would be more interested in the loss of that box than
+in anything else."</p>
+
+<p>"Not at all. In fact, I haven't thought so much of
+that box since the lot of us left Ash Fork. It was a good
+thing to hang onto, but it wasn't so terribly important.
+I've told Eliza not to feel bad over what happened. I'd
+feel worse myself if the kid hadn't got away in that
+runabout, like he did."</p>
+
+<p>All that Legree said merely made the whole situation
+darker for Matt. And for Carl, too. The Dutch boy
+stood blinking at Legree, and running his fingers through
+the tangle of tow he called his hair.</p>
+
+<p>"You were keeping the box in the hope that Brisco
+would came after it and give you a chance at him,
+weren't you?" demanded Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, now that Brisco has got the box you can't expect
+him to come after it."</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly," and Legree gave a short laugh. Noting the
+perplexity of the two boys, he went on: "You miss one
+point, Matt, in sizing up this situation. We're not done
+with Brisco&mdash;not by a long chalk. It isn't the box, but
+what was in it, that Brisco is anxious to get."</p>
+
+<p>"Wasn't there anything in the box?" queried Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"No, and there hasn't been since we left Ash Fork. I
+opened the box on the q. t. in that town and took out
+what it contained. That object is in my possession. I
+intend to stay in this town, Matt, until Brisco is captured.
+I don't care anything about Spangler; Brisco is
+the man I want. If you've got time, you can stay and
+help me; and you can keep all you get for recovering the
+runabout for yourself."</p>
+
+<p>"What will you get for your work?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, I'll send Brisco over the road. <i>The contents
+of that box will do it!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>Matt and Carl were dumfounded. The situation was
+clearing a little, but not much.</p>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Do you know this cattleman in Ash Fork who had
+the runabout stolen from him?" asked Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"I know him by sight," answered Matt; "I'm not acquainted
+with him."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you sure that he will pay five hundred dollars
+for the recovery of his automobile?"</p>
+
+<p>"He said he would, and he's able to do it. And he offers
+to pay five hundred dollars apiece for the capture
+of Brisco and Spangler."</p>
+
+<p>"Then there's a chance for you to make fifteen hundred.
+I'd advise you to stay here and do it."</p>
+
+<p>Matt leaned against the car and went into a brown
+study.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Tomlinson had not required him to get to Albuquerque
+in a hurry. He could take a reasonable amount
+of time for the trip. But Mr. Tomlinson <i>did</i> expect the
+car to be brought safely to its destination. Would Matt
+in any way endanger the car by staying a short time in
+Fairview? That was the question that bothered him.</p>
+
+<p>"I t'ink, Matt," said Carl, "dot I could use some oof
+dot fifdeen huntert. Vy nod shtay und dry dem a virl?"</p>
+
+<p>"If I stay, Legree," observed Matt, "I won't be called
+on to use the Red Flier for chasing Brisco and Spangler,
+will I? The car doesn't belong to me and I can't take
+any chances with it."</p>
+
+<p>"You can do as you please about that, Matt. I'm
+after Brisco. If you get Spangler and the runabout,
+you'll have to do it in your own way. Spangler and
+Brisco, though, seem to be working together, just now,
+so my work ought to help you."</p>
+
+<p>"Why not get an officer here and&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you want to divide with an officer what the cattleman
+is willing to pay?"</p>
+
+<p>"You know a lot that you're not telling me, Legree,"
+said Matt quietly.</p>
+
+<p>"Well," grinned Legree, "when it comes to that, I know
+a lot that I'm not telling anybody&mdash;just now. You've
+heard more from me than any one else&mdash;excepting the
+kid."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I'll lay over here until to-morrow," said
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" exulted Carl. "Be jeerful, everypody.
+I t'ink, Matt," he added, "dot I vill infest my haluf oof
+dot fifdeen huntert tollars in gofermend ponds, und&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't invest it till you get it, Carl," interposed Matt
+dryly. "Pull off your coat, now, and we'll wash up the
+car and fill the tanks."</p>
+
+<p>For two hours the boys were more than busy. While
+in Motor Matt's hands, the machine was always as carefully
+groomed as a race-horse. Not only that, but after
+the day's run he made it a point to go over the machinery
+with a wrench and pliers, tightening up everything that
+had worked loose and making sure that every part was
+in complete working order.</p>
+
+<p>The water-tank was filled. Ten gallons of gasoline
+were needed for the gasoline reservoir, but before he
+bought any from O'Grady, Matt tested it carefully with
+a hydrometer. Finding it nearly the same grade as he
+had been using, he funneled it into the tank, not only
+straining it through wire gauze but through thin chamois
+skin as well. The oil supply was also replenished.</p>
+
+<p>When the boys were through, the Red Flier was as
+spick and span as when it had come from the shop. Not
+only that, but it was fit to take the road at a moment's
+notice and make a record run.</p>
+
+<p>To Matt's regret, there was no place in town where
+the car could be housed for the night. There were two
+or three old barns, but they were so foul and unclean
+that he would not take the machine into them. He preferred
+to leave it outdoors all night, sleeping in the tonneau
+and guarding against tampering.</p>
+
+<p>When supper was announced, Carl watched the car
+while Matt ate; and when Matt had finished, Carl went
+in for his own meal.</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom, feeling much better now that his physical
+necessities had been relieved, walked out to the car with
+Matt when he left the dining-room.</p>
+
+<p>There was something on the old negro's mind. He
+seemed flustered and backward about getting at it. Finally
+he broached the astonishing proposition, leading up to it
+by degrees.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's done let out ob er job by de scan'lous actions ob
+dat 'ar Brisco, Marse Matt," said he moodily.</p>
+
+<p>"Hard luck, Uncle Tom," answered Matt sympathetically.
+"Where do you live when you're at home?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's one ob dem 'ar rolling stones, en Ah ain't had no
+home sense Ah was knee-high tuh a possum, no, suh. Fo'
+de las' few houahs, Marse Matt, Ah's been kind ob cogitatin'
+en mah haid an' I 'bout come tuh de conclusion
+dat yo' outlook in life is juberous, yassuh. Yo's a puffick
+gemman, but yo' take so many chances dat yo' prospecks
+am sholy juberous."</p>
+
+<p>"How can I help that, Uncle Tom?" asked Matt, enjoying
+immensely the old darky's vagaries.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows how dat kin be fixed, sah," went on Uncle
+Tom. "What yo' has got tuh hab is a official mascot,
+sah, tuh be wif yo' all de time an' wuk off de hoodoo.
+Ah 'lows, sah, dat I could fill dat job. How much yo'
+willin' tuh pay fo' an official mascot by de monf?"</p>
+
+<p>That was too much for Motor Matt. Laying back in
+the tonneau he laughed till he shook.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' laff, Marse Matt," begged the old fraud; "hit's
+a mouty complexus bizness. Tu'n hit ober in yo' mind,
+sah, en if yo' t'ink Ah'm wuth mah bo'd an' keep, jess
+considah Ah'm engaged."</p>
+
+<p>"Why, Uncle Tom," said Matt, "I haven't much more
+than enough to board and keep myself, so I guess my
+prospects will have to continue to be 'juberous.'"</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' say dat, sah; t'ink it ober. Ah'll hold mahse'f
+open fo' de engagemunt."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom stumped back into the house, and Matt
+kicked off his shoes and snuggled down under a blanket
+which O'Grady had furnished him.</p>
+
+<p>Half an hour later, Carl came out with a blanket of his
+own.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you going to do, Carl?" asked Matt, rousing
+up and peering at his friend through the gloom.</p>
+
+<p>"Dis iss some games vot two can blay ad, my poy,"
+chuckled Carl. "I vill shleep py der machine mit you."</p>
+
+<p>"Go on!" scoffed Matt. "What's the use of denying
+yourself a good bed when you can just as well have one?"</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, I dredder shtay mit you. Don'd say nodding,
+pecause it vasn't any use. My mindt iss made oop, yah,
+you bed you."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, then," said Matt. "Curl up on the steering-wheel
+and enjoy yourself."</p>
+
+<p>The front seat, of course, was divided into two sections,
+so it was impossible for Carl to stretch himself out in it;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span>
+however, he wrapped his blanket around him and crowded
+down between the seat and the dash, head and shoulders
+over the foot-board on one side, and his feet tangled up
+in the foot-pedals and levers on the other.</p>
+
+<p>Just as Matt was getting to sleep a wild <i>honk, honk!</i>
+brought him up like a shot out of a gun.</p>
+
+<p>"What's that?" called Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot vas my feets," explained Carl coolly. "I hit dem
+against dot rupper pag vat makes a noise. Oof der car
+vas vider, den I vouldn't be too long for der blace vat I
+am. Meppy I puy somet'ing else don gofermend ponds
+mit dot money. Meppy, yah&mdash;so&mdash;&mdash;" and Carl's words
+drifted off into a snore.</p>
+
+<p>Matt settled down again, and this time nothing disturbed
+him.</p>
+
+<p>Carl had some bad dreams that night. He thought his
+feet were caught in a giant clothes-wringer, and that a
+locomotive was hitched to his head. Some one would
+run him through the wringer, flattening him out up to
+the knees, and then the locomotive would back up and
+pull him out again. When his dreams had tired him out
+with that set of incidents, they shut him up in a little
+tin box, and three men on horseback played football with
+him; other experiences, too numerous to mention, followed,
+and at the wind-up Carl thought he dropped several
+miles through the air and smashed through a skylight.
+Starting up with a groan, he rubbed his eyes and looked
+around.</p>
+
+<p>It was morning. Carl was sitting up on the ground,
+chilled and chattering.</p>
+
+<p>At first he thought that skylight episode was not a
+dream, and he looked up to see the place he had come
+through. Instead of seeing anything so unsubstantial,
+his eyes encountered the face of Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"You sleep like a log, Carl!" exclaimed Legree.
+"Where's Motor Matt? What's become of the automobile?"</p>
+
+<p>Then, in a flash, Carl's hazy mind connected with the
+tangible things surrounding him when he went to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>"Vy," he cried, struggling to his feet and staring
+around, "I vas in der car mit Modor Matt! I vent to
+shleep in it mit him."</p>
+
+<p>"I know you did; but where are Matt and the car
+now?"</p>
+
+<p>Carl rubbed his eyes again, and then took a more
+careful look about him.</p>
+
+<p>He was standing in the very place where the car had
+stood. But there was no sign of the car! And no sign
+of Motor Matt!</p>
+
+<p>The blanket Carl had taken into the Red Flier with
+him was lying crumpled on the ground, a dozen feet
+away.</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, py shinks!" gasped Carl. "I don'd like dot. I
+don'd like some shokes vere sooch a monkey-doodle pitzness
+iss made mit me. Modor Matt nefer made dot
+shoke."</p>
+
+<p>"There's no joke, Carl," answered Legree; "I wish to
+gracious it <i>was</i> a joke. The Red Flier left here some time
+during the night. No one heard it. No one knew it
+was gone until I looked out of the window of my room.
+You were lying on the ground here, but neither the car
+nor Matt were in sight. Do you think Matt would pull
+out and leave you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Leaf me? Matt? Vell, he vas my bard, und how
+you figure oudt dot he do dot? No, py shinks! Oof he
+ain'd here he vas dook off, und oof he vas dook off id vas
+dot Prisco und Spangler vat dit it!"</p>
+
+<p>With that, Carl went over to the well and sat down. He
+was still confused, but slowly the realization of what had
+happened was growing upon him. And as the realization
+grew, his temper mounted with it.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">SPIRITED AWAY.</p>
+
+
+<p>Carl was not the only one who had been troubled with
+dreams that night. Motor Matt floundered through one
+of the worst nightmares he had ever had. The whole
+scheme of the thing was rather vague, but mighty depressing.
+He seemed to be engaged in some tremendous
+struggle, striking away and countering a thousand or
+more huge fists that leaped at him out of the gloom. One
+by one he put the clenched hands out of business, and
+when he had conquered the last of them he opened his
+eyes in bewilderment.</p>
+
+<p>The humming of a motor was in his ears. It was the
+Red Flier's motor, he could tell that instinctively. The
+stars were overhead, the cool, damp smell of the night
+was all around, and the glow of the acetylene lamps was
+glimmering and dancing in advance. The car was moving
+briskly through the silence.</p>
+
+<p>Matt had a queer, sick feeling at the pit of his stomach.
+Counting out the time he raced the limited train on his
+motor-cycle, collided with a freight-wagon and was laid
+up for a fortnight, he had never been confined to his bed
+for a week in his life.</p>
+
+<p>He wondered what ailed him, and his mind was sluggish
+and slow in working out the problem.</p>
+
+<p>He had felt just as he did then once before. That was
+the time he had been drugged and taken out of Ph&oelig;nix
+to keep him from racing with the Prescott champion,
+O'Day.</p>
+
+<p>Had he been drugged now? If so, why, and by whom?</p>
+
+<p>By degrees the cool air cleared his befogged brain. He
+went back over the chain of events, picking it up where he
+had dropped it.</p>
+
+<p>The queer party of stranded actors&mdash;the arrival at
+Fairview&mdash;the escape of Brisco from the hotel&mdash;the ride
+into the hills to look for the boy&mdash;the pursuit by the horsemen
+and the loss of the tin box&mdash;all these events dragged
+through Matt's mind. He and Carl had gone to sleep
+in the automobile. Why was the car moving? Had Carl,
+giving rein to some wild impulse, cranked up the car and
+started for a night ride?</p>
+
+<p>Matt stirred. "Carl!" he called, "what are you trying
+to do?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt became aware, then, that there was some one
+beside him in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>"Carl, hey?" came a jeering voice, as a strong hand
+reached over and pushed Matt back in the seat. "Ye
+got another guess comin'. Thar ain't no Dutchman along,
+this trip."</p>
+
+<p>"Tuned up, has he?" asked a voice from the front
+seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Yep; he's got back ter airth, Hank."</p>
+
+<p>"Surprised?" The man in front laughed hoarsely as he
+asked the question.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Waal, kinder. He thought his Dutch pard was erlong."</p>
+
+<p>Matt, while this talk was going forward, realized with
+a shock that the two men in the car were Brisco and
+Spangler. Brisco was in the driver's seat, and Spangler
+was in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>With a quick gathering of all his strength, Matt flung
+himself toward the door of the tonneau. His first unreasoning
+impulse was to get away from his captors. The
+car must have been going forty miles an hour, and the
+roadside was lined with sharp stones. If Matt had succeeded
+in his desperate attempt, he could hardly have escaped
+without serious injury; but his rash move was
+nipped in the bud. Spangler, who was in the tonneau for
+the purpose, grabbed Matt and hurled him back into the
+seat.</p>
+
+<p>"None o' that!" he growled. "Want ter break yer
+bloomin' neck? Not as I keer much about yer neck, but
+Hank an' me hev got diff'rent plans fer ye."</p>
+
+<p>Matt was still dizzy and weak. The nausea at his
+stomach was leaving him slowly, but it made him feel
+as limp as a rag and utterly helpless.</p>
+
+<p>"Did you men run away with this car?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Looks that-away, don't it?" returned Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's Carl?"</p>
+
+<p>"Didn't hev no time ter bother with the Dutchman, so
+we left him behind."</p>
+
+<p>"Was he hurt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hurt? Nary, he wasn't hurt. We ain't opinin' ter
+hurt anybody this trip so long as we hev our way. The
+Dutchman was snoring like a house afire. All we did
+was ter lift him out o' the keer an' lay him on the ground.
+We give him a smell o' somethin' on a han'kercher, jest
+ter make him snooze a leetle harder, that's all."</p>
+
+<p>"You drugged both of us, then?"</p>
+
+<p>"That was the easiest way ter keep ye from makin' er
+noise."</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you taking me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ye'll know afore long."</p>
+
+<p>It was a rugged road they were traveling, and the
+Red Flier negotiated it with many a juggling bump.
+Mountainous rocks, half-screened by bushes and trees,
+glided by, and there were dusky gashes and seams, and
+now and then a splash of falling water.</p>
+
+<p>Rougher and rougher grew the trail, and the reckless
+driving of Brisco caused Matt's nerves to thrill with
+fears for the car.</p>
+
+<p>"You'll rack the car to pieces if you keep driving like
+that!" Matt called sharply.</p>
+
+<p>"What's it to you?" taunted Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"It means a whole lot to me. This car belongs to Mr.
+Tomlinson, and I've promised to take it safely to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>"Be hanged to you and Mr. Tomlinson!" snarled
+Brisco. "We'll fix this car before we're done with it.
+If you ever take it to Albuquerque, you'll have to scoop
+up the pieces and tote 'em there in a lumber-wagon.
+That's part of what we're going to do to play even with
+you and him!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt's heart skipped a beat, and a cold chill ran
+through his body. Could the villains really mean to
+destroy the Red Flier?</p>
+
+<p>"You'd better think well about what you do," warned
+Matt. "If you ruin this car, Mr. Tomlinson will never
+let up on you till he puts you where you belong."</p>
+
+<p>Spangler brought his hand around in a sweeping blow.
+Matt dodged the hand so that the stroke was only a glancing
+one.</p>
+
+<p>"Shut up!" he cried savagely. "Ye ain't here ter make
+any threats, 'r throw any bluffs."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment, Brisco brought the car to a stop, putting
+on the brakes so suddenly that the wheels locked and
+slid.</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon this'll be far enough," said Brisco, turning
+in his seat. "Make him get out, Spang."</p>
+
+<p>"Hear that?" cried Spang. "Open the door and git
+down."</p>
+
+<p>"What's this for?" returned Matt, making no move to
+obey.</p>
+
+<p>For answer, Spangler, with an oath, seized him by the
+collar and jerked him roughly out of the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was unable to make any resistance. As he stood
+in the road, the jagged uplifts by which he was surrounded
+seemed to swim about him in circles.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler got back in the car, as Matt staggered to a
+big boulder and leaned against it, and Brisco backed the
+car around until it was headed along the back course.</p>
+
+<p>"Wait!" cried Matt, as a thought of what all this
+might mean to him took shape in his brain.</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to wait&mdash;and for just about a minute,"
+returned Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you going to steal that car?" asked Matt, "just
+as you stole Nugent's?"</p>
+
+<p>"You're too much of a meddler," snapped Brisco. "If
+you could go along and mind your own business, you'd
+be a whole lot better off. You had to tangle up with
+Tomlinson, back there at Ash Fork, and you hadn't any
+call to butt in. If it hadn't been for you, we'd 'a' won
+out on that game and been all to the good. I don't reckon
+we'd have bothered you at all, though, if you'd been
+content to carry out your orders and push on to Albuquerque.
+But you couldn't do that; oh, no. You're trying
+to be first aid to the weak and down-trodden wherever
+you run into them, so you had to mix up with that bunch
+of stranded actors.</p>
+
+<p>"When I drove the runabout into Fairview after gasoline
+and oil, I dropped Spangler off to lay for the tramps
+and get that tin box. You had to butt in, as per usual.
+I got away from Fairview by the skin of my teeth, picked
+up Spang at the place where he was waiting, and we
+went on to where our other pard had some horses. We
+side-tracked the runabout there, and slid back toward
+Fairview, intending to push through the timber&mdash;a move
+we couldn't make in the car. Then"&mdash;and here a swirling
+oath dropped from Brisco's lips&mdash;"we dropped into your
+little trap."</p>
+
+<p>"What trap?" demanded Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, no, you don't know a thing about that, do you?
+You weren't moseying out there just to give us a chance
+to lift that tin box, were you? And you hadn't the least
+notion it was empty, had you? If you hadn't turned that
+trick, my bantam, we wouldn't have turned this one.
+We're going to settle with you, all right. This is a part
+of the country that isn't traveled once a week, and you're
+seventy-five miles from Fairview. By the time you get
+back to town, we'll have got what was in that box, and
+have smashed the Red Flier into a heap of jack-straws.
+I know a nice little cliff alongside the road, and when
+we're through with the car we'll lash the wheel, open
+her up and let her go over the edge! I reckon that'll
+cook your goose with Tomlinson. He didn't calculate
+you were going to use his car transporting a lot of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span>
+stranded actors, and mixing up in their affairs on the way
+to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>For a space, Motor Matt's heart stood still.</p>
+
+<p>"You wouldn't dare do that!" he shouted.</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't I?" and a reckless, mocking laugh came
+with the words. "From what you know of me don't
+you think I would? Hope you'll have a nice, easy walk
+to Fairview, Motor Matt! There'll be some surprises in
+store for you when you get there. Good-by!"</p>
+
+<p>Spangler also shouted a jeering farewell.</p>
+
+<p>The car got in motion, the humming slowly decreased,
+and the glow of the tail light winked suddenly into darkness.</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt had been abandoned.</p>
+
+<p>But, worse than that, the two scoundrels who had spirited
+him away from Fairview were bent on the wanton
+destruction of Mr. Tomlinson's car!</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.</p>
+
+
+<p>Motor Matt came nearer being utterly cast down, at
+that moment, than ever before in his life. Weak and sick
+as he was, perhaps his discouragement was not to be
+wondered at. Sinking down at the foot of the boulder
+against which he had been leaning, he began finding fault
+with himself.</p>
+
+<p>It was all right to pick up the stranded actors and
+carry them on to Fairview. That was merely a kindness
+for which no one could blame him. But to jump into
+their troubles, at a time when he was engaged in work
+for Mr. Tomlinson and was not, strictly speaking, his
+own boss, that gave the affair another look. Now, because
+of his desire to help Legree, Eliza, and the rest,
+there he was, hung up in the hills seventy-five miles from
+Fairview, with the Red Flier in Brisco's hands and
+pointed for the scrap-heap.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Tomlinson would be perfectly justified in laying
+the destruction of the car to Matt's own disregard of
+orders. And it was Mr. Tomlinson who had selected
+Matt to take the Red Flier to Albuquerque because he
+was satisfied the car would receive better care in his
+hands than in any other!</p>
+
+<p>There was enough in these reflections to make Motor
+Matt dissatisfied with himself. But he was not, and never
+had been, a "quitter." And the one cry of his soul had
+always been for Fate to keep him from joining the ranks
+of the "quitters."</p>
+
+<p>As a matter of fact, Motor Matt was a self-reliant
+American boy, and there was never the least danger of
+his going over to the useless crowd of mistakes and failures.
+Naturally, he might make a misplay now and then&mdash;running
+behind just enough to keep him "gingered
+up" for ultimate success in the big things.</p>
+
+<p>While he crouched at the foot of the boulder, the cool
+air clearing his brain and the sick feeling leaving him, he
+fell to planning for turning the tables against his enemies.</p>
+
+<p>What was there he could do, afoot and seventy-five
+miles from town?</p>
+
+<p>At first, the prospect seemed utterly hopeless; but Matt
+knew that a brave heart and a firm will had time and
+again snatched victory from seeming defeat.</p>
+
+<p>He would start for Fairview. Possibly, although the
+road was not much traveled, he might have the good luck
+to encounter some freighter who would give him a lift.</p>
+
+<p>Without losing a moment longer, he got up and started
+off in the direction taken by Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>He wondered, as he swung along, what Carl would
+think when he came to himself and found the car missing&mdash;and
+Matt gone with it. And what would Legree
+think? And Eliza?</p>
+
+<p>But what those in Fairview might think was a minor
+consideration. The great point was the recovery of the
+Red Flier before the car's captors could wreck the machine.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was the only one of the two scoundrels who
+could run a car, and even Brisco's knowledge was superficial.
+An hour's instruction, from the driver of Nugent's
+runabout, was all Brisco had had.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco now had two stolen cars and he could run only
+one of them&mdash;unless, indeed, the third man he had picked
+up knew something about motors.</p>
+
+<p>Matt, perhaps, had walked a mile through the gloomy
+hills, when he heard a noise as of some one in the road
+ahead. He halted, half-fearing that Brisco and Spangler
+were coming back.</p>
+
+<p>But that could not be, he reasoned. If they had wanted
+to come back, they would have used the car&mdash;and the
+noise Matt heard was of footsteps.</p>
+
+<p>He listened, straining his ears and eyes. Only one
+man was coming. He could not see, but hearing alone
+told him there was but one.</p>
+
+<p>Backing into the deep shadow of a nest of boulders, he
+continued to wait.</p>
+
+<p>The man, whoever he was, was coming hurriedly.
+Sometimes he ran, and occasionally he stumbled. As he
+drew closer, Matt saw that he was a small man, and as he
+came closer still the figure resolved itself into that of a
+mere boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello!" called Matt, stepping out into the road again.</p>
+
+<p>The figure gave a startled jump.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" it cried. "Say, who's dat?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt's pulses quickened, and a glow of hope ran
+through him.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello, kid!" he shouted. "What're you doing here?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm a jay if it ain't Motor Matt!" came delightedly
+from the boy as he dashed forward. "How's dis f'r a
+come-off? Say, it sure knocks de wind out o' me!
+Where'd yous come from, yerself? Was yous on dat
+automobile wid Brisco an' Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>By then the boy was close enough to grab Matt's hand
+and give it a shake.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt; "I was on the car with them
+and they let me out and turned back."</p>
+
+<p>"How'd de mutts come t' git yous on de mat, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt explained how he had been spirited away.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, on de level," breathed the boy, "dat's de rummest
+move I ever connected wit'. Raw? Oh, sister!"</p>
+
+<p>"Now tell me something about yourself," said Matt.
+"Why did you get into that car? And where have you
+been since you left Fairview?"</p>
+
+<p>"Easy, cull! T'ings is bein' pulled off in such a bunch
+it's hard t' straighten dem out. Le's do de ham-restin'
+act, right here on dis nice bunch o' rocks, while we chin
+a little."</p>
+
+<p>They sat down, side by side.</p>
+
+<p>"You must have had some reason, Eva, for hiking out
+with Brisco like you did, and&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Cut out de 'Eva.' Fergit de styge name. I was on'y
+dat back o' de tin lamps, an' no more of 'em fer mine.
+Call me Josh. Not dat I'm a josher, understan', 'cause I
+ain't. An' here's somet'in' else I'm battin' up t' yous:
+Dere's a few t'inks rattlin' around in me block dat I can't
+let yous in on. Not bekase I ain't willin' meself, but
+bekase it ain't on de program. See?</p>
+
+<p>"First off, Matt, I crowded into dat car becase de idee
+looked good t' me. Dat's all yous is t' know about dat
+f'r now. I rode t' w'ere Brisco stopped de car an' took
+on Spang&mdash;about de place w'ere dad an' yous had de
+set-to on account o' dat box.</p>
+
+<p>"Den we moved on ag'in, me still under de coat an'
+wonderin' how long I could keep shy o' de lamps o' dem
+two dubs. You can bet yer lid, Matt, I didn't breathe
+on'y when necessary. I was de sly boy, all right. W'en
+we pulled up ag'in, we was clost t' t'ree horses, all saddled
+an' bridled, an' wit' a beer-faced guy on one o'
+dem.</p>
+
+<p>"De runabout was backed into de brush, an' Brisco an'
+Spang got onto two o' de horses an' all t'ree o' dat
+strong-arm bunch pulled deir freight back down de road.
+It was right den I wished dat I knowed how t' work
+dem cranks an' t'ings so'st I could make dat car go
+w'ere I wanted. But I didn't know de tail lamp from de
+carburetter, so I jess had t' lay low an' wait.</p>
+
+<p>"W'en dem jays got back, dere was yer Uncle John
+right under de coat, same as usual, an' still holdin' his
+breat'. If one o' de mugs lifted de coat, I was plannin'
+to work me pins an' head right into de weeds, like anot'er
+bear was on me trail.</p>
+
+<p>"But dey didn't look under de coat, none of dem. Dey
+was too mad. Chee! but dey was r'iled! Blatter, blatter,
+blatter, dey went, swearin' like a plumber wot's burned
+hisself wit' his torch. Say, de air was blue an smelt like
+de odder place. If dey'd piped me off den, dey'd have
+took me skelp, all right.</p>
+
+<p>"From de spiel dey was givin' each odder, I hooked
+onto de infermation dat dey'd got de box an' dat dere
+wasn't not'in' in it&mdash;w'ich I knowed all de time. Dey
+was crowdin' all deir swear-words onto Motor Matt.
+Yous had fooled dem, dey said, an' dey was goin' t' saw
+off even if it took a leg.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco give de mug on de horse his orders to go t'
+some place w'ere Brisco an' Spang would go foist an'
+wait. Wid dat we started up ag'in&mdash;me on de job an'
+still sayin' me prayers back'ards, for'ards, an' sideways.
+I couldn't see where we went, but we was goin' f'r a
+hunderd years, seemed like, I was dat worked up t'inkin'
+I might git nabbed. Den we stopped, backed t'roo some
+brush, an' stopped ag'in, dat time t' stay.</p>
+
+<p>"I had drawn into me shell, listenin' w'ile Brisco an'
+Spang was rammin' around de place w'ere we was. After
+a w'ile, deir bazoos seemed t' move off, an' I stuck out
+me coco an' piped de layout.</p>
+
+<p>"We was in a well. Anyways dat's how it looked. De
+well was about fifteen feet acrost, steep rocks all around
+an' on'y one place w'ere dere was a break. De break was
+choked up wit' brush, an' I'm wise right off dat we'd
+backed t'roo it w'en we come into de well.</p>
+
+<p>"I see anot'er nice little clump of brush off t' de right,
+an' it looked so invitin' dat I slipped out from under de
+coat an' ducked f'r it.</p>
+
+<p>"I was in dat clump w'en de odder bloke, who dey
+called Klegg, blowed in t'roo de break wid de hosses; an'
+I was still dere w'en night come down, an' de t'ree of
+dem lighted up de runabout an' went away w'id it.</p>
+
+<p>"Couldn't git in de back seat den, kase Klegg was dere,
+so dey bumped off into de night an' left me in de well
+wit' de t'ree horses.</p>
+
+<p>"I kinked me thinker all up t'ryin' t' guess whedder
+I'd better stay right dere or borry one o' dem horses an'
+ride some place. Well, I didn't ride, not knowin' any
+good place t' ride to. Couldn't even make a guess which
+way de town was.</p>
+
+<p>"I went out t'roo de brush an' moseyed around in de
+dark till <i>chugetty-chug!</i> along come dat runabout ag'in
+an' backed t'roo de brush into de well. But dere was
+on'y one man in it, an' it was Klegg. W'ere was Brisco
+an' Spang? Dat was wot fretted me. W'ile I was frettin',
+along comes dat red tourin'-car. I made out Brisco
+in front, an' Spang in de rear&mdash;an' dere was some odder
+mug in de rear wot I couldn't get next to. De tourin'-car
+went on past de well.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, but I was rattled! Wot was happenin', I says t'
+meself, an' w'y was it happenin'? De tourin'-car come
+back ag'in an' in it was Brisco an' Spang, but de odder
+guy had been left somew'ere. De tourin'-car was backed
+into de well, w'ere de runabout had gone, an' I started dis
+way t' see wot I could find. Say, Matt, I was knocked
+stiff w'en I found yous! Great, ain't it, how luck takes
+a shoot, once in a w'ile? If dat&mdash;&mdash; Wot's de matter
+w'id yous? W'ere yous goin'?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt had jumped up, grabbed Josh by the arm and was
+pulling him down the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Come on!" said he. "We haven't got any time to
+lose!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A DARING PLAN.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Say," panted Josh, as he and Matt traveled rapidly
+along the road, "put me wise to dis move, can't yous?
+Wot's in yer block, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know what Brisco intends to do with the Red
+Flier?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"He's layin' in a supply o' benzine-buggies t' start a
+garage, 'r somet'ing, ain't he?"</p>
+
+<p>"He ran off with that touring-car just to play even
+with me, Josh. He says I've meddled with his affairs
+long enough, and that he's going to run the Red Flier
+over a cliff just to pay me back for using the car to help
+you people."</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't dat frost yous?" muttered Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"And he said I was seventy-five miles from Fairview,"
+went on Matt, "and that by the time I had walked to the
+town he would have finished his business there."</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco has got anodder guess comin'. He ain't so
+warm. Dad can show him a t'ing 'r two, an' don't yous
+fergit dat. Chee! Dat guy's de limit. But wot's yer
+game, cull?"</p>
+
+<p>"You say that both cars are in that 'well,' as you call
+it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's w'ere dey was w'en I started for here."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I'm going to get the Red Flier away from that
+outfit!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt spoke as confidently as though he had merely<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span>
+remarked that he was going over to the hotel after his
+dinner.</p>
+
+<p>"Say, cull," returned the boy, "I like yer nerve, all
+right, an' I marks yous up f'r de entry, but how yous
+goin' t' git under de wire? Dere's t'ree o' dem guys, an'
+dey've got a lot o' artillery. How we goin' t' git away
+wit' de car if dey don't want us to?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," replied Matt, "but we've got to do
+it somehow."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a reg'lar lollypaloozer, Motor Matt, an' I'd
+back yous t' win any ole day, but dis looks like too big
+a load. But yous can count on me. Dad'll tell yous dat
+I'm big f'r me age an' no mutt in a getaway, so jest set
+yer pace an' I'll push on de reins."</p>
+
+<p>"How far is it to the place where the automobiles were
+left?"</p>
+
+<p>"We're close t' dere now. I'm wonderin' w'y Brisco
+dropped yous widin a short walk o' de hang-out&mdash;dat is,
+if he was fixin' t' stay at de place?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," answered Matt; "but that's what he
+did and it's enough for me. I've got to recover that car,
+Josh. If I don't, and if anything happens to it, I'd look
+nice making my report to Tomlinson, wouldn't I?"</p>
+
+<p>"If yous hadn't picked up dat bunch o' tramps on de
+road yous wouldn't have got into dis fix."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm not sorry I helped you out, Josh."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure not. Yous ain't dat kind, Motor Matt. All de
+same, yous would have been peggin' along to'rds Albuquerque,
+nice as yous please, if it hadn't been for dat
+crowd o' Uncle Tommers. Dere'll be doin's in Fairview
+in de mornin', w'en dad finds out yous ain't w'ere yous
+ought t' be."</p>
+
+<p>"What can your father do?"</p>
+
+<p>"He can do a lot w'en he gits started. Don't yous
+never t'ink he's a slow one, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>Matt knew that Legree could keep a cool head in a
+pinch, but, for all that, he didn't see how he could do
+anything when he didn't have money enough even to
+pay his board-bill.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Tomlinson has a lot of confidence in me," said
+Matt; "and, if that car is wrecked, I'll have&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Sh-h-h!" whispered Josh, coming to a wary halt and
+laying a hand on Matt's arm. "Look ahead, dere. See
+dat black splotch on de side o' de hill by de road?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt, straining his eyes in the direction
+indicated.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's de brush dat hides de openin'. Are we bot'
+goin' t' blow in dere an' try t' make a run wit' de red
+car?"</p>
+
+<p>"We can't do the trick in such a hurricane way as that.
+We've got to lay some other plan. I'll go in and look the
+ground over, Josh, and maybe I can get hold of an idea."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll try t' git holt o' one, too, w'ile I'm waitin' fer
+yous. Don't make much noise w'ile yous is in de bushes,
+Matt, or dem terriers'll pepper yous."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going to sneak into the place as quietly as I can.
+I don't think they'll hear me."</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the boy a little way from the dark patch of
+verdure clinging to the face of the hill, Matt went on
+carefully. As he approached closer to the vague blot
+it gradually took form under his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The wall of the hill seemed to be cracked through from
+crest to base and wrenched apart until it formed a narrow
+opening. Up both sides of the opening grew the
+bushes, their branches spreading out and forming a thick
+screen.</p>
+
+<p>On account of the darkness, Matt could not make a
+very close examination of the queer fissure, but he saw
+enough to convince him that Nature had contrived a
+secure retreat for Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>The bottom of the opening, Matt judged, was all of
+ten feet in width. Dropping down on his hands and
+knees, he began crawling through the middle of the break,
+parting the bush branches from in front of him as he
+advanced.</p>
+
+<p>So wary was he that he made very little noise.</p>
+
+<p>He had gone perhaps a dozen feet through the brushy
+tangle, when a glow of light struck on his eyes. This
+acted as a sort of beacon, and served to guide him the
+rest of the way. A dozen feet more brought him to the
+opposite side of the opening and to the edge of the
+bushes.</p>
+
+<p>Crouching silently on the ground he proceeded to survey
+the peculiar niche in front of him.</p>
+
+<p>Josh's description, likening the place to a "well," was
+quite appropriate. The niche was circular in form and
+its walls arose steeply to a height of at least fifty feet.
+In the shadow of the walls the place was very dark, but
+the glowing lamps of an automobile enabled Matt to see
+enough to send a chill of disappointment through him.</p>
+
+<p>There was only one automobile in the niche!</p>
+
+<p>And that one was the runabout!</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler must have emerged and gone off
+somewhere with the Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>Had they taken it away to destroy it?</p>
+
+<p>The three horses were not far from the runabout. They
+were secured to some bushes, and could be heard pawing
+and stamping.</p>
+
+<p>Matt could also hear something else, and that was the
+snoring of a man in deep sleep.</p>
+
+<p>After a moment's hesitation he continued to creep onward,
+redoubling his care and vigilance.</p>
+
+<p>He was upon the man before he was fairly aware of
+it, one of his groping hands coming in contact with an
+outstretched foot.</p>
+
+<p>The snoring ceased with an explosive grunt and Matt
+drew back breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p>The man did not rouse up. Shifting his position
+slightly he continued to snore.</p>
+
+<p>Making a détour, Matt got around the man&mdash;whom he
+knew was not Brisco or Spangler, and consequently must
+be Klegg&mdash;and reached the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Pausing there, the young motorist let his mind circle
+about this new phase of the situation.</p>
+
+<p>If he couldn't get the Red Flier, why not take the runabout?
+That would afford himself and Josh a quick
+means for making the return trip to Fairview. Besides,
+no matter what happened to the Red Flier, there was
+something to be gained in getting the runabout away
+from the thieves.</p>
+
+<p>Close to the car was a heap of horse-trappings. Matt
+felt about among the saddles, bridles and blankets until
+he had found two coiled riatas.</p>
+
+<p>Could he, by quick work, get one of the ropes around
+Klegg's hands before he was thoroughly awake and able
+to struggle? Josh would have been of use in such an
+attempt, and Matt decided that he could not make it successfully
+unless he did have the other to help. He would
+go back after Josh, he decided; but first he would look
+over the runabout and make sure it was ready for the
+road.</p>
+
+<p>Laying the ropes in the front of the car, he arose to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span>
+his feet, softly removed the tail lamp from its bracket,
+and flashed it into the rumble.</p>
+
+<p>The coat, used so cleverly by the boy, was still there,
+crumpled on the floor as though by a man's feet. Passing
+on to the forward part of the car, the pencil of light
+jumped from point to point, Matt's eyes following
+critically.</p>
+
+<p>Everything seemed to be shipshape and in good order.</p>
+
+<p>A small object on one of the front seats caught the
+youth's attention. It was pushed well back into the angle
+where the back joined the seat, and Matt picked it up
+and held it in the glow of light.</p>
+
+<p>It was a small bottle, and the label bore the written
+word, "Chloroform."</p>
+
+<p>Matt stifled an exclamation. Undoubtedly it had been
+some of that bottle's contents which had helped Brisco
+and Spangler get the better of him, in Fairview, and run
+off with the touring-car.</p>
+
+<p>Then a startling expedient darted through Matt's mind.
+Turn about was fair play. With the aid of the drug he
+could clear a passage for the runabout, and without resort
+to any violence.</p>
+
+<p>Setting the lamp down on the front seat, Matt drew the
+cork of the bottle, took a handkerchief from his pocket
+and proceeded to wet it with the chloroform. Then, re-corking
+the bottle and laying it aside, he went down on
+his hands and knees and started toward Klegg.</p>
+
+<p>A lightening of the sky over the steep walls that
+hemmed in the niche told of coming day.</p>
+
+<p>The darkness would be a help to Matt and Josh in getting
+to the road and away, and if advantage was to be
+taken of night Matt knew he would have to hurry.</p>
+
+<p>But he was well equipped to carry out his plans now,
+and lost no time in getting about them.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">ON THE ROAD.</p>
+
+
+<p>Kneeling beside Klegg, Matt leaned over and held the
+saturated handkerchief close to his face. The fumes were
+strong, and seemed to strangle him. With a gurgling
+grunt he shifted his position.</p>
+
+<p>Matt moved the handkerchief and again held it over
+his face. This time Klegg sputtered a little, but did not
+change his position. Evidently the narcotic was beginning
+to have its effect. After a moment, Matt allowed
+the handkerchief to drop on Klegg's face. He left it
+there for two or three minutes and then threw it aside.
+Klegg was breathing heavily and seemed to be completely
+under the influence of the drug.</p>
+
+<p>Catching hold of the blanket on which the man was
+lying, Matt began to pull it toward the wall of the niche.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" whispered a voice close to Matt's side. "Wot
+kind of a smell is dat, cull? Wot yous done to Klegg?"</p>
+
+<p>"I thought you were going to wait outside, Josh?" answered
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot I t'ought, but yous was so long in comin'
+dat I took de notion t' come in an' look yous up. Wot's
+de play?"</p>
+
+<p>"I found a bottle of chloroform in the runabout, and
+it must have been out of that same bottle that Brisco took
+the stuff that put me to sleep. Thought I'd see how it
+worked on Klegg."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a jim dandy, Matt!" laughed Josh delightedly.
+"But w'ere's Brisco an' Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>"They're not here, and neither is the touring-car."</p>
+
+<p>"Tough luck! Yous figgerin' on makin' a getaway
+wit' de runabout?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes. We might use that for a quick run to Fairview
+and get the sheriff to hunt up Brisco and Spangler. I'll
+go with the sheriff and use the runabout. It's a faster
+car than the Flier, and we may be able to catch the two
+thieves before they wreck Mr. Tomlinson's car."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous has got a head on yous, Matt, an' no mistake,"
+said the boy admiringly. "An' yous pulled all dis off
+yerself! Well, say, if yous ain't a winner dis heat yous
+ought t' be. Dat's right&mdash;on de level an' no stringin'.
+Dad would like t' have a guy like yous t' work wit' all
+de time. An' so would Little Eva, de child wonder. But
+it's gittin' daylight, Matt, an' if we're goin' t' pull our
+freight, let's be at it."</p>
+
+<p>It was already light enough so that they could see
+without the lamps. These were extinguished, and then
+Matt put the tail lamp back in its place, started the engine
+and got into the driver's seat.</p>
+
+<p>On the low gear they moved slowly across the bottom
+of the niche.</p>
+
+<p>Josh was still laughing softly to himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, cull, but I'd like t' be around w'en Brisco an'
+Spang find dat Klegg feller!" he chuckled. "Dat would
+be as good as a circus. Dis is almost too good t' be
+true, ain't it?"</p>
+
+<p>"It will be, Josh," replied Matt, "if I can only get back
+the Red Flier."</p>
+
+<p>"Dem coves'll be careful o' dat odder machine when
+dey find dis one has been took away from dem."</p>
+
+<p>"I know that&mdash;providing they find out the runabout is
+gone before they destroy the Flier."</p>
+
+<p>Setting the runabout at the bushes, Matt drove through
+the undergrowth, Josh keeping the branches out of his
+face while he attended to the steering.</p>
+
+<p>"On de road ag'in!" jubilated the boy, as they emerged
+from the mouth of the opening and turned to the left.</p>
+
+<p>"All I wish is," answered Matt, "that I knew we were
+going right."</p>
+
+<p>"Dere's on'y two ways t' go, cull. One's up to'rds
+w'ere you was dropped by Brisco an' Spang, an' t'odder's
+de way we're headin'. It's a cinch we're hittin' it off
+about proper. W'ere d' youse t'ink dem odder mutts
+went wid de tourin'-car?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm afraid they took it off to carry out their threat
+and make junk of it."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope yous ain't got it right. If dey did dat, it 'u'd
+put yous in a bad hole. Yous couldn't make Tomlinson
+take dis car f'r de odder, could yous?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly. This car belongs to Nugent, in Ash Fork."</p>
+
+<p>Something was rattling about the car, and it got onto
+Matt's nerves. Halting for a moment, he located the difficulty.
+The screw-cap of the gasoline-tank was loose.
+Taking a wrench out of the tool-box he tightened the
+cap, then dropped the wrench in the rumble and returned
+to his seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Yous don't like t' hear anyt'ing rattle, hey?" queried
+Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"Makes me nervous," laughed Matt. "Now hold onto
+your teeth, Josh. I'm going to let her out!"</p>
+
+<p>"De quicker we kin go de better. Let's see how fast
+de ole gal kin travel."</p>
+
+<p>They whirled around a turn in the narrow valley. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>
+unexpected was lying in wait for them, for they came
+upon Spangler, on foot and walking toward the niche.</p>
+
+<p>Josh gave a startled yell. Spangler, dumfounded at
+sight of the runabout, charging toward him with Motor
+Matt and the boy in front, stood as though rooted to the
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Down, Josh!" cried Matt, advancing the spark; "get
+down behind the dashboard!"</p>
+
+<p>As Matt spoke he sounded the horn. Spangler climbed
+out of the way with more haste than grace, and the runabout
+dashed past him.</p>
+
+<p>"Yi-yip-ee!" tuned up the boy, waving his hand mockingly.
+"D'radder do dat dan git run down, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"Drop!" yelled Matt, and in a tone that made Josh
+crumple down between the seat and the dash.</p>
+
+<p>Bang!</p>
+
+<p>Matt had expected a bullet, and he was not disappointed.
+But it went wide.</p>
+
+<p>Bang!</p>
+
+<p>The next one came closer, but still left a safe margin.</p>
+
+<p>There was no more shooting. Wondering at it, Josh
+rose up and looked backward.</p>
+
+<p>"Now wot d'youse t'ink o' dat!" he cried. "Wot's dat
+mug doin' dat for?"</p>
+
+<p>"What's he doing?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"W'y he's hustlin' a big stone into de middle o' de
+road. See 'im work! Chee! Wot's de meanin' o' dat?"</p>
+
+<p>The car whipped around another turn, wiping Spangler
+and his strange activities out of sight. Josh dropped
+down on the seat.</p>
+
+<p>"That's got a bad look," said Matt, coaxing the runabout
+to a still faster gait. "We've got to get out of this
+as quick as we can."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" cried the boy, holding to the seat with both
+hands, "we're goin' fast enough. Gid-ap! Wow! wot
+a spurt! Don't let anyt'ing slip a cog, cull. If de ole
+benzine-buggy hit a rock an' stopped, I'd go right on f'r
+a couple o' miles afore I landed. Oh, wot a clip! We've
+got de Cannonball Limited licked t' a frazzle!"</p>
+
+<p>Then they took another turn, the rear wheels skidding
+and Matt deftly catching the motor up and sending the
+car onward. The runabout did not follow the curve of
+the road, but made an angling turn&mdash;a hair-raising stunt
+copied after Oldfield, the daredevil racer.</p>
+
+<p>Josh gave a yell, and came within a hair of being
+heaved over Matt and into the road.</p>
+
+<p>Then, with a muttered exclamation, Matt cut off the
+power, applied the brakes and quickly reversed, backing
+for the side of the road.</p>
+
+<p>It all happened so quick that it took the boy's breath.</p>
+
+<p>"Wot's dat fer?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was whirling the wheel and starting the car on
+the back track.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco is heading us off," he answered&mdash;"Brisco in
+the Red Flier!"</p>
+
+<p>Josh turned to stare along the road.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was right.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, still a long distance off, was whooping it up in
+their direction.</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't dat crimp yous?" gasped the boy, awed at
+the gathering perils. "Dey've got us f'r fair, Matt! W'y
+didn't yous keep on an' give Brisco de go-by?"</p>
+
+<p>"There wasn't room enough in the road to pass!" flung
+back Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's w'y Spang was rollin' dem stones in de road!
+He knew dat Brisco was comin', and dat he'd git us between
+him an' de rock-pile. Chee! We're It, dis time, an'
+no mistake."</p>
+
+<p>Matt, his face white and set and his gray eyes snapping,
+was leaning over the steering-wheel, watching every
+foot of road as they swept over it.</p>
+
+<p>"We've got to pass that rock-pile before it gets too
+big!" said he through his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"Den w'ere'll we go?"</p>
+
+<p>"Anywhere, just so we keep away from Brisco. This
+car is a faster one than the Red Flier. We can show
+him our heels at any stage of the game."</p>
+
+<p>They fairly flew, and rocks rushed past them as though
+hurled by some giant hand.</p>
+
+<p>"There'll be some danger when we get to the place
+where Spangler is waiting, Josh," said Matt. "I'll slow
+down and you can get out, if you want to."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot d'youse take me fer?" cried the boy. "I'm wid
+yous, Matt, win 'r lose. See? Make yer ole play. If
+Uncle Josh ain't wit' yous at de finish, den call him a
+quitter an' mark him off'n yer callin'-list."</p>
+
+<p>Hurling onward, and skidding around the turns, Matt
+kept straining his eyes constantly ahead.</p>
+
+<p>Their source of peril was now wrapped up in Spangler.
+If his pile of boulders did not block the road completely&mdash;if
+there was a chance for the runabout to get past the
+stones, or over them, there was still a fighting chance for
+escape.</p>
+
+<p>Half a minute later, as the car reached out for the
+place where Spangler had been at work, Matt's heart
+went down into his boots.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler was nowhere in sight, but he had worked to
+good purpose.</p>
+
+<p>A few big boulders were cunningly placed so as to
+make the road impassable. With a despairing cry, Matt
+brought the runabout to a quick stop.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A CLOSE CALL.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Pile out, Josh, and get busy with those rocks!" yelled
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>It was a forlorn hope, for the pounding of the Red
+Flier could be heard around the turn, coming up hand
+over fist. Long before the way could be cleared, Brisco
+would be upon them.</p>
+
+<p>And what had become of Spangler. Where had he
+gone? And <i>why</i> had he gone?</p>
+
+<p>That was a conundrum, and Matt had no time to give
+to conundrums just then.</p>
+
+<p>Josh, eager to do all he could, was tugging and straining
+at the rocks.</p>
+
+<p>"It won't do, Josh!" shouted Matt. "Run for those
+boulders at the side of the road and wait for me."</p>
+
+<p>To think quickly in an emergency was Motor Matt's
+long suit. Many a time his cool head had helped him
+out of a bad difficulty.</p>
+
+<p>While he was shouting to the boy he was running back
+to the car. Snatching the wrench from where he had
+dropped it in the rumble, Matt went to work with lightninglike
+energy on the cap of the gasoline-reservoir.</p>
+
+<p>In record time he had the cap off. Bending down he
+scooped up a handful of sand from the road and dumped
+the most of it into the reservoir, then, as quickly as he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span>
+had removed the cap, he replaced it, flung the wrench into
+the car and jumped for the boulders.</p>
+
+<p>Hardly was he back of the big stones that clustered
+along that edge of the valley, when the Red Flier shoved
+her nose through a cloud of dust and came scorching
+onward.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco must have been astounded to see the runabout,
+deserted and at a halt in the road. The way, of course,
+was blocked for him as well as for the runabout, and he
+halted the Red Flier at a good distance from the other
+machine, leaped out and came running to the other car.</p>
+
+<p>The stones in the road probably gave him a pretty
+good idea of what had happened, for he immediately began
+looking around him as though expecting to see some
+one&mdash;possibly Matt and Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"Spang!" he whooped. "Where are you, Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>"Here!" answered Spangler, appearing suddenly
+around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>"What you been doing?" demanded Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"The dickens is ter pay, an' no mistake!" stormed
+Spang. "That young cub of a Motor Matt found out
+whar we'd cached the runabout, an' blamed if he didn't
+go in an' snake it right out from under Klegg's&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Thunder!" broke in Brisco. "Don't you reckon I <i>saw</i>
+the whelp? He was bearing down on me like a hurricane,
+slamming the runabout through for all she was
+worth."</p>
+
+<p>"He went past here gally-whoopin'," answered Spang,
+"while I was makin' fer that hole in the hill. Come
+mighty nigh runnin' me down at that. I got out o' the
+way, faced around an' sent a couple o' bullets arter him,
+but the brat's too lucky ter stop any lead&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Depends on who throws the lead," snarled Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"I kin throw it with ary man that walks! But I didn't
+take time ter throw much. I calculated the runabout
+would come up ferninst you, Hank, afore it got out o'
+the valley, an' that King would have ter turn around an'
+chase back this way. So what does I do but begin pilin'
+stones whar they'd do the most good. Jest got enough
+down ter do the biz, an' went ter see what had happened
+ter Klegg. Great jumpin' sand-hills! What d'ye think
+that infernal kid done ter him?"</p>
+
+<p>"What?" fumed Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"Doped him, by thunder! Doped him out er the same
+bottle we used last night! Klegg's up thar in the notch,
+dead ter the world!"</p>
+
+<p>"What did you leave the hang-out for?" roared Brisco
+angrily. "Didn't I tell you, when I left, to stay there
+with Klegg? If you'd done as I said, this wouldn't have
+happened."</p>
+
+<p>"I come out ter see if that kid was moseyin' down the
+valley," was the sullen rejoinder from Spang. "Ye said
+I was ter watch out an' make sure he didn't blunder outer
+the notch."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, you made sure, didn't you?" taunted Brisco.
+"Where'd Legree's kid spring from? How'd he come to
+be along with King?"</p>
+
+<p>"How'd I know? Think I'm a mind-reader?"</p>
+
+<p>"Deuced funny thing! He was with King, and I'd
+like to know where he came from, and how he got here.
+There's a nigger in the fence, I'll bet. Where'd those
+boys go?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know that, nuther."</p>
+
+<p>"Did they pass you and go up the valley?"</p>
+
+<p>"Nary, they didn't!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then they must be hiding around here somewhere!
+Let's get 'em. If I lay hands on Motor Matt again he
+won't get off so easy."</p>
+
+<p>There was only one place in that vicinity where any
+one could hide, and that was among the scattered rocks
+not far from where the runabout was standing.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler, making a hasty survey of the surroundings,
+at once hit upon the boulders as the place
+for them to look.</p>
+
+<p>"They're over thar," cried Spangler, "an' I'll bet money
+on it."</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, he started at a run for the side of the
+valley, pulling a revolver as he went.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't do any shooting," called Brisco, starting after
+Spangler, "just grab 'em and hold 'em."</p>
+
+<p>"We'll tie King in that thar automobile when we run it
+over the cliff!" yelped Brisco viciously. "We'll l'arn him
+ter play his tricks on <i>us</i>!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt and Josh had heard all this conversation. They
+were not standing still, either, but were busily finding
+some place where they could stow themselves away.</p>
+
+<p>A fight with the two armed men was to be avoided, if
+possible. Matt knew that he and Josh would stand little
+chance in such a one-sided combat; and Matt had formed
+plans which he was eager to be carrying out.</p>
+
+<p>A little way up the steep hillside there was a ledge,
+with a recess back of it.</p>
+
+<p>Matt's quick eye picked out the spot, and he climbed
+briskly, hauling Josh along after him. The boulders
+shielded them from view while they were getting to the
+ledge, and Matt pushed Josh into the recess, and then
+rolled into it himself. From this position Matt was able
+to peer over the ledge and keep track of the movements of
+Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Are they comin' dis way, cull?" whispered the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Got deir guns ready, eh?"</p>
+
+<p>"Of course, Josh. Scoundrels like Brisco and Spangler
+always draw and shoot if you give 'em half a chance."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're hot at de two of us, an' dey'll sure lay out ter
+do us up."</p>
+
+<p>"We'll have to fight, if they force it on us."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot kin we do?"</p>
+
+<p>"There's a stone on the ledge. If they come too close
+I'll push it down on them."</p>
+
+<p>"Better give dat dere stone a push right off, bekase&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Hist!" cautioned Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Silence fell between the boys. Matt drew in his head,
+fearing he would be seen. He listened intently, however,
+and could tell by the scrambling feet below just how near
+Brisco and Spangler were coming. When they came too
+close, Matt was intending to push the stone down on them.</p>
+
+<p>"Beats the deuce where those whelps went to!" grumbled
+the voice of Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"They must be here. Thar wasn't any place else they
+could go. I wasn't gone from the road more'n five minits,
+Hank."</p>
+
+<p>"They wouldn't have had time to get past you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Nary, they wouldn't. They're here, I tell ye; they
+must be."</p>
+
+<p>"The whole side-hill is under our eyes. If you can
+see the cubs you can do better than I can."</p>
+
+<p>"Seems like there was a shelf up thar a ways. Mebby
+they're on the shelf?"</p>
+
+<p>"Gammon! That shelf isn't wide enough for a chipmunk
+to sit on."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Anyways, I'm goin' up an' take a look."</p>
+
+<p>Matt got ready to push out and roll the stone off the
+shelf. Before he could do that, however, a shout from
+Brisco halted him.</p>
+
+<p>"Say, you! There were three horses in the hang-out
+with Klegg!"</p>
+
+<p>"What o' that?" answered Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, those boys have gone there and are getting the
+horses."</p>
+
+<p>"How could they go thar, Hank? They didn't pass
+me."</p>
+
+<p>"They might have got there when you didn't see them.
+While we're wasting time here, I'll bet something handsome
+they're getting out those horses. Come on! Don't
+lose another second fooling around among those rocks!"</p>
+
+<p>"Waal, I don't reckon&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Come on, I say!" roared Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>The two men were heard scrambling down the slope,
+getting farther and farther away.</p>
+
+<p>Back in the little recess Matt could hear the boy chuckling
+and talking to himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Come on, Josh!" whispered Matt, starting up. "Be
+careful, though! This is our day for luck, all right."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I guess!" answered the boy, rolling over the
+ledge. "Chee, but dey're a pair o' dough-heads. Good
+t'ing f'r us, too. What next, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll get to the Red Flier, turn it the other way
+along the trail, and ride back to Fairview."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, Lucy!" giggled Josh. "Fer a kid dat ain't had
+not'in' t' eat since yesterday mornin' I'm feelin' some
+fine! We gits de Red Flier, after all, an' dem guys is
+beat, hands down."</p>
+
+<p>They were proceeding down the hillside while Josh
+was talking. When Matt reached the boulders that lined
+the road, he looked out.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler, hurrying as fast as their legs
+could carry them, were just vanishing around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>"Now for the Red Flier&mdash;and Fairview!" said Matt,
+running out from among the boulders and laying a direct
+course for the red car.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's de talk, cull!" laughed Josh, hustling along
+after Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Certainly it looked as though they were to have everything
+their own way, for a while at least&mdash;but they were
+not so lucky as they thought.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">CAR AGAINST CAR.</p>
+
+
+<p>It may be that Matt and Josh made too much racket
+getting down the rocks, or that Brisco had a premonition
+that something was wrong. Be that as it might, however,
+yet Brisco and Spangler turned back a minute after
+they had gone charging around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt, at that moment, was bending to the crank
+of the Red Flier, and it was Josh who excitedly announced
+the approach of their two enemies.</p>
+
+<p>The boy had done his jubilating too soon, and the sight
+of Brisco and Spangler filled him with panic.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, chee!" he fluttered. "Dey're after us, Matt, like
+a couple o' grizzlies! Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks
+agin!"</p>
+
+<p>"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a
+whirl.</p>
+
+<p>One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with
+which the machine caught up its cycle; and it had been
+the same with Matt's twin-cylinder motorcycle. Half a
+turn of the pedal was enough for the little <i>Comet</i>, and
+one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's
+motor.</p>
+
+<p>While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and
+Spangler, Motor Matt ran around and vaulted into his
+old familiar place. He felt at home&mdash;much more so than
+he had when driving the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Neither Brisco nor Spangler wasted any time with their
+revolvers. Both knew that the runabout was a faster
+machine than the Red Flier, and both felt confident that
+a quick start after the boys and a few minutes' chase
+would tell the tale.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler scrambled into the car. Brisco slipped as he
+rounded the front of the runabout to turn over the engine,
+fell sprawling and hit his head on the handle of the
+crank.</p>
+
+<p>He was not very much hurt, apparently, although from
+his flow of language his temper must have been severely
+injured. Besides, he had lost ten seconds&mdash;no very serious
+matter, considering the usual speed of the runabout&mdash;but
+Brisco was anxious for a rapid start and a quick
+finish for the chase.</p>
+
+<p>As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping from up
+the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling
+gun. Motor Matt had turned the Red Flier with his customary
+celerity, and was off on the high gear with the
+muffler cut out.</p>
+
+<p>"By thunder," howled the frantic Spangler, "oncet I
+ketch that Motor Matt I'll wring his neck fer him!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll help you," answered Brisco vindictively. There
+was a patch of skin gone from his forehead and a little
+dribble of red was flowing down his cheek.</p>
+
+<p>"If they wasn't out o' sight," growled Spangler, "I'd
+pepper 'em."</p>
+
+<p>"What's the use of peppering them?" scowled Brisco.
+"We'll climb right over 'em in less'n five minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"Do it!" cried Spangler, as they shot ahead recklessly.</p>
+
+<p>"Do what?" asked Brisco, just missing a boulder by a
+hair's breadth.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, climb over 'em," snorted Spangler. "Run 'em
+down an' shove 'em inter the rocks! Let's hev a smash,
+with that young whelp right in the middle of it. He's
+made us trouble enough!"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't be a fool, Spang!" returned Brisco. "If we
+ran into them we might smash the runabout. We've got
+use for this machine&mdash;after we clean up on Legree and
+this Motor Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"That's so, too," said Spangler. "We may hev use
+fer it even if ye don't clean up on Legree. With another
+pair o' shoes an' tubes, an' a place whar we kin keep a
+supply o' gasoline an' oil, an' them steel bottles o' compressed
+air, we could circle all around through this here
+Southwestern kentry, takin' our toll wharever we wanted
+ter pick it up."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure we could, and we <i>will</i>!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm glad o' one thing," observed Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"What's that?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, thar won't be any more glass throwed in the
+road, same as thar was during t'other chase we had with
+that Red Flier. King had a lot in the red car, if ye remember,
+an' I dumped it all out."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"We'll nip 'im this time," said Brisco, through his
+teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"We got ter, that's what. If we don't&mdash;&mdash; Tear an'
+ages, Hank! Be keerful!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout had been hurled at a curve. There was
+no lessening of the speed, and the entire machine slid
+sideways to the edge of the road, banging into the rocks
+with a force that pitched Spangler against the dashboard.
+He came within one of going clear over upon the hood.</p>
+
+<p>"Get back in your seat and hang on!" yelled Brisco.
+"We haven't commenced to run yet."</p>
+
+<p>After that Spangler had no time to talk&mdash;he was too
+busy holding himself in the car.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the Red Flier had been streaking it through
+the hills, Josh keeping a pair of keen eyes on the back
+track, and Matt giving his entire attention to the road
+ahead.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, wot a bump!" cried Josh.</p>
+
+<p>He had seen the runabout skid across the road, take
+a welt at the rock wall and then leap onward like a bullet
+from a gun.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter?" shouted Matt.</p>
+
+<p>He had to shout, for the wind of their flight caught the
+words out of his teeth and flung them, a mere wisp of
+sound, far to rearward.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco tried t' knock over a hill wit' his hind wheels,"
+yelled Josh, "an' Spang tried t' turn a handspring over
+de bonnet. Wow! but dey're goin some, Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>"So are we," screamed Matt, "Fifty-eight miles an
+hour."</p>
+
+<p>"Ever race dat runabout afore?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"W'ch winned?"</p>
+
+<p>"The Flier&mdash;by a fluke. I scattered glass in the road&mdash;the
+runabout got into it and went lame."</p>
+
+<p>"Got any glass along now?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, in the tonneau; but&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"None dere now, cull."</p>
+
+<p>"Then Brisco must have thrown it out. It'll all right,
+though. This is going to be our race."</p>
+
+<p>"We'd better keep our lamps skinned f'r Fairview. It's
+on'y seventy-five miles from w'ere we started, an we're
+goin' so fast we might run past de place an' never see
+it."</p>
+
+<p>Josh felt hilarious. His panic was leaving him and his
+usual nerve was coming back.</p>
+
+<p>"How's the runabout coming?" roared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Gainin'!" whooped the boy. "Oh, sister, how she's
+comin'! Wisht I had some glass."</p>
+
+<p>"She'll never catch us, Josh!"</p>
+
+<p>"How's dat?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I've fixed her so she won't."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope yous ain't shy in yer calkilations, Matt. Dem
+blokes'll sure kill us if we drops into deir hands."</p>
+
+<p>"Watch her, Josh! Tell me when her speed slackens,
+or when anything goes wrong."</p>
+
+<p>"She ain't slackenin' none yet, an' nuttin' ain't gone
+wrong."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, watch and tell me."</p>
+
+<p>Matt couldn't understand why the runabout wasn't beginning
+to develop trouble in the vicinity of the needle-valve.
+But it would come, sooner or later. Some of the
+sand was bound to get through the supply-pipe in time.</p>
+
+<p>The valley had widened considerably, and now it began
+to develop dips and rises which afforded Matt opportunity
+for nursing the motor and preventing overheating.
+He could cut off the power on the down grades and
+give the throbbing cylinders a breathing spell.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had no such fine ability or discrimination. He
+took everything on the high gear.</p>
+
+<p>"Still gainin'!" announced Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"How far are they behind?"</p>
+
+<p>"A hundred feet. It's a wonder dey don't shake some
+bullets out o' deir guns dis way. One of 'em's tootin'
+his bazoo at us."</p>
+
+<p>"What does he say? Can you hear?"</p>
+
+<p>"He says ter stop 'r he'll put a bullet into one o' our
+tires. Chee! If he does dat&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Matt snatched one hand from the steering-wheel.</p>
+
+<p>Honk, honk! he answered derisively.</p>
+
+<p>Sping!</p>
+
+<p>The warning report was followed by the whistle of a
+bullet. It did not come anywhere near the Red Flier,
+but spatted harmlessly into the valley wall.</p>
+
+<p>Josh laughed wildly and waved his hand. The spirit
+of the race was surging through his veins and had wiped
+out all sense of fear.</p>
+
+<p>"Wow!" he shouted. "Yous ought t' seen dat! Spang
+has been holdin' on t' de seat wit' bot' hands, but he
+let go wit' one t' fire at us. De runabout jumped sideways
+an' he lost his pepper-box overboard. Come clost
+t' goin' hisself! Say, I wisht he had!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout was devouring the distance in remarkable
+style. It was now only twenty-five feet behind, and
+so near that the sand and pebbles kicked up by the flying
+rear wheels of the red car struck in the faces of Brisco
+and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler lowered his head. Brisco jerked the goggles
+down over his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop!" he roared, "or I'll run into you!"</p>
+
+<p>Honk, honk! tooted Matt defiantly.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco swore and gritted his teeth. With his temper
+at fever heat, what did he care how he injured the runabout
+just so he evened his score with Motor Matt?</p>
+
+<p>Closer and closer came the runabout. Josh measured
+the decreasing distance with his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Ten feet! Five, Matt, <i>five</i>! She's up t' us, now&mdash;look
+out!"</p>
+
+<p>Not knowing what was to happen, Josh curled over
+the back of the seat and hung on with both hands.</p>
+
+<p>There was a slight jar, followed by a sudden slewing
+on the part of the runabout, a quick lessening of speed
+and the whirr of a racing engine.</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're stoppin'!" shouted the boy; "somet'ing has
+gone wrong wid de odder car!"</p>
+
+<p>"I knew <i>something</i> would happen!" shouted Matt, as
+he slowed his speed a little to give the Red Flier a bit
+of a rest.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Dat engine o' deirs went wrong just at de right time
+t' save our bacon, Matt," said Josh.</p>
+
+<p>Matt tossed a look backward. The runabout was at
+a stop, and Brisco was on the ground, tinkering frantically.</p>
+
+<p>"If he knows what to do," said Matt, "he'll be able
+to come on again. But he'll have more trouble; and he'll<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>
+continue to have trouble until he takes time to overhaul
+his fuel-tank."</p>
+
+<p>"What did yous do?" asked the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Mixed a handful of sand with his gasoline."</p>
+
+<p>"W'en?"</p>
+
+<p>"While we were hung up in front of those rocks
+Spangler had laid for us."</p>
+
+<p>"Didn't dat geezer see yous?"</p>
+
+<p>"I got out of the way before Brisco showed up; and
+Spangler, at the time, was away looking for the man
+in the notch."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, but you're a wonder! Motor Matt heads de
+percession an' carries de banner! Yous t'ought o' all
+dat while I was hustlin' t' git behind dem rocks! Did
+yous t'ink we was goin' t' have a race?"</p>
+
+<p>"I didn't know but we might. Anyhow, I thought it
+good policy to fix the machine so it wouldn't be reliable.
+What's the news from the rear, Josh?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco is gittin' back in his seat."</p>
+
+<p>"Is he coming on?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot."</p>
+
+<p>"Fast as ever?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't see no diff'rence in de runnin'."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, something is sure to go wrong, just as it did
+before. One grain of sand clogged the needle-valve,
+Josh, and there's a thousand more grains to come down
+the supply-pipe. Face around a minute. The road forks
+here. Which one shall we take? Do you remember
+coming this way?"</p>
+
+<p>The boy flopped around in his seat. The Red Flier
+was rushing toward a place where the road forked.
+Both roads were bordered by rocky walls, and both had
+the appearance of being equally well traveled&mdash;which
+wasn't saying much for the travel, at that.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't remember nuttin'," answered the boy, "bein'
+scart stiff all de w'ile I was in de runabout. I'd say go
+t' de right. Dat's always a good t'ing t' do."</p>
+
+<p>"If we had the least notion which way Fairview lay
+we could shape our course a little better. But we don't
+know, so we'll take chances and go to the right."</p>
+
+<p>There was a slowing of speed while Matt made the
+turn. For a long distance this fork was a straightaway
+stretch and fairly level. Matt and Josh were congratulating
+themselves on the fact that they had made a fortunate
+choice, when suddenly they whirled out on a
+vista that surprised them.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the straightaway stretch, a sudden
+angle brought the side of a steep mountain under the
+boy's eyes. The road could be seen clinging to the
+mountain's side, describing horseshoe after horseshoe&mdash;edging
+its way between dizzy chasms and high cliffs.</p>
+
+<p>"Wow!" gasped Josh, and collapsed in his seat. "Right
+here's w'ere we fall off de eart'."</p>
+
+<p>Matt took another look behind. The runabout, with
+the stern, relentless face of Brisco over the wheel, was
+surging toward them.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we go!" called Matt. "Hang on, Josh!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm glued! Yous can't shake me!"</p>
+
+<p>The boy was game, and Matt flung the Red Flier at
+the mountainside and down the ribbon of treacherous
+road.</p>
+
+<p>There were places where a cliff overhung the trail,
+and the wheels on the left almost scraped the rocks, while
+those on the right barely tracked on the brink of a gulf.</p>
+
+<p>The boy's face went white, but his eyes glimmered
+brightly. He looked back from time to time and saw
+the runabout sliding after them.</p>
+
+<p>A quick fear had rushed to Matt's brain. Oddly
+enough, it was not a fear for his own safety, for he
+knew the Red Flier and knew what he could do with it;
+but the runabout! If that trickle of sand cut off the
+power and caused the machine to slew ever so slightly,
+it would go over the chasm's edge and carry Brisco and
+Spangler with it!</p>
+
+<p>The world would have been better off, perhaps, if
+such a mishap had come to pass; but Matt did not want
+it that way. His own instrumentality in the matter
+would have been too hideously clear.</p>
+
+<p>And yet, if something did not happen to the runabout,
+the machine might collide with the Red Flier and drive
+it over the brink.</p>
+
+<p>Matt knew he must keep ahead. Never had he driven
+more masterfully than then. His nerves were steady,
+his brain alert, and every inch of that curving, treacherous
+down grade was covered by his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>It was more like falling down a hill than riding down.
+The Red Flier quivered like a thing of life, seeming to
+realize what was expected of it, and responding nobly.</p>
+
+<p>Far off, over the level plain at the mountain's foot,
+could be seen the little cluster of houses that represented
+Fairview. It glowed in the morning sun like a toy village
+on a toy map.</p>
+
+<p>As the road curved, struck a short straightaway, then
+curved again, the town swept vividly into view and again
+as quickly vanished.</p>
+
+<p>At the most desperate part of the trail a rock had
+crumbled from the wall and rolled to the edge of the
+chasm. There it lay, almost under the nose of the rushing
+car.</p>
+
+<p>The boy cast a despairing look into Motor Matt's set,
+determined face. All he saw was a swift gleam of the
+gray eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Crash!</p>
+
+<p>The car, skilfully guided so that it touched the inward
+side of the boulder, forced it from the edge and sent it
+bounding and smashing downward into the gulf.</p>
+
+<p>A sharp breath tore through the boy's lips. Confidence
+again took possession of him. After that escape, what
+difficulty could come up that Motor Matt was not able
+to conquer?</p>
+
+<p>Matt seemed to be made of steel. With one foot on
+the brake and both hands on the wheel, he kept rigidly
+to his work.</p>
+
+<p>"How're they making it behind, Josh?" he called.</p>
+
+<p>The boy knelt in his seat and looked back up the steep
+incline.</p>
+
+<p>Fortune was riding with Brisco that day. But for
+that he must have been hurled from the trail in a dozen
+places.</p>
+
+<p>Driving a car was comparatively new work for him,
+and the chances are that never before had he been on
+such a dangerous piece of road. Yet he was naturally
+a man of iron nerve, and would not hold back where
+Motor Matt led.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, from his appearance, was as frightened a
+man as there ever was in Arizona. A gray pallor had
+spread over his face, and his eyes were fairly popping
+from his head. Gripping his seat with both hands, he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span>
+braced himself with his feet against the forward dip of
+the car.</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're slidin' after us, cull," reported the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Gaining?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot, but not like dey did on de level road."</p>
+
+<p>"The foot of the mountain is just ahead of us. Can
+we get there before they overtake us?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, mebby we kin, but I wish de foot o' de mountain
+was half a mile nearer dan wot it is."</p>
+
+<p>Facing about in his seat, Josh looked at the foot of the
+mountain for himself.</p>
+
+<p>They were dropping toward it swiftly. There were
+no more curves&mdash;nothing but a straight fall, a shoot
+between bordering rocks and then a cheerful reach of
+road over the plain.</p>
+
+<p>"We're in luck t' git out o' dis widout a broken neck,"
+said Josh. "Chee, but dat level place looks good t' me."</p>
+
+<p>"The Flier's a dandy car!" declared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"She's got a dandy driver, an' dat's no dream. W'ere'd
+we been widout Motor Matt at de steerin'-wheel? Yous
+is a four-time winner, an' dere's odders dat'll hear me
+say it."</p>
+
+<p>"The runabout will be hot after us as soon as we hit
+the level ground again."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey'll never ketch us, cull. I don't care how hot dey
+come, wit' yous handlin' de Flier."</p>
+
+<p>With a final spurt the red car rushed through the
+rocks, and, for the first time since it had taken that up-and-down
+trail, both ends were on a level.</p>
+
+<p>As they glided out onto the plain, Matt cast a look
+backward. There was a feeling of relief came over him
+at sight of the runabout charging through the rocks at
+the mountain's foot.</p>
+
+<p>But, as he looked, and just as the runabout was on
+the point of striking level ground, there was a jerk to
+the left, a crash, and a sudden stop.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco pitched forward over the wheel, shot clear past
+the hood, and doubled up and rolled along the stony
+trail.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler went out on the left side, ricochetting into the
+air and turning a couple of grotesque somersaults. Like
+Brisco, when he dropped, he lay still.</p>
+
+<p>A sharp breath escaped Matt's lips. Turning the Red
+Flier, he started back until he had come almost upon
+the silent form of Brisco; then he brought the Flier to
+a halt and jumped out.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, Moses!" muttered Josh, awed by the abrupt
+termination of the chase. "Do yous t'ink dem guys is
+killed, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"That's what we've got to find out," flung back Matt,
+hurrying to Brisco and kneeling down beside him.</p>
+
+<p>Human enmity seemed a paltry thing to Matt as his
+hand went groping over Brisco's breast, feeling for the
+heart-beats. A thrill of satisfaction shot through him
+as he found that Brisco was alive.</p>
+
+<p>Hurrying on to Spangler, he was immensely relieved
+to find that worthy sitting up in the road and drawing
+a hand over his dazed eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"What&mdash;what happened?" faltered Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing to what's going to happen now, Spangler,"
+answered Matt, and picked up the second and last revolver
+which the ruffian had had about him.</p>
+
+<p>"There ought to be some ropes in the runabout, Josh,"
+called Matt. "Go and get them."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.</p>
+
+
+<p>Josh hustled for the runabout. One of the coiled
+ropes Matt had put in the car was hanging over a lamp,
+and the other had been thrown into the road. Taking
+the one off the lamp, the boy hurried back to the place
+where Matt was training the revolver on Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Fine bizness!" laughed Josh. "Wot d'yous want me
+t' do, Matt? Put a bow-knot on his lunch-hooks?"</p>
+
+<p>"Stand up, Spangler!" ordered Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler got lamely to his feet. He was still confused
+and bewildered.</p>
+
+<p>"Somethin' hit us," he mumbled. "From the way I
+was throwed it must hev been a landslide. Whar's
+Hank? Is he killed?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco will get along, I guess," said Matt. "Put your
+hands behind you, Spangler."</p>
+
+<p>Just then, for the first time, it began to dawn on
+Spangler that Matt was making a prisoner out of him.
+The ruffian, although practically uninjured, had been
+badly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was in condition to
+resist, and he leaped backward, swearing.</p>
+
+<p>"If ye think ye kin rope, down an' tie me," he cried,
+"jest bekase that thar machine bucked an' dumped me
+inter the road, ye got another&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Come this way!" cut in Matt.</p>
+
+<p>The words, hard and keen, jumped at Spangler like so
+many knife-points. Motor Matt meant business, and
+showed it in every movement.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler stepped forward.</p>
+
+<p>"That's far enough," snapped Matt. "Now put those
+hands behind you."</p>
+
+<p>With the open end of his own gun staring him in the
+face, there was nothing for Spangler to do but to obey.
+His hands went meekly behind him.</p>
+
+<p>"Can you tie a good hard knot, Josh?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"T'ink I ain't good f'r nuttin'?" protested the boy.</p>
+
+<p>Passing behind Spangler, he used the free end of the
+rope for a few moments and then stepped back with the
+rest of the coil in his hands.</p>
+
+<p>"If he gits dem mitts out o' dat he's a good 'un," announced
+Josh. "W'ere d'yous want him, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"In the Red Flier. Step lively, Spangler. We've got
+to look after Brisco."</p>
+
+<p>"Get ap!" clucked Josh, shaking the rope.</p>
+
+<p>With a black scowl on his face, the baffled Spangler
+made his way to the touring-car.</p>
+
+<p>"Get in on the back seat," went on Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler obeyed the order.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, Josh," pursued Matt, "cut the rope and tie a
+piece of it around his feet."</p>
+
+<p>The boy finished the work expeditiously, and when he
+and Matt drew away from the Red Flier they left Spangler
+helpless and fuming in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was still lying where he had fallen, and he was
+still unconscious. Matt made a more thorough examination
+of him. His pulse was stronger and, so far as Matt
+could discover, there were no broken bones.</p>
+
+<p>"Wot keeps 'im in a trance?" asked the boy. "He's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>
+stayin' a long time in de Land o' Nod for not havin'
+nuttin' wrong wit' 'im."</p>
+
+<p>"Pick up his revolver, Josh," returned Matt briskly,
+"and then sit down beside him and wait till he gets his
+wits back. Don't let him get away from you."</p>
+
+<p>"Get away from me? Not on yer life, cull. I'd radder
+take dis mutt into Fairview dan pull down a t'ousan' in
+de long green. Dad wants <i>him</i>."</p>
+
+<p>Paying no attention to the boy's rather obscure remark,
+Matt went to the runabout. He was expecting to find the
+machine badly smashed, and was happily disappointed.</p>
+
+<p>Both front lamps were broken, and the mud-guard over
+the right wheel forward had been ripped away. The
+guard had fallen between the wheel and the rock, and
+undoubtedly had kept the wheel from being dished. The
+tire was punctured and the jolt had disabled the motor.
+For all that, however, the machine, with a few temporary
+repairs, could travel on its own wheels if not under its
+own power.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had not yet corralled his wits. Aided by Josh,
+Matt dragged the man off to one side, where he would
+be out of the way; then, cutting about six feet of rope
+from the other riata, he threw it down where Josh could
+get at it.</p>
+
+<p>"When Brisco wakes up, Josh," said Matt, "just hold
+him steady till we put that rope on him."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot yous goin' t' do, Matt?" inquired the wondering
+Josh. "Yous is busier dan a monkey wit' his hand in a
+coconut."</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to haul the runabout into Fairview,"
+said Matt. "But I've got to patch her up first."</p>
+
+<p>Getting into the Red Flier, Matt backed her as close
+to the disabled car as he could; then, hitching onto the
+runabout with the ropes, he pulled it down onto the level
+plain.</p>
+
+<p>With a jack taken from the touring-car he swung the
+runabout's wheel off the ground. The mud-guard, having
+been ripped off, was not in his way. After locating the
+puncture and marking it with chalk, he unscrewed the
+wing-nuts, pushed out the security-bolt, and then, with
+levers, dug out the inner tube.</p>
+
+<p>Perhaps he was an hour getting the hole patched up,
+tire back in place and reinflated. When he was through,
+the runabout was ready to be dragged to Fairview.</p>
+
+<p>"How's Brisco?" asked Matt, putting on his leather
+coat, which he had thrown off while working with the
+runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"Same as wot he was, cull," replied Josh. "He ain't
+twitched an eye-winker."</p>
+
+<p>"He may be shamming," said Matt, "in the hope of
+making a bolt for his liberty. We'll put him in the
+tonneau. You can ride with him and watch him every
+minute. I'll take Spangler in front with me."</p>
+
+<p>"We're goin' t' take de hull outfit into Fairview?"
+grinned Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the idea."</p>
+
+<p>"A whale of an idee it is, too, an' no stringin'. Reg'lar
+line-up o' crooks an' stolen automobiles, wit' Motor Matt
+in charge o' de bunch. Wow! It's de biggest come-easy
+dat I ever mixed up wit'. Mebby dere won't be rejoicin'
+w'en we goes pokin' into town wit' all dis load.
+Well, I guess yes."</p>
+
+<p>Between them, Matt and Josh succeeded in carrying
+Brisco to the touring-car and getting him into the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, having been transferred to one of the front
+seats, had been chewing the cud of reflection.</p>
+
+<p>"Looky here, Motor Matt," said he, "ye ain't got no
+call ter kerry me ter Fairview. Think o' Klegg, down
+an' out an' mebby dyin' back thar in that notch. If anythin'
+happens ter him ye'll be responsible. Better turn
+me loose an' let me go back an' take keer o' him."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't do so much worrying over Klegg," answered
+Matt. "I intend to have him looked after. Just as soon
+as we get to Fairview I'll have the sheriff, or some other
+officer, go to the notch and see that Klegg gets all the
+attention he deserves."</p>
+
+<p>"Waal, even at that, ye ain't got no call ter lug me
+inter town. I ain't done a thing. Brisco was the feller
+that had it in fer you. It's him ye want ter git even with,
+an' not me."</p>
+
+<p>"You didn't have a hand in robbing Mr. Tomlinson,
+did you?" said Matt sarcastically. "There are a lot of
+other things you've done, too, and I'm going to turn you
+over to Lem Nugent, the man who owns the runabout,
+as soon as we reach Fairview. It won't take long to get
+Nugent up from Ash Forks."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a game loser, I don't t'ink," scoffed the boy.
+"W'ere's yer nerve, Spangler?"</p>
+
+<p>"Say," said Spangler, giving his attention to Josh,
+"where did you butt inter this game?"</p>
+
+<p>"I rode out o' Fairview wit' Brisco," grinned Josh.
+"He give me a ride."</p>
+
+<p>"Give ye a ride?" echoed Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Sure, on'y he didn't know it. I was under de coat in
+de back o' de runabout; an' I was still dere w'en yous
+mutts went t' dat hole in de wall. 'Course yous didn't
+see me. Yous was too mad at Motor Matt t' see anyt'ing."</p>
+
+<p>The whole situation rushed over Spangler with demoralizing
+clearness. He was able to understand how
+Josh and Matt, by the exercise of pluck and brains, had
+succeeded in balking the plans of Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler swore heartily. It seemed to be his only
+method for easing his feelings.</p>
+
+<p>"The worst move we ever made," he muttered savagely,
+"was takin' Motor Matt out o' town last night. I
+didn't want ter do it, but Brisco had made up his mind,
+an' that settled it. We ain't got no one ter blame but<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span>
+ourselves fer what's happened. Go on. The quicker we
+git ter Fairview an' hev this thing over with, the better
+I'll be suited."</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, resigning himself to the situation, sank back
+in his seat.</p>
+
+<p>Matt went around to the rear of the car to make the
+ropes attaching it to the runabout more secure. As near
+as he had been able to discover there was a level road all
+the way to Fairview. They were coming into the town
+from the north and east, and not along the Ash Fork
+road, where there was a hill to be descended in order to
+reach the valley.</p>
+
+<p>Having reassured himself about the ropes, Matt returned
+to the side of the Red Flier and mounted the
+running-board. Looking over the side of the tonneau,
+he swept his gaze over Brisco's unconscious face.</p>
+
+<p>"I can't understand what keeps him that way, Josh,"
+said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Mebby he's badly shook up inside," answered the boy.
