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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf 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..8b9397f --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #66974 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66974) diff --git a/old/66974-0.txt b/old/66974-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 1502cc9..0000000 --- a/old/66974-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7004 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Virginia's Ranch Neighbors, by Grace -May North - -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 -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Virginia's Ranch Neighbors - -Author: Grace May North - -Release Date: December 19, 2021 [eBook #66974] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIRGINIA'S RANCH -NEIGHBORS *** - - - - - -VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS - - - - -[Illustration: They were entering the door-yard where a cowboy advanced -to take their ponies.] - - - - -VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS - -By GRACE MAY NORTH - -Author of - - “Virginia of V. M. Ranch,” “Virginia at Vine Haven,” - “Virginia’s Adventure Club,” “Virginia’s Romance.” - -A. L. BURT COMPANY - -Publishers—New York - -Printed in U. S. A. - - - - -THE VIRGINIA DAVIS SERIES - -A SERIES OF STORIES FOR GIRLS OF TWELVE TO SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE - -By GRACE MAY NORTH - - VIRGINIA OF V. M. RANCH - VIRGINIA AT VINE HAVEN - VIRGINIA’S ADVENTURE CLUB - VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS - VIRGINIA’S ROMANCE - -Copyright, 1924 - -By A. L. BURT COMPANY - -VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS - -Made in “U. S. A.” - - - - -VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS - - - - -CHAPTER I—HOME ONCE MORE - - -“Oh Virg, are we really to arrive at your desert home this morning?” -Betsy Clossen exclaimed the first moment that she opened her eyes on -the fifth day after their departure from the Vine Haven Boarding -School. - -“Not until nearly noon,” Virginia, who was dressing in the lower -berth, smiled up at the eager face that peered down from the upper. - -“And will your nice brother Malcolm be there to meet us, do you -suppose?” - -“I certainly hope so. I wired him from Chicago that we were to be on -this train. If he can’t come himself, for any reason, he will surely -send Lucky over with the car.” - -“That’s one disillusioning thing about the desert,” Betsy continued. -“I’m powerfully sorry that you have an automobile. It’s heaps too -modern. I wish we were to be met with a—well a prairie schooner or -something like that.” - -Virg laughed. “I’m afraid you are going to be disappointed in us, -Betsy. You’ll find V. M. really quite tame if you have been reading -Wild West stories.” Then Margaret said quietly to her berth -companion, “I do wish something exciting would happen the moment we -arrive, don’t you, Virg?” - -The older girl smiled but shook her sunny head. “No need to wish for -that these days, dear. Life in Arizona is not nearly as thrilling as -it is in the city of New York, if one can believe the newspapers.” - -“Don’t tell Betsy, for if she thinks it is to be too commonplace, it -will take all the thrill of expectancy out of it for her. You know -she is never really enjoying herself unless there is a mystery to -unravel or some adventure awaiting her.” - -Fifteen minutes later the four girls were in the dining car. - -Betsy beamed on her companions. The early morning sun falling on her -red-brown hair made it shine like burnished gold. - -“Even your freckles look gilded this morning,” Barbara teased. - -The pug nose of the youngest wrinkled at her tormentor, then with an -excited little squeal she exclaimed, “Oh, isn’t the desert just -gloriously lonesome looking? Those mountains over there are so bleak -and gray and the canons so dark! I can’t see a living thing -anywhere, can you?” - -Margaret, being questioned, peered out at the wide sandy waste of -desert stretching to the distant mountains that rose grim, gray and -forbidding. Here and there a clump of greasewood or of mesquite was -half buried in mounds of sand that the frequent whirlwinds had left. - -Betsy shivered. “Girls,” she said solemnly, “the very scene teems -with mystery. I just feel sure that an exciting adventure is about -to begin at most any moment. The setting is perfect for one. I’m -going to watch that sandhill over there as long as it’s in sight. I -expect to see a Mexican bandit peer around it and utter a shrill cry -which will mean—” - -“Do the young ladies wish oatmeal this morning?” It was the suave -waiter who had interrupted, and although the girls gave their orders -with solemn faces, they laughed merrily when they were again alone. - -“It’s too bad to disappoint you, Betsy, but that’s about the way all -of your hoped-for adventures will end,” Virginia told her friend. - -The four girls, Virginia Davis, the seventeen-year-old mistress of -V. M. Ranch and her adopted sister, Margaret Selover, who was -sixteen, their neighbor, Barbara Blair Wente, also sixteen, and -Virginia’s guest, Betsy Clossen, who as yet was but fifteen, had -traveled from Vine Haven, where they had been attending boarding -school for the past year. - -Although the other three girls were well acquainted with the Arizona -desert, Betsy Clossen had never been west of Chicago. However, she -had often frequented that big city, as she had many others in the -east, for her father was a famous detective who was often following -clues that led him from Chicago to New York, and, at first, not -wanting to be parted from his motherless little girl, he had taken -her with him, but at last, believing that he was doing the child an -injustice, he had placed her in the Vine Haven boarding school, -where she had since remained, making friends of all whom she met. -The years she had spent as her father’s close companion had given -her an insight into the ways of unraveling mysteries and the game -had fascinated her adventure