+"Wot he needs is a doctor."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, he'll have one before long. Stay right beside
+him and watch him every minute. If he's playing possum
+with us, we want to make sure he don't gain anything
+by it."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm right on de job," said Josh.</p>
+
+<p>Matt climbed into his seat and started on the low
+gear. There was a creaking of the ropes as they took the
+pull, and the runabout started.</p>
+
+<p>Everything worked smoothly, and Matt, with a load
+worth fifteen hundred dollars, set his face toward Fairview.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."</p>
+
+
+<p>The disappearance of Motor Matt and the Red Flier
+made Carl Pretzel not only bewildered but furiously
+angry. He was angry at Brisco and bewildered to account
+for the way he had pulled off his night raid.</p>
+
+<p>"Oof dot feller inchures a hair oof Modor Matt's
+headt," wheezed Carl, shaking his fist in the air, "I vill
+camp by his drail, py chimineddy! I vill go on some
+var-paths! I vill make him be sorry for vat he dit, yah,
+so helup me!"</p>
+
+<p>Leaving Carl to rant and vow vengeance, Legree
+rushed over to the railroad-station and sent a message.
+The message, owing to financial embarrassment on the
+part of Legree, had to go collect.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>
+
+"<span class="smcap">Lem Nugent</span>, Ash Fork.<br />
+</p>
+
+<p>"Come at once to Fairview. Important developments
+regarding your automobile.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">
+<span class="smcap">Motor Matt.</span>"<br />
+</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>Legree signed the message with Matt's name because
+he knew the cattleman wouldn't know anything about a
+man named Legree; and he also felt sure that Motor
+Matt's name would secure the cattleman's instant attention.</p>
+
+<p>On his way back to the hotel he inquired for the
+sheriff. Fairview was too small to have a sheriff, but
+the town had a deputy sheriff. The deputy, however,
+was just then attending his father's golden-wedding, in
+Flagstaff, the marshal had gone with him, and the town
+was without an officer.</p>
+
+<p>As if this was not sufficiently discouraging, when Legree
+got back to the hotel he found a very disquieting
+state of affairs.</p>
+
+<p>The Uncle Tommers had been chased out of the hostelry
+by O'Grady and Ping Pong, his Chinese cook. They
+were gathered in a forlorn group in front, and Carl
+Pretzel was with them.</p>
+
+<p>"Mistah O'Grady, sah," Uncle Tom was saying with
+all the dignity he could work up, "Ah's de official mascot
+ob Motah Matt. While Ah's been stayin' in yo' 'stablishment,
+Ah's been mascottin' fo' him. He will come back,
+yo' ma'k what Ah say. Gib us ouah breakfus en yo'
+sho gits yo' money!"</p>
+
+<p>"Begorry, yez have got into me f'r all yez are goin'
+to," yelled the proprietor. "It's a passel av thramps yez
+are, iv'ry wan av yez! Av th' marshal was in town,
+Oi'd have yez all in th' cooler. Get out, befure Oi sic
+th' dog on yez! Scatther!"</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter here?" demanded Legree, pushing
+to the front.</p>
+
+<p>"Py chincher," flared Carl, "dot Irish feller t'inks ve
+vas vorkin' some shkin games on him. He vas grazier
+as a pedpug, und he von't gif us some preakfast."</p>
+
+<p>"En we's all hongry es sin," piped Uncle Tom plaintively.
+"Ah been mascottin' fo' Motah Matt twell Ah's
+dat fagged Ah dunno whut Ah's about, no, sah."</p>
+
+<p>"I tried to get him to take my ring, Legree," put in
+Eliza, "but he won't. He says we're only a lot of dead
+beats, and never intend to pay him."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah tole him," spoke up Topsy, "dat Ah'd wuk in his
+kitchum fo' de price ob a breakfus, an' he wouldn' hab it.
+Ah's honest, dat's whut Ah is. Ah nebber stole a cent
+fum anybody en mah life."</p>
+
+<p>"See here, O'Grady," remarked Legree, "Motor Matt
+has money and he has offered to pay our expenses while
+we're stopping with you. I'll have money myself in a few
+days, and then I'll pay you. You're not taking any
+chances on this crowd."</p>
+
+<p>"Faith, an' yez are roight about thot," scowled
+O'Grady. "Oi'm takin' no more chances wid yez. Motor
+Matt! Why, he run aff lasht noight! Sure, he did! He
+shneaked away so he wouldn't have t' pay me f'r yer
+kape. Oi'm keen enough t' see thot!"</p>
+
+<p>"Py shinks," whooped Carl, dancing around and waving
+his fists, "don'd you say dod some more. I can lick der<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span>
+feller vat says somet'ings aboudt Modor Matt like dot.
+Ven he say he pay, he mean vot he say, und he do it,
+too. Yah, you bed you! Modor Matt vas my bard, und
+he don'd vas leafing a bard in der lurch like vat you say."</p>
+
+<p>"Av Motor Matt is yer pard," said O'Grady, "bedad
+but it's sthrange yez haven't money. Git out, Oi say!
+Oi'm done wid yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I tell you," went on Legree, "I'll have money myself
+in a few days."</p>
+
+<p>"Yez can't make me belave any cock-an'-bull shtory
+like thot. Niver again will Oi take in anny wan widout
+baggage. Shoo! Clear out befure Oi git violent."</p>
+
+<p>In O'Grady's present temper there was no reasoning
+with him, so Legree marshaled his comrades and led
+them off to a neighboring wood-pile, where they all sat
+down disconsolately.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's been accustomed tuh bettah treatment," mourned
+Uncle Tom. "Ah's got de bigges' notion dat evah was
+tuh put a hoodoo on dat hotel. Ah could do hit, but Ah
+restrains mahse'f till Ah gits odahs fum Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Go 'long wif sich talk!" cried Topsy, out of patience.
+"'Peahs lak yo' done put dat hoodoo on de rest ob us.
+Nuffin' ain't gone right sence we left dat 'ar Brockville
+place."</p>
+
+<p>"There'll be some one here from Ash Fork before long,
+who, maybe, will help us," said Legree. "Just be as
+patient as you can, friends, and we'll hope for the best."</p>
+
+<p>"All de patience in de worl', Mistah Legree," answered
+Uncle Tom, "'doan' fill a pusson's stummick. Mah goodness,
+Ah didun' know Ah was so pesterin' hongry."</p>
+
+<p>"I tell you somet'ing," said Carl, "oof I knowed vich
+vay Modor Matt vas, I vould go und findt him. I vas
+madt as some vet hens ofer dis pitzness. Here ve vas,
+hung oop on a vood-pile mit nodding to eat, und not
+knowing vere Modor Matt vent mit himseluf. Chonny
+Hartluck iss hanging aroundt mit us."</p>
+
+<p>Leaving his disconsolate friends, Legree went back to
+the railroad-station. There he waited for four hours for
+the local train from Ash Fork. He was rewarded, however,
+by seeing a big man get off the train, stop on the
+platform, and look around expectantly.</p>
+
+<p>Legree walked up to the arriving passenger.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Nugent?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"You've hit it," replied the cattleman, staring the
+stranded actor up and down with an unfavoring eye.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! Well, sir, my name's Legree. I suppose you're
+looking for Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Another bull's-eye for you. I came here on a telegram
+from Motor Matt saying that there had been important
+developments concerning my automobile that was
+stolen from me near Ash Fork. Where's Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"He is unavoidably absent just now," answered Legree,
+"but I am confidently expecting him to appear at
+any moment. To be frank with you, sir, I sent that
+telegram and signed Motor Matt's name to it."</p>
+
+<p>The cattleman became indignant.</p>
+
+<p>"You're pretty fresh, seems to me!" said he. "What
+business had you doing a thing like that?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I wanted you here. Your car was in town
+yesterday. One of the thieves brought it in for a supply
+of gasoline and oil. Motor Matt and I tried to capture
+the thief, but he got away from us and took the car with
+him."</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you, if you haven't any objection to answerin'
+a straight question?" demanded the cattleman.</p>
+
+<p>"Step into the waiting-room with me for a few moments,"
+replied Legree, "and I'll explain."</p>
+
+<p>They went into the waiting-room and were gone possibly
+five minutes. When they came out on the platform
+once more, Nugent seemed to have developed a vast
+amount of confidence in Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Why didn't you tell Motor Matt what you've told
+me?" asked the cattleman.</p>
+
+<p>"I wasn't telling anybody that, Mr. Nugent," answered
+Legree, "and I wouldn't be telling you now if I hadn't
+wanted to fix things with O'Grady so that I and my
+friends can continue to remain at his hotel."</p>
+
+<p>"I know O'Grady," said Nugent. "Come along with
+me and I'll fix things up for you."</p>
+
+<p>They went to the hotel at once. O'Grady, tilted back
+against the wall in front, was smoking a pipe and keeping
+a sharp eye on the wood-pile.</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom, with a red bandanna over his face, was
+leaning back against the wood and was apparently asleep.
+All the rest were hovering listlessly about, waiting patiently
+for something to happen.</p>
+
+<p>The sight of Lem Nugent, who was known throughout
+all that part of the country, wrought a great change in
+O'Grady. The cattleman and the actor were approaching
+together, and seemed to be on cordial terms.</p>
+
+<p>"O'Grady," said Nugent, after he had exchanged greetings
+with the proprietor, "this gentleman is a friend of
+mine, and his friends are my friends, understand? Take
+them all in and give them the best you've got. And don't
+bleed me, you shyster. I'll stand the damage, but I won't
+be robbed."</p>
+
+<p>"Whativer yez say goes wid me, Lem," said O'Grady.
+"Come on, all av yez," he cried, standing up and motioning
+toward the wood-pile. "Oi'll have th' Chink put
+a male on th' table f'r yez to wanst."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom may have been asleep, but he heard those
+welcome words and was up like a shot.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah was mascottin fo' dat very t'ing," he admitted,
+as he ran toward the hotel. "Layin' back dar wid mah
+bandannah ober mah face, Ah was wukin' lak er hiahed
+man, yassuh. Now, den, yo' Topsy, yo' see what Ah kin
+do when Ah lays mahse'f out!"</p>
+
+<p>Just as they were starting into the hotel, a shout from
+Carl brought them all to a halt and an about-face.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" yelled Carl, dancing around and throwing
+his cap in the air. "Look vonce ad vat's coming!
+Vat dit I say? Here vas a drain oof cars, mit Modor
+Matt pringing dem in. Ach, himmel, I peen so habby as
+I can't dell! Modor Matt iss coming!"</p>
+
+<p>Under the startled eyes of those in front of the hotel
+two cars could be seen coming along the road. The Red
+Flier, with Matt and three passengers, was in the lead,
+and towing behind was the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"My car, by thunder!" shouted Nugent, starting for
+the road.</p>
+
+<p>"And Spangler is with Motor Matt," cried the amazed
+Legree, "and Brisco, and the kid! How in blazes do you
+think that happened?"</p>
+
+<p>A disgusted look crossed Uncle Tom's face.</p>
+
+<p>"How yo' t'ink dat happened!" he muttered sarcastically;
+"en me a-mascottin' fo' Motah Matt all de time!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">CONCLUSION.</p>
+
+
+<p>Whether O'Grady really thought Motor Matt had
+taken French leave during the night or not, is a question.
+Certainly he was as surprised to see Matt traveling into
+town as were any of the rest of them.</p>
+
+<p>All those around the hotel flocked to the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello, Matt!" called Nugent, reaching up his hand.
+"It looks like you'd been accomplishing something."</p>
+
+<p>Matt's acquaintance with the cattleman had been of
+exceedingly brief duration, and never before had he been
+hailed by him in that cordial tone.</p>
+
+<p>"How are you, Mr. Nugent?" he returned, taking the
+cattleman's hand. "How did you happen to come over
+this way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Got a telegram from you&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"From me?" echoed Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"I sent it, Matt," put in Legree, "and signed your
+name to it. When you disappeared last night I knew
+something had to be done, and that there ought to be a
+man with money to do it. So I sent for Nugent."</p>
+
+<p>"It's all right, my boy," said Nugent, "and I'm tickled
+to death because I came. You're bringing in my car, I
+see, and the two fellows that took it away from me.
+Good! If we don't put 'em through for their crooked
+work, my name ain't Nugent."</p>
+
+<p>"You'll have to send for a doctor for Brisco," said
+Matt. "He's been unconscious for two hours, and I don't
+know whether he's badly hurt or not. You see&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>At that moment Brisco proved that he was far from
+being badly hurt. With a jump he got out of the tonneau
+and started at a run toward the edge of town. Uncle
+Tom happened to be in his way, and was knocked heels
+over head.</p>
+
+<p>"Dere he goes!" yelled Josh excitedly. "Clear out o'
+de way so I kin git a shot at 'im!"</p>
+
+<p>But Josh was not allowed to carry out his warlike intentions.
+Legree took after the escaping ruffian, overhauled
+him before he had gone far, grabbed him by the
+shoulders, and hurled him to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady, rushing to Legree's assistance, lent a willing
+hand. Brisco had been a good customer of O'Grady's,
+but the situation had changed somewhat since the Uncle
+Tommers had been staying at the Shamrock Hotel.</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon, Matt," remarked Lem Nugent dryly, "that
+the fellow ain't very badly hurt. How did you happen
+to get hold of the scoundrels?"</p>
+
+<p>"They were chasing us," answered Matt. "We were
+in the Red Flier and they were in your car. Brisco ran
+into the rocks, and he and Spangler were thrown out.
+Neither of them seemed very much hurt, and Josh and I
+captured Spangler before he had fully got back his wits.
+Brisco appeared to be all right, but he was unconscious.
+I had an idea that he might be shamming. Probably he
+came to himself just as we got here, and thought the
+best thing for him to do would be to make a break."</p>
+
+<p>"His break didn't help him any," said Legree, as he
+and O'Grady came marching back with Brisco between
+them. "Go up to my room, Josh," Legree went on, "and
+get those two plates. You'll find 'em under the northeast
+corner of the carpet. Front room, boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's me," answered Josh, handing Brisco's weapons
+to his father and bounding away.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going to tell you people something," proceeded
+Legree, "that will no doubt surprise you. And I think,"
+he finished grimly, "that Brisco will be as much surprised
+as anybody."</p>
+
+<p>Josh presently returned with a couple of flat, square
+packages. Leaving O'Grady to take care of Brisco,
+Legree took the packages in his hands.</p>
+
+<p>"A crook by the name of Denver Denny, alias James
+Trymore," went on Legree, "escaped from the authorities
+at Denver and came to this part of the country. Denver
+Denny was a clever counterfeiter, and worked in conjunction
+with Hank Brisco. At least, following the output
+of the 'queer' as it trailed along in the wake of that
+Uncle Tom's Cabin Company, I came to that conclusion.</p>
+
+<p>"Denny owned a set of very fine plates for the manufacture
+of bogus five-dollar silver certificates. When he
+was captured in Denver those plates were nowhere to be
+found. I conceived the notion that they might be in
+Brisco's possession, and in order to make sure, I became
+letter-perfect in the part of Legree, and Josh here got the
+part of Little Eva by heart, and we arranged to join
+Brisco's company of barn-stormers.</p>
+
+<p>"We were with them for some time, watching Brisco
+all the while. Brisco was not shoving any of the 'queer'
+while we were with him, and I was inclined to think that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>
+I had made a mistake in connecting him with Denny's
+operations. However, Brisco had a little tin box, of
+which he was very choice and careful. His solicitude
+for that box aroused my curiosity. When Brisco pulled
+out between two days in Denver, and left his company
+stranded, by some freak of chance he dropped the box.
+Josh found it. We opened the box in Ash Fork and
+found these two packages in it." Legree lifted the two
+flat parcels so all could see. "I knew perfectly well that
+Brisco would come after his box, so I continued to play
+the part of a stranded actor, hoping to get my hands on
+him.</p>
+
+<p>"Fate was kind to us," and here Legree turned and
+dropped a friendly hand on the young motorist's shoulder,
+"by bringing Motor Matt along. He came to the
+front gallantly and helped us. I should have captured
+Brisco sooner or later, even without his aid, but he has
+closed the affair in hurricane fashion and saved the government
+lots of trouble."</p>
+
+<p>Everybody, Uncle Tommers, Matt, Carl, and Brisco
+and Spangler, were astounded. Nugent was the solitary
+exception, for Legree had revealed his identity to the
+cattleman in the railroad-station.</p>
+
+<p>"These are the plates," went on Legree. "Brisco had
+them in the tin box."</p>
+
+<p>"And you are&mdash;&mdash;" began Matt, staring at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"A secret service man in the employ of the government."</p>
+
+<p>A cry of fierce anger escaped Brisco. He made a
+fierce attempt to get at Legree, but O'Grady restrained
+him.</p>
+
+<p>"Faith," said O'Grady, with cheerful disregard of his
+past actions, "Oi knowed yez was a bad egg th' minyit
+Oi set eyes on yez."</p>
+
+<p>"Dis," remarked Uncle Tom, with immense pride, "is
+de best job ob mascottin' whut Ah's done yit!"</p>
+
+<p>"Better give up, Brisco!" called Spangler from the
+touring-car. "They've got it on us an' we'll have ter
+take our medicine."</p>
+
+<p>"Got it on us, yes," stormed Brisco, "but they wouldn't
+have done it if it hadn't been for Motor Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Not so quick, I'll admit," said Legree amiably, "but
+I'd have caught you sooner or later, Brisco. In my report
+I shall have something to say to the head of the
+department about Motor Matt. I'd like to hear, though,
+just how he happened to make this haul."</p>
+
+<p>"Josh helped me," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Not enough so yous could notice it," returned Josh
+promptly; "Motor Matt was de man on de job from
+start t' finish. Yous take it from Little Eva, an' no
+stringin'."</p>
+
+<p>The boy turned to Matt with a wide grin.</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is wise t' why I went off wit' Brisco in dat
+runabout now, ain't yous? I wanted t' find out w'ere
+he had 'is hang-out so dad could turn a trick fer de
+gov'ment. But yous cut out dad, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Listen, vonce," cried Carl, who had been trying for
+some time to get in a few words, "Matt's der pest efer.
+He prings luck venefer he goes mit anypody. Yah, dot's
+righdt. I know, pecause he prought luck mit me."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom was disposed to butt in with an objection,
+but the cattleman had something to say.</p>
+
+<p>"There's fifteen hundred of my money goes to somebody
+for all this," said he. "Who gets it, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Divide it up between all of us," answered the boy
+generously. "The Uncle Tommers need it."</p>
+
+<p>A shout of delight went up from the actor contingent.</p>
+
+<p>"You can leave Josh in the division," said Legree, "but
+cut me out of it. I'm working for Uncle Sam."</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment the Chinaman stepped to the door
+and announced dinner.</p>
+
+<p>"We'll talk all this over while we eat," said Nugent.
+"Come on, everybody."</p>
+
+<hr class="tb" />
+
+<p>Motor Matt and Carl, having lost more time in Fairview
+than they could well afford, started for Albuquerque
+early in the afternoon.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, now well supplied with
+money, were to proceed to Denver by train.</p>
+
+<p>The secret service man and Josh were to remain in
+Fairview for a few days with their prisoners, and then
+to take them to Denver for trial.</p>
+
+<p>"Matt," said Carl seriously, as the Red Flier leaped
+onward toward Albuquerque, "I vas a lucky feller to hook
+oop mit you. Vone oof dose tays, oof you don'd go pack
+on me, I vill vear tiamonts!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll never go back on you, Carl," laughed Matt; "but
+I'm a little 'juberous' about the diamonds."</p>
+
+
+<p class="center">THE END.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center medium">THE NEXT NUMBER (7) WILL CONTAIN</p>
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR MATT'S CLUE;</p>
+<p class="center medium">OR,</p>
+<p class="center large">THE PHANTOM AUTO.</p>
+
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>A Night Mystery&mdash;Dick Ferral&mdash;La Vita Place&mdash;The
+House of Wonder&mdash;Sercomb&mdash;The Phantom
+Auto Again&mdash;Surrounded by Enemies&mdash;The
+Kettle Begins to Boil&mdash;Ordered Away&mdash;A New
+Plan&mdash;A Daring Leap&mdash;Desperate Villiany&mdash;Tippoo&mdash;In
+the Nick of Time&mdash;A Startling Interruption&mdash;The
+Price of Treachery&mdash;The Luck of
+Dick Ferral.</p></blockquote>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bbox">
+<tr><td colspan="2" class="tdc huge">MOTOR STORIES</td></tr>
+<tr><td class="tdr large" style="padding-right: .25em;">THRILLING ADVENTURE</td><td class="tdl large" style="padding-left: .25em;">MOTOR FICTION</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class="center bb bt">NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.</p>
+
+
+<p class="center"><b>TERMS TO MOTOR STORIES MAIL SUBSCRIBERS.</b></p>
+
+<p class="center">(<i>Postage Free.</i>)</p>
+
+<p class="center"><b>Single Copies or Back Numbers, 5c. Each.</b></p>
+
+<table summary="Terms">
+<tr><td>3 months</td><td class="tdr">65c.</td></tr>
+<tr><td>4 months</td><td class="tdr">85c.</td></tr>
+<tr><td>6 months</td><td class="tdr">$1.25</td></tr>
+<tr><td>One year</td><td class="tdr">2.50</td></tr>
+<tr><td>2 copies one year</td><td class="tdr">4.00</td></tr>
+<tr><td>1 copy two years</td><td class="tdr">4.00</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><b>How to Send Money</b>&mdash;By post-office or express money-order,
+registered letter, bank check or draft, at our risk. At your own risk if sent
+by currency, coin, or postage-stamps in ordinary letter.</p>
+
+<p><b>Receipts</b>&mdash;Receipt of your remittance is acknowledged by proper
+change of number on your label. If not correct you have not been properly
+credited, and should let us know at once.</p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold">
+<tr><td>
+<span class="smcap">Ormond G. Smith</span>,<br />
+<span class="smcap">George C. Smith</span>,
+</td>
+<td style="font-size: 200%">}</td><td style="padding-right: 1em;"><i>Proprietors</i>.</td>
+<td class="tdc">
+<b>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers,<br />
+79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York City.</b>
+</td></tr></table>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+<h2><a name="A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT" id="A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT">A SNOWBALL FIGHT.</a></h2>
+<hr class="r5" />
+<p class="center">By HORATIO ALGER, Jr.</p>
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+
+<p>The snow had fallen to the depth of six inches during the
+night, filling in the yards and covering the door-steps,
+throughout the town of Conway. Among those who hailed
+the arrival of the snow with joy was Frank Taylor, a boy
+of fourteen, the son of the Widow Taylor, who lived in a
+miserable little tenement not far from the mill. Why he was
+glad to see the snow will soon appear.</p>
+
+<p>Early in the morning he shoveled a path to the street,
+and then putting his shovel over his shoulder, said to his
+mother:</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going over to Squire Ashmead's to see if he doesn't
+want me to shovel paths in his yard."</p>
+
+<p>"He's got a boy of his own," said Mrs. Taylor; "perhaps
+he will do it."</p>
+
+<p>Frank laughed.</p>
+
+<p>"Sam Ashmead is proud and lazy," he said. "You won't
+catch him shoveling paths. I think I shall get the job. I
+want to earn something so that you need not sit all day
+sewing. It is too hard for you."</p>
+
+<p>"I ought to think myself lucky to get employment at all,"
+said the widow.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish I could get steady work somewhere," said Frank;
+"but I've tried and tried, and it seems impossible."</p>
+
+<p>"Willing hands will not want work long," said his mother.</p>
+
+<p>"I hope not, mother. But I must be going, or somebody
+will get the start of me."</p>
+
+<p>While Frank is on his way to Squire Ashmead's, a few
+words of explanation may be given. His mother had been a
+widow for two years. Her husband had been a man of some
+education, having at times taught school, but he had never
+succeeded in laying up any money, and his widow was left
+almost penniless. Frank, who was a stout boy, and a good
+boy as well, had earned something by doing odd jobs, but
+had failed to obtain permanent employment. The burden
+of their joint support, therefore, was thrown upon his
+mother, who was very industrious with her needle, but was
+compelled to labor beyond her strength. All this troubled
+Frank, who felt that, as a stout, strong boy, he ought to bear
+at least half the expense.</p>
+
+<p>In due time he reached Squire Ashmead's, and was glad
+to see that the snow remained undisturbed.</p>
+
+<p>He rang the bell, and asked if he might shovel the paths
+that were necessary.</p>
+
+<p>Squire Ashmead was absent in New York, to which city
+he had gone the morning previous on business, but his wife
+agreed to employ Frank.</p>
+
+<p>He went to work with a will, and soon had a path dug
+from the front door to the gate. A path was also required
+from the back door to the stable, which was situated in the
+rear of the house. This was quite a distance, and as Frank
+wished to do the work thoroughly, it required considerable
+time.</p>
+
+<p>He was about half through this portion of his task when
+a snowball whistled by his ear.</p>
+
+<p>Looking round quickly, he saw Sam Ashmead standing at
+the corner of the house, engaged in making a fresh snowball.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't fire any more snowballs, Sam Ashmead," said
+Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall, if I please," said Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"I haven't time to fire back now," said Frank. "Wait till
+I get through, and we'll have a match if you like."</p>
+
+<p>"But I don't like," said Sam scornfully. "Do you think
+I would have a match with a beggar like you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am no beggar, Sam Ashmead," said Frank, "and if
+I were I don't think I would beg of you."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, you're mighty proud," sneered Sam, "considering that
+you live in an old hut not half as good as our stable."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I am poor, and I live in a poor house," said Frank
+calmly, "but that isn't a crime that I know of. Some time I
+shall live in a better house, I hope."</p>
+
+<p>So saying, he went back to work, and began shoveling
+the snow vigorously. He did not anticipate any further
+attack from Sam, but in this he soon found himself mistaken.</p>
+
+<p>In the course of a minute he felt a pretty hard blow in the
+center of his back, and looking round saw Sam Ashmead
+laughing insolently.</p>
+
+<p>"How does that feel?" asked Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the second snowball you've fired at me," said
+Frank quietly, but there was a light in his eyes as he spoke.
+"I advise you not to fire another if you know what is good
+for yourself."</p>
+
+<p>"So you threaten me, do you? Suppose I fire again, what's
+going to happen?" demanded Sam, with an unpleasant sneer.</p>
+
+<p>"I think you will be sorry for it," said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>Sam hesitated a moment, but only a moment. He was a
+year older than Frank, and larger in size. Certainly he
+ought to be a match for him. But he did not believe that
+Frank would have the audacity to touch him, the son of
+Squire Ashmead, the richest man in the village. He therefore
+deliberately made another snowball, and firing it,
+struck Frank in the back of his head.</p>
+
+<p>Frank no sooner felt the blow than he threw down his
+shovel, and ran toward his assailant.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Keep off, you beggar!" said Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"It's too late," said Frank. "I warned you not to fire
+again."</p>
+
+<p>Sam placed himself in an attitude of defense, but found
+himself seized violently round the middle, and before he
+fairly knew what was going to happen he was lying in a
+snow-bank with Frank standing over him.</p>
+
+<p>He struggled to his feet mad with rage, and "pitched
+into" Frank, as the boys express it, and endeavored to retaliate
+in kind. But Frank was watchful and wary, and evading
+the attack, seized him again when his strength was half
+spent, and Sam found himself once more occupying an involuntary
+bed in the snow.</p>
+
+<p>A third struggle resulted in the same way. Sam was
+furious, but he saw that Frank was more than a match for
+him.</p>
+
+<p>Just then a servant called out from the door:</p>
+
+<p>"Master Sam, your mother says it's time for you to be
+going to school."</p>
+
+<p>To tell the truth, Sam was rather glad of the summons, as
+it gave him an excuse for retiring from the contest.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll be even with you yet," he said, shaking his fist at
+Frank. "I'll let my father know how you insulted me, you
+young beggar!"</p>
+
+<p>"If anybody has been insulted, I have," said Frank. "You
+must remember that you began it."</p>
+
+<p>Sam scowled vindictively, and brushing the snow from his
+coat went into the house. Before Frank finished the path
+at the back of the house he was gone to school.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Ashmead sent out fifty cents to Frank for his morning's
+work, with which he went home, well satisfied, wishing
+that he might earn as much every day. He wondered a little
+whether Sam would tell his father what had occurred between
+them. He did not speak of it to his mother, for she
+was nervous, and would be troubled by it, as she received
+considerable work to do from the Ashmead family which she
+might fear would be taken away.</p>
+
+<p>On the afternoon of the next day, however, Frank received
+a note, which proved to come from Squire Ashmead. It ran
+as follows:</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">Frank Taylor</span>: Please call at my office to-morrow morning
+at ten o'clock.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">
+<span class="smcap">James Ashmead.</span>"<br />
+</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>This note Frank thought best to show to his mother.</p>
+
+<p>"What does it mean, Frank? Have you any idea?" she
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>Frank thereupon told her the story of his difficulty with
+Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"It may be about that," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dear," said the widow. "I'm afraid he's very angry.
+I hope you will apologize, Frank."</p>
+
+<p>"No, mother," said Frank, "I don't see why I should. I
+only defended myself from a bully. I should be ashamed
+to do anything else. I didn't hurt him, and didn't intend to,
+but I wanted to teach him that he couldn't insult me without
+having to pay for it."</p>
+
+<p>"I am afraid some harm will come of it," said the widow
+anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't trouble yourself, mother," said Frank soothingly.
+"If we do only what's right, God will take care of us."</p>
+
+<p>Still it was with some anxiety that Frank made his way
+the next morning to the office of Squire Ashmead. This
+gentleman was the agent of a large manufactory in the town,
+of which also he was a considerable owner, so that he received
+an income of over ten thousand dollars a year, which
+made him the most prominent and influential citizen in the
+town.</p>
+
+<p>When Frank entered the office, Squire Ashmead was conversing
+with a stranger on business.</p>
+
+<p>"Sit down," he said, turning to Frank. "I will be at
+leisure in a moment."</p>
+
+<p>"Well," he said, after the stranger had departed, "Sam
+tells me you and he have had a little difficulty."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir," said Frank. "I would like to explain how it
+occurred."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well. Go on."</p>
+
+<p>It will be unnecessary to give the explanation, as it was
+strictly in accordance with the facts.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you blame me for what I did?" asked Frank, at the
+end.</p>
+
+<p>"No, I do not," said the squire. "Sam acted like a bully,
+and was properly punished. Let that pass. Now let me ask
+you how you and your mother are getting along?"</p>
+
+<p>"Poorly, sir," said Frank. "If I could have steady work,
+it would be different, but that I cannot get. It troubles me
+to see my mother work so hard all day. I think it is too
+much for her."</p>
+
+<p>"How would you like to come into my office?"</p>
+
+<p>Frank's eyes sparkled.</p>
+
+<p>"I should think myself very lucky, sir, to get so good a
+chance."</p>
+
+<p>"I want some boy whom I can trust, who can grow up to
+the business, and after a time relieve me of a portion of my
+cares. I would take Sam, but I am sorry to say, though he
+is my own son, that he would not answer my purpose. I
+have heard good accounts of you from your teacher and the
+people in the village. I will take you at a salary of six dollars
+a week, to be increased from time to time if you will
+suit me. Can you come Monday morning?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir," said Frank, "and I will do my best to give you
+satisfaction."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well, my lad. Good morning."</p>
+
+<p>Frank left the office, feeling as if his fortune was made.
+His mother, who was awaiting the result of the interview
+anxiously at home, was overwhelmed with astonishment at
+the unexpected good fortune of her son. Sam was disagreeably
+surprised, and tried to shake his father's resolution,
+but Squire Ashmead was a sensible man, and not to be
+moved.</p>
+
+<p>Frank commenced his duties the next Monday. He was
+so faithful that he was rapidly advanced, and at twenty-one
+was receiving twelve hundred dollars a year. At
+twenty-five, on the sudden death of Squire Ashmead, he succeeded
+to his agency, and now lives with his mother in the
+mansion at which he once thought himself lucky to be permitted
+to shovel the paths. As for Sam, he squandered the
+handsome property received from his father, and died at
+thirty from the effects of intemperate habits.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING" id="SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING">SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>When a champion rifle shot fires blindfolded at a wedding-ring,
+or a penny held between his wife's thumb and
+finger, or, seated back to her, shoots, by means of a mirror,
+at an apple upon her head or on a fork held in her teeth,
+the danger of using a bullet is obvious. None, of course,
+is needed; the explosion is enough. The apple is already
+prepared, having been cut into pieces and stuck together with<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span>
+an adhesive substance, and a thread with a knot at the end,
+pulled through it from the "wings," so that it flies to bits
+when the gun is fired, is "how it is done."</p>
+
+<p>Generally, the more dangerous a feat appears the more
+carefully is all danger guarded against. In the "William
+Tell" act the thread is often tied to the assistant's foot.
+When, again, the ash is shot off a cigar which the assistant
+is smoking, a piece of wire is pushed by his tongue through
+a hollowed passage in the cigar&mdash;thus thrusting off the ash
+at the moment of firing.</p>
+
+<p>A favorite but simple trick is the shooting from some
+distance at an orange held in a lady's hand. Great applause
+is invariably forthcoming when the bullet drops out on
+her, cutting open the fruit. It is inserted by hand earlier in
+the evening.</p>
+
+<p>Another popular trick is that of snuffing out lighted candles.
+Half a dozen are placed in front of a screen in
+which as many small holes are bored, one against each
+candlewick. At the moment of firing, a confederate behind
+the screen sharply blows out each candle with a pair of
+bellows. This trick was accidentally exposed one evening
+by a too zealous assistant. The lady in the gallery pulled
+the trigger, but the rifle failed to go off; the candle, however,
+went out just the same.</p>
+
+<p>In most instances, where a ball or other object has to be
+broken on a living person's head, blank cartridge is used
+and the effect produced by other means. A special wig,
+with a spring concealed in it, worked by a wire under the
+clothes, is generally used, the confederate manipulating the
+spring simultaneously with the firing of the rifle. As the
+ball is of extremely thin glass, a mere touch suffices to
+shatter it.</p>
+
+<p>In these exhibitions some of the rifle "experts" invite
+gentlemen from the audience to testify that the weapon is
+indeed loaded. The cartridge shown looks very well, but it
+is a shell of thin wax blackened to resemble a leaden bullet.
+It would not hurt a fly.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="REELFOOT_LAKE" id="REELFOOT_LAKE">REELFOOT LAKE.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>The physical history of Reelfoot Lake, of night-rider
+fame, is not without a certain interest of its own. The lake
+came into existence as the result of a series of earthquakes,
+which began in December, 1811, and continued until June,
+1812.</p>
+
+<p>Some authorities say that the earthquakes merely heaved
+up a great ridge of land across the path of the Reelfoot
+River, which runs into the Mississippi, and that this dam
+caused the water to back up and broaden out and form a
+lake; but the favorite account in the neighborhood is to the
+effect that the ground sank, springs were opened up, neighboring
+creeks diverted from their course, and the overflowing
+water of the Mississippi rushed in during the flood season
+of the spring of 1812.</p>
+
+<p>It is said that for an hour and a half the waters of the
+Mississippi flowed up-hill while filling up the depression
+caused by the earthquakes. Both accounts likely have this
+much of truth in them that the entire configuration of the
+ground was changed by the earthquakes. Big Lake, west of
+the Mississippi, in Arkansas, is said to have been formed in
+the same way at the same time.</p>
+
+<p>Reelfoot Lake is sixteen or eighteen miles long, very
+irregular in shape, and covers from 35,000 to 40,000 acres of
+land. It varies in width from a mile in some places to four
+or five miles in others. The northern end is extended by a
+series of sloughs and bayous into Kentucky.</p>
+
+<p>The most distinctive feature of the lake's appearance, the
+feature which first impresses and stays longest with the
+observer's fancy, is a certain grotesque effect, as if a set of
+crazy men had been operating a pile-driver there for the
+last century, for the trunks, stumps, and stark branches of
+dead trees stick out of it everywhere in desolate parody of
+some such human handiwork; far below the surface the
+fish dart among the boles and branches where the squirrels
+frolicked a hundred years ago.</p>
+
+<p>There are beautiful spots here and there, but the effect,
+as a whole, is not beautiful; at its best, when the mist rises
+and myriad protruding tree trunks are white and ghostly in
+the moonlight, it is weird; the general remembrance is of
+something uncouth. It is a kind of sloven lake that has
+preferred to sit down with its hair uncombed all day long,
+but at night it does manage to achieve a touch of wizard
+dignity.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="A_FLOATING_SLUM" id="A_FLOATING_SLUM">A FLOATING SLUM.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Stand beside the imperial custom-house at Canton and let
+the eye range down the river toward Hongkong. As far as
+the sight can reach lie boats, boats, and again boats. These
+are no ordinary craft, mere vessels of transport plying hither
+and thither, but the countless homes of myriad Chinese, in
+which millions of human beings have been born, have lived,
+and have died. They are the dwellings of the very poor,
+who live in them practically free from rent, taxes, and the
+other burdens of the ordinary citizen.</p>
+
+<p>The Tankia&mdash;which means boat-dwellers&mdash;as the denizens
+of these floating houses are called, form a sort of caste apart
+from the rest of the Cantonese. The shore-dwellers regard
+them as belonging to a lower social order; and indeed they
+have many customs, peculiar to themselves, which mark them
+as a separate community. How the swarming masses of
+them contrive to support existence is a mystery, but their
+chief mode of employment is in carrying merchandise and
+passengers from place to place.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA" id="WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA">WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Horses are cheap in Nevada. On the government ranges,
+where they are protected by game-laws, droves of wild horses
+exist which in the aggregate are said to amount to fifteen
+thousand. Formerly there was a law in Nevada permitting
+the shooting of these wild horses for their hides, but there
+were hunters who were not particular, and the ranchers
+found their domestic horses disappearing if they let them out
+on the range. So their shooting was prohibited, and since
+that time the droves have grown to be exceedingly troublesome.
+They can be domesticated, but they are not needed
+there, and it costs too much to ship them East. It seems
+a pity that, while so many sections could use them to advantage,
+the transportation problem makes it impossible to
+get them at a price which they are worth.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p class="large center">ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT!!</p>
+
+<p class="huge center">MOTOR STORIES</p>
+
+<p class="center"><b><i>A New Idea in the Way of Five-Cent Weeklies.</i></b></p>
+
+<p>Boys everywhere will be delighted to hear that Street &amp; Smith are
+now issuing this new five-cent weekly which will be known by the
+name of MOTOR STORIES.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>This weekly is entirely different from anything now being published. It details
+the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a motor cycle.
+Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these swift little machines
+that scud about the roads everywhere throughout the United States? Is there a
+boy, therefore, who will not be intensely interested in the adventures of "Motor
+Matt," as he is familiarly called by his comrades?</p>
+
+<p>Boys, you have never read anything half so exciting, half so humorous and
+entertaining as the first story listed for publication in this line, called <b>"Motor Matt;
+or, The King of the Wheel."</b> Its fame is bound to spread like wildfire,
+causing the biggest demand for the other numbers in this line, that was ever
+heard of in the history of this class of literature.</p>
+
+<p>Here are the titles to be issued during the next few weeks. Do not fail to
+place an order for them with your newsdealer.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p class="medium">
+No. 1. Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.<br />
+No. 2. Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.<br />
+No. 3. Motor Matt's "Century" Run; or, The Governor's Courier.<br />
+No. 4. Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the <i>Comet</i>.<br />
+</p>
+<hr />
+<table summary="scaffold"><tr><td class="tdl" style="padding-right: 1em;">32 LARGE SIZE PAGES</td>
+<td class="tdr">SPLENDID COLORED COVERS</td></tr></table>
+
+<p class="large center">PRICE, FIVE CENTS PER COPY</p>
+<hr />
+<p class="center">AT ALL NEWSDEALERS, OR SENT POSTPAID BY THE PUBLISHERS
+UPON RECEIPT OF THE PRICE.</p>
+
+<p class="center large"><i>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK</i></p>
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p class="center large"><i>THE BEST OF THEM ALL!!</i></p>
+
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR STORIES</p>
+
+<p class="center">IT IS NEW AND INTENSELY INTERESTING</p>
+
+
+<p>We knew before we published this line that it would have a tremendous sale and our
+expectations were more than realized. It is going with a rush, and the boys who want to
+read these, the most interesting and fascinating tales ever written, must speak to their
+newsdealers about reserving copies for them.</p>
+
+<p><b class="bbox">MOTOR MATT</b> sprang into instant favor with American boy readers and is
+bound to occupy a place in their hearts second only to that now held by Frank Merriwell.</p>
+
+<p>The reason for this popularity is apparent in every line of these stories. They are
+written by an author who has made a life study of the requirements of the up-to-date American
+boy as far as literature is concerned, so it is not surprising that this line has proven a
+huge success from the very start.</p>
+
+<p>Here are the titles now ready and also those to be published. You will never have a
+better opportunity to get a generous quantity of reading of the highest quality, so place
+your orders now.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 1.&mdash;Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 2.&mdash;Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 3.&mdash;Motor Matt's Century Run; or, The Governor's Courier.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 4.&mdash;Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the "Comet."</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22nd</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 5.&mdash;Motor Matt's Mystery; or, Foiling a Secret Plot.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 29th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 6.&mdash;Motor Matt's Red Flier; or, On the High Gear.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 5th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 7.&mdash;Motor Matt's Clue; or, The Phantom Auto.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 12th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 8.&mdash;Motor Matt's Triumph; or, Three Speeds Forward.</b><br />
+</p>
+</blockquote>
+
+<p>
+<b class="huge" style="margin-right: 0.5em;">Price, Five Cents</b>      To be had from newsdealers everywhere, or sent,
+postpaid, upon receipt of the price by the publishers<br />
+</p>
+
+
+<p class="center large"><i>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK</i></p>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="Transcribers_Notes" id="Transcribers_Notes">Transcriber's Note:</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Added table of contents.</p>
+
+<p>Cover image may be clicked to view larger version.</p>
+
+<p>Retained some inconsistent hyphenation (e.g. "motorcycle" vs.
+"motor-cycle").</p>
+
+<p>Retained some inconsistent spellings in dialect (e.g. "becase" vs.
+"bekase").</p>
+
+<p>Page 3, added missing comma after ""Vell, py shinks." Added missing
+apostrophe after "doan" in "Why doan' yo'-all git." Removed unnecessary
+quote after "Matt stopped the Red Flier."</p>
+
+<p>Page 4, removed unnecessary quote after "Legree was about to secure it?"</p>
+
+<p>Page 5, changed "as she pointed" to "as he pointed."</p>
+
+<p>Page 10, "would came after it" looks like a typo but has been retained
+in case it is intentional dialect.</p>
+
+<p>Page 14, removed unnecessary quote before "Matt's pulses quickened."</p>
+
+<p>Page 18, added missing period after "Josh turned to stare along the
+road."</p>
+
+<p>Page 19, changed "Mat" to "Matt" in "Matt was intending to push the
+stone."</p>
+
+<p>Page 20, the sentence "As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping
+from up the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun."
+seems incorrect, but it is reproduced as originally printed.</p>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 47491 ***</div>
+</body>
+</html>
+
diff --git a/47491-h/images/cover.jpg b/47491-h/images/cover.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..334c9eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/47491-h/images/cover.jpg
diff --git a/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg b/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a601ef9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg
diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6312041
--- /dev/null
+++ b/LICENSE.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..81ac3dc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/README.md
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #47491 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/47491)
diff --git a/old/47491-8.txt b/old/47491-8.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..117284a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-8.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,5052 @@
+The Project Gutenberg eBook, Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear,
+by Stanley R. Matthews
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
+other parts of the world 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.  If you are not located in the United States, you'll have
+to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook.
+
+
+
+
+Title: Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear
+       Motor Stories Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction No. 6, April 3, 1909
+
+
+Author: Stanley R. Matthews
+
+
+
+Release Date: November 29, 2014  [eBook #47491]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE
+HIGH GEAR***
+
+
+E-text prepared by David Edwards, Demian Katz, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made
+available by Villanova University Digital Library
+(http://digital.library.villanova.edu/)
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrated book cover.
+      See 47491-h.htm or 47491-h.zip:
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h/47491-h.htm)
+      or
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h.zip)
+
+
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+      Villanova University Digital Library. See
+      http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+      Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
+
+      Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=).
+
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+No. 6 Apr. 3, 1909
+
+Five Cents
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR ON THE HIGH GEAR
+
+by
+
+STANLEY R. MATTHEWS
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Street & Smith,
+Publishers,
+New York.
+
+
+[Illustration: _"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
+the girl's aid, "dot pelongs to Moder Matt!"_]
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+_Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to
+Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of
+Congress, Washington, D. C., by_ STREET & SMITH, _79-89 Seventh Avenue,
+New York, N. Y._
+
+No. 6.      NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.      Price Five Cents.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR,
+
+ON THE HIGH GEAR.
+
+By the author of "MOTOR MATT."
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+  CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+  CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+  CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+  CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.
+  CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+  CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.
+  CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+  CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.
+  CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.
+  CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.
+  CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.
+  CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+  CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+  CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.
+  A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+  SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+  REELFOOT LAKE.
+  A FLOATING SLUM.
+  WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+
+
+CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.
+
+
+  =Matt King=, concerning whom there has always been a mystery--a lad
+  of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who has won
+  for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the popular name of
+  "Mile-a-minute Matt."
+
+  =Carl Pretzel=, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
+  fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.
+
+  "=Legree=," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about whom
+  something mysterious seems to hover.
+
+  "=Little Eva=," who turns out to be other than appearances would seem
+  to indicate.
+
+  "=Eliza=,"     }
+  "=Uncle Tom=," } other members of the unlucky road combination
+  "=Topsy=,"     } helped by Motor Matt.
+
+  =Brisco=,   } a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
+  =Spangler=, } Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
+
+  =O'Grady=, an inn-keeper.
+
+  =Lem Nugent=, the owner of the stolen runabout.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's in de ruvver! He
+drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit head first lak er frawg. He's
+drowndin', he sholey is! By golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis
+minyit! Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"
+
+Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she screeched for help she
+ran circles on the river-bank, tossing her hands wildly. If she had put
+some of her aimless energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed
+old negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off. He was
+floundering and thrashing and making a good deal of noise himself.
+
+"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got de crampus en
+mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off! Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's
+gawn down, en de nex' time Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f
+out none--doan' scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a coon
+whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh an'----"
+
+Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less, just then, and his
+language was submerged.
+
+"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back through the
+brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree. "Do something,
+somebody! Oh, I wish we had a rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she
+added encouragingly; "we'll get you out!"
+
+"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself around like
+dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me
+a pain. Can't y' swim?"
+
+Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.
+
+"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the bank and reaching
+out to throw the whip-lash toward the old negro, "grab hold of that and
+I'll snake you ashore too quick for any use."
+
+Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water from his eyes, saw
+the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon Legree laid back on the handle and
+pulled. Uncle Tom was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The
+water came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.
+
+"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say, give me a pair o'
+high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat roarin' torrent widou' never
+wettin' me kicks. How much water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle
+Tom? Oh, sister, what a jolt."
+
+Little Eva began to laugh.
+
+"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around on one foot to get
+the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an' show yo' ignunce. Dat didun'
+git away f'um me, nohow," and he threw a small tin box on the ground in
+front of Legree.
+
+Eliza stooped and picked up the box.
+
+"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle Tom must have been
+careless. What were you and Topsy walking along by the river for?" he
+added, turning to the old negro.
+
+"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy, pointing to the
+ground where a stick with a fish-line attached to its end had been
+dropped.
+
+"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' see
+how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan' ketch er fish er kill er possum,
+er somepin lak dat. Mah goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah
+shoes. If a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han', Ah
+wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants tuh kin tote dat 'ar
+box. Ah done had enough ob it."
+
+"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to the next town we'll
+have something to eat."
+
+"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de money, huh?"
+
+"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in her voice,
+"and I'll pawn it."
+
+"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch, and I'll pawn
+that."
+
+"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's head
+wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I couldn't hand dat mutt a
+couple o' good ones if he was handy!"
+
+Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's ears--for "Little
+Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.
+
+"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the boy's father. "You
+can talk a lot without saying much, kid. Come on, everybody," he added.
+"The quicker we get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
+in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."
+
+"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle Tom. "De rheumatix
+is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun' if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif
+mahse'f."
+
+"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back toward the road.
+
+"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah kin do tuh walk
+at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered. Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus
+tough on er ole man, sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis
+country? Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons? Ah'd give
+a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a wagon."
+
+Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his wet sleeve and
+helped him along. In a few minutes they broke away from the river-bank
+into the road.
+
+Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced along with a pocket
+full of stones, and every once in a while he stopped to make a throw at
+a road-runner or a chipmunk.
+
+Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing so thickly that
+it was impossible to see very far into the timber. Eliza and Legree,
+talking over the difficulties in which they found themselves and trying
+to plan some way for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance,
+while Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little Eva
+was dodging around in between, now and then shying at something with a
+stone.
+
+The strange little party had not proceeded far before the boy heard
+a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he might find in such a wild
+country, he jumped into the thicket. And then he jumped out again,
+yelling like a Comanche.
+
+"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road. "Dere's somet'ing
+chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an' has a mout' like a church
+door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer lives!"
+
+The other four gave their immediate attention to Little Eva, and then
+changed it to something that rolled out of the undergrowth directly
+behind them.
+
+"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody climb a tree!"
+
+This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little Eva shinned up a
+sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into a scrub oak, and then started
+for a neighboring pine himself, and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous
+amount of reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.
+
+"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he fluttered,
+getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of the tree with both
+arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered, craning his neck to get a good look
+at the cause of the disturbance. "Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan'
+want no truck wif you."
+
+The bear was a grizzly--not a large grizzly, but plenty large enough.
+There were lots of bigger bears in that part of Arizona, but this was
+the biggest one Fate had to run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."
+
+Having gained a position about half-way up and down the line of treed
+actors, the bear sat down in the road and proceeded to enjoy the
+situation.
+
+"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of the pine: "is
+everybody all right?"
+
+"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right, dad," answered
+Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's all t' de good. But, say, I
+ain't feelin' real comfertable in me mind."
+
+"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy. "Hit ain't right
+tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when we's all tiah'd out."
+
+"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle Tom, "en tie dat whip
+erroun' his neck an' strangle de life outen him. Beah meat is mighty
+nigh as good as possum, an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."
+
+"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go away. I guess he's
+thinking more about making a meal off of us than letting us make one
+from him."
+
+"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling tones, by way of
+enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one
+yo' sholey is gwine tuh fin' anudder."
+
+"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin' down de road lak er
+singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah golly! We's all as good as daid--we's all
+gwine tuh be et up."
+
+Strange noises were coming from along the back track, coming rapidly
+and growing louder and louder.
+
+"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle Tom, climbing
+a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes is dat he ain't big enough tuh
+reach up en take me outen de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en
+mah bones."
+
+The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed to puzzle him. He
+sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly, and then dropped down on
+all fours and ambled into the brush.
+
+The next moment, to the astonishment of the four actors, a sparkling
+red automobile rushed into sight, coming from the direction of Ash Fork
+and headed toward Fairview.
+
+A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's seat; beside him
+was a young German in a "loud" suit and a red vest.
+
+"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"
+
+"Saved!" cried Eliza.
+
+The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the same place where
+the bear had recently held the fort.
+
+The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of amazement as they
+stared at the odd assortment of actors hanging in the trees.
+
+"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a jeerful pitzness
+und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I efer knowed it bossiple to
+pick actor-peoples oudt oof der drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor
+Matt?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+
+
+Motor Matt didn't know what to think. The queerest lot of people
+he ever saw were dropping out of the trees and hurrying toward the
+automobile.
+
+First, there was a young woman of seventeen or eighteen, wearing a
+dust-coat and gauntlets. There was a look of intense relief on her
+pretty face.
+
+Following her came a tall, slimly built man, whose clothes suggested
+the ruffian, but whose face was anything but vicious. He carried a
+blacksnake whip.
+
+A boy trailed after the man. He wasn't a handsome boy, by any means,
+but his eyes were bright and sharp and he had a clever look.
+
+From the other way along the road came an old darky in tattered, soggy
+clothes. A young negro girl hurried along beside him.
+
+"Well," breathed Motor Matt, "if this ain't a brain-twister I don't
+want a cent. Who are they, Carl? One of them seems to know you."
+
+"Sure I knows him," spoke up the boy. "Got wise t' Carl Pretzel in
+Denver. 'Pretzel an' Pringle, Musical Marvels.' W'ere's Pringle, Dutch?"
+
+"Don't say someding aboudt him," answered Carl. "I haf scratched him
+off my visiding-list, yah, you bed you. Pringle iss some pad eggs, und
+ve don'd ged along mit each odder. Matt, dis vas Liddle Efa, who blays
+mit a Ungle Dom's Capin Gompany. Ven he geds his leedle curly-viggies
+on, he looks fine--schust like some girls, yes. Who iss der odder
+peobles, Efa?"
+
+"Dis is me fader, Dutch," answered the boy; "he's de guy wot licks
+Uncle Tom in de show. De loidy is Eliza, an' say, she's got 'em all
+skinned w'en it comes t' jumpin' acrost de river on cakes of ice. Dat's
+Uncle Tom, scramblin' into de auto wit'out waitin' f'r an invite, an'
+de goil is Topsy."
+
+"Young man," said Legree, stepping forward and addressing Motor Matt,
+"we're what's left of Brisco's Uncle Tom's Cabin Company. Brisco took
+all the funds and left us in the lurch at Brockville, the station west
+of Ash Fork. The constable took our tent, and properties, and even the
+bloodhounds. We were left with the clothes we stood in, and that's
+all. Marks, and St. Clair, and the rest, made a raise and rode back to
+Denver in the train. They didn't have enough to help us out, and so
+we've started to walk as far as Flagstaff. When we get there, we're
+going to get up some sort of an entertainment and see if we can't pull
+down enough hard cash to see us through to Denver. Brisco owes all of
+us money. Barrin' the kid, here, he beat each one of us out of more'n a
+hundred dollars. But we're goin' to get him; you see if we don't."
+
+A grim look came to Legree's face.
+
+"Veil," said Carl, "be jeerful und don'd vorry. I haf der same kindt
+oof pad luck, den I met oop mit Modor Matt und der luck dook a shange.
+Meppy yours vill dake a shange, too."
+
+"We're going to Albuquerque," spoke up Matt, "and if you don't mind
+being crowded we can give you a lift as far as Flagstaff."
+
+A long breath of satisfaction broke from Uncle Tom.
+
+"Dat's fine," said he. "Dis niggah am sholy tuckered. Why doan' yo'-all
+git intuh de wagon? Dat beah am li'ble tuh come snoopin' an' pesterin'
+back."
+
+"Pear?" cried Carl. "Vat you say, huh? Iss dere a pear aroundt here?"
+
+"Dat's no dream, Dutch," answered the boy. "Wot did yous t'ink it was
+chased us up dem trees?"
+
+"Everythin's been goin' wrong with us ever since we hit Brockville,"
+said Legree. "A lot more'll happen, too, but I reckon we're done with
+the bear. This machine scared the brute away. How'll you have us in the
+car, Motor Matt?"
+
+"Little Eva, as you call him," said Matt, laughing a little as he
+looked at the boy, "had better get in front here with Carl. That will
+leave four of you for the tonneau. It won't be long until we get to
+Fairview, and we'll stop there for dinner."
+
+"Um-yum," said Topsy; "golly, but dat sounds good! Dinnah! Heah dat,
+Unc' Tawn?"
+
+Uncle Tom smacked his lips and rolled up the whites of his eyes.
+
+"Doan' say a wo'd, chile," he cautioned. "Dis seems jess lak er dream,
+dis ride in de debble-wagon, de dinnah, en all. Yo' speak too loud,
+Ah's fearin' Ah's done gwine tuh woke up."
+
+With his load of stranded actors aboard, all rejoicing in the good
+luck that had brought Matt and Carl along with the automobile at that
+particular time, the young motorist cranked up, threw in the clutch and
+started. Hardly were they under good headway when a sharp cry came from
+Eliza.
+
+"Stop! The box! I dropped it when I got up into that tree."
+
+Matt stopped the Red Flier.
+
+"Pox?" cried Carl; "vat iss dot?"
+
+"Dat's whut got me into de ruvver," said Uncle Tom. "Ah 'lows dat box
+is er heap mo' trouble dan hit's worf."
+
+"If we ever get hold of Brisco," returned Legree, "it'll be that box
+that does it for us. Wait here a minute, Motor Matt, and I'll go back
+and get it. I think I know right where it is."
+
+Legree got out of the car, went back along the road, and vanished among
+the bushes.
+
+"Is der money in der pox?" asked Carl.
+
+"We don't know what's in it," answered Eliza.
+
+"Dot's keveer. How vill dot pox helup you ged holt oof Prisco?"
+
+"Brisco always kept it by him," went on Eliza, "so we know he thinks
+it's valuable. He told Legree, once, he wouldn't lose the box for ten
+thousand dollars."
+
+"How did you come to get hold of it?" inquired Matt.
+
+"That's the queer part of it. Brisco left the Brockville hotel during
+the night----"
+
+"An' I picked it up by de door, next mornin'," chimed in the boy.
+"Brisco must have dropped it when he made dat getaway. It was blacker
+dan a stack o' black cats, dat night, an' he wasn't able t' use his
+lamps."
+
+"When Marks, and Harris, and St. Clair, and the rest of the company
+left Brockville," continued Eliza, "they told us to keep the box and
+not give it up until Brisco paid over what he owed. We lost our wages
+and everything else we had except the clothes on our backs."
+
+"Dot's me," spoke up Carl; "I vas fixed der same vat you are. Den,
+pympy, Modor Matt come along mit himseluf, shpoke some jeerful vorts
+mit me, dook me for a bard, und luck made a shange. Meppy dot iss how
+it vill be mit you."
+
+"Seems lak he was a long time findin' dat dere box," said Uncle Tom.
+"Ah's honin' fo' dat hotel in Fairview, an' fo' dat dinnah, an' fo' to
+dry dese clothes. Mistah Legree is a monstus long time, an' no mistake."
+
+"Stay here, all of you," said Matt, getting out of the car. "I'll go
+back and see if I can help find the box. If it's so important, it won't
+do to leave it behind."
+
+"I'll go 'long wit' yous," chirped the boy.
+
+Before he could get out of the car, the sharp, incisive note of a
+revolver echoed from the bushes at the trail-side, close to the place
+where Legree had vanished into them.
+
+Eliza stifled a scream.
+
+"Mah goodness!" fluttered Topsy. "Somebody's done gone tuh shootin'!"
+
+"It wasn't dad, dat's a cinch!" cried the boy. "He didn't have no gun!"
+
+"Stay there!" called Matt to the boy, as he whirled and hurried on.
+"Stand ready to crank up the machine, Carl," he added, "in case we
+have to start in a hurry." Matt had dropped into the troubles of these
+forlorn "Uncle Tommers" with bewildering suddenness. He hadn't had the
+remotest notion that there was going to be any violence, or shooting,
+and the report of the revolver had sent a thrill of alarm through him.
+
+Had Brisco been tracking the unfortunate actors, and had he attempted
+to make way with the tin box just as Legree was about to secure it?
+
+As Matt drew closer to the thicket, he heard sharp and angry voices.
+One voice he recognized as belonging to Legree, and the other struck a
+strangely familiar note in his ear. He had heard that voice somewhere
+before--but where?
+
+There were only two voices taking part in the talk, but the man who
+had intercepted Legree was armed. Matt knew it would stand him in hand
+to be cautious, so, instead of turning directly from the road into the
+brush, he darted for the timber some distance beyond the scene of the
+altercation. Then, making his way back warily, he pushed through the
+bushes.
+
+He made very little noise--so little that his approach was not heard
+by either of the two men. Legree, however, was standing in such a
+position that he could not help seeing Matt. He was facing the other
+man, and the latter had his back to the young motorist.
+
+There was something familiar about that back, but even yet Matt could
+not recall who the man was.
+
+The fellow was roughly dressed. In his right hand he was holding a
+revolver, pointing it squarely at Legree, and in his left hand he was
+holding a small tin box.
+
+"If ye think ye can fool Hank Brisco," the man with the weapon was
+saying, "ye're far wide o' yer trail. He's got a ottermobill, now, what
+kin shoot through the kentry like a cannon-ball, an' I reckon thar'll
+be some Cain raised on this part o' the range afore many moons. You
+take my advice an' hike out o' here without tryin' ter make Hank any
+trouble, er----"
+
+Just at that moment Motor Matt's opportunity came. Flinging himself
+forward suddenly, he grabbed the revolver out of the ruffian's hand.
+
+"Bully for you, Matt!" cried Legree.
+
+The next instant Legree's blacksnake whip had curled itself about the
+ruffian's left wrist, girdling the skin like a loop of fire.
+
+The man roared out an oath. The pain must have been intense, for his
+fingers curled away from the box and he caught his wrist with his other
+hand.
+
+Matt stared. When the ruffian had turned and rushed into the woods,
+cursing and vowing vengeance, Matt continued to stare.
+
+"Ever seen that man before, Matt?" asked Legree, surprised at the boy's
+manner.
+
+"I should say so!" exclaimed Matt. "Let's get back to the car. You've
+got back the box, but we haven't seen the last of this--not by a long
+shot."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+
+
+Shouts of relief went up from those in the Red Flier at sight of Matt
+and Legree sprinting down the road, Legree with the box and Matt with
+the revolver.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" jubilated Carl; "be jeerful, eferypody. Here dey come
+alretty, und mit more as dey vent to ged!"
+
+"Fo' de lan' sake!" chattered Topsy; "Ah sholy expected some one had
+done been kilt."
+
+"Git right in de kyah," urged Uncle Tom, "so we kin git erway f'om
+dis hyeh place. Beahs, en robbahs, en oddah spontaneous excitements
+is monstus tryin' to er niggah wif er empty stummick. Ah doan' lak
+shootin' nohow."
+
+"Was dat some guy t'rowin' a bullet at yous, dad?" inquired Little Eva.
+"How close did he come t' ringin' de bell?"
+
+"How many were there?" cried Eliza; "are they following us?"
+
+Matt jumped into his seat, and Legree scrambled for the tonneau.
+
+"Take this, Legree," called Matt, and dropped the revolver over the
+back of the seat.
+
+Carl, who had been posted at the front of the machine, had already
+"turned over" the engine. As she took the spark Carl crawled to his
+place beside Matt, and the Red Flier glided away.
+
+The young motorist was silent for a while, listening as Legree told
+how he had gone searching for the box and found it in the hands of
+a scoundrel whom he had never seen before. The Unknown had fired a
+revolver, but it had been more to intimidate Legree and keep him at
+a distance, for the bullet had not come anywhere near him. Legree
+finished with an account of how Matt had come up behind the ruffian and
+had saved the day.
+
+"Dot's der vay Modor Matt does pitzness," said the admiring Carl. "You
+bed my life he vas some virlvinds ven he leds himseluf oudt."
+
+"The name of the man who ran off and left your company stranded was
+Hank Brisco, was it?" asked Matt.
+
+"That was his name, Matt," replied Legree. "But who was that
+tough-looking citizen that had me cornered, there in the thicket?"
+
+"I'll have to tell you something that happened to Carl and me, a few
+days ago, in order for you to understand that part of it," answered
+Matt. "This touring-car belongs to Mr. James Q. Tomlinson, a wholesale
+jeweler who lives in Denver. He and his driver, Gregory, have been
+touring the Southwest in it. A gang of thieves, among whom was a fellow
+called Hank, and another called Spangler, robbed Mr. Tomlinson on the
+trail, several miles west of Ash Fork. Carl and I got mixed up in the
+trouble, and we had some exciting times racing the Red Flier against a
+high-powered runabout that the thieves stole from a wealthy cattleman
+named Lem Nugent.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson recovered his stolen property and went on to Albuquerque
+with his driver, Gregory, hiring me to take the touring-car from Ash
+Fork to Albuquerque. That's how we happened to come along in time to
+help you out, Mr. Legree."
+
+"If this man, Tomlinson, got back his stolen property," asked Legree,
+"what became of the thieves?"
+
+"Two of them, Hank and Spangler, got away with the cattleman's car. The
+stolen runabout can go like a blue streak, and is lighter and faster
+than the Red Flier. Now, the man that tried to get the tin box, back
+there in the thicket, was none other than Spangler; and the other
+villain, who was called by the name of 'Hank,' was the fellow who left
+you in the lurch at Brockville."
+
+"Shiminy grickets, how t'ings vill turn oudt mit demselufs, vonce und
+again!" clamored Carl. "Domlinson vould like more as he can dell to haf
+dose fellers ketched, and Nuchent vants pooty pad dot he geds his car
+pack some more. He vill gif fife huntert tollars to any vone vat vill
+findt der car, und he vill gif fife huntert more for Hank, und der same
+for Spangler." Carl leaned toward Matt with his eyes almost popping
+from his head. "Bard," he asked, "can ve scoop it in?"
+
+"I'd like to get back that runabout for Mr. Nugent," said Matt, "but I
+don't know as we ought to take the time to go fooling along on our way
+to Albuquerque."
+
+"Vell, Misder Domlinson say dot dere vasn't any hurry."
+
+"He also said," continued Matt, "that he wouldn't trust this car with
+everybody. If we should get to tearing around after Hank and Spangler,
+and damage the Flier, we would find ourselves in a hole."
+
+"You hadn't better bother trying to take us to Flagstaff, then," put
+in Legree, "for as long as we've got this tin box Brisco is going to
+keep on trying to get hold of it. If he chases us with that stolen
+runabout, which you say is a faster car than the Red Flier, you're
+goin' to run some risks with this machine."
+
+"If we work it right," said Matt, "I guess we can get you people to
+Flagstaff without being bothered much by Hank and Spangler. It's queer,
+though, to have it turn out that those two scoundrels are mixed up in
+these troubles of yours."
+
+"Ah's done had trouble enough," wailed Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' know
+how Ah could stand any mo'. Ah's er pretty ole niggah tuh go traipsin'
+erroun' afteh robbahs, en drappin' intuh rivvers, an' climbin' trees
+tuh sabe my hide from beahs. All de same, Ah 'lows some ob dat money
+fo' ketchin' dat 'ar Brisco would come mouty handy. But Mistah Legree,
+yo' listen hyeh. If Brisco sets sich er pow'ful store by dat 'ar box,
+mebby he'd buy hit offen de lot ob us, payin' us whut he owes jess tuh
+git holt ob hit. Why not, sah, entah intuh prognostications wif him wif
+de view ob settlin' ouah compunctions in er pleasin' manner?"
+
+A shadow of a grin wreathed itself around Legree's lips.
+
+"Well, Uncle Tom," he answered, "it's hard to prognosticate with a chap
+who's so hard to find as Brisco is."
+
+"Vere vas Hank vile Spangler vas looking for der pox, Matt?" asked Carl.
+
+"That's a conundrum, Carl."
+
+"Und vere vas der runaboudt?"
+
+"Another conundrum."
+
+"Vell, ditn't Spangler ride to der blace vere he come for der din pox
+in der runaboudt?"
+
+"I didn't see anything of the machine, but I was afraid it was
+somewhere around--which is the reason I was in such a hurry to make a
+fresh start for Fairview."
+
+"Ve don'd vas shased py der runaboudt, anyvay, und dot means dot it
+vasn't some blace around vere Spangler vas."
+
+"Chee!" came from Little Eva, as he pointed ahead. "Dere's de burg wot
+we're headin' fer. I'm a jay if it don't look almost big enough fer two
+'r t'ree people t' live in."
+
+From the rising ground on which the Red Flier and its passengers found
+themselves, at that moment, Fairview could be fairly viewed. Perhaps
+there were twenty-five or thirty houses in the place, the main street
+being bordered by half a dozen stores.
+
+"Doan' yo' go an' tell me dar ain't no hotel," faltered Uncle Tom.
+
+"No matter how small a town is, Uncle Tom," returned Eliza, "travelers
+can always find a place to stay. Our hardest work will be, I think, to
+discover some one who will lend money on our jewelry."
+
+"I'll furnish the jewelry, Eliza," said Legree. "This watch of mine is
+worth enough, I think, to furnish us with food and lodging while Motor
+Matt gives us a lift to Flagstaff."
+
+"If you're out of cash," spoke up Matt, in his usual generous style,
+"I'll foot the bills. Some time, when you get on Easy Street, you can
+pay me back."
+
+Uncle Tom's anxiety over the prospect fell from him like a wet blanket.
+
+"Yo's a gemman, Mistah Motah Matt," he declared, "yo' is what Ah calls
+a puffick gemman. Ah'm mos'ly independent in dese money mattahs--dis
+is de fust time since Ah can remembah dat Ah habn't had all ob two
+dollars in mah clo's--so hit is mouty spognoocious tuh mah pride, sah,
+to be fo'ced tuh accept a loan. Still, sah, Ah brings mahse'f to hit
+bekase yo' is so willin' an' so spendacious. In retu'n fo' dat, Mistah
+Motah Matt, Ah becomes on de spot yo' official mascot. Yassuh. Ah takes
+yo' luck en mah own han's, an' evah time what yo' do anyt'ing, Ah
+agrees tuh make yo' a winnah."
+
+"Much obliged, Uncle Tom," laughed Matt.
+
+"Go on wif yo'!" cried Topsy. "Why didun' yo' mascot dat 'ar company so
+dat Brisco couldn't do lak what he done? Mascot! Yah, yah, yah!"
+
+"Laff," returned Uncle Tom tartly, "laff an' show yo' ignunce! What yo'
+unnerstan' about luckosophy an' mascots? Yo' mouty triflin' an' tryin',
+dat's what yo' is. Wait twell yo' see what Ah does fo' Motah Matt."
+
+During this talk, the Red Flier had glided down a long slope into the
+little town. It did not take long to traverse the main street, and as
+they jogged onward all eyes looked carefully for a hotel.
+
+Finally they saw a sign with a picture of something that looked like a
+four-leaved clover. Under the picture were the printed words, "Shamrock
+House."
+
+"Dat 'ar fo'-leaved clovah means luck," averred Uncle Tom.
+
+"It's supposed to be a shamrock, Uncle Tom," said Eliza, "and not a
+clover-leaf."
+
+"Ah knows dat," went on Uncle Tom, "but hit sho' means luck. Ah done
+got de feelin'."
+
+Motor Matt and Carl Pretzel "got the feeling," too, for around at one
+side of the hotel they saw another automobile. There was no one around
+the car. Carl nearly dropped off his seat.
+
+"Vas I plind mit meinseluf," he whispered, "or iss it der real t'ing
+vat I see? Matt, dere iss der shtolen runaboudt, mit nopody aroundt!
+Fife huntert tollars saying it righdt oudt loud, 'Come, oh, come,
+somepody und pick me oop!'"
+
+Matt was astounded; yet there was not the least doubt about the
+runabout being the same car that had been stolen.
+
+"Is that the automobile Brisco ran away with?" demanded Legree, leaping
+energetically out of the tonneau. "That's the one!" declared Matt.
+
+"Then come with me, Matt, you and Carl," said Legree, starting for the
+hotel door. "Keep behind, though. I'm armed, now, and can meet Brisco
+in his own way if he shows fight."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+
+
+Matt, while following Legree toward the front of the hotel, was doing
+some quick thinking to account for this surprising discovery of the
+runabout.
+
+Very likely Brisco and Spangler were planning to recover the tin box.
+It must have been these plans that had brought them eastward from the
+vicinity of Ash Fork.
+
+Spangler had been dropped on the road to intercept the stranded players
+and get the box, while Brisco had come recklessly into Fairview.
+Possibly Brisco had been compelled to come into town after gasoline and
+oil.
+
+"Ah doan' want tuh be erroun' if dar's goin' tuh be any shootin',"
+palpitated Uncle Tom, rolling out of the tonneau with more haste than
+grace. "Ah used tuh be a reg'lar fire-eatah, en mah youngah days, but
+Ah dun kinder got ovah hit. Topsy, yo' an' Miss 'Liza come right along
+wif me, dis instinct. We'll go off whah dar's er safe place fo' me tuh
+do mah mascottin' fo' Motah Matt."
+
+Eliza and Topsy hurriedly descended from the car. Little Eva was
+already on the ground, but instead of going around the hotel with
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, he strolled over to the runabout. In their
+excitement, the others did not miss the boy.
+
+There were two windows in the hotel office--one in the front wall, a
+dozen feet from the door, and one just around the corner in the side
+wall. The window in the side wall overlooked the runabout.
+
+Matt, doing some quick figuring, jumped at the conclusion that Brisco,
+taken by surprise by Legree, would make a bolt through one of the
+windows, both of which were open.
+
+Close to the front window an eave-spout entered a rain-water barrel.
+Matt did not believe Brisco, if he tried to escape by a window, would
+come out at the front, but at the side, where he would be nearer
+the runabout. With this idea in mind, Matt placed Carl behind the
+water-barrel, while he went around the corner.
+
+Through the window on that side the young motorist stole a cautious
+look.
+
+Two men were leaning over a counter in the office. One was plainly an
+Irishman, and the proprietor of the place, and the other was as plainly
+Hank Brisco. Matt knew Brisco too well to be mistaken in him. Neither
+Brisco nor the Irish proprietor had heard the approach of the Red
+Flier, nor the entrance of Legree into the office.
+
+With a grim smile on his face, and the revolver in his hand, Legree was
+leaning against the wall, just inside the door, waiting for Brisco to
+turn around.
+
+"Begorry," the proprietor was saying, "fifty cints a gallon f'r th'
+gasoline is all I'm afther chargin' yez. Oi know av robbers around here
+who'd be chargin' yez a dollar a gallon, but that's not the way wid
+Terence O'Grady. Fifty cints is th' most Oi'll take from yez. Fifteen
+gallons at fifty cints is sivin-fifty; then wan dollar f'r oil makes
+eight-fifty. Eight-fifty from tin laves wan an a half, an' there yez
+are. Will yez shtay f'r dinner? Faith, we've as foine a male t'day as
+yez iver put tooth in, an' a dollar is all ut will cost yez."
+
+"I reckon I'll stay, O'Grady," replied Brisco, picking his change off
+the counter and sliding it into his pocket.
+
+Then he turned, and met the leveled weapon of Legree. Brisco's
+astonishment was ludicrous to behold. And O'Grady was fully as startled.
+
+"Phat th' blazes d'yez mean by thot?" and O'Grady jumped over the
+counter and stood glaring at Legree.
+
+"I'll explain," said Legree, with a coolness that filled Matt with
+admiration, "but while I'm talking, O'Grady, don't get between the
+point of this weapon and that man, there."
+
+"Is ut a hould-up?" demanded O'Grady.
+
+"Not at all. The man behind you knows me, and he knows that he owes me
+a hundred and twenty dollars."
+
+"I don't know anything of the kind," replied Brisco, every whit as cool
+as Legree. "You've made a mistake, my man; and, besides, even if I did
+owe you money, you're trying to collect it in the wrong way."
+
+"Roight yez are!" put in O'Grady. "Shtick thot pisthol in yer pocket
+an' go off wid yez. This is a dacint, rayspectible hotel, an' guns
+ain't allowed in th' place at all, at all. Av yez don't hike, begorry,
+Oi'll call in th' town marshal."
+
+"Call the marshal," said Legree; "he's the man I'd like to have here.
+That fellow who just bought gasoline and oil at this place is one of
+the gang who robbed Tomlinson, the Denver jeweler, over west of Ash
+Fork, and stole the automobile belonging to Nugent, the cattleman----"
+
+Brisco began to laugh.
+
+"What do you think of that, O'Grady?" he cried. "Why, that car you just
+helped me fill with gasoline is Tomlinson's car! I'm taking it east for
+him. Who this man is, or what game he's trying to play, is more than I
+know."
+
+Brisco was edging around toward the side window.
+
+"Look out, Mr. Legree!" called Matt, through the opening. "He's trying
+to get where he can drop out here."
+
+Matt's words caused Brisco and O'Grady to swerve their glances in his
+direction. A glint darted into Brisco's eyes at sight of Matt. Hank
+Brisco had good reason to remember the young motorist.
+
+"This looks like a put-up job, O'Grady," said Brisco, still keeping the
+whip-hand of himself.
+
+"Well, begob," cried O'Grady, "no pack av blackguards can come into
+th' Shamrock Hotel an' shtir up throuble f'r me customers. Clear out
+av here," he added, brandishing his fists, "or Oi'll be afther gittin'
+busy wid me hands."
+
+"Is that man the one who helped rob Tomlinson, Matt?" asked Legree,
+nodding his head toward Brisco.
+
+"He's the one," answered Matt. "I'd know him anywhere. Don't let
+him----"
+
+Just at that moment, O'Grady, wofully deceived, but thinking he was
+doing exactly what was right, kicked a chair at Legree.
+
+The chair struck Legree's shins with a force that hurled him back
+against the wall.
+
+"Now, then," roared O'Grady to Brisco, "make a run av it! Oi'll take
+care av this boonch av meddlers!"
+
+With that, he hurled himself upon Legree and the two began to struggle,
+falling over the chair and dropping heavily on the floor.
+
+They were directly across the doorway, and Brisco sprang for the front
+window and pushed himself through it.
+
+"Shtop a leedle!" whooped Carl, dodging around the rain-water barrel;
+"you don'd got avay so easy as dot, und---- Himmelblitzen!"
+
+Brisco had grabbed the barrel. That happened to be the dry season and
+the barrel was empty. Giving it a whirl, he threw it against the Dutch
+boy with a force that took him off his feet.
+
+Thrashing his arms wildly, Carl laid himself down on the rolling barrel
+and went caroming off toward the road.
+
+Meantime, Matt, seeing that Brisco was making for the window guarded by
+Carl, had rushed around to the front of the hotel. He reached the scene
+of the scrimmage just in time to be grabbed by O'Grady.
+
+The racket in the office had brought O'Grady's Chinese cook from the
+kitchen; and, while the Chinaman continued the tussle with Legree, the
+proprietor of the hotel had rushed out to see what more he could do for
+the man who had paid him so well for gasoline and oil.
+
+"Oi've got yez, yez meddlin' omadhoun!" shouted O'Grady. "Oi'll tach
+yez t' come interferin' wid dacint people!"
+
+With that he flung his arms around Motor Matt and hung to him with all
+his strength.
+
+"Hang onto him, O'Grady!" cried Brisco, dashing for the runabout.
+
+"Niver yez fret!" panted the Irishman reassuringly; "good-by t' yez.
+Next toime yez come we'll give yez betther treatment; there won't be so
+many hoodlums around t'----"
+
+"Let go!" shouted Matt. Then, suddenly freeing his hands, he struck the
+deluded Irishman a quick blow.
+
+O'Grady's hands relaxed for an instant. That instant gave Motor Matt
+his opportunity, and he tore himself free.
+
+About the same moment, Legree, hatless, angry, and chagrined, came
+running out of the office.
+
+"Where's Brisco?" he demanded.
+
+Just then the question was answered by Brisco himself. The runabout,
+leaping around the corner of the hotel, shot toward the road, a mocking
+laugh from Brisco trailing out behind.
+
+"Not this time, Legree!" called Brisco, over his shoulder. "Look out
+for me, from now on--you and Motor Matt!"
+
+The runabout was headed westward. In the rumble behind, lying partly
+over the rumble-seat, was a dust-coat. It undoubtedly belonged to
+Brisco, and he must have thrown it aside while attending to the
+automobile, a few minutes before.
+
+While Motor Matt and Legree stood staring at the receding car, the coat
+lifted a little and a hand was waved.
+
+"Great Scott!" cried Matt; "it's that boy."
+
+Legree, far from showing any consternation, leaned against the wall of
+the building and laughed softly.
+
+Matt was amazed.
+
+"What's the matter with you, Legree?" he demanded.
+
+"I'm just enjoying a situation that has a bad outlook for Brisco," was
+Legree's queer answer.
+
+"It has a bad outlook for the boy, too," said Matt.
+
+"Don't worry about Little Eva. I know him better than you do, and he'll
+take care of himself."
+
+At this moment the Chinaman came out of the hotel office and handed the
+revolver to O'Grady.
+
+"Oi've had about all Oi want av this rough-house!" shouted O'Grady,
+his temper badly warped by the disturbance and the blow Matt had dealt
+him. "Yez will shtay roight here, bedad, until Oi can have th' Chink go
+afther th' town marshal. Go f'r Jennings, Ping," he added, flourishing
+the weapon in the faces of Matt and Legree, "an hustle. We'll make this
+slab-soided roosther laugh on t'other soide av his face befure we're
+done wid him."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+
+
+Carl, having untangled himself from the barrel, brushed off his clothes
+and rubbed his sore spots, came bristling up to O'Grady.
+
+"You vas grazy," he cried, "so grazy as I don'd know. Oof you hatn't
+fooled mit us, t'ings vould haf peen tifferent. Ve lose vone t'ousant
+tollars py vat you do! Yah, so helup me! Pud avay der gun und ged
+reasonaple."
+
+"Huccome dat 'ar resolver change han's lak what Ah see?" inquired Uncle
+Tom, stepping gingerly around the corner of the hotel. "Didun' Ah do yo
+no good, mascottin' fo' yo', Motah Matt?"
+
+Eliza and Topsy followed Uncle Tom, peering about them excitedly and
+evidently expecting to find Brisco a prisoner.
+
+"Something went crossways, Uncle Tom," said Matt. "Brisco got away, and
+he took the stolen car with him. Mr. O'Grady, here, the proprietor of
+the hotel, didn't understand the case and helped the wrong side."
+
+By that time O'Grady was himself beginning to think that he had made
+a mistake. The sight of the big red touring-car, and of the odd
+assortment of passengers who had arrived in it, afforded him food
+for thought. So he was thinking, lowering the revolver meanwhile and
+grabbing Ping, the Chinaman, by the queue to keep him from going after
+the marshal.
+
+"Where did th' lot av yez come from?" O'Grady finally inquired.
+
+"Ash Fork," replied Legree.
+
+"Them colored folks come wid yez?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, mebby Oi did make a bobble, Oi dunno. Tell me something more
+about ut."
+
+Briefly as he could, Legree told of the robbery of Mr. Tomlinson and
+of the stealing of the cattleman's car, then wound up the recital by
+describing how Brisco had run off and left his theatrical company, and
+how Motor Matt had picked up those who were tramping along the road and
+was giving them a lift as far as Flagstaff.
+
+O'Grady seemed to take more stock in Motor Matt than in any of the
+others. He watched the boy out of the tails of his eyes while listening
+to Legree.
+
+"Faith," said he, "yez are a har-r-d hitter, me lad. Oi'm feelin' th'
+rap yez give me this minyit, an' me jaw'll be lame f'r a wake; but sure
+Oi desarved ut av so be Oi'm raysponsible f'r th' mon gittin' away. A
+good custhomer he was, an' Oi make ut a rule t' trate good custhomers
+wid ivery consideration. Oi supplied him wid gasoline out av me private
+barrel, an' sint th' Chinee f'r oil which Oi let him have at double th'
+proice Oi paid f'r ut. By th' same token, Oi felt loike tratin' th'
+mon white, d'yez see? Now, av yez won't say annythin' more about th'
+fracas, sure Oi won't, an' we'll let bygones be bygones. Was yez all
+thinkin' av takin' dinner at th' Shamrock?"
+
+"Dat 'ar was de notion we had, boss," spoke up Uncle Tom eagerly.
+
+"Then, begorry, Oi'll make yez a special rate av sivin dollars f'r th'
+six av yez."
+
+"I'll give you three," said Matt.
+
+"T'ree ut is," was the prompt rejoinder. "Th' ladies can go t' th'
+parlor, an' th' gintlemen will foind a wash-bench by th' kitchen dure.
+Hurry up wid th' meal, Ping," the proprietor added to the Chinaman.
+
+O'Grady handed the revolver to Legree, excused himself and went into
+the hotel.
+
+"It don't take him long to forget the trouble he made us," remarked
+Legree, with a wink. "He's wise, too, in being willing to overlook the
+matter if we are."
+
+Motor Matt couldn't understand Legree. He didn't appear to be worried
+in the least about the boy; on the contrary, he seemed pleased with the
+situation.
+
+"Where's the kid?" inquired Eliza.
+
+"He went away with Brisco," replied Legree.
+
+Startled exclamations came from Eliza, Uncle Tom, and Topsy.
+
+"Don't fret about him," went on Legree, with a calm confidence that was
+too deep for Matt, "for he'll come back. I'll have to stay here and
+wait for him, of course, and if Matt feels as though he has to pull out
+for Flagstaff before the kid gets here, why, we'll have to come along
+the best we can."
+
+"The boy's in danger," said Matt, "and I'm not going to leave Fairview
+until I try to do something for him."
+
+"Don't go to any trouble, Matt," returned Legree, "for I tell you again
+the kid's able to look out for himself. This work of his may result in
+the capture of Brisco and the recovery of the stolen car. After we eat,
+I'm going to find a cot, lie down, and take a snooze. I've got that
+coming to me, I think, considering what I've been through to-day. Let's
+hunt up that wash-bench and get ready for dinner."
+
+Matt was in a quandary. He knew, by his own experience, that Brisco was
+a desperate man, and Legree's firm conviction that the boy would keep
+out of trouble looked like the craziest kind of misjudgment.
+
+Following the dinner, to which they all did ample justice, Uncle Tom
+curled up on a door-step in the sun, Legree found a hammock in the
+shade, and Eliza and Topsy disappeared inside the hotel. Matt led Carl
+off to the Red Flier.
+
+"It's a queer layout, Carl," said Matt, nodding his head in the
+direction of the hotel. "Hasn't it struck you that way?"
+
+"Vell," returned Carl, running his fingers reflectively through his mat
+of tow-colored hair, "I vas making some reflections on der soobjeck.
+Leedle Efa don't seem to cut mooch ice mit Legree, hey? Or meppy he cut
+a whole lot dot ve don'd know aboudt."
+
+"You knew the boy in Denver?" went on Matt.
+
+"Yah, aber I forged vat his name vas, or vat he dit. Und I ditn't know
+vedder he hat a fader."
+
+"Well, I don't think we ought to go on to Flagstaff until we find out
+something as to what becomes of the boy."
+
+"Me, neider; aber how ve find oudt, hey?"
+
+"We'll take the Flier and see if we can't track the runabout."
+
+"Und oof ve come too close py der runaboudt, den vat?"
+
+"We'll take some old bottles along. If the runabout shows up and tries
+to chase us, we'll make a run of it and smash the bottles in the road
+behind us."
+
+Carl chuckled. That was an expedient to which Motor Matt had already
+had recourse--and with brilliant success.
+
+"Pully! I vill go findt der pottles, Matt, vile you ged der macheen
+retty."
+
+Carl went off toward a junk-pile back of the wood-shed. By the time
+Matt had made the Red Flier ready, Carl was back with an armful of
+bottles.
+
+"Ve vas on der high gear dis drip, you bed you," observed Carl, dumping
+the bottles into the tonneau. "I like dose oxcidements, yah, so. It vas
+goot for der nerfs und makes a fellow jeerful like nodding."
+
+As they got into the car, ready for the start, Eliza came hurrying out
+of the hotel. She carried the box in her hand and made straight for the
+automobile.
+
+"Where are you going, Matt?" she asked breathlessly.
+
+"We're not intending to run off and leave you," Matt laughed. "We want
+to see if we can't find out something about Little Eva, as you call
+him. It don't seem right to let the boy be carried off like this and
+not try to do something to help him."
+
+"He's a queer kid," said Eliza thoughtfully. "He and Legree were only
+with the company about two months, and they both had a queer way about
+them, sometimes. But if Legree isn't worried I don't know why we ought
+to be."
+
+"I don't know, either," said Matt, "but I am, all the same. Carl and
+I are going to see if we can't follow the trail of the runabout for a
+ways. I don't think we'll be gone more than an hour or two."
+
+"May I go along?"
+
+"Why, yes, if you want to; but hadn't you better leave that box here?"
+
+"Legree told me to keep it by me all the time," answered the girl.
+
+"Probably he didn't intend for you to take it out into the hills. Well,
+never mind. If it's so mighty valuable I guess Legree would be taking
+care of it himself. Jump in, Eliza."
+
+The girl climbed into the tonneau, and Carl closed the door. Matt
+started at low speed, getting into the road at the same place where
+Brisco had driven the runabout. The trail of the broad wheels was well
+defined in the dust, and led along the course followed by the Red Flier
+in coming into town.
+
+"Prisco vent oudt like ve come in," said Carl. "I'm vonderin' in my
+mindt oof he vent pack py Ash Fork?"
+
+"Give it up, Carl," answered Matt. "I don't know where he went. There's
+a whole lot about this business that's the rankest kind of guesswork."
+
+"Sure! Liddle Efa vas foolish mit himseluf for gedding indo der car;
+und he vas foolish some more for shtaying der car in ven he mighdt
+chump it off. Aber meppy he hat his reasons, hey?"
+
+"He must have had a reason for doing such a reckless thing, but he
+don't know Brisco so well as we do."
+
+"He ought to, Matt," spoke up Eliza; "he was with the company for two
+months."
+
+"At that time," Matt answered, "Brisco had the best part of his
+character uppermost. Carl and I have seen the worst side of him, and
+he's the biggest scoundrel out of jail."
+
+"Vorse as dot!" averred Carl.
+
+The tracks of the car led up the slope, out of the valley that
+contained the town, and on along the Ash Fork road.
+
+Matt held the Flier down to an easy pace. For several miles the little
+party had a pleasant ride, without any excitement whatever. But there
+was plenty of excitement in store, and when it arrived it came suddenly.
+
+A turn in the wooded road brought those in the car abruptly into a
+long, straightaway stretch. The instant they were able to look along
+the trail beyond the turn, a thrill shot through the nerves of all of
+them.
+
+Three mounted men were coming toward the car at a tearing clip.
+Evidently they had heard the pounding of the motor and had put their
+horses to top speed.
+
+"Prisco!" shouted Carl; "und dere iss Spangler, too. Durn aroundt,
+Matt! Durn aroundt so kevick as der nation vill let you! Shiminy
+grickets, aber dis vas sutten!"
+
+Motor Matt had recognized two of the riders as Brisco and Spangler,
+even before Carl had given his frightened yell.
+
+Where had Brisco exchanged his seat in the runabout to the saddle of
+the horse? And why had he changed, and where had he left the car?
+
+All this darted through the young motorist's mind as he halted the
+Flier, reversed, and began backing to make the turn.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+LOSING THE BOX.
+
+
+Matt had not dreamed of being pursued by horsemen. The Red Flier
+would have no difficulty in running away from anything on hoofs, and
+certainly she could leave these three riders behind providing she could
+turn and get under headway before being overhauled.
+
+Brisco, Spangler, and the other man were dangerously close before Matt
+got the Red Flier turned the other way. Just back from the bend there
+was a grassy hill, along the foot of which the road ran smoothly. It
+was an excellent place for speed, and Matt jumped from first to second,
+and from second to third with masterful quickness, considering the fact
+that he had to be careful about stripping the gear.
+
+As the car leaped away, like a spirited horse under the spur, Brisco
+was alongside the tonneau. A scream from Eliza called the attention of
+both boys. Matt, of course, was busy with his driving and could not
+turn to see what was the matter. Carl, however, got on his knees in his
+seat, face to the rear. What he saw brought an angry shout from his
+lips.
+
+Brisco, leaning from his saddle, was reaching over the side of the
+tonneau. He had caught hold of the tin box, and Eliza, hanging to it
+with both hands, was struggling to keep him from securing it.
+
+"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to the girl's aid;
+"dot pelongs to Modor Matt!"
+
+Carl was excited, but it wasn't excitement alone that caused him to
+say the box belonged to Matt. He knew Brisco was after a box he had
+once owned himself, and Carl had a hazy idea that if he said the box
+belonged to Matt it might be left alone.
+
+The gathering speed of the car carried it away from Brisco; and, as
+Brisco's one hand was stronger than the girl's two, the box remained
+with him.
+
+Carl got into the tonneau, head over heels and with a crash like the
+breaking of a dozen windows--for he fell into the heap of useless
+bottles. When he picked himself up, the three riders, with jeering
+laughs, had pointed their horses the other way.
+
+"It's gone, Matt!" cried the girl wildly; "the box is gone! Brisco
+snatched it out of my hands!"
+
+"Vat a luck it iss!" growled Carl, holding one hand to his face,
+where it had been cut by a piece of glass. "I got pack here so kevick
+as I couldt, Miss Eliza, aber dot Prisco feller was kevicker as me.
+Donnervetter! Matt, ve come oudt to look for dot poy und ve lose der
+pox! Dot vill be some nice t'ings to dell Legree."
+
+"Oh," cried the girl, half-crying; "I shouldn't have come! Even if it
+was all right for me to come I ought to have left the box at the hotel.
+Now we'll never be able to get our money from Brisco!"
+
+Matt slowed down the car and took a look rearward. The three men were
+out of sight beyond the turn.
+
+"Don't worry about it, Eliza," said Matt. "If any one is to blame,
+I'm the one. There's something queer about that tin box. If it's so
+valuable, why didn't Legree take care of it himself? Why did he trust
+it to you?"
+
+"Before I had it," returned the girl, "Uncle Tom was carrying it. He
+lost it in the river, and had to jump in after it."
+
+"More carelessness on Legree's part! Uncle Tom, as I figure it, is
+about the most irresponsible member of your party, and yet Legree
+allowed him to carry a box which, Brisco had said, was worth ten
+thousand dollars. It don't look reasonable to me."
+
+"Dot's vat it don'd!" exclaimed Carl. "Aber Prisco vanted dot pox pooty
+pad to go afder it like vat he dit. Meppy it vas vort' a lod to him,
+und nodding to Legree and der rest oof der parn-shtormers."
+
+"Just because it _was_ valuable to Brisco is the very reason I should
+have been more careful with it," went on the girl. "We might have made
+him pay us what he owed us, and then we could all have gone back to
+Denver. Now--now----"
+
+The girl began to cry.
+
+"Say," wheedled Carl, "I vouldn't do dot. You don'd helup nodding novay
+oof you cry. Don'd fret aboudt der olt pox. Matt und me vill gif you
+der money to go py Tenver. Jeer oop a liddle."
+
+"Take my word for it, Eliza," said Matt, as the girl lifted her head
+and got better control of her feelings, "that box isn't worth a whole
+lot or Legree wouldn't have taken chances with it like he did. I'm
+sorry Brisco got away with it, of course, and I'm going to hurry back
+to Fairview and do something I ought to have done before--and that is,
+find an officer and put him on Brisco's track."
+
+"Dot von't amoundt to nodding, Matt," said Carl, climbing back into
+the front seat. "Prisco vill ged off der horse und indo der runaboudt
+und der officer mighdt as vell dry to ketch some shtreaks oof greased
+lighdning."
+
+"It may be, Carl," speculated Matt, "that the runabout has broken down.
+I don't believe Brisco and Spangler would be able to fix the machine if
+anything very serious got the matter with it. Perhaps they had to leave
+the car and take to horses."
+
+"Vat's deir game, anyvay? Dot's vat I vant to know. Oof deir game vas
+to ged der pox, den it vas all ofer, und ve don'd haf nodding to do
+mit Brisco und Spangler some more. Py shinks! Dot knocks us oudt oof a
+t'ousand tollars, Matt."
+
+"All Legree was keeping the box for," quavered the girl, "was so that
+Brisco would follow us and try to get it. That would give us a chance
+to make Brisco pay what he owed us."
+
+"Legree ought to have hung onto the box himself," insisted Matt.
+
+"Prisco iss too schlick for Legree," asserted Carl.
+
+"I wish I understood what Brisco and Legree are up to," muttered Matt.
+"There's more to this than appears on the surface."
+
+"Yah, I bed you," agreed Carl, wagging his head. "Oof I knew as mooch
+as I vould like, den I vould tell you all aboudt it, vich I don'd. Den
+dere iss Efa. His monkey-doodle pitzness makes der t'ing vorse."
+
+A quarter of an hour later the Red Flier drew up in its old berth
+alongside the hotel. Eliza got out and ran hurriedly to tell Legree
+what had happened to the tin box.
+
+"I'm sorry for Eliza," said Matt, climbing slowly over the brakes as
+he got out of the car. "She's a nice girl, and it's too bad she has
+to feel all cut up over the way the box was taken from her. I've got
+a notion that Legree is fooling them all--and you and me into the
+bargain, Carl."
+
+"How you t'ink so, Matt?" asked Carl, opening his eyes wide.
+
+"I don't know how he's doing it, or why he's doing it, but it's just a
+hunch I've got."
+
+"How long ve going to shtay here?"
+
+"I don't want to pull out until we learn something more about this
+business. There are parts of it that have a crooked look to me."
+
+At that moment Legree issued from the hotel. He did not act at all
+excited, although he must certainly have learned from Eliza what had
+happened.
+
+"Eliza's been telling me what a time you've had," said he. "The
+principal thing is that Brisco has left the car and got onto a horse.
+I was surprised to hear that. I can't imagine why a rascal, who's as
+badly wanted as he is, should leave a swift automobile and take to
+horseback."
+
+"I should think, Mr. Legree," remarked Matt, "that you would be more
+interested in the loss of that box than in anything else."
+
+"Not at all. In fact, I haven't thought so much of that box since the
+lot of us left Ash Fork. It was a good thing to hang onto, but it
+wasn't so terribly important. I've told Eliza not to feel bad over what
+happened. I'd feel worse myself if the kid hadn't got away in that
+runabout, like he did."
+
+All that Legree said merely made the whole situation darker for Matt.
+And for Carl, too. The Dutch boy stood blinking at Legree, and running
+his fingers through the tangle of tow he called his hair.
+
+"You were keeping the box in the hope that Brisco would came after it
+and give you a chance at him, weren't you?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Yes," answered Legree.
+
+"Well, now that Brisco has got the box you can't expect him to come
+after it."
+
+"Hardly," and Legree gave a short laugh. Noting the perplexity of the
+two boys, he went on: "You miss one point, Matt, in sizing up this
+situation. We're not done with Brisco--not by a long chalk. It isn't
+the box, but what was in it, that Brisco is anxious to get."
+
+"Wasn't there anything in the box?" queried Matt.
+
+"No, and there hasn't been since we left Ash Fork. I opened the box on
+the q. t. in that town and took out what it contained. That object is
+in my possession. I intend to stay in this town, Matt, until Brisco is
+captured. I don't care anything about Spangler; Brisco is the man I
+want. If you've got time, you can stay and help me; and you can keep
+all you get for recovering the runabout for yourself."
+
+"What will you get for your work?"
+
+"Why, I'll send Brisco over the road. _The contents of that box will do
+it!_"
+
+Matt and Carl were dumfounded. The situation was clearing a little, but
+not much.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+
+
+"Do you know this cattleman in Ash Fork who had the runabout stolen
+from him?" asked Legree.
+
+"I know him by sight," answered Matt; "I'm not acquainted with him."
+
+"Are you sure that he will pay five hundred dollars for the recovery of
+his automobile?"
+
+"He said he would, and he's able to do it. And he offers to pay five
+hundred dollars apiece for the capture of Brisco and Spangler."
+
+"Then there's a chance for you to make fifteen hundred. I'd advise you
+to stay here and do it."
+
+Matt leaned against the car and went into a brown study.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson had not required him to get to Albuquerque in a hurry. He
+could take a reasonable amount of time for the trip. But Mr. Tomlinson
+_did_ expect the car to be brought safely to its destination. Would
+Matt in any way endanger the car by staying a short time in Fairview?
+That was the question that bothered him.
+
+"I t'ink, Matt," said Carl, "dot I could use some oof dot fifdeen
+huntert. Vy nod shtay und dry dem a virl?"
+
+"If I stay, Legree," observed Matt, "I won't be called on to use the
+Red Flier for chasing Brisco and Spangler, will I? The car doesn't
+belong to me and I can't take any chances with it."
+
+"You can do as you please about that, Matt. I'm after Brisco. If you
+get Spangler and the runabout, you'll have to do it in your own way.
+Spangler and Brisco, though, seem to be working together, just now, so
+my work ought to help you."
+
+"Why not get an officer here and----"
+
+"Do you want to divide with an officer what the cattleman is willing to
+pay?"
+
+"You know a lot that you're not telling me, Legree," said Matt quietly.
+
+"Well," grinned Legree, "when it comes to that, I know a lot that I'm
+not telling anybody--just now. You've heard more from me than any one
+else--excepting the kid."
+
+"I think I'll lay over here until to-morrow," said Matt.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" exulted Carl. "Be jeerful, everypody. I t'ink, Matt," he
+added, "dot I vill infest my haluf oof dot fifdeen huntert tollars in
+gofermend ponds, und----"
+
+"Don't invest it till you get it, Carl," interposed Matt dryly. "Pull
+off your coat, now, and we'll wash up the car and fill the tanks."
+
+For two hours the boys were more than busy. While in Motor Matt's
+hands, the machine was always as carefully groomed as a race-horse. Not
+only that, but after the day's run he made it a point to go over the
+machinery with a wrench and pliers, tightening up everything that had
+worked loose and making sure that every part was in complete working
+order.
+
+The water-tank was filled. Ten gallons of gasoline were needed for the
+gasoline reservoir, but before he bought any from O'Grady, Matt tested
+it carefully with a hydrometer. Finding it nearly the same grade as
+he had been using, he funneled it into the tank, not only straining
+it through wire gauze but through thin chamois skin as well. The oil
+supply was also replenished.
+
+When the boys were through, the Red Flier was as spick and span as
+when it had come from the shop. Not only that, but it was fit to take
+the road at a moment's notice and make a record run.
+
+To Matt's regret, there was no place in town where the car could be
+housed for the night. There were two or three old barns, but they were
+so foul and unclean that he would not take the machine into them. He
+preferred to leave it outdoors all night, sleeping in the tonneau and
+guarding against tampering.
+
+When supper was announced, Carl watched the car while Matt ate; and
+when Matt had finished, Carl went in for his own meal.
+
+Uncle Tom, feeling much better now that his physical necessities
+had been relieved, walked out to the car with Matt when he left the
+dining-room.
+
+There was something on the old negro's mind. He seemed flustered and
+backward about getting at it. Finally he broached the astonishing
+proposition, leading up to it by degrees.
+
+"Ah's done let out ob er job by de scan'lous actions ob dat 'ar Brisco,
+Marse Matt," said he moodily.
+
+"Hard luck, Uncle Tom," answered Matt sympathetically. "Where do you
+live when you're at home?"
+
+"Ah's one ob dem 'ar rolling stones, en Ah ain't had no home sense Ah
+was knee-high tuh a possum, no, suh. Fo' de las' few houahs, Marse
+Matt, Ah's been kind ob cogitatin' en mah haid an' I 'bout come tuh
+de conclusion dat yo' outlook in life is juberous, yassuh. Yo's a
+puffick gemman, but yo' take so many chances dat yo' prospecks am sholy
+juberous."
+
+"How can I help that, Uncle Tom?" asked Matt, enjoying immensely the
+old darky's vagaries.
+
+"Ah knows how dat kin be fixed, sah," went on Uncle Tom. "What yo' has
+got tuh hab is a official mascot, sah, tuh be wif yo' all de time an'
+wuk off de hoodoo. Ah 'lows, sah, dat I could fill dat job. How much
+yo' willin' tuh pay fo' an official mascot by de monf?"
+
+That was too much for Motor Matt. Laying back in the tonneau he laughed
+till he shook.
+
+"Doan' laff, Marse Matt," begged the old fraud; "hit's a mouty
+complexus bizness. Tu'n hit ober in yo' mind, sah, en if yo' t'ink Ah'm
+wuth mah bo'd an' keep, jess considah Ah'm engaged."
+
+"Why, Uncle Tom," said Matt, "I haven't much more than enough to board
+and keep myself, so I guess my prospects will have to continue to be
+'juberous.'"
+
+"Doan' say dat, sah; t'ink it ober. Ah'll hold mahse'f open fo' de
+engagemunt."
+
+Uncle Tom stumped back into the house, and Matt kicked off his shoes
+and snuggled down under a blanket which O'Grady had furnished him.
+
+Half an hour later, Carl came out with a blanket of his own.
+
+"What are you going to do, Carl?" asked Matt, rousing up and peering at
+his friend through the gloom.
+
+"Dis iss some games vot two can blay ad, my poy," chuckled Carl. "I
+vill shleep py der machine mit you."
+
+"Go on!" scoffed Matt. "What's the use of denying yourself a good bed
+when you can just as well have one?"
+
+"Vell, I dredder shtay mit you. Don'd say nodding, pecause it vasn't
+any use. My mindt iss made oop, yah, you bed you."
+
+"All right, then," said Matt. "Curl up on the steering-wheel and enjoy
+yourself."
+
+The front seat, of course, was divided into two sections, so it was
+impossible for Carl to stretch himself out in it; however, he wrapped
+his blanket around him and crowded down between the seat and the dash,
+head and shoulders over the foot-board on one side, and his feet
+tangled up in the foot-pedals and levers on the other.
+
+Just as Matt was getting to sleep a wild _honk, honk!_ brought him up
+like a shot out of a gun.
+
+"What's that?" called Matt.
+
+"Dot vas my feets," explained Carl coolly. "I hit dem against dot
+rupper pag vat makes a noise. Oof der car vas vider, den I vouldn't
+be too long for der blace vat I am. Meppy I puy somet'ing else don
+gofermend ponds mit dot money. Meppy, yah--so----" and Carl's words
+drifted off into a snore.
+
+Matt settled down again, and this time nothing disturbed him.
+
+Carl had some bad dreams that night. He thought his feet were caught
+in a giant clothes-wringer, and that a locomotive was hitched to his
+head. Some one would run him through the wringer, flattening him out up
+to the knees, and then the locomotive would back up and pull him out
+again. When his dreams had tired him out with that set of incidents,
+they shut him up in a little tin box, and three men on horseback
+played football with him; other experiences, too numerous to mention,
+followed, and at the wind-up Carl thought he dropped several miles
+through the air and smashed through a skylight. Starting up with a
+groan, he rubbed his eyes and looked around.
+
+It was morning. Carl was sitting up on the ground, chilled and
+chattering.
+
+At first he thought that skylight episode was not a dream, and he
+looked up to see the place he had come through. Instead of seeing
+anything so unsubstantial, his eyes encountered the face of Legree.
+
+"You sleep like a log, Carl!" exclaimed Legree. "Where's Motor Matt?
+What's become of the automobile?"
+
+Then, in a flash, Carl's hazy mind connected with the tangible things
+surrounding him when he went to sleep.
+
+"Vy," he cried, struggling to his feet and staring around, "I vas in
+der car mit Modor Matt! I vent to shleep in it mit him."
+
+"I know you did; but where are Matt and the car now?"
+
+Carl rubbed his eyes again, and then took a more careful look about him.
+
+He was standing in the very place where the car had stood. But there
+was no sign of the car! And no sign of Motor Matt!
+
+The blanket Carl had taken into the Red Flier with him was lying
+crumpled on the ground, a dozen feet away.
+
+"Vell, py shinks!" gasped Carl. "I don'd like dot. I don'd like some
+shokes vere sooch a monkey-doodle pitzness iss made mit me. Modor Matt
+nefer made dot shoke."
+
+"There's no joke, Carl," answered Legree; "I wish to gracious it _was_
+a joke. The Red Flier left here some time during the night. No one
+heard it. No one knew it was gone until I looked out of the window of
+my room. You were lying on the ground here, but neither the car nor
+Matt were in sight. Do you think Matt would pull out and leave you?"
+
+"Leaf me? Matt? Vell, he vas my bard, und how you figure oudt dot he do
+dot? No, py shinks! Oof he ain'd here he vas dook off, und oof he vas
+dook off id vas dot Prisco und Spangler vat dit it!"
+
+With that, Carl went over to the well and sat down. He was still
+confused, but slowly the realization of what had happened was growing
+upon him. And as the realization grew, his temper mounted with it.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+SPIRITED AWAY.
+
+
+Carl was not the only one who had been troubled with dreams that
+night. Motor Matt floundered through one of the worst nightmares he
+had ever had. The whole scheme of the thing was rather vague, but
+mighty depressing. He seemed to be engaged in some tremendous struggle,
+striking away and countering a thousand or more huge fists that leaped
+at him out of the gloom. One by one he put the clenched hands out of
+business, and when he had conquered the last of them he opened his eyes
+in bewilderment.
+
+The humming of a motor was in his ears. It was the Red Flier's motor,
+he could tell that instinctively. The stars were overhead, the cool,
+damp smell of the night was all around, and the glow of the acetylene
+lamps was glimmering and dancing in advance. The car was moving briskly
+through the silence.
+
+Matt had a queer, sick feeling at the pit of his stomach. Counting out
+the time he raced the limited train on his motor-cycle, collided with
+a freight-wagon and was laid up for a fortnight, he had never been
+confined to his bed for a week in his life.
+
+He wondered what ailed him, and his mind was sluggish and slow in
+working out the problem.
+
+He had felt just as he did then once before. That was the time he had
+been drugged and taken out of Phoenix to keep him from racing with the
+Prescott champion, O'Day.
+
+Had he been drugged now? If so, why, and by whom?
+
+By degrees the cool air cleared his befogged brain. He went back over
+the chain of events, picking it up where he had dropped it.
+
+The queer party of stranded actors--the arrival at Fairview--the escape
+of Brisco from the hotel--the ride into the hills to look for the
+boy--the pursuit by the horsemen and the loss of the tin box--all these
+events dragged through Matt's mind. He and Carl had gone to sleep in
+the automobile. Why was the car moving? Had Carl, giving rein to some
+wild impulse, cranked up the car and started for a night ride?
+
+Matt stirred. "Carl!" he called, "what are you trying to do?"
+
+Matt became aware, then, that there was some one beside him in the
+tonneau.
+
+"Carl, hey?" came a jeering voice, as a strong hand reached over and
+pushed Matt back in the seat. "Ye got another guess comin'. Thar ain't
+no Dutchman along, this trip."
+
+"Tuned up, has he?" asked a voice from the front seat.
+
+"Yep; he's got back ter airth, Hank."
+
+"Surprised?" The man in front laughed hoarsely as he asked the
+question.
+
+"Waal, kinder. He thought his Dutch pard was erlong."
+
+Matt, while this talk was going forward, realized with a shock that the
+two men in the car were Brisco and Spangler. Brisco was in the driver's
+seat, and Spangler was in the tonneau.
+
+With a quick gathering of all his strength, Matt flung himself toward
+the door of the tonneau. His first unreasoning impulse was to get away
+from his captors. The car must have been going forty miles an hour, and
+the roadside was lined with sharp stones. If Matt had succeeded in his
+desperate attempt, he could hardly have escaped without serious injury;
+but his rash move was nipped in the bud. Spangler, who was in the
+tonneau for the purpose, grabbed Matt and hurled him back into the seat.
+
+"None o' that!" he growled. "Want ter break yer bloomin' neck? Not as I
+keer much about yer neck, but Hank an' me hev got diff'rent plans fer
+ye."
+
+Matt was still dizzy and weak. The nausea at his stomach was leaving
+him slowly, but it made him feel as limp as a rag and utterly helpless.
+
+"Did you men run away with this car?" he asked.
+
+"Looks that-away, don't it?" returned Spangler.
+
+"Where's Carl?"
+
+"Didn't hev no time ter bother with the Dutchman, so we left him
+behind."
+
+"Was he hurt?"
+
+"Hurt? Nary, he wasn't hurt. We ain't opinin' ter hurt anybody this
+trip so long as we hev our way. The Dutchman was snoring like a house
+afire. All we did was ter lift him out o' the keer an' lay him on the
+ground. We give him a smell o' somethin' on a han'kercher, jest ter
+make him snooze a leetle harder, that's all."
+
+"You drugged both of us, then?"
+
+"That was the easiest way ter keep ye from makin' er noise."
+
+"Where are you taking me?"
+
+"Ye'll know afore long."
+
+It was a rugged road they were traveling, and the Red Flier negotiated
+it with many a juggling bump. Mountainous rocks, half-screened by
+bushes and trees, glided by, and there were dusky gashes and seams, and
+now and then a splash of falling water.
+
+Rougher and rougher grew the trail, and the reckless driving of Brisco
+caused Matt's nerves to thrill with fears for the car.
+
+"You'll rack the car to pieces if you keep driving like that!" Matt
+called sharply.
+
+"What's it to you?" taunted Brisco.
+
+"It means a whole lot to me. This car belongs to Mr. Tomlinson, and
+I've promised to take it safely to Albuquerque."
+
+"Be hanged to you and Mr. Tomlinson!" snarled Brisco. "We'll fix this
+car before we're done with it. If you ever take it to Albuquerque,
+you'll have to scoop up the pieces and tote 'em there in a
+lumber-wagon. That's part of what we're going to do to play even with
+you and him!"
+
+Matt's heart skipped a beat, and a cold chill ran through his body.
+Could the villains really mean to destroy the Red Flier?
+
+"You'd better think well about what you do," warned Matt. "If you ruin
+this car, Mr. Tomlinson will never let up on you till he puts you where
+you belong."
+
+Spangler brought his hand around in a sweeping blow. Matt dodged the
+hand so that the stroke was only a glancing one.
+
+"Shut up!" he cried savagely. "Ye ain't here ter make any threats, 'r
+throw any bluffs."
+
+At that moment, Brisco brought the car to a stop, putting on the brakes
+so suddenly that the wheels locked and slid.
+
+"I reckon this'll be far enough," said Brisco, turning in his seat.
+"Make him get out, Spang."
+
+"Hear that?" cried Spang. "Open the door and git down."
+
+"What's this for?" returned Matt, making no move to obey.
+
+For answer, Spangler, with an oath, seized him by the collar and jerked
+him roughly out of the tonneau.
+
+Matt was unable to make any resistance. As he stood in the road, the
+jagged uplifts by which he was surrounded seemed to swim about him in
+circles.
+
+Spangler got back in the car, as Matt staggered to a big boulder and
+leaned against it, and Brisco backed the car around until it was headed
+along the back course.
+
+"Wait!" cried Matt, as a thought of what all this might mean to him
+took shape in his brain.
+
+"We're going to wait--and for just about a minute," returned Brisco.
+
+"Are you going to steal that car?" asked Matt, "just as you stole
+Nugent's?"
+
+"You're too much of a meddler," snapped Brisco. "If you could go along
+and mind your own business, you'd be a whole lot better off. You had to
+tangle up with Tomlinson, back there at Ash Fork, and you hadn't any
+call to butt in. If it hadn't been for you, we'd 'a' won out on that
+game and been all to the good. I don't reckon we'd have bothered you at
+all, though, if you'd been content to carry out your orders and push on
+to Albuquerque. But you couldn't do that; oh, no. You're trying to be
+first aid to the weak and down-trodden wherever you run into them, so
+you had to mix up with that bunch of stranded actors.
+
+"When I drove the runabout into Fairview after gasoline and oil, I
+dropped Spangler off to lay for the tramps and get that tin box. You
+had to butt in, as per usual. I got away from Fairview by the skin
+of my teeth, picked up Spang at the place where he was waiting, and
+we went on to where our other pard had some horses. We side-tracked
+the runabout there, and slid back toward Fairview, intending to push
+through the timber--a move we couldn't make in the car. Then"--and
+here a swirling oath dropped from Brisco's lips--"we dropped into your
+little trap."
+
+"What trap?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Oh, no, you don't know a thing about that, do you? You weren't
+moseying out there just to give us a chance to lift that tin box,
+were you? And you hadn't the least notion it was empty, had you? If
+you hadn't turned that trick, my bantam, we wouldn't have turned this
+one. We're going to settle with you, all right. This is a part of
+the country that isn't traveled once a week, and you're seventy-five
+miles from Fairview. By the time you get back to town, we'll have got
+what was in that box, and have smashed the Red Flier into a heap of
+jack-straws. I know a nice little cliff alongside the road, and when
+we're through with the car we'll lash the wheel, open her up and let
+her go over the edge! I reckon that'll cook your goose with Tomlinson.
+He didn't calculate you were going to use his car transporting a lot
+of stranded actors, and mixing up in their affairs on the way to
+Albuquerque."
+
+For a space, Motor Matt's heart stood still.
+
+"You wouldn't dare do that!" he shouted.
+
+"Wouldn't I?" and a reckless, mocking laugh came with the words. "From
+what you know of me don't you think I would? Hope you'll have a nice,
+easy walk to Fairview, Motor Matt! There'll be some surprises in store
+for you when you get there. Good-by!"
+
+Spangler also shouted a jeering farewell.
+
+The car got in motion, the humming slowly decreased, and the glow of
+the tail light winked suddenly into darkness.
+
+Motor Matt had been abandoned.
+
+But, worse than that, the two scoundrels who had spirited him away from
+Fairview were bent on the wanton destruction of Mr. Tomlinson's car!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+
+
+Motor Matt came nearer being utterly cast down, at that moment,
+than ever before in his life. Weak and sick as he was, perhaps his
+discouragement was not to be wondered at. Sinking down at the foot of
+the boulder against which he had been leaning, he began finding fault
+with himself.
+
+It was all right to pick up the stranded actors and carry them on to
+Fairview. That was merely a kindness for which no one could blame
+him. But to jump into their troubles, at a time when he was engaged
+in work for Mr. Tomlinson and was not, strictly speaking, his own
+boss, that gave the affair another look. Now, because of his desire to
+help Legree, Eliza, and the rest, there he was, hung up in the hills
+seventy-five miles from Fairview, with the Red Flier in Brisco's hands
+and pointed for the scrap-heap.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson would be perfectly justified in laying the destruction of
+the car to Matt's own disregard of orders. And it was Mr. Tomlinson who
+had selected Matt to take the Red Flier to Albuquerque because he was
+satisfied the car would receive better care in his hands than in any
+other!
+
+There was enough in these reflections to make Motor Matt dissatisfied
+with himself. But he was not, and never had been, a "quitter." And the
+one cry of his soul had always been for Fate to keep him from joining
+the ranks of the "quitters."
+
+As a matter of fact, Motor Matt was a self-reliant American boy, and
+there was never the least danger of his going over to the useless crowd
+of mistakes and failures. Naturally, he might make a misplay now and
+then--running behind just enough to keep him "gingered up" for ultimate
+success in the big things.
+
+While he crouched at the foot of the boulder, the cool air clearing his
+brain and the sick feeling leaving him, he fell to planning for turning
+the tables against his enemies.
+
+What was there he could do, afoot and seventy-five miles from town?
+
+At first, the prospect seemed utterly hopeless; but Matt knew that a
+brave heart and a firm will had time and again snatched victory from
+seeming defeat.
+
+He would start for Fairview. Possibly, although the road was not much
+traveled, he might have the good luck to encounter some freighter who
+would give him a lift.
+
+Without losing a moment longer, he got up and started off in the
+direction taken by Brisco and Spangler.
+
+He wondered, as he swung along, what Carl would think when he came to
+himself and found the car missing--and Matt gone with it. And what
+would Legree think? And Eliza?
+
+But what those in Fairview might think was a minor consideration. The
+great point was the recovery of the Red Flier before the car's captors
+could wreck the machine.
+
+Brisco was the only one of the two scoundrels who could run a car, and
+even Brisco's knowledge was superficial. An hour's instruction, from
+the driver of Nugent's runabout, was all Brisco had had.
+
+Brisco now had two stolen cars and he could run only one of
+them--unless, indeed, the third man he had picked up knew something
+about motors.
+
+Matt, perhaps, had walked a mile through the gloomy hills, when he
+heard a noise as of some one in the road ahead. He halted, half-fearing
+that Brisco and Spangler were coming back.
+
+But that could not be, he reasoned. If they had wanted to come back,
+they would have used the car--and the noise Matt heard was of footsteps.
+
+He listened, straining his ears and eyes. Only one man was coming. He
+could not see, but hearing alone told him there was but one.
+
+Backing into the deep shadow of a nest of boulders, he continued to
+wait.
+
+The man, whoever he was, was coming hurriedly. Sometimes he ran, and
+occasionally he stumbled. As he drew closer, Matt saw that he was a
+small man, and as he came closer still the figure resolved itself into
+that of a mere boy.
+
+"Hello!" called Matt, stepping out into the road again.
+
+The figure gave a startled jump.
+
+"Chee!" it cried. "Say, who's dat?"
+
+Matt's pulses quickened, and a glow of hope ran through him.
+
+"Hello, kid!" he shouted. "What're you doing here?"
+
+"I'm a jay if it ain't Motor Matt!" came delightedly from the boy as he
+dashed forward. "How's dis f'r a come-off? Say, it sure knocks de wind
+out o' me! Where'd yous come from, yerself? Was yous on dat automobile
+wid Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+By then the boy was close enough to grab Matt's hand and give it a
+shake.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt; "I was on the car with them and they let me out
+and turned back."
+
+"How'd de mutts come t' git yous on de mat, hey?"
+
+Matt explained how he had been spirited away.
+
+"Well, on de level," breathed the boy, "dat's de rummest move I ever
+connected wit'. Raw? Oh, sister!"
+
+"Now tell me something about yourself," said Matt. "Why did you get
+into that car? And where have you been since you left Fairview?"
+
+"Easy, cull! T'ings is bein' pulled off in such a bunch it's hard t'
+straighten dem out. Le's do de ham-restin' act, right here on dis nice
+bunch o' rocks, while we chin a little."
+
+They sat down, side by side.
+
+"You must have had some reason, Eva, for hiking out with Brisco like
+you did, and----"
+
+"Cut out de 'Eva.' Fergit de styge name. I was on'y dat back o' de tin
+lamps, an' no more of 'em fer mine. Call me Josh. Not dat I'm a josher,
+understan', 'cause I ain't. An' here's somet'in' else I'm battin' up t'
+yous: Dere's a few t'inks rattlin' around in me block dat I can't let
+yous in on. Not bekase I ain't willin' meself, but bekase it ain't on
+de program. See?
+
+"First off, Matt, I crowded into dat car becase de idee looked good t'
+me. Dat's all yous is t' know about dat f'r now. I rode t' w'ere Brisco
+stopped de car an' took on Spang--about de place w'ere dad an' yous had
+de set-to on account o' dat box.
+
+"Den we moved on ag'in, me still under de coat an' wonderin' how long I
+could keep shy o' de lamps o' dem two dubs. You can bet yer lid, Matt,
+I didn't breathe on'y when necessary. I was de sly boy, all right.
+W'en we pulled up ag'in, we was clost t' t'ree horses, all saddled an'
+bridled, an' wit' a beer-faced guy on one o' dem.
+
+"De runabout was backed into de brush, an' Brisco an' Spang got onto
+two o' de horses an' all t'ree o' dat strong-arm bunch pulled deir
+freight back down de road. It was right den I wished dat I knowed how
+t' work dem cranks an' t'ings so'st I could make dat car go w'ere I
+wanted. But I didn't know de tail lamp from de carburetter, so I jess
+had t' lay low an' wait.
+
+"W'en dem jays got back, dere was yer Uncle John right under de coat,
+same as usual, an' still holdin' his breat'. If one o' de mugs lifted
+de coat, I was plannin' to work me pins an' head right into de weeds,
+like anot'er bear was on me trail.
+
+"But dey didn't look under de coat, none of dem. Dey was too mad. Chee!
+but dey was r'iled! Blatter, blatter, blatter, dey went, swearin' like
+a plumber wot's burned hisself wit' his torch. Say, de air was blue an
+smelt like de odder place. If dey'd piped me off den, dey'd have took
+me skelp, all right.
+
+"From de spiel dey was givin' each odder, I hooked onto de infermation
+dat dey'd got de box an' dat dere wasn't not'in' in it--w'ich I knowed
+all de time. Dey was crowdin' all deir swear-words onto Motor Matt.
+Yous had fooled dem, dey said, an' dey was goin' t' saw off even if it
+took a leg.
+
+"Brisco give de mug on de horse his orders to go t' some place w'ere
+Brisco an' Spang would go foist an' wait. Wid dat we started up
+ag'in--me on de job an' still sayin' me prayers back'ards, for'ards,
+an' sideways. I couldn't see where we went, but we was goin' f'r a
+hunderd years, seemed like, I was dat worked up t'inkin' I might git
+nabbed. Den we stopped, backed t'roo some brush, an' stopped ag'in, dat
+time t' stay.
+
+"I had drawn into me shell, listenin' w'ile Brisco an' Spang was
+rammin' around de place w'ere we was. After a w'ile, deir bazoos seemed
+t' move off, an' I stuck out me coco an' piped de layout.
+
+"We was in a well. Anyways dat's how it looked. De well was about
+fifteen feet acrost, steep rocks all around an' on'y one place w'ere
+dere was a break. De break was choked up wit' brush, an' I'm wise right
+off dat we'd backed t'roo it w'en we come into de well.
+
+"I see anot'er nice little clump of brush off t' de right, an' it
+looked so invitin' dat I slipped out from under de coat an' ducked f'r
+it.
+
+"I was in dat clump w'en de odder bloke, who dey called Klegg, blowed
+in t'roo de break wid de hosses; an' I was still dere w'en night come
+down, an' de t'ree of dem lighted up de runabout an' went away w'id it.
+
+"Couldn't git in de back seat den, kase Klegg was dere, so dey bumped
+off into de night an' left me in de well wit' de t'ree horses.
+
+"I kinked me thinker all up t'ryin' t' guess whedder I'd better stay
+right dere or borry one o' dem horses an' ride some place. Well, I
+didn't ride, not knowin' any good place t' ride to. Couldn't even make
+a guess which way de town was.
+
+"I went out t'roo de brush an' moseyed around in de dark till
+_chugetty-chug!_ along come dat runabout ag'in an' backed t'roo de
+brush into de well. But dere was on'y one man in it, an' it was Klegg.
+W'ere was Brisco an' Spang? Dat was wot fretted me. W'ile I was
+frettin', along comes dat red tourin'-car. I made out Brisco in front,
+an' Spang in de rear--an' dere was some odder mug in de rear wot I
+couldn't get next to. De tourin'-car went on past de well.
+
+"Chee, but I was rattled! Wot was happenin', I says t' meself, an' w'y
+was it happenin'? De tourin'-car come back ag'in an' in it was Brisco
+an' Spang, but de odder guy had been left somew'ere. De tourin'-car was
+backed into de well, w'ere de runabout had gone, an' I started dis way
+t' see wot I could find. Say, Matt, I was knocked stiff w'en I found
+yous! Great, ain't it, how luck takes a shoot, once in a w'ile? If
+dat---- Wot's de matter w'id yous? W'ere yous goin'?"
+
+Matt had jumped up, grabbed Josh by the arm and was pulling him down
+the road.
+
+"Come on!" said he. "We haven't got any time to lose!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+A DARING PLAN.
+
+
+"Say," panted Josh, as he and Matt traveled rapidly along the road,
+"put me wise to dis move, can't yous? Wot's in yer block, Matt?"
+
+"Do you know what Brisco intends to do with the Red Flier?" asked Matt.
+
+"He's layin' in a supply o' benzine-buggies t' start a garage, 'r
+somet'ing, ain't he?"
+
+"He ran off with that touring-car just to play even with me, Josh. He
+says I've meddled with his affairs long enough, and that he's going to
+run the Red Flier over a cliff just to pay me back for using the car to
+help you people."
+
+"Wouldn't dat frost yous?" muttered Josh.
+
+"And he said I was seventy-five miles from Fairview," went on Matt,
+"and that by the time I had walked to the town he would have finished
+his business there."
+
+"Brisco has got anodder guess comin'. He ain't so warm. Dad can show
+him a t'ing 'r two, an' don't yous fergit dat. Chee! Dat guy's de
+limit. But wot's yer game, cull?"
+
+"You say that both cars are in that 'well,' as you call it?"
+
+"Dat's w'ere dey was w'en I started for here."
+
+"Well, I'm going to get the Red Flier away from that outfit!"
+
+Matt spoke as confidently as though he had merely remarked that he was
+going over to the hotel after his dinner.
+
+"Say, cull," returned the boy, "I like yer nerve, all right, an' I
+marks yous up f'r de entry, but how yous goin' t' git under de wire?
+Dere's t'ree o' dem guys, an' dey've got a lot o' artillery. How we
+goin' t' git away wit' de car if dey don't want us to?"
+
+"I don't know," replied Matt, "but we've got to do it somehow."
+
+"Yous is a reg'lar lollypaloozer, Motor Matt, an' I'd back yous t' win
+any ole day, but dis looks like too big a load. But yous can count on
+me. Dad'll tell yous dat I'm big f'r me age an' no mutt in a getaway,
+so jest set yer pace an' I'll push on de reins."
+
+"How far is it to the place where the automobiles were left?"
+
+"We're close t' dere now. I'm wonderin' w'y Brisco dropped yous widin
+a short walk o' de hang-out--dat is, if he was fixin' t' stay at de
+place?"
+
+"I don't know," answered Matt; "but that's what he did and it's enough
+for me. I've got to recover that car, Josh. If I don't, and if anything
+happens to it, I'd look nice making my report to Tomlinson, wouldn't I?"
+
+"If yous hadn't picked up dat bunch o' tramps on de road yous wouldn't
+have got into dis fix."
+
+"I'm not sorry I helped you out, Josh."
+
+"Sure not. Yous ain't dat kind, Motor Matt. All de same, yous would
+have been peggin' along to'rds Albuquerque, nice as yous please, if
+it hadn't been for dat crowd o' Uncle Tommers. Dere'll be doin's in
+Fairview in de mornin', w'en dad finds out yous ain't w'ere yous ought
+t' be."
+
+"What can your father do?"
+
+"He can do a lot w'en he gits started. Don't yous never t'ink he's a
+slow one, Matt."
+
+Matt knew that Legree could keep a cool head in a pinch, but, for all
+that, he didn't see how he could do anything when he didn't have money
+enough even to pay his board-bill.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson has a lot of confidence in me," said Matt; "and, if that
+car is wrecked, I'll have----"
+
+"Sh-h-h!" whispered Josh, coming to a wary halt and laying a hand on
+Matt's arm. "Look ahead, dere. See dat black splotch on de side o' de
+hill by de road?"
+
+"Yes," answered Matt, straining his eyes in the direction indicated.
+
+"Dat's de brush dat hides de openin'. Are we bot' goin' t' blow in dere
+an' try t' make a run wit' de red car?"
+
+"We can't do the trick in such a hurricane way as that. We've got to
+lay some other plan. I'll go in and look the ground over, Josh, and
+maybe I can get hold of an idea."
+
+"I'll try t' git holt o' one, too, w'ile I'm waitin' fer yous. Don't
+make much noise w'ile yous is in de bushes, Matt, or dem terriers'll
+pepper yous."
+
+"I'm going to sneak into the place as quietly as I can. I don't think
+they'll hear me."
+
+Leaving the boy a little way from the dark patch of verdure clinging to
+the face of the hill, Matt went on carefully. As he approached closer
+to the vague blot it gradually took form under his eyes.
+
+The wall of the hill seemed to be cracked through from crest to base
+and wrenched apart until it formed a narrow opening. Up both sides of
+the opening grew the bushes, their branches spreading out and forming a
+thick screen.
+
+On account of the darkness, Matt could not make a very close
+examination of the queer fissure, but he saw enough to convince him
+that Nature had contrived a secure retreat for Brisco and Spangler.
+
+The bottom of the opening, Matt judged, was all of ten feet in width.
+Dropping down on his hands and knees, he began crawling through the
+middle of the break, parting the bush branches from in front of him as
+he advanced.
+
+So wary was he that he made very little noise.
+
+He had gone perhaps a dozen feet through the brushy tangle, when a glow
+of light struck on his eyes. This acted as a sort of beacon, and served
+to guide him the rest of the way. A dozen feet more brought him to the
+opposite side of the opening and to the edge of the bushes.
+
+Crouching silently on the ground he proceeded to survey the peculiar
+niche in front of him.
+
+Josh's description, likening the place to a "well," was quite
+appropriate. The niche was circular in form and its walls arose steeply
+to a height of at least fifty feet. In the shadow of the walls the
+place was very dark, but the glowing lamps of an automobile enabled
+Matt to see enough to send a chill of disappointment through him.
+
+There was only one automobile in the niche!
+
+And that one was the runabout!
+
+Brisco and Spangler must have emerged and gone off somewhere with the
+Red Flier.
+
+Had they taken it away to destroy it?
+
+The three horses were not far from the runabout. They were secured to
+some bushes, and could be heard pawing and stamping.
+
+Matt could also hear something else, and that was the snoring of a man
+in deep sleep.
+
+After a moment's hesitation he continued to creep onward, redoubling
+his care and vigilance.
+
+He was upon the man before he was fairly aware of it, one of his
+groping hands coming in contact with an outstretched foot.
+
+The snoring ceased with an explosive grunt and Matt drew back
+breathlessly.
+
+The man did not rouse up. Shifting his position slightly he continued
+to snore.
+
+Making a détour, Matt got around the man--whom he knew was not Brisco
+or Spangler, and consequently must be Klegg--and reached the runabout.
+
+Pausing there, the young motorist let his mind circle about this new
+phase of the situation.
+
+If he couldn't get the Red Flier, why not take the runabout? That would
+afford himself and Josh a quick means for making the return trip to
+Fairview. Besides, no matter what happened to the Red Flier, there was
+something to be gained in getting the runabout away from the thieves.
+
+Close to the car was a heap of horse-trappings. Matt felt about among
+the saddles, bridles and blankets until he had found two coiled riatas.
+
+Could he, by quick work, get one of the ropes around Klegg's hands
+before he was thoroughly awake and able to struggle? Josh would have
+been of use in such an attempt, and Matt decided that he could not make
+it successfully unless he did have the other to help. He would go back
+after Josh, he decided; but first he would look over the runabout and
+make sure it was ready for the road.
+
+Laying the ropes in the front of the car, he arose to his feet, softly
+removed the tail lamp from its bracket, and flashed it into the rumble.
+
+The coat, used so cleverly by the boy, was still there, crumpled on
+the floor as though by a man's feet. Passing on to the forward part of
+the car, the pencil of light jumped from point to point, Matt's eyes
+following critically.
+
+Everything seemed to be shipshape and in good order.
+
+A small object on one of the front seats caught the youth's attention.
+It was pushed well back into the angle where the back joined the seat,
+and Matt picked it up and held it in the glow of light.
+
+It was a small bottle, and the label bore the written word,
+"Chloroform."
+
+Matt stifled an exclamation. Undoubtedly it had been some of that
+bottle's contents which had helped Brisco and Spangler get the better
+of him, in Fairview, and run off with the touring-car.
+
+Then a startling expedient darted through Matt's mind. Turn about was
+fair play. With the aid of the drug he could clear a passage for the
+runabout, and without resort to any violence.
+
+Setting the lamp down on the front seat, Matt drew the cork of the
+bottle, took a handkerchief from his pocket and proceeded to wet it
+with the chloroform. Then, re-corking the bottle and laying it aside,
+he went down on his hands and knees and started toward Klegg.
+
+A lightening of the sky over the steep walls that hemmed in the niche
+told of coming day.
+
+The darkness would be a help to Matt and Josh in getting to the road
+and away, and if advantage was to be taken of night Matt knew he would
+have to hurry.
+
+But he was well equipped to carry out his plans now, and lost no time
+in getting about them.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+ON THE ROAD.
+
+
+Kneeling beside Klegg, Matt leaned over and held the saturated
+handkerchief close to his face. The fumes were strong, and seemed to
+strangle him. With a gurgling grunt he shifted his position.
+
+Matt moved the handkerchief and again held it over his face. This time
+Klegg sputtered a little, but did not change his position. Evidently
+the narcotic was beginning to have its effect. After a moment, Matt
+allowed the handkerchief to drop on Klegg's face. He left it there
+for two or three minutes and then threw it aside. Klegg was breathing
+heavily and seemed to be completely under the influence of the drug.
+
+Catching hold of the blanket on which the man was lying, Matt began to
+pull it toward the wall of the niche.
+
+"Chee!" whispered a voice close to Matt's side. "Wot kind of a smell is
+dat, cull? Wot yous done to Klegg?"
+
+"I thought you were going to wait outside, Josh?" answered Matt.
+
+"Dat's wot I t'ought, but yous was so long in comin' dat I took de
+notion t' come in an' look yous up. Wot's de play?"
+
+"I found a bottle of chloroform in the runabout, and it must have been
+out of that same bottle that Brisco took the stuff that put me to
+sleep. Thought I'd see how it worked on Klegg."
+
+"Yous is a jim dandy, Matt!" laughed Josh delightedly. "But w'ere's
+Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+"They're not here, and neither is the touring-car."
+
+"Tough luck! Yous figgerin' on makin' a getaway wit' de runabout?"
+
+"Yes. We might use that for a quick run to Fairview and get the sheriff
+to hunt up Brisco and Spangler. I'll go with the sheriff and use the
+runabout. It's a faster car than the Flier, and we may be able to catch
+the two thieves before they wreck Mr. Tomlinson's car."
+
+"Yous has got a head on yous, Matt, an' no mistake," said the boy
+admiringly. "An' yous pulled all dis off yerself! Well, say, if yous
+ain't a winner dis heat yous ought t' be. Dat's right--on de level an'
+no stringin'. Dad would like t' have a guy like yous t' work wit' all
+de time. An' so would Little Eva, de child wonder. But it's gittin'
+daylight, Matt, an' if we're goin' t' pull our freight, let's be at it."
+
+It was already light enough so that they could see without the lamps.
+These were extinguished, and then Matt put the tail lamp back in its
+place, started the engine and got into the driver's seat.
+
+On the low gear they moved slowly across the bottom of the niche.
+
+Josh was still laughing softly to himself.
+
+"Chee, cull, but I'd like t' be around w'en Brisco an' Spang find dat
+Klegg feller!" he chuckled. "Dat would be as good as a circus. Dis is
+almost too good t' be true, ain't it?"
+
+"It will be, Josh," replied Matt, "if I can only get back the Red
+Flier."
+
+"Dem coves'll be careful o' dat odder machine when dey find dis one has
+been took away from dem."
+
+"I know that--providing they find out the runabout is gone before they
+destroy the Flier."
+
+Setting the runabout at the bushes, Matt drove through the undergrowth,
+Josh keeping the branches out of his face while he attended to the
+steering.
+
+"On de road ag'in!" jubilated the boy, as they emerged from the mouth
+of the opening and turned to the left.
+
+"All I wish is," answered Matt, "that I knew we were going right."
+
+"Dere's on'y two ways t' go, cull. One's up to'rds w'ere you was
+dropped by Brisco an' Spang, an' t'odder's de way we're headin'. It's a
+cinch we're hittin' it off about proper. W'ere d' youse t'ink dem odder
+mutts went wid de tourin'-car?"
+
+"I'm afraid they took it off to carry out their threat and make junk of
+it."
+
+"I hope yous ain't got it right. If dey did dat, it 'u'd put yous in a
+bad hole. Yous couldn't make Tomlinson take dis car f'r de odder, could
+yous?"
+
+"Hardly. This car belongs to Nugent, in Ash Fork."
+
+Something was rattling about the car, and it got onto Matt's nerves.
+Halting for a moment, he located the difficulty. The screw-cap of
+the gasoline-tank was loose. Taking a wrench out of the tool-box he
+tightened the cap, then dropped the wrench in the rumble and returned
+to his seat.
+
+"Yous don't like t' hear anyt'ing rattle, hey?" queried Josh.
+
+"Makes me nervous," laughed Matt. "Now hold onto your teeth, Josh. I'm
+going to let her out!"
+
+"De quicker we kin go de better. Let's see how fast de ole gal kin
+travel."
+
+They whirled around a turn in the narrow valley. The unexpected was
+lying in wait for them, for they came upon Spangler, on foot and
+walking toward the niche.
+
+Josh gave a startled yell. Spangler, dumfounded at sight of the
+runabout, charging toward him with Motor Matt and the boy in front,
+stood as though rooted to the ground.
+
+"Down, Josh!" cried Matt, advancing the spark; "get down behind the
+dashboard!"
+
+As Matt spoke he sounded the horn. Spangler climbed out of the way with
+more haste than grace, and the runabout dashed past him.
+
+"Yi-yip-ee!" tuned up the boy, waving his hand mockingly. "D'radder do
+dat dan git run down, hey?"
+
+"Drop!" yelled Matt, and in a tone that made Josh crumple down between
+the seat and the dash.
+
+Bang!
+
+Matt had expected a bullet, and he was not disappointed. But it went
+wide.
+
+Bang!
+
+The next one came closer, but still left a safe margin.
+
+There was no more shooting. Wondering at it, Josh rose up and looked
+backward.
+
+"Now wot d'youse t'ink o' dat!" he cried. "Wot's dat mug doin' dat for?"
+
+"What's he doing?" asked Matt.
+
+"W'y he's hustlin' a big stone into de middle o' de road. See 'im work!
+Chee! Wot's de meanin' o' dat?"
+
+The car whipped around another turn, wiping Spangler and his strange
+activities out of sight. Josh dropped down on the seat.
+
+"That's got a bad look," said Matt, coaxing the runabout to a still
+faster gait. "We've got to get out of this as quick as we can."
+
+"Chee!" cried the boy, holding to the seat with both hands, "we're
+goin' fast enough. Gid-ap! Wow! wot a spurt! Don't let anyt'ing slip a
+cog, cull. If de ole benzine-buggy hit a rock an' stopped, I'd go right
+on f'r a couple o' miles afore I landed. Oh, wot a clip! We've got de
+Cannonball Limited licked t' a frazzle!"
+
+Then they took another turn, the rear wheels skidding and Matt deftly
+catching the motor up and sending the car onward. The runabout did not
+follow the curve of the road, but made an angling turn--a hair-raising
+stunt copied after Oldfield, the daredevil racer.
+
+Josh gave a yell, and came within a hair of being heaved over Matt and
+into the road.
+
+Then, with a muttered exclamation, Matt cut off the power, applied the
+brakes and quickly reversed, backing for the side of the road.
+
+It all happened so quick that it took the boy's breath.
+
+"Wot's dat fer?" he asked.
+
+Matt was whirling the wheel and starting the car on the back track.
+
+"Brisco is heading us off," he answered--"Brisco in the Red Flier!"
+
+Josh turned to stare along the road.
+
+Matt was right.
+
+Brisco, still a long distance off, was whooping it up in their
+direction.
+
+"Wouldn't dat crimp yous?" gasped the boy, awed at the gathering
+perils. "Dey've got us f'r fair, Matt! W'y didn't yous keep on an' give
+Brisco de go-by?"
+
+"There wasn't room enough in the road to pass!" flung back Matt.
+
+"Dat's w'y Spang was rollin' dem stones in de road! He knew dat Brisco
+was comin', and dat he'd git us between him an' de rock-pile. Chee!
+We're It, dis time, an' no mistake."
+
+Matt, his face white and set and his gray eyes snapping, was leaning
+over the steering-wheel, watching every foot of road as they swept over
+it.
+
+"We've got to pass that rock-pile before it gets too big!" said he
+through his teeth.
+
+"Den w'ere'll we go?"
+
+"Anywhere, just so we keep away from Brisco. This car is a faster one
+than the Red Flier. We can show him our heels at any stage of the game."
+
+They fairly flew, and rocks rushed past them as though hurled by some
+giant hand.
+
+"There'll be some danger when we get to the place where Spangler is
+waiting, Josh," said Matt. "I'll slow down and you can get out, if you
+want to."
+
+"Wot d'youse take me fer?" cried the boy. "I'm wid yous, Matt, win
+'r lose. See? Make yer ole play. If Uncle Josh ain't wit' yous at de
+finish, den call him a quitter an' mark him off'n yer callin'-list."
+
+Hurling onward, and skidding around the turns, Matt kept straining his
+eyes constantly ahead.
+
+Their source of peril was now wrapped up in Spangler. If his pile of
+boulders did not block the road completely--if there was a chance for
+the runabout to get past the stones, or over them, there was still a
+fighting chance for escape.
+
+Half a minute later, as the car reached out for the place where
+Spangler had been at work, Matt's heart went down into his boots.
+
+Spangler was nowhere in sight, but he had worked to good purpose.
+
+A few big boulders were cunningly placed so as to make the road
+impassable. With a despairing cry, Matt brought the runabout to a quick
+stop.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+A CLOSE CALL.
+
+
+"Pile out, Josh, and get busy with those rocks!" yelled Matt.
+
+It was a forlorn hope, for the pounding of the Red Flier could be heard
+around the turn, coming up hand over fist. Long before the way could be
+cleared, Brisco would be upon them.
+
+And what had become of Spangler. Where had he gone? And _why_ had he
+gone?
+
+That was a conundrum, and Matt had no time to give to conundrums just
+then.
+
+Josh, eager to do all he could, was tugging and straining at the rocks.
+
+"It won't do, Josh!" shouted Matt. "Run for those boulders at the side
+of the road and wait for me."
+
+To think quickly in an emergency was Motor Matt's long suit. Many a
+time his cool head had helped him out of a bad difficulty.
+
+While he was shouting to the boy he was running back to the car.
+Snatching the wrench from where he had dropped it in the rumble,
+Matt went to work with lightninglike energy on the cap of the
+gasoline-reservoir.
+
+In record time he had the cap off. Bending down he scooped up a handful
+of sand from the road and dumped the most of it into the reservoir,
+then, as quickly as he had removed the cap, he replaced it, flung the
+wrench into the car and jumped for the boulders.
+
+Hardly was he back of the big stones that clustered along that edge of
+the valley, when the Red Flier shoved her nose through a cloud of dust
+and came scorching onward.
+
+Brisco must have been astounded to see the runabout, deserted and at a
+halt in the road. The way, of course, was blocked for him as well as
+for the runabout, and he halted the Red Flier at a good distance from
+the other machine, leaped out and came running to the other car.
+
+The stones in the road probably gave him a pretty good idea of what
+had happened, for he immediately began looking around him as though
+expecting to see some one--possibly Matt and Josh.
+
+"Spang!" he whooped. "Where are you, Spang?"
+
+"Here!" answered Spangler, appearing suddenly around the bend.
+
+"What you been doing?" demanded Brisco.
+
+"The dickens is ter pay, an' no mistake!" stormed Spang. "That young
+cub of a Motor Matt found out whar we'd cached the runabout, an' blamed
+if he didn't go in an' snake it right out from under Klegg's----"
+
+"Thunder!" broke in Brisco. "Don't you reckon I _saw_ the whelp? He was
+bearing down on me like a hurricane, slamming the runabout through for
+all she was worth."
+
+"He went past here gally-whoopin'," answered Spang, "while I was makin'
+fer that hole in the hill. Come mighty nigh runnin' me down at that.
+I got out o' the way, faced around an' sent a couple o' bullets arter
+him, but the brat's too lucky ter stop any lead----"
+
+"Depends on who throws the lead," snarled Brisco.
+
+"I kin throw it with ary man that walks! But I didn't take time ter
+throw much. I calculated the runabout would come up ferninst you, Hank,
+afore it got out o' the valley, an' that King would have ter turn
+around an' chase back this way. So what does I do but begin pilin'
+stones whar they'd do the most good. Jest got enough down ter do the
+biz, an' went ter see what had happened ter Klegg. Great jumpin'
+sand-hills! What d'ye think that infernal kid done ter him?"
+
+"What?" fumed Brisco.
+
+"Doped him, by thunder! Doped him out er the same bottle we used last
+night! Klegg's up thar in the notch, dead ter the world!"
+
+"What did you leave the hang-out for?" roared Brisco angrily. "Didn't
+I tell you, when I left, to stay there with Klegg? If you'd done as I
+said, this wouldn't have happened."
+
+"I come out ter see if that kid was moseyin' down the valley," was the
+sullen rejoinder from Spang. "Ye said I was ter watch out an' make sure
+he didn't blunder outer the notch."
+
+"Well, you made sure, didn't you?" taunted Brisco. "Where'd Legree's
+kid spring from? How'd he come to be along with King?"
+
+"How'd I know? Think I'm a mind-reader?"
+
+"Deuced funny thing! He was with King, and I'd like to know where he
+came from, and how he got here. There's a nigger in the fence, I'll
+bet. Where'd those boys go?"
+
+"I don't know that, nuther."
+
+"Did they pass you and go up the valley?"
+
+"Nary, they didn't!"
+
+"Then they must be hiding around here somewhere! Let's get 'em. If I
+lay hands on Motor Matt again he won't get off so easy."
+
+There was only one place in that vicinity where any one could hide, and
+that was among the scattered rocks not far from where the runabout was
+standing.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, making a hasty survey of the surroundings, at once
+hit upon the boulders as the place for them to look.
+
+"They're over thar," cried Spangler, "an' I'll bet money on it."
+
+As he spoke, he started at a run for the side of the valley, pulling a
+revolver as he went.
+
+"Don't do any shooting," called Brisco, starting after Spangler, "just
+grab 'em and hold 'em."
+
+"We'll tie King in that thar automobile when we run it over the cliff!"
+yelped Brisco viciously. "We'll l'arn him ter play his tricks on _us_!"
+
+Matt and Josh had heard all this conversation. They were not standing
+still, either, but were busily finding some place where they could stow
+themselves away.
+
+A fight with the two armed men was to be avoided, if possible. Matt
+knew that he and Josh would stand little chance in such a one-sided
+combat; and Matt had formed plans which he was eager to be carrying out.
+
+A little way up the steep hillside there was a ledge, with a recess
+back of it.
+
+Matt's quick eye picked out the spot, and he climbed briskly, hauling
+Josh along after him. The boulders shielded them from view while they
+were getting to the ledge, and Matt pushed Josh into the recess, and
+then rolled into it himself. From this position Matt was able to peer
+over the ledge and keep track of the movements of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+"Are they comin' dis way, cull?" whispered the boy.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt.
+
+"Got deir guns ready, eh?"
+
+"Of course, Josh. Scoundrels like Brisco and Spangler always draw and
+shoot if you give 'em half a chance."
+
+"Dey're hot at de two of us, an' dey'll sure lay out ter do us up."
+
+"We'll have to fight, if they force it on us."
+
+"Wot kin we do?"
+
+"There's a stone on the ledge. If they come too close I'll push it down
+on them."
+
+"Better give dat dere stone a push right off, bekase----"
+
+"Hist!" cautioned Matt.
+
+Silence fell between the boys. Matt drew in his head, fearing he
+would be seen. He listened intently, however, and could tell by the
+scrambling feet below just how near Brisco and Spangler were coming.
+When they came too close, Matt was intending to push the stone down on
+them.
+
+"Beats the deuce where those whelps went to!" grumbled the voice of
+Brisco.
+
+"They must be here. Thar wasn't any place else they could go. I wasn't
+gone from the road more'n five minits, Hank."
+
+"They wouldn't have had time to get past you?"
+
+"Nary, they wouldn't. They're here, I tell ye; they must be."
+
+"The whole side-hill is under our eyes. If you can see the cubs you can
+do better than I can."
+
+"Seems like there was a shelf up thar a ways. Mebby they're on the
+shelf?"
+
+"Gammon! That shelf isn't wide enough for a chipmunk to sit on."
+
+"Anyways, I'm goin' up an' take a look."
+
+Matt got ready to push out and roll the stone off the shelf. Before he
+could do that, however, a shout from Brisco halted him.
+
+"Say, you! There were three horses in the hang-out with Klegg!"
+
+"What o' that?" answered Spangler.
+
+"Why, those boys have gone there and are getting the horses."
+
+"How could they go thar, Hank? They didn't pass me."
+
+"They might have got there when you didn't see them. While we're
+wasting time here, I'll bet something handsome they're getting out
+those horses. Come on! Don't lose another second fooling around among
+those rocks!"
+
+"Waal, I don't reckon----"
+
+"Come on, I say!" roared Brisco.
+
+The two men were heard scrambling down the slope, getting farther and
+farther away.
+
+Back in the little recess Matt could hear the boy chuckling and talking
+to himself.
+
+"Come on, Josh!" whispered Matt, starting up. "Be careful, though! This
+is our day for luck, all right."
+
+"Well, I guess!" answered the boy, rolling over the ledge. "Chee, but
+dey're a pair o' dough-heads. Good t'ing f'r us, too. What next, Matt?"
+
+"We'll get to the Red Flier, turn it the other way along the trail, and
+ride back to Fairview."
+
+"Oh, Lucy!" giggled Josh. "Fer a kid dat ain't had not'in' t' eat since
+yesterday mornin' I'm feelin' some fine! We gits de Red Flier, after
+all, an' dem guys is beat, hands down."
+
+They were proceeding down the hillside while Josh was talking. When
+Matt reached the boulders that lined the road, he looked out.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, hurrying as fast as their legs could carry them,
+were just vanishing around the bend.
+
+"Now for the Red Flier--and Fairview!" said Matt, running out from
+among the boulders and laying a direct course for the red car.
+
+"Dat's de talk, cull!" laughed Josh, hustling along after Matt.
+
+Certainly it looked as though they were to have everything their own
+way, for a while at least--but they were not so lucky as they thought.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+CAR AGAINST CAR.
+
+
+It may be that Matt and Josh made too much racket getting down the
+rocks, or that Brisco had a premonition that something was wrong. Be
+that as it might, however, yet Brisco and Spangler turned back a minute
+after they had gone charging around the bend.
+
+Motor Matt, at that moment, was bending to the crank of the Red Flier,
+and it was Josh who excitedly announced the approach of their two
+enemies.
+
+The boy had done his jubilating too soon, and the sight of Brisco and
+Spangler filled him with panic.
+
+"Oh, chee!" he fluttered. "Dey're after us, Matt, like a couple o'
+grizzlies! Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks agin!"
+
+"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a whirl.
+
+One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with which the machine
+caught up its cycle; and it had been the same with Matt's twin-cylinder
+motorcycle. Half a turn of the pedal was enough for the little _Comet_,
+and one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's motor.
+
+While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and Spangler, Motor
+Matt ran around and vaulted into his old familiar place. He felt at
+home--much more so than he had when driving the runabout.
+
+Neither Brisco nor Spangler wasted any time with their revolvers.
+Both knew that the runabout was a faster machine than the Red Flier,
+and both felt confident that a quick start after the boys and a few
+minutes' chase would tell the tale.
+
+Spangler scrambled into the car. Brisco slipped as he rounded the front
+of the runabout to turn over the engine, fell sprawling and hit his
+head on the handle of the crank.
+
+He was not very much hurt, apparently, although from his flow of
+language his temper must have been severely injured. Besides, he had
+lost ten seconds--no very serious matter, considering the usual speed
+of the runabout--but Brisco was anxious for a rapid start and a quick
+finish for the chase.
+
+As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping from up the road sounding
+like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun. Motor Matt had turned the
+Red Flier with his customary celerity, and was off on the high gear
+with the muffler cut out.
+
+"By thunder," howled the frantic Spangler, "oncet I ketch that Motor
+Matt I'll wring his neck fer him!"
+
+"I'll help you," answered Brisco vindictively. There was a patch of
+skin gone from his forehead and a little dribble of red was flowing
+down his cheek.
+
+"If they wasn't out o' sight," growled Spangler, "I'd pepper 'em."
+
+"What's the use of peppering them?" scowled Brisco. "We'll climb right
+over 'em in less'n five minutes."
+
+"Do it!" cried Spangler, as they shot ahead recklessly.
+
+"Do what?" asked Brisco, just missing a boulder by a hair's breadth.
+
+"Why, climb over 'em," snorted Spangler. "Run 'em down an' shove 'em
+inter the rocks! Let's hev a smash, with that young whelp right in the
+middle of it. He's made us trouble enough!"
+
+"Don't be a fool, Spang!" returned Brisco. "If we ran into them we
+might smash the runabout. We've got use for this machine--after we
+clean up on Legree and this Motor Matt."
+
+"That's so, too," said Spangler. "We may hev use fer it even if ye
+don't clean up on Legree. With another pair o' shoes an' tubes, an' a
+place whar we kin keep a supply o' gasoline an' oil, an' them steel
+bottles o' compressed air, we could circle all around through this here
+Southwestern kentry, takin' our toll wharever we wanted ter pick it up."
+
+"Sure we could, and we _will_!"
+
+"I'm glad o' one thing," observed Spangler.
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"Why, thar won't be any more glass throwed in the road, same as thar
+was during t'other chase we had with that Red Flier. King had a lot in
+the red car, if ye remember, an' I dumped it all out."
+
+"We'll nip 'im this time," said Brisco, through his teeth.
+
+"We got ter, that's what. If we don't---- Tear an' ages, Hank! Be
+keerful!"
+
+The runabout had been hurled at a curve. There was no lessening of the
+speed, and the entire machine slid sideways to the edge of the road,
+banging into the rocks with a force that pitched Spangler against the
+dashboard. He came within one of going clear over upon the hood.
+
+"Get back in your seat and hang on!" yelled Brisco. "We haven't
+commenced to run yet."
+
+After that Spangler had no time to talk--he was too busy holding
+himself in the car.
+
+Meanwhile the Red Flier had been streaking it through the hills, Josh
+keeping a pair of keen eyes on the back track, and Matt giving his
+entire attention to the road ahead.
+
+"Chee, wot a bump!" cried Josh.
+
+He had seen the runabout skid across the road, take a welt at the rock
+wall and then leap onward like a bullet from a gun.
+
+"What's the matter?" shouted Matt.
+
+He had to shout, for the wind of their flight caught the words out of
+his teeth and flung them, a mere wisp of sound, far to rearward.
+
+"Brisco tried t' knock over a hill wit' his hind wheels," yelled Josh,
+"an' Spang tried t' turn a handspring over de bonnet. Wow! but dey're
+goin some, Matt!"
+
+"So are we," screamed Matt, "Fifty-eight miles an hour."
+
+"Ever race dat runabout afore?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"W'ch winned?"
+
+"The Flier--by a fluke. I scattered glass in the road--the runabout got
+into it and went lame."
+
+"Got any glass along now?"
+
+"Yes, in the tonneau; but----"
+
+"None dere now, cull."
+
+"Then Brisco must have thrown it out. It'll all right, though. This is
+going to be our race."
+
+"We'd better keep our lamps skinned f'r Fairview. It's on'y
+seventy-five miles from w'ere we started, an we're goin' so fast we
+might run past de place an' never see it."
+
+Josh felt hilarious. His panic was leaving him and his usual nerve was
+coming back.
+
+"How's the runabout coming?" roared Matt.
+
+"Gainin'!" whooped the boy. "Oh, sister, how she's comin'! Wisht I had
+some glass."
+
+"She'll never catch us, Josh!"
+
+"How's dat?"
+
+"Because I've fixed her so she won't."
+
+"I hope yous ain't shy in yer calkilations, Matt. Dem blokes'll sure
+kill us if we drops into deir hands."
+
+"Watch her, Josh! Tell me when her speed slackens, or when anything
+goes wrong."
+
+"She ain't slackenin' none yet, an' nuttin' ain't gone wrong."
+
+"Well, watch and tell me."
+
+Matt couldn't understand why the runabout wasn't beginning to develop
+trouble in the vicinity of the needle-valve. But it would come, sooner
+or later. Some of the sand was bound to get through the supply-pipe in
+time.
+
+The valley had widened considerably, and now it began to develop dips
+and rises which afforded Matt opportunity for nursing the motor and
+preventing overheating. He could cut off the power on the down grades
+and give the throbbing cylinders a breathing spell.
+
+Brisco had no such fine ability or discrimination. He took everything
+on the high gear.
+
+"Still gainin'!" announced Josh.
+
+"How far are they behind?"
+
+"A hundred feet. It's a wonder dey don't shake some bullets out o' deir
+guns dis way. One of 'em's tootin' his bazoo at us."
+
+"What does he say? Can you hear?"
+
+"He says ter stop 'r he'll put a bullet into one o' our tires. Chee! If
+he does dat----"
+
+Matt snatched one hand from the steering-wheel.
+
+Honk, honk! he answered derisively.
+
+Sping!
+
+The warning report was followed by the whistle of a bullet. It did
+not come anywhere near the Red Flier, but spatted harmlessly into the
+valley wall.
+
+Josh laughed wildly and waved his hand. The spirit of the race was
+surging through his veins and had wiped out all sense of fear.
+
+"Wow!" he shouted. "Yous ought t' seen dat! Spang has been holdin' on
+t' de seat wit' bot' hands, but he let go wit' one t' fire at us. De
+runabout jumped sideways an' he lost his pepper-box overboard. Come
+clost t' goin' hisself! Say, I wisht he had!"
+
+The runabout was devouring the distance in remarkable style. It was now
+only twenty-five feet behind, and so near that the sand and pebbles
+kicked up by the flying rear wheels of the red car struck in the faces
+of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+Spangler lowered his head. Brisco jerked the goggles down over his eyes.
+
+"Stop!" he roared, "or I'll run into you!"
+
+Honk, honk! tooted Matt defiantly.
+
+Brisco swore and gritted his teeth. With his temper at fever heat, what
+did he care how he injured the runabout just so he evened his score
+with Motor Matt?
+
+Closer and closer came the runabout. Josh measured the decreasing
+distance with his eyes.
+
+"Ten feet! Five, Matt, _five_! She's up t' us, now--look out!"
+
+Not knowing what was to happen, Josh curled over the back of the seat
+and hung on with both hands.
+
+There was a slight jar, followed by a sudden slewing on the part of the
+runabout, a quick lessening of speed and the whirr of a racing engine.
+
+"Dey're stoppin'!" shouted the boy; "somet'ing has gone wrong wid de
+odder car!"
+
+"I knew _something_ would happen!" shouted Matt, as he slowed his speed
+a little to give the Red Flier a bit of a rest.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+
+
+"Dat engine o' deirs went wrong just at de right time t' save our
+bacon, Matt," said Josh.
+
+Matt tossed a look backward. The runabout was at a stop, and Brisco was
+on the ground, tinkering frantically.
+
+"If he knows what to do," said Matt, "he'll be able to come on again.
+But he'll have more trouble; and he'll continue to have trouble until
+he takes time to overhaul his fuel-tank."
+
+"What did yous do?" asked the boy.
+
+"Mixed a handful of sand with his gasoline."
+
+"W'en?"
+
+"While we were hung up in front of those rocks Spangler had laid for
+us."
+
+"Didn't dat geezer see yous?"
+
+"I got out of the way before Brisco showed up; and Spangler, at the
+time, was away looking for the man in the notch."
+
+"Chee, but you're a wonder! Motor Matt heads de percession an' carries
+de banner! Yous t'ought o' all dat while I was hustlin' t' git behind
+dem rocks! Did yous t'ink we was goin' t' have a race?"
+
+"I didn't know but we might. Anyhow, I thought it good policy to fix
+the machine so it wouldn't be reliable. What's the news from the rear,
+Josh?"
+
+"Brisco is gittin' back in his seat."
+
+"Is he coming on?"
+
+"Dat's wot."
+
+"Fast as ever?"
+
+"I don't see no diff'rence in de runnin'."
+
+"Well, something is sure to go wrong, just as it did before. One grain
+of sand clogged the needle-valve, Josh, and there's a thousand more
+grains to come down the supply-pipe. Face around a minute. The road
+forks here. Which one shall we take? Do you remember coming this way?"
+
+The boy flopped around in his seat. The Red Flier was rushing toward a
+place where the road forked. Both roads were bordered by rocky walls,
+and both had the appearance of being equally well traveled--which
+wasn't saying much for the travel, at that.
+
+"I don't remember nuttin'," answered the boy, "bein' scart stiff all de
+w'ile I was in de runabout. I'd say go t' de right. Dat's always a good
+t'ing t' do."
+
+"If we had the least notion which way Fairview lay we could shape our
+course a little better. But we don't know, so we'll take chances and go
+to the right."
+
+There was a slowing of speed while Matt made the turn. For a long
+distance this fork was a straightaway stretch and fairly level. Matt
+and Josh were congratulating themselves on the fact that they had made
+a fortunate choice, when suddenly they whirled out on a vista that
+surprised them.
+
+At the end of the straightaway stretch, a sudden angle brought the
+side of a steep mountain under the boy's eyes. The road could be
+seen clinging to the mountain's side, describing horseshoe after
+horseshoe--edging its way between dizzy chasms and high cliffs.
+
+"Wow!" gasped Josh, and collapsed in his seat. "Right here's w'ere we
+fall off de eart'."
+
+Matt took another look behind. The runabout, with the stern, relentless
+face of Brisco over the wheel, was surging toward them.
+
+"Here we go!" called Matt. "Hang on, Josh!"
+
+"I'm glued! Yous can't shake me!"
+
+The boy was game, and Matt flung the Red Flier at the mountainside and
+down the ribbon of treacherous road.
+
+There were places where a cliff overhung the trail, and the wheels on
+the left almost scraped the rocks, while those on the right barely
+tracked on the brink of a gulf.
+
+The boy's face went white, but his eyes glimmered brightly. He looked
+back from time to time and saw the runabout sliding after them.
+
+A quick fear had rushed to Matt's brain. Oddly enough, it was not a
+fear for his own safety, for he knew the Red Flier and knew what he
+could do with it; but the runabout! If that trickle of sand cut off the
+power and caused the machine to slew ever so slightly, it would go over
+the chasm's edge and carry Brisco and Spangler with it!
+
+The world would have been better off, perhaps, if such a mishap
+had come to pass; but Matt did not want it that way. His own
+instrumentality in the matter would have been too hideously clear.
+
+And yet, if something did not happen to the runabout, the machine might
+collide with the Red Flier and drive it over the brink.
+
+Matt knew he must keep ahead. Never had he driven more masterfully than
+then. His nerves were steady, his brain alert, and every inch of that
+curving, treacherous down grade was covered by his eyes.
+
+It was more like falling down a hill than riding down. The Red Flier
+quivered like a thing of life, seeming to realize what was expected of
+it, and responding nobly.
+
+Far off, over the level plain at the mountain's foot, could be seen the
+little cluster of houses that represented Fairview. It glowed in the
+morning sun like a toy village on a toy map.
+
+As the road curved, struck a short straightaway, then curved again, the
+town swept vividly into view and again as quickly vanished.
+
+At the most desperate part of the trail a rock had crumbled from the
+wall and rolled to the edge of the chasm. There it lay, almost under
+the nose of the rushing car.
+
+The boy cast a despairing look into Motor Matt's set, determined face.
+All he saw was a swift gleam of the gray eyes.
+
+Crash!
+
+The car, skilfully guided so that it touched the inward side of the
+boulder, forced it from the edge and sent it bounding and smashing
+downward into the gulf.
+
+A sharp breath tore through the boy's lips. Confidence again took
+possession of him. After that escape, what difficulty could come up
+that Motor Matt was not able to conquer?
+
+Matt seemed to be made of steel. With one foot on the brake and both
+hands on the wheel, he kept rigidly to his work.
+
+"How're they making it behind, Josh?" he called.
+
+The boy knelt in his seat and looked back up the steep incline.
+
+Fortune was riding with Brisco that day. But for that he must have been
+hurled from the trail in a dozen places.
+
+Driving a car was comparatively new work for him, and the chances are
+that never before had he been on such a dangerous piece of road. Yet he
+was naturally a man of iron nerve, and would not hold back where Motor
+Matt led.
+
+Spangler, from his appearance, was as frightened a man as there ever
+was in Arizona. A gray pallor had spread over his face, and his eyes
+were fairly popping from his head. Gripping his seat with both hands,
+he braced himself with his feet against the forward dip of the car.
+
+"Dey're slidin' after us, cull," reported the boy.
+
+"Gaining?"
+
+"Dat's wot, but not like dey did on de level road."
+
+"The foot of the mountain is just ahead of us. Can we get there before
+they overtake us?"
+
+"Well, mebby we kin, but I wish de foot o' de mountain was half a mile
+nearer dan wot it is."
+
+Facing about in his seat, Josh looked at the foot of the mountain for
+himself.
+
+They were dropping toward it swiftly. There were no more
+curves--nothing but a straight fall, a shoot between bordering rocks
+and then a cheerful reach of road over the plain.
+
+"We're in luck t' git out o' dis widout a broken neck," said Josh.
+"Chee, but dat level place looks good t' me."
+
+"The Flier's a dandy car!" declared Matt.
+
+"She's got a dandy driver, an' dat's no dream. W'ere'd we been widout
+Motor Matt at de steerin'-wheel? Yous is a four-time winner, an' dere's
+odders dat'll hear me say it."
+
+"The runabout will be hot after us as soon as we hit the level ground
+again."
+
+"Dey'll never ketch us, cull. I don't care how hot dey come, wit' yous
+handlin' de Flier."
+
+With a final spurt the red car rushed through the rocks, and, for the
+first time since it had taken that up-and-down trail, both ends were on
+a level.
+
+As they glided out onto the plain, Matt cast a look backward. There was
+a feeling of relief came over him at sight of the runabout charging
+through the rocks at the mountain's foot.
+
+But, as he looked, and just as the runabout was on the point of
+striking level ground, there was a jerk to the left, a crash, and a
+sudden stop.
+
+Brisco pitched forward over the wheel, shot clear past the hood, and
+doubled up and rolled along the stony trail.
+
+Spangler went out on the left side, ricochetting into the air and
+turning a couple of grotesque somersaults. Like Brisco, when he
+dropped, he lay still.
+
+A sharp breath escaped Matt's lips. Turning the Red Flier, he started
+back until he had come almost upon the silent form of Brisco; then he
+brought the Flier to a halt and jumped out.
+
+"Chee, Moses!" muttered Josh, awed by the abrupt termination of the
+chase. "Do yous t'ink dem guys is killed, Matt?"
+
+"That's what we've got to find out," flung back Matt, hurrying to
+Brisco and kneeling down beside him.
+
+Human enmity seemed a paltry thing to Matt as his hand went groping
+over Brisco's breast, feeling for the heart-beats. A thrill of
+satisfaction shot through him as he found that Brisco was alive.
+
+Hurrying on to Spangler, he was immensely relieved to find that worthy
+sitting up in the road and drawing a hand over his dazed eyes.
+
+"What--what happened?" faltered Spangler.
+
+"Nothing to what's going to happen now, Spangler," answered Matt, and
+picked up the second and last revolver which the ruffian had had about
+him.
+
+"There ought to be some ropes in the runabout, Josh," called Matt. "Go
+and get them."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+
+
+Josh hustled for the runabout. One of the coiled ropes Matt had put in
+the car was hanging over a lamp, and the other had been thrown into the
+road. Taking the one off the lamp, the boy hurried back to the place
+where Matt was training the revolver on Spangler.
+
+"Fine bizness!" laughed Josh. "Wot d'yous want me t' do, Matt? Put a
+bow-knot on his lunch-hooks?"
+
+"Stand up, Spangler!" ordered Matt.
+
+Spangler got lamely to his feet. He was still confused and bewildered.
+
+"Somethin' hit us," he mumbled. "From the way I was throwed it must hev
+been a landslide. Whar's Hank? Is he killed?"
+
+"Brisco will get along, I guess," said Matt. "Put your hands behind
+you, Spangler."
+
+Just then, for the first time, it began to dawn on Spangler that Matt
+was making a prisoner out of him. The ruffian, although practically
+uninjured, had been badly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was in condition
+to resist, and he leaped backward, swearing.
+
+"If ye think ye kin rope, down an' tie me," he cried, "jest bekase that
+thar machine bucked an' dumped me inter the road, ye got another----"
+
+"Come this way!" cut in Matt.
+
+The words, hard and keen, jumped at Spangler like so many knife-points.
+Motor Matt meant business, and showed it in every movement.
+
+Spangler stepped forward.
+
+"That's far enough," snapped Matt. "Now put those hands behind you."
+
+With the open end of his own gun staring him in the face, there was
+nothing for Spangler to do but to obey. His hands went meekly behind
+him.
+
+"Can you tie a good hard knot, Josh?" asked Matt.
+
+"T'ink I ain't good f'r nuttin'?" protested the boy.
+
+Passing behind Spangler, he used the free end of the rope for a few
+moments and then stepped back with the rest of the coil in his hands.
+
+"If he gits dem mitts out o' dat he's a good 'un," announced Josh.
+"W'ere d'yous want him, Matt?"
+
+"In the Red Flier. Step lively, Spangler. We've got to look after
+Brisco."
+
+"Get ap!" clucked Josh, shaking the rope.
+
+With a black scowl on his face, the baffled Spangler made his way to
+the touring-car.
+
+"Get in on the back seat," went on Matt.
+
+Spangler obeyed the order.
+
+"Now, Josh," pursued Matt, "cut the rope and tie a piece of it around
+his feet."
+
+The boy finished the work expeditiously, and when he and Matt drew
+away from the Red Flier they left Spangler helpless and fuming in the
+tonneau.
+
+Brisco was still lying where he had fallen, and he was still
+unconscious. Matt made a more thorough examination of him. His pulse
+was stronger and, so far as Matt could discover, there were no broken
+bones.
+
+"Wot keeps 'im in a trance?" asked the boy. "He's stayin' a long time
+in de Land o' Nod for not havin' nuttin' wrong wit' 'im."
+
+"Pick up his revolver, Josh," returned Matt briskly, "and then sit down
+beside him and wait till he gets his wits back. Don't let him get away
+from you."
+
+"Get away from me? Not on yer life, cull. I'd radder take dis mutt into
+Fairview dan pull down a t'ousan' in de long green. Dad wants _him_."
+
+Paying no attention to the boy's rather obscure remark, Matt went to
+the runabout. He was expecting to find the machine badly smashed, and
+was happily disappointed.
+
+Both front lamps were broken, and the mud-guard over the right wheel
+forward had been ripped away. The guard had fallen between the wheel
+and the rock, and undoubtedly had kept the wheel from being dished. The
+tire was punctured and the jolt had disabled the motor. For all that,
+however, the machine, with a few temporary repairs, could travel on its
+own wheels if not under its own power.
+
+Brisco had not yet corralled his wits. Aided by Josh, Matt dragged the
+man off to one side, where he would be out of the way; then, cutting
+about six feet of rope from the other riata, he threw it down where
+Josh could get at it.
+
+"When Brisco wakes up, Josh," said Matt, "just hold him steady till we
+put that rope on him."
+
+"Wot yous goin' t' do, Matt?" inquired the wondering Josh. "Yous is
+busier dan a monkey wit' his hand in a coconut."
+
+"We're going to haul the runabout into Fairview," said Matt. "But I've
+got to patch her up first."
+
+Getting into the Red Flier, Matt backed her as close to the disabled
+car as he could; then, hitching onto the runabout with the ropes, he
+pulled it down onto the level plain.
+
+With a jack taken from the touring-car he swung the runabout's wheel
+off the ground. The mud-guard, having been ripped off, was not in
+his way. After locating the puncture and marking it with chalk, he
+unscrewed the wing-nuts, pushed out the security-bolt, and then, with
+levers, dug out the inner tube.
+
+Perhaps he was an hour getting the hole patched up, tire back in place
+and reinflated. When he was through, the runabout was ready to be
+dragged to Fairview.
+
+"How's Brisco?" asked Matt, putting on his leather coat, which he had
+thrown off while working with the runabout.
+
+"Same as wot he was, cull," replied Josh. "He ain't twitched an
+eye-winker."
+
+"He may be shamming," said Matt, "in the hope of making a bolt for his
+liberty. We'll put him in the tonneau. You can ride with him and watch
+him every minute. I'll take Spangler in front with me."
+
+"We're goin' t' take de hull outfit into Fairview?" grinned Josh.
+
+"That's the idea."
+
+"A whale of an idee it is, too, an' no stringin'. Reg'lar line-up o'
+crooks an' stolen automobiles, wit' Motor Matt in charge o' de bunch.
+Wow! It's de biggest come-easy dat I ever mixed up wit'. Mebby dere
+won't be rejoicin' w'en we goes pokin' into town wit' all dis load.
+Well, I guess yes."
+
+Between them, Matt and Josh succeeded in carrying Brisco to the
+touring-car and getting him into the tonneau.
+
+Spangler, having been transferred to one of the front seats, had been
+chewing the cud of reflection.
+
+"Looky here, Motor Matt," said he, "ye ain't got no call ter kerry me
+ter Fairview. Think o' Klegg, down an' out an' mebby dyin' back thar in
+that notch. If anythin' happens ter him ye'll be responsible. Better
+turn me loose an' let me go back an' take keer o' him."
+
+"Don't do so much worrying over Klegg," answered Matt. "I intend to
+have him looked after. Just as soon as we get to Fairview I'll have the
+sheriff, or some other officer, go to the notch and see that Klegg gets
+all the attention he deserves."
+
+"Waal, even at that, ye ain't got no call ter lug me inter town. I
+ain't done a thing. Brisco was the feller that had it in fer you. It's
+him ye want ter git even with, an' not me."
+
+"You didn't have a hand in robbing Mr. Tomlinson, did you?" said Matt
+sarcastically. "There are a lot of other things you've done, too,
+and I'm going to turn you over to Lem Nugent, the man who owns the
+runabout, as soon as we reach Fairview. It won't take long to get
+Nugent up from Ash Forks."
+
+"Yous is a game loser, I don't t'ink," scoffed the boy. "W'ere's yer
+nerve, Spangler?"
+
+"Say," said Spangler, giving his attention to Josh, "where did you butt
+inter this game?"
+
+"I rode out o' Fairview wit' Brisco," grinned Josh. "He give me a ride."
+
+"Give ye a ride?" echoed Spangler.
+
+"Sure, on'y he didn't know it. I was under de coat in de back o' de
+runabout; an' I was still dere w'en yous mutts went t' dat hole in de
+wall. 'Course yous didn't see me. Yous was too mad at Motor Matt t' see
+anyt'ing."
+
+The whole situation rushed over Spangler with demoralizing clearness.
+He was able to understand how Josh and Matt, by the exercise of pluck
+and brains, had succeeded in balking the plans of Brisco.
+
+Spangler swore heartily. It seemed to be his only method for easing his
+feelings.
+
+"The worst move we ever made," he muttered savagely, "was takin' Motor
+Matt out o' town last night. I didn't want ter do it, but Brisco had
+made up his mind, an' that settled it. We ain't got no one ter blame
+but ourselves fer what's happened. Go on. The quicker we git ter
+Fairview an' hev this thing over with, the better I'll be suited."
+
+Spangler, resigning himself to the situation, sank back in his seat.
+
+Matt went around to the rear of the car to make the ropes attaching it
+to the runabout more secure. As near as he had been able to discover
+there was a level road all the way to Fairview. They were coming into
+the town from the north and east, and not along the Ash Fork road,
+where there was a hill to be descended in order to reach the valley.
+
+Having reassured himself about the ropes, Matt returned to the side of
+the Red Flier and mounted the running-board. Looking over the side of
+the tonneau, he swept his gaze over Brisco's unconscious face.
+
+"I can't understand what keeps him that way, Josh," said Matt.
+
+"Mebby he's badly shook up inside," answered the boy. "Wot he needs is
+a doctor."
+
+"Well, he'll have one before long. Stay right beside him and watch him
+every minute. If he's playing possum with us, we want to make sure he
+don't gain anything by it."
+
+"I'm right on de job," said Josh.
+
+Matt climbed into his seat and started on the low gear. There was a
+creaking of the ropes as they took the pull, and the runabout started.
+
+Everything worked smoothly, and Matt, with a load worth fifteen hundred
+dollars, set his face toward Fairview.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+The disappearance of Motor Matt and the Red Flier made Carl Pretzel
+not only bewildered but furiously angry. He was angry at Brisco and
+bewildered to account for the way he had pulled off his night raid.
+
+"Oof dot feller inchures a hair oof Modor Matt's headt," wheezed Carl,
+shaking his fist in the air, "I vill camp by his drail, py chimineddy!
+I vill go on some var-paths! I vill make him be sorry for vat he dit,
+yah, so helup me!"
+
+Leaving Carl to rant and vow vengeance, Legree rushed over to the
+railroad-station and sent a message. The message, owing to financial
+embarrassment on the part of Legree, had to go collect.
+
+  "LEM NUGENT, Ash Fork.
+
+  "Come at once to Fairview. Important developments regarding your
+  automobile.                                            MOTOR MATT."
+
+Legree signed the message with Matt's name because he knew the
+cattleman wouldn't know anything about a man named Legree; and he also
+felt sure that Motor Matt's name would secure the cattleman's instant
+attention.
+
+On his way back to the hotel he inquired for the sheriff. Fairview was
+too small to have a sheriff, but the town had a deputy sheriff. The
+deputy, however, was just then attending his father's golden-wedding,
+in Flagstaff, the marshal had gone with him, and the town was without
+an officer.
+
+As if this was not sufficiently discouraging, when Legree got back to
+the hotel he found a very disquieting state of affairs.
+
+The Uncle Tommers had been chased out of the hostelry by O'Grady and
+Ping Pong, his Chinese cook. They were gathered in a forlorn group in
+front, and Carl Pretzel was with them.
+
+"Mistah O'Grady, sah," Uncle Tom was saying with all the dignity he
+could work up, "Ah's de official mascot ob Motah Matt. While Ah's been
+stayin' in yo' 'stablishment, Ah's been mascottin' fo' him. He will
+come back, yo' ma'k what Ah say. Gib us ouah breakfus en yo' sho gits
+yo' money!"
+
+"Begorry, yez have got into me f'r all yez are goin' to," yelled the
+proprietor. "It's a passel av thramps yez are, iv'ry wan av yez! Av th'
+marshal was in town, Oi'd have yez all in th' cooler. Get out, befure
+Oi sic th' dog on yez! Scatther!"
+
+"What's the matter here?" demanded Legree, pushing to the front.
+
+"Py chincher," flared Carl, "dot Irish feller t'inks ve vas vorkin'
+some shkin games on him. He vas grazier as a pedpug, und he von't gif
+us some preakfast."
+
+"En we's all hongry es sin," piped Uncle Tom plaintively. "Ah been
+mascottin' fo' Motah Matt twell Ah's dat fagged Ah dunno whut Ah's
+about, no, sah."
+
+"I tried to get him to take my ring, Legree," put in Eliza, "but he
+won't. He says we're only a lot of dead beats, and never intend to pay
+him."
+
+"Ah tole him," spoke up Topsy, "dat Ah'd wuk in his kitchum fo' de
+price ob a breakfus, an' he wouldn' hab it. Ah's honest, dat's whut Ah
+is. Ah nebber stole a cent fum anybody en mah life."
+
+"See here, O'Grady," remarked Legree, "Motor Matt has money and he has
+offered to pay our expenses while we're stopping with you. I'll have
+money myself in a few days, and then I'll pay you. You're not taking
+any chances on this crowd."
+
+"Faith, an' yez are roight about thot," scowled O'Grady. "Oi'm takin'
+no more chances wid yez. Motor Matt! Why, he run aff lasht noight!
+Sure, he did! He shneaked away so he wouldn't have t' pay me f'r yer
+kape. Oi'm keen enough t' see thot!"
+
+"Py shinks," whooped Carl, dancing around and waving his fists, "don'd
+you say dod some more. I can lick der feller vat says somet'ings
+aboudt Modor Matt like dot. Ven he say he pay, he mean vot he say, und
+he do it, too. Yah, you bed you! Modor Matt vas my bard, und he don'd
+vas leafing a bard in der lurch like vat you say."
+
+"Av Motor Matt is yer pard," said O'Grady, "bedad but it's sthrange yez
+haven't money. Git out, Oi say! Oi'm done wid yez."
+
+"I tell you," went on Legree, "I'll have money myself in a few days."
+
+"Yez can't make me belave any cock-an'-bull shtory like thot. Niver
+again will Oi take in anny wan widout baggage. Shoo! Clear out befure
+Oi git violent."
+
+In O'Grady's present temper there was no reasoning with him, so Legree
+marshaled his comrades and led them off to a neighboring wood-pile,
+where they all sat down disconsolately.
+
+"Ah's been accustomed tuh bettah treatment," mourned Uncle Tom. "Ah's
+got de bigges' notion dat evah was tuh put a hoodoo on dat hotel. Ah
+could do hit, but Ah restrains mahse'f till Ah gits odahs fum Motah
+Matt."
+
+"Go 'long wif sich talk!" cried Topsy, out of patience. "'Peahs lak yo'
+done put dat hoodoo on de rest ob us. Nuffin' ain't gone right sence we
+left dat 'ar Brockville place."
+
+"There'll be some one here from Ash Fork before long, who, maybe, will
+help us," said Legree. "Just be as patient as you can, friends, and
+we'll hope for the best."
+
+"All de patience in de worl', Mistah Legree," answered Uncle Tom,
+"'doan' fill a pusson's stummick. Mah goodness, Ah didun' know Ah was
+so pesterin' hongry."
+
+"I tell you somet'ing," said Carl, "oof I knowed vich vay Modor Matt
+vas, I vould go und findt him. I vas madt as some vet hens ofer dis
+pitzness. Here ve vas, hung oop on a vood-pile mit nodding to eat, und
+not knowing vere Modor Matt vent mit himseluf. Chonny Hartluck iss
+hanging aroundt mit us."
+
+Leaving his disconsolate friends, Legree went back to the
+railroad-station. There he waited for four hours for the local train
+from Ash Fork. He was rewarded, however, by seeing a big man get off
+the train, stop on the platform, and look around expectantly.
+
+Legree walked up to the arriving passenger.
+
+"Mr. Nugent?" he asked.
+
+"You've hit it," replied the cattleman, staring the stranded actor up
+and down with an unfavoring eye.
+
+"Ah! Well, sir, my name's Legree. I suppose you're looking for Motor
+Matt?"
+
+"Another bull's-eye for you. I came here on a telegram from Motor
+Matt saying that there had been important developments concerning my
+automobile that was stolen from me near Ash Fork. Where's Motor Matt?"
+
+"He is unavoidably absent just now," answered Legree, "but I am
+confidently expecting him to appear at any moment. To be frank with
+you, sir, I sent that telegram and signed Motor Matt's name to it."
+
+The cattleman became indignant.
+
+"You're pretty fresh, seems to me!" said he. "What business had you
+doing a thing like that?"
+
+"Because I wanted you here. Your car was in town yesterday. One of the
+thieves brought it in for a supply of gasoline and oil. Motor Matt and
+I tried to capture the thief, but he got away from us and took the car
+with him."
+
+"Who are you, if you haven't any objection to answerin' a straight
+question?" demanded the cattleman.
+
+"Step into the waiting-room with me for a few moments," replied Legree,
+"and I'll explain."
+
+They went into the waiting-room and were gone possibly five minutes.
+When they came out on the platform once more, Nugent seemed to have
+developed a vast amount of confidence in Legree.
+
+"Why didn't you tell Motor Matt what you've told me?" asked the
+cattleman.
+
+"I wasn't telling anybody that, Mr. Nugent," answered Legree, "and
+I wouldn't be telling you now if I hadn't wanted to fix things with
+O'Grady so that I and my friends can continue to remain at his hotel."
+
+"I know O'Grady," said Nugent. "Come along with me and I'll fix things
+up for you."
+
+They went to the hotel at once. O'Grady, tilted back against the wall
+in front, was smoking a pipe and keeping a sharp eye on the wood-pile.
+
+Uncle Tom, with a red bandanna over his face, was leaning back against
+the wood and was apparently asleep. All the rest were hovering
+listlessly about, waiting patiently for something to happen.
+
+The sight of Lem Nugent, who was known throughout all that part of the
+country, wrought a great change in O'Grady. The cattleman and the actor
+were approaching together, and seemed to be on cordial terms.
+
+"O'Grady," said Nugent, after he had exchanged greetings with the
+proprietor, "this gentleman is a friend of mine, and his friends are
+my friends, understand? Take them all in and give them the best you've
+got. And don't bleed me, you shyster. I'll stand the damage, but I
+won't be robbed."
+
+"Whativer yez say goes wid me, Lem," said O'Grady. "Come on, all av
+yez," he cried, standing up and motioning toward the wood-pile. "Oi'll
+have th' Chink put a male on th' table f'r yez to wanst."
+
+Uncle Tom may have been asleep, but he heard those welcome words and
+was up like a shot.
+
+"Ah was mascottin fo' dat very t'ing," he admitted, as he ran toward
+the hotel. "Layin' back dar wid mah bandannah ober mah face, Ah was
+wukin' lak er hiahed man, yassuh. Now, den, yo' Topsy, yo' see what Ah
+kin do when Ah lays mahse'f out!"
+
+Just as they were starting into the hotel, a shout from Carl brought
+them all to a halt and an about-face.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" yelled Carl, dancing around and throwing his cap in the
+air. "Look vonce ad vat's coming! Vat dit I say? Here vas a drain oof
+cars, mit Modor Matt pringing dem in. Ach, himmel, I peen so habby as I
+can't dell! Modor Matt iss coming!"
+
+Under the startled eyes of those in front of the hotel two cars could
+be seen coming along the road. The Red Flier, with Matt and three
+passengers, was in the lead, and towing behind was the runabout.
+
+"My car, by thunder!" shouted Nugent, starting for the road.
+
+"And Spangler is with Motor Matt," cried the amazed Legree, "and
+Brisco, and the kid! How in blazes do you think that happened?"
+
+A disgusted look crossed Uncle Tom's face.
+
+"How yo' t'ink dat happened!" he muttered sarcastically; "en me
+a-mascottin' fo' Motah Matt all de time!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+CONCLUSION.
+
+
+Whether O'Grady really thought Motor Matt had taken French leave during
+the night or not, is a question. Certainly he was as surprised to see
+Matt traveling into town as were any of the rest of them.
+
+All those around the hotel flocked to the road.
+
+"Hello, Matt!" called Nugent, reaching up his hand. "It looks like
+you'd been accomplishing something."
+
+Matt's acquaintance with the cattleman had been of exceedingly brief
+duration, and never before had he been hailed by him in that cordial
+tone.
+
+"How are you, Mr. Nugent?" he returned, taking the cattleman's hand.
+"How did you happen to come over this way?"
+
+"Got a telegram from you----"
+
+"From me?" echoed Matt.
+
+"I sent it, Matt," put in Legree, "and signed your name to it. When you
+disappeared last night I knew something had to be done, and that there
+ought to be a man with money to do it. So I sent for Nugent."
+
+"It's all right, my boy," said Nugent, "and I'm tickled to death
+because I came. You're bringing in my car, I see, and the two fellows
+that took it away from me. Good! If we don't put 'em through for their
+crooked work, my name ain't Nugent."
+
+"You'll have to send for a doctor for Brisco," said Matt. "He's been
+unconscious for two hours, and I don't know whether he's badly hurt or
+not. You see----"
+
+At that moment Brisco proved that he was far from being badly hurt.
+With a jump he got out of the tonneau and started at a run toward the
+edge of town. Uncle Tom happened to be in his way, and was knocked
+heels over head.
+
+"Dere he goes!" yelled Josh excitedly. "Clear out o' de way so I kin
+git a shot at 'im!"
+
+But Josh was not allowed to carry out his warlike intentions. Legree
+took after the escaping ruffian, overhauled him before he had gone far,
+grabbed him by the shoulders, and hurled him to the ground.
+
+O'Grady, rushing to Legree's assistance, lent a willing hand. Brisco
+had been a good customer of O'Grady's, but the situation had changed
+somewhat since the Uncle Tommers had been staying at the Shamrock Hotel.
+
+"I reckon, Matt," remarked Lem Nugent dryly, "that the fellow ain't
+very badly hurt. How did you happen to get hold of the scoundrels?"
+
+"They were chasing us," answered Matt. "We were in the Red Flier and
+they were in your car. Brisco ran into the rocks, and he and Spangler
+were thrown out. Neither of them seemed very much hurt, and Josh and
+I captured Spangler before he had fully got back his wits. Brisco
+appeared to be all right, but he was unconscious. I had an idea that he
+might be shamming. Probably he came to himself just as we got here, and
+thought the best thing for him to do would be to make a break."
+
+"His break didn't help him any," said Legree, as he and O'Grady came
+marching back with Brisco between them. "Go up to my room, Josh,"
+Legree went on, "and get those two plates. You'll find 'em under the
+northeast corner of the carpet. Front room, boy."
+
+"Dat's me," answered Josh, handing Brisco's weapons to his father and
+bounding away.
+
+"I'm going to tell you people something," proceeded Legree, "that will
+no doubt surprise you. And I think," he finished grimly, "that Brisco
+will be as much surprised as anybody."
+
+Josh presently returned with a couple of flat, square packages. Leaving
+O'Grady to take care of Brisco, Legree took the packages in his hands.
+
+"A crook by the name of Denver Denny, alias James Trymore," went on
+Legree, "escaped from the authorities at Denver and came to this part
+of the country. Denver Denny was a clever counterfeiter, and worked
+in conjunction with Hank Brisco. At least, following the output of
+the 'queer' as it trailed along in the wake of that Uncle Tom's Cabin
+Company, I came to that conclusion.
+
+"Denny owned a set of very fine plates for the manufacture of bogus
+five-dollar silver certificates. When he was captured in Denver those
+plates were nowhere to be found. I conceived the notion that they
+might be in Brisco's possession, and in order to make sure, I became
+letter-perfect in the part of Legree, and Josh here got the part of
+Little Eva by heart, and we arranged to join Brisco's company of
+barn-stormers.
+
+"We were with them for some time, watching Brisco all the while. Brisco
+was not shoving any of the 'queer' while we were with him, and I was
+inclined to think that I had made a mistake in connecting him with
+Denny's operations. However, Brisco had a little tin box, of which he
+was very choice and careful. His solicitude for that box aroused my
+curiosity. When Brisco pulled out between two days in Denver, and left
+his company stranded, by some freak of chance he dropped the box. Josh
+found it. We opened the box in Ash Fork and found these two packages
+in it." Legree lifted the two flat parcels so all could see. "I knew
+perfectly well that Brisco would come after his box, so I continued to
+play the part of a stranded actor, hoping to get my hands on him.
+
+"Fate was kind to us," and here Legree turned and dropped a friendly
+hand on the young motorist's shoulder, "by bringing Motor Matt along.
+He came to the front gallantly and helped us. I should have captured
+Brisco sooner or later, even without his aid, but he has closed the
+affair in hurricane fashion and saved the government lots of trouble."
+
+Everybody, Uncle Tommers, Matt, Carl, and Brisco and Spangler, were
+astounded. Nugent was the solitary exception, for Legree had revealed
+his identity to the cattleman in the railroad-station.
+
+"These are the plates," went on Legree. "Brisco had them in the tin
+box."
+
+"And you are----" began Matt, staring at Legree.
+
+"A secret service man in the employ of the government."
+
+A cry of fierce anger escaped Brisco. He made a fierce attempt to get
+at Legree, but O'Grady restrained him.
+
+"Faith," said O'Grady, with cheerful disregard of his past actions, "Oi
+knowed yez was a bad egg th' minyit Oi set eyes on yez."
+
+"Dis," remarked Uncle Tom, with immense pride, "is de best job ob
+mascottin' whut Ah's done yit!"
+
+"Better give up, Brisco!" called Spangler from the touring-car.
+"They've got it on us an' we'll have ter take our medicine."
+
+"Got it on us, yes," stormed Brisco, "but they wouldn't have done it if
+it hadn't been for Motor Matt."
+
+"Not so quick, I'll admit," said Legree amiably, "but I'd have caught
+you sooner or later, Brisco. In my report I shall have something to
+say to the head of the department about Motor Matt. I'd like to hear,
+though, just how he happened to make this haul."
+
+"Josh helped me," said Matt.
+
+"Not enough so yous could notice it," returned Josh promptly; "Motor
+Matt was de man on de job from start t' finish. Yous take it from
+Little Eva, an' no stringin'."
+
+The boy turned to Matt with a wide grin.
+
+"Yous is wise t' why I went off wit' Brisco in dat runabout now, ain't
+yous? I wanted t' find out w'ere he had 'is hang-out so dad could turn
+a trick fer de gov'ment. But yous cut out dad, Matt."
+
+"Listen, vonce," cried Carl, who had been trying for some time to get
+in a few words, "Matt's der pest efer. He prings luck venefer he goes
+mit anypody. Yah, dot's righdt. I know, pecause he prought luck mit me."
+
+Uncle Tom was disposed to butt in with an objection, but the cattleman
+had something to say.
+
+"There's fifteen hundred of my money goes to somebody for all this,"
+said he. "Who gets it, Matt?"
+
+"Divide it up between all of us," answered the boy generously. "The
+Uncle Tommers need it."
+
+A shout of delight went up from the actor contingent.
+
+"You can leave Josh in the division," said Legree, "but cut me out of
+it. I'm working for Uncle Sam."
+
+Just at that moment the Chinaman stepped to the door and announced
+dinner.
+
+"We'll talk all this over while we eat," said Nugent. "Come on,
+everybody."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Motor Matt and Carl, having lost more time in Fairview than they could
+well afford, started for Albuquerque early in the afternoon.
+
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, now well supplied with money, were to
+proceed to Denver by train.
+
+The secret service man and Josh were to remain in Fairview for a few
+days with their prisoners, and then to take them to Denver for trial.
+
+"Matt," said Carl seriously, as the Red Flier leaped onward toward
+Albuquerque, "I vas a lucky feller to hook oop mit you. Vone oof dose
+tays, oof you don'd go pack on me, I vill vear tiamonts!"
+
+"I'll never go back on you, Carl," laughed Matt; "but I'm a little
+'juberous' about the diamonds."
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+  THE NEXT NUMBER (7) WILL CONTAIN
+
+  MOTOR MATT'S CLUE;
+
+  OR,
+
+  THE PHANTOM AUTO.
+
+
+  A Night Mystery--Dick Ferral--La Vita Place--The House of
+  Wonder--Sercomb--The Phantom Auto Again--Surrounded by Enemies--The
+  Kettle Begins to Boil--Ordered Away--A New Plan--A Daring
+  Leap--Desperate Villiany--Tippoo--In the Nick of Time--A Startling
+  Interruption--The Price of Treachery--The Luck of Dick Ferral.
+
+
+
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+THRILLING ADVENTURE MOTOR FICTION
+
+NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.
+
+
+TERMS TO MOTOR STORIES MAIL SUBSCRIBERS.
+
+(_Postage Free._)
+
+Single Copies or Back Numbers, 5c. Each.
+
+  3 months                    65c.
+  4 months                    85c.
+  6 months                 $1.25
+  One year                  2.50
+  2 copies one year         4.00
+  1 copy two years          4.00
+
+=How to Send Money=--By post-office or express money-order, registered
+letter, bank check or draft, at our risk. At your own risk if sent by
+currency, coin, or postage-stamps in ordinary letter.
+
+=Receipts=--Receipt of your remittance is acknowledged by proper change
+of number on your label. If not correct you have not been properly
+credited, and should let us know at once.
+
+  ORMOND G. SMITH, }
+  GEORGE C. SMITH, } _Proprietors_.
+
+  STREET & SMITH, Publishers,
+  79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York City.
+
+
+
+
+A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+
+By HORATIO ALGER, Jr.
+
+
+The snow had fallen to the depth of six inches during the night,
+filling in the yards and covering the door-steps, throughout the town
+of Conway. Among those who hailed the arrival of the snow with joy was
+Frank Taylor, a boy of fourteen, the son of the Widow Taylor, who lived
+in a miserable little tenement not far from the mill. Why he was glad
+to see the snow will soon appear.
+
+Early in the morning he shoveled a path to the street, and then putting
+his shovel over his shoulder, said to his mother:
+
+"I'm going over to Squire Ashmead's to see if he doesn't want me to
+shovel paths in his yard."
+
+"He's got a boy of his own," said Mrs. Taylor; "perhaps he will do it."
+
+Frank laughed.
+
+"Sam Ashmead is proud and lazy," he said. "You won't catch him
+shoveling paths. I think I shall get the job. I want to earn something
+so that you need not sit all day sewing. It is too hard for you."
+
+"I ought to think myself lucky to get employment at all," said the
+widow.
+
+"I wish I could get steady work somewhere," said Frank; "but I've tried
+and tried, and it seems impossible."
+
+"Willing hands will not want work long," said his mother.
+
+"I hope not, mother. But I must be going, or somebody will get the
+start of me."
+
+While Frank is on his way to Squire Ashmead's, a few words of
+explanation may be given. His mother had been a widow for two years.
+Her husband had been a man of some education, having at times taught
+school, but he had never succeeded in laying up any money, and his
+widow was left almost penniless. Frank, who was a stout boy, and a good
+boy as well, had earned something by doing odd jobs, but had failed
+to obtain permanent employment. The burden of their joint support,
+therefore, was thrown upon his mother, who was very industrious with
+her needle, but was compelled to labor beyond her strength. All this
+troubled Frank, who felt that, as a stout, strong boy, he ought to bear
+at least half the expense.
+
+In due time he reached Squire Ashmead's, and was glad to see that the
+snow remained undisturbed.
+
+He rang the bell, and asked if he might shovel the paths that were
+necessary.
+
+Squire Ashmead was absent in New York, to which city he had gone the
+morning previous on business, but his wife agreed to employ Frank.
+
+He went to work with a will, and soon had a path dug from the front
+door to the gate. A path was also required from the back door to the
+stable, which was situated in the rear of the house. This was quite a
+distance, and as Frank wished to do the work thoroughly, it required
+considerable time.
+
+He was about half through this portion of his task when a snowball
+whistled by his ear.
+
+Looking round quickly, he saw Sam Ashmead standing at the corner of the
+house, engaged in making a fresh snowball.
+
+"Don't fire any more snowballs, Sam Ashmead," said Frank.
+
+"I shall, if I please," said Sam.
+
+"I haven't time to fire back now," said Frank. "Wait till I get
+through, and we'll have a match if you like."
+
+"But I don't like," said Sam scornfully. "Do you think I would have a
+match with a beggar like you?"
+
+"I am no beggar, Sam Ashmead," said Frank, "and if I were I don't think
+I would beg of you."
+
+"Oh, you're mighty proud," sneered Sam, "considering that you live in
+an old hut not half as good as our stable."
+
+"Yes, I am poor, and I live in a poor house," said Frank calmly, "but
+that isn't a crime that I know of. Some time I shall live in a better
+house, I hope."
+
+So saying, he went back to work, and began shoveling the snow
+vigorously. He did not anticipate any further attack from Sam, but in
+this he soon found himself mistaken.
+
+In the course of a minute he felt a pretty hard blow in the center of
+his back, and looking round saw Sam Ashmead laughing insolently.
+
+"How does that feel?" asked Sam.
+
+"That's the second snowball you've fired at me," said Frank quietly,
+but there was a light in his eyes as he spoke. "I advise you not to
+fire another if you know what is good for yourself."
+
+"So you threaten me, do you? Suppose I fire again, what's going to
+happen?" demanded Sam, with an unpleasant sneer.
+
+"I think you will be sorry for it," said Frank.
+
+Sam hesitated a moment, but only a moment. He was a year older than
+Frank, and larger in size. Certainly he ought to be a match for him.
+But he did not believe that Frank would have the audacity to touch him,
+the son of Squire Ashmead, the richest man in the village. He therefore
+deliberately made another snowball, and firing it, struck Frank in the
+back of his head.
+
+Frank no sooner felt the blow than he threw down his shovel, and ran
+toward his assailant.
+
+"Keep off, you beggar!" said Sam.
+
+"It's too late," said Frank. "I warned you not to fire again."
+
+Sam placed himself in an attitude of defense, but found himself seized
+violently round the middle, and before he fairly knew what was going to
+happen he was lying in a snow-bank with Frank standing over him.
+
+He struggled to his feet mad with rage, and "pitched into" Frank, as
+the boys express it, and endeavored to retaliate in kind. But Frank was
+watchful and wary, and evading the attack, seized him again when his
+strength was half spent, and Sam found himself once more occupying an
+involuntary bed in the snow.
+
+A third struggle resulted in the same way. Sam was furious, but he saw
+that Frank was more than a match for him.
+
+Just then a servant called out from the door:
+
+"Master Sam, your mother says it's time for you to be going to school."
+
+To tell the truth, Sam was rather glad of the summons, as it gave him
+an excuse for retiring from the contest.
+
+"I'll be even with you yet," he said, shaking his fist at Frank. "I'll
+let my father know how you insulted me, you young beggar!"
+
+"If anybody has been insulted, I have," said Frank. "You must remember
+that you began it."
+
+Sam scowled vindictively, and brushing the snow from his coat went into
+the house. Before Frank finished the path at the back of the house he
+was gone to school.
+
+Mrs. Ashmead sent out fifty cents to Frank for his morning's work,
+with which he went home, well satisfied, wishing that he might earn as
+much every day. He wondered a little whether Sam would tell his father
+what had occurred between them. He did not speak of it to his mother,
+for she was nervous, and would be troubled by it, as she received
+considerable work to do from the Ashmead family which she might fear
+would be taken away.
+
+On the afternoon of the next day, however, Frank received a note, which
+proved to come from Squire Ashmead. It ran as follows:
+
+  "FRANK TAYLOR: Please call at my office to-morrow morning at ten
+  o'clock.                                            JAMES ASHMEAD."
+
+This note Frank thought best to show to his mother.
+
+"What does it mean, Frank? Have you any idea?" she asked.
+
+Frank thereupon told her the story of his difficulty with Sam.
+
+"It may be about that," he said.
+
+"Oh, dear," said the widow. "I'm afraid he's very angry. I hope you
+will apologize, Frank."
+
+"No, mother," said Frank, "I don't see why I should. I only defended
+myself from a bully. I should be ashamed to do anything else. I didn't
+hurt him, and didn't intend to, but I wanted to teach him that he
+couldn't insult me without having to pay for it."
+
+"I am afraid some harm will come of it," said the widow anxiously.
+
+"Don't trouble yourself, mother," said Frank soothingly. "If we do only
+what's right, God will take care of us."
+
+Still it was with some anxiety that Frank made his way the next morning
+to the office of Squire Ashmead. This gentleman was the agent of a
+large manufactory in the town, of which also he was a considerable
+owner, so that he received an income of over ten thousand dollars a
+year, which made him the most prominent and influential citizen in the
+town.
+
+When Frank entered the office, Squire Ashmead was conversing with a
+stranger on business.
+
+"Sit down," he said, turning to Frank. "I will be at leisure in a
+moment."
+
+"Well," he said, after the stranger had departed, "Sam tells me you and
+he have had a little difficulty."
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank. "I would like to explain how it occurred."
+
+"Very well. Go on."
+
+It will be unnecessary to give the explanation, as it was strictly in
+accordance with the facts.
+
+"Do you blame me for what I did?" asked Frank, at the end.
+
+"No, I do not," said the squire. "Sam acted like a bully, and was
+properly punished. Let that pass. Now let me ask you how you and your
+mother are getting along?"
+
+"Poorly, sir," said Frank. "If I could have steady work, it would be
+different, but that I cannot get. It troubles me to see my mother work
+so hard all day. I think it is too much for her."
+
+"How would you like to come into my office?"
+
+Frank's eyes sparkled.
+
+"I should think myself very lucky, sir, to get so good a chance."
+
+"I want some boy whom I can trust, who can grow up to the business, and
+after a time relieve me of a portion of my cares. I would take Sam, but
+I am sorry to say, though he is my own son, that he would not answer
+my purpose. I have heard good accounts of you from your teacher and
+the people in the village. I will take you at a salary of six dollars
+a week, to be increased from time to time if you will suit me. Can you
+come Monday morning?"
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank, "and I will do my best to give you
+satisfaction."
+
+"Very well, my lad. Good morning."
+
+Frank left the office, feeling as if his fortune was made. His mother,
+who was awaiting the result of the interview anxiously at home, was
+overwhelmed with astonishment at the unexpected good fortune of her
+son. Sam was disagreeably surprised, and tried to shake his father's
+resolution, but Squire Ashmead was a sensible man, and not to be moved.
+
+Frank commenced his duties the next Monday. He was so faithful that
+he was rapidly advanced, and at twenty-one was receiving twelve
+hundred dollars a year. At twenty-five, on the sudden death of Squire
+Ashmead, he succeeded to his agency, and now lives with his mother in
+the mansion at which he once thought himself lucky to be permitted
+to shovel the paths. As for Sam, he squandered the handsome property
+received from his father, and died at thirty from the effects of
+intemperate habits.
+
+
+
+
+SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+
+
+When a champion rifle shot fires blindfolded at a wedding-ring, or a
+penny held between his wife's thumb and finger, or, seated back to
+her, shoots, by means of a mirror, at an apple upon her head or on a
+fork held in her teeth, the danger of using a bullet is obvious. None,
+of course, is needed; the explosion is enough. The apple is already
+prepared, having been cut into pieces and stuck together with an
+adhesive substance, and a thread with a knot at the end, pulled through
+it from the "wings," so that it flies to bits when the gun is fired, is
+"how it is done."
+
+Generally, the more dangerous a feat appears the more carefully is all
+danger guarded against. In the "William Tell" act the thread is often
+tied to the assistant's foot. When, again, the ash is shot off a cigar
+which the assistant is smoking, a piece of wire is pushed by his tongue
+through a hollowed passage in the cigar--thus thrusting off the ash at
+the moment of firing.
+
+A favorite but simple trick is the shooting from some distance at an
+orange held in a lady's hand. Great applause is invariably forthcoming
+when the bullet drops out on her, cutting open the fruit. It is
+inserted by hand earlier in the evening.
+
+Another popular trick is that of snuffing out lighted candles. Half
+a dozen are placed in front of a screen in which as many small holes
+are bored, one against each candlewick. At the moment of firing, a
+confederate behind the screen sharply blows out each candle with a pair
+of bellows. This trick was accidentally exposed one evening by a too
+zealous assistant. The lady in the gallery pulled the trigger, but the
+rifle failed to go off; the candle, however, went out just the same.
+
+In most instances, where a ball or other object has to be broken on a
+living person's head, blank cartridge is used and the effect produced
+by other means. A special wig, with a spring concealed in it, worked
+by a wire under the clothes, is generally used, the confederate
+manipulating the spring simultaneously with the firing of the rifle. As
+the ball is of extremely thin glass, a mere touch suffices to shatter
+it.
+
+In these exhibitions some of the rifle "experts" invite gentlemen from
+the audience to testify that the weapon is indeed loaded. The cartridge
+shown looks very well, but it is a shell of thin wax blackened to
+resemble a leaden bullet. It would not hurt a fly.
+
+
+
+
+REELFOOT LAKE.
+
+
+The physical history of Reelfoot Lake, of night-rider fame, is not
+without a certain interest of its own. The lake came into existence as
+the result of a series of earthquakes, which began in December, 1811,
+and continued until June, 1812.
+
+Some authorities say that the earthquakes merely heaved up a great
+ridge of land across the path of the Reelfoot River, which runs
+into the Mississippi, and that this dam caused the water to back up
+and broaden out and form a lake; but the favorite account in the
+neighborhood is to the effect that the ground sank, springs were opened
+up, neighboring creeks diverted from their course, and the overflowing
+water of the Mississippi rushed in during the flood season of the
+spring of 1812.
+
+It is said that for an hour and a half the waters of the Mississippi
+flowed up-hill while filling up the depression caused by the
+earthquakes. Both accounts likely have this much of truth in them that
+the entire configuration of the ground was changed by the earthquakes.
+Big Lake, west of the Mississippi, in Arkansas, is said to have been
+formed in the same way at the same time.
+
+Reelfoot Lake is sixteen or eighteen miles long, very irregular in
+shape, and covers from 35,000 to 40,000 acres of land. It varies in
+width from a mile in some places to four or five miles in others.
+The northern end is extended by a series of sloughs and bayous into
+Kentucky.
+
+The most distinctive feature of the lake's appearance, the feature
+which first impresses and stays longest with the observer's fancy, is a
+certain grotesque effect, as if a set of crazy men had been operating
+a pile-driver there for the last century, for the trunks, stumps, and
+stark branches of dead trees stick out of it everywhere in desolate
+parody of some such human handiwork; far below the surface the fish
+dart among the boles and branches where the squirrels frolicked a
+hundred years ago.
+
+There are beautiful spots here and there, but the effect, as a
+whole, is not beautiful; at its best, when the mist rises and myriad
+protruding tree trunks are white and ghostly in the moonlight, it is
+weird; the general remembrance is of something uncouth. It is a kind
+of sloven lake that has preferred to sit down with its hair uncombed
+all day long, but at night it does manage to achieve a touch of wizard
+dignity.
+
+
+
+
+A FLOATING SLUM.
+
+
+Stand beside the imperial custom-house at Canton and let the eye
+range down the river toward Hongkong. As far as the sight can reach
+lie boats, boats, and again boats. These are no ordinary craft, mere
+vessels of transport plying hither and thither, but the countless homes
+of myriad Chinese, in which millions of human beings have been born,
+have lived, and have died. They are the dwellings of the very poor, who
+live in them practically free from rent, taxes, and the other burdens
+of the ordinary citizen.
+
+The Tankia--which means boat-dwellers--as the denizens of these
+floating houses are called, form a sort of caste apart from the rest
+of the Cantonese. The shore-dwellers regard them as belonging to a
+lower social order; and indeed they have many customs, peculiar to
+themselves, which mark them as a separate community. How the swarming
+masses of them contrive to support existence is a mystery, but their
+chief mode of employment is in carrying merchandise and passengers from
+place to place.
+
+
+
+
+WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+Horses are cheap in Nevada. On the government ranges, where they are
+protected by game-laws, droves of wild horses exist which in the
+aggregate are said to amount to fifteen thousand. Formerly there was a
+law in Nevada permitting the shooting of these wild horses for their
+hides, but there were hunters who were not particular, and the ranchers
+found their domestic horses disappearing if they let them out on the
+range. So their shooting was prohibited, and since that time the droves
+have grown to be exceedingly troublesome. They can be domesticated, but
+they are not needed there, and it costs too much to ship them East. It
+seems a pity that, while so many sections could use them to advantage,
+the transportation problem makes it impossible to get them at a price
+which they are worth.
+
+
+
+
+_ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+_A New Idea in the Way of Five-Cent Weeklies._
+
+
+Boys everywhere will be delighted to hear that Street & Smith are now
+issuing this new five-cent weekly which will be known by the name of
+MOTOR STORIES.
+
+This weekly is entirely different from anything now being published.
+It details the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a
+motor cycle. Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these
+swift little machines that scud about the roads everywhere throughout
+the United States? Is there a boy, therefore, who will not be intensely
+interested in the adventures of "Motor Matt," as he is familiarly
+called by his comrades?
+
+Boys, you have never read anything half so exciting, half so humorous
+and entertaining as the first story listed for publication in this
+line, called "=Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel=." Its fame is
+bound to spread like wildfire, causing the biggest demand for the other
+numbers in this line, that was ever heard of in the history of this
+class of literature.
+
+Here are the titles to be issued during the next few weeks. Do not fail
+to place an order for them with your newsdealer.
+
+  No. 1. Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.
+  No. 2. Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.
+  No. 3. Motor Matt's "Century" Run; or, The Governor's Courier.
+  No. 4. Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the _Comet_.
+
+  32 LARGE SIZE PAGES      SPLENDID COLORED COVERS
+
+PRICE, FIVE CENTS PER COPY
+
+
+AT ALL NEWSDEALERS, OR SENT POSTPAID BY THE PUBLISHERS UPON RECEIPT OF
+THE PRICE.
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+_THE BEST OF THEM ALL!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+IT IS NEW AND INTENSELY INTERESTING
+
+
+We knew before we published this line that it would have a tremendous
+sale and our expectations were more than realized. It is going with a
+rush, and the boys who want to read these, the most interesting and
+fascinating tales ever written, must speak to their newsdealers about
+reserving copies for them.
+
+=MOTOR MATT= sprang into instant favor with American boy readers and is
+bound to occupy a place in their hearts second only to that now held by
+Frank Merriwell.
+
+The reason for this popularity is apparent in every line of these
+stories. They are written by an author who has made a life study of
+the requirements of the up-to-date American boy as far as literature
+is concerned, so it is not surprising that this line has proven a huge
+success from the very start.
+
+Here are the titles now ready and also those to be published. You will
+never have a better opportunity to get a generous quantity of reading
+of the highest quality, so place your orders now.
+
+  =No. 1.--Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.=
+  =No. 2.--Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.=
+  =No. 3.--Motor Matt's Century Run; or, The Governor's Courier.=
+  =No. 4.--Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the "Comet."=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22nd
+
+  =No. 5.--Motor Matt's Mystery; or, Foiling a Secret Plot.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 29th
+
+  =No. 6.--Motor Matt's Red Flier; or, On the High Gear.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 5th
+
+  =No. 7.--Motor Matt's Clue; or, The Phantom Auto.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 12th
+
+  =No. 8.--Motor Matt's Triumph; or, Three Speeds Forward.=
+
+=Price, Five Cents=
+
+To be had from newsdealers everywhere, or sent, postpaid, upon receipt
+of the price by the publishers
+
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+      *      *      *      *      *      *
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+Added table of contents.
+
+Retained some inconsistent hyphenation (e.g. "motorcycle" vs.
+"motor-cycle").
+
+Retained some inconsistent spellings in dialect (e.g. "becase" vs.
+"bekase").
+
+Page 3, added missing comma after ""Vell, py shinks." Added missing
+apostrophe after "doan" in "Why doan' yo'-all git." Removed unnecessary
+quote after "Matt stopped the Red Flier."
+
+Page 4, removed unnecessary quote after "Legree was about to secure it?"
+
+Page 5, changed "as she pointed" to "as he pointed."
+
+Page 10, "would came after it" looks like a typo but has been retained
+in case it is intentional dialect.
+
+Page 12, replaced ligature in "Phoenix" with "oe." Ligature is retained
+in HTML edition.
+
+Page 14, removed unnecessary quote before "Matt's pulses quickened."
+
+Page 18, added missing period after "Josh turned to stare along the
+road."
+
+Page 19, changed "Mat" to "Matt" in "Matt was intending to push the
+stone."
+
+Page 20, the sentence "As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping
+from up the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun."
+seems incorrect, but it is reproduced as originally printed.
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE
+HIGH GEAR***
+
+
+******* This file should be named 47491-8.txt or 47491-8.zip *******
+
+
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/7/4/9/47491
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will
+be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
+law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
+so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United
+States without permission and without paying copyright
+royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
+of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm
+concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
+and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive
+specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this
+eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook
+for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports,
+performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given
+away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks
+not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the
+trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.
+
+START: FULL LICENSE
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
+Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at
+www.gutenberg.org/license.
+
+Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+
+1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
+destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your
+possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
+Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
+by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the
+person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph
+1.E.8.
+
+1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
+paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this
+agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the
+Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
+of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual
+works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
+States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
+United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
+claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
+displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
+all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
+that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting
+free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm
+works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
+Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily
+comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
+same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when
+you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
+in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
+check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
+agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
+distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
+other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no
+representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
+country outside the United States.
+
+1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
+immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear
+prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work
+on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed,
+performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
+
+  This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
+  most other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the
+  United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you
+  are located before using this ebook.
+
+1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is
+derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
+contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
+copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
+the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
+redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
+either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
+obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
+additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
+will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works
+posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
+beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
+any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
+to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format
+other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official
+version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site
+(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
+to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
+of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain
+Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the
+full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+provided that
+
+* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+  the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+  you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
+  to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has
+  agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
+  within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
+  legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
+  payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
+  Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
+  Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+  you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+  does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+  License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
+  copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
+  all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm
+  works.
+
+* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
+  any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+  electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
+  receipt of the work.
+
+* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+  distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than
+are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
+from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The
+Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
+Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
+contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
+or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
+intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
+other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
+cannot be read by your equipment.
+
+1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
+with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
+with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
+lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
+or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
+opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
+the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
+without further opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO
+OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
+LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
+damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
+violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
+agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
+limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
+unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
+remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in
+accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
+production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
+including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
+the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
+or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or
+additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any
+Defect you cause.
+
+Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
+computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
+exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
+from people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future
+generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
+Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at
+www.gutenberg.org 
+
+Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary 
+Archive Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
+U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the
+mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its
+volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous
+locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt
+Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to
+date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and
+official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact
+
+For additional contact information:
+
+    Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+    Chief Executive and Director
+    gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
+DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular
+state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
+donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate
+
+Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be
+freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
+distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of
+volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
+the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
+necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
+edition.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search
+facility: www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
diff --git a/old/47491-8.zip b/old/47491-8.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1f8df47
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-8.zip
diff --git a/old/47491-h.zip b/old/47491-h.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..20b5a3f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-h.zip
diff --git a/old/47491-h/47491-h.htm b/old/47491-h/47491-h.htm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..4b06ac5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-h/47491-h.htm
@@ -0,0 +1,5891 @@
+<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
+    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
+<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
+<head>
+<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" />
+<title>The Project Gutenberg eBook of Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear, by Stanley R. Matthews</title>
+    <style type="text/css">
+
+body {
+    margin-left: 10%;
+    margin-right: 10%;
+}
+
+    h1,h2,h3,h4 {
+    text-align: center; /* all headings centered */
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+p {
+    margin-top: .51em;
+    text-align: justify;
+    margin-bottom: .49em;
+}
+
+hr {
+    width: 33%;
+    margin-top: 2em;
+    margin-bottom: 2em;
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+    clear: both;
+}
+
+hr.tb   {width: 45%;}
+hr.chap {width: 65%}
+hr.r5  {width: 5%; margin-top: 1em; margin-bottom: 1em;}
+
+table {
+    margin-left: auto;
+    margin-right: auto;
+}
+
+    .tdl      {text-align: left;}
+    .tdr      {text-align: right;}
+    .tdc      {text-align: center;}
+
+.pagenum { /* uncomment the next line for invisible page numbers */
+    /*  visibility: hidden;  */
+    position: absolute;
+    left: 92%;
+    font-size: smaller;
+    text-align: right;
+} /* page numbers */
+
+.bb       {border-bottom: solid 2px;}
+
+.bt       {border-top: solid 2px;}
+
+.bbox     {border: solid 2px;}
+
+.center   {text-align: center;}
+
+.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
+
+/* Images */
+.figcenter   {
+    margin: auto;
+    text-align: center;
+}
+
+img { border: 0; }
+.huge { font-size: 200%; }
+.large { font-size: 150%; }
+.medium { font-size: 125%; }
+.small { font-size: 75%; }
+.chaptitle { text-align: center; }
+.sig { text-align: right; }
+
+    hr.full { width: 100%;
+              margin-top: 3em;
+              margin-bottom: 0em;
+              margin-left: auto;
+              margin-right: auto;
+              height: 4px;
+              border-width: 4px 0 0 0; /* remove all borders except the top one */
+              border-style: solid;
+              border-color: #000000;
+              clear: both; }
+    </style>
+</head>
+<body>
+<h1>The Project Gutenberg eBook, Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear,
+by Stanley R. Matthews</h1>
+<p>This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
+and most other parts of the world 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 <a
+href="http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>.  If you are not
+located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws of the
+country where you are located before using this ebook.</p>
+<p>Title: Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear</p>
+<p>       Motor Stories Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction No. 6, April 3, 1909</p>
+<p>Author: Stanley R. Matthews</p>
+<p>Release Date: November 29, 2014  [eBook #47491]</p>
+<p>Language: English</p>
+<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p>
+<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE HIGH GEAR***</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<h4>E-text prepared by David Edwards, Demian Katz,<br />
+    and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br />
+    (<a href="http://www.pgdp.net">http://www.pgdp.net</a>)<br />
+    from page images generously made available by<br />
+    Villanova University Digital Library<br />
+    (<a href="http://digital.library.villanova.edu/">http://digital.library.villanova.edu/</a>)</h4>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;margin: 0 auto;" cellpadding="10">
+  <tr>
+    <td valign="top">
+      Note:
+    </td>
+    <td>
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+      Villanova University Digital Library. See
+      <a href="http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205">
+      http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205</a>
+    </td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+
+<div class="figcenter" style="width: 400px;">
+<a href="images/coverlarge.jpg"><img src="images/cover.jpg" width="400" height="562" alt="&quot;Leaf dot alone!&quot; yelled Carl,
+floundering to get to the
+girl's aid, &quot;dot pelongs to
+Moder Matt!&quot;" /></a>
+</div>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+<h1>MOTOR STORIES</h1>
+
+<table summary="scaffold">
+<tr>
+<td style="width: 50%; padding-right: 1.5em;" class="tdr">
+THRILLING<br />
+ADVENTURE
+</td>
+<td style="width: 50%; padding-left: 1.5em;" class="tdl">
+MOTOR<br />
+FICTION
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td class="bb bt tdl">
+NO. 6<br />
+APR. 3, 1909.
+</td>
+<td class="bb bt tdr">
+FIVE<br />
+CENTS
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td class="tdl large">
+MOTOR MATT'S<br />
+RED FLIER
+</td><td class="tdr large">
+<span class="small">OR</span> ON THE HIGH<br />
+GEAR
+</td>
+</tr><tr>
+<td>&nbsp;</td>
+<td class="tdc">
+<br /><i class="medium">By <span class="smcap">Stanley R. Matthews</span>.</i><br /><br />
+<span class="smcap">Street &amp; Smith,<br />
+Publishers,<br />
+New York.</span>
+</td>
+</tr></table>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bbox">
+<tr><td colspan="2" class="tdc huge">MOTOR STORIES</td></tr>
+<tr><td class="tdr large" style="padding-right: .25em;">THRILLING ADVENTURE</td><td class="tdl large" style="padding-left: .25em;">MOTOR FICTION</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><i>Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress,
+Washington, D. C., by</i> <span class="smcap">Street &amp; Smith</span>, <i>79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York, N. Y.</i></p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bb bt">
+<tr><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdl">No. 6.</td><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdc">NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.</td><td style="width: 33%;" class="tdr">Price Five Cents.</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER</p>
+
+<p class="center">OR,</p>
+
+<p class="center large">ON THE HIGH GEAR.</p>
+
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+<p class="center">By the author of "MOTOR MATT."</p>
+
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+
+<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS">CONTENTS</a></h2>
+
+<p class="center">
+<a href="#CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."</a><br />
+<a href="#CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.</a><br />
+<a href="#A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT">A SNOWBALL FIGHT.</a><br />
+<a href="#SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING">SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.</a><br />
+<a href="#REELFOOT_LAKE">REELFOOT LAKE.</a><br />
+<a href="#A_FLOATING_SLUM">A FLOATING SLUM.</a><br />
+<a href="#WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA">WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.</a><br />
+</p>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+
+<div class="bbox">
+<h2><a name="CHARACTERS_THAT_APPEAR_IN_THIS_STORY" id="CHARACTERS_THAT_APPEAR_IN_THIS_STORY">CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.</a></h2>
+
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p><b>Matt King</b>, concerning whom there has always been a mystery&mdash;a
+lad of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who
+has won for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the
+popular name of "Mile-a-minute Matt."</p>
+
+<p><b>Carl Pretzel</b>, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
+fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.</p>
+
+<p>"<b>Legree</b>," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about
+whom something mysterious seems to hover.</p>
+
+<p>"<b>Little Eva</b>," who turns out to be other than appearances would
+seem to indicate.</p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" style="margin: 0;">
+<tr><td>
+"<b>Eliza</b>,"<br />
+"<b>Uncle Tom</b>,"<br />
+"<b>Topsy</b>,"
+</td><td style="font-size: 300%;">}</td>
+<td>
+other members of the unlucky road combination
+helped by Motor Matt.
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<table summary="scaffold" style="margin: 0;">
+<tr><td>
+<b>Brisco</b>,<br />
+<b>Spangler</b>,
+</td><td style="font-size: 200%;">}</td>
+<td>
+a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
+Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
+</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><b>O'Grady</b>, an inn-keeper.</p>
+
+<p><b>Lem Nugent</b>, the owner of the stolen runabout.</p></blockquote>
+</div>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I">CHAPTER I.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."</p>
+
+
+<p>"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's
+in de ruvver! He drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit
+head first lak er frawg. He's drowndin', he sholey is! By
+golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis minyit!
+Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"</p>
+
+<p>Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she
+screeched for help she ran circles on the river-bank, tossing
+her hands wildly. If she had put some of her aimless
+energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed old
+negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off.
+He was floundering and thrashing and making a good
+deal of noise himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got
+de crampus en mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off!
+Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's gawn down, en de nex' time
+Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f out none&mdash;doan'
+scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a
+coon whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh
+an'&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less,
+just then, and his language was submerged.</p>
+
+<p>"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back
+through the brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree.
+"Do something, somebody! Oh, I wish we had a
+rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she added encouragingly;
+"we'll get you out!"</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself
+around like dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles
+yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me a pain. Can't y' swim?"</p>
+
+<p>Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.</p>
+
+<p>"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the
+bank and reaching out to throw the whip-lash toward the
+old negro, "grab hold of that and I'll snake you ashore
+too quick for any use."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water
+from his eyes, saw the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon
+Legree laid back on the handle and pulled. Uncle Tom
+was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The water
+came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say,
+give me a pair o' high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat
+roarin' torrent widou' never wettin' me kicks. How much<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span>
+water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle Tom? Oh, sister,
+what a jolt."</p>
+
+<p>Little Eva began to laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around
+on one foot to get the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an'
+show yo' ignunce. Dat didun' git away f'um me, nohow,"
+and he threw a small tin box on the ground in front
+of Legree.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza stooped and picked up the box.</p>
+
+<p>"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle
+Tom must have been careless. What were you and Topsy
+walking along by the river for?" he added, turning to the
+old negro.</p>
+
+<p>"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy,
+pointing to the ground where a stick with a fish-line attached
+to its end had been dropped.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom,
+"en Ah doan' see how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan'
+ketch er fish er kill er possum, er somepin lak dat. Mah
+goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah shoes. If
+a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han',
+Ah wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants
+tuh kin tote dat 'ar box. Ah done had enough ob it."</p>
+
+<p>"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to
+the next town we'll have something to eat."</p>
+
+<p>"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de
+money, huh?"</p>
+
+<p>"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in
+her voice, "and I'll pawn it."</p>
+
+<p>"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch,
+and I'll pawn that."</p>
+
+<p>"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's
+head wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I
+couldn't hand dat mutt a couple o' good ones if he was
+handy!"</p>
+
+<p>Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's
+ears&mdash;for "Little Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.</p>
+
+<p>"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the
+boy's father. "You can talk a lot without saying much,
+kid. Come on, everybody," he added. "The quicker we
+get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
+in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."</p>
+
+<p>"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle
+Tom. "De rheumatix is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun'
+if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif mahse'f."</p>
+
+<p>"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back
+toward the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah
+kin do tuh walk at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered.
+Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus tough on er ole man,
+sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis country?
+Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons?
+Ah'd give a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a
+wagon."</p>
+
+<p>Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his
+wet sleeve and helped him along. In a few minutes they
+broke away from the river-bank into the road.</p>
+
+<p>Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced
+along with a pocket full of stones, and every once in a
+while he stopped to make a throw at a road-runner or a
+chipmunk.</p>
+
+<p>Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing
+so thickly that it was impossible to see very far into the
+timber. Eliza and Legree, talking over the difficulties in
+which they found themselves and trying to plan some way
+for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance, while
+Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little
+Eva was dodging around in between, now and then shying
+at something with a stone.</p>
+
+<p>The strange little party had not proceeded far before
+the boy heard a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he
+might find in such a wild country, he jumped into the
+thicket. And then he jumped out again, yelling like a
+Comanche.</p>
+
+<p>"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road.
+"Dere's somet'ing chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an'
+has a mout' like a church door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer
+lives!"</p>
+
+<p>The other four gave their immediate attention to Little
+Eva, and then changed it to something that rolled out of
+the undergrowth directly behind them.</p>
+
+<p>"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody
+climb a tree!"</p>
+
+<p>This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little
+Eva shinned up a sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into
+a scrub oak, and then started for a neighboring pine himself,
+and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous amount of
+reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he
+fluttered, getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of
+the tree with both arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered,
+craning his neck to get a good look at the cause of the disturbance.
+"Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan' want
+no truck wif you."</p>
+
+<p>The bear was a grizzly&mdash;not a large grizzly, but plenty
+large enough. There were lots of bigger bears in that
+part of Arizona, but this was the biggest one Fate had to
+run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."</p>
+
+<p>Having gained a position about half-way up and down
+the line of treed actors, the bear sat down in the road and
+proceeded to enjoy the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of
+the pine: "is everybody all right?"</p>
+
+<p>"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right,
+dad," answered Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's
+all t' de good. But, say, I ain't feelin' real comfertable
+in me mind."</p>
+
+<p>"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy.
+"Hit ain't right tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when
+we's all tiah'd out."</p>
+
+<p>"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle
+Tom, "en tie dat whip erroun' his neck an' strangle de life
+outen him. Beah meat is mighty nigh as good as possum,
+an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go
+away. I guess he's thinking more about making a meal
+off of us than letting us make one from him."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling
+tones, by way of enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak
+snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one yo' sholey is gwine tuh
+fin' anudder."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin'
+down de road lak er singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah
+golly! We's all as good as daid&mdash;we's all gwine tuh be
+et up."</p>
+
+<p>Strange noises were coming from along the back track,
+coming rapidly and growing louder and louder.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle
+Tom, climbing a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes
+is dat he ain't big enough tuh reach up en take me outen
+de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en mah bones."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed
+to puzzle him. He sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly,
+and then dropped down on all fours and ambled
+into the brush.</p>
+
+<p>The next moment, to the astonishment of the four
+actors, a sparkling red automobile rushed into sight, coming
+from the direction of Ash Fork and headed toward
+Fairview.</p>
+
+<p>A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's
+seat; beside him was a young German in a "loud" suit and
+a red vest.</p>
+
+<p>"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"</p>
+
+<p>"Saved!" cried Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the
+same place where the bear had recently held the fort.</p>
+
+<p>The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of
+amazement as they stared at the odd assortment of actors
+hanging in the trees.</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a
+jeerful pitzness und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I
+efer knowed it bossiple to pick actor-peoples oudt oof der
+drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II">CHAPTER II.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.</p>
+
+
+<p>Motor Matt didn't know what to think. The queerest
+lot of people he ever saw were dropping out of the trees
+and hurrying toward the automobile.</p>
+
+<p>First, there was a young woman of seventeen or eighteen,
+wearing a dust-coat and gauntlets. There was a
+look of intense relief on her pretty face.</p>
+
+<p>Following her came a tall, slimly built man, whose
+clothes suggested the ruffian, but whose face was anything
+but vicious. He carried a blacksnake whip.</p>
+
+<p>A boy trailed after the man. He wasn't a handsome
+boy, by any means, but his eyes were bright and sharp
+and he had a clever look.</p>
+
+<p>From the other way along the road came an old darky
+in tattered, soggy clothes. A young negro girl hurried
+along beside him.</p>
+
+<p>"Well," breathed Motor Matt, "if this ain't a brain-twister
+I don't want a cent. Who are they, Carl? One
+of them seems to know you."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure I knows him," spoke up the boy. "Got wise t'
+Carl Pretzel in Denver. 'Pretzel an' Pringle, Musical
+Marvels.' W'ere's Pringle, Dutch?"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't say someding aboudt him," answered Carl. "I
+haf scratched him off my visiding-list, yah, you bed you.
+Pringle iss some pad eggs, und ve don'd ged along mit
+each odder. Matt, dis vas Liddle Efa, who blays mit a
+Ungle Dom's Capin Gompany. Ven he geds his leedle
+curly-viggies on, he looks fine&mdash;schust like some girls, yes.
+Who iss der odder peobles, Efa?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dis is me fader, Dutch," answered the boy; "he's de
+guy wot licks Uncle Tom in de show. De loidy is Eliza,
+an' say, she's got 'em all skinned w'en it comes t' jumpin'
+acrost de river on cakes of ice. Dat's Uncle Tom,
+scramblin' into de auto wit'out waitin' f'r an invite, an' de
+goil is Topsy."</p>
+
+<p>"Young man," said Legree, stepping forward and addressing
+Motor Matt, "we're what's left of Brisco's Uncle
+Tom's Cabin Company. Brisco took all the funds and left
+us in the lurch at Brockville, the station west of Ash Fork.
+The constable took our tent, and properties, and even the
+bloodhounds. We were left with the clothes we stood in,
+and that's all. Marks, and St. Clair, and the rest, made a
+raise and rode back to Denver in the train. They didn't
+have enough to help us out, and so we've started to walk
+as far as Flagstaff. When we get there, we're going to
+get up some sort of an entertainment and see if we can't
+pull down enough hard cash to see us through to Denver.
+Brisco owes all of us money. Barrin' the kid, here,
+he beat each one of us out of more'n a hundred dollars.
+But we're goin' to get him; you see if we don't."</p>
+
+<p>A grim look came to Legree's face.</p>
+
+<p>"Veil," said Carl, "be jeerful und don'd vorry. I haf
+der same kindt oof pad luck, den I met oop mit Modor
+Matt und der luck dook a shange. Meppy yours vill dake
+a shange, too."</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to Albuquerque," spoke up Matt, "and
+if you don't mind being crowded we can give you a lift
+as far as Flagstaff."</p>
+
+<p>A long breath of satisfaction broke from Uncle Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's fine," said he. "Dis niggah am sholy tuckered.
+Why doan' yo'-all git intuh de wagon? Dat beah am
+li'ble tuh come snoopin' an' pesterin' back."</p>
+
+<p>"Pear?" cried Carl. "Vat you say, huh? Iss dere a
+pear aroundt here?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's no dream, Dutch," answered the boy. "Wot
+did yous t'ink it was chased us up dem trees?"</p>
+
+<p>"Everythin's been goin' wrong with us ever since we
+hit Brockville," said Legree. "A lot more'll happen, too,
+but I reckon we're done with the bear. This machine
+scared the brute away. How'll you have us in the car,
+Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Little Eva, as you call him," said Matt, laughing a
+little as he looked at the boy, "had better get in front here
+with Carl. That will leave four of you for the tonneau.
+It won't be long until we get to Fairview, and we'll stop
+there for dinner."</p>
+
+<p>"Um-yum," said Topsy; "golly, but dat sounds good!
+Dinnah! Heah dat, Unc' Tawn?"</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom smacked his lips and rolled up the whites
+of his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' say a wo'd, chile," he cautioned. "Dis seems
+jess lak er dream, dis ride in de debble-wagon, de dinnah,
+en all. Yo' speak too loud, Ah's fearin' Ah's done
+gwine tuh woke up."</p>
+
+<p>With his load of stranded actors aboard, all rejoicing
+in the good luck that had brought Matt and Carl along
+with the automobile at that particular time, the young
+motorist cranked up, threw in the clutch and started.
+Hardly were they under good headway when a sharp cry
+came from Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop! The box! I dropped it when I got up into that
+tree."</p>
+
+<p>Matt stopped the Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>"Pox?" cried Carl; "vat iss dot?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's whut got me into de ruvver," said Uncle Tom.
+"Ah 'lows dat box is er heap mo' trouble dan hit's worf."</p>
+
+<p>"If we ever get hold of Brisco," returned Legree, "it'll
+be that box that does it for us. Wait here a minute, Motor
+Matt, and I'll go back and get it. I think I know
+right where it is."</p>
+
+<p>Legree got out of the car, went back along the road,
+and vanished among the bushes.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Is der money in der pox?" asked Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"We don't know what's in it," answered Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's keveer. How vill dot pox helup you ged holt
+oof Prisco?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco always kept it by him," went on Eliza, "so we
+know he thinks it's valuable. He told Legree, once, he
+wouldn't lose the box for ten thousand dollars."</p>
+
+<p>"How did you come to get hold of it?" inquired Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the queer part of it. Brisco left the Brockville
+hotel during the night&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"An' I picked it up by de door, next mornin'," chimed
+in the boy. "Brisco must have dropped it when he made
+dat getaway. It was blacker dan a stack o' black cats,
+dat night, an' he wasn't able t' use his lamps."</p>
+
+<p>"When Marks, and Harris, and St. Clair, and the rest
+of the company left Brockville," continued Eliza, "they
+told us to keep the box and not give it up until Brisco
+paid over what he owed. We lost our wages and everything
+else we had except the clothes on our backs."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's me," spoke up Carl; "I vas fixed der same
+vat you are. Den, pympy, Modor Matt come along mit
+himseluf, shpoke some jeerful vorts mit me, dook me
+for a bard, und luck made a shange. Meppy dot iss how
+it vill be mit you."</p>
+
+<p>"Seems lak he was a long time findin' dat dere box,"
+said Uncle Tom. "Ah's honin' fo' dat hotel in Fairview,
+an' fo' dat dinnah, an' fo' to dry dese clothes. Mistah
+Legree is a monstus long time, an' no mistake."</p>
+
+<p>"Stay here, all of you," said Matt, getting out of the
+car. "I'll go back and see if I can help find the box. If
+it's so important, it won't do to leave it behind."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll go 'long wit' yous," chirped the boy.</p>
+
+<p>Before he could get out of the car, the sharp, incisive
+note of a revolver echoed from the bushes at the trail-side,
+close to the place where Legree had vanished into
+them.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza stifled a scream.</p>
+
+<p>"Mah goodness!" fluttered Topsy. "Somebody's done
+gone tuh shootin'!"</p>
+
+<p>"It wasn't dad, dat's a cinch!" cried the boy. "He
+didn't have no gun!"</p>
+
+<p>"Stay there!" called Matt to the boy, as he whirled
+and hurried on. "Stand ready to crank up the machine,
+Carl," he added, "in case we have to start in a hurry."
+Matt had dropped into the troubles of these forlorn
+"Uncle Tommers" with bewildering suddenness. He
+hadn't had the remotest notion that there was going to
+be any violence, or shooting, and the report of the revolver
+had sent a thrill of alarm through him.</p>
+
+<p>Had Brisco been tracking the unfortunate actors, and
+had he attempted to make way with the tin box just as
+Legree was about to secure it?</p>
+
+<p>As Matt drew closer to the thicket, he heard sharp
+and angry voices. One voice he recognized as belonging
+to Legree, and the other struck a strangely familiar note
+in his ear. He had heard that voice somewhere before&mdash;but
+where?</p>
+
+<p>There were only two voices taking part in the talk, but
+the man who had intercepted Legree was armed. Matt
+knew it would stand him in hand to be cautious, so, instead
+of turning directly from the road into the brush,
+he darted for the timber some distance beyond the scene
+of the altercation. Then, making his way back warily, he
+pushed through the bushes.</p>
+
+<p>He made very little noise&mdash;so little that his approach
+was not heard by either of the two men. Legree, however,
+was standing in such a position that he could not
+help seeing Matt. He was facing the other man, and the
+latter had his back to the young motorist.</p>
+
+<p>There was something familiar about that back, but
+even yet Matt could not recall who the man was.</p>
+
+<p>The fellow was roughly dressed. In his right hand he
+was holding a revolver, pointing it squarely at Legree,
+and in his left hand he was holding a small tin box.</p>
+
+<p>"If ye think ye can fool Hank Brisco," the man with
+the weapon was saying, "ye're far wide o' yer trail. He's
+got a ottermobill, now, what kin shoot through the kentry
+like a cannon-ball, an' I reckon thar'll be some Cain
+raised on this part o' the range afore many moons. You
+take my advice an' hike out o' here without tryin' ter
+make Hank any trouble, er&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment Motor Matt's opportunity came.
+Flinging himself forward suddenly, he grabbed the revolver
+out of the ruffian's hand.</p>
+
+<p>"Bully for you, Matt!" cried Legree.</p>
+
+<p>The next instant Legree's blacksnake whip had curled
+itself about the ruffian's left wrist, girdling the skin like
+a loop of fire.</p>
+
+<p>The man roared out an oath. The pain must have
+been intense, for his fingers curled away from the box
+and he caught his wrist with his other hand.</p>
+
+<p>Matt stared. When the ruffian had turned and rushed
+into the woods, cursing and vowing vengeance, Matt
+continued to stare.</p>
+
+<p>"Ever seen that man before, Matt?" asked Legree,
+surprised at the boy's manner.</p>
+
+<p>"I should say so!" exclaimed Matt. "Let's get back
+to the car. You've got back the box, but we haven't
+seen the last of this&mdash;not by a long shot."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III">CHAPTER III.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.</p>
+
+
+<p>Shouts of relief went up from those in the Red Flier
+at sight of Matt and Legree sprinting down the road,
+Legree with the box and Matt with the revolver.</p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" jubilated Carl; "be jeerful, eferypody.
+Here dey come alretty, und mit more as dey vent to
+ged!"</p>
+
+<p>"Fo' de lan' sake!" chattered Topsy; "Ah sholy expected
+some one had done been kilt."</p>
+
+<p>"Git right in de kyah," urged Uncle Tom, "so we kin
+git erway f'om dis hyeh place. Beahs, en robbahs, en
+oddah spontaneous excitements is monstus tryin' to er
+niggah wif er empty stummick. Ah doan' lak shootin'
+nohow."</p>
+
+<p>"Was dat some guy t'rowin' a bullet at yous, dad?"
+inquired Little Eva. "How close did he come t' ringin'
+de bell?"</p>
+
+<p>"How many were there?" cried Eliza; "are they following
+us?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt jumped into his seat, and Legree scrambled for
+the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>"Take this, Legree," called Matt, and dropped the revolver
+over the back of the seat.</p>
+
+<p>Carl, who had been posted at the front of the machine,
+had already "turned over" the engine. As she<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span>
+took the spark Carl crawled to his place beside Matt, and
+the Red Flier glided away.</p>
+
+<p>The young motorist was silent for a while, listening
+as Legree told how he had gone searching for the box
+and found it in the hands of a scoundrel whom he had
+never seen before. The Unknown had fired a revolver,
+but it had been more to intimidate Legree and keep him
+at a distance, for the bullet had not come anywhere near
+him. Legree finished with an account of how Matt
+had come up behind the ruffian and had saved the
+day.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's der vay Modor Matt does pitzness," said the
+admiring Carl. "You bed my life he vas some virlvinds
+ven he leds himseluf oudt."</p>
+
+<p>"The name of the man who ran off and left your
+company stranded was Hank Brisco, was it?" asked
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"That was his name, Matt," replied Legree. "But who
+was that tough-looking citizen that had me cornered,
+there in the thicket?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll have to tell you something that happened to Carl
+and me, a few days ago, in order for you to understand
+that part of it," answered Matt. "This touring-car belongs
+to Mr. James Q. Tomlinson, a wholesale jeweler
+who lives in Denver. He and his driver, Gregory, have
+been touring the Southwest in it. A gang of thieves,
+among whom was a fellow called Hank, and another
+called Spangler, robbed Mr. Tomlinson on the trail, several
+miles west of Ash Fork. Carl and I got mixed up
+in the trouble, and we had some exciting times racing the
+Red Flier against a high-powered runabout that the
+thieves stole from a wealthy cattleman named Lem Nugent.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Tomlinson recovered his stolen property and
+went on to Albuquerque with his driver, Gregory, hiring
+me to take the touring-car from Ash Fork to Albuquerque.
+That's how we happened to come along in time to help
+you out, Mr. Legree."</p>
+
+<p>"If this man, Tomlinson, got back his stolen property,"
+asked Legree, "what became of the thieves?"</p>
+
+<p>"Two of them, Hank and Spangler, got away with the
+cattleman's car. The stolen runabout can go like a blue
+streak, and is lighter and faster than the Red Flier.
+Now, the man that tried to get the tin box, back there
+in the thicket, was none other than Spangler; and the
+other villain, who was called by the name of 'Hank,' was
+the fellow who left you in the lurch at Brockville."</p>
+
+<p>"Shiminy grickets, how t'ings vill turn oudt mit demselufs,
+vonce und again!" clamored Carl. "Domlinson
+vould like more as he can dell to haf dose fellers ketched,
+and Nuchent vants pooty pad dot he geds his car pack
+some more. He vill gif fife huntert tollars to any vone
+vat vill findt der car, und he vill gif fife huntert more for
+Hank, und der same for Spangler." Carl leaned toward
+Matt with his eyes almost popping from his head. "Bard,"
+he asked, "can ve scoop it in?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'd like to get back that runabout for Mr. Nugent,"
+said Matt, "but I don't know as we ought to take the
+time to go fooling along on our way to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, Misder Domlinson say dot dere vasn't any
+hurry."</p>
+
+<p>"He also said," continued Matt, "that he wouldn't trust
+this car with everybody. If we should get to tearing
+around after Hank and Spangler, and damage the Flier,
+we would find ourselves in a hole."</p>
+
+<p>"You hadn't better bother trying to take us to Flagstaff,
+then," put in Legree, "for as long as we've got
+this tin box Brisco is going to keep on trying to get hold
+of it. If he chases us with that stolen runabout, which
+you say is a faster car than the Red Flier, you're goin'
+to run some risks with this machine."</p>
+
+<p>"If we work it right," said Matt, "I guess we can get
+you people to Flagstaff without being bothered much by
+Hank and Spangler. It's queer, though, to have it turn
+out that those two scoundrels are mixed up in these
+troubles of yours."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's done had trouble enough," wailed Uncle Tom,
+"en Ah doan' know how Ah could stand any mo'. Ah's
+er pretty ole niggah tuh go traipsin' erroun' afteh robbahs,
+en drappin' intuh rivvers, an' climbin' trees tuh
+sabe my hide from beahs. All de same, Ah 'lows some
+ob dat money fo' ketchin' dat 'ar Brisco would come
+mouty handy. But Mistah Legree, yo' listen hyeh. If
+Brisco sets sich er pow'ful store by dat 'ar box, mebby
+he'd buy hit offen de lot ob us, payin' us whut he owes
+jess tuh git holt ob hit. Why not, sah, entah intuh prognostications
+wif him wif de view ob settlin' ouah compunctions
+in er pleasin' manner?"</p>
+
+<p>A shadow of a grin wreathed itself around Legree's
+lips.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, Uncle Tom," he answered, "it's hard to prognosticate
+with a chap who's so hard to find as Brisco is."</p>
+
+<p>"Vere vas Hank vile Spangler vas looking for der pox,
+Matt?" asked Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"That's a conundrum, Carl."</p>
+
+<p>"Und vere vas der runaboudt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Another conundrum."</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, ditn't Spangler ride to der blace vere he come
+for der din pox in der runaboudt?"</p>
+
+<p>"I didn't see anything of the machine, but I was afraid
+it was somewhere around&mdash;which is the reason I was in
+such a hurry to make a fresh start for Fairview."</p>
+
+<p>"Ve don'd vas shased py der runaboudt, anyvay, und
+dot means dot it vasn't some blace around vere Spangler
+vas."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" came from Little Eva, as he pointed ahead.
+"Dere's de burg wot we're headin' fer. I'm a jay if it
+don't look almost big enough fer two 'r t'ree people t'
+live in."</p>
+
+<p>From the rising ground on which the Red Flier and
+its passengers found themselves, at that moment, Fairview
+could be fairly viewed. Perhaps there were twenty-five
+or thirty houses in the place, the main street being
+bordered by half a dozen stores.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' yo' go an' tell me dar ain't no hotel," faltered
+Uncle Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"No matter how small a town is, Uncle Tom," returned
+Eliza, "travelers can always find a place to stay. Our
+hardest work will be, I think, to discover some one who
+will lend money on our jewelry."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll furnish the jewelry, Eliza," said Legree. "This
+watch of mine is worth enough, I think, to furnish us
+with food and lodging while Motor Matt gives us a lift
+to Flagstaff."</p>
+
+<p>"If you're out of cash," spoke up Matt, in his usual
+generous style, "I'll foot the bills. Some time, when you
+get on Easy Street, you can pay me back."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom's anxiety over the prospect fell from him
+like a wet blanket.</p>
+
+<p>"Yo's a gemman, Mistah Motah Matt," he declared,
+"yo' is what Ah calls a puffick gemman. Ah'm mos'ly
+independent in dese money mattahs&mdash;dis is de fust time<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span>
+since Ah can remembah dat Ah habn't had all ob two
+dollars in mah clo's&mdash;so hit is mouty spognoocious tuh
+mah pride, sah, to be fo'ced tuh accept a loan. Still,
+sah, Ah brings mahse'f to hit bekase yo' is so willin'
+an' so spendacious. In retu'n fo' dat, Mistah Motah
+Matt, Ah becomes on de spot yo' official mascot. Yassuh.
+Ah takes yo' luck en mah own han's, an' evah time
+what yo' do anyt'ing, Ah agrees tuh make yo' a winnah."</p>
+
+<p>"Much obliged, Uncle Tom," laughed Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Go on wif yo'!" cried Topsy. "Why didun' yo' mascot
+dat 'ar company so dat Brisco couldn't do lak what
+he done? Mascot! Yah, yah, yah!"</p>
+
+<p>"Laff," returned Uncle Tom tartly, "laff an' show yo'
+ignunce! What yo' unnerstan' about luckosophy an'
+mascots? Yo' mouty triflin' an' tryin', dat's what yo' is.
+Wait twell yo' see what Ah does fo' Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>During this talk, the Red Flier had glided down a long
+slope into the little town. It did not take long to traverse
+the main street, and as they jogged onward all eyes
+looked carefully for a hotel.</p>
+
+<p>Finally they saw a sign with a picture of something
+that looked like a four-leaved clover. Under the picture
+were the printed words, "Shamrock House."</p>
+
+<p>"Dat 'ar fo'-leaved clovah means luck," averred Uncle
+Tom.</p>
+
+<p>"It's supposed to be a shamrock, Uncle Tom," said
+Eliza, "and not a clover-leaf."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows dat," went on Uncle Tom, "but hit sho'
+means luck. Ah done got de feelin'."</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt and Carl Pretzel "got the feeling," too, for
+around at one side of the hotel they saw another automobile.
+There was no one around the car. Carl nearly
+dropped off his seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Vas I plind mit meinseluf," he whispered, "or iss it
+der real t'ing vat I see? Matt, dere iss der shtolen runaboudt,
+mit nopody aroundt! Fife huntert tollars saying
+it righdt oudt loud, 'Come, oh, come, somepody und pick
+me oop!'"</p>
+
+<p>Matt was astounded; yet there was not the least doubt
+about the runabout being the same car that had been
+stolen.</p>
+
+<p>"Is that the automobile Brisco ran away with?" demanded
+Legree, leaping energetically out of the tonneau.
+"That's the one!" declared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Then come with me, Matt, you and Carl," said Legree,
+starting for the hotel door. "Keep behind, though. I'm
+armed, now, and can meet Brisco in his own way if he
+shows fight."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV">CHAPTER IV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.</p>
+
+
+<p>Matt, while following Legree toward the front of the
+hotel, was doing some quick thinking to account for this
+surprising discovery of the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Very likely Brisco and Spangler were planning to recover
+the tin box. It must have been these plans that
+had brought them eastward from the vicinity of Ash Fork.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler had been dropped on the road to intercept the
+stranded players and get the box, while Brisco had come
+recklessly into Fairview. Possibly Brisco had been compelled
+to come into town after gasoline and oil.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah doan' want tuh be erroun' if dar's goin' tuh be
+any shootin'," palpitated Uncle Tom, rolling out of the
+tonneau with more haste than grace. "Ah used tuh be
+a reg'lar fire-eatah, en mah youngah days, but Ah dun
+kinder got ovah hit. Topsy, yo' an' Miss 'Liza come right
+along wif me, dis instinct. We'll go off whah dar's er
+safe place fo' me tuh do mah mascottin' fo' Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>Eliza and Topsy hurriedly descended from the car.
+Little Eva was already on the ground, but instead of
+going around the hotel with Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle
+Tom, he strolled over to the runabout. In their excitement,
+the others did not miss the boy.</p>
+
+<p>There were two windows in the hotel office&mdash;one in
+the front wall, a dozen feet from the door, and one just
+around the corner in the side wall. The window in the
+side wall overlooked the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Matt, doing some quick figuring, jumped at the conclusion
+that Brisco, taken by surprise by Legree, would
+make a bolt through one of the windows, both of which
+were open.</p>
+
+<p>Close to the front window an eave-spout entered a
+rain-water barrel. Matt did not believe Brisco, if he
+tried to escape by a window, would come out at the front,
+but at the side, where he would be nearer the runabout.
+With this idea in mind, Matt placed Carl behind the
+water-barrel, while he went around the corner.</p>
+
+<p>Through the window on that side the young motorist
+stole a cautious look.</p>
+
+<p>Two men were leaning over a counter in the office.
+One was plainly an Irishman, and the proprietor of the
+place, and the other was as plainly Hank Brisco. Matt
+knew Brisco too well to be mistaken in him. Neither
+Brisco nor the Irish proprietor had heard the approach
+of the Red Flier, nor the entrance of Legree into the
+office.</p>
+
+<p>With a grim smile on his face, and the revolver in his
+hand, Legree was leaning against the wall, just inside
+the door, waiting for Brisco to turn around.</p>
+
+<p>"Begorry," the proprietor was saying, "fifty cints a
+gallon f'r th' gasoline is all I'm afther chargin' yez. Oi
+know av robbers around here who'd be chargin' yez a
+dollar a gallon, but that's not the way wid Terence
+O'Grady. Fifty cints is th' most Oi'll take from yez.
+Fifteen gallons at fifty cints is sivin-fifty; then wan
+dollar f'r oil makes eight-fifty. Eight-fifty from tin laves
+wan an a half, an' there yez are. Will yez shtay f'r dinner?
+Faith, we've as foine a male t'day as yez iver put
+tooth in, an' a dollar is all ut will cost yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon I'll stay, O'Grady," replied Brisco, picking
+his change off the counter and sliding it into his pocket.</p>
+
+<p>Then he turned, and met the leveled weapon of Legree.
+Brisco's astonishment was ludicrous to behold. And
+O'Grady was fully as startled.</p>
+
+<p>"Phat th' blazes d'yez mean by thot?" and O'Grady
+jumped over the counter and stood glaring at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll explain," said Legree, with a coolness that filled
+Matt with admiration, "but while I'm talking, O'Grady,
+don't get between the point of this weapon and that man,
+there."</p>
+
+<p>"Is ut a hould-up?" demanded O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"Not at all. The man behind you knows me, and he
+knows that he owes me a hundred and twenty dollars."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know anything of the kind," replied Brisco,
+every whit as cool as Legree. "You've made a mistake,
+my man; and, besides, even if I did owe you money,
+you're trying to collect it in the wrong way."</p>
+
+<p>"Roight yez are!" put in O'Grady. "Shtick thot pisthol<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span>
+in yer pocket an' go off wid yez. This is a dacint, rayspectible
+hotel, an' guns ain't allowed in th' place at all,
+at all. Av yez don't hike, begorry, Oi'll call in th' town
+marshal."</p>
+
+<p>"Call the marshal," said Legree; "he's the man I'd like
+to have here. That fellow who just bought gasoline and
+oil at this place is one of the gang who robbed Tomlinson,
+the Denver jeweler, over west of Ash Fork, and stole
+the automobile belonging to Nugent, the cattleman&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Brisco began to laugh.</p>
+
+<p>"What do you think of that, O'Grady?" he cried.
+"Why, that car you just helped me fill with gasoline is
+Tomlinson's car! I'm taking it east for him. Who this
+man is, or what game he's trying to play, is more than I
+know."</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was edging around toward the side window.</p>
+
+<p>"Look out, Mr. Legree!" called Matt, through the
+opening. "He's trying to get where he can drop out
+here."</p>
+
+<p>Matt's words caused Brisco and O'Grady to swerve
+their glances in his direction. A glint darted into Brisco's
+eyes at sight of Matt. Hank Brisco had good reason to
+remember the young motorist.</p>
+
+<p>"This looks like a put-up job, O'Grady," said Brisco,
+still keeping the whip-hand of himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, begob," cried O'Grady, "no pack av blackguards
+can come into th' Shamrock Hotel an' shtir up throuble
+f'r me customers. Clear out av here," he added, brandishing
+his fists, "or Oi'll be afther gittin' busy wid me
+hands."</p>
+
+<p>"Is that man the one who helped rob Tomlinson, Matt?"
+asked Legree, nodding his head toward Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"He's the one," answered Matt. "I'd know him anywhere.
+Don't let him&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment, O'Grady, wofully deceived, but
+thinking he was doing exactly what was right, kicked a
+chair at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>The chair struck Legree's shins with a force that hurled
+him back against the wall.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, then," roared O'Grady to Brisco, "make a run
+av it! Oi'll take care av this boonch av meddlers!"</p>
+
+<p>With that, he hurled himself upon Legree and the two
+began to struggle, falling over the chair and dropping
+heavily on the floor.</p>
+
+<p>They were directly across the doorway, and Brisco
+sprang for the front window and pushed himself through
+it.</p>
+
+<p>"Shtop a leedle!" whooped Carl, dodging around the
+rain-water barrel; "you don'd got avay so easy as dot,
+und&mdash;&mdash; Himmelblitzen!"</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had grabbed the barrel. That happened to be
+the dry season and the barrel was empty. Giving it a
+whirl, he threw it against the Dutch boy with a force
+that took him off his feet.</p>
+
+<p>Thrashing his arms wildly, Carl laid himself down on
+the rolling barrel and went caroming off toward the road.</p>
+
+<p>Meantime, Matt, seeing that Brisco was making for the
+window guarded by Carl, had rushed around to the front
+of the hotel. He reached the scene of the scrimmage just
+in time to be grabbed by O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>The racket in the office had brought O'Grady's Chinese
+cook from the kitchen; and, while the Chinaman continued
+the tussle with Legree, the proprietor of the hotel
+had rushed out to see what more he could do for the man
+who had paid him so well for gasoline and oil.</p>
+
+<p>"Oi've got yez, yez meddlin' omadhoun!" shouted
+O'Grady. "Oi'll tach yez t' come interferin' wid dacint
+people!"</p>
+
+<p>With that he flung his arms around Motor Matt and
+hung to him with all his strength.</p>
+
+<p>"Hang onto him, O'Grady!" cried Brisco, dashing for
+the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"Niver yez fret!" panted the Irishman reassuringly;
+"good-by t' yez. Next toime yez come we'll give yez
+betther treatment; there won't be so many hoodlums
+around t'&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Let go!" shouted Matt. Then, suddenly freeing his
+hands, he struck the deluded Irishman a quick blow.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady's hands relaxed for an instant. That instant
+gave Motor Matt his opportunity, and he tore himself
+free.</p>
+
+<p>About the same moment, Legree, hatless, angry, and
+chagrined, came running out of the office.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's Brisco?" he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>Just then the question was answered by Brisco himself.
+The runabout, leaping around the corner of the
+hotel, shot toward the road, a mocking laugh from Brisco
+trailing out behind.</p>
+
+<p>"Not this time, Legree!" called Brisco, over his shoulder.
+"Look out for me, from now on&mdash;you and Motor
+Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout was headed westward. In the rumble
+behind, lying partly over the rumble-seat, was a dust-coat.
+It undoubtedly belonged to Brisco, and he must
+have thrown it aside while attending to the automobile,
+a few minutes before.</p>
+
+<p>While Motor Matt and Legree stood staring at the
+receding car, the coat lifted a little and a hand was waved.</p>
+
+<p>"Great Scott!" cried Matt; "it's that boy."</p>
+
+<p>Legree, far from showing any consternation, leaned
+against the wall of the building and laughed softly.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was amazed.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter with you, Legree?" he demanded.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm just enjoying a situation that has a bad outlook
+for Brisco," was Legree's queer answer.</p>
+
+<p>"It has a bad outlook for the boy, too," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't worry about Little Eva. I know him better
+than you do, and he'll take care of himself."</p>
+
+<p>At this moment the Chinaman came out of the hotel
+office and handed the revolver to O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"Oi've had about all Oi want av this rough-house!"
+shouted O'Grady, his temper badly warped by the disturbance
+and the blow Matt had dealt him. "Yez will shtay
+roight here, bedad, until Oi can have th' Chink go afther
+th' town marshal. Go f'r Jennings, Ping," he added,
+flourishing the weapon in the faces of Matt and Legree,
+"an hustle. We'll make this slab-soided roosther laugh
+on t'other soide av his face befure we're done wid him."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V">CHAPTER V.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.</p>
+
+
+<p>Carl, having untangled himself from the barrel, brushed
+off his clothes and rubbed his sore spots, came bristling
+up to O'Grady.</p>
+
+<p>"You vas grazy," he cried, "so grazy as I don'd know.
+Oof you hatn't fooled mit us, t'ings vould haf peen tifferent.
+Ve lose vone t'ousant tollars py vat you do!<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span>
+Yah, so helup me! Pud avay der gun und ged reasonaple."</p>
+
+<p>"Huccome dat 'ar resolver change han's lak what Ah
+see?" inquired Uncle Tom, stepping gingerly around the
+corner of the hotel. "Didun' Ah do yo no good, mascottin'
+fo' yo', Motah Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>Eliza and Topsy followed Uncle Tom, peering about
+them excitedly and evidently expecting to find Brisco a
+prisoner.</p>
+
+<p>"Something went crossways, Uncle Tom," said Matt.
+"Brisco got away, and he took the stolen car with him.
+Mr. O'Grady, here, the proprietor of the hotel, didn't
+understand the case and helped the wrong side."</p>
+
+<p>By that time O'Grady was himself beginning to think
+that he had made a mistake. The sight of the big red
+touring-car, and of the odd assortment of passengers
+who had arrived in it, afforded him food for thought.
+So he was thinking, lowering the revolver meanwhile
+and grabbing Ping, the Chinaman, by the queue to keep
+him from going after the marshal.</p>
+
+<p>"Where did th' lot av yez come from?" O'Grady finally
+inquired.</p>
+
+<p>"Ash Fork," replied Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Them colored folks come wid yez?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, mebby Oi did make a bobble, Oi dunno. Tell
+me something more about ut."</p>
+
+<p>Briefly as he could, Legree told of the robbery of Mr.
+Tomlinson and of the stealing of the cattleman's car,
+then wound up the recital by describing how Brisco had
+run off and left his theatrical company, and how Motor
+Matt had picked up those who were tramping along the
+road and was giving them a lift as far as Flagstaff.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady seemed to take more stock in Motor Matt than
+in any of the others. He watched the boy out of the tails
+of his eyes while listening to Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Faith," said he, "yez are a har-r-d hitter, me lad.
+Oi'm feelin' th' rap yez give me this minyit, an' me jaw'll
+be lame f'r a wake; but sure Oi desarved ut av so be Oi'm
+raysponsible f'r th' mon gittin' away. A good custhomer
+he was, an' Oi make ut a rule t' trate good custhomers
+wid ivery consideration. Oi supplied him wid gasoline
+out av me private barrel, an' sint th' Chinee f'r oil which
+Oi let him have at double th' proice Oi paid f'r ut. By
+th' same token, Oi felt loike tratin' th' mon white, d'yez
+see? Now, av yez won't say annythin' more about th'
+fracas, sure Oi won't, an' we'll let bygones be bygones.
+Was yez all thinkin' av takin' dinner at th' Shamrock?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat 'ar was de notion we had, boss," spoke up Uncle
+Tom eagerly.</p>
+
+<p>"Then, begorry, Oi'll make yez a special rate av sivin
+dollars f'r th' six av yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll give you three," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"T'ree ut is," was the prompt rejoinder. "Th' ladies
+can go t' th' parlor, an' th' gintlemen will foind a wash-bench
+by th' kitchen dure. Hurry up wid th' meal, Ping,"
+the proprietor added to the Chinaman.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady handed the revolver to Legree, excused himself
+and went into the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>"It don't take him long to forget the trouble he made
+us," remarked Legree, with a wink. "He's wise, too, in
+being willing to overlook the matter if we are."</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt couldn't understand Legree. He didn't
+appear to be worried in the least about the boy; on the
+contrary, he seemed pleased with the situation.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's the kid?" inquired Eliza.</p>
+
+<p>"He went away with Brisco," replied Legree.</p>
+
+<p>Startled exclamations came from Eliza, Uncle Tom, and
+Topsy.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't fret about him," went on Legree, with a calm
+confidence that was too deep for Matt, "for he'll come
+back. I'll have to stay here and wait for him, of course,
+and if Matt feels as though he has to pull out for Flagstaff
+before the kid gets here, why, we'll have to come
+along the best we can."</p>
+
+<p>"The boy's in danger," said Matt, "and I'm not going
+to leave Fairview until I try to do something for him."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't go to any trouble, Matt," returned Legree, "for
+I tell you again the kid's able to look out for himself.
+This work of his may result in the capture of Brisco and
+the recovery of the stolen car. After we eat, I'm going
+to find a cot, lie down, and take a snooze. I've got that
+coming to me, I think, considering what I've been through
+to-day. Let's hunt up that wash-bench and get ready for
+dinner."</p>
+
+<p>Matt was in a quandary. He knew, by his own experience,
+that Brisco was a desperate man, and Legree's
+firm conviction that the boy would keep out of trouble
+looked like the craziest kind of misjudgment.</p>
+
+<p>Following the dinner, to which they all did ample justice,
+Uncle Tom curled up on a door-step in the sun, Legree
+found a hammock in the shade, and Eliza and Topsy
+disappeared inside the hotel. Matt led Carl off to the
+Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>"It's a queer layout, Carl," said Matt, nodding his
+head in the direction of the hotel. "Hasn't it struck you
+that way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Vell," returned Carl, running his fingers reflectively
+through his mat of tow-colored hair, "I vas making some
+reflections on der soobjeck. Leedle Efa don't seem to
+cut mooch ice mit Legree, hey? Or meppy he cut a whole
+lot dot ve don'd know aboudt."</p>
+
+<p>"You knew the boy in Denver?" went on Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Yah, aber I forged vat his name vas, or vat he dit.
+Und I ditn't know vedder he hat a fader."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I don't think we ought to go on to Flagstaff
+until we find out something as to what becomes of the
+boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Me, neider; aber how ve find oudt, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll take the Flier and see if we can't track the runabout."</p>
+
+<p>"Und oof ve come too close py der runaboudt, den
+vat?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll take some old bottles along. If the runabout
+shows up and tries to chase us, we'll make a run of it
+and smash the bottles in the road behind us."</p>
+
+<p>Carl chuckled. That was an expedient to which Motor
+Matt had already had recourse&mdash;and with brilliant success.</p>
+
+<p>"Pully! I vill go findt der pottles, Matt, vile you ged
+der macheen retty."</p>
+
+<p>Carl went off toward a junk-pile back of the wood-shed.
+By the time Matt had made the Red Flier ready,
+Carl was back with an armful of bottles.</p>
+
+<p>"Ve vas on der high gear dis drip, you bed you," observed
+Carl, dumping the bottles into the tonneau. "I
+like dose oxcidements, yah, so. It vas goot for der nerfs
+und makes a fellow jeerful like nodding."</p>
+
+<p>As they got into the car, ready for the start, Eliza came
+hurrying out of the hotel. She carried the box in her
+hand and made straight for the automobile.</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you going, Matt?" she asked breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"We're not intending to run off and leave you," Matt
+laughed. "We want to see if we can't find out something
+about Little Eva, as you call him. It don't seem right
+to let the boy be carried off like this and not try to do
+something to help him."</p>
+
+<p>"He's a queer kid," said Eliza thoughtfully. "He and
+Legree were only with the company about two months,
+and they both had a queer way about them, sometimes.
+But if Legree isn't worried I don't know why we ought
+to be."</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know, either," said Matt, "but I am, all the
+same. Carl and I are going to see if we can't follow the
+trail of the runabout for a ways. I don't think we'll be
+gone more than an hour or two."</p>
+
+<p>"May I go along?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, yes, if you want to; but hadn't you better leave
+that box here?"</p>
+
+<p>"Legree told me to keep it by me all the time," answered
+the girl.</p>
+
+<p>"Probably he didn't intend for you to take it out into
+the hills. Well, never mind. If it's so mighty valuable
+I guess Legree would be taking care of it himself. Jump
+in, Eliza."</p>
+
+<p>The girl climbed into the tonneau, and Carl closed the
+door. Matt started at low speed, getting into the road
+at the same place where Brisco had driven the runabout.
+The trail of the broad wheels was well defined in the
+dust, and led along the course followed by the Red Flier
+in coming into town.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco vent oudt like ve come in," said Carl. "I'm
+vonderin' in my mindt oof he vent pack py Ash Fork?"</p>
+
+<p>"Give it up, Carl," answered Matt. "I don't know
+where he went. There's a whole lot about this business
+that's the rankest kind of guesswork."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure! Liddle Efa vas foolish mit himseluf for gedding
+indo der car; und he vas foolish some more for
+shtaying der car in ven he mighdt chump it off. Aber
+meppy he hat his reasons, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"He must have had a reason for doing such a reckless
+thing, but he don't know Brisco so well as we do."</p>
+
+<p>"He ought to, Matt," spoke up Eliza; "he was with
+the company for two months."</p>
+
+<p>"At that time," Matt answered, "Brisco had the best
+part of his character uppermost. Carl and I have seen
+the worst side of him, and he's the biggest scoundrel out
+of jail."</p>
+
+<p>"Vorse as dot!" averred Carl.</p>
+
+<p>The tracks of the car led up the slope, out of the valley
+that contained the town, and on along the Ash Fork
+road.</p>
+
+<p>Matt held the Flier down to an easy pace. For several
+miles the little party had a pleasant ride, without any
+excitement whatever. But there was plenty of excitement
+in store, and when it arrived it came suddenly.</p>
+
+<p>A turn in the wooded road brought those in the car
+abruptly into a long, straightaway stretch. The instant
+they were able to look along the trail beyond the turn, a
+thrill shot through the nerves of all of them.</p>
+
+<p>Three mounted men were coming toward the car at a
+tearing clip. Evidently they had heard the pounding of
+the motor and had put their horses to top speed.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco!" shouted Carl; "und dere iss Spangler, too.
+Durn aroundt, Matt! Durn aroundt so kevick as der
+nation vill let you! Shiminy grickets, aber dis vas sutten!"</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt had recognized two of the riders as Brisco
+and Spangler, even before Carl had given his frightened
+yell.</p>
+
+<p>Where had Brisco exchanged his seat in the runabout
+to the saddle of the horse? And why had he changed,
+and where had he left the car?</p>
+
+<p>All this darted through the young motorist's mind as
+he halted the Flier, reversed, and began backing to make
+the turn.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI">CHAPTER VI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">LOSING THE BOX.</p>
+
+
+<p>Matt had not dreamed of being pursued by horsemen.
+The Red Flier would have no difficulty in running away
+from anything on hoofs, and certainly she could leave
+these three riders behind providing she could turn and
+get under headway before being overhauled.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, Spangler, and the other man were dangerously
+close before Matt got the Red Flier turned the other
+way. Just back from the bend there was a grassy hill,
+along the foot of which the road ran smoothly. It was
+an excellent place for speed, and Matt jumped from first
+to second, and from second to third with masterful quickness,
+considering the fact that he had to be careful about
+stripping the gear.</p>
+
+<p>As the car leaped away, like a spirited horse under the
+spur, Brisco was alongside the tonneau. A scream from
+Eliza called the attention of both boys. Matt, of course,
+was busy with his driving and could not turn to see what
+was the matter. Carl, however, got on his knees in his
+seat, face to the rear. What he saw brought an angry
+shout from his lips.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, leaning from his saddle, was reaching over the
+side of the tonneau. He had caught hold of the tin
+box, and Eliza, hanging to it with both hands, was
+struggling to keep him from securing it.</p>
+
+<p>"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
+the girl's aid; "dot pelongs to Modor Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>Carl was excited, but it wasn't excitement alone that
+caused him to say the box belonged to Matt. He knew
+Brisco was after a box he had once owned himself, and
+Carl had a hazy idea that if he said the box belonged to
+Matt it might be left alone.</p>
+
+<p>The gathering speed of the car carried it away from
+Brisco; and, as Brisco's one hand was stronger than
+the girl's two, the box remained with him.</p>
+
+<p>Carl got into the tonneau, head over heels and with a
+crash like the breaking of a dozen windows&mdash;for he fell
+into the heap of useless bottles. When he picked himself
+up, the three riders, with jeering laughs, had pointed their
+horses the other way.</p>
+
+<p>"It's gone, Matt!" cried the girl wildly; "the box is
+gone! Brisco snatched it out of my hands!"</p>
+
+<p>"Vat a luck it iss!" growled Carl, holding one hand to
+his face, where it had been cut by a piece of glass. "I
+got pack here so kevick as I couldt, Miss Eliza, aber dot
+Prisco feller was kevicker as me. Donnervetter! Matt,
+ve come oudt to look for dot poy und ve lose der pox!
+Dot vill be some nice t'ings to dell Legree."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh," cried the girl, half-crying; "I shouldn't have
+come! Even if it was all right for me to come I ought
+to have left the box at the hotel. Now we'll never be
+able to get our money from Brisco!"</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>Matt slowed down the car and took a look rearward.
+The three men were out of sight beyond the turn.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't worry about it, Eliza," said Matt. "If any one
+is to blame, I'm the one. There's something queer about
+that tin box. If it's so valuable, why didn't Legree take
+care of it himself? Why did he trust it to you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Before I had it," returned the girl, "Uncle Tom was
+carrying it. He lost it in the river, and had to jump
+in after it."</p>
+
+<p>"More carelessness on Legree's part! Uncle Tom, as
+I figure it, is about the most irresponsible member of your
+party, and yet Legree allowed him to carry a box which,
+Brisco had said, was worth ten thousand dollars. It don't
+look reasonable to me."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot's vat it don'd!" exclaimed Carl. "Aber Prisco
+vanted dot pox pooty pad to go afder it like vat he dit.
+Meppy it vas vort' a lod to him, und nodding to Legree
+and der rest oof der parn-shtormers."</p>
+
+<p>"Just because it <i>was</i> valuable to Brisco is the very
+reason I should have been more careful with it," went
+on the girl. "We might have made him pay us what he
+owed us, and then we could all have gone back to Denver.
+Now&mdash;now&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>The girl began to cry.</p>
+
+<p>"Say," wheedled Carl, "I vouldn't do dot. You don'd
+helup nodding novay oof you cry. Don'd fret aboudt der
+olt pox. Matt und me vill gif you der money to go py
+Tenver. Jeer oop a liddle."</p>
+
+<p>"Take my word for it, Eliza," said Matt, as the girl
+lifted her head and got better control of her feelings,
+"that box isn't worth a whole lot or Legree wouldn't
+have taken chances with it like he did. I'm sorry Brisco
+got away with it, of course, and I'm going to hurry back
+to Fairview and do something I ought to have done before&mdash;and
+that is, find an officer and put him on Brisco's
+track."</p>
+
+<p>"Dot von't amoundt to nodding, Matt," said Carl, climbing
+back into the front seat. "Prisco vill ged off der
+horse und indo der runaboudt und der officer mighdt
+as vell dry to ketch some shtreaks oof greased lighdning."</p>
+
+<p>"It may be, Carl," speculated Matt, "that the runabout
+has broken down. I don't believe Brisco and Spangler
+would be able to fix the machine if anything very serious
+got the matter with it. Perhaps they had to leave the
+car and take to horses."</p>
+
+<p>"Vat's deir game, anyvay? Dot's vat I vant to know.
+Oof deir game vas to ged der pox, den it vas all ofer,
+und ve don'd haf nodding to do mit Brisco und Spangler
+some more. Py shinks! Dot knocks us oudt oof a
+t'ousand tollars, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"All Legree was keeping the box for," quavered the
+girl, "was so that Brisco would follow us and try to get
+it. That would give us a chance to make Brisco pay what
+he owed us."</p>
+
+<p>"Legree ought to have hung onto the box himself,"
+insisted Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Prisco iss too schlick for Legree," asserted Carl.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish I understood what Brisco and Legree are up
+to," muttered Matt. "There's more to this than appears
+on the surface."</p>
+
+<p>"Yah, I bed you," agreed Carl, wagging his head. "Oof
+I knew as mooch as I vould like, den I vould tell you all
+aboudt it, vich I don'd. Den dere iss Efa. His monkey-doodle
+pitzness makes der t'ing vorse."</p>
+
+<p>A quarter of an hour later the Red Flier drew up in
+its old berth alongside the hotel. Eliza got out and ran
+hurriedly to tell Legree what had happened to the tin
+box.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm sorry for Eliza," said Matt, climbing slowly over
+the brakes as he got out of the car. "She's a nice girl,
+and it's too bad she has to feel all cut up over the way
+the box was taken from her. I've got a notion that
+Legree is fooling them all&mdash;and you and me into the
+bargain, Carl."</p>
+
+<p>"How you t'ink so, Matt?" asked Carl, opening his eyes
+wide.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know how he's doing it, or why he's doing it,
+but it's just a hunch I've got."</p>
+
+<p>"How long ve going to shtay here?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't want to pull out until we learn something
+more about this business. There are parts of it that have
+a crooked look to me."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment Legree issued from the hotel. He
+did not act at all excited, although he must certainly
+have learned from Eliza what had happened.</p>
+
+<p>"Eliza's been telling me what a time you've had," said
+he. "The principal thing is that Brisco has left the car
+and got onto a horse. I was surprised to hear that. I
+can't imagine why a rascal, who's as badly wanted as he
+is, should leave a swift automobile and take to horseback."</p>
+
+<p>"I should think, Mr. Legree," remarked Matt, "that
+you would be more interested in the loss of that box than
+in anything else."</p>
+
+<p>"Not at all. In fact, I haven't thought so much of
+that box since the lot of us left Ash Fork. It was a good
+thing to hang onto, but it wasn't so terribly important.
+I've told Eliza not to feel bad over what happened. I'd
+feel worse myself if the kid hadn't got away in that
+runabout, like he did."</p>
+
+<p>All that Legree said merely made the whole situation
+darker for Matt. And for Carl, too. The Dutch boy
+stood blinking at Legree, and running his fingers through
+the tangle of tow he called his hair.</p>
+
+<p>"You were keeping the box in the hope that Brisco
+would came after it and give you a chance at him,
+weren't you?" demanded Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, now that Brisco has got the box you can't expect
+him to come after it."</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly," and Legree gave a short laugh. Noting the
+perplexity of the two boys, he went on: "You miss one
+point, Matt, in sizing up this situation. We're not done
+with Brisco&mdash;not by a long chalk. It isn't the box, but
+what was in it, that Brisco is anxious to get."</p>
+
+<p>"Wasn't there anything in the box?" queried Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"No, and there hasn't been since we left Ash Fork. I
+opened the box on the q. t. in that town and took out
+what it contained. That object is in my possession. I
+intend to stay in this town, Matt, until Brisco is captured.
+I don't care anything about Spangler; Brisco is
+the man I want. If you've got time, you can stay and
+help me; and you can keep all you get for recovering the
+runabout for yourself."</p>
+
+<p>"What will you get for your work?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, I'll send Brisco over the road. <i>The contents
+of that box will do it!</i>"</p>
+
+<p>Matt and Carl were dumfounded. The situation was
+clearing a little, but not much.</p>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII">CHAPTER VII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Do you know this cattleman in Ash Fork who had
+the runabout stolen from him?" asked Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"I know him by sight," answered Matt; "I'm not acquainted
+with him."</p>
+
+<p>"Are you sure that he will pay five hundred dollars
+for the recovery of his automobile?"</p>
+
+<p>"He said he would, and he's able to do it. And he offers
+to pay five hundred dollars apiece for the capture
+of Brisco and Spangler."</p>
+
+<p>"Then there's a chance for you to make fifteen hundred.
+I'd advise you to stay here and do it."</p>
+
+<p>Matt leaned against the car and went into a brown
+study.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Tomlinson had not required him to get to Albuquerque
+in a hurry. He could take a reasonable amount
+of time for the trip. But Mr. Tomlinson <i>did</i> expect the
+car to be brought safely to its destination. Would Matt
+in any way endanger the car by staying a short time in
+Fairview? That was the question that bothered him.</p>
+
+<p>"I t'ink, Matt," said Carl, "dot I could use some oof
+dot fifdeen huntert. Vy nod shtay und dry dem a virl?"</p>
+
+<p>"If I stay, Legree," observed Matt, "I won't be called
+on to use the Red Flier for chasing Brisco and Spangler,
+will I? The car doesn't belong to me and I can't take
+any chances with it."</p>
+
+<p>"You can do as you please about that, Matt. I'm
+after Brisco. If you get Spangler and the runabout,
+you'll have to do it in your own way. Spangler and
+Brisco, though, seem to be working together, just now,
+so my work ought to help you."</p>
+
+<p>"Why not get an officer here and&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you want to divide with an officer what the cattleman
+is willing to pay?"</p>
+
+<p>"You know a lot that you're not telling me, Legree,"
+said Matt quietly.</p>
+
+<p>"Well," grinned Legree, "when it comes to that, I know
+a lot that I'm not telling anybody&mdash;just now. You've
+heard more from me than any one else&mdash;excepting the
+kid."</p>
+
+<p>"I think I'll lay over here until to-morrow," said
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" exulted Carl. "Be jeerful, everypody.
+I t'ink, Matt," he added, "dot I vill infest my haluf oof
+dot fifdeen huntert tollars in gofermend ponds, und&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't invest it till you get it, Carl," interposed Matt
+dryly. "Pull off your coat, now, and we'll wash up the
+car and fill the tanks."</p>
+
+<p>For two hours the boys were more than busy. While
+in Motor Matt's hands, the machine was always as carefully
+groomed as a race-horse. Not only that, but after
+the day's run he made it a point to go over the machinery
+with a wrench and pliers, tightening up everything that
+had worked loose and making sure that every part was
+in complete working order.</p>
+
+<p>The water-tank was filled. Ten gallons of gasoline
+were needed for the gasoline reservoir, but before he
+bought any from O'Grady, Matt tested it carefully with
+a hydrometer. Finding it nearly the same grade as he
+had been using, he funneled it into the tank, not only
+straining it through wire gauze but through thin chamois
+skin as well. The oil supply was also replenished.</p>
+
+<p>When the boys were through, the Red Flier was as
+spick and span as when it had come from the shop. Not
+only that, but it was fit to take the road at a moment's
+notice and make a record run.</p>
+
+<p>To Matt's regret, there was no place in town where
+the car could be housed for the night. There were two
+or three old barns, but they were so foul and unclean
+that he would not take the machine into them. He preferred
+to leave it outdoors all night, sleeping in the tonneau
+and guarding against tampering.</p>
+
+<p>When supper was announced, Carl watched the car
+while Matt ate; and when Matt had finished, Carl went
+in for his own meal.</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom, feeling much better now that his physical
+necessities had been relieved, walked out to the car with
+Matt when he left the dining-room.</p>
+
+<p>There was something on the old negro's mind. He
+seemed flustered and backward about getting at it. Finally
+he broached the astonishing proposition, leading up to it
+by degrees.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's done let out ob er job by de scan'lous actions ob
+dat 'ar Brisco, Marse Matt," said he moodily.</p>
+
+<p>"Hard luck, Uncle Tom," answered Matt sympathetically.
+"Where do you live when you're at home?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's one ob dem 'ar rolling stones, en Ah ain't had no
+home sense Ah was knee-high tuh a possum, no, suh. Fo'
+de las' few houahs, Marse Matt, Ah's been kind ob cogitatin'
+en mah haid an' I 'bout come tuh de conclusion
+dat yo' outlook in life is juberous, yassuh. Yo's a puffick
+gemman, but yo' take so many chances dat yo' prospecks
+am sholy juberous."</p>
+
+<p>"How can I help that, Uncle Tom?" asked Matt, enjoying
+immensely the old darky's vagaries.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah knows how dat kin be fixed, sah," went on Uncle
+Tom. "What yo' has got tuh hab is a official mascot,
+sah, tuh be wif yo' all de time an' wuk off de hoodoo.
+Ah 'lows, sah, dat I could fill dat job. How much yo'
+willin' tuh pay fo' an official mascot by de monf?"</p>
+
+<p>That was too much for Motor Matt. Laying back in
+the tonneau he laughed till he shook.</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' laff, Marse Matt," begged the old fraud; "hit's
+a mouty complexus bizness. Tu'n hit ober in yo' mind,
+sah, en if yo' t'ink Ah'm wuth mah bo'd an' keep, jess
+considah Ah'm engaged."</p>
+
+<p>"Why, Uncle Tom," said Matt, "I haven't much more
+than enough to board and keep myself, so I guess my
+prospects will have to continue to be 'juberous.'"</p>
+
+<p>"Doan' say dat, sah; t'ink it ober. Ah'll hold mahse'f
+open fo' de engagemunt."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom stumped back into the house, and Matt
+kicked off his shoes and snuggled down under a blanket
+which O'Grady had furnished him.</p>
+
+<p>Half an hour later, Carl came out with a blanket of his
+own.</p>
+
+<p>"What are you going to do, Carl?" asked Matt, rousing
+up and peering at his friend through the gloom.</p>
+
+<p>"Dis iss some games vot two can blay ad, my poy,"
+chuckled Carl. "I vill shleep py der machine mit you."</p>
+
+<p>"Go on!" scoffed Matt. "What's the use of denying
+yourself a good bed when you can just as well have one?"</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, I dredder shtay mit you. Don'd say nodding,
+pecause it vasn't any use. My mindt iss made oop, yah,
+you bed you."</p>
+
+<p>"All right, then," said Matt. "Curl up on the steering-wheel
+and enjoy yourself."</p>
+
+<p>The front seat, of course, was divided into two sections,
+so it was impossible for Carl to stretch himself out in it;<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span>
+however, he wrapped his blanket around him and crowded
+down between the seat and the dash, head and shoulders
+over the foot-board on one side, and his feet tangled up
+in the foot-pedals and levers on the other.</p>
+
+<p>Just as Matt was getting to sleep a wild <i>honk, honk!</i>
+brought him up like a shot out of a gun.</p>
+
+<p>"What's that?" called Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dot vas my feets," explained Carl coolly. "I hit dem
+against dot rupper pag vat makes a noise. Oof der car
+vas vider, den I vouldn't be too long for der blace vat I
+am. Meppy I puy somet'ing else don gofermend ponds
+mit dot money. Meppy, yah&mdash;so&mdash;&mdash;" and Carl's words
+drifted off into a snore.</p>
+
+<p>Matt settled down again, and this time nothing disturbed
+him.</p>
+
+<p>Carl had some bad dreams that night. He thought his
+feet were caught in a giant clothes-wringer, and that a
+locomotive was hitched to his head. Some one would
+run him through the wringer, flattening him out up to
+the knees, and then the locomotive would back up and
+pull him out again. When his dreams had tired him out
+with that set of incidents, they shut him up in a little
+tin box, and three men on horseback played football with
+him; other experiences, too numerous to mention, followed,
+and at the wind-up Carl thought he dropped several
+miles through the air and smashed through a skylight.
+Starting up with a groan, he rubbed his eyes and looked
+around.</p>
+
+<p>It was morning. Carl was sitting up on the ground,
+chilled and chattering.</p>
+
+<p>At first he thought that skylight episode was not a
+dream, and he looked up to see the place he had come
+through. Instead of seeing anything so unsubstantial,
+his eyes encountered the face of Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"You sleep like a log, Carl!" exclaimed Legree.
+"Where's Motor Matt? What's become of the automobile?"</p>
+
+<p>Then, in a flash, Carl's hazy mind connected with the
+tangible things surrounding him when he went to sleep.</p>
+
+<p>"Vy," he cried, struggling to his feet and staring
+around, "I vas in der car mit Modor Matt! I vent to
+shleep in it mit him."</p>
+
+<p>"I know you did; but where are Matt and the car
+now?"</p>
+
+<p>Carl rubbed his eyes again, and then took a more
+careful look about him.</p>
+
+<p>He was standing in the very place where the car had
+stood. But there was no sign of the car! And no sign
+of Motor Matt!</p>
+
+<p>The blanket Carl had taken into the Red Flier with
+him was lying crumpled on the ground, a dozen feet
+away.</p>
+
+<p>"Vell, py shinks!" gasped Carl. "I don'd like dot. I
+don'd like some shokes vere sooch a monkey-doodle pitzness
+iss made mit me. Modor Matt nefer made dot
+shoke."</p>
+
+<p>"There's no joke, Carl," answered Legree; "I wish to
+gracious it <i>was</i> a joke. The Red Flier left here some time
+during the night. No one heard it. No one knew it
+was gone until I looked out of the window of my room.
+You were lying on the ground here, but neither the car
+nor Matt were in sight. Do you think Matt would pull
+out and leave you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Leaf me? Matt? Vell, he vas my bard, und how
+you figure oudt dot he do dot? No, py shinks! Oof he
+ain'd here he vas dook off, und oof he vas dook off id vas
+dot Prisco und Spangler vat dit it!"</p>
+
+<p>With that, Carl went over to the well and sat down. He
+was still confused, but slowly the realization of what had
+happened was growing upon him. And as the realization
+grew, his temper mounted with it.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VIII" id="CHAPTER_VIII">CHAPTER VIII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">SPIRITED AWAY.</p>
+
+
+<p>Carl was not the only one who had been troubled with
+dreams that night. Motor Matt floundered through one
+of the worst nightmares he had ever had. The whole
+scheme of the thing was rather vague, but mighty depressing.
+He seemed to be engaged in some tremendous
+struggle, striking away and countering a thousand or
+more huge fists that leaped at him out of the gloom. One
+by one he put the clenched hands out of business, and
+when he had conquered the last of them he opened his
+eyes in bewilderment.</p>
+
+<p>The humming of a motor was in his ears. It was the
+Red Flier's motor, he could tell that instinctively. The
+stars were overhead, the cool, damp smell of the night
+was all around, and the glow of the acetylene lamps was
+glimmering and dancing in advance. The car was moving
+briskly through the silence.</p>
+
+<p>Matt had a queer, sick feeling at the pit of his stomach.
+Counting out the time he raced the limited train on his
+motor-cycle, collided with a freight-wagon and was laid
+up for a fortnight, he had never been confined to his bed
+for a week in his life.</p>
+
+<p>He wondered what ailed him, and his mind was sluggish
+and slow in working out the problem.</p>
+
+<p>He had felt just as he did then once before. That was
+the time he had been drugged and taken out of Ph&oelig;nix
+to keep him from racing with the Prescott champion,
+O'Day.</p>
+
+<p>Had he been drugged now? If so, why, and by whom?</p>
+
+<p>By degrees the cool air cleared his befogged brain. He
+went back over the chain of events, picking it up where he
+had dropped it.</p>
+
+<p>The queer party of stranded actors&mdash;the arrival at
+Fairview&mdash;the escape of Brisco from the hotel&mdash;the ride
+into the hills to look for the boy&mdash;the pursuit by the horsemen
+and the loss of the tin box&mdash;all these events dragged
+through Matt's mind. He and Carl had gone to sleep
+in the automobile. Why was the car moving? Had Carl,
+giving rein to some wild impulse, cranked up the car and
+started for a night ride?</p>
+
+<p>Matt stirred. "Carl!" he called, "what are you trying
+to do?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt became aware, then, that there was some one
+beside him in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>"Carl, hey?" came a jeering voice, as a strong hand
+reached over and pushed Matt back in the seat. "Ye
+got another guess comin'. Thar ain't no Dutchman along,
+this trip."</p>
+
+<p>"Tuned up, has he?" asked a voice from the front
+seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Yep; he's got back ter airth, Hank."</p>
+
+<p>"Surprised?" The man in front laughed hoarsely as he
+asked the question.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Waal, kinder. He thought his Dutch pard was erlong."</p>
+
+<p>Matt, while this talk was going forward, realized with
+a shock that the two men in the car were Brisco and
+Spangler. Brisco was in the driver's seat, and Spangler
+was in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>With a quick gathering of all his strength, Matt flung
+himself toward the door of the tonneau. His first unreasoning
+impulse was to get away from his captors. The
+car must have been going forty miles an hour, and the
+roadside was lined with sharp stones. If Matt had succeeded
+in his desperate attempt, he could hardly have escaped
+without serious injury; but his rash move was
+nipped in the bud. Spangler, who was in the tonneau for
+the purpose, grabbed Matt and hurled him back into the
+seat.</p>
+
+<p>"None o' that!" he growled. "Want ter break yer
+bloomin' neck? Not as I keer much about yer neck, but
+Hank an' me hev got diff'rent plans fer ye."</p>
+
+<p>Matt was still dizzy and weak. The nausea at his
+stomach was leaving him slowly, but it made him feel
+as limp as a rag and utterly helpless.</p>
+
+<p>"Did you men run away with this car?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"Looks that-away, don't it?" returned Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Where's Carl?"</p>
+
+<p>"Didn't hev no time ter bother with the Dutchman, so
+we left him behind."</p>
+
+<p>"Was he hurt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hurt? Nary, he wasn't hurt. We ain't opinin' ter
+hurt anybody this trip so long as we hev our way. The
+Dutchman was snoring like a house afire. All we did
+was ter lift him out o' the keer an' lay him on the ground.
+We give him a smell o' somethin' on a han'kercher, jest
+ter make him snooze a leetle harder, that's all."</p>
+
+<p>"You drugged both of us, then?"</p>
+
+<p>"That was the easiest way ter keep ye from makin' er
+noise."</p>
+
+<p>"Where are you taking me?"</p>
+
+<p>"Ye'll know afore long."</p>
+
+<p>It was a rugged road they were traveling, and the
+Red Flier negotiated it with many a juggling bump.
+Mountainous rocks, half-screened by bushes and trees,
+glided by, and there were dusky gashes and seams, and
+now and then a splash of falling water.</p>
+
+<p>Rougher and rougher grew the trail, and the reckless
+driving of Brisco caused Matt's nerves to thrill with
+fears for the car.</p>
+
+<p>"You'll rack the car to pieces if you keep driving like
+that!" Matt called sharply.</p>
+
+<p>"What's it to you?" taunted Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"It means a whole lot to me. This car belongs to Mr.
+Tomlinson, and I've promised to take it safely to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>"Be hanged to you and Mr. Tomlinson!" snarled
+Brisco. "We'll fix this car before we're done with it.
+If you ever take it to Albuquerque, you'll have to scoop
+up the pieces and tote 'em there in a lumber-wagon.
+That's part of what we're going to do to play even with
+you and him!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt's heart skipped a beat, and a cold chill ran
+through his body. Could the villains really mean to
+destroy the Red Flier?</p>
+
+<p>"You'd better think well about what you do," warned
+Matt. "If you ruin this car, Mr. Tomlinson will never
+let up on you till he puts you where you belong."</p>
+
+<p>Spangler brought his hand around in a sweeping blow.
+Matt dodged the hand so that the stroke was only a glancing
+one.</p>
+
+<p>"Shut up!" he cried savagely. "Ye ain't here ter make
+any threats, 'r throw any bluffs."</p>
+
+<p>At that moment, Brisco brought the car to a stop, putting
+on the brakes so suddenly that the wheels locked and
+slid.</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon this'll be far enough," said Brisco, turning
+in his seat. "Make him get out, Spang."</p>
+
+<p>"Hear that?" cried Spang. "Open the door and git
+down."</p>
+
+<p>"What's this for?" returned Matt, making no move to
+obey.</p>
+
+<p>For answer, Spangler, with an oath, seized him by the
+collar and jerked him roughly out of the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was unable to make any resistance. As he stood
+in the road, the jagged uplifts by which he was surrounded
+seemed to swim about him in circles.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler got back in the car, as Matt staggered to a
+big boulder and leaned against it, and Brisco backed the
+car around until it was headed along the back course.</p>
+
+<p>"Wait!" cried Matt, as a thought of what all this
+might mean to him took shape in his brain.</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to wait&mdash;and for just about a minute,"
+returned Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"Are you going to steal that car?" asked Matt, "just
+as you stole Nugent's?"</p>
+
+<p>"You're too much of a meddler," snapped Brisco. "If
+you could go along and mind your own business, you'd
+be a whole lot better off. You had to tangle up with
+Tomlinson, back there at Ash Fork, and you hadn't any
+call to butt in. If it hadn't been for you, we'd 'a' won
+out on that game and been all to the good. I don't reckon
+we'd have bothered you at all, though, if you'd been
+content to carry out your orders and push on to Albuquerque.
+But you couldn't do that; oh, no. You're trying
+to be first aid to the weak and down-trodden wherever
+you run into them, so you had to mix up with that bunch
+of stranded actors.</p>
+
+<p>"When I drove the runabout into Fairview after gasoline
+and oil, I dropped Spangler off to lay for the tramps
+and get that tin box. You had to butt in, as per usual.
+I got away from Fairview by the skin of my teeth, picked
+up Spang at the place where he was waiting, and we
+went on to where our other pard had some horses. We
+side-tracked the runabout there, and slid back toward
+Fairview, intending to push through the timber&mdash;a move
+we couldn't make in the car. Then"&mdash;and here a swirling
+oath dropped from Brisco's lips&mdash;"we dropped into your
+little trap."</p>
+
+<p>"What trap?" demanded Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, no, you don't know a thing about that, do you?
+You weren't moseying out there just to give us a chance
+to lift that tin box, were you? And you hadn't the least
+notion it was empty, had you? If you hadn't turned that
+trick, my bantam, we wouldn't have turned this one.
+We're going to settle with you, all right. This is a part
+of the country that isn't traveled once a week, and you're
+seventy-five miles from Fairview. By the time you get
+back to town, we'll have got what was in that box, and
+have smashed the Red Flier into a heap of jack-straws.
+I know a nice little cliff alongside the road, and when
+we're through with the car we'll lash the wheel, open
+her up and let her go over the edge! I reckon that'll
+cook your goose with Tomlinson. He didn't calculate
+you were going to use his car transporting a lot of<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span>
+stranded actors, and mixing up in their affairs on the way
+to Albuquerque."</p>
+
+<p>For a space, Motor Matt's heart stood still.</p>
+
+<p>"You wouldn't dare do that!" he shouted.</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't I?" and a reckless, mocking laugh came
+with the words. "From what you know of me don't
+you think I would? Hope you'll have a nice, easy walk
+to Fairview, Motor Matt! There'll be some surprises in
+store for you when you get there. Good-by!"</p>
+
+<p>Spangler also shouted a jeering farewell.</p>
+
+<p>The car got in motion, the humming slowly decreased,
+and the glow of the tail light winked suddenly into darkness.</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt had been abandoned.</p>
+
+<p>But, worse than that, the two scoundrels who had spirited
+him away from Fairview were bent on the wanton
+destruction of Mr. Tomlinson's car!</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IX" id="CHAPTER_IX">CHAPTER IX.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.</p>
+
+
+<p>Motor Matt came nearer being utterly cast down, at
+that moment, than ever before in his life. Weak and sick
+as he was, perhaps his discouragement was not to be
+wondered at. Sinking down at the foot of the boulder
+against which he had been leaning, he began finding fault
+with himself.</p>
+
+<p>It was all right to pick up the stranded actors and
+carry them on to Fairview. That was merely a kindness
+for which no one could blame him. But to jump into
+their troubles, at a time when he was engaged in work
+for Mr. Tomlinson and was not, strictly speaking, his
+own boss, that gave the affair another look. Now, because
+of his desire to help Legree, Eliza, and the rest,
+there he was, hung up in the hills seventy-five miles from
+Fairview, with the Red Flier in Brisco's hands and
+pointed for the scrap-heap.</p>
+
+<p>Mr. Tomlinson would be perfectly justified in laying
+the destruction of the car to Matt's own disregard of
+orders. And it was Mr. Tomlinson who had selected
+Matt to take the Red Flier to Albuquerque because he
+was satisfied the car would receive better care in his
+hands than in any other!</p>
+
+<p>There was enough in these reflections to make Motor
+Matt dissatisfied with himself. But he was not, and never
+had been, a "quitter." And the one cry of his soul had
+always been for Fate to keep him from joining the ranks
+of the "quitters."</p>
+
+<p>As a matter of fact, Motor Matt was a self-reliant
+American boy, and there was never the least danger of
+his going over to the useless crowd of mistakes and failures.
+Naturally, he might make a misplay now and then&mdash;running
+behind just enough to keep him "gingered
+up" for ultimate success in the big things.</p>
+
+<p>While he crouched at the foot of the boulder, the cool
+air clearing his brain and the sick feeling leaving him, he
+fell to planning for turning the tables against his enemies.</p>
+
+<p>What was there he could do, afoot and seventy-five
+miles from town?</p>
+
+<p>At first, the prospect seemed utterly hopeless; but Matt
+knew that a brave heart and a firm will had time and
+again snatched victory from seeming defeat.</p>
+
+<p>He would start for Fairview. Possibly, although the
+road was not much traveled, he might have the good luck
+to encounter some freighter who would give him a lift.</p>
+
+<p>Without losing a moment longer, he got up and started
+off in the direction taken by Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>He wondered, as he swung along, what Carl would
+think when he came to himself and found the car missing&mdash;and
+Matt gone with it. And what would Legree
+think? And Eliza?</p>
+
+<p>But what those in Fairview might think was a minor
+consideration. The great point was the recovery of the
+Red Flier before the car's captors could wreck the machine.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was the only one of the two scoundrels who
+could run a car, and even Brisco's knowledge was superficial.
+An hour's instruction, from the driver of Nugent's
+runabout, was all Brisco had had.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco now had two stolen cars and he could run only
+one of them&mdash;unless, indeed, the third man he had picked
+up knew something about motors.</p>
+
+<p>Matt, perhaps, had walked a mile through the gloomy
+hills, when he heard a noise as of some one in the road
+ahead. He halted, half-fearing that Brisco and Spangler
+were coming back.</p>
+
+<p>But that could not be, he reasoned. If they had wanted
+to come back, they would have used the car&mdash;and the
+noise Matt heard was of footsteps.</p>
+
+<p>He listened, straining his ears and eyes. Only one
+man was coming. He could not see, but hearing alone
+told him there was but one.</p>
+
+<p>Backing into the deep shadow of a nest of boulders, he
+continued to wait.</p>
+
+<p>The man, whoever he was, was coming hurriedly.
+Sometimes he ran, and occasionally he stumbled. As he
+drew closer, Matt saw that he was a small man, and as he
+came closer still the figure resolved itself into that of a
+mere boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello!" called Matt, stepping out into the road again.</p>
+
+<p>The figure gave a startled jump.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" it cried. "Say, who's dat?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt's pulses quickened, and a glow of hope ran
+through him.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello, kid!" he shouted. "What're you doing here?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm a jay if it ain't Motor Matt!" came delightedly
+from the boy as he dashed forward. "How's dis f'r a
+come-off? Say, it sure knocks de wind out o' me!
+Where'd yous come from, yerself? Was yous on dat
+automobile wid Brisco an' Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>By then the boy was close enough to grab Matt's hand
+and give it a shake.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt; "I was on the car with them
+and they let me out and turned back."</p>
+
+<p>"How'd de mutts come t' git yous on de mat, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt explained how he had been spirited away.</p>
+
+<p>"Well, on de level," breathed the boy, "dat's de rummest
+move I ever connected wit'. Raw? Oh, sister!"</p>
+
+<p>"Now tell me something about yourself," said Matt.
+"Why did you get into that car? And where have you
+been since you left Fairview?"</p>
+
+<p>"Easy, cull! T'ings is bein' pulled off in such a bunch
+it's hard t' straighten dem out. Le's do de ham-restin'
+act, right here on dis nice bunch o' rocks, while we chin
+a little."</p>
+
+<p>They sat down, side by side.</p>
+
+<p>"You must have had some reason, Eva, for hiking out
+with Brisco like you did, and&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Cut out de 'Eva.' Fergit de styge name. I was on'y
+dat back o' de tin lamps, an' no more of 'em fer mine.
+Call me Josh. Not dat I'm a josher, understan', 'cause I
+ain't. An' here's somet'in' else I'm battin' up t' yous:
+Dere's a few t'inks rattlin' around in me block dat I can't
+let yous in on. Not bekase I ain't willin' meself, but
+bekase it ain't on de program. See?</p>
+
+<p>"First off, Matt, I crowded into dat car becase de idee
+looked good t' me. Dat's all yous is t' know about dat
+f'r now. I rode t' w'ere Brisco stopped de car an' took
+on Spang&mdash;about de place w'ere dad an' yous had de
+set-to on account o' dat box.</p>
+
+<p>"Den we moved on ag'in, me still under de coat an'
+wonderin' how long I could keep shy o' de lamps o' dem
+two dubs. You can bet yer lid, Matt, I didn't breathe
+on'y when necessary. I was de sly boy, all right. W'en
+we pulled up ag'in, we was clost t' t'ree horses, all saddled
+an' bridled, an' wit' a beer-faced guy on one o'
+dem.</p>
+
+<p>"De runabout was backed into de brush, an' Brisco an'
+Spang got onto two o' de horses an' all t'ree o' dat
+strong-arm bunch pulled deir freight back down de road.
+It was right den I wished dat I knowed how t' work
+dem cranks an' t'ings so'st I could make dat car go
+w'ere I wanted. But I didn't know de tail lamp from de
+carburetter, so I jess had t' lay low an' wait.</p>
+
+<p>"W'en dem jays got back, dere was yer Uncle John
+right under de coat, same as usual, an' still holdin' his
+breat'. If one o' de mugs lifted de coat, I was plannin'
+to work me pins an' head right into de weeds, like anot'er
+bear was on me trail.</p>
+
+<p>"But dey didn't look under de coat, none of dem. Dey
+was too mad. Chee! but dey was r'iled! Blatter, blatter,
+blatter, dey went, swearin' like a plumber wot's burned
+hisself wit' his torch. Say, de air was blue an smelt like
+de odder place. If dey'd piped me off den, dey'd have
+took me skelp, all right.</p>
+
+<p>"From de spiel dey was givin' each odder, I hooked
+onto de infermation dat dey'd got de box an' dat dere
+wasn't not'in' in it&mdash;w'ich I knowed all de time. Dey
+was crowdin' all deir swear-words onto Motor Matt.
+Yous had fooled dem, dey said, an' dey was goin' t' saw
+off even if it took a leg.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco give de mug on de horse his orders to go t'
+some place w'ere Brisco an' Spang would go foist an'
+wait. Wid dat we started up ag'in&mdash;me on de job an'
+still sayin' me prayers back'ards, for'ards, an' sideways.
+I couldn't see where we went, but we was goin' f'r a
+hunderd years, seemed like, I was dat worked up t'inkin'
+I might git nabbed. Den we stopped, backed t'roo some
+brush, an' stopped ag'in, dat time t' stay.</p>
+
+<p>"I had drawn into me shell, listenin' w'ile Brisco an'
+Spang was rammin' around de place w'ere we was. After
+a w'ile, deir bazoos seemed t' move off, an' I stuck out
+me coco an' piped de layout.</p>
+
+<p>"We was in a well. Anyways dat's how it looked. De
+well was about fifteen feet acrost, steep rocks all around
+an' on'y one place w'ere dere was a break. De break was
+choked up wit' brush, an' I'm wise right off dat we'd
+backed t'roo it w'en we come into de well.</p>
+
+<p>"I see anot'er nice little clump of brush off t' de right,
+an' it looked so invitin' dat I slipped out from under de
+coat an' ducked f'r it.</p>
+
+<p>"I was in dat clump w'en de odder bloke, who dey
+called Klegg, blowed in t'roo de break wid de hosses; an'
+I was still dere w'en night come down, an' de t'ree of
+dem lighted up de runabout an' went away w'id it.</p>
+
+<p>"Couldn't git in de back seat den, kase Klegg was dere,
+so dey bumped off into de night an' left me in de well
+wit' de t'ree horses.</p>
+
+<p>"I kinked me thinker all up t'ryin' t' guess whedder
+I'd better stay right dere or borry one o' dem horses an'
+ride some place. Well, I didn't ride, not knowin' any
+good place t' ride to. Couldn't even make a guess which
+way de town was.</p>
+
+<p>"I went out t'roo de brush an' moseyed around in de
+dark till <i>chugetty-chug!</i> along come dat runabout ag'in
+an' backed t'roo de brush into de well. But dere was
+on'y one man in it, an' it was Klegg. W'ere was Brisco
+an' Spang? Dat was wot fretted me. W'ile I was frettin',
+along comes dat red tourin'-car. I made out Brisco
+in front, an' Spang in de rear&mdash;an' dere was some odder
+mug in de rear wot I couldn't get next to. De tourin'-car
+went on past de well.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, but I was rattled! Wot was happenin', I says t'
+meself, an' w'y was it happenin'? De tourin'-car come
+back ag'in an' in it was Brisco an' Spang, but de odder
+guy had been left somew'ere. De tourin'-car was backed
+into de well, w'ere de runabout had gone, an' I started dis
+way t' see wot I could find. Say, Matt, I was knocked
+stiff w'en I found yous! Great, ain't it, how luck takes
+a shoot, once in a w'ile? If dat&mdash;&mdash; Wot's de matter
+w'id yous? W'ere yous goin'?"</p>
+
+<p>Matt had jumped up, grabbed Josh by the arm and was
+pulling him down the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Come on!" said he. "We haven't got any time to
+lose!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_X" id="CHAPTER_X">CHAPTER X.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A DARING PLAN.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Say," panted Josh, as he and Matt traveled rapidly
+along the road, "put me wise to dis move, can't yous?
+Wot's in yer block, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Do you know what Brisco intends to do with the Red
+Flier?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"He's layin' in a supply o' benzine-buggies t' start a
+garage, 'r somet'ing, ain't he?"</p>
+
+<p>"He ran off with that touring-car just to play even
+with me, Josh. He says I've meddled with his affairs
+long enough, and that he's going to run the Red Flier
+over a cliff just to pay me back for using the car to help
+you people."</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't dat frost yous?" muttered Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"And he said I was seventy-five miles from Fairview,"
+went on Matt, "and that by the time I had walked to the
+town he would have finished his business there."</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco has got anodder guess comin'. He ain't so
+warm. Dad can show him a t'ing 'r two, an' don't yous
+fergit dat. Chee! Dat guy's de limit. But wot's yer
+game, cull?"</p>
+
+<p>"You say that both cars are in that 'well,' as you call
+it?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's w'ere dey was w'en I started for here."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I'm going to get the Red Flier away from that
+outfit!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt spoke as confidently as though he had merely<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span>
+remarked that he was going over to the hotel after his
+dinner.</p>
+
+<p>"Say, cull," returned the boy, "I like yer nerve, all
+right, an' I marks yous up f'r de entry, but how yous
+goin' t' git under de wire? Dere's t'ree o' dem guys, an'
+dey've got a lot o' artillery. How we goin' t' git away
+wit' de car if dey don't want us to?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," replied Matt, "but we've got to do
+it somehow."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a reg'lar lollypaloozer, Motor Matt, an' I'd
+back yous t' win any ole day, but dis looks like too big
+a load. But yous can count on me. Dad'll tell yous dat
+I'm big f'r me age an' no mutt in a getaway, so jest set
+yer pace an' I'll push on de reins."</p>
+
+<p>"How far is it to the place where the automobiles were
+left?"</p>
+
+<p>"We're close t' dere now. I'm wonderin' w'y Brisco
+dropped yous widin a short walk o' de hang-out&mdash;dat is,
+if he was fixin' t' stay at de place?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know," answered Matt; "but that's what he
+did and it's enough for me. I've got to recover that car,
+Josh. If I don't, and if anything happens to it, I'd look
+nice making my report to Tomlinson, wouldn't I?"</p>
+
+<p>"If yous hadn't picked up dat bunch o' tramps on de
+road yous wouldn't have got into dis fix."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm not sorry I helped you out, Josh."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure not. Yous ain't dat kind, Motor Matt. All de
+same, yous would have been peggin' along to'rds Albuquerque,
+nice as yous please, if it hadn't been for dat
+crowd o' Uncle Tommers. Dere'll be doin's in Fairview
+in de mornin', w'en dad finds out yous ain't w'ere yous
+ought t' be."</p>
+
+<p>"What can your father do?"</p>
+
+<p>"He can do a lot w'en he gits started. Don't yous
+never t'ink he's a slow one, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>Matt knew that Legree could keep a cool head in a
+pinch, but, for all that, he didn't see how he could do
+anything when he didn't have money enough even to
+pay his board-bill.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Tomlinson has a lot of confidence in me," said
+Matt; "and, if that car is wrecked, I'll have&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Sh-h-h!" whispered Josh, coming to a wary halt and
+laying a hand on Matt's arm. "Look ahead, dere. See
+dat black splotch on de side o' de hill by de road?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt, straining his eyes in the direction
+indicated.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's de brush dat hides de openin'. Are we bot'
+goin' t' blow in dere an' try t' make a run wit' de red
+car?"</p>
+
+<p>"We can't do the trick in such a hurricane way as that.
+We've got to lay some other plan. I'll go in and look the
+ground over, Josh, and maybe I can get hold of an idea."</p>
+
+<p>"I'll try t' git holt o' one, too, w'ile I'm waitin' fer
+yous. Don't make much noise w'ile yous is in de bushes,
+Matt, or dem terriers'll pepper yous."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going to sneak into the place as quietly as I can.
+I don't think they'll hear me."</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the boy a little way from the dark patch of
+verdure clinging to the face of the hill, Matt went on
+carefully. As he approached closer to the vague blot
+it gradually took form under his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>The wall of the hill seemed to be cracked through from
+crest to base and wrenched apart until it formed a narrow
+opening. Up both sides of the opening grew the
+bushes, their branches spreading out and forming a thick
+screen.</p>
+
+<p>On account of the darkness, Matt could not make a
+very close examination of the queer fissure, but he saw
+enough to convince him that Nature had contrived a
+secure retreat for Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>The bottom of the opening, Matt judged, was all of
+ten feet in width. Dropping down on his hands and
+knees, he began crawling through the middle of the break,
+parting the bush branches from in front of him as he
+advanced.</p>
+
+<p>So wary was he that he made very little noise.</p>
+
+<p>He had gone perhaps a dozen feet through the brushy
+tangle, when a glow of light struck on his eyes. This
+acted as a sort of beacon, and served to guide him the
+rest of the way. A dozen feet more brought him to the
+opposite side of the opening and to the edge of the
+bushes.</p>
+
+<p>Crouching silently on the ground he proceeded to survey
+the peculiar niche in front of him.</p>
+
+<p>Josh's description, likening the place to a "well," was
+quite appropriate. The niche was circular in form and
+its walls arose steeply to a height of at least fifty feet.
+In the shadow of the walls the place was very dark, but
+the glowing lamps of an automobile enabled Matt to see
+enough to send a chill of disappointment through him.</p>
+
+<p>There was only one automobile in the niche!</p>
+
+<p>And that one was the runabout!</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler must have emerged and gone off
+somewhere with the Red Flier.</p>
+
+<p>Had they taken it away to destroy it?</p>
+
+<p>The three horses were not far from the runabout. They
+were secured to some bushes, and could be heard pawing
+and stamping.</p>
+
+<p>Matt could also hear something else, and that was the
+snoring of a man in deep sleep.</p>
+
+<p>After a moment's hesitation he continued to creep onward,
+redoubling his care and vigilance.</p>
+
+<p>He was upon the man before he was fairly aware of
+it, one of his groping hands coming in contact with an
+outstretched foot.</p>
+
+<p>The snoring ceased with an explosive grunt and Matt
+drew back breathlessly.</p>
+
+<p>The man did not rouse up. Shifting his position
+slightly he continued to snore.</p>
+
+<p>Making a détour, Matt got around the man&mdash;whom he
+knew was not Brisco or Spangler, and consequently must
+be Klegg&mdash;and reached the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Pausing there, the young motorist let his mind circle
+about this new phase of the situation.</p>
+
+<p>If he couldn't get the Red Flier, why not take the runabout?
+That would afford himself and Josh a quick
+means for making the return trip to Fairview. Besides,
+no matter what happened to the Red Flier, there was
+something to be gained in getting the runabout away
+from the thieves.</p>
+
+<p>Close to the car was a heap of horse-trappings. Matt
+felt about among the saddles, bridles and blankets until
+he had found two coiled riatas.</p>
+
+<p>Could he, by quick work, get one of the ropes around
+Klegg's hands before he was thoroughly awake and able
+to struggle? Josh would have been of use in such an
+attempt, and Matt decided that he could not make it successfully
+unless he did have the other to help. He would
+go back after Josh, he decided; but first he would look
+over the runabout and make sure it was ready for the
+road.</p>
+
+<p>Laying the ropes in the front of the car, he arose to<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span>
+his feet, softly removed the tail lamp from its bracket,
+and flashed it into the rumble.</p>
+
+<p>The coat, used so cleverly by the boy, was still there,
+crumpled on the floor as though by a man's feet. Passing
+on to the forward part of the car, the pencil of light
+jumped from point to point, Matt's eyes following
+critically.</p>
+
+<p>Everything seemed to be shipshape and in good order.</p>
+
+<p>A small object on one of the front seats caught the
+youth's attention. It was pushed well back into the angle
+where the back joined the seat, and Matt picked it up
+and held it in the glow of light.</p>
+
+<p>It was a small bottle, and the label bore the written
+word, "Chloroform."</p>
+
+<p>Matt stifled an exclamation. Undoubtedly it had been
+some of that bottle's contents which had helped Brisco
+and Spangler get the better of him, in Fairview, and run
+off with the touring-car.</p>
+
+<p>Then a startling expedient darted through Matt's mind.
+Turn about was fair play. With the aid of the drug he
+could clear a passage for the runabout, and without resort
+to any violence.</p>
+
+<p>Setting the lamp down on the front seat, Matt drew the
+cork of the bottle, took a handkerchief from his pocket
+and proceeded to wet it with the chloroform. Then, re-corking
+the bottle and laying it aside, he went down on
+his hands and knees and started toward Klegg.</p>
+
+<p>A lightening of the sky over the steep walls that
+hemmed in the niche told of coming day.</p>
+
+<p>The darkness would be a help to Matt and Josh in getting
+to the road and away, and if advantage was to be
+taken of night Matt knew he would have to hurry.</p>
+
+<p>But he was well equipped to carry out his plans now,
+and lost no time in getting about them.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XI" id="CHAPTER_XI">CHAPTER XI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">ON THE ROAD.</p>
+
+
+<p>Kneeling beside Klegg, Matt leaned over and held the
+saturated handkerchief close to his face. The fumes were
+strong, and seemed to strangle him. With a gurgling
+grunt he shifted his position.</p>
+
+<p>Matt moved the handkerchief and again held it over
+his face. This time Klegg sputtered a little, but did not
+change his position. Evidently the narcotic was beginning
+to have its effect. After a moment, Matt allowed
+the handkerchief to drop on Klegg's face. He left it
+there for two or three minutes and then threw it aside.
+Klegg was breathing heavily and seemed to be completely
+under the influence of the drug.</p>
+
+<p>Catching hold of the blanket on which the man was
+lying, Matt began to pull it toward the wall of the niche.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" whispered a voice close to Matt's side. "Wot
+kind of a smell is dat, cull? Wot yous done to Klegg?"</p>
+
+<p>"I thought you were going to wait outside, Josh?" answered
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot I t'ought, but yous was so long in comin'
+dat I took de notion t' come in an' look yous up. Wot's
+de play?"</p>
+
+<p>"I found a bottle of chloroform in the runabout, and
+it must have been out of that same bottle that Brisco took
+the stuff that put me to sleep. Thought I'd see how it
+worked on Klegg."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a jim dandy, Matt!" laughed Josh delightedly.
+"But w'ere's Brisco an' Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>"They're not here, and neither is the touring-car."</p>
+
+<p>"Tough luck! Yous figgerin' on makin' a getaway
+wit' de runabout?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes. We might use that for a quick run to Fairview
+and get the sheriff to hunt up Brisco and Spangler. I'll
+go with the sheriff and use the runabout. It's a faster
+car than the Flier, and we may be able to catch the two
+thieves before they wreck Mr. Tomlinson's car."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous has got a head on yous, Matt, an' no mistake,"
+said the boy admiringly. "An' yous pulled all dis off
+yerself! Well, say, if yous ain't a winner dis heat yous
+ought t' be. Dat's right&mdash;on de level an' no stringin'.
+Dad would like t' have a guy like yous t' work wit' all
+de time. An' so would Little Eva, de child wonder. But
+it's gittin' daylight, Matt, an' if we're goin' t' pull our
+freight, let's be at it."</p>
+
+<p>It was already light enough so that they could see
+without the lamps. These were extinguished, and then
+Matt put the tail lamp back in its place, started the engine
+and got into the driver's seat.</p>
+
+<p>On the low gear they moved slowly across the bottom
+of the niche.</p>
+
+<p>Josh was still laughing softly to himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, cull, but I'd like t' be around w'en Brisco an'
+Spang find dat Klegg feller!" he chuckled. "Dat would
+be as good as a circus. Dis is almost too good t' be
+true, ain't it?"</p>
+
+<p>"It will be, Josh," replied Matt, "if I can only get back
+the Red Flier."</p>
+
+<p>"Dem coves'll be careful o' dat odder machine when
+dey find dis one has been took away from dem."</p>
+
+<p>"I know that&mdash;providing they find out the runabout is
+gone before they destroy the Flier."</p>
+
+<p>Setting the runabout at the bushes, Matt drove through
+the undergrowth, Josh keeping the branches out of his
+face while he attended to the steering.</p>
+
+<p>"On de road ag'in!" jubilated the boy, as they emerged
+from the mouth of the opening and turned to the left.</p>
+
+<p>"All I wish is," answered Matt, "that I knew we were
+going right."</p>
+
+<p>"Dere's on'y two ways t' go, cull. One's up to'rds
+w'ere you was dropped by Brisco an' Spang, an' t'odder's
+de way we're headin'. It's a cinch we're hittin' it off
+about proper. W'ere d' youse t'ink dem odder mutts
+went wid de tourin'-car?"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm afraid they took it off to carry out their threat
+and make junk of it."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope yous ain't got it right. If dey did dat, it 'u'd
+put yous in a bad hole. Yous couldn't make Tomlinson
+take dis car f'r de odder, could yous?"</p>
+
+<p>"Hardly. This car belongs to Nugent, in Ash Fork."</p>
+
+<p>Something was rattling about the car, and it got onto
+Matt's nerves. Halting for a moment, he located the difficulty.
+The screw-cap of the gasoline-tank was loose.
+Taking a wrench out of the tool-box he tightened the
+cap, then dropped the wrench in the rumble and returned
+to his seat.</p>
+
+<p>"Yous don't like t' hear anyt'ing rattle, hey?" queried
+Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"Makes me nervous," laughed Matt. "Now hold onto
+your teeth, Josh. I'm going to let her out!"</p>
+
+<p>"De quicker we kin go de better. Let's see how fast
+de ole gal kin travel."</p>
+
+<p>They whirled around a turn in the narrow valley. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>
+unexpected was lying in wait for them, for they came
+upon Spangler, on foot and walking toward the niche.</p>
+
+<p>Josh gave a startled yell. Spangler, dumfounded at
+sight of the runabout, charging toward him with Motor
+Matt and the boy in front, stood as though rooted to the
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>"Down, Josh!" cried Matt, advancing the spark; "get
+down behind the dashboard!"</p>
+
+<p>As Matt spoke he sounded the horn. Spangler climbed
+out of the way with more haste than grace, and the runabout
+dashed past him.</p>
+
+<p>"Yi-yip-ee!" tuned up the boy, waving his hand mockingly.
+"D'radder do dat dan git run down, hey?"</p>
+
+<p>"Drop!" yelled Matt, and in a tone that made Josh
+crumple down between the seat and the dash.</p>
+
+<p>Bang!</p>
+
+<p>Matt had expected a bullet, and he was not disappointed.
+But it went wide.</p>
+
+<p>Bang!</p>
+
+<p>The next one came closer, but still left a safe margin.</p>
+
+<p>There was no more shooting. Wondering at it, Josh
+rose up and looked backward.</p>
+
+<p>"Now wot d'youse t'ink o' dat!" he cried. "Wot's dat
+mug doin' dat for?"</p>
+
+<p>"What's he doing?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"W'y he's hustlin' a big stone into de middle o' de
+road. See 'im work! Chee! Wot's de meanin' o' dat?"</p>
+
+<p>The car whipped around another turn, wiping Spangler
+and his strange activities out of sight. Josh dropped
+down on the seat.</p>
+
+<p>"That's got a bad look," said Matt, coaxing the runabout
+to a still faster gait. "We've got to get out of this
+as quick as we can."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee!" cried the boy, holding to the seat with both
+hands, "we're goin' fast enough. Gid-ap! Wow! wot
+a spurt! Don't let anyt'ing slip a cog, cull. If de ole
+benzine-buggy hit a rock an' stopped, I'd go right on f'r
+a couple o' miles afore I landed. Oh, wot a clip! We've
+got de Cannonball Limited licked t' a frazzle!"</p>
+
+<p>Then they took another turn, the rear wheels skidding
+and Matt deftly catching the motor up and sending the
+car onward. The runabout did not follow the curve of
+the road, but made an angling turn&mdash;a hair-raising stunt
+copied after Oldfield, the daredevil racer.</p>
+
+<p>Josh gave a yell, and came within a hair of being
+heaved over Matt and into the road.</p>
+
+<p>Then, with a muttered exclamation, Matt cut off the
+power, applied the brakes and quickly reversed, backing
+for the side of the road.</p>
+
+<p>It all happened so quick that it took the boy's breath.</p>
+
+<p>"Wot's dat fer?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was whirling the wheel and starting the car on
+the back track.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco is heading us off," he answered&mdash;"Brisco in
+the Red Flier!"</p>
+
+<p>Josh turned to stare along the road.</p>
+
+<p>Matt was right.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco, still a long distance off, was whooping it up in
+their direction.</p>
+
+<p>"Wouldn't dat crimp yous?" gasped the boy, awed at
+the gathering perils. "Dey've got us f'r fair, Matt! W'y
+didn't yous keep on an' give Brisco de go-by?"</p>
+
+<p>"There wasn't room enough in the road to pass!" flung
+back Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's w'y Spang was rollin' dem stones in de road!
+He knew dat Brisco was comin', and dat he'd git us between
+him an' de rock-pile. Chee! We're It, dis time, an'
+no mistake."</p>
+
+<p>Matt, his face white and set and his gray eyes snapping,
+was leaning over the steering-wheel, watching every
+foot of road as they swept over it.</p>
+
+<p>"We've got to pass that rock-pile before it gets too
+big!" said he through his teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"Den w'ere'll we go?"</p>
+
+<p>"Anywhere, just so we keep away from Brisco. This
+car is a faster one than the Red Flier. We can show
+him our heels at any stage of the game."</p>
+
+<p>They fairly flew, and rocks rushed past them as though
+hurled by some giant hand.</p>
+
+<p>"There'll be some danger when we get to the place
+where Spangler is waiting, Josh," said Matt. "I'll slow
+down and you can get out, if you want to."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot d'youse take me fer?" cried the boy. "I'm wid
+yous, Matt, win 'r lose. See? Make yer ole play. If
+Uncle Josh ain't wit' yous at de finish, den call him a
+quitter an' mark him off'n yer callin'-list."</p>
+
+<p>Hurling onward, and skidding around the turns, Matt
+kept straining his eyes constantly ahead.</p>
+
+<p>Their source of peril was now wrapped up in Spangler.
+If his pile of boulders did not block the road completely&mdash;if
+there was a chance for the runabout to get past the
+stones, or over them, there was still a fighting chance for
+escape.</p>
+
+<p>Half a minute later, as the car reached out for the
+place where Spangler had been at work, Matt's heart
+went down into his boots.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler was nowhere in sight, but he had worked to
+good purpose.</p>
+
+<p>A few big boulders were cunningly placed so as to
+make the road impassable. With a despairing cry, Matt
+brought the runabout to a quick stop.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XII" id="CHAPTER_XII">CHAPTER XII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">A CLOSE CALL.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Pile out, Josh, and get busy with those rocks!" yelled
+Matt.</p>
+
+<p>It was a forlorn hope, for the pounding of the Red
+Flier could be heard around the turn, coming up hand
+over fist. Long before the way could be cleared, Brisco
+would be upon them.</p>
+
+<p>And what had become of Spangler. Where had he
+gone? And <i>why</i> had he gone?</p>
+
+<p>That was a conundrum, and Matt had no time to give
+to conundrums just then.</p>
+
+<p>Josh, eager to do all he could, was tugging and straining
+at the rocks.</p>
+
+<p>"It won't do, Josh!" shouted Matt. "Run for those
+boulders at the side of the road and wait for me."</p>
+
+<p>To think quickly in an emergency was Motor Matt's
+long suit. Many a time his cool head had helped him
+out of a bad difficulty.</p>
+
+<p>While he was shouting to the boy he was running back
+to the car. Snatching the wrench from where he had
+dropped it in the rumble, Matt went to work with lightninglike
+energy on the cap of the gasoline-reservoir.</p>
+
+<p>In record time he had the cap off. Bending down he
+scooped up a handful of sand from the road and dumped
+the most of it into the reservoir, then, as quickly as he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span>
+had removed the cap, he replaced it, flung the wrench into
+the car and jumped for the boulders.</p>
+
+<p>Hardly was he back of the big stones that clustered
+along that edge of the valley, when the Red Flier shoved
+her nose through a cloud of dust and came scorching
+onward.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco must have been astounded to see the runabout,
+deserted and at a halt in the road. The way, of course,
+was blocked for him as well as for the runabout, and he
+halted the Red Flier at a good distance from the other
+machine, leaped out and came running to the other car.</p>
+
+<p>The stones in the road probably gave him a pretty
+good idea of what had happened, for he immediately began
+looking around him as though expecting to see some
+one&mdash;possibly Matt and Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"Spang!" he whooped. "Where are you, Spang?"</p>
+
+<p>"Here!" answered Spangler, appearing suddenly
+around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>"What you been doing?" demanded Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"The dickens is ter pay, an' no mistake!" stormed
+Spang. "That young cub of a Motor Matt found out
+whar we'd cached the runabout, an' blamed if he didn't
+go in an' snake it right out from under Klegg's&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Thunder!" broke in Brisco. "Don't you reckon I <i>saw</i>
+the whelp? He was bearing down on me like a hurricane,
+slamming the runabout through for all she was
+worth."</p>
+
+<p>"He went past here gally-whoopin'," answered Spang,
+"while I was makin' fer that hole in the hill. Come
+mighty nigh runnin' me down at that. I got out o' the
+way, faced around an' sent a couple o' bullets arter him,
+but the brat's too lucky ter stop any lead&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Depends on who throws the lead," snarled Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"I kin throw it with ary man that walks! But I didn't
+take time ter throw much. I calculated the runabout
+would come up ferninst you, Hank, afore it got out o'
+the valley, an' that King would have ter turn around an'
+chase back this way. So what does I do but begin pilin'
+stones whar they'd do the most good. Jest got enough
+down ter do the biz, an' went ter see what had happened
+ter Klegg. Great jumpin' sand-hills! What d'ye think
+that infernal kid done ter him?"</p>
+
+<p>"What?" fumed Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"Doped him, by thunder! Doped him out er the same
+bottle we used last night! Klegg's up thar in the notch,
+dead ter the world!"</p>
+
+<p>"What did you leave the hang-out for?" roared Brisco
+angrily. "Didn't I tell you, when I left, to stay there
+with Klegg? If you'd done as I said, this wouldn't have
+happened."</p>
+
+<p>"I come out ter see if that kid was moseyin' down the
+valley," was the sullen rejoinder from Spang. "Ye said
+I was ter watch out an' make sure he didn't blunder outer
+the notch."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, you made sure, didn't you?" taunted Brisco.
+"Where'd Legree's kid spring from? How'd he come to
+be along with King?"</p>
+
+<p>"How'd I know? Think I'm a mind-reader?"</p>
+
+<p>"Deuced funny thing! He was with King, and I'd
+like to know where he came from, and how he got here.
+There's a nigger in the fence, I'll bet. Where'd those
+boys go?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't know that, nuther."</p>
+
+<p>"Did they pass you and go up the valley?"</p>
+
+<p>"Nary, they didn't!"</p>
+
+<p>"Then they must be hiding around here somewhere!
+Let's get 'em. If I lay hands on Motor Matt again he
+won't get off so easy."</p>
+
+<p>There was only one place in that vicinity where any
+one could hide, and that was among the scattered rocks
+not far from where the runabout was standing.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler, making a hasty survey of the surroundings,
+at once hit upon the boulders as the place
+for them to look.</p>
+
+<p>"They're over thar," cried Spangler, "an' I'll bet money
+on it."</p>
+
+<p>As he spoke, he started at a run for the side of the
+valley, pulling a revolver as he went.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't do any shooting," called Brisco, starting after
+Spangler, "just grab 'em and hold 'em."</p>
+
+<p>"We'll tie King in that thar automobile when we run it
+over the cliff!" yelped Brisco viciously. "We'll l'arn him
+ter play his tricks on <i>us</i>!"</p>
+
+<p>Matt and Josh had heard all this conversation. They
+were not standing still, either, but were busily finding
+some place where they could stow themselves away.</p>
+
+<p>A fight with the two armed men was to be avoided, if
+possible. Matt knew that he and Josh would stand little
+chance in such a one-sided combat; and Matt had formed
+plans which he was eager to be carrying out.</p>
+
+<p>A little way up the steep hillside there was a ledge,
+with a recess back of it.</p>
+
+<p>Matt's quick eye picked out the spot, and he climbed
+briskly, hauling Josh along after him. The boulders
+shielded them from view while they were getting to the
+ledge, and Matt pushed Josh into the recess, and then
+rolled into it himself. From this position Matt was able
+to peer over the ledge and keep track of the movements of
+Brisco and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Are they comin' dis way, cull?" whispered the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Yes," answered Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Got deir guns ready, eh?"</p>
+
+<p>"Of course, Josh. Scoundrels like Brisco and Spangler
+always draw and shoot if you give 'em half a chance."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're hot at de two of us, an' dey'll sure lay out ter
+do us up."</p>
+
+<p>"We'll have to fight, if they force it on us."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot kin we do?"</p>
+
+<p>"There's a stone on the ledge. If they come too close
+I'll push it down on them."</p>
+
+<p>"Better give dat dere stone a push right off, bekase&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Hist!" cautioned Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Silence fell between the boys. Matt drew in his head,
+fearing he would be seen. He listened intently, however,
+and could tell by the scrambling feet below just how near
+Brisco and Spangler were coming. When they came too
+close, Matt was intending to push the stone down on them.</p>
+
+<p>"Beats the deuce where those whelps went to!" grumbled
+the voice of Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>"They must be here. Thar wasn't any place else they
+could go. I wasn't gone from the road more'n five minits,
+Hank."</p>
+
+<p>"They wouldn't have had time to get past you?"</p>
+
+<p>"Nary, they wouldn't. They're here, I tell ye; they
+must be."</p>
+
+<p>"The whole side-hill is under our eyes. If you can
+see the cubs you can do better than I can."</p>
+
+<p>"Seems like there was a shelf up thar a ways. Mebby
+they're on the shelf?"</p>
+
+<p>"Gammon! That shelf isn't wide enough for a chipmunk
+to sit on."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Anyways, I'm goin' up an' take a look."</p>
+
+<p>Matt got ready to push out and roll the stone off the
+shelf. Before he could do that, however, a shout from
+Brisco halted him.</p>
+
+<p>"Say, you! There were three horses in the hang-out
+with Klegg!"</p>
+
+<p>"What o' that?" answered Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, those boys have gone there and are getting the
+horses."</p>
+
+<p>"How could they go thar, Hank? They didn't pass
+me."</p>
+
+<p>"They might have got there when you didn't see them.
+While we're wasting time here, I'll bet something handsome
+they're getting out those horses. Come on! Don't
+lose another second fooling around among those rocks!"</p>
+
+<p>"Waal, I don't reckon&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Come on, I say!" roared Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>The two men were heard scrambling down the slope,
+getting farther and farther away.</p>
+
+<p>Back in the little recess Matt could hear the boy chuckling
+and talking to himself.</p>
+
+<p>"Come on, Josh!" whispered Matt, starting up. "Be
+careful, though! This is our day for luck, all right."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, I guess!" answered the boy, rolling over the
+ledge. "Chee, but dey're a pair o' dough-heads. Good
+t'ing f'r us, too. What next, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"We'll get to the Red Flier, turn it the other way
+along the trail, and ride back to Fairview."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, Lucy!" giggled Josh. "Fer a kid dat ain't had
+not'in' t' eat since yesterday mornin' I'm feelin' some
+fine! We gits de Red Flier, after all, an' dem guys is
+beat, hands down."</p>
+
+<p>They were proceeding down the hillside while Josh
+was talking. When Matt reached the boulders that lined
+the road, he looked out.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco and Spangler, hurrying as fast as their legs
+could carry them, were just vanishing around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>"Now for the Red Flier&mdash;and Fairview!" said Matt,
+running out from among the boulders and laying a direct
+course for the red car.</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's de talk, cull!" laughed Josh, hustling along
+after Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Certainly it looked as though they were to have everything
+their own way, for a while at least&mdash;but they were
+not so lucky as they thought.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIII" id="CHAPTER_XIII">CHAPTER XIII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">CAR AGAINST CAR.</p>
+
+
+<p>It may be that Matt and Josh made too much racket
+getting down the rocks, or that Brisco had a premonition
+that something was wrong. Be that as it might, however,
+yet Brisco and Spangler turned back a minute after
+they had gone charging around the bend.</p>
+
+<p>Motor Matt, at that moment, was bending to the crank
+of the Red Flier, and it was Josh who excitedly announced
+the approach of their two enemies.</p>
+
+<p>The boy had done his jubilating too soon, and the sight
+of Brisco and Spangler filled him with panic.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, chee!" he fluttered. "Dey're after us, Matt, like
+a couple o' grizzlies! Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks
+agin!"</p>
+
+<p>"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a
+whirl.</p>
+
+<p>One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with
+which the machine caught up its cycle; and it had been
+the same with Matt's twin-cylinder motorcycle. Half a
+turn of the pedal was enough for the little <i>Comet</i>, and
+one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's
+motor.</p>
+
+<p>While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and
+Spangler, Motor Matt ran around and vaulted into his
+old familiar place. He felt at home&mdash;much more so than
+he had when driving the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>Neither Brisco nor Spangler wasted any time with their
+revolvers. Both knew that the runabout was a faster
+machine than the Red Flier, and both felt confident that
+a quick start after the boys and a few minutes' chase
+would tell the tale.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler scrambled into the car. Brisco slipped as he
+rounded the front of the runabout to turn over the engine,
+fell sprawling and hit his head on the handle of the
+crank.</p>
+
+<p>He was not very much hurt, apparently, although from
+his flow of language his temper must have been severely
+injured. Besides, he had lost ten seconds&mdash;no very serious
+matter, considering the usual speed of the runabout&mdash;but
+Brisco was anxious for a rapid start and a quick
+finish for the chase.</p>
+
+<p>As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping from up
+the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling
+gun. Motor Matt had turned the Red Flier with his customary
+celerity, and was off on the high gear with the
+muffler cut out.</p>
+
+<p>"By thunder," howled the frantic Spangler, "oncet I
+ketch that Motor Matt I'll wring his neck fer him!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll help you," answered Brisco vindictively. There
+was a patch of skin gone from his forehead and a little
+dribble of red was flowing down his cheek.</p>
+
+<p>"If they wasn't out o' sight," growled Spangler, "I'd
+pepper 'em."</p>
+
+<p>"What's the use of peppering them?" scowled Brisco.
+"We'll climb right over 'em in less'n five minutes."</p>
+
+<p>"Do it!" cried Spangler, as they shot ahead recklessly.</p>
+
+<p>"Do what?" asked Brisco, just missing a boulder by a
+hair's breadth.</p>
+
+<p>"Why, climb over 'em," snorted Spangler. "Run 'em
+down an' shove 'em inter the rocks! Let's hev a smash,
+with that young whelp right in the middle of it. He's
+made us trouble enough!"</p>
+
+<p>"Don't be a fool, Spang!" returned Brisco. "If we
+ran into them we might smash the runabout. We've got
+use for this machine&mdash;after we clean up on Legree and
+this Motor Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"That's so, too," said Spangler. "We may hev use
+fer it even if ye don't clean up on Legree. With another
+pair o' shoes an' tubes, an' a place whar we kin keep a
+supply o' gasoline an' oil, an' them steel bottles o' compressed
+air, we could circle all around through this here
+Southwestern kentry, takin' our toll wharever we wanted
+ter pick it up."</p>
+
+<p>"Sure we could, and we <i>will</i>!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm glad o' one thing," observed Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"What's that?"</p>
+
+<p>"Why, thar won't be any more glass throwed in the
+road, same as thar was during t'other chase we had with
+that Red Flier. King had a lot in the red car, if ye remember,
+an' I dumped it all out."</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"We'll nip 'im this time," said Brisco, through his
+teeth.</p>
+
+<p>"We got ter, that's what. If we don't&mdash;&mdash; Tear an'
+ages, Hank! Be keerful!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout had been hurled at a curve. There was
+no lessening of the speed, and the entire machine slid
+sideways to the edge of the road, banging into the rocks
+with a force that pitched Spangler against the dashboard.
+He came within one of going clear over upon the hood.</p>
+
+<p>"Get back in your seat and hang on!" yelled Brisco.
+"We haven't commenced to run yet."</p>
+
+<p>After that Spangler had no time to talk&mdash;he was too
+busy holding himself in the car.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile the Red Flier had been streaking it through
+the hills, Josh keeping a pair of keen eyes on the back
+track, and Matt giving his entire attention to the road
+ahead.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, wot a bump!" cried Josh.</p>
+
+<p>He had seen the runabout skid across the road, take
+a welt at the rock wall and then leap onward like a bullet
+from a gun.</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter?" shouted Matt.</p>
+
+<p>He had to shout, for the wind of their flight caught the
+words out of his teeth and flung them, a mere wisp of
+sound, far to rearward.</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco tried t' knock over a hill wit' his hind wheels,"
+yelled Josh, "an' Spang tried t' turn a handspring over
+de bonnet. Wow! but dey're goin some, Matt!"</p>
+
+<p>"So are we," screamed Matt, "Fifty-eight miles an
+hour."</p>
+
+<p>"Ever race dat runabout afore?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes."</p>
+
+<p>"W'ch winned?"</p>
+
+<p>"The Flier&mdash;by a fluke. I scattered glass in the road&mdash;the
+runabout got into it and went lame."</p>
+
+<p>"Got any glass along now?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, in the tonneau; but&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"None dere now, cull."</p>
+
+<p>"Then Brisco must have thrown it out. It'll all right,
+though. This is going to be our race."</p>
+
+<p>"We'd better keep our lamps skinned f'r Fairview. It's
+on'y seventy-five miles from w'ere we started, an we're
+goin' so fast we might run past de place an' never see
+it."</p>
+
+<p>Josh felt hilarious. His panic was leaving him and his
+usual nerve was coming back.</p>
+
+<p>"How's the runabout coming?" roared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Gainin'!" whooped the boy. "Oh, sister, how she's
+comin'! Wisht I had some glass."</p>
+
+<p>"She'll never catch us, Josh!"</p>
+
+<p>"How's dat?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I've fixed her so she won't."</p>
+
+<p>"I hope yous ain't shy in yer calkilations, Matt. Dem
+blokes'll sure kill us if we drops into deir hands."</p>
+
+<p>"Watch her, Josh! Tell me when her speed slackens,
+or when anything goes wrong."</p>
+
+<p>"She ain't slackenin' none yet, an' nuttin' ain't gone
+wrong."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, watch and tell me."</p>
+
+<p>Matt couldn't understand why the runabout wasn't beginning
+to develop trouble in the vicinity of the needle-valve.
+But it would come, sooner or later. Some of the
+sand was bound to get through the supply-pipe in time.</p>
+
+<p>The valley had widened considerably, and now it began
+to develop dips and rises which afforded Matt opportunity
+for nursing the motor and preventing overheating.
+He could cut off the power on the down grades and
+give the throbbing cylinders a breathing spell.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had no such fine ability or discrimination. He
+took everything on the high gear.</p>
+
+<p>"Still gainin'!" announced Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"How far are they behind?"</p>
+
+<p>"A hundred feet. It's a wonder dey don't shake some
+bullets out o' deir guns dis way. One of 'em's tootin'
+his bazoo at us."</p>
+
+<p>"What does he say? Can you hear?"</p>
+
+<p>"He says ter stop 'r he'll put a bullet into one o' our
+tires. Chee! If he does dat&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>Matt snatched one hand from the steering-wheel.</p>
+
+<p>Honk, honk! he answered derisively.</p>
+
+<p>Sping!</p>
+
+<p>The warning report was followed by the whistle of a
+bullet. It did not come anywhere near the Red Flier,
+but spatted harmlessly into the valley wall.</p>
+
+<p>Josh laughed wildly and waved his hand. The spirit
+of the race was surging through his veins and had wiped
+out all sense of fear.</p>
+
+<p>"Wow!" he shouted. "Yous ought t' seen dat! Spang
+has been holdin' on t' de seat wit' bot' hands, but he
+let go wit' one t' fire at us. De runabout jumped sideways
+an' he lost his pepper-box overboard. Come clost
+t' goin' hisself! Say, I wisht he had!"</p>
+
+<p>The runabout was devouring the distance in remarkable
+style. It was now only twenty-five feet behind, and
+so near that the sand and pebbles kicked up by the flying
+rear wheels of the red car struck in the faces of Brisco
+and Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler lowered his head. Brisco jerked the goggles
+down over his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Stop!" he roared, "or I'll run into you!"</p>
+
+<p>Honk, honk! tooted Matt defiantly.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco swore and gritted his teeth. With his temper
+at fever heat, what did he care how he injured the runabout
+just so he evened his score with Motor Matt?</p>
+
+<p>Closer and closer came the runabout. Josh measured
+the decreasing distance with his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"Ten feet! Five, Matt, <i>five</i>! She's up t' us, now&mdash;look
+out!"</p>
+
+<p>Not knowing what was to happen, Josh curled over
+the back of the seat and hung on with both hands.</p>
+
+<p>There was a slight jar, followed by a sudden slewing
+on the part of the runabout, a quick lessening of speed
+and the whirr of a racing engine.</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're stoppin'!" shouted the boy; "somet'ing has
+gone wrong wid de odder car!"</p>
+
+<p>"I knew <i>something</i> would happen!" shouted Matt, as
+he slowed his speed a little to give the Red Flier a bit
+of a rest.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XIV" id="CHAPTER_XIV">CHAPTER XIV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.</p>
+
+
+<p>"Dat engine o' deirs went wrong just at de right time
+t' save our bacon, Matt," said Josh.</p>
+
+<p>Matt tossed a look backward. The runabout was at
+a stop, and Brisco was on the ground, tinkering frantically.</p>
+
+<p>"If he knows what to do," said Matt, "he'll be able
+to come on again. But he'll have more trouble; and he'll<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span>
+continue to have trouble until he takes time to overhaul
+his fuel-tank."</p>
+
+<p>"What did yous do?" asked the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Mixed a handful of sand with his gasoline."</p>
+
+<p>"W'en?"</p>
+
+<p>"While we were hung up in front of those rocks
+Spangler had laid for us."</p>
+
+<p>"Didn't dat geezer see yous?"</p>
+
+<p>"I got out of the way before Brisco showed up; and
+Spangler, at the time, was away looking for the man
+in the notch."</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, but you're a wonder! Motor Matt heads de
+percession an' carries de banner! Yous t'ought o' all
+dat while I was hustlin' t' git behind dem rocks! Did
+yous t'ink we was goin' t' have a race?"</p>
+
+<p>"I didn't know but we might. Anyhow, I thought it
+good policy to fix the machine so it wouldn't be reliable.
+What's the news from the rear, Josh?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco is gittin' back in his seat."</p>
+
+<p>"Is he coming on?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot."</p>
+
+<p>"Fast as ever?"</p>
+
+<p>"I don't see no diff'rence in de runnin'."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, something is sure to go wrong, just as it did
+before. One grain of sand clogged the needle-valve,
+Josh, and there's a thousand more grains to come down
+the supply-pipe. Face around a minute. The road forks
+here. Which one shall we take? Do you remember
+coming this way?"</p>
+
+<p>The boy flopped around in his seat. The Red Flier
+was rushing toward a place where the road forked.
+Both roads were bordered by rocky walls, and both had
+the appearance of being equally well traveled&mdash;which
+wasn't saying much for the travel, at that.</p>
+
+<p>"I don't remember nuttin'," answered the boy, "bein'
+scart stiff all de w'ile I was in de runabout. I'd say go
+t' de right. Dat's always a good t'ing t' do."</p>
+
+<p>"If we had the least notion which way Fairview lay
+we could shape our course a little better. But we don't
+know, so we'll take chances and go to the right."</p>
+
+<p>There was a slowing of speed while Matt made the
+turn. For a long distance this fork was a straightaway
+stretch and fairly level. Matt and Josh were congratulating
+themselves on the fact that they had made a fortunate
+choice, when suddenly they whirled out on a
+vista that surprised them.</p>
+
+<p>At the end of the straightaway stretch, a sudden
+angle brought the side of a steep mountain under the
+boy's eyes. The road could be seen clinging to the
+mountain's side, describing horseshoe after horseshoe&mdash;edging
+its way between dizzy chasms and high cliffs.</p>
+
+<p>"Wow!" gasped Josh, and collapsed in his seat. "Right
+here's w'ere we fall off de eart'."</p>
+
+<p>Matt took another look behind. The runabout, with
+the stern, relentless face of Brisco over the wheel, was
+surging toward them.</p>
+
+<p>"Here we go!" called Matt. "Hang on, Josh!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'm glued! Yous can't shake me!"</p>
+
+<p>The boy was game, and Matt flung the Red Flier at
+the mountainside and down the ribbon of treacherous
+road.</p>
+
+<p>There were places where a cliff overhung the trail,
+and the wheels on the left almost scraped the rocks, while
+those on the right barely tracked on the brink of a gulf.</p>
+
+<p>The boy's face went white, but his eyes glimmered
+brightly. He looked back from time to time and saw
+the runabout sliding after them.</p>
+
+<p>A quick fear had rushed to Matt's brain. Oddly
+enough, it was not a fear for his own safety, for he
+knew the Red Flier and knew what he could do with it;
+but the runabout! If that trickle of sand cut off the
+power and caused the machine to slew ever so slightly,
+it would go over the chasm's edge and carry Brisco and
+Spangler with it!</p>
+
+<p>The world would have been better off, perhaps, if
+such a mishap had come to pass; but Matt did not want
+it that way. His own instrumentality in the matter
+would have been too hideously clear.</p>
+
+<p>And yet, if something did not happen to the runabout,
+the machine might collide with the Red Flier and drive
+it over the brink.</p>
+
+<p>Matt knew he must keep ahead. Never had he driven
+more masterfully than then. His nerves were steady,
+his brain alert, and every inch of that curving, treacherous
+down grade was covered by his eyes.</p>
+
+<p>It was more like falling down a hill than riding down.
+The Red Flier quivered like a thing of life, seeming to
+realize what was expected of it, and responding nobly.</p>
+
+<p>Far off, over the level plain at the mountain's foot,
+could be seen the little cluster of houses that represented
+Fairview. It glowed in the morning sun like a toy village
+on a toy map.</p>
+
+<p>As the road curved, struck a short straightaway, then
+curved again, the town swept vividly into view and again
+as quickly vanished.</p>
+
+<p>At the most desperate part of the trail a rock had
+crumbled from the wall and rolled to the edge of the
+chasm. There it lay, almost under the nose of the rushing
+car.</p>
+
+<p>The boy cast a despairing look into Motor Matt's set,
+determined face. All he saw was a swift gleam of the
+gray eyes.</p>
+
+<p>Crash!</p>
+
+<p>The car, skilfully guided so that it touched the inward
+side of the boulder, forced it from the edge and sent it
+bounding and smashing downward into the gulf.</p>
+
+<p>A sharp breath tore through the boy's lips. Confidence
+again took possession of him. After that escape, what
+difficulty could come up that Motor Matt was not able
+to conquer?</p>
+
+<p>Matt seemed to be made of steel. With one foot on
+the brake and both hands on the wheel, he kept rigidly
+to his work.</p>
+
+<p>"How're they making it behind, Josh?" he called.</p>
+
+<p>The boy knelt in his seat and looked back up the steep
+incline.</p>
+
+<p>Fortune was riding with Brisco that day. But for
+that he must have been hurled from the trail in a dozen
+places.</p>
+
+<p>Driving a car was comparatively new work for him,
+and the chances are that never before had he been on
+such a dangerous piece of road. Yet he was naturally
+a man of iron nerve, and would not hold back where
+Motor Matt led.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, from his appearance, was as frightened a
+man as there ever was in Arizona. A gray pallor had
+spread over his face, and his eyes were fairly popping
+from his head. Gripping his seat with both hands, he<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span>
+braced himself with his feet against the forward dip of
+the car.</p>
+
+<p>"Dey're slidin' after us, cull," reported the boy.</p>
+
+<p>"Gaining?"</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's wot, but not like dey did on de level road."</p>
+
+<p>"The foot of the mountain is just ahead of us. Can
+we get there before they overtake us?"</p>
+
+<p>"Well, mebby we kin, but I wish de foot o' de mountain
+was half a mile nearer dan wot it is."</p>
+
+<p>Facing about in his seat, Josh looked at the foot of the
+mountain for himself.</p>
+
+<p>They were dropping toward it swiftly. There were
+no more curves&mdash;nothing but a straight fall, a shoot
+between bordering rocks and then a cheerful reach of
+road over the plain.</p>
+
+<p>"We're in luck t' git out o' dis widout a broken neck,"
+said Josh. "Chee, but dat level place looks good t' me."</p>
+
+<p>"The Flier's a dandy car!" declared Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"She's got a dandy driver, an' dat's no dream. W'ere'd
+we been widout Motor Matt at de steerin'-wheel? Yous
+is a four-time winner, an' dere's odders dat'll hear me
+say it."</p>
+
+<p>"The runabout will be hot after us as soon as we hit
+the level ground again."</p>
+
+<p>"Dey'll never ketch us, cull. I don't care how hot dey
+come, wit' yous handlin' de Flier."</p>
+
+<p>With a final spurt the red car rushed through the
+rocks, and, for the first time since it had taken that up-and-down
+trail, both ends were on a level.</p>
+
+<p>As they glided out onto the plain, Matt cast a look
+backward. There was a feeling of relief came over him
+at sight of the runabout charging through the rocks at
+the mountain's foot.</p>
+
+<p>But, as he looked, and just as the runabout was on
+the point of striking level ground, there was a jerk to
+the left, a crash, and a sudden stop.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco pitched forward over the wheel, shot clear past
+the hood, and doubled up and rolled along the stony
+trail.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler went out on the left side, ricochetting into the
+air and turning a couple of grotesque somersaults. Like
+Brisco, when he dropped, he lay still.</p>
+
+<p>A sharp breath escaped Matt's lips. Turning the Red
+Flier, he started back until he had come almost upon
+the silent form of Brisco; then he brought the Flier to
+a halt and jumped out.</p>
+
+<p>"Chee, Moses!" muttered Josh, awed by the abrupt
+termination of the chase. "Do yous t'ink dem guys is
+killed, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"That's what we've got to find out," flung back Matt,
+hurrying to Brisco and kneeling down beside him.</p>
+
+<p>Human enmity seemed a paltry thing to Matt as his
+hand went groping over Brisco's breast, feeling for the
+heart-beats. A thrill of satisfaction shot through him
+as he found that Brisco was alive.</p>
+
+<p>Hurrying on to Spangler, he was immensely relieved
+to find that worthy sitting up in the road and drawing
+a hand over his dazed eyes.</p>
+
+<p>"What&mdash;what happened?" faltered Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Nothing to what's going to happen now, Spangler,"
+answered Matt, and picked up the second and last revolver
+which the ruffian had had about him.</p>
+
+<p>"There ought to be some ropes in the runabout, Josh,"
+called Matt. "Go and get them."</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XV" id="CHAPTER_XV">CHAPTER XV.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.</p>
+
+
+<p>Josh hustled for the runabout. One of the coiled
+ropes Matt had put in the car was hanging over a lamp,
+and the other had been thrown into the road. Taking
+the one off the lamp, the boy hurried back to the place
+where Matt was training the revolver on Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Fine bizness!" laughed Josh. "Wot d'yous want me
+t' do, Matt? Put a bow-knot on his lunch-hooks?"</p>
+
+<p>"Stand up, Spangler!" ordered Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler got lamely to his feet. He was still confused
+and bewildered.</p>
+
+<p>"Somethin' hit us," he mumbled. "From the way I
+was throwed it must hev been a landslide. Whar's
+Hank? Is he killed?"</p>
+
+<p>"Brisco will get along, I guess," said Matt. "Put your
+hands behind you, Spangler."</p>
+
+<p>Just then, for the first time, it began to dawn on
+Spangler that Matt was making a prisoner out of him.
+The ruffian, although practically uninjured, had been
+badly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was in condition to
+resist, and he leaped backward, swearing.</p>
+
+<p>"If ye think ye kin rope, down an' tie me," he cried,
+"jest bekase that thar machine bucked an' dumped me
+inter the road, ye got another&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"Come this way!" cut in Matt.</p>
+
+<p>The words, hard and keen, jumped at Spangler like so
+many knife-points. Motor Matt meant business, and
+showed it in every movement.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler stepped forward.</p>
+
+<p>"That's far enough," snapped Matt. "Now put those
+hands behind you."</p>
+
+<p>With the open end of his own gun staring him in the
+face, there was nothing for Spangler to do but to obey.
+His hands went meekly behind him.</p>
+
+<p>"Can you tie a good hard knot, Josh?" asked Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"T'ink I ain't good f'r nuttin'?" protested the boy.</p>
+
+<p>Passing behind Spangler, he used the free end of the
+rope for a few moments and then stepped back with the
+rest of the coil in his hands.</p>
+
+<p>"If he gits dem mitts out o' dat he's a good 'un," announced
+Josh. "W'ere d'yous want him, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"In the Red Flier. Step lively, Spangler. We've got
+to look after Brisco."</p>
+
+<p>"Get ap!" clucked Josh, shaking the rope.</p>
+
+<p>With a black scowl on his face, the baffled Spangler
+made his way to the touring-car.</p>
+
+<p>"Get in on the back seat," went on Matt.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler obeyed the order.</p>
+
+<p>"Now, Josh," pursued Matt, "cut the rope and tie a
+piece of it around his feet."</p>
+
+<p>The boy finished the work expeditiously, and when he
+and Matt drew away from the Red Flier they left Spangler
+helpless and fuming in the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco was still lying where he had fallen, and he was
+still unconscious. Matt made a more thorough examination
+of him. His pulse was stronger and, so far as Matt
+could discover, there were no broken bones.</p>
+
+<p>"Wot keeps 'im in a trance?" asked the boy. "He's<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>
+stayin' a long time in de Land o' Nod for not havin'
+nuttin' wrong wit' 'im."</p>
+
+<p>"Pick up his revolver, Josh," returned Matt briskly,
+"and then sit down beside him and wait till he gets his
+wits back. Don't let him get away from you."</p>
+
+<p>"Get away from me? Not on yer life, cull. I'd radder
+take dis mutt into Fairview dan pull down a t'ousan' in
+de long green. Dad wants <i>him</i>."</p>
+
+<p>Paying no attention to the boy's rather obscure remark,
+Matt went to the runabout. He was expecting to find the
+machine badly smashed, and was happily disappointed.</p>
+
+<p>Both front lamps were broken, and the mud-guard over
+the right wheel forward had been ripped away. The
+guard had fallen between the wheel and the rock, and
+undoubtedly had kept the wheel from being dished. The
+tire was punctured and the jolt had disabled the motor.
+For all that, however, the machine, with a few temporary
+repairs, could travel on its own wheels if not under its
+own power.</p>
+
+<p>Brisco had not yet corralled his wits. Aided by Josh,
+Matt dragged the man off to one side, where he would
+be out of the way; then, cutting about six feet of rope
+from the other riata, he threw it down where Josh could
+get at it.</p>
+
+<p>"When Brisco wakes up, Josh," said Matt, "just hold
+him steady till we put that rope on him."</p>
+
+<p>"Wot yous goin' t' do, Matt?" inquired the wondering
+Josh. "Yous is busier dan a monkey wit' his hand in a
+coconut."</p>
+
+<p>"We're going to haul the runabout into Fairview,"
+said Matt. "But I've got to patch her up first."</p>
+
+<p>Getting into the Red Flier, Matt backed her as close
+to the disabled car as he could; then, hitching onto the
+runabout with the ropes, he pulled it down onto the level
+plain.</p>
+
+<p>With a jack taken from the touring-car he swung the
+runabout's wheel off the ground. The mud-guard, having
+been ripped off, was not in his way. After locating the
+puncture and marking it with chalk, he unscrewed the
+wing-nuts, pushed out the security-bolt, and then, with
+levers, dug out the inner tube.</p>
+
+<p>Perhaps he was an hour getting the hole patched up,
+tire back in place and reinflated. When he was through,
+the runabout was ready to be dragged to Fairview.</p>
+
+<p>"How's Brisco?" asked Matt, putting on his leather
+coat, which he had thrown off while working with the
+runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"Same as wot he was, cull," replied Josh. "He ain't
+twitched an eye-winker."</p>
+
+<p>"He may be shamming," said Matt, "in the hope of
+making a bolt for his liberty. We'll put him in the
+tonneau. You can ride with him and watch him every
+minute. I'll take Spangler in front with me."</p>
+
+<p>"We're goin' t' take de hull outfit into Fairview?"
+grinned Josh.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the idea."</p>
+
+<p>"A whale of an idee it is, too, an' no stringin'. Reg'lar
+line-up o' crooks an' stolen automobiles, wit' Motor Matt
+in charge o' de bunch. Wow! It's de biggest come-easy
+dat I ever mixed up wit'. Mebby dere won't be rejoicin'
+w'en we goes pokin' into town wit' all dis load.
+Well, I guess yes."</p>
+
+<p>Between them, Matt and Josh succeeded in carrying
+Brisco to the touring-car and getting him into the tonneau.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, having been transferred to one of the front
+seats, had been chewing the cud of reflection.</p>
+
+<p>"Looky here, Motor Matt," said he, "ye ain't got no
+call ter kerry me ter Fairview. Think o' Klegg, down
+an' out an' mebby dyin' back thar in that notch. If anythin'
+happens ter him ye'll be responsible. Better turn
+me loose an' let me go back an' take keer o' him."</p>
+
+<p>"Don't do so much worrying over Klegg," answered
+Matt. "I intend to have him looked after. Just as soon
+as we get to Fairview I'll have the sheriff, or some other
+officer, go to the notch and see that Klegg gets all the
+attention he deserves."</p>
+
+<p>"Waal, even at that, ye ain't got no call ter lug me
+inter town. I ain't done a thing. Brisco was the feller
+that had it in fer you. It's him ye want ter git even with,
+an' not me."</p>
+
+<p>"You didn't have a hand in robbing Mr. Tomlinson,
+did you?" said Matt sarcastically. "There are a lot of
+other things you've done, too, and I'm going to turn you
+over to Lem Nugent, the man who owns the runabout,
+as soon as we reach Fairview. It won't take long to get
+Nugent up from Ash Forks."</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is a game loser, I don't t'ink," scoffed the boy.
+"W'ere's yer nerve, Spangler?"</p>
+
+<p>"Say," said Spangler, giving his attention to Josh,
+"where did you butt inter this game?"</p>
+
+<p>"I rode out o' Fairview wit' Brisco," grinned Josh.
+"He give me a ride."</p>
+
+<p>"Give ye a ride?" echoed Spangler.</p>
+
+<p>"Sure, on'y he didn't know it. I was under de coat in
+de back o' de runabout; an' I was still dere w'en yous
+mutts went t' dat hole in de wall. 'Course yous didn't
+see me. Yous was too mad at Motor Matt t' see anyt'ing."</p>
+
+<p>The whole situation rushed over Spangler with demoralizing
+clearness. He was able to understand how
+Josh and Matt, by the exercise of pluck and brains, had
+succeeded in balking the plans of Brisco.</p>
+
+<p>Spangler swore heartily. It seemed to be his only
+method for easing his feelings.</p>
+
+<p>"The worst move we ever made," he muttered savagely,
+"was takin' Motor Matt out o' town last night. I
+didn't want ter do it, but Brisco had made up his mind,
+an' that settled it. We ain't got no one ter blame but<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span>
+ourselves fer what's happened. Go on. The quicker we
+git ter Fairview an' hev this thing over with, the better
+I'll be suited."</p>
+
+<p>Spangler, resigning himself to the situation, sank back
+in his seat.</p>
+
+<p>Matt went around to the rear of the car to make the
+ropes attaching it to the runabout more secure. As near
+as he had been able to discover there was a level road all
+the way to Fairview. They were coming into the town
+from the north and east, and not along the Ash Fork
+road, where there was a hill to be descended in order to
+reach the valley.</p>
+
+<p>Having reassured himself about the ropes, Matt returned
+to the side of the Red Flier and mounted the
+running-board. Looking over the side of the tonneau,
+he swept his gaze over Brisco's unconscious face.</p>
+
+<p>"I can't understand what keeps him that way, Josh,"
+said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Mebby he's badly shook up inside," answered the boy.
+"Wot he needs is a doctor."</p>
+
+<p>"Well, he'll have one before long. Stay right beside
+him and watch him every minute. If he's playing possum
+with us, we want to make sure he don't gain anything
+by it."</p>
+
+<p>"I'm right on de job," said Josh.</p>
+
+<p>Matt climbed into his seat and started on the low
+gear. There was a creaking of the ropes as they took the
+pull, and the runabout started.</p>
+
+<p>Everything worked smoothly, and Matt, with a load
+worth fifteen hundred dollars, set his face toward Fairview.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVI" id="CHAPTER_XVI">CHAPTER XVI.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."</p>
+
+
+<p>The disappearance of Motor Matt and the Red Flier
+made Carl Pretzel not only bewildered but furiously
+angry. He was angry at Brisco and bewildered to account
+for the way he had pulled off his night raid.</p>
+
+<p>"Oof dot feller inchures a hair oof Modor Matt's
+headt," wheezed Carl, shaking his fist in the air, "I vill
+camp by his drail, py chimineddy! I vill go on some
+var-paths! I vill make him be sorry for vat he dit, yah,
+so helup me!"</p>
+
+<p>Leaving Carl to rant and vow vengeance, Legree
+rushed over to the railroad-station and sent a message.
+The message, owing to financial embarrassment on the
+part of Legree, had to go collect.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>
+
+"<span class="smcap">Lem Nugent</span>, Ash Fork.<br />
+</p>
+
+<p>"Come at once to Fairview. Important developments
+regarding your automobile.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">
+<span class="smcap">Motor Matt.</span>"<br />
+</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>Legree signed the message with Matt's name because
+he knew the cattleman wouldn't know anything about a
+man named Legree; and he also felt sure that Motor
+Matt's name would secure the cattleman's instant attention.</p>
+
+<p>On his way back to the hotel he inquired for the
+sheriff. Fairview was too small to have a sheriff, but
+the town had a deputy sheriff. The deputy, however,
+was just then attending his father's golden-wedding, in
+Flagstaff, the marshal had gone with him, and the town
+was without an officer.</p>
+
+<p>As if this was not sufficiently discouraging, when Legree
+got back to the hotel he found a very disquieting
+state of affairs.</p>
+
+<p>The Uncle Tommers had been chased out of the hostelry
+by O'Grady and Ping Pong, his Chinese cook. They
+were gathered in a forlorn group in front, and Carl
+Pretzel was with them.</p>
+
+<p>"Mistah O'Grady, sah," Uncle Tom was saying with
+all the dignity he could work up, "Ah's de official mascot
+ob Motah Matt. While Ah's been stayin' in yo' 'stablishment,
+Ah's been mascottin' fo' him. He will come back,
+yo' ma'k what Ah say. Gib us ouah breakfus en yo'
+sho gits yo' money!"</p>
+
+<p>"Begorry, yez have got into me f'r all yez are goin'
+to," yelled the proprietor. "It's a passel av thramps yez
+are, iv'ry wan av yez! Av th' marshal was in town,
+Oi'd have yez all in th' cooler. Get out, befure Oi sic
+th' dog on yez! Scatther!"</p>
+
+<p>"What's the matter here?" demanded Legree, pushing
+to the front.</p>
+
+<p>"Py chincher," flared Carl, "dot Irish feller t'inks ve
+vas vorkin' some shkin games on him. He vas grazier
+as a pedpug, und he von't gif us some preakfast."</p>
+
+<p>"En we's all hongry es sin," piped Uncle Tom plaintively.
+"Ah been mascottin' fo' Motah Matt twell Ah's
+dat fagged Ah dunno whut Ah's about, no, sah."</p>
+
+<p>"I tried to get him to take my ring, Legree," put in
+Eliza, "but he won't. He says we're only a lot of dead
+beats, and never intend to pay him."</p>
+
+<p>"Ah tole him," spoke up Topsy, "dat Ah'd wuk in his
+kitchum fo' de price ob a breakfus, an' he wouldn' hab it.
+Ah's honest, dat's whut Ah is. Ah nebber stole a cent
+fum anybody en mah life."</p>
+
+<p>"See here, O'Grady," remarked Legree, "Motor Matt
+has money and he has offered to pay our expenses while
+we're stopping with you. I'll have money myself in a few
+days, and then I'll pay you. You're not taking any
+chances on this crowd."</p>
+
+<p>"Faith, an' yez are roight about thot," scowled
+O'Grady. "Oi'm takin' no more chances wid yez. Motor
+Matt! Why, he run aff lasht noight! Sure, he did! He
+shneaked away so he wouldn't have t' pay me f'r yer
+kape. Oi'm keen enough t' see thot!"</p>
+
+<p>"Py shinks," whooped Carl, dancing around and waving
+his fists, "don'd you say dod some more. I can lick der<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span>
+feller vat says somet'ings aboudt Modor Matt like dot.
+Ven he say he pay, he mean vot he say, und he do it,
+too. Yah, you bed you! Modor Matt vas my bard, und
+he don'd vas leafing a bard in der lurch like vat you say."</p>
+
+<p>"Av Motor Matt is yer pard," said O'Grady, "bedad
+but it's sthrange yez haven't money. Git out, Oi say!
+Oi'm done wid yez."</p>
+
+<p>"I tell you," went on Legree, "I'll have money myself
+in a few days."</p>
+
+<p>"Yez can't make me belave any cock-an'-bull shtory
+like thot. Niver again will Oi take in anny wan widout
+baggage. Shoo! Clear out befure Oi git violent."</p>
+
+<p>In O'Grady's present temper there was no reasoning
+with him, so Legree marshaled his comrades and led
+them off to a neighboring wood-pile, where they all sat
+down disconsolately.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah's been accustomed tuh bettah treatment," mourned
+Uncle Tom. "Ah's got de bigges' notion dat evah was
+tuh put a hoodoo on dat hotel. Ah could do hit, but Ah
+restrains mahse'f till Ah gits odahs fum Motah Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Go 'long wif sich talk!" cried Topsy, out of patience.
+"'Peahs lak yo' done put dat hoodoo on de rest ob us.
+Nuffin' ain't gone right sence we left dat 'ar Brockville
+place."</p>
+
+<p>"There'll be some one here from Ash Fork before long,
+who, maybe, will help us," said Legree. "Just be as
+patient as you can, friends, and we'll hope for the best."</p>
+
+<p>"All de patience in de worl', Mistah Legree," answered
+Uncle Tom, "'doan' fill a pusson's stummick. Mah goodness,
+Ah didun' know Ah was so pesterin' hongry."</p>
+
+<p>"I tell you somet'ing," said Carl, "oof I knowed vich
+vay Modor Matt vas, I vould go und findt him. I vas
+madt as some vet hens ofer dis pitzness. Here ve vas,
+hung oop on a vood-pile mit nodding to eat, und not
+knowing vere Modor Matt vent mit himseluf. Chonny
+Hartluck iss hanging aroundt mit us."</p>
+
+<p>Leaving his disconsolate friends, Legree went back to
+the railroad-station. There he waited for four hours for
+the local train from Ash Fork. He was rewarded, however,
+by seeing a big man get off the train, stop on the
+platform, and look around expectantly.</p>
+
+<p>Legree walked up to the arriving passenger.</p>
+
+<p>"Mr. Nugent?" he asked.</p>
+
+<p>"You've hit it," replied the cattleman, staring the
+stranded actor up and down with an unfavoring eye.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah! Well, sir, my name's Legree. I suppose you're
+looking for Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Another bull's-eye for you. I came here on a telegram
+from Motor Matt saying that there had been important
+developments concerning my automobile that was
+stolen from me near Ash Fork. Where's Motor Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"He is unavoidably absent just now," answered Legree,
+"but I am confidently expecting him to appear at
+any moment. To be frank with you, sir, I sent that
+telegram and signed Motor Matt's name to it."</p>
+
+<p>The cattleman became indignant.</p>
+
+<p>"You're pretty fresh, seems to me!" said he. "What
+business had you doing a thing like that?"</p>
+
+<p>"Because I wanted you here. Your car was in town
+yesterday. One of the thieves brought it in for a supply
+of gasoline and oil. Motor Matt and I tried to capture
+the thief, but he got away from us and took the car with
+him."</p>
+
+<p>"Who are you, if you haven't any objection to answerin'
+a straight question?" demanded the cattleman.</p>
+
+<p>"Step into the waiting-room with me for a few moments,"
+replied Legree, "and I'll explain."</p>
+
+<p>They went into the waiting-room and were gone possibly
+five minutes. When they came out on the platform
+once more, Nugent seemed to have developed a vast
+amount of confidence in Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"Why didn't you tell Motor Matt what you've told
+me?" asked the cattleman.</p>
+
+<p>"I wasn't telling anybody that, Mr. Nugent," answered
+Legree, "and I wouldn't be telling you now if I hadn't
+wanted to fix things with O'Grady so that I and my
+friends can continue to remain at his hotel."</p>
+
+<p>"I know O'Grady," said Nugent. "Come along with
+me and I'll fix things up for you."</p>
+
+<p>They went to the hotel at once. O'Grady, tilted back
+against the wall in front, was smoking a pipe and keeping
+a sharp eye on the wood-pile.</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom, with a red bandanna over his face, was
+leaning back against the wood and was apparently asleep.
+All the rest were hovering listlessly about, waiting patiently
+for something to happen.</p>
+
+<p>The sight of Lem Nugent, who was known throughout
+all that part of the country, wrought a great change in
+O'Grady. The cattleman and the actor were approaching
+together, and seemed to be on cordial terms.</p>
+
+<p>"O'Grady," said Nugent, after he had exchanged greetings
+with the proprietor, "this gentleman is a friend of
+mine, and his friends are my friends, understand? Take
+them all in and give them the best you've got. And don't
+bleed me, you shyster. I'll stand the damage, but I won't
+be robbed."</p>
+
+<p>"Whativer yez say goes wid me, Lem," said O'Grady.
+"Come on, all av yez," he cried, standing up and motioning
+toward the wood-pile. "Oi'll have th' Chink put
+a male on th' table f'r yez to wanst."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom may have been asleep, but he heard those
+welcome words and was up like a shot.</p>
+
+<p>"Ah was mascottin fo' dat very t'ing," he admitted,
+as he ran toward the hotel. "Layin' back dar wid mah
+bandannah ober mah face, Ah was wukin' lak er hiahed
+man, yassuh. Now, den, yo' Topsy, yo' see what Ah kin
+do when Ah lays mahse'f out!"</p>
+
+<p>Just as they were starting into the hotel, a shout from
+Carl brought them all to a halt and an about-face.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Hoop-a-la!" yelled Carl, dancing around and throwing
+his cap in the air. "Look vonce ad vat's coming!
+Vat dit I say? Here vas a drain oof cars, mit Modor
+Matt pringing dem in. Ach, himmel, I peen so habby as
+I can't dell! Modor Matt iss coming!"</p>
+
+<p>Under the startled eyes of those in front of the hotel
+two cars could be seen coming along the road. The Red
+Flier, with Matt and three passengers, was in the lead,
+and towing behind was the runabout.</p>
+
+<p>"My car, by thunder!" shouted Nugent, starting for
+the road.</p>
+
+<p>"And Spangler is with Motor Matt," cried the amazed
+Legree, "and Brisco, and the kid! How in blazes do you
+think that happened?"</p>
+
+<p>A disgusted look crossed Uncle Tom's face.</p>
+
+<p>"How yo' t'ink dat happened!" he muttered sarcastically;
+"en me a-mascottin' fo' Motah Matt all de time!"</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="CHAPTER_XVII" id="CHAPTER_XVII">CHAPTER XVII.</a></h2>
+
+<p class="chaptitle">CONCLUSION.</p>
+
+
+<p>Whether O'Grady really thought Motor Matt had
+taken French leave during the night or not, is a question.
+Certainly he was as surprised to see Matt traveling into
+town as were any of the rest of them.</p>
+
+<p>All those around the hotel flocked to the road.</p>
+
+<p>"Hello, Matt!" called Nugent, reaching up his hand.
+"It looks like you'd been accomplishing something."</p>
+
+<p>Matt's acquaintance with the cattleman had been of
+exceedingly brief duration, and never before had he been
+hailed by him in that cordial tone.</p>
+
+<p>"How are you, Mr. Nugent?" he returned, taking the
+cattleman's hand. "How did you happen to come over
+this way?"</p>
+
+<p>"Got a telegram from you&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>"From me?" echoed Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"I sent it, Matt," put in Legree, "and signed your
+name to it. When you disappeared last night I knew
+something had to be done, and that there ought to be a
+man with money to do it. So I sent for Nugent."</p>
+
+<p>"It's all right, my boy," said Nugent, "and I'm tickled
+to death because I came. You're bringing in my car, I
+see, and the two fellows that took it away from me.
+Good! If we don't put 'em through for their crooked
+work, my name ain't Nugent."</p>
+
+<p>"You'll have to send for a doctor for Brisco," said
+Matt. "He's been unconscious for two hours, and I don't
+know whether he's badly hurt or not. You see&mdash;&mdash;"</p>
+
+<p>At that moment Brisco proved that he was far from
+being badly hurt. With a jump he got out of the tonneau
+and started at a run toward the edge of town. Uncle
+Tom happened to be in his way, and was knocked heels
+over head.</p>
+
+<p>"Dere he goes!" yelled Josh excitedly. "Clear out o'
+de way so I kin git a shot at 'im!"</p>
+
+<p>But Josh was not allowed to carry out his warlike intentions.
+Legree took after the escaping ruffian, overhauled
+him before he had gone far, grabbed him by the
+shoulders, and hurled him to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>O'Grady, rushing to Legree's assistance, lent a willing
+hand. Brisco had been a good customer of O'Grady's,
+but the situation had changed somewhat since the Uncle
+Tommers had been staying at the Shamrock Hotel.</p>
+
+<p>"I reckon, Matt," remarked Lem Nugent dryly, "that
+the fellow ain't very badly hurt. How did you happen
+to get hold of the scoundrels?"</p>
+
+<p>"They were chasing us," answered Matt. "We were
+in the Red Flier and they were in your car. Brisco ran
+into the rocks, and he and Spangler were thrown out.
+Neither of them seemed very much hurt, and Josh and I
+captured Spangler before he had fully got back his wits.
+Brisco appeared to be all right, but he was unconscious.
+I had an idea that he might be shamming. Probably he
+came to himself just as we got here, and thought the
+best thing for him to do would be to make a break."</p>
+
+<p>"His break didn't help him any," said Legree, as he
+and O'Grady came marching back with Brisco between
+them. "Go up to my room, Josh," Legree went on, "and
+get those two plates. You'll find 'em under the northeast
+corner of the carpet. Front room, boy."</p>
+
+<p>"Dat's me," answered Josh, handing Brisco's weapons
+to his father and bounding away.</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going to tell you people something," proceeded
+Legree, "that will no doubt surprise you. And I think,"
+he finished grimly, "that Brisco will be as much surprised
+as anybody."</p>
+
+<p>Josh presently returned with a couple of flat, square
+packages. Leaving O'Grady to take care of Brisco,
+Legree took the packages in his hands.</p>
+
+<p>"A crook by the name of Denver Denny, alias James
+Trymore," went on Legree, "escaped from the authorities
+at Denver and came to this part of the country. Denver
+Denny was a clever counterfeiter, and worked in conjunction
+with Hank Brisco. At least, following the output
+of the 'queer' as it trailed along in the wake of that
+Uncle Tom's Cabin Company, I came to that conclusion.</p>
+
+<p>"Denny owned a set of very fine plates for the manufacture
+of bogus five-dollar silver certificates. When he
+was captured in Denver those plates were nowhere to be
+found. I conceived the notion that they might be in
+Brisco's possession, and in order to make sure, I became
+letter-perfect in the part of Legree, and Josh here got the
+part of Little Eva by heart, and we arranged to join
+Brisco's company of barn-stormers.</p>
+
+<p>"We were with them for some time, watching Brisco
+all the while. Brisco was not shoving any of the 'queer'
+while we were with him, and I was inclined to think that<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span>
+I had made a mistake in connecting him with Denny's
+operations. However, Brisco had a little tin box, of
+which he was very choice and careful. His solicitude
+for that box aroused my curiosity. When Brisco pulled
+out between two days in Denver, and left his company
+stranded, by some freak of chance he dropped the box.
+Josh found it. We opened the box in Ash Fork and
+found these two packages in it." Legree lifted the two
+flat parcels so all could see. "I knew perfectly well that
+Brisco would come after his box, so I continued to play
+the part of a stranded actor, hoping to get my hands on
+him.</p>
+
+<p>"Fate was kind to us," and here Legree turned and
+dropped a friendly hand on the young motorist's shoulder,
+"by bringing Motor Matt along. He came to the
+front gallantly and helped us. I should have captured
+Brisco sooner or later, even without his aid, but he has
+closed the affair in hurricane fashion and saved the government
+lots of trouble."</p>
+
+<p>Everybody, Uncle Tommers, Matt, Carl, and Brisco
+and Spangler, were astounded. Nugent was the solitary
+exception, for Legree had revealed his identity to the
+cattleman in the railroad-station.</p>
+
+<p>"These are the plates," went on Legree. "Brisco had
+them in the tin box."</p>
+
+<p>"And you are&mdash;&mdash;" began Matt, staring at Legree.</p>
+
+<p>"A secret service man in the employ of the government."</p>
+
+<p>A cry of fierce anger escaped Brisco. He made a
+fierce attempt to get at Legree, but O'Grady restrained
+him.</p>
+
+<p>"Faith," said O'Grady, with cheerful disregard of his
+past actions, "Oi knowed yez was a bad egg th' minyit
+Oi set eyes on yez."</p>
+
+<p>"Dis," remarked Uncle Tom, with immense pride, "is
+de best job ob mascottin' whut Ah's done yit!"</p>
+
+<p>"Better give up, Brisco!" called Spangler from the
+touring-car. "They've got it on us an' we'll have ter
+take our medicine."</p>
+
+<p>"Got it on us, yes," stormed Brisco, "but they wouldn't
+have done it if it hadn't been for Motor Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Not so quick, I'll admit," said Legree amiably, "but
+I'd have caught you sooner or later, Brisco. In my report
+I shall have something to say to the head of the
+department about Motor Matt. I'd like to hear, though,
+just how he happened to make this haul."</p>
+
+<p>"Josh helped me," said Matt.</p>
+
+<p>"Not enough so yous could notice it," returned Josh
+promptly; "Motor Matt was de man on de job from
+start t' finish. Yous take it from Little Eva, an' no
+stringin'."</p>
+
+<p>The boy turned to Matt with a wide grin.</p>
+
+<p>"Yous is wise t' why I went off wit' Brisco in dat
+runabout now, ain't yous? I wanted t' find out w'ere
+he had 'is hang-out so dad could turn a trick fer de
+gov'ment. But yous cut out dad, Matt."</p>
+
+<p>"Listen, vonce," cried Carl, who had been trying for
+some time to get in a few words, "Matt's der pest efer.
+He prings luck venefer he goes mit anypody. Yah, dot's
+righdt. I know, pecause he prought luck mit me."</p>
+
+<p>Uncle Tom was disposed to butt in with an objection,
+but the cattleman had something to say.</p>
+
+<p>"There's fifteen hundred of my money goes to somebody
+for all this," said he. "Who gets it, Matt?"</p>
+
+<p>"Divide it up between all of us," answered the boy
+generously. "The Uncle Tommers need it."</p>
+
+<p>A shout of delight went up from the actor contingent.</p>
+
+<p>"You can leave Josh in the division," said Legree, "but
+cut me out of it. I'm working for Uncle Sam."</p>
+
+<p>Just at that moment the Chinaman stepped to the door
+and announced dinner.</p>
+
+<p>"We'll talk all this over while we eat," said Nugent.
+"Come on, everybody."</p>
+
+<hr class="tb" />
+
+<p>Motor Matt and Carl, having lost more time in Fairview
+than they could well afford, started for Albuquerque
+early in the afternoon.</p>
+
+<p>Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, now well supplied with
+money, were to proceed to Denver by train.</p>
+
+<p>The secret service man and Josh were to remain in
+Fairview for a few days with their prisoners, and then
+to take them to Denver for trial.</p>
+
+<p>"Matt," said Carl seriously, as the Red Flier leaped
+onward toward Albuquerque, "I vas a lucky feller to hook
+oop mit you. Vone oof dose tays, oof you don'd go pack
+on me, I vill vear tiamonts!"</p>
+
+<p>"I'll never go back on you, Carl," laughed Matt; "but
+I'm a little 'juberous' about the diamonds."</p>
+
+
+<p class="center">THE END.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<p class="center medium">THE NEXT NUMBER (7) WILL CONTAIN</p>
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR MATT'S CLUE;</p>
+<p class="center medium">OR,</p>
+<p class="center large">THE PHANTOM AUTO.</p>
+
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>A Night Mystery&mdash;Dick Ferral&mdash;La Vita Place&mdash;The
+House of Wonder&mdash;Sercomb&mdash;The Phantom
+Auto Again&mdash;Surrounded by Enemies&mdash;The
+Kettle Begins to Boil&mdash;Ordered Away&mdash;A New
+Plan&mdash;A Daring Leap&mdash;Desperate Villiany&mdash;Tippoo&mdash;In
+the Nick of Time&mdash;A Startling Interruption&mdash;The
+Price of Treachery&mdash;The Luck of
+Dick Ferral.</p></blockquote>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span></p>
+
+
+
+
+<table summary="scaffold" class="bbox">
+<tr><td colspan="2" class="tdc huge">MOTOR STORIES</td></tr>
+<tr><td class="tdr large" style="padding-right: .25em;">THRILLING ADVENTURE</td><td class="tdl large" style="padding-left: .25em;">MOTOR FICTION</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p class="center bb bt">NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.</p>
+
+
+<p class="center"><b>TERMS TO MOTOR STORIES MAIL SUBSCRIBERS.</b></p>
+
+<p class="center">(<i>Postage Free.</i>)</p>
+
+<p class="center"><b>Single Copies or Back Numbers, 5c. Each.</b></p>
+
+<table summary="Terms">
+<tr><td>3 months</td><td class="tdr">65c.</td></tr>
+<tr><td>4 months</td><td class="tdr">85c.</td></tr>
+<tr><td>6 months</td><td class="tdr">$1.25</td></tr>
+<tr><td>One year</td><td class="tdr">2.50</td></tr>
+<tr><td>2 copies one year</td><td class="tdr">4.00</td></tr>
+<tr><td>1 copy two years</td><td class="tdr">4.00</td></tr>
+</table>
+
+<p><b>How to Send Money</b>&mdash;By post-office or express money-order,
+registered letter, bank check or draft, at our risk. At your own risk if sent
+by currency, coin, or postage-stamps in ordinary letter.</p>
+
+<p><b>Receipts</b>&mdash;Receipt of your remittance is acknowledged by proper
+change of number on your label. If not correct you have not been properly
+credited, and should let us know at once.</p>
+
+<table summary="scaffold">
+<tr><td>
+<span class="smcap">Ormond G. Smith</span>,<br />
+<span class="smcap">George C. Smith</span>,
+</td>
+<td style="font-size: 200%">}</td><td style="padding-right: 1em;"><i>Proprietors</i>.</td>
+<td class="tdc">
+<b>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers,<br />
+79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York City.</b>
+</td></tr></table>
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+
+
+<h2><a name="A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT" id="A_SNOWBALL_FIGHT">A SNOWBALL FIGHT.</a></h2>
+<hr class="r5" />
+<p class="center">By HORATIO ALGER, Jr.</p>
+<hr class="r5" />
+
+
+<p>The snow had fallen to the depth of six inches during the
+night, filling in the yards and covering the door-steps,
+throughout the town of Conway. Among those who hailed
+the arrival of the snow with joy was Frank Taylor, a boy
+of fourteen, the son of the Widow Taylor, who lived in a
+miserable little tenement not far from the mill. Why he was
+glad to see the snow will soon appear.</p>
+
+<p>Early in the morning he shoveled a path to the street,
+and then putting his shovel over his shoulder, said to his
+mother:</p>
+
+<p>"I'm going over to Squire Ashmead's to see if he doesn't
+want me to shovel paths in his yard."</p>
+
+<p>"He's got a boy of his own," said Mrs. Taylor; "perhaps
+he will do it."</p>
+
+<p>Frank laughed.</p>
+
+<p>"Sam Ashmead is proud and lazy," he said. "You won't
+catch him shoveling paths. I think I shall get the job. I
+want to earn something so that you need not sit all day
+sewing. It is too hard for you."</p>
+
+<p>"I ought to think myself lucky to get employment at all,"
+said the widow.</p>
+
+<p>"I wish I could get steady work somewhere," said Frank;
+"but I've tried and tried, and it seems impossible."</p>
+
+<p>"Willing hands will not want work long," said his mother.</p>
+
+<p>"I hope not, mother. But I must be going, or somebody
+will get the start of me."</p>
+
+<p>While Frank is on his way to Squire Ashmead's, a few
+words of explanation may be given. His mother had been a
+widow for two years. Her husband had been a man of some
+education, having at times taught school, but he had never
+succeeded in laying up any money, and his widow was left
+almost penniless. Frank, who was a stout boy, and a good
+boy as well, had earned something by doing odd jobs, but
+had failed to obtain permanent employment. The burden
+of their joint support, therefore, was thrown upon his
+mother, who was very industrious with her needle, but was
+compelled to labor beyond her strength. All this troubled
+Frank, who felt that, as a stout, strong boy, he ought to bear
+at least half the expense.</p>
+
+<p>In due time he reached Squire Ashmead's, and was glad
+to see that the snow remained undisturbed.</p>
+
+<p>He rang the bell, and asked if he might shovel the paths
+that were necessary.</p>
+
+<p>Squire Ashmead was absent in New York, to which city
+he had gone the morning previous on business, but his wife
+agreed to employ Frank.</p>
+
+<p>He went to work with a will, and soon had a path dug
+from the front door to the gate. A path was also required
+from the back door to the stable, which was situated in the
+rear of the house. This was quite a distance, and as Frank
+wished to do the work thoroughly, it required considerable
+time.</p>
+
+<p>He was about half through this portion of his task when
+a snowball whistled by his ear.</p>
+
+<p>Looking round quickly, he saw Sam Ashmead standing at
+the corner of the house, engaged in making a fresh snowball.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't fire any more snowballs, Sam Ashmead," said
+Frank.</p>
+
+<p>"I shall, if I please," said Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"I haven't time to fire back now," said Frank. "Wait till
+I get through, and we'll have a match if you like."</p>
+
+<p>"But I don't like," said Sam scornfully. "Do you think
+I would have a match with a beggar like you?"</p>
+
+<p>"I am no beggar, Sam Ashmead," said Frank, "and if
+I were I don't think I would beg of you."</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, you're mighty proud," sneered Sam, "considering that
+you live in an old hut not half as good as our stable."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, I am poor, and I live in a poor house," said Frank
+calmly, "but that isn't a crime that I know of. Some time I
+shall live in a better house, I hope."</p>
+
+<p>So saying, he went back to work, and began shoveling
+the snow vigorously. He did not anticipate any further
+attack from Sam, but in this he soon found himself mistaken.</p>
+
+<p>In the course of a minute he felt a pretty hard blow in the
+center of his back, and looking round saw Sam Ashmead
+laughing insolently.</p>
+
+<p>"How does that feel?" asked Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"That's the second snowball you've fired at me," said
+Frank quietly, but there was a light in his eyes as he spoke.
+"I advise you not to fire another if you know what is good
+for yourself."</p>
+
+<p>"So you threaten me, do you? Suppose I fire again, what's
+going to happen?" demanded Sam, with an unpleasant sneer.</p>
+
+<p>"I think you will be sorry for it," said Frank.</p>
+
+<p>Sam hesitated a moment, but only a moment. He was a
+year older than Frank, and larger in size. Certainly he
+ought to be a match for him. But he did not believe that
+Frank would have the audacity to touch him, the son of
+Squire Ashmead, the richest man in the village. He therefore
+deliberately made another snowball, and firing it,
+struck Frank in the back of his head.</p>
+
+<p>Frank no sooner felt the blow than he threw down his
+shovel, and ran toward his assailant.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span></p>
+
+<p>"Keep off, you beggar!" said Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"It's too late," said Frank. "I warned you not to fire
+again."</p>
+
+<p>Sam placed himself in an attitude of defense, but found
+himself seized violently round the middle, and before he
+fairly knew what was going to happen he was lying in a
+snow-bank with Frank standing over him.</p>
+
+<p>He struggled to his feet mad with rage, and "pitched
+into" Frank, as the boys express it, and endeavored to retaliate
+in kind. But Frank was watchful and wary, and evading
+the attack, seized him again when his strength was half
+spent, and Sam found himself once more occupying an involuntary
+bed in the snow.</p>
+
+<p>A third struggle resulted in the same way. Sam was
+furious, but he saw that Frank was more than a match for
+him.</p>
+
+<p>Just then a servant called out from the door:</p>
+
+<p>"Master Sam, your mother says it's time for you to be
+going to school."</p>
+
+<p>To tell the truth, Sam was rather glad of the summons, as
+it gave him an excuse for retiring from the contest.</p>
+
+<p>"I'll be even with you yet," he said, shaking his fist at
+Frank. "I'll let my father know how you insulted me, you
+young beggar!"</p>
+
+<p>"If anybody has been insulted, I have," said Frank. "You
+must remember that you began it."</p>
+
+<p>Sam scowled vindictively, and brushing the snow from his
+coat went into the house. Before Frank finished the path
+at the back of the house he was gone to school.</p>
+
+<p>Mrs. Ashmead sent out fifty cents to Frank for his morning's
+work, with which he went home, well satisfied, wishing
+that he might earn as much every day. He wondered a little
+whether Sam would tell his father what had occurred between
+them. He did not speak of it to his mother, for she
+was nervous, and would be troubled by it, as she received
+considerable work to do from the Ashmead family which she
+might fear would be taken away.</p>
+
+<p>On the afternoon of the next day, however, Frank received
+a note, which proved to come from Squire Ashmead. It ran
+as follows:</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>"<span class="smcap">Frank Taylor</span>: Please call at my office to-morrow morning
+at ten o'clock.</p>
+
+<p class="sig">
+<span class="smcap">James Ashmead.</span>"<br />
+</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>This note Frank thought best to show to his mother.</p>
+
+<p>"What does it mean, Frank? Have you any idea?" she
+asked.</p>
+
+<p>Frank thereupon told her the story of his difficulty with
+Sam.</p>
+
+<p>"It may be about that," he said.</p>
+
+<p>"Oh, dear," said the widow. "I'm afraid he's very angry.
+I hope you will apologize, Frank."</p>
+
+<p>"No, mother," said Frank, "I don't see why I should. I
+only defended myself from a bully. I should be ashamed
+to do anything else. I didn't hurt him, and didn't intend to,
+but I wanted to teach him that he couldn't insult me without
+having to pay for it."</p>
+
+<p>"I am afraid some harm will come of it," said the widow
+anxiously.</p>
+
+<p>"Don't trouble yourself, mother," said Frank soothingly.
+"If we do only what's right, God will take care of us."</p>
+
+<p>Still it was with some anxiety that Frank made his way
+the next morning to the office of Squire Ashmead. This
+gentleman was the agent of a large manufactory in the town,
+of which also he was a considerable owner, so that he received
+an income of over ten thousand dollars a year, which
+made him the most prominent and influential citizen in the
+town.</p>
+
+<p>When Frank entered the office, Squire Ashmead was conversing
+with a stranger on business.</p>
+
+<p>"Sit down," he said, turning to Frank. "I will be at
+leisure in a moment."</p>
+
+<p>"Well," he said, after the stranger had departed, "Sam
+tells me you and he have had a little difficulty."</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir," said Frank. "I would like to explain how it
+occurred."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well. Go on."</p>
+
+<p>It will be unnecessary to give the explanation, as it was
+strictly in accordance with the facts.</p>
+
+<p>"Do you blame me for what I did?" asked Frank, at the
+end.</p>
+
+<p>"No, I do not," said the squire. "Sam acted like a bully,
+and was properly punished. Let that pass. Now let me ask
+you how you and your mother are getting along?"</p>
+
+<p>"Poorly, sir," said Frank. "If I could have steady work,
+it would be different, but that I cannot get. It troubles me
+to see my mother work so hard all day. I think it is too
+much for her."</p>
+
+<p>"How would you like to come into my office?"</p>
+
+<p>Frank's eyes sparkled.</p>
+
+<p>"I should think myself very lucky, sir, to get so good a
+chance."</p>
+
+<p>"I want some boy whom I can trust, who can grow up to
+the business, and after a time relieve me of a portion of my
+cares. I would take Sam, but I am sorry to say, though he
+is my own son, that he would not answer my purpose. I
+have heard good accounts of you from your teacher and the
+people in the village. I will take you at a salary of six dollars
+a week, to be increased from time to time if you will
+suit me. Can you come Monday morning?"</p>
+
+<p>"Yes, sir," said Frank, "and I will do my best to give you
+satisfaction."</p>
+
+<p>"Very well, my lad. Good morning."</p>
+
+<p>Frank left the office, feeling as if his fortune was made.
+His mother, who was awaiting the result of the interview
+anxiously at home, was overwhelmed with astonishment at
+the unexpected good fortune of her son. Sam was disagreeably
+surprised, and tried to shake his father's resolution,
+but Squire Ashmead was a sensible man, and not to be
+moved.</p>
+
+<p>Frank commenced his duties the next Monday. He was
+so faithful that he was rapidly advanced, and at twenty-one
+was receiving twelve hundred dollars a year. At
+twenty-five, on the sudden death of Squire Ashmead, he succeeded
+to his agency, and now lives with his mother in the
+mansion at which he once thought himself lucky to be permitted
+to shovel the paths. As for Sam, he squandered the
+handsome property received from his father, and died at
+thirty from the effects of intemperate habits.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING" id="SECRETS_OF_TRICK_SHOOTING">SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>When a champion rifle shot fires blindfolded at a wedding-ring,
+or a penny held between his wife's thumb and
+finger, or, seated back to her, shoots, by means of a mirror,
+at an apple upon her head or on a fork held in her teeth,
+the danger of using a bullet is obvious. None, of course,
+is needed; the explosion is enough. The apple is already
+prepared, having been cut into pieces and stuck together with<span class="pagenum"><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span>
+an adhesive substance, and a thread with a knot at the end,
+pulled through it from the "wings," so that it flies to bits
+when the gun is fired, is "how it is done."</p>
+
+<p>Generally, the more dangerous a feat appears the more
+carefully is all danger guarded against. In the "William
+Tell" act the thread is often tied to the assistant's foot.
+When, again, the ash is shot off a cigar which the assistant
+is smoking, a piece of wire is pushed by his tongue through
+a hollowed passage in the cigar&mdash;thus thrusting off the ash
+at the moment of firing.</p>
+
+<p>A favorite but simple trick is the shooting from some
+distance at an orange held in a lady's hand. Great applause
+is invariably forthcoming when the bullet drops out on
+her, cutting open the fruit. It is inserted by hand earlier in
+the evening.</p>
+
+<p>Another popular trick is that of snuffing out lighted candles.
+Half a dozen are placed in front of a screen in
+which as many small holes are bored, one against each
+candlewick. At the moment of firing, a confederate behind
+the screen sharply blows out each candle with a pair of
+bellows. This trick was accidentally exposed one evening
+by a too zealous assistant. The lady in the gallery pulled
+the trigger, but the rifle failed to go off; the candle, however,
+went out just the same.</p>
+
+<p>In most instances, where a ball or other object has to be
+broken on a living person's head, blank cartridge is used
+and the effect produced by other means. A special wig,
+with a spring concealed in it, worked by a wire under the
+clothes, is generally used, the confederate manipulating the
+spring simultaneously with the firing of the rifle. As the
+ball is of extremely thin glass, a mere touch suffices to
+shatter it.</p>
+
+<p>In these exhibitions some of the rifle "experts" invite
+gentlemen from the audience to testify that the weapon is
+indeed loaded. The cartridge shown looks very well, but it
+is a shell of thin wax blackened to resemble a leaden bullet.
+It would not hurt a fly.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="REELFOOT_LAKE" id="REELFOOT_LAKE">REELFOOT LAKE.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>The physical history of Reelfoot Lake, of night-rider
+fame, is not without a certain interest of its own. The lake
+came into existence as the result of a series of earthquakes,
+which began in December, 1811, and continued until June,
+1812.</p>
+
+<p>Some authorities say that the earthquakes merely heaved
+up a great ridge of land across the path of the Reelfoot
+River, which runs into the Mississippi, and that this dam
+caused the water to back up and broaden out and form a
+lake; but the favorite account in the neighborhood is to the
+effect that the ground sank, springs were opened up, neighboring
+creeks diverted from their course, and the overflowing
+water of the Mississippi rushed in during the flood season
+of the spring of 1812.</p>
+
+<p>It is said that for an hour and a half the waters of the
+Mississippi flowed up-hill while filling up the depression
+caused by the earthquakes. Both accounts likely have this
+much of truth in them that the entire configuration of the
+ground was changed by the earthquakes. Big Lake, west of
+the Mississippi, in Arkansas, is said to have been formed in
+the same way at the same time.</p>
+
+<p>Reelfoot Lake is sixteen or eighteen miles long, very
+irregular in shape, and covers from 35,000 to 40,000 acres of
+land. It varies in width from a mile in some places to four
+or five miles in others. The northern end is extended by a
+series of sloughs and bayous into Kentucky.</p>
+
+<p>The most distinctive feature of the lake's appearance, the
+feature which first impresses and stays longest with the
+observer's fancy, is a certain grotesque effect, as if a set of
+crazy men had been operating a pile-driver there for the
+last century, for the trunks, stumps, and stark branches of
+dead trees stick out of it everywhere in desolate parody of
+some such human handiwork; far below the surface the
+fish dart among the boles and branches where the squirrels
+frolicked a hundred years ago.</p>
+
+<p>There are beautiful spots here and there, but the effect,
+as a whole, is not beautiful; at its best, when the mist rises
+and myriad protruding tree trunks are white and ghostly in
+the moonlight, it is weird; the general remembrance is of
+something uncouth. It is a kind of sloven lake that has
+preferred to sit down with its hair uncombed all day long,
+but at night it does manage to achieve a touch of wizard
+dignity.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="A_FLOATING_SLUM" id="A_FLOATING_SLUM">A FLOATING SLUM.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Stand beside the imperial custom-house at Canton and let
+the eye range down the river toward Hongkong. As far as
+the sight can reach lie boats, boats, and again boats. These
+are no ordinary craft, mere vessels of transport plying hither
+and thither, but the countless homes of myriad Chinese, in
+which millions of human beings have been born, have lived,
+and have died. They are the dwellings of the very poor,
+who live in them practically free from rent, taxes, and the
+other burdens of the ordinary citizen.</p>
+
+<p>The Tankia&mdash;which means boat-dwellers&mdash;as the denizens
+of these floating houses are called, form a sort of caste apart
+from the rest of the Cantonese. The shore-dwellers regard
+them as belonging to a lower social order; and indeed they
+have many customs, peculiar to themselves, which mark them
+as a separate community. How the swarming masses of
+them contrive to support existence is a mystery, but their
+chief mode of employment is in carrying merchandise and
+passengers from place to place.</p>
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA" id="WILD_HORSES_OF_NEVADA">WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Horses are cheap in Nevada. On the government ranges,
+where they are protected by game-laws, droves of wild horses
+exist which in the aggregate are said to amount to fifteen
+thousand. Formerly there was a law in Nevada permitting
+the shooting of these wild horses for their hides, but there
+were hunters who were not particular, and the ranchers
+found their domestic horses disappearing if they let them out
+on the range. So their shooting was prohibited, and since
+that time the droves have grown to be exceedingly troublesome.
+They can be domesticated, but they are not needed
+there, and it costs too much to ship them East. It seems
+a pity that, while so many sections could use them to advantage,
+the transportation problem makes it impossible to
+get them at a price which they are worth.</p>
+
+
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p class="large center">ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT!!</p>
+
+<p class="huge center">MOTOR STORIES</p>
+
+<p class="center"><b><i>A New Idea in the Way of Five-Cent Weeklies.</i></b></p>
+
+<p>Boys everywhere will be delighted to hear that Street &amp; Smith are
+now issuing this new five-cent weekly which will be known by the
+name of MOTOR STORIES.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+
+<p>This weekly is entirely different from anything now being published. It details
+the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a motor cycle.
+Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these swift little machines
+that scud about the roads everywhere throughout the United States? Is there a
+boy, therefore, who will not be intensely interested in the adventures of "Motor
+Matt," as he is familiarly called by his comrades?</p>
+
+<p>Boys, you have never read anything half so exciting, half so humorous and
+entertaining as the first story listed for publication in this line, called <b>"Motor Matt;
+or, The King of the Wheel."</b> Its fame is bound to spread like wildfire,
+causing the biggest demand for the other numbers in this line, that was ever
+heard of in the history of this class of literature.</p>
+
+<p>Here are the titles to be issued during the next few weeks. Do not fail to
+place an order for them with your newsdealer.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p class="medium">
+No. 1. Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.<br />
+No. 2. Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.<br />
+No. 3. Motor Matt's "Century" Run; or, The Governor's Courier.<br />
+No. 4. Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the <i>Comet</i>.<br />
+</p>
+<hr />
+<table summary="scaffold"><tr><td class="tdl" style="padding-right: 1em;">32 LARGE SIZE PAGES</td>
+<td class="tdr">SPLENDID COLORED COVERS</td></tr></table>
+
+<p class="large center">PRICE, FIVE CENTS PER COPY</p>
+<hr />
+<p class="center">AT ALL NEWSDEALERS, OR SENT POSTPAID BY THE PUBLISHERS
+UPON RECEIPT OF THE PRICE.</p>
+
+<p class="center large"><i>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK</i></p>
+
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+
+<p class="center large"><i>THE BEST OF THEM ALL!!</i></p>
+
+<p class="center huge">MOTOR STORIES</p>
+
+<p class="center">IT IS NEW AND INTENSELY INTERESTING</p>
+
+
+<p>We knew before we published this line that it would have a tremendous sale and our
+expectations were more than realized. It is going with a rush, and the boys who want to
+read these, the most interesting and fascinating tales ever written, must speak to their
+newsdealers about reserving copies for them.</p>
+
+<p><b class="bbox">MOTOR MATT</b> sprang into instant favor with American boy readers and is
+bound to occupy a place in their hearts second only to that now held by Frank Merriwell.</p>
+
+<p>The reason for this popularity is apparent in every line of these stories. They are
+written by an author who has made a life study of the requirements of the up-to-date American
+boy as far as literature is concerned, so it is not surprising that this line has proven a
+huge success from the very start.</p>
+
+<p>Here are the titles now ready and also those to be published. You will never have a
+better opportunity to get a generous quantity of reading of the highest quality, so place
+your orders now.</p>
+
+<blockquote>
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 1.&mdash;Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 2.&mdash;Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 3.&mdash;Motor Matt's Century Run; or, The Governor's Courier.</b><br />
+<b class="medium">No. 4.&mdash;Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the "Comet."</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22nd</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 5.&mdash;Motor Matt's Mystery; or, Foiling a Secret Plot.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 29th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 6.&mdash;Motor Matt's Red Flier; or, On the High Gear.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 5th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 7.&mdash;Motor Matt's Clue; or, The Phantom Auto.</b><br />
+</p>
+
+<p class="center">TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 12th</p>
+
+<p>
+<b class="medium">No. 8.&mdash;Motor Matt's Triumph; or, Three Speeds Forward.</b><br />
+</p>
+</blockquote>
+
+<p>
+<b class="huge" style="margin-right: 0.5em;">Price, Five Cents</b>      To be had from newsdealers everywhere, or sent,
+postpaid, upon receipt of the price by the publishers<br />
+</p>
+
+
+<p class="center large"><i>STREET &amp; SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK</i></p>
+
+<hr class="chap" />
+<h2><a name="Transcribers_Notes" id="Transcribers_Notes">Transcriber's Note:</a></h2>
+
+
+<p>Added table of contents.</p>
+
+<p>Cover image may be clicked to view larger version.</p>
+
+<p>Retained some inconsistent hyphenation (e.g. "motorcycle" vs.
+"motor-cycle").</p>
+
+<p>Retained some inconsistent spellings in dialect (e.g. "becase" vs.
+"bekase").</p>
+
+<p>Page 3, added missing comma after ""Vell, py shinks." Added missing
+apostrophe after "doan" in "Why doan' yo'-all git." Removed unnecessary
+quote after "Matt stopped the Red Flier."</p>
+
+<p>Page 4, removed unnecessary quote after "Legree was about to secure it?"</p>
+
+<p>Page 5, changed "as she pointed" to "as he pointed."</p>
+
+<p>Page 10, "would came after it" looks like a typo but has been retained
+in case it is intentional dialect.</p>
+
+<p>Page 14, removed unnecessary quote before "Matt's pulses quickened."</p>
+
+<p>Page 18, added missing period after "Josh turned to stare along the
+road."</p>
+
+<p>Page 19, changed "Mat" to "Matt" in "Matt was intending to push the
+stone."</p>
+
+<p>Page 20, the sentence "As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping
+from up the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun."
+seems incorrect, but it is reproduced as originally printed.</p>
+
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<p>&nbsp;</p>
+<hr class="full" />
+<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE HIGH GEAR***</p>
+<p>******* This file should be named 47491-h.htm or 47491-h.zip *******</p>
+<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br />
+<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/7/4/9/47491">http://www.gutenberg.org/4/7/4/9/47491</a></p>
+<p>
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will
+be renamed.</p>
+
+<p>Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
+law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
+so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United
+States without permission and without paying copyright
+royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
+of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm
+concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
+and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive
+specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this
+eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook
+for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports,
+performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given
+away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks
+not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the
+trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.
+</p>
+
+<h2>START: FULL LICENSE<br />
+<br />
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE<br />
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK</h2>
+
+<p>To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
+Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at
+www.gutenberg.org/license.</p>
+
+<h3>Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works</h3>
+
+<p>1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
+destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your
+possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
+Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
+by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the
+person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph
+1.E.8.</p>
+
+<p>1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
+paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this
+agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.</p>
+
+<p>1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the
+Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
+of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual
+works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
+States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
+United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
+claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
+displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
+all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
+that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting
+free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm
+works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
+Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily
+comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
+same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when
+you share it without charge with others.</p>
+
+<p>1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
+in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
+check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
+agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
+distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
+other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no
+representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
+country outside the United States.</p>
+
+<p>1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:</p>
+
+<p>1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
+immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear
+prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work
+on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed,
+performed, viewed, copied or distributed:</p>
+
+<blockquote><p>This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United
+  States and most other parts of the world 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 <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you
+  are not located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws
+  of the country where you are located before using this
+  ebook.</p></blockquote>
+
+<p>1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is
+derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
+contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
+copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
+the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
+redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
+either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
+obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
+additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
+will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works
+posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
+beginning of this work.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
+any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
+to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format
+other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official
+version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site
+(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
+to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
+of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain
+Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the
+full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.</p>
+
+<p>1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+provided that</p>
+
+<ul>
+<li>You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+  the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+  you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
+  to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has
+  agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
+  within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
+  legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
+  payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
+  Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
+  Literary Archive Foundation."</li>
+
+<li>You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+  you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+  does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+  License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
+  copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
+  all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm
+  works.</li>
+
+<li>You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
+  any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+  electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
+  receipt of the work.</li>
+
+<li>You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+  distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.</li>
+</ul>
+
+<p>1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than
+are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
+from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The
+Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
+Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
+contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
+or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
+intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
+other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
+cannot be read by your equipment.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
+with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
+with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
+lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
+or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
+opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
+the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
+without further opportunities to fix the problem.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO
+OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
+LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
+damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
+violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
+agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
+limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
+unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
+remaining provisions.</p>
+
+<p>1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in
+accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
+production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
+including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
+the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
+or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or
+additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any
+Defect you cause.  </p>
+
+<h3>Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm</h3>
+
+<p>Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
+computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
+exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
+from people in all walks of life.</p>
+
+<p>Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future
+generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
+Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at
+www.gutenberg.org.</p>
+
+<h3>Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation</h3>
+
+<p>The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
+U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.</p>
+
+<p>The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the
+mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its
+volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous
+locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt
+Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to
+date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and
+official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact</p>
+
+<p>For additional contact information:</p>
+
+<p> Dr. Gregory B. Newby<br />
+    Chief Executive and Director<br />
+    gbnewby@pglaf.org</p>
+
+<h3>Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation</h3>
+
+<p>Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.</p>
+
+<p>The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
+DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular
+state visit <a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/donate">www.gutenberg.org/donate</a>.</p>
+
+<p>While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.</p>
+
+<p>International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.</p>
+
+<p>Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
+donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate</p>
+
+<h3>Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works.</h3>
+
+<p>Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be
+freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
+distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of
+volunteer support.</p>
+
+<p>Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
+the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
+necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
+edition.</p>
+
+<p>Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search
+facility: www.gutenberg.org</p>
+
+<p>This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.</p>
+
+</body>
+</html>
+
diff --git a/old/47491-h/images/cover.jpg b/old/47491-h/images/cover.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..334c9eb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-h/images/cover.jpg
diff --git a/old/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg b/old/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a601ef9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491-h/images/coverlarge.jpg
diff --git a/old/47491.txt b/old/47491.txt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..330e691
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,5052 @@
+The Project Gutenberg eBook, Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear,
+by Stanley R. Matthews
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most
+other parts of the world 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.  If you are not located in the United States, you'll have
+to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook.
+
+
+
+
+Title: Motor Matt's Red Flyer, or, On the High Gear
+       Motor Stories Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction No. 6, April 3, 1909
+
+
+Author: Stanley R. Matthews
+
+
+
+Release Date: November 29, 2014  [eBook #47491]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE
+HIGH GEAR***
+
+
+E-text prepared by David Edwards, Demian Katz, and the Online Distributed
+Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made
+available by Villanova University Digital Library
+(http://digital.library.villanova.edu/)
+
+
+
+Note: Project Gutenberg also has an HTML version of this
+      file which includes the original illustrated book cover.
+      See 47491-h.htm or 47491-h.zip:
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h/47491-h.htm)
+      or
+      (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/47491/47491-h.zip)
+
+
+      Images of the original pages are available through
+      Villanova University Digital Library. See
+      http://digital.library.villanova.edu/Item/vudl:304205
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+      Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).
+
+      Text enclosed by equal signs is in bold face (=bold=).
+
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+No. 6 Apr. 3, 1909
+
+Five Cents
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR ON THE HIGH GEAR
+
+by
+
+STANLEY R. MATTHEWS
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+Street & Smith,
+Publishers,
+New York.
+
+
+[Illustration: _"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
+the girl's aid, "dot pelongs to Moder Matt!"_]
+
+
+
+
+Motor Stories
+
+Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
+
+_Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to
+Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of
+Congress, Washington, D. C., by_ STREET & SMITH, _79-89 Seventh Avenue,
+New York, N. Y._
+
+No. 6.      NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.      Price Five Cents.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
+
+OR,
+
+ON THE HIGH GEAR.
+
+By the author of "MOTOR MATT."
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+  CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+  CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+  CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+  CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+  CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.
+  CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+  CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.
+  CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+  CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.
+  CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.
+  CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.
+  CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.
+  CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+  CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+  CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+  CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.
+  A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+  SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+  REELFOOT LAKE.
+  A FLOATING SLUM.
+  WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+
+
+CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.
+
+
+  =Matt King=, concerning whom there has always been a mystery--a lad
+  of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who has won
+  for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the popular name of
+  "Mile-a-minute Matt."
+
+  =Carl Pretzel=, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
+  fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.
+
+  "=Legree=," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about whom
+  something mysterious seems to hover.
+
+  "=Little Eva=," who turns out to be other than appearances would seem
+  to indicate.
+
+  "=Eliza=,"     }
+  "=Uncle Tom=," } other members of the unlucky road combination
+  "=Topsy=,"     } helped by Motor Matt.
+
+  =Brisco=,   } a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
+  =Spangler=, } Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
+
+  =O'Grady=, an inn-keeper.
+
+  =Lem Nugent=, the owner of the stolen runabout.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's in de ruvver! He
+drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit head first lak er frawg. He's
+drowndin', he sholey is! By golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis
+minyit! Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"
+
+Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she screeched for help she
+ran circles on the river-bank, tossing her hands wildly. If she had put
+some of her aimless energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed
+old negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off. He was
+floundering and thrashing and making a good deal of noise himself.
+
+"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got de crampus en
+mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off! Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's
+gawn down, en de nex' time Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f
+out none--doan' scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a coon
+whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh an'----"
+
+Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less, just then, and his
+language was submerged.
+
+"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back through the
+brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree. "Do something,
+somebody! Oh, I wish we had a rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she
+added encouragingly; "we'll get you out!"
+
+"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself around like
+dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me
+a pain. Can't y' swim?"
+
+Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.
+
+"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the bank and reaching
+out to throw the whip-lash toward the old negro, "grab hold of that and
+I'll snake you ashore too quick for any use."
+
+Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water from his eyes, saw
+the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon Legree laid back on the handle and
+pulled. Uncle Tom was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The
+water came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.
+
+"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say, give me a pair o'
+high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat roarin' torrent widou' never
+wettin' me kicks. How much water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle
+Tom? Oh, sister, what a jolt."
+
+Little Eva began to laugh.
+
+"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around on one foot to get
+the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an' show yo' ignunce. Dat didun'
+git away f'um me, nohow," and he threw a small tin box on the ground in
+front of Legree.
+
+Eliza stooped and picked up the box.
+
+"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle Tom must have been
+careless. What were you and Topsy walking along by the river for?" he
+added, turning to the old negro.
+
+"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy, pointing to the
+ground where a stick with a fish-line attached to its end had been
+dropped.
+
+"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' see
+how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan' ketch er fish er kill er possum,
+er somepin lak dat. Mah goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah
+shoes. If a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han', Ah
+wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants tuh kin tote dat 'ar
+box. Ah done had enough ob it."
+
+"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to the next town we'll
+have something to eat."
+
+"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de money, huh?"
+
+"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in her voice,
+"and I'll pawn it."
+
+"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch, and I'll pawn
+that."
+
+"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's head
+wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I couldn't hand dat mutt a
+couple o' good ones if he was handy!"
+
+Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's ears--for "Little
+Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.
+
+"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the boy's father. "You
+can talk a lot without saying much, kid. Come on, everybody," he added.
+"The quicker we get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
+in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."
+
+"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle Tom. "De rheumatix
+is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun' if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif
+mahse'f."
+
+"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back toward the road.
+
+"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah kin do tuh walk
+at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered. Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus
+tough on er ole man, sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis
+country? Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons? Ah'd give
+a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a wagon."
+
+Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his wet sleeve and
+helped him along. In a few minutes they broke away from the river-bank
+into the road.
+
+Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced along with a pocket
+full of stones, and every once in a while he stopped to make a throw at
+a road-runner or a chipmunk.
+
+Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing so thickly that
+it was impossible to see very far into the timber. Eliza and Legree,
+talking over the difficulties in which they found themselves and trying
+to plan some way for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance,
+while Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little Eva
+was dodging around in between, now and then shying at something with a
+stone.
+
+The strange little party had not proceeded far before the boy heard
+a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he might find in such a wild
+country, he jumped into the thicket. And then he jumped out again,
+yelling like a Comanche.
+
+"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road. "Dere's somet'ing
+chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an' has a mout' like a church
+door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer lives!"
+
+The other four gave their immediate attention to Little Eva, and then
+changed it to something that rolled out of the undergrowth directly
+behind them.
+
+"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody climb a tree!"
+
+This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little Eva shinned up a
+sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into a scrub oak, and then started
+for a neighboring pine himself, and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous
+amount of reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.
+
+"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he fluttered,
+getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of the tree with both
+arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered, craning his neck to get a good look
+at the cause of the disturbance. "Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan'
+want no truck wif you."
+
+The bear was a grizzly--not a large grizzly, but plenty large enough.
+There were lots of bigger bears in that part of Arizona, but this was
+the biggest one Fate had to run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."
+
+Having gained a position about half-way up and down the line of treed
+actors, the bear sat down in the road and proceeded to enjoy the
+situation.
+
+"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of the pine: "is
+everybody all right?"
+
+"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right, dad," answered
+Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's all t' de good. But, say, I
+ain't feelin' real comfertable in me mind."
+
+"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy. "Hit ain't right
+tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when we's all tiah'd out."
+
+"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle Tom, "en tie dat whip
+erroun' his neck an' strangle de life outen him. Beah meat is mighty
+nigh as good as possum, an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."
+
+"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go away. I guess he's
+thinking more about making a meal off of us than letting us make one
+from him."
+
+"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling tones, by way of
+enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one
+yo' sholey is gwine tuh fin' anudder."
+
+"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin' down de road lak er
+singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah golly! We's all as good as daid--we's all
+gwine tuh be et up."
+
+Strange noises were coming from along the back track, coming rapidly
+and growing louder and louder.
+
+"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle Tom, climbing
+a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes is dat he ain't big enough tuh
+reach up en take me outen de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en
+mah bones."
+
+The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed to puzzle him. He
+sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly, and then dropped down on
+all fours and ambled into the brush.
+
+The next moment, to the astonishment of the four actors, a sparkling
+red automobile rushed into sight, coming from the direction of Ash Fork
+and headed toward Fairview.
+
+A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's seat; beside him
+was a young German in a "loud" suit and a red vest.
+
+"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"
+
+"Saved!" cried Eliza.
+
+The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the same place where
+the bear had recently held the fort.
+
+The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of amazement as they
+stared at the odd assortment of actors hanging in the trees.
+
+"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a jeerful pitzness
+und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I efer knowed it bossiple to
+pick actor-peoples oudt oof der drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor
+Matt?"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
+
+
+Motor Matt didn't know what to think. The queerest lot of people
+he ever saw were dropping out of the trees and hurrying toward the
+automobile.
+
+First, there was a young woman of seventeen or eighteen, wearing a
+dust-coat and gauntlets. There was a look of intense relief on her
+pretty face.
+
+Following her came a tall, slimly built man, whose clothes suggested
+the ruffian, but whose face was anything but vicious. He carried a
+blacksnake whip.
+
+A boy trailed after the man. He wasn't a handsome boy, by any means,
+but his eyes were bright and sharp and he had a clever look.
+
+From the other way along the road came an old darky in tattered, soggy
+clothes. A young negro girl hurried along beside him.
+
+"Well," breathed Motor Matt, "if this ain't a brain-twister I don't
+want a cent. Who are they, Carl? One of them seems to know you."
+
+"Sure I knows him," spoke up the boy. "Got wise t' Carl Pretzel in
+Denver. 'Pretzel an' Pringle, Musical Marvels.' W'ere's Pringle, Dutch?"
+
+"Don't say someding aboudt him," answered Carl. "I haf scratched him
+off my visiding-list, yah, you bed you. Pringle iss some pad eggs, und
+ve don'd ged along mit each odder. Matt, dis vas Liddle Efa, who blays
+mit a Ungle Dom's Capin Gompany. Ven he geds his leedle curly-viggies
+on, he looks fine--schust like some girls, yes. Who iss der odder
+peobles, Efa?"
+
+"Dis is me fader, Dutch," answered the boy; "he's de guy wot licks
+Uncle Tom in de show. De loidy is Eliza, an' say, she's got 'em all
+skinned w'en it comes t' jumpin' acrost de river on cakes of ice. Dat's
+Uncle Tom, scramblin' into de auto wit'out waitin' f'r an invite, an'
+de goil is Topsy."
+
+"Young man," said Legree, stepping forward and addressing Motor Matt,
+"we're what's left of Brisco's Uncle Tom's Cabin Company. Brisco took
+all the funds and left us in the lurch at Brockville, the station west
+of Ash Fork. The constable took our tent, and properties, and even the
+bloodhounds. We were left with the clothes we stood in, and that's
+all. Marks, and St. Clair, and the rest, made a raise and rode back to
+Denver in the train. They didn't have enough to help us out, and so
+we've started to walk as far as Flagstaff. When we get there, we're
+going to get up some sort of an entertainment and see if we can't pull
+down enough hard cash to see us through to Denver. Brisco owes all of
+us money. Barrin' the kid, here, he beat each one of us out of more'n a
+hundred dollars. But we're goin' to get him; you see if we don't."
+
+A grim look came to Legree's face.
+
+"Veil," said Carl, "be jeerful und don'd vorry. I haf der same kindt
+oof pad luck, den I met oop mit Modor Matt und der luck dook a shange.
+Meppy yours vill dake a shange, too."
+
+"We're going to Albuquerque," spoke up Matt, "and if you don't mind
+being crowded we can give you a lift as far as Flagstaff."
+
+A long breath of satisfaction broke from Uncle Tom.
+
+"Dat's fine," said he. "Dis niggah am sholy tuckered. Why doan' yo'-all
+git intuh de wagon? Dat beah am li'ble tuh come snoopin' an' pesterin'
+back."
+
+"Pear?" cried Carl. "Vat you say, huh? Iss dere a pear aroundt here?"
+
+"Dat's no dream, Dutch," answered the boy. "Wot did yous t'ink it was
+chased us up dem trees?"
+
+"Everythin's been goin' wrong with us ever since we hit Brockville,"
+said Legree. "A lot more'll happen, too, but I reckon we're done with
+the bear. This machine scared the brute away. How'll you have us in the
+car, Motor Matt?"
+
+"Little Eva, as you call him," said Matt, laughing a little as he
+looked at the boy, "had better get in front here with Carl. That will
+leave four of you for the tonneau. It won't be long until we get to
+Fairview, and we'll stop there for dinner."
+
+"Um-yum," said Topsy; "golly, but dat sounds good! Dinnah! Heah dat,
+Unc' Tawn?"
+
+Uncle Tom smacked his lips and rolled up the whites of his eyes.
+
+"Doan' say a wo'd, chile," he cautioned. "Dis seems jess lak er dream,
+dis ride in de debble-wagon, de dinnah, en all. Yo' speak too loud,
+Ah's fearin' Ah's done gwine tuh woke up."
+
+With his load of stranded actors aboard, all rejoicing in the good
+luck that had brought Matt and Carl along with the automobile at that
+particular time, the young motorist cranked up, threw in the clutch and
+started. Hardly were they under good headway when a sharp cry came from
+Eliza.
+
+"Stop! The box! I dropped it when I got up into that tree."
+
+Matt stopped the Red Flier.
+
+"Pox?" cried Carl; "vat iss dot?"
+
+"Dat's whut got me into de ruvver," said Uncle Tom. "Ah 'lows dat box
+is er heap mo' trouble dan hit's worf."
+
+"If we ever get hold of Brisco," returned Legree, "it'll be that box
+that does it for us. Wait here a minute, Motor Matt, and I'll go back
+and get it. I think I know right where it is."
+
+Legree got out of the car, went back along the road, and vanished among
+the bushes.
+
+"Is der money in der pox?" asked Carl.
+
+"We don't know what's in it," answered Eliza.
+
+"Dot's keveer. How vill dot pox helup you ged holt oof Prisco?"
+
+"Brisco always kept it by him," went on Eliza, "so we know he thinks
+it's valuable. He told Legree, once, he wouldn't lose the box for ten
+thousand dollars."
+
+"How did you come to get hold of it?" inquired Matt.
+
+"That's the queer part of it. Brisco left the Brockville hotel during
+the night----"
+
+"An' I picked it up by de door, next mornin'," chimed in the boy.
+"Brisco must have dropped it when he made dat getaway. It was blacker
+dan a stack o' black cats, dat night, an' he wasn't able t' use his
+lamps."
+
+"When Marks, and Harris, and St. Clair, and the rest of the company
+left Brockville," continued Eliza, "they told us to keep the box and
+not give it up until Brisco paid over what he owed. We lost our wages
+and everything else we had except the clothes on our backs."
+
+"Dot's me," spoke up Carl; "I vas fixed der same vat you are. Den,
+pympy, Modor Matt come along mit himseluf, shpoke some jeerful vorts
+mit me, dook me for a bard, und luck made a shange. Meppy dot iss how
+it vill be mit you."
+
+"Seems lak he was a long time findin' dat dere box," said Uncle Tom.
+"Ah's honin' fo' dat hotel in Fairview, an' fo' dat dinnah, an' fo' to
+dry dese clothes. Mistah Legree is a monstus long time, an' no mistake."
+
+"Stay here, all of you," said Matt, getting out of the car. "I'll go
+back and see if I can help find the box. If it's so important, it won't
+do to leave it behind."
+
+"I'll go 'long wit' yous," chirped the boy.
+
+Before he could get out of the car, the sharp, incisive note of a
+revolver echoed from the bushes at the trail-side, close to the place
+where Legree had vanished into them.
+
+Eliza stifled a scream.
+
+"Mah goodness!" fluttered Topsy. "Somebody's done gone tuh shootin'!"
+
+"It wasn't dad, dat's a cinch!" cried the boy. "He didn't have no gun!"
+
+"Stay there!" called Matt to the boy, as he whirled and hurried on.
+"Stand ready to crank up the machine, Carl," he added, "in case we
+have to start in a hurry." Matt had dropped into the troubles of these
+forlorn "Uncle Tommers" with bewildering suddenness. He hadn't had the
+remotest notion that there was going to be any violence, or shooting,
+and the report of the revolver had sent a thrill of alarm through him.
+
+Had Brisco been tracking the unfortunate actors, and had he attempted
+to make way with the tin box just as Legree was about to secure it?
+
+As Matt drew closer to the thicket, he heard sharp and angry voices.
+One voice he recognized as belonging to Legree, and the other struck a
+strangely familiar note in his ear. He had heard that voice somewhere
+before--but where?
+
+There were only two voices taking part in the talk, but the man who
+had intercepted Legree was armed. Matt knew it would stand him in hand
+to be cautious, so, instead of turning directly from the road into the
+brush, he darted for the timber some distance beyond the scene of the
+altercation. Then, making his way back warily, he pushed through the
+bushes.
+
+He made very little noise--so little that his approach was not heard
+by either of the two men. Legree, however, was standing in such a
+position that he could not help seeing Matt. He was facing the other
+man, and the latter had his back to the young motorist.
+
+There was something familiar about that back, but even yet Matt could
+not recall who the man was.
+
+The fellow was roughly dressed. In his right hand he was holding a
+revolver, pointing it squarely at Legree, and in his left hand he was
+holding a small tin box.
+
+"If ye think ye can fool Hank Brisco," the man with the weapon was
+saying, "ye're far wide o' yer trail. He's got a ottermobill, now, what
+kin shoot through the kentry like a cannon-ball, an' I reckon thar'll
+be some Cain raised on this part o' the range afore many moons. You
+take my advice an' hike out o' here without tryin' ter make Hank any
+trouble, er----"
+
+Just at that moment Motor Matt's opportunity came. Flinging himself
+forward suddenly, he grabbed the revolver out of the ruffian's hand.
+
+"Bully for you, Matt!" cried Legree.
+
+The next instant Legree's blacksnake whip had curled itself about the
+ruffian's left wrist, girdling the skin like a loop of fire.
+
+The man roared out an oath. The pain must have been intense, for his
+fingers curled away from the box and he caught his wrist with his other
+hand.
+
+Matt stared. When the ruffian had turned and rushed into the woods,
+cursing and vowing vengeance, Matt continued to stare.
+
+"Ever seen that man before, Matt?" asked Legree, surprised at the boy's
+manner.
+
+"I should say so!" exclaimed Matt. "Let's get back to the car. You've
+got back the box, but we haven't seen the last of this--not by a long
+shot."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
+
+
+Shouts of relief went up from those in the Red Flier at sight of Matt
+and Legree sprinting down the road, Legree with the box and Matt with
+the revolver.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" jubilated Carl; "be jeerful, eferypody. Here dey come
+alretty, und mit more as dey vent to ged!"
+
+"Fo' de lan' sake!" chattered Topsy; "Ah sholy expected some one had
+done been kilt."
+
+"Git right in de kyah," urged Uncle Tom, "so we kin git erway f'om
+dis hyeh place. Beahs, en robbahs, en oddah spontaneous excitements
+is monstus tryin' to er niggah wif er empty stummick. Ah doan' lak
+shootin' nohow."
+
+"Was dat some guy t'rowin' a bullet at yous, dad?" inquired Little Eva.
+"How close did he come t' ringin' de bell?"
+
+"How many were there?" cried Eliza; "are they following us?"
+
+Matt jumped into his seat, and Legree scrambled for the tonneau.
+
+"Take this, Legree," called Matt, and dropped the revolver over the
+back of the seat.
+
+Carl, who had been posted at the front of the machine, had already
+"turned over" the engine. As she took the spark Carl crawled to his
+place beside Matt, and the Red Flier glided away.
+
+The young motorist was silent for a while, listening as Legree told
+how he had gone searching for the box and found it in the hands of
+a scoundrel whom he had never seen before. The Unknown had fired a
+revolver, but it had been more to intimidate Legree and keep him at
+a distance, for the bullet had not come anywhere near him. Legree
+finished with an account of how Matt had come up behind the ruffian and
+had saved the day.
+
+"Dot's der vay Modor Matt does pitzness," said the admiring Carl. "You
+bed my life he vas some virlvinds ven he leds himseluf oudt."
+
+"The name of the man who ran off and left your company stranded was
+Hank Brisco, was it?" asked Matt.
+
+"That was his name, Matt," replied Legree. "But who was that
+tough-looking citizen that had me cornered, there in the thicket?"
+
+"I'll have to tell you something that happened to Carl and me, a few
+days ago, in order for you to understand that part of it," answered
+Matt. "This touring-car belongs to Mr. James Q. Tomlinson, a wholesale
+jeweler who lives in Denver. He and his driver, Gregory, have been
+touring the Southwest in it. A gang of thieves, among whom was a fellow
+called Hank, and another called Spangler, robbed Mr. Tomlinson on the
+trail, several miles west of Ash Fork. Carl and I got mixed up in the
+trouble, and we had some exciting times racing the Red Flier against a
+high-powered runabout that the thieves stole from a wealthy cattleman
+named Lem Nugent.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson recovered his stolen property and went on to Albuquerque
+with his driver, Gregory, hiring me to take the touring-car from Ash
+Fork to Albuquerque. That's how we happened to come along in time to
+help you out, Mr. Legree."
+
+"If this man, Tomlinson, got back his stolen property," asked Legree,
+"what became of the thieves?"
+
+"Two of them, Hank and Spangler, got away with the cattleman's car. The
+stolen runabout can go like a blue streak, and is lighter and faster
+than the Red Flier. Now, the man that tried to get the tin box, back
+there in the thicket, was none other than Spangler; and the other
+villain, who was called by the name of 'Hank,' was the fellow who left
+you in the lurch at Brockville."
+
+"Shiminy grickets, how t'ings vill turn oudt mit demselufs, vonce und
+again!" clamored Carl. "Domlinson vould like more as he can dell to haf
+dose fellers ketched, and Nuchent vants pooty pad dot he geds his car
+pack some more. He vill gif fife huntert tollars to any vone vat vill
+findt der car, und he vill gif fife huntert more for Hank, und der same
+for Spangler." Carl leaned toward Matt with his eyes almost popping
+from his head. "Bard," he asked, "can ve scoop it in?"
+
+"I'd like to get back that runabout for Mr. Nugent," said Matt, "but I
+don't know as we ought to take the time to go fooling along on our way
+to Albuquerque."
+
+"Vell, Misder Domlinson say dot dere vasn't any hurry."
+
+"He also said," continued Matt, "that he wouldn't trust this car with
+everybody. If we should get to tearing around after Hank and Spangler,
+and damage the Flier, we would find ourselves in a hole."
+
+"You hadn't better bother trying to take us to Flagstaff, then," put
+in Legree, "for as long as we've got this tin box Brisco is going to
+keep on trying to get hold of it. If he chases us with that stolen
+runabout, which you say is a faster car than the Red Flier, you're
+goin' to run some risks with this machine."
+
+"If we work it right," said Matt, "I guess we can get you people to
+Flagstaff without being bothered much by Hank and Spangler. It's queer,
+though, to have it turn out that those two scoundrels are mixed up in
+these troubles of yours."
+
+"Ah's done had trouble enough," wailed Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' know
+how Ah could stand any mo'. Ah's er pretty ole niggah tuh go traipsin'
+erroun' afteh robbahs, en drappin' intuh rivvers, an' climbin' trees
+tuh sabe my hide from beahs. All de same, Ah 'lows some ob dat money
+fo' ketchin' dat 'ar Brisco would come mouty handy. But Mistah Legree,
+yo' listen hyeh. If Brisco sets sich er pow'ful store by dat 'ar box,
+mebby he'd buy hit offen de lot ob us, payin' us whut he owes jess tuh
+git holt ob hit. Why not, sah, entah intuh prognostications wif him wif
+de view ob settlin' ouah compunctions in er pleasin' manner?"
+
+A shadow of a grin wreathed itself around Legree's lips.
+
+"Well, Uncle Tom," he answered, "it's hard to prognosticate with a chap
+who's so hard to find as Brisco is."
+
+"Vere vas Hank vile Spangler vas looking for der pox, Matt?" asked Carl.
+
+"That's a conundrum, Carl."
+
+"Und vere vas der runaboudt?"
+
+"Another conundrum."
+
+"Vell, ditn't Spangler ride to der blace vere he come for der din pox
+in der runaboudt?"
+
+"I didn't see anything of the machine, but I was afraid it was
+somewhere around--which is the reason I was in such a hurry to make a
+fresh start for Fairview."
+
+"Ve don'd vas shased py der runaboudt, anyvay, und dot means dot it
+vasn't some blace around vere Spangler vas."
+
+"Chee!" came from Little Eva, as he pointed ahead. "Dere's de burg wot
+we're headin' fer. I'm a jay if it don't look almost big enough fer two
+'r t'ree people t' live in."
+
+From the rising ground on which the Red Flier and its passengers found
+themselves, at that moment, Fairview could be fairly viewed. Perhaps
+there were twenty-five or thirty houses in the place, the main street
+being bordered by half a dozen stores.
+
+"Doan' yo' go an' tell me dar ain't no hotel," faltered Uncle Tom.
+
+"No matter how small a town is, Uncle Tom," returned Eliza, "travelers
+can always find a place to stay. Our hardest work will be, I think, to
+discover some one who will lend money on our jewelry."
+
+"I'll furnish the jewelry, Eliza," said Legree. "This watch of mine is
+worth enough, I think, to furnish us with food and lodging while Motor
+Matt gives us a lift to Flagstaff."
+
+"If you're out of cash," spoke up Matt, in his usual generous style,
+"I'll foot the bills. Some time, when you get on Easy Street, you can
+pay me back."
+
+Uncle Tom's anxiety over the prospect fell from him like a wet blanket.
+
+"Yo's a gemman, Mistah Motah Matt," he declared, "yo' is what Ah calls
+a puffick gemman. Ah'm mos'ly independent in dese money mattahs--dis
+is de fust time since Ah can remembah dat Ah habn't had all ob two
+dollars in mah clo's--so hit is mouty spognoocious tuh mah pride, sah,
+to be fo'ced tuh accept a loan. Still, sah, Ah brings mahse'f to hit
+bekase yo' is so willin' an' so spendacious. In retu'n fo' dat, Mistah
+Motah Matt, Ah becomes on de spot yo' official mascot. Yassuh. Ah takes
+yo' luck en mah own han's, an' evah time what yo' do anyt'ing, Ah
+agrees tuh make yo' a winnah."
+
+"Much obliged, Uncle Tom," laughed Matt.
+
+"Go on wif yo'!" cried Topsy. "Why didun' yo' mascot dat 'ar company so
+dat Brisco couldn't do lak what he done? Mascot! Yah, yah, yah!"
+
+"Laff," returned Uncle Tom tartly, "laff an' show yo' ignunce! What yo'
+unnerstan' about luckosophy an' mascots? Yo' mouty triflin' an' tryin',
+dat's what yo' is. Wait twell yo' see what Ah does fo' Motah Matt."
+
+During this talk, the Red Flier had glided down a long slope into the
+little town. It did not take long to traverse the main street, and as
+they jogged onward all eyes looked carefully for a hotel.
+
+Finally they saw a sign with a picture of something that looked like a
+four-leaved clover. Under the picture were the printed words, "Shamrock
+House."
+
+"Dat 'ar fo'-leaved clovah means luck," averred Uncle Tom.
+
+"It's supposed to be a shamrock, Uncle Tom," said Eliza, "and not a
+clover-leaf."
+
+"Ah knows dat," went on Uncle Tom, "but hit sho' means luck. Ah done
+got de feelin'."
+
+Motor Matt and Carl Pretzel "got the feeling," too, for around at one
+side of the hotel they saw another automobile. There was no one around
+the car. Carl nearly dropped off his seat.
+
+"Vas I plind mit meinseluf," he whispered, "or iss it der real t'ing
+vat I see? Matt, dere iss der shtolen runaboudt, mit nopody aroundt!
+Fife huntert tollars saying it righdt oudt loud, 'Come, oh, come,
+somepody und pick me oop!'"
+
+Matt was astounded; yet there was not the least doubt about the
+runabout being the same car that had been stolen.
+
+"Is that the automobile Brisco ran away with?" demanded Legree, leaping
+energetically out of the tonneau. "That's the one!" declared Matt.
+
+"Then come with me, Matt, you and Carl," said Legree, starting for the
+hotel door. "Keep behind, though. I'm armed, now, and can meet Brisco
+in his own way if he shows fight."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
+
+
+Matt, while following Legree toward the front of the hotel, was doing
+some quick thinking to account for this surprising discovery of the
+runabout.
+
+Very likely Brisco and Spangler were planning to recover the tin box.
+It must have been these plans that had brought them eastward from the
+vicinity of Ash Fork.
+
+Spangler had been dropped on the road to intercept the stranded players
+and get the box, while Brisco had come recklessly into Fairview.
+Possibly Brisco had been compelled to come into town after gasoline and
+oil.
+
+"Ah doan' want tuh be erroun' if dar's goin' tuh be any shootin',"
+palpitated Uncle Tom, rolling out of the tonneau with more haste than
+grace. "Ah used tuh be a reg'lar fire-eatah, en mah youngah days, but
+Ah dun kinder got ovah hit. Topsy, yo' an' Miss 'Liza come right along
+wif me, dis instinct. We'll go off whah dar's er safe place fo' me tuh
+do mah mascottin' fo' Motah Matt."
+
+Eliza and Topsy hurriedly descended from the car. Little Eva was
+already on the ground, but instead of going around the hotel with
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, he strolled over to the runabout. In their
+excitement, the others did not miss the boy.
+
+There were two windows in the hotel office--one in the front wall, a
+dozen feet from the door, and one just around the corner in the side
+wall. The window in the side wall overlooked the runabout.
+
+Matt, doing some quick figuring, jumped at the conclusion that Brisco,
+taken by surprise by Legree, would make a bolt through one of the
+windows, both of which were open.
+
+Close to the front window an eave-spout entered a rain-water barrel.
+Matt did not believe Brisco, if he tried to escape by a window, would
+come out at the front, but at the side, where he would be nearer
+the runabout. With this idea in mind, Matt placed Carl behind the
+water-barrel, while he went around the corner.
+
+Through the window on that side the young motorist stole a cautious
+look.
+
+Two men were leaning over a counter in the office. One was plainly an
+Irishman, and the proprietor of the place, and the other was as plainly
+Hank Brisco. Matt knew Brisco too well to be mistaken in him. Neither
+Brisco nor the Irish proprietor had heard the approach of the Red
+Flier, nor the entrance of Legree into the office.
+
+With a grim smile on his face, and the revolver in his hand, Legree was
+leaning against the wall, just inside the door, waiting for Brisco to
+turn around.
+
+"Begorry," the proprietor was saying, "fifty cints a gallon f'r th'
+gasoline is all I'm afther chargin' yez. Oi know av robbers around here
+who'd be chargin' yez a dollar a gallon, but that's not the way wid
+Terence O'Grady. Fifty cints is th' most Oi'll take from yez. Fifteen
+gallons at fifty cints is sivin-fifty; then wan dollar f'r oil makes
+eight-fifty. Eight-fifty from tin laves wan an a half, an' there yez
+are. Will yez shtay f'r dinner? Faith, we've as foine a male t'day as
+yez iver put tooth in, an' a dollar is all ut will cost yez."
+
+"I reckon I'll stay, O'Grady," replied Brisco, picking his change off
+the counter and sliding it into his pocket.
+
+Then he turned, and met the leveled weapon of Legree. Brisco's
+astonishment was ludicrous to behold. And O'Grady was fully as startled.
+
+"Phat th' blazes d'yez mean by thot?" and O'Grady jumped over the
+counter and stood glaring at Legree.
+
+"I'll explain," said Legree, with a coolness that filled Matt with
+admiration, "but while I'm talking, O'Grady, don't get between the
+point of this weapon and that man, there."
+
+"Is ut a hould-up?" demanded O'Grady.
+
+"Not at all. The man behind you knows me, and he knows that he owes me
+a hundred and twenty dollars."
+
+"I don't know anything of the kind," replied Brisco, every whit as cool
+as Legree. "You've made a mistake, my man; and, besides, even if I did
+owe you money, you're trying to collect it in the wrong way."
+
+"Roight yez are!" put in O'Grady. "Shtick thot pisthol in yer pocket
+an' go off wid yez. This is a dacint, rayspectible hotel, an' guns
+ain't allowed in th' place at all, at all. Av yez don't hike, begorry,
+Oi'll call in th' town marshal."
+
+"Call the marshal," said Legree; "he's the man I'd like to have here.
+That fellow who just bought gasoline and oil at this place is one of
+the gang who robbed Tomlinson, the Denver jeweler, over west of Ash
+Fork, and stole the automobile belonging to Nugent, the cattleman----"
+
+Brisco began to laugh.
+
+"What do you think of that, O'Grady?" he cried. "Why, that car you just
+helped me fill with gasoline is Tomlinson's car! I'm taking it east for
+him. Who this man is, or what game he's trying to play, is more than I
+know."
+
+Brisco was edging around toward the side window.
+
+"Look out, Mr. Legree!" called Matt, through the opening. "He's trying
+to get where he can drop out here."
+
+Matt's words caused Brisco and O'Grady to swerve their glances in his
+direction. A glint darted into Brisco's eyes at sight of Matt. Hank
+Brisco had good reason to remember the young motorist.
+
+"This looks like a put-up job, O'Grady," said Brisco, still keeping the
+whip-hand of himself.
+
+"Well, begob," cried O'Grady, "no pack av blackguards can come into
+th' Shamrock Hotel an' shtir up throuble f'r me customers. Clear out
+av here," he added, brandishing his fists, "or Oi'll be afther gittin'
+busy wid me hands."
+
+"Is that man the one who helped rob Tomlinson, Matt?" asked Legree,
+nodding his head toward Brisco.
+
+"He's the one," answered Matt. "I'd know him anywhere. Don't let
+him----"
+
+Just at that moment, O'Grady, wofully deceived, but thinking he was
+doing exactly what was right, kicked a chair at Legree.
+
+The chair struck Legree's shins with a force that hurled him back
+against the wall.
+
+"Now, then," roared O'Grady to Brisco, "make a run av it! Oi'll take
+care av this boonch av meddlers!"
+
+With that, he hurled himself upon Legree and the two began to struggle,
+falling over the chair and dropping heavily on the floor.
+
+They were directly across the doorway, and Brisco sprang for the front
+window and pushed himself through it.
+
+"Shtop a leedle!" whooped Carl, dodging around the rain-water barrel;
+"you don'd got avay so easy as dot, und---- Himmelblitzen!"
+
+Brisco had grabbed the barrel. That happened to be the dry season and
+the barrel was empty. Giving it a whirl, he threw it against the Dutch
+boy with a force that took him off his feet.
+
+Thrashing his arms wildly, Carl laid himself down on the rolling barrel
+and went caroming off toward the road.
+
+Meantime, Matt, seeing that Brisco was making for the window guarded by
+Carl, had rushed around to the front of the hotel. He reached the scene
+of the scrimmage just in time to be grabbed by O'Grady.
+
+The racket in the office had brought O'Grady's Chinese cook from the
+kitchen; and, while the Chinaman continued the tussle with Legree, the
+proprietor of the hotel had rushed out to see what more he could do for
+the man who had paid him so well for gasoline and oil.
+
+"Oi've got yez, yez meddlin' omadhoun!" shouted O'Grady. "Oi'll tach
+yez t' come interferin' wid dacint people!"
+
+With that he flung his arms around Motor Matt and hung to him with all
+his strength.
+
+"Hang onto him, O'Grady!" cried Brisco, dashing for the runabout.
+
+"Niver yez fret!" panted the Irishman reassuringly; "good-by t' yez.
+Next toime yez come we'll give yez betther treatment; there won't be so
+many hoodlums around t'----"
+
+"Let go!" shouted Matt. Then, suddenly freeing his hands, he struck the
+deluded Irishman a quick blow.
+
+O'Grady's hands relaxed for an instant. That instant gave Motor Matt
+his opportunity, and he tore himself free.
+
+About the same moment, Legree, hatless, angry, and chagrined, came
+running out of the office.
+
+"Where's Brisco?" he demanded.
+
+Just then the question was answered by Brisco himself. The runabout,
+leaping around the corner of the hotel, shot toward the road, a mocking
+laugh from Brisco trailing out behind.
+
+"Not this time, Legree!" called Brisco, over his shoulder. "Look out
+for me, from now on--you and Motor Matt!"
+
+The runabout was headed westward. In the rumble behind, lying partly
+over the rumble-seat, was a dust-coat. It undoubtedly belonged to
+Brisco, and he must have thrown it aside while attending to the
+automobile, a few minutes before.
+
+While Motor Matt and Legree stood staring at the receding car, the coat
+lifted a little and a hand was waved.
+
+"Great Scott!" cried Matt; "it's that boy."
+
+Legree, far from showing any consternation, leaned against the wall of
+the building and laughed softly.
+
+Matt was amazed.
+
+"What's the matter with you, Legree?" he demanded.
+
+"I'm just enjoying a situation that has a bad outlook for Brisco," was
+Legree's queer answer.
+
+"It has a bad outlook for the boy, too," said Matt.
+
+"Don't worry about Little Eva. I know him better than you do, and he'll
+take care of himself."
+
+At this moment the Chinaman came out of the hotel office and handed the
+revolver to O'Grady.
+
+"Oi've had about all Oi want av this rough-house!" shouted O'Grady,
+his temper badly warped by the disturbance and the blow Matt had dealt
+him. "Yez will shtay roight here, bedad, until Oi can have th' Chink go
+afther th' town marshal. Go f'r Jennings, Ping," he added, flourishing
+the weapon in the faces of Matt and Legree, "an hustle. We'll make this
+slab-soided roosther laugh on t'other soide av his face befure we're
+done wid him."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
+
+
+Carl, having untangled himself from the barrel, brushed off his clothes
+and rubbed his sore spots, came bristling up to O'Grady.
+
+"You vas grazy," he cried, "so grazy as I don'd know. Oof you hatn't
+fooled mit us, t'ings vould haf peen tifferent. Ve lose vone t'ousant
+tollars py vat you do! Yah, so helup me! Pud avay der gun und ged
+reasonaple."
+
+"Huccome dat 'ar resolver change han's lak what Ah see?" inquired Uncle
+Tom, stepping gingerly around the corner of the hotel. "Didun' Ah do yo
+no good, mascottin' fo' yo', Motah Matt?"
+
+Eliza and Topsy followed Uncle Tom, peering about them excitedly and
+evidently expecting to find Brisco a prisoner.
+
+"Something went crossways, Uncle Tom," said Matt. "Brisco got away, and
+he took the stolen car with him. Mr. O'Grady, here, the proprietor of
+the hotel, didn't understand the case and helped the wrong side."
+
+By that time O'Grady was himself beginning to think that he had made
+a mistake. The sight of the big red touring-car, and of the odd
+assortment of passengers who had arrived in it, afforded him food
+for thought. So he was thinking, lowering the revolver meanwhile and
+grabbing Ping, the Chinaman, by the queue to keep him from going after
+the marshal.
+
+"Where did th' lot av yez come from?" O'Grady finally inquired.
+
+"Ash Fork," replied Legree.
+
+"Them colored folks come wid yez?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"Well, mebby Oi did make a bobble, Oi dunno. Tell me something more
+about ut."
+
+Briefly as he could, Legree told of the robbery of Mr. Tomlinson and
+of the stealing of the cattleman's car, then wound up the recital by
+describing how Brisco had run off and left his theatrical company, and
+how Motor Matt had picked up those who were tramping along the road and
+was giving them a lift as far as Flagstaff.
+
+O'Grady seemed to take more stock in Motor Matt than in any of the
+others. He watched the boy out of the tails of his eyes while listening
+to Legree.
+
+"Faith," said he, "yez are a har-r-d hitter, me lad. Oi'm feelin' th'
+rap yez give me this minyit, an' me jaw'll be lame f'r a wake; but sure
+Oi desarved ut av so be Oi'm raysponsible f'r th' mon gittin' away. A
+good custhomer he was, an' Oi make ut a rule t' trate good custhomers
+wid ivery consideration. Oi supplied him wid gasoline out av me private
+barrel, an' sint th' Chinee f'r oil which Oi let him have at double th'
+proice Oi paid f'r ut. By th' same token, Oi felt loike tratin' th'
+mon white, d'yez see? Now, av yez won't say annythin' more about th'
+fracas, sure Oi won't, an' we'll let bygones be bygones. Was yez all
+thinkin' av takin' dinner at th' Shamrock?"
+
+"Dat 'ar was de notion we had, boss," spoke up Uncle Tom eagerly.
+
+"Then, begorry, Oi'll make yez a special rate av sivin dollars f'r th'
+six av yez."
+
+"I'll give you three," said Matt.
+
+"T'ree ut is," was the prompt rejoinder. "Th' ladies can go t' th'
+parlor, an' th' gintlemen will foind a wash-bench by th' kitchen dure.
+Hurry up wid th' meal, Ping," the proprietor added to the Chinaman.
+
+O'Grady handed the revolver to Legree, excused himself and went into
+the hotel.
+
+"It don't take him long to forget the trouble he made us," remarked
+Legree, with a wink. "He's wise, too, in being willing to overlook the
+matter if we are."
+
+Motor Matt couldn't understand Legree. He didn't appear to be worried
+in the least about the boy; on the contrary, he seemed pleased with the
+situation.
+
+"Where's the kid?" inquired Eliza.
+
+"He went away with Brisco," replied Legree.
+
+Startled exclamations came from Eliza, Uncle Tom, and Topsy.
+
+"Don't fret about him," went on Legree, with a calm confidence that was
+too deep for Matt, "for he'll come back. I'll have to stay here and
+wait for him, of course, and if Matt feels as though he has to pull out
+for Flagstaff before the kid gets here, why, we'll have to come along
+the best we can."
+
+"The boy's in danger," said Matt, "and I'm not going to leave Fairview
+until I try to do something for him."
+
+"Don't go to any trouble, Matt," returned Legree, "for I tell you again
+the kid's able to look out for himself. This work of his may result in
+the capture of Brisco and the recovery of the stolen car. After we eat,
+I'm going to find a cot, lie down, and take a snooze. I've got that
+coming to me, I think, considering what I've been through to-day. Let's
+hunt up that wash-bench and get ready for dinner."
+
+Matt was in a quandary. He knew, by his own experience, that Brisco was
+a desperate man, and Legree's firm conviction that the boy would keep
+out of trouble looked like the craziest kind of misjudgment.
+
+Following the dinner, to which they all did ample justice, Uncle Tom
+curled up on a door-step in the sun, Legree found a hammock in the
+shade, and Eliza and Topsy disappeared inside the hotel. Matt led Carl
+off to the Red Flier.
+
+"It's a queer layout, Carl," said Matt, nodding his head in the
+direction of the hotel. "Hasn't it struck you that way?"
+
+"Vell," returned Carl, running his fingers reflectively through his mat
+of tow-colored hair, "I vas making some reflections on der soobjeck.
+Leedle Efa don't seem to cut mooch ice mit Legree, hey? Or meppy he cut
+a whole lot dot ve don'd know aboudt."
+
+"You knew the boy in Denver?" went on Matt.
+
+"Yah, aber I forged vat his name vas, or vat he dit. Und I ditn't know
+vedder he hat a fader."
+
+"Well, I don't think we ought to go on to Flagstaff until we find out
+something as to what becomes of the boy."
+
+"Me, neider; aber how ve find oudt, hey?"
+
+"We'll take the Flier and see if we can't track the runabout."
+
+"Und oof ve come too close py der runaboudt, den vat?"
+
+"We'll take some old bottles along. If the runabout shows up and tries
+to chase us, we'll make a run of it and smash the bottles in the road
+behind us."
+
+Carl chuckled. That was an expedient to which Motor Matt had already
+had recourse--and with brilliant success.
+
+"Pully! I vill go findt der pottles, Matt, vile you ged der macheen
+retty."
+
+Carl went off toward a junk-pile back of the wood-shed. By the time
+Matt had made the Red Flier ready, Carl was back with an armful of
+bottles.
+
+"Ve vas on der high gear dis drip, you bed you," observed Carl, dumping
+the bottles into the tonneau. "I like dose oxcidements, yah, so. It vas
+goot for der nerfs und makes a fellow jeerful like nodding."
+
+As they got into the car, ready for the start, Eliza came hurrying out
+of the hotel. She carried the box in her hand and made straight for the
+automobile.
+
+"Where are you going, Matt?" she asked breathlessly.
+
+"We're not intending to run off and leave you," Matt laughed. "We want
+to see if we can't find out something about Little Eva, as you call
+him. It don't seem right to let the boy be carried off like this and
+not try to do something to help him."
+
+"He's a queer kid," said Eliza thoughtfully. "He and Legree were only
+with the company about two months, and they both had a queer way about
+them, sometimes. But if Legree isn't worried I don't know why we ought
+to be."
+
+"I don't know, either," said Matt, "but I am, all the same. Carl and
+I are going to see if we can't follow the trail of the runabout for a
+ways. I don't think we'll be gone more than an hour or two."
+
+"May I go along?"
+
+"Why, yes, if you want to; but hadn't you better leave that box here?"
+
+"Legree told me to keep it by me all the time," answered the girl.
+
+"Probably he didn't intend for you to take it out into the hills. Well,
+never mind. If it's so mighty valuable I guess Legree would be taking
+care of it himself. Jump in, Eliza."
+
+The girl climbed into the tonneau, and Carl closed the door. Matt
+started at low speed, getting into the road at the same place where
+Brisco had driven the runabout. The trail of the broad wheels was well
+defined in the dust, and led along the course followed by the Red Flier
+in coming into town.
+
+"Prisco vent oudt like ve come in," said Carl. "I'm vonderin' in my
+mindt oof he vent pack py Ash Fork?"
+
+"Give it up, Carl," answered Matt. "I don't know where he went. There's
+a whole lot about this business that's the rankest kind of guesswork."
+
+"Sure! Liddle Efa vas foolish mit himseluf for gedding indo der car;
+und he vas foolish some more for shtaying der car in ven he mighdt
+chump it off. Aber meppy he hat his reasons, hey?"
+
+"He must have had a reason for doing such a reckless thing, but he
+don't know Brisco so well as we do."
+
+"He ought to, Matt," spoke up Eliza; "he was with the company for two
+months."
+
+"At that time," Matt answered, "Brisco had the best part of his
+character uppermost. Carl and I have seen the worst side of him, and
+he's the biggest scoundrel out of jail."
+
+"Vorse as dot!" averred Carl.
+
+The tracks of the car led up the slope, out of the valley that
+contained the town, and on along the Ash Fork road.
+
+Matt held the Flier down to an easy pace. For several miles the little
+party had a pleasant ride, without any excitement whatever. But there
+was plenty of excitement in store, and when it arrived it came suddenly.
+
+A turn in the wooded road brought those in the car abruptly into a
+long, straightaway stretch. The instant they were able to look along
+the trail beyond the turn, a thrill shot through the nerves of all of
+them.
+
+Three mounted men were coming toward the car at a tearing clip.
+Evidently they had heard the pounding of the motor and had put their
+horses to top speed.
+
+"Prisco!" shouted Carl; "und dere iss Spangler, too. Durn aroundt,
+Matt! Durn aroundt so kevick as der nation vill let you! Shiminy
+grickets, aber dis vas sutten!"
+
+Motor Matt had recognized two of the riders as Brisco and Spangler,
+even before Carl had given his frightened yell.
+
+Where had Brisco exchanged his seat in the runabout to the saddle of
+the horse? And why had he changed, and where had he left the car?
+
+All this darted through the young motorist's mind as he halted the
+Flier, reversed, and began backing to make the turn.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+LOSING THE BOX.
+
+
+Matt had not dreamed of being pursued by horsemen. The Red Flier
+would have no difficulty in running away from anything on hoofs, and
+certainly she could leave these three riders behind providing she could
+turn and get under headway before being overhauled.
+
+Brisco, Spangler, and the other man were dangerously close before Matt
+got the Red Flier turned the other way. Just back from the bend there
+was a grassy hill, along the foot of which the road ran smoothly. It
+was an excellent place for speed, and Matt jumped from first to second,
+and from second to third with masterful quickness, considering the fact
+that he had to be careful about stripping the gear.
+
+As the car leaped away, like a spirited horse under the spur, Brisco
+was alongside the tonneau. A scream from Eliza called the attention of
+both boys. Matt, of course, was busy with his driving and could not
+turn to see what was the matter. Carl, however, got on his knees in his
+seat, face to the rear. What he saw brought an angry shout from his
+lips.
+
+Brisco, leaning from his saddle, was reaching over the side of the
+tonneau. He had caught hold of the tin box, and Eliza, hanging to it
+with both hands, was struggling to keep him from securing it.
+
+"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to the girl's aid;
+"dot pelongs to Modor Matt!"
+
+Carl was excited, but it wasn't excitement alone that caused him to
+say the box belonged to Matt. He knew Brisco was after a box he had
+once owned himself, and Carl had a hazy idea that if he said the box
+belonged to Matt it might be left alone.
+
+The gathering speed of the car carried it away from Brisco; and, as
+Brisco's one hand was stronger than the girl's two, the box remained
+with him.
+
+Carl got into the tonneau, head over heels and with a crash like the
+breaking of a dozen windows--for he fell into the heap of useless
+bottles. When he picked himself up, the three riders, with jeering
+laughs, had pointed their horses the other way.
+
+"It's gone, Matt!" cried the girl wildly; "the box is gone! Brisco
+snatched it out of my hands!"
+
+"Vat a luck it iss!" growled Carl, holding one hand to his face,
+where it had been cut by a piece of glass. "I got pack here so kevick
+as I couldt, Miss Eliza, aber dot Prisco feller was kevicker as me.
+Donnervetter! Matt, ve come oudt to look for dot poy und ve lose der
+pox! Dot vill be some nice t'ings to dell Legree."
+
+"Oh," cried the girl, half-crying; "I shouldn't have come! Even if it
+was all right for me to come I ought to have left the box at the hotel.
+Now we'll never be able to get our money from Brisco!"
+
+Matt slowed down the car and took a look rearward. The three men were
+out of sight beyond the turn.
+
+"Don't worry about it, Eliza," said Matt. "If any one is to blame,
+I'm the one. There's something queer about that tin box. If it's so
+valuable, why didn't Legree take care of it himself? Why did he trust
+it to you?"
+
+"Before I had it," returned the girl, "Uncle Tom was carrying it. He
+lost it in the river, and had to jump in after it."
+
+"More carelessness on Legree's part! Uncle Tom, as I figure it, is
+about the most irresponsible member of your party, and yet Legree
+allowed him to carry a box which, Brisco had said, was worth ten
+thousand dollars. It don't look reasonable to me."
+
+"Dot's vat it don'd!" exclaimed Carl. "Aber Prisco vanted dot pox pooty
+pad to go afder it like vat he dit. Meppy it vas vort' a lod to him,
+und nodding to Legree and der rest oof der parn-shtormers."
+
+"Just because it _was_ valuable to Brisco is the very reason I should
+have been more careful with it," went on the girl. "We might have made
+him pay us what he owed us, and then we could all have gone back to
+Denver. Now--now----"
+
+The girl began to cry.
+
+"Say," wheedled Carl, "I vouldn't do dot. You don'd helup nodding novay
+oof you cry. Don'd fret aboudt der olt pox. Matt und me vill gif you
+der money to go py Tenver. Jeer oop a liddle."
+
+"Take my word for it, Eliza," said Matt, as the girl lifted her head
+and got better control of her feelings, "that box isn't worth a whole
+lot or Legree wouldn't have taken chances with it like he did. I'm
+sorry Brisco got away with it, of course, and I'm going to hurry back
+to Fairview and do something I ought to have done before--and that is,
+find an officer and put him on Brisco's track."
+
+"Dot von't amoundt to nodding, Matt," said Carl, climbing back into
+the front seat. "Prisco vill ged off der horse und indo der runaboudt
+und der officer mighdt as vell dry to ketch some shtreaks oof greased
+lighdning."
+
+"It may be, Carl," speculated Matt, "that the runabout has broken down.
+I don't believe Brisco and Spangler would be able to fix the machine if
+anything very serious got the matter with it. Perhaps they had to leave
+the car and take to horses."
+
+"Vat's deir game, anyvay? Dot's vat I vant to know. Oof deir game vas
+to ged der pox, den it vas all ofer, und ve don'd haf nodding to do
+mit Brisco und Spangler some more. Py shinks! Dot knocks us oudt oof a
+t'ousand tollars, Matt."
+
+"All Legree was keeping the box for," quavered the girl, "was so that
+Brisco would follow us and try to get it. That would give us a chance
+to make Brisco pay what he owed us."
+
+"Legree ought to have hung onto the box himself," insisted Matt.
+
+"Prisco iss too schlick for Legree," asserted Carl.
+
+"I wish I understood what Brisco and Legree are up to," muttered Matt.
+"There's more to this than appears on the surface."
+
+"Yah, I bed you," agreed Carl, wagging his head. "Oof I knew as mooch
+as I vould like, den I vould tell you all aboudt it, vich I don'd. Den
+dere iss Efa. His monkey-doodle pitzness makes der t'ing vorse."
+
+A quarter of an hour later the Red Flier drew up in its old berth
+alongside the hotel. Eliza got out and ran hurriedly to tell Legree
+what had happened to the tin box.
+
+"I'm sorry for Eliza," said Matt, climbing slowly over the brakes as
+he got out of the car. "She's a nice girl, and it's too bad she has
+to feel all cut up over the way the box was taken from her. I've got
+a notion that Legree is fooling them all--and you and me into the
+bargain, Carl."
+
+"How you t'ink so, Matt?" asked Carl, opening his eyes wide.
+
+"I don't know how he's doing it, or why he's doing it, but it's just a
+hunch I've got."
+
+"How long ve going to shtay here?"
+
+"I don't want to pull out until we learn something more about this
+business. There are parts of it that have a crooked look to me."
+
+At that moment Legree issued from the hotel. He did not act at all
+excited, although he must certainly have learned from Eliza what had
+happened.
+
+"Eliza's been telling me what a time you've had," said he. "The
+principal thing is that Brisco has left the car and got onto a horse.
+I was surprised to hear that. I can't imagine why a rascal, who's as
+badly wanted as he is, should leave a swift automobile and take to
+horseback."
+
+"I should think, Mr. Legree," remarked Matt, "that you would be more
+interested in the loss of that box than in anything else."
+
+"Not at all. In fact, I haven't thought so much of that box since the
+lot of us left Ash Fork. It was a good thing to hang onto, but it
+wasn't so terribly important. I've told Eliza not to feel bad over what
+happened. I'd feel worse myself if the kid hadn't got away in that
+runabout, like he did."
+
+All that Legree said merely made the whole situation darker for Matt.
+And for Carl, too. The Dutch boy stood blinking at Legree, and running
+his fingers through the tangle of tow he called his hair.
+
+"You were keeping the box in the hope that Brisco would came after it
+and give you a chance at him, weren't you?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Yes," answered Legree.
+
+"Well, now that Brisco has got the box you can't expect him to come
+after it."
+
+"Hardly," and Legree gave a short laugh. Noting the perplexity of the
+two boys, he went on: "You miss one point, Matt, in sizing up this
+situation. We're not done with Brisco--not by a long chalk. It isn't
+the box, but what was in it, that Brisco is anxious to get."
+
+"Wasn't there anything in the box?" queried Matt.
+
+"No, and there hasn't been since we left Ash Fork. I opened the box on
+the q. t. in that town and took out what it contained. That object is
+in my possession. I intend to stay in this town, Matt, until Brisco is
+captured. I don't care anything about Spangler; Brisco is the man I
+want. If you've got time, you can stay and help me; and you can keep
+all you get for recovering the runabout for yourself."
+
+"What will you get for your work?"
+
+"Why, I'll send Brisco over the road. _The contents of that box will do
+it!_"
+
+Matt and Carl were dumfounded. The situation was clearing a little, but
+not much.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
+
+
+"Do you know this cattleman in Ash Fork who had the runabout stolen
+from him?" asked Legree.
+
+"I know him by sight," answered Matt; "I'm not acquainted with him."
+
+"Are you sure that he will pay five hundred dollars for the recovery of
+his automobile?"
+
+"He said he would, and he's able to do it. And he offers to pay five
+hundred dollars apiece for the capture of Brisco and Spangler."
+
+"Then there's a chance for you to make fifteen hundred. I'd advise you
+to stay here and do it."
+
+Matt leaned against the car and went into a brown study.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson had not required him to get to Albuquerque in a hurry. He
+could take a reasonable amount of time for the trip. But Mr. Tomlinson
+_did_ expect the car to be brought safely to its destination. Would
+Matt in any way endanger the car by staying a short time in Fairview?
+That was the question that bothered him.
+
+"I t'ink, Matt," said Carl, "dot I could use some oof dot fifdeen
+huntert. Vy nod shtay und dry dem a virl?"
+
+"If I stay, Legree," observed Matt, "I won't be called on to use the
+Red Flier for chasing Brisco and Spangler, will I? The car doesn't
+belong to me and I can't take any chances with it."
+
+"You can do as you please about that, Matt. I'm after Brisco. If you
+get Spangler and the runabout, you'll have to do it in your own way.
+Spangler and Brisco, though, seem to be working together, just now, so
+my work ought to help you."
+
+"Why not get an officer here and----"
+
+"Do you want to divide with an officer what the cattleman is willing to
+pay?"
+
+"You know a lot that you're not telling me, Legree," said Matt quietly.
+
+"Well," grinned Legree, "when it comes to that, I know a lot that I'm
+not telling anybody--just now. You've heard more from me than any one
+else--excepting the kid."
+
+"I think I'll lay over here until to-morrow," said Matt.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" exulted Carl. "Be jeerful, everypody. I t'ink, Matt," he
+added, "dot I vill infest my haluf oof dot fifdeen huntert tollars in
+gofermend ponds, und----"
+
+"Don't invest it till you get it, Carl," interposed Matt dryly. "Pull
+off your coat, now, and we'll wash up the car and fill the tanks."
+
+For two hours the boys were more than busy. While in Motor Matt's
+hands, the machine was always as carefully groomed as a race-horse. Not
+only that, but after the day's run he made it a point to go over the
+machinery with a wrench and pliers, tightening up everything that had
+worked loose and making sure that every part was in complete working
+order.
+
+The water-tank was filled. Ten gallons of gasoline were needed for the
+gasoline reservoir, but before he bought any from O'Grady, Matt tested
+it carefully with a hydrometer. Finding it nearly the same grade as
+he had been using, he funneled it into the tank, not only straining
+it through wire gauze but through thin chamois skin as well. The oil
+supply was also replenished.
+
+When the boys were through, the Red Flier was as spick and span as
+when it had come from the shop. Not only that, but it was fit to take
+the road at a moment's notice and make a record run.
+
+To Matt's regret, there was no place in town where the car could be
+housed for the night. There were two or three old barns, but they were
+so foul and unclean that he would not take the machine into them. He
+preferred to leave it outdoors all night, sleeping in the tonneau and
+guarding against tampering.
+
+When supper was announced, Carl watched the car while Matt ate; and
+when Matt had finished, Carl went in for his own meal.
+
+Uncle Tom, feeling much better now that his physical necessities
+had been relieved, walked out to the car with Matt when he left the
+dining-room.
+
+There was something on the old negro's mind. He seemed flustered and
+backward about getting at it. Finally he broached the astonishing
+proposition, leading up to it by degrees.
+
+"Ah's done let out ob er job by de scan'lous actions ob dat 'ar Brisco,
+Marse Matt," said he moodily.
+
+"Hard luck, Uncle Tom," answered Matt sympathetically. "Where do you
+live when you're at home?"
+
+"Ah's one ob dem 'ar rolling stones, en Ah ain't had no home sense Ah
+was knee-high tuh a possum, no, suh. Fo' de las' few houahs, Marse
+Matt, Ah's been kind ob cogitatin' en mah haid an' I 'bout come tuh
+de conclusion dat yo' outlook in life is juberous, yassuh. Yo's a
+puffick gemman, but yo' take so many chances dat yo' prospecks am sholy
+juberous."
+
+"How can I help that, Uncle Tom?" asked Matt, enjoying immensely the
+old darky's vagaries.
+
+"Ah knows how dat kin be fixed, sah," went on Uncle Tom. "What yo' has
+got tuh hab is a official mascot, sah, tuh be wif yo' all de time an'
+wuk off de hoodoo. Ah 'lows, sah, dat I could fill dat job. How much
+yo' willin' tuh pay fo' an official mascot by de monf?"
+
+That was too much for Motor Matt. Laying back in the tonneau he laughed
+till he shook.
+
+"Doan' laff, Marse Matt," begged the old fraud; "hit's a mouty
+complexus bizness. Tu'n hit ober in yo' mind, sah, en if yo' t'ink Ah'm
+wuth mah bo'd an' keep, jess considah Ah'm engaged."
+
+"Why, Uncle Tom," said Matt, "I haven't much more than enough to board
+and keep myself, so I guess my prospects will have to continue to be
+'juberous.'"
+
+"Doan' say dat, sah; t'ink it ober. Ah'll hold mahse'f open fo' de
+engagemunt."
+
+Uncle Tom stumped back into the house, and Matt kicked off his shoes
+and snuggled down under a blanket which O'Grady had furnished him.
+
+Half an hour later, Carl came out with a blanket of his own.
+
+"What are you going to do, Carl?" asked Matt, rousing up and peering at
+his friend through the gloom.
+
+"Dis iss some games vot two can blay ad, my poy," chuckled Carl. "I
+vill shleep py der machine mit you."
+
+"Go on!" scoffed Matt. "What's the use of denying yourself a good bed
+when you can just as well have one?"
+
+"Vell, I dredder shtay mit you. Don'd say nodding, pecause it vasn't
+any use. My mindt iss made oop, yah, you bed you."
+
+"All right, then," said Matt. "Curl up on the steering-wheel and enjoy
+yourself."
+
+The front seat, of course, was divided into two sections, so it was
+impossible for Carl to stretch himself out in it; however, he wrapped
+his blanket around him and crowded down between the seat and the dash,
+head and shoulders over the foot-board on one side, and his feet
+tangled up in the foot-pedals and levers on the other.
+
+Just as Matt was getting to sleep a wild _honk, honk!_ brought him up
+like a shot out of a gun.
+
+"What's that?" called Matt.
+
+"Dot vas my feets," explained Carl coolly. "I hit dem against dot
+rupper pag vat makes a noise. Oof der car vas vider, den I vouldn't
+be too long for der blace vat I am. Meppy I puy somet'ing else don
+gofermend ponds mit dot money. Meppy, yah--so----" and Carl's words
+drifted off into a snore.
+
+Matt settled down again, and this time nothing disturbed him.
+
+Carl had some bad dreams that night. He thought his feet were caught
+in a giant clothes-wringer, and that a locomotive was hitched to his
+head. Some one would run him through the wringer, flattening him out up
+to the knees, and then the locomotive would back up and pull him out
+again. When his dreams had tired him out with that set of incidents,
+they shut him up in a little tin box, and three men on horseback
+played football with him; other experiences, too numerous to mention,
+followed, and at the wind-up Carl thought he dropped several miles
+through the air and smashed through a skylight. Starting up with a
+groan, he rubbed his eyes and looked around.
+
+It was morning. Carl was sitting up on the ground, chilled and
+chattering.
+
+At first he thought that skylight episode was not a dream, and he
+looked up to see the place he had come through. Instead of seeing
+anything so unsubstantial, his eyes encountered the face of Legree.
+
+"You sleep like a log, Carl!" exclaimed Legree. "Where's Motor Matt?
+What's become of the automobile?"
+
+Then, in a flash, Carl's hazy mind connected with the tangible things
+surrounding him when he went to sleep.
+
+"Vy," he cried, struggling to his feet and staring around, "I vas in
+der car mit Modor Matt! I vent to shleep in it mit him."
+
+"I know you did; but where are Matt and the car now?"
+
+Carl rubbed his eyes again, and then took a more careful look about him.
+
+He was standing in the very place where the car had stood. But there
+was no sign of the car! And no sign of Motor Matt!
+
+The blanket Carl had taken into the Red Flier with him was lying
+crumpled on the ground, a dozen feet away.
+
+"Vell, py shinks!" gasped Carl. "I don'd like dot. I don'd like some
+shokes vere sooch a monkey-doodle pitzness iss made mit me. Modor Matt
+nefer made dot shoke."
+
+"There's no joke, Carl," answered Legree; "I wish to gracious it _was_
+a joke. The Red Flier left here some time during the night. No one
+heard it. No one knew it was gone until I looked out of the window of
+my room. You were lying on the ground here, but neither the car nor
+Matt were in sight. Do you think Matt would pull out and leave you?"
+
+"Leaf me? Matt? Vell, he vas my bard, und how you figure oudt dot he do
+dot? No, py shinks! Oof he ain'd here he vas dook off, und oof he vas
+dook off id vas dot Prisco und Spangler vat dit it!"
+
+With that, Carl went over to the well and sat down. He was still
+confused, but slowly the realization of what had happened was growing
+upon him. And as the realization grew, his temper mounted with it.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+SPIRITED AWAY.
+
+
+Carl was not the only one who had been troubled with dreams that
+night. Motor Matt floundered through one of the worst nightmares he
+had ever had. The whole scheme of the thing was rather vague, but
+mighty depressing. He seemed to be engaged in some tremendous struggle,
+striking away and countering a thousand or more huge fists that leaped
+at him out of the gloom. One by one he put the clenched hands out of
+business, and when he had conquered the last of them he opened his eyes
+in bewilderment.
+
+The humming of a motor was in his ears. It was the Red Flier's motor,
+he could tell that instinctively. The stars were overhead, the cool,
+damp smell of the night was all around, and the glow of the acetylene
+lamps was glimmering and dancing in advance. The car was moving briskly
+through the silence.
+
+Matt had a queer, sick feeling at the pit of his stomach. Counting out
+the time he raced the limited train on his motor-cycle, collided with
+a freight-wagon and was laid up for a fortnight, he had never been
+confined to his bed for a week in his life.
+
+He wondered what ailed him, and his mind was sluggish and slow in
+working out the problem.
+
+He had felt just as he did then once before. That was the time he had
+been drugged and taken out of Phoenix to keep him from racing with the
+Prescott champion, O'Day.
+
+Had he been drugged now? If so, why, and by whom?
+
+By degrees the cool air cleared his befogged brain. He went back over
+the chain of events, picking it up where he had dropped it.
+
+The queer party of stranded actors--the arrival at Fairview--the escape
+of Brisco from the hotel--the ride into the hills to look for the
+boy--the pursuit by the horsemen and the loss of the tin box--all these
+events dragged through Matt's mind. He and Carl had gone to sleep in
+the automobile. Why was the car moving? Had Carl, giving rein to some
+wild impulse, cranked up the car and started for a night ride?
+
+Matt stirred. "Carl!" he called, "what are you trying to do?"
+
+Matt became aware, then, that there was some one beside him in the
+tonneau.
+
+"Carl, hey?" came a jeering voice, as a strong hand reached over and
+pushed Matt back in the seat. "Ye got another guess comin'. Thar ain't
+no Dutchman along, this trip."
+
+"Tuned up, has he?" asked a voice from the front seat.
+
+"Yep; he's got back ter airth, Hank."
+
+"Surprised?" The man in front laughed hoarsely as he asked the
+question.
+
+"Waal, kinder. He thought his Dutch pard was erlong."
+
+Matt, while this talk was going forward, realized with a shock that the
+two men in the car were Brisco and Spangler. Brisco was in the driver's
+seat, and Spangler was in the tonneau.
+
+With a quick gathering of all his strength, Matt flung himself toward
+the door of the tonneau. His first unreasoning impulse was to get away
+from his captors. The car must have been going forty miles an hour, and
+the roadside was lined with sharp stones. If Matt had succeeded in his
+desperate attempt, he could hardly have escaped without serious injury;
+but his rash move was nipped in the bud. Spangler, who was in the
+tonneau for the purpose, grabbed Matt and hurled him back into the seat.
+
+"None o' that!" he growled. "Want ter break yer bloomin' neck? Not as I
+keer much about yer neck, but Hank an' me hev got diff'rent plans fer
+ye."
+
+Matt was still dizzy and weak. The nausea at his stomach was leaving
+him slowly, but it made him feel as limp as a rag and utterly helpless.
+
+"Did you men run away with this car?" he asked.
+
+"Looks that-away, don't it?" returned Spangler.
+
+"Where's Carl?"
+
+"Didn't hev no time ter bother with the Dutchman, so we left him
+behind."
+
+"Was he hurt?"
+
+"Hurt? Nary, he wasn't hurt. We ain't opinin' ter hurt anybody this
+trip so long as we hev our way. The Dutchman was snoring like a house
+afire. All we did was ter lift him out o' the keer an' lay him on the
+ground. We give him a smell o' somethin' on a han'kercher, jest ter
+make him snooze a leetle harder, that's all."
+
+"You drugged both of us, then?"
+
+"That was the easiest way ter keep ye from makin' er noise."
+
+"Where are you taking me?"
+
+"Ye'll know afore long."
+
+It was a rugged road they were traveling, and the Red Flier negotiated
+it with many a juggling bump. Mountainous rocks, half-screened by
+bushes and trees, glided by, and there were dusky gashes and seams, and
+now and then a splash of falling water.
+
+Rougher and rougher grew the trail, and the reckless driving of Brisco
+caused Matt's nerves to thrill with fears for the car.
+
+"You'll rack the car to pieces if you keep driving like that!" Matt
+called sharply.
+
+"What's it to you?" taunted Brisco.
+
+"It means a whole lot to me. This car belongs to Mr. Tomlinson, and
+I've promised to take it safely to Albuquerque."
+
+"Be hanged to you and Mr. Tomlinson!" snarled Brisco. "We'll fix this
+car before we're done with it. If you ever take it to Albuquerque,
+you'll have to scoop up the pieces and tote 'em there in a
+lumber-wagon. That's part of what we're going to do to play even with
+you and him!"
+
+Matt's heart skipped a beat, and a cold chill ran through his body.
+Could the villains really mean to destroy the Red Flier?
+
+"You'd better think well about what you do," warned Matt. "If you ruin
+this car, Mr. Tomlinson will never let up on you till he puts you where
+you belong."
+
+Spangler brought his hand around in a sweeping blow. Matt dodged the
+hand so that the stroke was only a glancing one.
+
+"Shut up!" he cried savagely. "Ye ain't here ter make any threats, 'r
+throw any bluffs."
+
+At that moment, Brisco brought the car to a stop, putting on the brakes
+so suddenly that the wheels locked and slid.
+
+"I reckon this'll be far enough," said Brisco, turning in his seat.
+"Make him get out, Spang."
+
+"Hear that?" cried Spang. "Open the door and git down."
+
+"What's this for?" returned Matt, making no move to obey.
+
+For answer, Spangler, with an oath, seized him by the collar and jerked
+him roughly out of the tonneau.
+
+Matt was unable to make any resistance. As he stood in the road, the
+jagged uplifts by which he was surrounded seemed to swim about him in
+circles.
+
+Spangler got back in the car, as Matt staggered to a big boulder and
+leaned against it, and Brisco backed the car around until it was headed
+along the back course.
+
+"Wait!" cried Matt, as a thought of what all this might mean to him
+took shape in his brain.
+
+"We're going to wait--and for just about a minute," returned Brisco.
+
+"Are you going to steal that car?" asked Matt, "just as you stole
+Nugent's?"
+
+"You're too much of a meddler," snapped Brisco. "If you could go along
+and mind your own business, you'd be a whole lot better off. You had to
+tangle up with Tomlinson, back there at Ash Fork, and you hadn't any
+call to butt in. If it hadn't been for you, we'd 'a' won out on that
+game and been all to the good. I don't reckon we'd have bothered you at
+all, though, if you'd been content to carry out your orders and push on
+to Albuquerque. But you couldn't do that; oh, no. You're trying to be
+first aid to the weak and down-trodden wherever you run into them, so
+you had to mix up with that bunch of stranded actors.
+
+"When I drove the runabout into Fairview after gasoline and oil, I
+dropped Spangler off to lay for the tramps and get that tin box. You
+had to butt in, as per usual. I got away from Fairview by the skin
+of my teeth, picked up Spang at the place where he was waiting, and
+we went on to where our other pard had some horses. We side-tracked
+the runabout there, and slid back toward Fairview, intending to push
+through the timber--a move we couldn't make in the car. Then"--and
+here a swirling oath dropped from Brisco's lips--"we dropped into your
+little trap."
+
+"What trap?" demanded Matt.
+
+"Oh, no, you don't know a thing about that, do you? You weren't
+moseying out there just to give us a chance to lift that tin box,
+were you? And you hadn't the least notion it was empty, had you? If
+you hadn't turned that trick, my bantam, we wouldn't have turned this
+one. We're going to settle with you, all right. This is a part of
+the country that isn't traveled once a week, and you're seventy-five
+miles from Fairview. By the time you get back to town, we'll have got
+what was in that box, and have smashed the Red Flier into a heap of
+jack-straws. I know a nice little cliff alongside the road, and when
+we're through with the car we'll lash the wheel, open her up and let
+her go over the edge! I reckon that'll cook your goose with Tomlinson.
+He didn't calculate you were going to use his car transporting a lot
+of stranded actors, and mixing up in their affairs on the way to
+Albuquerque."
+
+For a space, Motor Matt's heart stood still.
+
+"You wouldn't dare do that!" he shouted.
+
+"Wouldn't I?" and a reckless, mocking laugh came with the words. "From
+what you know of me don't you think I would? Hope you'll have a nice,
+easy walk to Fairview, Motor Matt! There'll be some surprises in store
+for you when you get there. Good-by!"
+
+Spangler also shouted a jeering farewell.
+
+The car got in motion, the humming slowly decreased, and the glow of
+the tail light winked suddenly into darkness.
+
+Motor Matt had been abandoned.
+
+But, worse than that, the two scoundrels who had spirited him away from
+Fairview were bent on the wanton destruction of Mr. Tomlinson's car!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
+
+
+Motor Matt came nearer being utterly cast down, at that moment,
+than ever before in his life. Weak and sick as he was, perhaps his
+discouragement was not to be wondered at. Sinking down at the foot of
+the boulder against which he had been leaning, he began finding fault
+with himself.
+
+It was all right to pick up the stranded actors and carry them on to
+Fairview. That was merely a kindness for which no one could blame
+him. But to jump into their troubles, at a time when he was engaged
+in work for Mr. Tomlinson and was not, strictly speaking, his own
+boss, that gave the affair another look. Now, because of his desire to
+help Legree, Eliza, and the rest, there he was, hung up in the hills
+seventy-five miles from Fairview, with the Red Flier in Brisco's hands
+and pointed for the scrap-heap.
+
+Mr. Tomlinson would be perfectly justified in laying the destruction of
+the car to Matt's own disregard of orders. And it was Mr. Tomlinson who
+had selected Matt to take the Red Flier to Albuquerque because he was
+satisfied the car would receive better care in his hands than in any
+other!
+
+There was enough in these reflections to make Motor Matt dissatisfied
+with himself. But he was not, and never had been, a "quitter." And the
+one cry of his soul had always been for Fate to keep him from joining
+the ranks of the "quitters."
+
+As a matter of fact, Motor Matt was a self-reliant American boy, and
+there was never the least danger of his going over to the useless crowd
+of mistakes and failures. Naturally, he might make a misplay now and
+then--running behind just enough to keep him "gingered up" for ultimate
+success in the big things.
+
+While he crouched at the foot of the boulder, the cool air clearing his
+brain and the sick feeling leaving him, he fell to planning for turning
+the tables against his enemies.
+
+What was there he could do, afoot and seventy-five miles from town?
+
+At first, the prospect seemed utterly hopeless; but Matt knew that a
+brave heart and a firm will had time and again snatched victory from
+seeming defeat.
+
+He would start for Fairview. Possibly, although the road was not much
+traveled, he might have the good luck to encounter some freighter who
+would give him a lift.
+
+Without losing a moment longer, he got up and started off in the
+direction taken by Brisco and Spangler.
+
+He wondered, as he swung along, what Carl would think when he came to
+himself and found the car missing--and Matt gone with it. And what
+would Legree think? And Eliza?
+
+But what those in Fairview might think was a minor consideration. The
+great point was the recovery of the Red Flier before the car's captors
+could wreck the machine.
+
+Brisco was the only one of the two scoundrels who could run a car, and
+even Brisco's knowledge was superficial. An hour's instruction, from
+the driver of Nugent's runabout, was all Brisco had had.
+
+Brisco now had two stolen cars and he could run only one of
+them--unless, indeed, the third man he had picked up knew something
+about motors.
+
+Matt, perhaps, had walked a mile through the gloomy hills, when he
+heard a noise as of some one in the road ahead. He halted, half-fearing
+that Brisco and Spangler were coming back.
+
+But that could not be, he reasoned. If they had wanted to come back,
+they would have used the car--and the noise Matt heard was of footsteps.
+
+He listened, straining his ears and eyes. Only one man was coming. He
+could not see, but hearing alone told him there was but one.
+
+Backing into the deep shadow of a nest of boulders, he continued to
+wait.
+
+The man, whoever he was, was coming hurriedly. Sometimes he ran, and
+occasionally he stumbled. As he drew closer, Matt saw that he was a
+small man, and as he came closer still the figure resolved itself into
+that of a mere boy.
+
+"Hello!" called Matt, stepping out into the road again.
+
+The figure gave a startled jump.
+
+"Chee!" it cried. "Say, who's dat?"
+
+Matt's pulses quickened, and a glow of hope ran through him.
+
+"Hello, kid!" he shouted. "What're you doing here?"
+
+"I'm a jay if it ain't Motor Matt!" came delightedly from the boy as he
+dashed forward. "How's dis f'r a come-off? Say, it sure knocks de wind
+out o' me! Where'd yous come from, yerself? Was yous on dat automobile
+wid Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+By then the boy was close enough to grab Matt's hand and give it a
+shake.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt; "I was on the car with them and they let me out
+and turned back."
+
+"How'd de mutts come t' git yous on de mat, hey?"
+
+Matt explained how he had been spirited away.
+
+"Well, on de level," breathed the boy, "dat's de rummest move I ever
+connected wit'. Raw? Oh, sister!"
+
+"Now tell me something about yourself," said Matt. "Why did you get
+into that car? And where have you been since you left Fairview?"
+
+"Easy, cull! T'ings is bein' pulled off in such a bunch it's hard t'
+straighten dem out. Le's do de ham-restin' act, right here on dis nice
+bunch o' rocks, while we chin a little."
+
+They sat down, side by side.
+
+"You must have had some reason, Eva, for hiking out with Brisco like
+you did, and----"
+
+"Cut out de 'Eva.' Fergit de styge name. I was on'y dat back o' de tin
+lamps, an' no more of 'em fer mine. Call me Josh. Not dat I'm a josher,
+understan', 'cause I ain't. An' here's somet'in' else I'm battin' up t'
+yous: Dere's a few t'inks rattlin' around in me block dat I can't let
+yous in on. Not bekase I ain't willin' meself, but bekase it ain't on
+de program. See?
+
+"First off, Matt, I crowded into dat car becase de idee looked good t'
+me. Dat's all yous is t' know about dat f'r now. I rode t' w'ere Brisco
+stopped de car an' took on Spang--about de place w'ere dad an' yous had
+de set-to on account o' dat box.
+
+"Den we moved on ag'in, me still under de coat an' wonderin' how long I
+could keep shy o' de lamps o' dem two dubs. You can bet yer lid, Matt,
+I didn't breathe on'y when necessary. I was de sly boy, all right.
+W'en we pulled up ag'in, we was clost t' t'ree horses, all saddled an'
+bridled, an' wit' a beer-faced guy on one o' dem.
+
+"De runabout was backed into de brush, an' Brisco an' Spang got onto
+two o' de horses an' all t'ree o' dat strong-arm bunch pulled deir
+freight back down de road. It was right den I wished dat I knowed how
+t' work dem cranks an' t'ings so'st I could make dat car go w'ere I
+wanted. But I didn't know de tail lamp from de carburetter, so I jess
+had t' lay low an' wait.
+
+"W'en dem jays got back, dere was yer Uncle John right under de coat,
+same as usual, an' still holdin' his breat'. If one o' de mugs lifted
+de coat, I was plannin' to work me pins an' head right into de weeds,
+like anot'er bear was on me trail.
+
+"But dey didn't look under de coat, none of dem. Dey was too mad. Chee!
+but dey was r'iled! Blatter, blatter, blatter, dey went, swearin' like
+a plumber wot's burned hisself wit' his torch. Say, de air was blue an
+smelt like de odder place. If dey'd piped me off den, dey'd have took
+me skelp, all right.
+
+"From de spiel dey was givin' each odder, I hooked onto de infermation
+dat dey'd got de box an' dat dere wasn't not'in' in it--w'ich I knowed
+all de time. Dey was crowdin' all deir swear-words onto Motor Matt.
+Yous had fooled dem, dey said, an' dey was goin' t' saw off even if it
+took a leg.
+
+"Brisco give de mug on de horse his orders to go t' some place w'ere
+Brisco an' Spang would go foist an' wait. Wid dat we started up
+ag'in--me on de job an' still sayin' me prayers back'ards, for'ards,
+an' sideways. I couldn't see where we went, but we was goin' f'r a
+hunderd years, seemed like, I was dat worked up t'inkin' I might git
+nabbed. Den we stopped, backed t'roo some brush, an' stopped ag'in, dat
+time t' stay.
+
+"I had drawn into me shell, listenin' w'ile Brisco an' Spang was
+rammin' around de place w'ere we was. After a w'ile, deir bazoos seemed
+t' move off, an' I stuck out me coco an' piped de layout.
+
+"We was in a well. Anyways dat's how it looked. De well was about
+fifteen feet acrost, steep rocks all around an' on'y one place w'ere
+dere was a break. De break was choked up wit' brush, an' I'm wise right
+off dat we'd backed t'roo it w'en we come into de well.
+
+"I see anot'er nice little clump of brush off t' de right, an' it
+looked so invitin' dat I slipped out from under de coat an' ducked f'r
+it.
+
+"I was in dat clump w'en de odder bloke, who dey called Klegg, blowed
+in t'roo de break wid de hosses; an' I was still dere w'en night come
+down, an' de t'ree of dem lighted up de runabout an' went away w'id it.
+
+"Couldn't git in de back seat den, kase Klegg was dere, so dey bumped
+off into de night an' left me in de well wit' de t'ree horses.
+
+"I kinked me thinker all up t'ryin' t' guess whedder I'd better stay
+right dere or borry one o' dem horses an' ride some place. Well, I
+didn't ride, not knowin' any good place t' ride to. Couldn't even make
+a guess which way de town was.
+
+"I went out t'roo de brush an' moseyed around in de dark till
+_chugetty-chug!_ along come dat runabout ag'in an' backed t'roo de
+brush into de well. But dere was on'y one man in it, an' it was Klegg.
+W'ere was Brisco an' Spang? Dat was wot fretted me. W'ile I was
+frettin', along comes dat red tourin'-car. I made out Brisco in front,
+an' Spang in de rear--an' dere was some odder mug in de rear wot I
+couldn't get next to. De tourin'-car went on past de well.
+
+"Chee, but I was rattled! Wot was happenin', I says t' meself, an' w'y
+was it happenin'? De tourin'-car come back ag'in an' in it was Brisco
+an' Spang, but de odder guy had been left somew'ere. De tourin'-car was
+backed into de well, w'ere de runabout had gone, an' I started dis way
+t' see wot I could find. Say, Matt, I was knocked stiff w'en I found
+yous! Great, ain't it, how luck takes a shoot, once in a w'ile? If
+dat---- Wot's de matter w'id yous? W'ere yous goin'?"
+
+Matt had jumped up, grabbed Josh by the arm and was pulling him down
+the road.
+
+"Come on!" said he. "We haven't got any time to lose!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+A DARING PLAN.
+
+
+"Say," panted Josh, as he and Matt traveled rapidly along the road,
+"put me wise to dis move, can't yous? Wot's in yer block, Matt?"
+
+"Do you know what Brisco intends to do with the Red Flier?" asked Matt.
+
+"He's layin' in a supply o' benzine-buggies t' start a garage, 'r
+somet'ing, ain't he?"
+
+"He ran off with that touring-car just to play even with me, Josh. He
+says I've meddled with his affairs long enough, and that he's going to
+run the Red Flier over a cliff just to pay me back for using the car to
+help you people."
+
+"Wouldn't dat frost yous?" muttered Josh.
+
+"And he said I was seventy-five miles from Fairview," went on Matt,
+"and that by the time I had walked to the town he would have finished
+his business there."
+
+"Brisco has got anodder guess comin'. He ain't so warm. Dad can show
+him a t'ing 'r two, an' don't yous fergit dat. Chee! Dat guy's de
+limit. But wot's yer game, cull?"
+
+"You say that both cars are in that 'well,' as you call it?"
+
+"Dat's w'ere dey was w'en I started for here."
+
+"Well, I'm going to get the Red Flier away from that outfit!"
+
+Matt spoke as confidently as though he had merely remarked that he was
+going over to the hotel after his dinner.
+
+"Say, cull," returned the boy, "I like yer nerve, all right, an' I
+marks yous up f'r de entry, but how yous goin' t' git under de wire?
+Dere's t'ree o' dem guys, an' dey've got a lot o' artillery. How we
+goin' t' git away wit' de car if dey don't want us to?"
+
+"I don't know," replied Matt, "but we've got to do it somehow."
+
+"Yous is a reg'lar lollypaloozer, Motor Matt, an' I'd back yous t' win
+any ole day, but dis looks like too big a load. But yous can count on
+me. Dad'll tell yous dat I'm big f'r me age an' no mutt in a getaway,
+so jest set yer pace an' I'll push on de reins."
+
+"How far is it to the place where the automobiles were left?"
+
+"We're close t' dere now. I'm wonderin' w'y Brisco dropped yous widin
+a short walk o' de hang-out--dat is, if he was fixin' t' stay at de
+place?"
+
+"I don't know," answered Matt; "but that's what he did and it's enough
+for me. I've got to recover that car, Josh. If I don't, and if anything
+happens to it, I'd look nice making my report to Tomlinson, wouldn't I?"
+
+"If yous hadn't picked up dat bunch o' tramps on de road yous wouldn't
+have got into dis fix."
+
+"I'm not sorry I helped you out, Josh."
+
+"Sure not. Yous ain't dat kind, Motor Matt. All de same, yous would
+have been peggin' along to'rds Albuquerque, nice as yous please, if
+it hadn't been for dat crowd o' Uncle Tommers. Dere'll be doin's in
+Fairview in de mornin', w'en dad finds out yous ain't w'ere yous ought
+t' be."
+
+"What can your father do?"
+
+"He can do a lot w'en he gits started. Don't yous never t'ink he's a
+slow one, Matt."
+
+Matt knew that Legree could keep a cool head in a pinch, but, for all
+that, he didn't see how he could do anything when he didn't have money
+enough even to pay his board-bill.
+
+"Mr. Tomlinson has a lot of confidence in me," said Matt; "and, if that
+car is wrecked, I'll have----"
+
+"Sh-h-h!" whispered Josh, coming to a wary halt and laying a hand on
+Matt's arm. "Look ahead, dere. See dat black splotch on de side o' de
+hill by de road?"
+
+"Yes," answered Matt, straining his eyes in the direction indicated.
+
+"Dat's de brush dat hides de openin'. Are we bot' goin' t' blow in dere
+an' try t' make a run wit' de red car?"
+
+"We can't do the trick in such a hurricane way as that. We've got to
+lay some other plan. I'll go in and look the ground over, Josh, and
+maybe I can get hold of an idea."
+
+"I'll try t' git holt o' one, too, w'ile I'm waitin' fer yous. Don't
+make much noise w'ile yous is in de bushes, Matt, or dem terriers'll
+pepper yous."
+
+"I'm going to sneak into the place as quietly as I can. I don't think
+they'll hear me."
+
+Leaving the boy a little way from the dark patch of verdure clinging to
+the face of the hill, Matt went on carefully. As he approached closer
+to the vague blot it gradually took form under his eyes.
+
+The wall of the hill seemed to be cracked through from crest to base
+and wrenched apart until it formed a narrow opening. Up both sides of
+the opening grew the bushes, their branches spreading out and forming a
+thick screen.
+
+On account of the darkness, Matt could not make a very close
+examination of the queer fissure, but he saw enough to convince him
+that Nature had contrived a secure retreat for Brisco and Spangler.
+
+The bottom of the opening, Matt judged, was all of ten feet in width.
+Dropping down on his hands and knees, he began crawling through the
+middle of the break, parting the bush branches from in front of him as
+he advanced.
+
+So wary was he that he made very little noise.
+
+He had gone perhaps a dozen feet through the brushy tangle, when a glow
+of light struck on his eyes. This acted as a sort of beacon, and served
+to guide him the rest of the way. A dozen feet more brought him to the
+opposite side of the opening and to the edge of the bushes.
+
+Crouching silently on the ground he proceeded to survey the peculiar
+niche in front of him.
+
+Josh's description, likening the place to a "well," was quite
+appropriate. The niche was circular in form and its walls arose steeply
+to a height of at least fifty feet. In the shadow of the walls the
+place was very dark, but the glowing lamps of an automobile enabled
+Matt to see enough to send a chill of disappointment through him.
+
+There was only one automobile in the niche!
+
+And that one was the runabout!
+
+Brisco and Spangler must have emerged and gone off somewhere with the
+Red Flier.
+
+Had they taken it away to destroy it?
+
+The three horses were not far from the runabout. They were secured to
+some bushes, and could be heard pawing and stamping.
+
+Matt could also hear something else, and that was the snoring of a man
+in deep sleep.
+
+After a moment's hesitation he continued to creep onward, redoubling
+his care and vigilance.
+
+He was upon the man before he was fairly aware of it, one of his
+groping hands coming in contact with an outstretched foot.
+
+The snoring ceased with an explosive grunt and Matt drew back
+breathlessly.
+
+The man did not rouse up. Shifting his position slightly he continued
+to snore.
+
+Making a detour, Matt got around the man--whom he knew was not Brisco
+or Spangler, and consequently must be Klegg--and reached the runabout.
+
+Pausing there, the young motorist let his mind circle about this new
+phase of the situation.
+
+If he couldn't get the Red Flier, why not take the runabout? That would
+afford himself and Josh a quick means for making the return trip to
+Fairview. Besides, no matter what happened to the Red Flier, there was
+something to be gained in getting the runabout away from the thieves.
+
+Close to the car was a heap of horse-trappings. Matt felt about among
+the saddles, bridles and blankets until he had found two coiled riatas.
+
+Could he, by quick work, get one of the ropes around Klegg's hands
+before he was thoroughly awake and able to struggle? Josh would have
+been of use in such an attempt, and Matt decided that he could not make
+it successfully unless he did have the other to help. He would go back
+after Josh, he decided; but first he would look over the runabout and
+make sure it was ready for the road.
+
+Laying the ropes in the front of the car, he arose to his feet, softly
+removed the tail lamp from its bracket, and flashed it into the rumble.
+
+The coat, used so cleverly by the boy, was still there, crumpled on
+the floor as though by a man's feet. Passing on to the forward part of
+the car, the pencil of light jumped from point to point, Matt's eyes
+following critically.
+
+Everything seemed to be shipshape and in good order.
+
+A small object on one of the front seats caught the youth's attention.
+It was pushed well back into the angle where the back joined the seat,
+and Matt picked it up and held it in the glow of light.
+
+It was a small bottle, and the label bore the written word,
+"Chloroform."
+
+Matt stifled an exclamation. Undoubtedly it had been some of that
+bottle's contents which had helped Brisco and Spangler get the better
+of him, in Fairview, and run off with the touring-car.
+
+Then a startling expedient darted through Matt's mind. Turn about was
+fair play. With the aid of the drug he could clear a passage for the
+runabout, and without resort to any violence.
+
+Setting the lamp down on the front seat, Matt drew the cork of the
+bottle, took a handkerchief from his pocket and proceeded to wet it
+with the chloroform. Then, re-corking the bottle and laying it aside,
+he went down on his hands and knees and started toward Klegg.
+
+A lightening of the sky over the steep walls that hemmed in the niche
+told of coming day.
+
+The darkness would be a help to Matt and Josh in getting to the road
+and away, and if advantage was to be taken of night Matt knew he would
+have to hurry.
+
+But he was well equipped to carry out his plans now, and lost no time
+in getting about them.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+ON THE ROAD.
+
+
+Kneeling beside Klegg, Matt leaned over and held the saturated
+handkerchief close to his face. The fumes were strong, and seemed to
+strangle him. With a gurgling grunt he shifted his position.
+
+Matt moved the handkerchief and again held it over his face. This time
+Klegg sputtered a little, but did not change his position. Evidently
+the narcotic was beginning to have its effect. After a moment, Matt
+allowed the handkerchief to drop on Klegg's face. He left it there
+for two or three minutes and then threw it aside. Klegg was breathing
+heavily and seemed to be completely under the influence of the drug.
+
+Catching hold of the blanket on which the man was lying, Matt began to
+pull it toward the wall of the niche.
+
+"Chee!" whispered a voice close to Matt's side. "Wot kind of a smell is
+dat, cull? Wot yous done to Klegg?"
+
+"I thought you were going to wait outside, Josh?" answered Matt.
+
+"Dat's wot I t'ought, but yous was so long in comin' dat I took de
+notion t' come in an' look yous up. Wot's de play?"
+
+"I found a bottle of chloroform in the runabout, and it must have been
+out of that same bottle that Brisco took the stuff that put me to
+sleep. Thought I'd see how it worked on Klegg."
+
+"Yous is a jim dandy, Matt!" laughed Josh delightedly. "But w'ere's
+Brisco an' Spang?"
+
+"They're not here, and neither is the touring-car."
+
+"Tough luck! Yous figgerin' on makin' a getaway wit' de runabout?"
+
+"Yes. We might use that for a quick run to Fairview and get the sheriff
+to hunt up Brisco and Spangler. I'll go with the sheriff and use the
+runabout. It's a faster car than the Flier, and we may be able to catch
+the two thieves before they wreck Mr. Tomlinson's car."
+
+"Yous has got a head on yous, Matt, an' no mistake," said the boy
+admiringly. "An' yous pulled all dis off yerself! Well, say, if yous
+ain't a winner dis heat yous ought t' be. Dat's right--on de level an'
+no stringin'. Dad would like t' have a guy like yous t' work wit' all
+de time. An' so would Little Eva, de child wonder. But it's gittin'
+daylight, Matt, an' if we're goin' t' pull our freight, let's be at it."
+
+It was already light enough so that they could see without the lamps.
+These were extinguished, and then Matt put the tail lamp back in its
+place, started the engine and got into the driver's seat.
+
+On the low gear they moved slowly across the bottom of the niche.
+
+Josh was still laughing softly to himself.
+
+"Chee, cull, but I'd like t' be around w'en Brisco an' Spang find dat
+Klegg feller!" he chuckled. "Dat would be as good as a circus. Dis is
+almost too good t' be true, ain't it?"
+
+"It will be, Josh," replied Matt, "if I can only get back the Red
+Flier."
+
+"Dem coves'll be careful o' dat odder machine when dey find dis one has
+been took away from dem."
+
+"I know that--providing they find out the runabout is gone before they
+destroy the Flier."
+
+Setting the runabout at the bushes, Matt drove through the undergrowth,
+Josh keeping the branches out of his face while he attended to the
+steering.
+
+"On de road ag'in!" jubilated the boy, as they emerged from the mouth
+of the opening and turned to the left.
+
+"All I wish is," answered Matt, "that I knew we were going right."
+
+"Dere's on'y two ways t' go, cull. One's up to'rds w'ere you was
+dropped by Brisco an' Spang, an' t'odder's de way we're headin'. It's a
+cinch we're hittin' it off about proper. W'ere d' youse t'ink dem odder
+mutts went wid de tourin'-car?"
+
+"I'm afraid they took it off to carry out their threat and make junk of
+it."
+
+"I hope yous ain't got it right. If dey did dat, it 'u'd put yous in a
+bad hole. Yous couldn't make Tomlinson take dis car f'r de odder, could
+yous?"
+
+"Hardly. This car belongs to Nugent, in Ash Fork."
+
+Something was rattling about the car, and it got onto Matt's nerves.
+Halting for a moment, he located the difficulty. The screw-cap of
+the gasoline-tank was loose. Taking a wrench out of the tool-box he
+tightened the cap, then dropped the wrench in the rumble and returned
+to his seat.
+
+"Yous don't like t' hear anyt'ing rattle, hey?" queried Josh.
+
+"Makes me nervous," laughed Matt. "Now hold onto your teeth, Josh. I'm
+going to let her out!"
+
+"De quicker we kin go de better. Let's see how fast de ole gal kin
+travel."
+
+They whirled around a turn in the narrow valley. The unexpected was
+lying in wait for them, for they came upon Spangler, on foot and
+walking toward the niche.
+
+Josh gave a startled yell. Spangler, dumfounded at sight of the
+runabout, charging toward him with Motor Matt and the boy in front,
+stood as though rooted to the ground.
+
+"Down, Josh!" cried Matt, advancing the spark; "get down behind the
+dashboard!"
+
+As Matt spoke he sounded the horn. Spangler climbed out of the way with
+more haste than grace, and the runabout dashed past him.
+
+"Yi-yip-ee!" tuned up the boy, waving his hand mockingly. "D'radder do
+dat dan git run down, hey?"
+
+"Drop!" yelled Matt, and in a tone that made Josh crumple down between
+the seat and the dash.
+
+Bang!
+
+Matt had expected a bullet, and he was not disappointed. But it went
+wide.
+
+Bang!
+
+The next one came closer, but still left a safe margin.
+
+There was no more shooting. Wondering at it, Josh rose up and looked
+backward.
+
+"Now wot d'youse t'ink o' dat!" he cried. "Wot's dat mug doin' dat for?"
+
+"What's he doing?" asked Matt.
+
+"W'y he's hustlin' a big stone into de middle o' de road. See 'im work!
+Chee! Wot's de meanin' o' dat?"
+
+The car whipped around another turn, wiping Spangler and his strange
+activities out of sight. Josh dropped down on the seat.
+
+"That's got a bad look," said Matt, coaxing the runabout to a still
+faster gait. "We've got to get out of this as quick as we can."
+
+"Chee!" cried the boy, holding to the seat with both hands, "we're
+goin' fast enough. Gid-ap! Wow! wot a spurt! Don't let anyt'ing slip a
+cog, cull. If de ole benzine-buggy hit a rock an' stopped, I'd go right
+on f'r a couple o' miles afore I landed. Oh, wot a clip! We've got de
+Cannonball Limited licked t' a frazzle!"
+
+Then they took another turn, the rear wheels skidding and Matt deftly
+catching the motor up and sending the car onward. The runabout did not
+follow the curve of the road, but made an angling turn--a hair-raising
+stunt copied after Oldfield, the daredevil racer.
+
+Josh gave a yell, and came within a hair of being heaved over Matt and
+into the road.
+
+Then, with a muttered exclamation, Matt cut off the power, applied the
+brakes and quickly reversed, backing for the side of the road.
+
+It all happened so quick that it took the boy's breath.
+
+"Wot's dat fer?" he asked.
+
+Matt was whirling the wheel and starting the car on the back track.
+
+"Brisco is heading us off," he answered--"Brisco in the Red Flier!"
+
+Josh turned to stare along the road.
+
+Matt was right.
+
+Brisco, still a long distance off, was whooping it up in their
+direction.
+
+"Wouldn't dat crimp yous?" gasped the boy, awed at the gathering
+perils. "Dey've got us f'r fair, Matt! W'y didn't yous keep on an' give
+Brisco de go-by?"
+
+"There wasn't room enough in the road to pass!" flung back Matt.
+
+"Dat's w'y Spang was rollin' dem stones in de road! He knew dat Brisco
+was comin', and dat he'd git us between him an' de rock-pile. Chee!
+We're It, dis time, an' no mistake."
+
+Matt, his face white and set and his gray eyes snapping, was leaning
+over the steering-wheel, watching every foot of road as they swept over
+it.
+
+"We've got to pass that rock-pile before it gets too big!" said he
+through his teeth.
+
+"Den w'ere'll we go?"
+
+"Anywhere, just so we keep away from Brisco. This car is a faster one
+than the Red Flier. We can show him our heels at any stage of the game."
+
+They fairly flew, and rocks rushed past them as though hurled by some
+giant hand.
+
+"There'll be some danger when we get to the place where Spangler is
+waiting, Josh," said Matt. "I'll slow down and you can get out, if you
+want to."
+
+"Wot d'youse take me fer?" cried the boy. "I'm wid yous, Matt, win
+'r lose. See? Make yer ole play. If Uncle Josh ain't wit' yous at de
+finish, den call him a quitter an' mark him off'n yer callin'-list."
+
+Hurling onward, and skidding around the turns, Matt kept straining his
+eyes constantly ahead.
+
+Their source of peril was now wrapped up in Spangler. If his pile of
+boulders did not block the road completely--if there was a chance for
+the runabout to get past the stones, or over them, there was still a
+fighting chance for escape.
+
+Half a minute later, as the car reached out for the place where
+Spangler had been at work, Matt's heart went down into his boots.
+
+Spangler was nowhere in sight, but he had worked to good purpose.
+
+A few big boulders were cunningly placed so as to make the road
+impassable. With a despairing cry, Matt brought the runabout to a quick
+stop.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+A CLOSE CALL.
+
+
+"Pile out, Josh, and get busy with those rocks!" yelled Matt.
+
+It was a forlorn hope, for the pounding of the Red Flier could be heard
+around the turn, coming up hand over fist. Long before the way could be
+cleared, Brisco would be upon them.
+
+And what had become of Spangler. Where had he gone? And _why_ had he
+gone?
+
+That was a conundrum, and Matt had no time to give to conundrums just
+then.
+
+Josh, eager to do all he could, was tugging and straining at the rocks.
+
+"It won't do, Josh!" shouted Matt. "Run for those boulders at the side
+of the road and wait for me."
+
+To think quickly in an emergency was Motor Matt's long suit. Many a
+time his cool head had helped him out of a bad difficulty.
+
+While he was shouting to the boy he was running back to the car.
+Snatching the wrench from where he had dropped it in the rumble,
+Matt went to work with lightninglike energy on the cap of the
+gasoline-reservoir.
+
+In record time he had the cap off. Bending down he scooped up a handful
+of sand from the road and dumped the most of it into the reservoir,
+then, as quickly as he had removed the cap, he replaced it, flung the
+wrench into the car and jumped for the boulders.
+
+Hardly was he back of the big stones that clustered along that edge of
+the valley, when the Red Flier shoved her nose through a cloud of dust
+and came scorching onward.
+
+Brisco must have been astounded to see the runabout, deserted and at a
+halt in the road. The way, of course, was blocked for him as well as
+for the runabout, and he halted the Red Flier at a good distance from
+the other machine, leaped out and came running to the other car.
+
+The stones in the road probably gave him a pretty good idea of what
+had happened, for he immediately began looking around him as though
+expecting to see some one--possibly Matt and Josh.
+
+"Spang!" he whooped. "Where are you, Spang?"
+
+"Here!" answered Spangler, appearing suddenly around the bend.
+
+"What you been doing?" demanded Brisco.
+
+"The dickens is ter pay, an' no mistake!" stormed Spang. "That young
+cub of a Motor Matt found out whar we'd cached the runabout, an' blamed
+if he didn't go in an' snake it right out from under Klegg's----"
+
+"Thunder!" broke in Brisco. "Don't you reckon I _saw_ the whelp? He was
+bearing down on me like a hurricane, slamming the runabout through for
+all she was worth."
+
+"He went past here gally-whoopin'," answered Spang, "while I was makin'
+fer that hole in the hill. Come mighty nigh runnin' me down at that.
+I got out o' the way, faced around an' sent a couple o' bullets arter
+him, but the brat's too lucky ter stop any lead----"
+
+"Depends on who throws the lead," snarled Brisco.
+
+"I kin throw it with ary man that walks! But I didn't take time ter
+throw much. I calculated the runabout would come up ferninst you, Hank,
+afore it got out o' the valley, an' that King would have ter turn
+around an' chase back this way. So what does I do but begin pilin'
+stones whar they'd do the most good. Jest got enough down ter do the
+biz, an' went ter see what had happened ter Klegg. Great jumpin'
+sand-hills! What d'ye think that infernal kid done ter him?"
+
+"What?" fumed Brisco.
+
+"Doped him, by thunder! Doped him out er the same bottle we used last
+night! Klegg's up thar in the notch, dead ter the world!"
+
+"What did you leave the hang-out for?" roared Brisco angrily. "Didn't
+I tell you, when I left, to stay there with Klegg? If you'd done as I
+said, this wouldn't have happened."
+
+"I come out ter see if that kid was moseyin' down the valley," was the
+sullen rejoinder from Spang. "Ye said I was ter watch out an' make sure
+he didn't blunder outer the notch."
+
+"Well, you made sure, didn't you?" taunted Brisco. "Where'd Legree's
+kid spring from? How'd he come to be along with King?"
+
+"How'd I know? Think I'm a mind-reader?"
+
+"Deuced funny thing! He was with King, and I'd like to know where he
+came from, and how he got here. There's a nigger in the fence, I'll
+bet. Where'd those boys go?"
+
+"I don't know that, nuther."
+
+"Did they pass you and go up the valley?"
+
+"Nary, they didn't!"
+
+"Then they must be hiding around here somewhere! Let's get 'em. If I
+lay hands on Motor Matt again he won't get off so easy."
+
+There was only one place in that vicinity where any one could hide, and
+that was among the scattered rocks not far from where the runabout was
+standing.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, making a hasty survey of the surroundings, at once
+hit upon the boulders as the place for them to look.
+
+"They're over thar," cried Spangler, "an' I'll bet money on it."
+
+As he spoke, he started at a run for the side of the valley, pulling a
+revolver as he went.
+
+"Don't do any shooting," called Brisco, starting after Spangler, "just
+grab 'em and hold 'em."
+
+"We'll tie King in that thar automobile when we run it over the cliff!"
+yelped Brisco viciously. "We'll l'arn him ter play his tricks on _us_!"
+
+Matt and Josh had heard all this conversation. They were not standing
+still, either, but were busily finding some place where they could stow
+themselves away.
+
+A fight with the two armed men was to be avoided, if possible. Matt
+knew that he and Josh would stand little chance in such a one-sided
+combat; and Matt had formed plans which he was eager to be carrying out.
+
+A little way up the steep hillside there was a ledge, with a recess
+back of it.
+
+Matt's quick eye picked out the spot, and he climbed briskly, hauling
+Josh along after him. The boulders shielded them from view while they
+were getting to the ledge, and Matt pushed Josh into the recess, and
+then rolled into it himself. From this position Matt was able to peer
+over the ledge and keep track of the movements of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+"Are they comin' dis way, cull?" whispered the boy.
+
+"Yes," answered Matt.
+
+"Got deir guns ready, eh?"
+
+"Of course, Josh. Scoundrels like Brisco and Spangler always draw and
+shoot if you give 'em half a chance."
+
+"Dey're hot at de two of us, an' dey'll sure lay out ter do us up."
+
+"We'll have to fight, if they force it on us."
+
+"Wot kin we do?"
+
+"There's a stone on the ledge. If they come too close I'll push it down
+on them."
+
+"Better give dat dere stone a push right off, bekase----"
+
+"Hist!" cautioned Matt.
+
+Silence fell between the boys. Matt drew in his head, fearing he
+would be seen. He listened intently, however, and could tell by the
+scrambling feet below just how near Brisco and Spangler were coming.
+When they came too close, Matt was intending to push the stone down on
+them.
+
+"Beats the deuce where those whelps went to!" grumbled the voice of
+Brisco.
+
+"They must be here. Thar wasn't any place else they could go. I wasn't
+gone from the road more'n five minits, Hank."
+
+"They wouldn't have had time to get past you?"
+
+"Nary, they wouldn't. They're here, I tell ye; they must be."
+
+"The whole side-hill is under our eyes. If you can see the cubs you can
+do better than I can."
+
+"Seems like there was a shelf up thar a ways. Mebby they're on the
+shelf?"
+
+"Gammon! That shelf isn't wide enough for a chipmunk to sit on."
+
+"Anyways, I'm goin' up an' take a look."
+
+Matt got ready to push out and roll the stone off the shelf. Before he
+could do that, however, a shout from Brisco halted him.
+
+"Say, you! There were three horses in the hang-out with Klegg!"
+
+"What o' that?" answered Spangler.
+
+"Why, those boys have gone there and are getting the horses."
+
+"How could they go thar, Hank? They didn't pass me."
+
+"They might have got there when you didn't see them. While we're
+wasting time here, I'll bet something handsome they're getting out
+those horses. Come on! Don't lose another second fooling around among
+those rocks!"
+
+"Waal, I don't reckon----"
+
+"Come on, I say!" roared Brisco.
+
+The two men were heard scrambling down the slope, getting farther and
+farther away.
+
+Back in the little recess Matt could hear the boy chuckling and talking
+to himself.
+
+"Come on, Josh!" whispered Matt, starting up. "Be careful, though! This
+is our day for luck, all right."
+
+"Well, I guess!" answered the boy, rolling over the ledge. "Chee, but
+dey're a pair o' dough-heads. Good t'ing f'r us, too. What next, Matt?"
+
+"We'll get to the Red Flier, turn it the other way along the trail, and
+ride back to Fairview."
+
+"Oh, Lucy!" giggled Josh. "Fer a kid dat ain't had not'in' t' eat since
+yesterday mornin' I'm feelin' some fine! We gits de Red Flier, after
+all, an' dem guys is beat, hands down."
+
+They were proceeding down the hillside while Josh was talking. When
+Matt reached the boulders that lined the road, he looked out.
+
+Brisco and Spangler, hurrying as fast as their legs could carry them,
+were just vanishing around the bend.
+
+"Now for the Red Flier--and Fairview!" said Matt, running out from
+among the boulders and laying a direct course for the red car.
+
+"Dat's de talk, cull!" laughed Josh, hustling along after Matt.
+
+Certainly it looked as though they were to have everything their own
+way, for a while at least--but they were not so lucky as they thought.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+CAR AGAINST CAR.
+
+
+It may be that Matt and Josh made too much racket getting down the
+rocks, or that Brisco had a premonition that something was wrong. Be
+that as it might, however, yet Brisco and Spangler turned back a minute
+after they had gone charging around the bend.
+
+Motor Matt, at that moment, was bending to the crank of the Red Flier,
+and it was Josh who excitedly announced the approach of their two
+enemies.
+
+The boy had done his jubilating too soon, and the sight of Brisco and
+Spangler filled him with panic.
+
+"Oh, chee!" he fluttered. "Dey're after us, Matt, like a couple o'
+grizzlies! Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks agin!"
+
+"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a whirl.
+
+One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with which the machine
+caught up its cycle; and it had been the same with Matt's twin-cylinder
+motorcycle. Half a turn of the pedal was enough for the little _Comet_,
+and one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's motor.
+
+While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and Spangler, Motor
+Matt ran around and vaulted into his old familiar place. He felt at
+home--much more so than he had when driving the runabout.
+
+Neither Brisco nor Spangler wasted any time with their revolvers.
+Both knew that the runabout was a faster machine than the Red Flier,
+and both felt confident that a quick start after the boys and a few
+minutes' chase would tell the tale.
+
+Spangler scrambled into the car. Brisco slipped as he rounded the front
+of the runabout to turn over the engine, fell sprawling and hit his
+head on the handle of the crank.
+
+He was not very much hurt, apparently, although from his flow of
+language his temper must have been severely injured. Besides, he had
+lost ten seconds--no very serious matter, considering the usual speed
+of the runabout--but Brisco was anxious for a rapid start and a quick
+finish for the chase.
+
+As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping from up the road sounding
+like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun. Motor Matt had turned the
+Red Flier with his customary celerity, and was off on the high gear
+with the muffler cut out.
+
+"By thunder," howled the frantic Spangler, "oncet I ketch that Motor
+Matt I'll wring his neck fer him!"
+
+"I'll help you," answered Brisco vindictively. There was a patch of
+skin gone from his forehead and a little dribble of red was flowing
+down his cheek.
+
+"If they wasn't out o' sight," growled Spangler, "I'd pepper 'em."
+
+"What's the use of peppering them?" scowled Brisco. "We'll climb right
+over 'em in less'n five minutes."
+
+"Do it!" cried Spangler, as they shot ahead recklessly.
+
+"Do what?" asked Brisco, just missing a boulder by a hair's breadth.
+
+"Why, climb over 'em," snorted Spangler. "Run 'em down an' shove 'em
+inter the rocks! Let's hev a smash, with that young whelp right in the
+middle of it. He's made us trouble enough!"
+
+"Don't be a fool, Spang!" returned Brisco. "If we ran into them we
+might smash the runabout. We've got use for this machine--after we
+clean up on Legree and this Motor Matt."
+
+"That's so, too," said Spangler. "We may hev use fer it even if ye
+don't clean up on Legree. With another pair o' shoes an' tubes, an' a
+place whar we kin keep a supply o' gasoline an' oil, an' them steel
+bottles o' compressed air, we could circle all around through this here
+Southwestern kentry, takin' our toll wharever we wanted ter pick it up."
+
+"Sure we could, and we _will_!"
+
+"I'm glad o' one thing," observed Spangler.
+
+"What's that?"
+
+"Why, thar won't be any more glass throwed in the road, same as thar
+was during t'other chase we had with that Red Flier. King had a lot in
+the red car, if ye remember, an' I dumped it all out."
+
+"We'll nip 'im this time," said Brisco, through his teeth.
+
+"We got ter, that's what. If we don't---- Tear an' ages, Hank! Be
+keerful!"
+
+The runabout had been hurled at a curve. There was no lessening of the
+speed, and the entire machine slid sideways to the edge of the road,
+banging into the rocks with a force that pitched Spangler against the
+dashboard. He came within one of going clear over upon the hood.
+
+"Get back in your seat and hang on!" yelled Brisco. "We haven't
+commenced to run yet."
+
+After that Spangler had no time to talk--he was too busy holding
+himself in the car.
+
+Meanwhile the Red Flier had been streaking it through the hills, Josh
+keeping a pair of keen eyes on the back track, and Matt giving his
+entire attention to the road ahead.
+
+"Chee, wot a bump!" cried Josh.
+
+He had seen the runabout skid across the road, take a welt at the rock
+wall and then leap onward like a bullet from a gun.
+
+"What's the matter?" shouted Matt.
+
+He had to shout, for the wind of their flight caught the words out of
+his teeth and flung them, a mere wisp of sound, far to rearward.
+
+"Brisco tried t' knock over a hill wit' his hind wheels," yelled Josh,
+"an' Spang tried t' turn a handspring over de bonnet. Wow! but dey're
+goin some, Matt!"
+
+"So are we," screamed Matt, "Fifty-eight miles an hour."
+
+"Ever race dat runabout afore?"
+
+"Yes."
+
+"W'ch winned?"
+
+"The Flier--by a fluke. I scattered glass in the road--the runabout got
+into it and went lame."
+
+"Got any glass along now?"
+
+"Yes, in the tonneau; but----"
+
+"None dere now, cull."
+
+"Then Brisco must have thrown it out. It'll all right, though. This is
+going to be our race."
+
+"We'd better keep our lamps skinned f'r Fairview. It's on'y
+seventy-five miles from w'ere we started, an we're goin' so fast we
+might run past de place an' never see it."
+
+Josh felt hilarious. His panic was leaving him and his usual nerve was
+coming back.
+
+"How's the runabout coming?" roared Matt.
+
+"Gainin'!" whooped the boy. "Oh, sister, how she's comin'! Wisht I had
+some glass."
+
+"She'll never catch us, Josh!"
+
+"How's dat?"
+
+"Because I've fixed her so she won't."
+
+"I hope yous ain't shy in yer calkilations, Matt. Dem blokes'll sure
+kill us if we drops into deir hands."
+
+"Watch her, Josh! Tell me when her speed slackens, or when anything
+goes wrong."
+
+"She ain't slackenin' none yet, an' nuttin' ain't gone wrong."
+
+"Well, watch and tell me."
+
+Matt couldn't understand why the runabout wasn't beginning to develop
+trouble in the vicinity of the needle-valve. But it would come, sooner
+or later. Some of the sand was bound to get through the supply-pipe in
+time.
+
+The valley had widened considerably, and now it began to develop dips
+and rises which afforded Matt opportunity for nursing the motor and
+preventing overheating. He could cut off the power on the down grades
+and give the throbbing cylinders a breathing spell.
+
+Brisco had no such fine ability or discrimination. He took everything
+on the high gear.
+
+"Still gainin'!" announced Josh.
+
+"How far are they behind?"
+
+"A hundred feet. It's a wonder dey don't shake some bullets out o' deir
+guns dis way. One of 'em's tootin' his bazoo at us."
+
+"What does he say? Can you hear?"
+
+"He says ter stop 'r he'll put a bullet into one o' our tires. Chee! If
+he does dat----"
+
+Matt snatched one hand from the steering-wheel.
+
+Honk, honk! he answered derisively.
+
+Sping!
+
+The warning report was followed by the whistle of a bullet. It did
+not come anywhere near the Red Flier, but spatted harmlessly into the
+valley wall.
+
+Josh laughed wildly and waved his hand. The spirit of the race was
+surging through his veins and had wiped out all sense of fear.
+
+"Wow!" he shouted. "Yous ought t' seen dat! Spang has been holdin' on
+t' de seat wit' bot' hands, but he let go wit' one t' fire at us. De
+runabout jumped sideways an' he lost his pepper-box overboard. Come
+clost t' goin' hisself! Say, I wisht he had!"
+
+The runabout was devouring the distance in remarkable style. It was now
+only twenty-five feet behind, and so near that the sand and pebbles
+kicked up by the flying rear wheels of the red car struck in the faces
+of Brisco and Spangler.
+
+Spangler lowered his head. Brisco jerked the goggles down over his eyes.
+
+"Stop!" he roared, "or I'll run into you!"
+
+Honk, honk! tooted Matt defiantly.
+
+Brisco swore and gritted his teeth. With his temper at fever heat, what
+did he care how he injured the runabout just so he evened his score
+with Motor Matt?
+
+Closer and closer came the runabout. Josh measured the decreasing
+distance with his eyes.
+
+"Ten feet! Five, Matt, _five_! She's up t' us, now--look out!"
+
+Not knowing what was to happen, Josh curled over the back of the seat
+and hung on with both hands.
+
+There was a slight jar, followed by a sudden slewing on the part of the
+runabout, a quick lessening of speed and the whirr of a racing engine.
+
+"Dey're stoppin'!" shouted the boy; "somet'ing has gone wrong wid de
+odder car!"
+
+"I knew _something_ would happen!" shouted Matt, as he slowed his speed
+a little to give the Red Flier a bit of a rest.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
+
+
+"Dat engine o' deirs went wrong just at de right time t' save our
+bacon, Matt," said Josh.
+
+Matt tossed a look backward. The runabout was at a stop, and Brisco was
+on the ground, tinkering frantically.
+
+"If he knows what to do," said Matt, "he'll be able to come on again.
+But he'll have more trouble; and he'll continue to have trouble until
+he takes time to overhaul his fuel-tank."
+
+"What did yous do?" asked the boy.
+
+"Mixed a handful of sand with his gasoline."
+
+"W'en?"
+
+"While we were hung up in front of those rocks Spangler had laid for
+us."
+
+"Didn't dat geezer see yous?"
+
+"I got out of the way before Brisco showed up; and Spangler, at the
+time, was away looking for the man in the notch."
+
+"Chee, but you're a wonder! Motor Matt heads de percession an' carries
+de banner! Yous t'ought o' all dat while I was hustlin' t' git behind
+dem rocks! Did yous t'ink we was goin' t' have a race?"
+
+"I didn't know but we might. Anyhow, I thought it good policy to fix
+the machine so it wouldn't be reliable. What's the news from the rear,
+Josh?"
+
+"Brisco is gittin' back in his seat."
+
+"Is he coming on?"
+
+"Dat's wot."
+
+"Fast as ever?"
+
+"I don't see no diff'rence in de runnin'."
+
+"Well, something is sure to go wrong, just as it did before. One grain
+of sand clogged the needle-valve, Josh, and there's a thousand more
+grains to come down the supply-pipe. Face around a minute. The road
+forks here. Which one shall we take? Do you remember coming this way?"
+
+The boy flopped around in his seat. The Red Flier was rushing toward a
+place where the road forked. Both roads were bordered by rocky walls,
+and both had the appearance of being equally well traveled--which
+wasn't saying much for the travel, at that.
+
+"I don't remember nuttin'," answered the boy, "bein' scart stiff all de
+w'ile I was in de runabout. I'd say go t' de right. Dat's always a good
+t'ing t' do."
+
+"If we had the least notion which way Fairview lay we could shape our
+course a little better. But we don't know, so we'll take chances and go
+to the right."
+
+There was a slowing of speed while Matt made the turn. For a long
+distance this fork was a straightaway stretch and fairly level. Matt
+and Josh were congratulating themselves on the fact that they had made
+a fortunate choice, when suddenly they whirled out on a vista that
+surprised them.
+
+At the end of the straightaway stretch, a sudden angle brought the
+side of a steep mountain under the boy's eyes. The road could be
+seen clinging to the mountain's side, describing horseshoe after
+horseshoe--edging its way between dizzy chasms and high cliffs.
+
+"Wow!" gasped Josh, and collapsed in his seat. "Right here's w'ere we
+fall off de eart'."
+
+Matt took another look behind. The runabout, with the stern, relentless
+face of Brisco over the wheel, was surging toward them.
+
+"Here we go!" called Matt. "Hang on, Josh!"
+
+"I'm glued! Yous can't shake me!"
+
+The boy was game, and Matt flung the Red Flier at the mountainside and
+down the ribbon of treacherous road.
+
+There were places where a cliff overhung the trail, and the wheels on
+the left almost scraped the rocks, while those on the right barely
+tracked on the brink of a gulf.
+
+The boy's face went white, but his eyes glimmered brightly. He looked
+back from time to time and saw the runabout sliding after them.
+
+A quick fear had rushed to Matt's brain. Oddly enough, it was not a
+fear for his own safety, for he knew the Red Flier and knew what he
+could do with it; but the runabout! If that trickle of sand cut off the
+power and caused the machine to slew ever so slightly, it would go over
+the chasm's edge and carry Brisco and Spangler with it!
+
+The world would have been better off, perhaps, if such a mishap
+had come to pass; but Matt did not want it that way. His own
+instrumentality in the matter would have been too hideously clear.
+
+And yet, if something did not happen to the runabout, the machine might
+collide with the Red Flier and drive it over the brink.
+
+Matt knew he must keep ahead. Never had he driven more masterfully than
+then. His nerves were steady, his brain alert, and every inch of that
+curving, treacherous down grade was covered by his eyes.
+
+It was more like falling down a hill than riding down. The Red Flier
+quivered like a thing of life, seeming to realize what was expected of
+it, and responding nobly.
+
+Far off, over the level plain at the mountain's foot, could be seen the
+little cluster of houses that represented Fairview. It glowed in the
+morning sun like a toy village on a toy map.
+
+As the road curved, struck a short straightaway, then curved again, the
+town swept vividly into view and again as quickly vanished.
+
+At the most desperate part of the trail a rock had crumbled from the
+wall and rolled to the edge of the chasm. There it lay, almost under
+the nose of the rushing car.
+
+The boy cast a despairing look into Motor Matt's set, determined face.
+All he saw was a swift gleam of the gray eyes.
+
+Crash!
+
+The car, skilfully guided so that it touched the inward side of the
+boulder, forced it from the edge and sent it bounding and smashing
+downward into the gulf.
+
+A sharp breath tore through the boy's lips. Confidence again took
+possession of him. After that escape, what difficulty could come up
+that Motor Matt was not able to conquer?
+
+Matt seemed to be made of steel. With one foot on the brake and both
+hands on the wheel, he kept rigidly to his work.
+
+"How're they making it behind, Josh?" he called.
+
+The boy knelt in his seat and looked back up the steep incline.
+
+Fortune was riding with Brisco that day. But for that he must have been
+hurled from the trail in a dozen places.
+
+Driving a car was comparatively new work for him, and the chances are
+that never before had he been on such a dangerous piece of road. Yet he
+was naturally a man of iron nerve, and would not hold back where Motor
+Matt led.
+
+Spangler, from his appearance, was as frightened a man as there ever
+was in Arizona. A gray pallor had spread over his face, and his eyes
+were fairly popping from his head. Gripping his seat with both hands,
+he braced himself with his feet against the forward dip of the car.
+
+"Dey're slidin' after us, cull," reported the boy.
+
+"Gaining?"
+
+"Dat's wot, but not like dey did on de level road."
+
+"The foot of the mountain is just ahead of us. Can we get there before
+they overtake us?"
+
+"Well, mebby we kin, but I wish de foot o' de mountain was half a mile
+nearer dan wot it is."
+
+Facing about in his seat, Josh looked at the foot of the mountain for
+himself.
+
+They were dropping toward it swiftly. There were no more
+curves--nothing but a straight fall, a shoot between bordering rocks
+and then a cheerful reach of road over the plain.
+
+"We're in luck t' git out o' dis widout a broken neck," said Josh.
+"Chee, but dat level place looks good t' me."
+
+"The Flier's a dandy car!" declared Matt.
+
+"She's got a dandy driver, an' dat's no dream. W'ere'd we been widout
+Motor Matt at de steerin'-wheel? Yous is a four-time winner, an' dere's
+odders dat'll hear me say it."
+
+"The runabout will be hot after us as soon as we hit the level ground
+again."
+
+"Dey'll never ketch us, cull. I don't care how hot dey come, wit' yous
+handlin' de Flier."
+
+With a final spurt the red car rushed through the rocks, and, for the
+first time since it had taken that up-and-down trail, both ends were on
+a level.
+
+As they glided out onto the plain, Matt cast a look backward. There was
+a feeling of relief came over him at sight of the runabout charging
+through the rocks at the mountain's foot.
+
+But, as he looked, and just as the runabout was on the point of
+striking level ground, there was a jerk to the left, a crash, and a
+sudden stop.
+
+Brisco pitched forward over the wheel, shot clear past the hood, and
+doubled up and rolled along the stony trail.
+
+Spangler went out on the left side, ricochetting into the air and
+turning a couple of grotesque somersaults. Like Brisco, when he
+dropped, he lay still.
+
+A sharp breath escaped Matt's lips. Turning the Red Flier, he started
+back until he had come almost upon the silent form of Brisco; then he
+brought the Flier to a halt and jumped out.
+
+"Chee, Moses!" muttered Josh, awed by the abrupt termination of the
+chase. "Do yous t'ink dem guys is killed, Matt?"
+
+"That's what we've got to find out," flung back Matt, hurrying to
+Brisco and kneeling down beside him.
+
+Human enmity seemed a paltry thing to Matt as his hand went groping
+over Brisco's breast, feeling for the heart-beats. A thrill of
+satisfaction shot through him as he found that Brisco was alive.
+
+Hurrying on to Spangler, he was immensely relieved to find that worthy
+sitting up in the road and drawing a hand over his dazed eyes.
+
+"What--what happened?" faltered Spangler.
+
+"Nothing to what's going to happen now, Spangler," answered Matt, and
+picked up the second and last revolver which the ruffian had had about
+him.
+
+"There ought to be some ropes in the runabout, Josh," called Matt. "Go
+and get them."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
+
+
+Josh hustled for the runabout. One of the coiled ropes Matt had put in
+the car was hanging over a lamp, and the other had been thrown into the
+road. Taking the one off the lamp, the boy hurried back to the place
+where Matt was training the revolver on Spangler.
+
+"Fine bizness!" laughed Josh. "Wot d'yous want me t' do, Matt? Put a
+bow-knot on his lunch-hooks?"
+
+"Stand up, Spangler!" ordered Matt.
+
+Spangler got lamely to his feet. He was still confused and bewildered.
+
+"Somethin' hit us," he mumbled. "From the way I was throwed it must hev
+been a landslide. Whar's Hank? Is he killed?"
+
+"Brisco will get along, I guess," said Matt. "Put your hands behind
+you, Spangler."
+
+Just then, for the first time, it began to dawn on Spangler that Matt
+was making a prisoner out of him. The ruffian, although practically
+uninjured, had been badly shaken up. Nevertheless, he was in condition
+to resist, and he leaped backward, swearing.
+
+"If ye think ye kin rope, down an' tie me," he cried, "jest bekase that
+thar machine bucked an' dumped me inter the road, ye got another----"
+
+"Come this way!" cut in Matt.
+
+The words, hard and keen, jumped at Spangler like so many knife-points.
+Motor Matt meant business, and showed it in every movement.
+
+Spangler stepped forward.
+
+"That's far enough," snapped Matt. "Now put those hands behind you."
+
+With the open end of his own gun staring him in the face, there was
+nothing for Spangler to do but to obey. His hands went meekly behind
+him.
+
+"Can you tie a good hard knot, Josh?" asked Matt.
+
+"T'ink I ain't good f'r nuttin'?" protested the boy.
+
+Passing behind Spangler, he used the free end of the rope for a few
+moments and then stepped back with the rest of the coil in his hands.
+
+"If he gits dem mitts out o' dat he's a good 'un," announced Josh.
+"W'ere d'yous want him, Matt?"
+
+"In the Red Flier. Step lively, Spangler. We've got to look after
+Brisco."
+
+"Get ap!" clucked Josh, shaking the rope.
+
+With a black scowl on his face, the baffled Spangler made his way to
+the touring-car.
+
+"Get in on the back seat," went on Matt.
+
+Spangler obeyed the order.
+
+"Now, Josh," pursued Matt, "cut the rope and tie a piece of it around
+his feet."
+
+The boy finished the work expeditiously, and when he and Matt drew
+away from the Red Flier they left Spangler helpless and fuming in the
+tonneau.
+
+Brisco was still lying where he had fallen, and he was still
+unconscious. Matt made a more thorough examination of him. His pulse
+was stronger and, so far as Matt could discover, there were no broken
+bones.
+
+"Wot keeps 'im in a trance?" asked the boy. "He's stayin' a long time
+in de Land o' Nod for not havin' nuttin' wrong wit' 'im."
+
+"Pick up his revolver, Josh," returned Matt briskly, "and then sit down
+beside him and wait till he gets his wits back. Don't let him get away
+from you."
+
+"Get away from me? Not on yer life, cull. I'd radder take dis mutt into
+Fairview dan pull down a t'ousan' in de long green. Dad wants _him_."
+
+Paying no attention to the boy's rather obscure remark, Matt went to
+the runabout. He was expecting to find the machine badly smashed, and
+was happily disappointed.
+
+Both front lamps were broken, and the mud-guard over the right wheel
+forward had been ripped away. The guard had fallen between the wheel
+and the rock, and undoubtedly had kept the wheel from being dished. The
+tire was punctured and the jolt had disabled the motor. For all that,
+however, the machine, with a few temporary repairs, could travel on its
+own wheels if not under its own power.
+
+Brisco had not yet corralled his wits. Aided by Josh, Matt dragged the
+man off to one side, where he would be out of the way; then, cutting
+about six feet of rope from the other riata, he threw it down where
+Josh could get at it.
+
+"When Brisco wakes up, Josh," said Matt, "just hold him steady till we
+put that rope on him."
+
+"Wot yous goin' t' do, Matt?" inquired the wondering Josh. "Yous is
+busier dan a monkey wit' his hand in a coconut."
+
+"We're going to haul the runabout into Fairview," said Matt. "But I've
+got to patch her up first."
+
+Getting into the Red Flier, Matt backed her as close to the disabled
+car as he could; then, hitching onto the runabout with the ropes, he
+pulled it down onto the level plain.
+
+With a jack taken from the touring-car he swung the runabout's wheel
+off the ground. The mud-guard, having been ripped off, was not in
+his way. After locating the puncture and marking it with chalk, he
+unscrewed the wing-nuts, pushed out the security-bolt, and then, with
+levers, dug out the inner tube.
+
+Perhaps he was an hour getting the hole patched up, tire back in place
+and reinflated. When he was through, the runabout was ready to be
+dragged to Fairview.
+
+"How's Brisco?" asked Matt, putting on his leather coat, which he had
+thrown off while working with the runabout.
+
+"Same as wot he was, cull," replied Josh. "He ain't twitched an
+eye-winker."
+
+"He may be shamming," said Matt, "in the hope of making a bolt for his
+liberty. We'll put him in the tonneau. You can ride with him and watch
+him every minute. I'll take Spangler in front with me."
+
+"We're goin' t' take de hull outfit into Fairview?" grinned Josh.
+
+"That's the idea."
+
+"A whale of an idee it is, too, an' no stringin'. Reg'lar line-up o'
+crooks an' stolen automobiles, wit' Motor Matt in charge o' de bunch.
+Wow! It's de biggest come-easy dat I ever mixed up wit'. Mebby dere
+won't be rejoicin' w'en we goes pokin' into town wit' all dis load.
+Well, I guess yes."
+
+Between them, Matt and Josh succeeded in carrying Brisco to the
+touring-car and getting him into the tonneau.
+
+Spangler, having been transferred to one of the front seats, had been
+chewing the cud of reflection.
+
+"Looky here, Motor Matt," said he, "ye ain't got no call ter kerry me
+ter Fairview. Think o' Klegg, down an' out an' mebby dyin' back thar in
+that notch. If anythin' happens ter him ye'll be responsible. Better
+turn me loose an' let me go back an' take keer o' him."
+
+"Don't do so much worrying over Klegg," answered Matt. "I intend to
+have him looked after. Just as soon as we get to Fairview I'll have the
+sheriff, or some other officer, go to the notch and see that Klegg gets
+all the attention he deserves."
+
+"Waal, even at that, ye ain't got no call ter lug me inter town. I
+ain't done a thing. Brisco was the feller that had it in fer you. It's
+him ye want ter git even with, an' not me."
+
+"You didn't have a hand in robbing Mr. Tomlinson, did you?" said Matt
+sarcastically. "There are a lot of other things you've done, too,
+and I'm going to turn you over to Lem Nugent, the man who owns the
+runabout, as soon as we reach Fairview. It won't take long to get
+Nugent up from Ash Forks."
+
+"Yous is a game loser, I don't t'ink," scoffed the boy. "W'ere's yer
+nerve, Spangler?"
+
+"Say," said Spangler, giving his attention to Josh, "where did you butt
+inter this game?"
+
+"I rode out o' Fairview wit' Brisco," grinned Josh. "He give me a ride."
+
+"Give ye a ride?" echoed Spangler.
+
+"Sure, on'y he didn't know it. I was under de coat in de back o' de
+runabout; an' I was still dere w'en yous mutts went t' dat hole in de
+wall. 'Course yous didn't see me. Yous was too mad at Motor Matt t' see
+anyt'ing."
+
+The whole situation rushed over Spangler with demoralizing clearness.
+He was able to understand how Josh and Matt, by the exercise of pluck
+and brains, had succeeded in balking the plans of Brisco.
+
+Spangler swore heartily. It seemed to be his only method for easing his
+feelings.
+
+"The worst move we ever made," he muttered savagely, "was takin' Motor
+Matt out o' town last night. I didn't want ter do it, but Brisco had
+made up his mind, an' that settled it. We ain't got no one ter blame
+but ourselves fer what's happened. Go on. The quicker we git ter
+Fairview an' hev this thing over with, the better I'll be suited."
+
+Spangler, resigning himself to the situation, sank back in his seat.
+
+Matt went around to the rear of the car to make the ropes attaching it
+to the runabout more secure. As near as he had been able to discover
+there was a level road all the way to Fairview. They were coming into
+the town from the north and east, and not along the Ash Fork road,
+where there was a hill to be descended in order to reach the valley.
+
+Having reassured himself about the ropes, Matt returned to the side of
+the Red Flier and mounted the running-board. Looking over the side of
+the tonneau, he swept his gaze over Brisco's unconscious face.
+
+"I can't understand what keeps him that way, Josh," said Matt.
+
+"Mebby he's badly shook up inside," answered the boy. "Wot he needs is
+a doctor."
+
+"Well, he'll have one before long. Stay right beside him and watch him
+every minute. If he's playing possum with us, we want to make sure he
+don't gain anything by it."
+
+"I'm right on de job," said Josh.
+
+Matt climbed into his seat and started on the low gear. There was a
+creaking of the ropes as they took the pull, and the runabout started.
+
+Everything worked smoothly, and Matt, with a load worth fifteen hundred
+dollars, set his face toward Fairview.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
+
+
+The disappearance of Motor Matt and the Red Flier made Carl Pretzel
+not only bewildered but furiously angry. He was angry at Brisco and
+bewildered to account for the way he had pulled off his night raid.
+
+"Oof dot feller inchures a hair oof Modor Matt's headt," wheezed Carl,
+shaking his fist in the air, "I vill camp by his drail, py chimineddy!
+I vill go on some var-paths! I vill make him be sorry for vat he dit,
+yah, so helup me!"
+
+Leaving Carl to rant and vow vengeance, Legree rushed over to the
+railroad-station and sent a message. The message, owing to financial
+embarrassment on the part of Legree, had to go collect.
+
+  "LEM NUGENT, Ash Fork.
+
+  "Come at once to Fairview. Important developments regarding your
+  automobile.                                            MOTOR MATT."
+
+Legree signed the message with Matt's name because he knew the
+cattleman wouldn't know anything about a man named Legree; and he also
+felt sure that Motor Matt's name would secure the cattleman's instant
+attention.
+
+On his way back to the hotel he inquired for the sheriff. Fairview was
+too small to have a sheriff, but the town had a deputy sheriff. The
+deputy, however, was just then attending his father's golden-wedding,
+in Flagstaff, the marshal had gone with him, and the town was without
+an officer.
+
+As if this was not sufficiently discouraging, when Legree got back to
+the hotel he found a very disquieting state of affairs.
+
+The Uncle Tommers had been chased out of the hostelry by O'Grady and
+Ping Pong, his Chinese cook. They were gathered in a forlorn group in
+front, and Carl Pretzel was with them.
+
+"Mistah O'Grady, sah," Uncle Tom was saying with all the dignity he
+could work up, "Ah's de official mascot ob Motah Matt. While Ah's been
+stayin' in yo' 'stablishment, Ah's been mascottin' fo' him. He will
+come back, yo' ma'k what Ah say. Gib us ouah breakfus en yo' sho gits
+yo' money!"
+
+"Begorry, yez have got into me f'r all yez are goin' to," yelled the
+proprietor. "It's a passel av thramps yez are, iv'ry wan av yez! Av th'
+marshal was in town, Oi'd have yez all in th' cooler. Get out, befure
+Oi sic th' dog on yez! Scatther!"
+
+"What's the matter here?" demanded Legree, pushing to the front.
+
+"Py chincher," flared Carl, "dot Irish feller t'inks ve vas vorkin'
+some shkin games on him. He vas grazier as a pedpug, und he von't gif
+us some preakfast."
+
+"En we's all hongry es sin," piped Uncle Tom plaintively. "Ah been
+mascottin' fo' Motah Matt twell Ah's dat fagged Ah dunno whut Ah's
+about, no, sah."
+
+"I tried to get him to take my ring, Legree," put in Eliza, "but he
+won't. He says we're only a lot of dead beats, and never intend to pay
+him."
+
+"Ah tole him," spoke up Topsy, "dat Ah'd wuk in his kitchum fo' de
+price ob a breakfus, an' he wouldn' hab it. Ah's honest, dat's whut Ah
+is. Ah nebber stole a cent fum anybody en mah life."
+
+"See here, O'Grady," remarked Legree, "Motor Matt has money and he has
+offered to pay our expenses while we're stopping with you. I'll have
+money myself in a few days, and then I'll pay you. You're not taking
+any chances on this crowd."
+
+"Faith, an' yez are roight about thot," scowled O'Grady. "Oi'm takin'
+no more chances wid yez. Motor Matt! Why, he run aff lasht noight!
+Sure, he did! He shneaked away so he wouldn't have t' pay me f'r yer
+kape. Oi'm keen enough t' see thot!"
+
+"Py shinks," whooped Carl, dancing around and waving his fists, "don'd
+you say dod some more. I can lick der feller vat says somet'ings
+aboudt Modor Matt like dot. Ven he say he pay, he mean vot he say, und
+he do it, too. Yah, you bed you! Modor Matt vas my bard, und he don'd
+vas leafing a bard in der lurch like vat you say."
+
+"Av Motor Matt is yer pard," said O'Grady, "bedad but it's sthrange yez
+haven't money. Git out, Oi say! Oi'm done wid yez."
+
+"I tell you," went on Legree, "I'll have money myself in a few days."
+
+"Yez can't make me belave any cock-an'-bull shtory like thot. Niver
+again will Oi take in anny wan widout baggage. Shoo! Clear out befure
+Oi git violent."
+
+In O'Grady's present temper there was no reasoning with him, so Legree
+marshaled his comrades and led them off to a neighboring wood-pile,
+where they all sat down disconsolately.
+
+"Ah's been accustomed tuh bettah treatment," mourned Uncle Tom. "Ah's
+got de bigges' notion dat evah was tuh put a hoodoo on dat hotel. Ah
+could do hit, but Ah restrains mahse'f till Ah gits odahs fum Motah
+Matt."
+
+"Go 'long wif sich talk!" cried Topsy, out of patience. "'Peahs lak yo'
+done put dat hoodoo on de rest ob us. Nuffin' ain't gone right sence we
+left dat 'ar Brockville place."
+
+"There'll be some one here from Ash Fork before long, who, maybe, will
+help us," said Legree. "Just be as patient as you can, friends, and
+we'll hope for the best."
+
+"All de patience in de worl', Mistah Legree," answered Uncle Tom,
+"'doan' fill a pusson's stummick. Mah goodness, Ah didun' know Ah was
+so pesterin' hongry."
+
+"I tell you somet'ing," said Carl, "oof I knowed vich vay Modor Matt
+vas, I vould go und findt him. I vas madt as some vet hens ofer dis
+pitzness. Here ve vas, hung oop on a vood-pile mit nodding to eat, und
+not knowing vere Modor Matt vent mit himseluf. Chonny Hartluck iss
+hanging aroundt mit us."
+
+Leaving his disconsolate friends, Legree went back to the
+railroad-station. There he waited for four hours for the local train
+from Ash Fork. He was rewarded, however, by seeing a big man get off
+the train, stop on the platform, and look around expectantly.
+
+Legree walked up to the arriving passenger.
+
+"Mr. Nugent?" he asked.
+
+"You've hit it," replied the cattleman, staring the stranded actor up
+and down with an unfavoring eye.
+
+"Ah! Well, sir, my name's Legree. I suppose you're looking for Motor
+Matt?"
+
+"Another bull's-eye for you. I came here on a telegram from Motor
+Matt saying that there had been important developments concerning my
+automobile that was stolen from me near Ash Fork. Where's Motor Matt?"
+
+"He is unavoidably absent just now," answered Legree, "but I am
+confidently expecting him to appear at any moment. To be frank with
+you, sir, I sent that telegram and signed Motor Matt's name to it."
+
+The cattleman became indignant.
+
+"You're pretty fresh, seems to me!" said he. "What business had you
+doing a thing like that?"
+
+"Because I wanted you here. Your car was in town yesterday. One of the
+thieves brought it in for a supply of gasoline and oil. Motor Matt and
+I tried to capture the thief, but he got away from us and took the car
+with him."
+
+"Who are you, if you haven't any objection to answerin' a straight
+question?" demanded the cattleman.
+
+"Step into the waiting-room with me for a few moments," replied Legree,
+"and I'll explain."
+
+They went into the waiting-room and were gone possibly five minutes.
+When they came out on the platform once more, Nugent seemed to have
+developed a vast amount of confidence in Legree.
+
+"Why didn't you tell Motor Matt what you've told me?" asked the
+cattleman.
+
+"I wasn't telling anybody that, Mr. Nugent," answered Legree, "and
+I wouldn't be telling you now if I hadn't wanted to fix things with
+O'Grady so that I and my friends can continue to remain at his hotel."
+
+"I know O'Grady," said Nugent. "Come along with me and I'll fix things
+up for you."
+
+They went to the hotel at once. O'Grady, tilted back against the wall
+in front, was smoking a pipe and keeping a sharp eye on the wood-pile.
+
+Uncle Tom, with a red bandanna over his face, was leaning back against
+the wood and was apparently asleep. All the rest were hovering
+listlessly about, waiting patiently for something to happen.
+
+The sight of Lem Nugent, who was known throughout all that part of the
+country, wrought a great change in O'Grady. The cattleman and the actor
+were approaching together, and seemed to be on cordial terms.
+
+"O'Grady," said Nugent, after he had exchanged greetings with the
+proprietor, "this gentleman is a friend of mine, and his friends are
+my friends, understand? Take them all in and give them the best you've
+got. And don't bleed me, you shyster. I'll stand the damage, but I
+won't be robbed."
+
+"Whativer yez say goes wid me, Lem," said O'Grady. "Come on, all av
+yez," he cried, standing up and motioning toward the wood-pile. "Oi'll
+have th' Chink put a male on th' table f'r yez to wanst."
+
+Uncle Tom may have been asleep, but he heard those welcome words and
+was up like a shot.
+
+"Ah was mascottin fo' dat very t'ing," he admitted, as he ran toward
+the hotel. "Layin' back dar wid mah bandannah ober mah face, Ah was
+wukin' lak er hiahed man, yassuh. Now, den, yo' Topsy, yo' see what Ah
+kin do when Ah lays mahse'f out!"
+
+Just as they were starting into the hotel, a shout from Carl brought
+them all to a halt and an about-face.
+
+"Hoop-a-la!" yelled Carl, dancing around and throwing his cap in the
+air. "Look vonce ad vat's coming! Vat dit I say? Here vas a drain oof
+cars, mit Modor Matt pringing dem in. Ach, himmel, I peen so habby as I
+can't dell! Modor Matt iss coming!"
+
+Under the startled eyes of those in front of the hotel two cars could
+be seen coming along the road. The Red Flier, with Matt and three
+passengers, was in the lead, and towing behind was the runabout.
+
+"My car, by thunder!" shouted Nugent, starting for the road.
+
+"And Spangler is with Motor Matt," cried the amazed Legree, "and
+Brisco, and the kid! How in blazes do you think that happened?"
+
+A disgusted look crossed Uncle Tom's face.
+
+"How yo' t'ink dat happened!" he muttered sarcastically; "en me
+a-mascottin' fo' Motah Matt all de time!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+CONCLUSION.
+
+
+Whether O'Grady really thought Motor Matt had taken French leave during
+the night or not, is a question. Certainly he was as surprised to see
+Matt traveling into town as were any of the rest of them.
+
+All those around the hotel flocked to the road.
+
+"Hello, Matt!" called Nugent, reaching up his hand. "It looks like
+you'd been accomplishing something."
+
+Matt's acquaintance with the cattleman had been of exceedingly brief
+duration, and never before had he been hailed by him in that cordial
+tone.
+
+"How are you, Mr. Nugent?" he returned, taking the cattleman's hand.
+"How did you happen to come over this way?"
+
+"Got a telegram from you----"
+
+"From me?" echoed Matt.
+
+"I sent it, Matt," put in Legree, "and signed your name to it. When you
+disappeared last night I knew something had to be done, and that there
+ought to be a man with money to do it. So I sent for Nugent."
+
+"It's all right, my boy," said Nugent, "and I'm tickled to death
+because I came. You're bringing in my car, I see, and the two fellows
+that took it away from me. Good! If we don't put 'em through for their
+crooked work, my name ain't Nugent."
+
+"You'll have to send for a doctor for Brisco," said Matt. "He's been
+unconscious for two hours, and I don't know whether he's badly hurt or
+not. You see----"
+
+At that moment Brisco proved that he was far from being badly hurt.
+With a jump he got out of the tonneau and started at a run toward the
+edge of town. Uncle Tom happened to be in his way, and was knocked
+heels over head.
+
+"Dere he goes!" yelled Josh excitedly. "Clear out o' de way so I kin
+git a shot at 'im!"
+
+But Josh was not allowed to carry out his warlike intentions. Legree
+took after the escaping ruffian, overhauled him before he had gone far,
+grabbed him by the shoulders, and hurled him to the ground.
+
+O'Grady, rushing to Legree's assistance, lent a willing hand. Brisco
+had been a good customer of O'Grady's, but the situation had changed
+somewhat since the Uncle Tommers had been staying at the Shamrock Hotel.
+
+"I reckon, Matt," remarked Lem Nugent dryly, "that the fellow ain't
+very badly hurt. How did you happen to get hold of the scoundrels?"
+
+"They were chasing us," answered Matt. "We were in the Red Flier and
+they were in your car. Brisco ran into the rocks, and he and Spangler
+were thrown out. Neither of them seemed very much hurt, and Josh and
+I captured Spangler before he had fully got back his wits. Brisco
+appeared to be all right, but he was unconscious. I had an idea that he
+might be shamming. Probably he came to himself just as we got here, and
+thought the best thing for him to do would be to make a break."
+
+"His break didn't help him any," said Legree, as he and O'Grady came
+marching back with Brisco between them. "Go up to my room, Josh,"
+Legree went on, "and get those two plates. You'll find 'em under the
+northeast corner of the carpet. Front room, boy."
+
+"Dat's me," answered Josh, handing Brisco's weapons to his father and
+bounding away.
+
+"I'm going to tell you people something," proceeded Legree, "that will
+no doubt surprise you. And I think," he finished grimly, "that Brisco
+will be as much surprised as anybody."
+
+Josh presently returned with a couple of flat, square packages. Leaving
+O'Grady to take care of Brisco, Legree took the packages in his hands.
+
+"A crook by the name of Denver Denny, alias James Trymore," went on
+Legree, "escaped from the authorities at Denver and came to this part
+of the country. Denver Denny was a clever counterfeiter, and worked
+in conjunction with Hank Brisco. At least, following the output of
+the 'queer' as it trailed along in the wake of that Uncle Tom's Cabin
+Company, I came to that conclusion.
+
+"Denny owned a set of very fine plates for the manufacture of bogus
+five-dollar silver certificates. When he was captured in Denver those
+plates were nowhere to be found. I conceived the notion that they
+might be in Brisco's possession, and in order to make sure, I became
+letter-perfect in the part of Legree, and Josh here got the part of
+Little Eva by heart, and we arranged to join Brisco's company of
+barn-stormers.
+
+"We were with them for some time, watching Brisco all the while. Brisco
+was not shoving any of the 'queer' while we were with him, and I was
+inclined to think that I had made a mistake in connecting him with
+Denny's operations. However, Brisco had a little tin box, of which he
+was very choice and careful. His solicitude for that box aroused my
+curiosity. When Brisco pulled out between two days in Denver, and left
+his company stranded, by some freak of chance he dropped the box. Josh
+found it. We opened the box in Ash Fork and found these two packages
+in it." Legree lifted the two flat parcels so all could see. "I knew
+perfectly well that Brisco would come after his box, so I continued to
+play the part of a stranded actor, hoping to get my hands on him.
+
+"Fate was kind to us," and here Legree turned and dropped a friendly
+hand on the young motorist's shoulder, "by bringing Motor Matt along.
+He came to the front gallantly and helped us. I should have captured
+Brisco sooner or later, even without his aid, but he has closed the
+affair in hurricane fashion and saved the government lots of trouble."
+
+Everybody, Uncle Tommers, Matt, Carl, and Brisco and Spangler, were
+astounded. Nugent was the solitary exception, for Legree had revealed
+his identity to the cattleman in the railroad-station.
+
+"These are the plates," went on Legree. "Brisco had them in the tin
+box."
+
+"And you are----" began Matt, staring at Legree.
+
+"A secret service man in the employ of the government."
+
+A cry of fierce anger escaped Brisco. He made a fierce attempt to get
+at Legree, but O'Grady restrained him.
+
+"Faith," said O'Grady, with cheerful disregard of his past actions, "Oi
+knowed yez was a bad egg th' minyit Oi set eyes on yez."
+
+"Dis," remarked Uncle Tom, with immense pride, "is de best job ob
+mascottin' whut Ah's done yit!"
+
+"Better give up, Brisco!" called Spangler from the touring-car.
+"They've got it on us an' we'll have ter take our medicine."
+
+"Got it on us, yes," stormed Brisco, "but they wouldn't have done it if
+it hadn't been for Motor Matt."
+
+"Not so quick, I'll admit," said Legree amiably, "but I'd have caught
+you sooner or later, Brisco. In my report I shall have something to
+say to the head of the department about Motor Matt. I'd like to hear,
+though, just how he happened to make this haul."
+
+"Josh helped me," said Matt.
+
+"Not enough so yous could notice it," returned Josh promptly; "Motor
+Matt was de man on de job from start t' finish. Yous take it from
+Little Eva, an' no stringin'."
+
+The boy turned to Matt with a wide grin.
+
+"Yous is wise t' why I went off wit' Brisco in dat runabout now, ain't
+yous? I wanted t' find out w'ere he had 'is hang-out so dad could turn
+a trick fer de gov'ment. But yous cut out dad, Matt."
+
+"Listen, vonce," cried Carl, who had been trying for some time to get
+in a few words, "Matt's der pest efer. He prings luck venefer he goes
+mit anypody. Yah, dot's righdt. I know, pecause he prought luck mit me."
+
+Uncle Tom was disposed to butt in with an objection, but the cattleman
+had something to say.
+
+"There's fifteen hundred of my money goes to somebody for all this,"
+said he. "Who gets it, Matt?"
+
+"Divide it up between all of us," answered the boy generously. "The
+Uncle Tommers need it."
+
+A shout of delight went up from the actor contingent.
+
+"You can leave Josh in the division," said Legree, "but cut me out of
+it. I'm working for Uncle Sam."
+
+Just at that moment the Chinaman stepped to the door and announced
+dinner.
+
+"We'll talk all this over while we eat," said Nugent. "Come on,
+everybody."
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Motor Matt and Carl, having lost more time in Fairview than they could
+well afford, started for Albuquerque early in the afternoon.
+
+Eliza, Topsy, and Uncle Tom, now well supplied with money, were to
+proceed to Denver by train.
+
+The secret service man and Josh were to remain in Fairview for a few
+days with their prisoners, and then to take them to Denver for trial.
+
+"Matt," said Carl seriously, as the Red Flier leaped onward toward
+Albuquerque, "I vas a lucky feller to hook oop mit you. Vone oof dose
+tays, oof you don'd go pack on me, I vill vear tiamonts!"
+
+"I'll never go back on you, Carl," laughed Matt; "but I'm a little
+'juberous' about the diamonds."
+
+
+THE END.
+
+
+
+
+  THE NEXT NUMBER (7) WILL CONTAIN
+
+  MOTOR MATT'S CLUE;
+
+  OR,
+
+  THE PHANTOM AUTO.
+
+
+  A Night Mystery--Dick Ferral--La Vita Place--The House of
+  Wonder--Sercomb--The Phantom Auto Again--Surrounded by Enemies--The
+  Kettle Begins to Boil--Ordered Away--A New Plan--A Daring
+  Leap--Desperate Villiany--Tippoo--In the Nick of Time--A Startling
+  Interruption--The Price of Treachery--The Luck of Dick Ferral.
+
+
+
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+THRILLING ADVENTURE MOTOR FICTION
+
+NEW YORK, April 3, 1909.
+
+
+TERMS TO MOTOR STORIES MAIL SUBSCRIBERS.
+
+(_Postage Free._)
+
+Single Copies or Back Numbers, 5c. Each.
+
+  3 months                    65c.
+  4 months                    85c.
+  6 months                 $1.25
+  One year                  2.50
+  2 copies one year         4.00
+  1 copy two years          4.00
+
+=How to Send Money=--By post-office or express money-order, registered
+letter, bank check or draft, at our risk. At your own risk if sent by
+currency, coin, or postage-stamps in ordinary letter.
+
+=Receipts=--Receipt of your remittance is acknowledged by proper change
+of number on your label. If not correct you have not been properly
+credited, and should let us know at once.
+
+  ORMOND G. SMITH, }
+  GEORGE C. SMITH, } _Proprietors_.
+
+  STREET & SMITH, Publishers,
+  79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York City.
+
+
+
+
+A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
+
+By HORATIO ALGER, Jr.
+
+
+The snow had fallen to the depth of six inches during the night,
+filling in the yards and covering the door-steps, throughout the town
+of Conway. Among those who hailed the arrival of the snow with joy was
+Frank Taylor, a boy of fourteen, the son of the Widow Taylor, who lived
+in a miserable little tenement not far from the mill. Why he was glad
+to see the snow will soon appear.
+
+Early in the morning he shoveled a path to the street, and then putting
+his shovel over his shoulder, said to his mother:
+
+"I'm going over to Squire Ashmead's to see if he doesn't want me to
+shovel paths in his yard."
+
+"He's got a boy of his own," said Mrs. Taylor; "perhaps he will do it."
+
+Frank laughed.
+
+"Sam Ashmead is proud and lazy," he said. "You won't catch him
+shoveling paths. I think I shall get the job. I want to earn something
+so that you need not sit all day sewing. It is too hard for you."
+
+"I ought to think myself lucky to get employment at all," said the
+widow.
+
+"I wish I could get steady work somewhere," said Frank; "but I've tried
+and tried, and it seems impossible."
+
+"Willing hands will not want work long," said his mother.
+
+"I hope not, mother. But I must be going, or somebody will get the
+start of me."
+
+While Frank is on his way to Squire Ashmead's, a few words of
+explanation may be given. His mother had been a widow for two years.
+Her husband had been a man of some education, having at times taught
+school, but he had never succeeded in laying up any money, and his
+widow was left almost penniless. Frank, who was a stout boy, and a good
+boy as well, had earned something by doing odd jobs, but had failed
+to obtain permanent employment. The burden of their joint support,
+therefore, was thrown upon his mother, who was very industrious with
+her needle, but was compelled to labor beyond her strength. All this
+troubled Frank, who felt that, as a stout, strong boy, he ought to bear
+at least half the expense.
+
+In due time he reached Squire Ashmead's, and was glad to see that the
+snow remained undisturbed.
+
+He rang the bell, and asked if he might shovel the paths that were
+necessary.
+
+Squire Ashmead was absent in New York, to which city he had gone the
+morning previous on business, but his wife agreed to employ Frank.
+
+He went to work with a will, and soon had a path dug from the front
+door to the gate. A path was also required from the back door to the
+stable, which was situated in the rear of the house. This was quite a
+distance, and as Frank wished to do the work thoroughly, it required
+considerable time.
+
+He was about half through this portion of his task when a snowball
+whistled by his ear.
+
+Looking round quickly, he saw Sam Ashmead standing at the corner of the
+house, engaged in making a fresh snowball.
+
+"Don't fire any more snowballs, Sam Ashmead," said Frank.
+
+"I shall, if I please," said Sam.
+
+"I haven't time to fire back now," said Frank. "Wait till I get
+through, and we'll have a match if you like."
+
+"But I don't like," said Sam scornfully. "Do you think I would have a
+match with a beggar like you?"
+
+"I am no beggar, Sam Ashmead," said Frank, "and if I were I don't think
+I would beg of you."
+
+"Oh, you're mighty proud," sneered Sam, "considering that you live in
+an old hut not half as good as our stable."
+
+"Yes, I am poor, and I live in a poor house," said Frank calmly, "but
+that isn't a crime that I know of. Some time I shall live in a better
+house, I hope."
+
+So saying, he went back to work, and began shoveling the snow
+vigorously. He did not anticipate any further attack from Sam, but in
+this he soon found himself mistaken.
+
+In the course of a minute he felt a pretty hard blow in the center of
+his back, and looking round saw Sam Ashmead laughing insolently.
+
+"How does that feel?" asked Sam.
+
+"That's the second snowball you've fired at me," said Frank quietly,
+but there was a light in his eyes as he spoke. "I advise you not to
+fire another if you know what is good for yourself."
+
+"So you threaten me, do you? Suppose I fire again, what's going to
+happen?" demanded Sam, with an unpleasant sneer.
+
+"I think you will be sorry for it," said Frank.
+
+Sam hesitated a moment, but only a moment. He was a year older than
+Frank, and larger in size. Certainly he ought to be a match for him.
+But he did not believe that Frank would have the audacity to touch him,
+the son of Squire Ashmead, the richest man in the village. He therefore
+deliberately made another snowball, and firing it, struck Frank in the
+back of his head.
+
+Frank no sooner felt the blow than he threw down his shovel, and ran
+toward his assailant.
+
+"Keep off, you beggar!" said Sam.
+
+"It's too late," said Frank. "I warned you not to fire again."
+
+Sam placed himself in an attitude of defense, but found himself seized
+violently round the middle, and before he fairly knew what was going to
+happen he was lying in a snow-bank with Frank standing over him.
+
+He struggled to his feet mad with rage, and "pitched into" Frank, as
+the boys express it, and endeavored to retaliate in kind. But Frank was
+watchful and wary, and evading the attack, seized him again when his
+strength was half spent, and Sam found himself once more occupying an
+involuntary bed in the snow.
+
+A third struggle resulted in the same way. Sam was furious, but he saw
+that Frank was more than a match for him.
+
+Just then a servant called out from the door:
+
+"Master Sam, your mother says it's time for you to be going to school."
+
+To tell the truth, Sam was rather glad of the summons, as it gave him
+an excuse for retiring from the contest.
+
+"I'll be even with you yet," he said, shaking his fist at Frank. "I'll
+let my father know how you insulted me, you young beggar!"
+
+"If anybody has been insulted, I have," said Frank. "You must remember
+that you began it."
+
+Sam scowled vindictively, and brushing the snow from his coat went into
+the house. Before Frank finished the path at the back of the house he
+was gone to school.
+
+Mrs. Ashmead sent out fifty cents to Frank for his morning's work,
+with which he went home, well satisfied, wishing that he might earn as
+much every day. He wondered a little whether Sam would tell his father
+what had occurred between them. He did not speak of it to his mother,
+for she was nervous, and would be troubled by it, as she received
+considerable work to do from the Ashmead family which she might fear
+would be taken away.
+
+On the afternoon of the next day, however, Frank received a note, which
+proved to come from Squire Ashmead. It ran as follows:
+
+  "FRANK TAYLOR: Please call at my office to-morrow morning at ten
+  o'clock.                                            JAMES ASHMEAD."
+
+This note Frank thought best to show to his mother.
+
+"What does it mean, Frank? Have you any idea?" she asked.
+
+Frank thereupon told her the story of his difficulty with Sam.
+
+"It may be about that," he said.
+
+"Oh, dear," said the widow. "I'm afraid he's very angry. I hope you
+will apologize, Frank."
+
+"No, mother," said Frank, "I don't see why I should. I only defended
+myself from a bully. I should be ashamed to do anything else. I didn't
+hurt him, and didn't intend to, but I wanted to teach him that he
+couldn't insult me without having to pay for it."
+
+"I am afraid some harm will come of it," said the widow anxiously.
+
+"Don't trouble yourself, mother," said Frank soothingly. "If we do only
+what's right, God will take care of us."
+
+Still it was with some anxiety that Frank made his way the next morning
+to the office of Squire Ashmead. This gentleman was the agent of a
+large manufactory in the town, of which also he was a considerable
+owner, so that he received an income of over ten thousand dollars a
+year, which made him the most prominent and influential citizen in the
+town.
+
+When Frank entered the office, Squire Ashmead was conversing with a
+stranger on business.
+
+"Sit down," he said, turning to Frank. "I will be at leisure in a
+moment."
+
+"Well," he said, after the stranger had departed, "Sam tells me you and
+he have had a little difficulty."
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank. "I would like to explain how it occurred."
+
+"Very well. Go on."
+
+It will be unnecessary to give the explanation, as it was strictly in
+accordance with the facts.
+
+"Do you blame me for what I did?" asked Frank, at the end.
+
+"No, I do not," said the squire. "Sam acted like a bully, and was
+properly punished. Let that pass. Now let me ask you how you and your
+mother are getting along?"
+
+"Poorly, sir," said Frank. "If I could have steady work, it would be
+different, but that I cannot get. It troubles me to see my mother work
+so hard all day. I think it is too much for her."
+
+"How would you like to come into my office?"
+
+Frank's eyes sparkled.
+
+"I should think myself very lucky, sir, to get so good a chance."
+
+"I want some boy whom I can trust, who can grow up to the business, and
+after a time relieve me of a portion of my cares. I would take Sam, but
+I am sorry to say, though he is my own son, that he would not answer
+my purpose. I have heard good accounts of you from your teacher and
+the people in the village. I will take you at a salary of six dollars
+a week, to be increased from time to time if you will suit me. Can you
+come Monday morning?"
+
+"Yes, sir," said Frank, "and I will do my best to give you
+satisfaction."
+
+"Very well, my lad. Good morning."
+
+Frank left the office, feeling as if his fortune was made. His mother,
+who was awaiting the result of the interview anxiously at home, was
+overwhelmed with astonishment at the unexpected good fortune of her
+son. Sam was disagreeably surprised, and tried to shake his father's
+resolution, but Squire Ashmead was a sensible man, and not to be moved.
+
+Frank commenced his duties the next Monday. He was so faithful that
+he was rapidly advanced, and at twenty-one was receiving twelve
+hundred dollars a year. At twenty-five, on the sudden death of Squire
+Ashmead, he succeeded to his agency, and now lives with his mother in
+the mansion at which he once thought himself lucky to be permitted
+to shovel the paths. As for Sam, he squandered the handsome property
+received from his father, and died at thirty from the effects of
+intemperate habits.
+
+
+
+
+SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
+
+
+When a champion rifle shot fires blindfolded at a wedding-ring, or a
+penny held between his wife's thumb and finger, or, seated back to
+her, shoots, by means of a mirror, at an apple upon her head or on a
+fork held in her teeth, the danger of using a bullet is obvious. None,
+of course, is needed; the explosion is enough. The apple is already
+prepared, having been cut into pieces and stuck together with an
+adhesive substance, and a thread with a knot at the end, pulled through
+it from the "wings," so that it flies to bits when the gun is fired, is
+"how it is done."
+
+Generally, the more dangerous a feat appears the more carefully is all
+danger guarded against. In the "William Tell" act the thread is often
+tied to the assistant's foot. When, again, the ash is shot off a cigar
+which the assistant is smoking, a piece of wire is pushed by his tongue
+through a hollowed passage in the cigar--thus thrusting off the ash at
+the moment of firing.
+
+A favorite but simple trick is the shooting from some distance at an
+orange held in a lady's hand. Great applause is invariably forthcoming
+when the bullet drops out on her, cutting open the fruit. It is
+inserted by hand earlier in the evening.
+
+Another popular trick is that of snuffing out lighted candles. Half
+a dozen are placed in front of a screen in which as many small holes
+are bored, one against each candlewick. At the moment of firing, a
+confederate behind the screen sharply blows out each candle with a pair
+of bellows. This trick was accidentally exposed one evening by a too
+zealous assistant. The lady in the gallery pulled the trigger, but the
+rifle failed to go off; the candle, however, went out just the same.
+
+In most instances, where a ball or other object has to be broken on a
+living person's head, blank cartridge is used and the effect produced
+by other means. A special wig, with a spring concealed in it, worked
+by a wire under the clothes, is generally used, the confederate
+manipulating the spring simultaneously with the firing of the rifle. As
+the ball is of extremely thin glass, a mere touch suffices to shatter
+it.
+
+In these exhibitions some of the rifle "experts" invite gentlemen from
+the audience to testify that the weapon is indeed loaded. The cartridge
+shown looks very well, but it is a shell of thin wax blackened to
+resemble a leaden bullet. It would not hurt a fly.
+
+
+
+
+REELFOOT LAKE.
+
+
+The physical history of Reelfoot Lake, of night-rider fame, is not
+without a certain interest of its own. The lake came into existence as
+the result of a series of earthquakes, which began in December, 1811,
+and continued until June, 1812.
+
+Some authorities say that the earthquakes merely heaved up a great
+ridge of land across the path of the Reelfoot River, which runs
+into the Mississippi, and that this dam caused the water to back up
+and broaden out and form a lake; but the favorite account in the
+neighborhood is to the effect that the ground sank, springs were opened
+up, neighboring creeks diverted from their course, and the overflowing
+water of the Mississippi rushed in during the flood season of the
+spring of 1812.
+
+It is said that for an hour and a half the waters of the Mississippi
+flowed up-hill while filling up the depression caused by the
+earthquakes. Both accounts likely have this much of truth in them that
+the entire configuration of the ground was changed by the earthquakes.
+Big Lake, west of the Mississippi, in Arkansas, is said to have been
+formed in the same way at the same time.
+
+Reelfoot Lake is sixteen or eighteen miles long, very irregular in
+shape, and covers from 35,000 to 40,000 acres of land. It varies in
+width from a mile in some places to four or five miles in others.
+The northern end is extended by a series of sloughs and bayous into
+Kentucky.
+
+The most distinctive feature of the lake's appearance, the feature
+which first impresses and stays longest with the observer's fancy, is a
+certain grotesque effect, as if a set of crazy men had been operating
+a pile-driver there for the last century, for the trunks, stumps, and
+stark branches of dead trees stick out of it everywhere in desolate
+parody of some such human handiwork; far below the surface the fish
+dart among the boles and branches where the squirrels frolicked a
+hundred years ago.
+
+There are beautiful spots here and there, but the effect, as a
+whole, is not beautiful; at its best, when the mist rises and myriad
+protruding tree trunks are white and ghostly in the moonlight, it is
+weird; the general remembrance is of something uncouth. It is a kind
+of sloven lake that has preferred to sit down with its hair uncombed
+all day long, but at night it does manage to achieve a touch of wizard
+dignity.
+
+
+
+
+A FLOATING SLUM.
+
+
+Stand beside the imperial custom-house at Canton and let the eye
+range down the river toward Hongkong. As far as the sight can reach
+lie boats, boats, and again boats. These are no ordinary craft, mere
+vessels of transport plying hither and thither, but the countless homes
+of myriad Chinese, in which millions of human beings have been born,
+have lived, and have died. They are the dwellings of the very poor, who
+live in them practically free from rent, taxes, and the other burdens
+of the ordinary citizen.
+
+The Tankia--which means boat-dwellers--as the denizens of these
+floating houses are called, form a sort of caste apart from the rest
+of the Cantonese. The shore-dwellers regard them as belonging to a
+lower social order; and indeed they have many customs, peculiar to
+themselves, which mark them as a separate community. How the swarming
+masses of them contrive to support existence is a mystery, but their
+chief mode of employment is in carrying merchandise and passengers from
+place to place.
+
+
+
+
+WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
+
+
+Horses are cheap in Nevada. On the government ranges, where they are
+protected by game-laws, droves of wild horses exist which in the
+aggregate are said to amount to fifteen thousand. Formerly there was a
+law in Nevada permitting the shooting of these wild horses for their
+hides, but there were hunters who were not particular, and the ranchers
+found their domestic horses disappearing if they let them out on the
+range. So their shooting was prohibited, and since that time the droves
+have grown to be exceedingly troublesome. They can be domesticated, but
+they are not needed there, and it costs too much to ship them East. It
+seems a pity that, while so many sections could use them to advantage,
+the transportation problem makes it impossible to get them at a price
+which they are worth.
+
+
+
+
+_ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+_A New Idea in the Way of Five-Cent Weeklies._
+
+
+Boys everywhere will be delighted to hear that Street & Smith are now
+issuing this new five-cent weekly which will be known by the name of
+MOTOR STORIES.
+
+This weekly is entirely different from anything now being published.
+It details the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a
+motor cycle. Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these
+swift little machines that scud about the roads everywhere throughout
+the United States? Is there a boy, therefore, who will not be intensely
+interested in the adventures of "Motor Matt," as he is familiarly
+called by his comrades?
+
+Boys, you have never read anything half so exciting, half so humorous
+and entertaining as the first story listed for publication in this
+line, called "=Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel=." Its fame is
+bound to spread like wildfire, causing the biggest demand for the other
+numbers in this line, that was ever heard of in the history of this
+class of literature.
+
+Here are the titles to be issued during the next few weeks. Do not fail
+to place an order for them with your newsdealer.
+
+  No. 1. Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.
+  No. 2. Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.
+  No. 3. Motor Matt's "Century" Run; or, The Governor's Courier.
+  No. 4. Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the _Comet_.
+
+  32 LARGE SIZE PAGES      SPLENDID COLORED COVERS
+
+PRICE, FIVE CENTS PER COPY
+
+
+AT ALL NEWSDEALERS, OR SENT POSTPAID BY THE PUBLISHERS UPON RECEIPT OF
+THE PRICE.
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+_THE BEST OF THEM ALL!!_
+
+MOTOR STORIES
+
+IT IS NEW AND INTENSELY INTERESTING
+
+
+We knew before we published this line that it would have a tremendous
+sale and our expectations were more than realized. It is going with a
+rush, and the boys who want to read these, the most interesting and
+fascinating tales ever written, must speak to their newsdealers about
+reserving copies for them.
+
+=MOTOR MATT= sprang into instant favor with American boy readers and is
+bound to occupy a place in their hearts second only to that now held by
+Frank Merriwell.
+
+The reason for this popularity is apparent in every line of these
+stories. They are written by an author who has made a life study of
+the requirements of the up-to-date American boy as far as literature
+is concerned, so it is not surprising that this line has proven a huge
+success from the very start.
+
+Here are the titles now ready and also those to be published. You will
+never have a better opportunity to get a generous quantity of reading
+of the highest quality, so place your orders now.
+
+  =No. 1.--Motor Matt; or, The King of the Wheel.=
+  =No. 2.--Motor Matt's Daring; or, True to His Friends.=
+  =No. 3.--Motor Matt's Century Run; or, The Governor's Courier.=
+  =No. 4.--Motor Matt's Race; or, The Last Flight of the "Comet."=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 22nd
+
+  =No. 5.--Motor Matt's Mystery; or, Foiling a Secret Plot.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON MARCH 29th
+
+  =No. 6.--Motor Matt's Red Flier; or, On the High Gear.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 5th
+
+  =No. 7.--Motor Matt's Clue; or, The Phantom Auto.=
+
+TO BE PUBLISHED ON APRIL 12th
+
+  =No. 8.--Motor Matt's Triumph; or, Three Speeds Forward.=
+
+=Price, Five Cents=
+
+To be had from newsdealers everywhere, or sent, postpaid, upon receipt
+of the price by the publishers
+
+
+_STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK_
+
+
+
+
+      *      *      *      *      *      *
+
+
+
+
+Transcriber's note:
+
+Added table of contents.
+
+Retained some inconsistent hyphenation (e.g. "motorcycle" vs.
+"motor-cycle").
+
+Retained some inconsistent spellings in dialect (e.g. "becase" vs.
+"bekase").
+
+Page 3, added missing comma after ""Vell, py shinks." Added missing
+apostrophe after "doan" in "Why doan' yo'-all git." Removed unnecessary
+quote after "Matt stopped the Red Flier."
+
+Page 4, removed unnecessary quote after "Legree was about to secure it?"
+
+Page 5, changed "as she pointed" to "as he pointed."
+
+Page 10, "would came after it" looks like a typo but has been retained
+in case it is intentional dialect.
+
+Page 12, replaced ligature in "Phoenix" with "oe." Ligature is retained
+in HTML edition.
+
+Page 14, removed unnecessary quote before "Matt's pulses quickened."
+
+Page 18, added missing period after "Josh turned to stare along the
+road."
+
+Page 19, changed "Mat" to "Matt" in "Matt was intending to push the
+stone."
+
+Page 20, the sentence "As he yanked the lever savagely, the popping
+from up the road sounding like the rapid discharge of a Gatling gun."
+seems incorrect, but it is reproduced as originally printed.
+
+
+
+***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MOTOR MATT'S RED FLYER, OR, ON THE
+HIGH GEAR***
+
+
+******* This file should be named 47491.txt or 47491.zip *******
+
+
+This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
+http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/4/7/4/9/47491
+
+
+Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will
+be renamed.
+
+Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
+law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
+so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United
+States without permission and without paying copyright
+royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
+of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm
+concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
+and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, unless you receive
+specific permission. If you do not charge anything for copies of this
+eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. You may use this eBook
+for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports,
+performances and research. They may be modified and printed and given
+away--you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks
+not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the
+trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.
+
+START: FULL LICENSE
+
+THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
+PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
+
+To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
+distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
+(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
+Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at
+www.gutenberg.org/license.
+
+Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+
+1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
+and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
+(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
+the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
+destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your
+possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
+Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
+by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the
+person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph
+1.E.8.
+
+1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
+used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
+agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
+things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
+paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this
+agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
+
+1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the
+Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
+of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual
+works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
+States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
+United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
+claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
+displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
+all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
+that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting
+free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm
+works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
+Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily
+comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
+same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when
+you share it without charge with others.
+
+1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
+what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
+in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
+check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
+agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
+distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
+other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no
+representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
+country outside the United States.
+
+1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
+
+1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
+immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear
+prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work
+on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the
+phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed,
+performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
+
+  This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
+  most other parts of the world 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. If you are not located in the
+  United States, you'll have to check the laws of the country where you
+  are located before using this ebook.
+
+1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is
+derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
+contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
+copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
+the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
+redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project
+Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
+either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
+obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
+with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
+must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
+additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
+will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works
+posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
+beginning of this work.
+
+1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
+work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
+
+1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
+electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
+prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
+active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm License.
+
+1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
+compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
+any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
+to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format
+other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official
+version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm web site
+(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
+to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
+of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain
+Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the
+full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
+
+1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
+performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
+unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
+
+1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
+access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
+provided that
+
+* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
+  the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
+  you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
+  to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has
+  agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
+  within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
+  legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
+  payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
+  Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
+  Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
+  Literary Archive Foundation."
+
+* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
+  you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
+  does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
+  License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
+  copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
+  all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm
+  works.
+
+* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
+  any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
+  electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
+  receipt of the work.
+
+* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
+  distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
+
+1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than
+are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
+from both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and The
+Project Gutenberg Trademark LLC, the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm
+trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.
+
+1.F.
+
+1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
+effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
+works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
+Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
+contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
+or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
+intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
+other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
+cannot be read by your equipment.
+
+1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
+of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
+Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
+liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
+fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
+LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
+PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
+TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
+LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
+INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
+DAMAGE.
+
+1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
+defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
+receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
+written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
+received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
+with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
+with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
+lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
+or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
+opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
+the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
+without further opportunities to fix the problem.
+
+1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
+in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO
+OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
+LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
+
+1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
+warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
+damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
+violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
+agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
+limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
+unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
+remaining provisions.
+
+1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
+trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
+providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in
+accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
+production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm
+electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
+including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
+the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
+or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or
+additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any
+Defect you cause.
+
+Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
+electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
+computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
+exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
+from people in all walks of life.
+
+Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
+assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
+goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
+remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
+Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
+and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future
+generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
+Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at
+www.gutenberg.org 
+
+Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary 
+Archive Foundation
+
+The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit
+501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
+state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
+Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
+number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
+U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
+
+The Foundation's principal office is in Fairbanks, Alaska, with the
+mailing address: PO Box 750175, Fairbanks, AK 99775, but its
+volunteers and employees are scattered throughout numerous
+locations. Its business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt
+Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to
+date contact information can be found at the Foundation's web site and
+official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact
+
+For additional contact information:
+
+    Dr. Gregory B. Newby
+    Chief Executive and Director
+    gbnewby@pglaf.org
+
+Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
+Literary Archive Foundation
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide
+spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
+increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
+freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest
+array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
+($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
+status with the IRS.
+
+The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
+charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
+States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
+considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
+with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
+where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
+DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular
+state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate
+
+While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
+have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
+against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
+approach us with offers to donate.
+
+International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
+any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
+outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
+
+Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation
+methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
+ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
+donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate
+
+Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works.
+
+Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
+Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be
+freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
+distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of
+volunteer support.
+
+Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
+editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
+the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
+necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
+edition.
+
+Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search
+facility: www.gutenberg.org
+
+This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
+including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
+Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
+subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
+
diff --git a/old/47491.zip b/old/47491.zip
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6ab67e6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/old/47491.zip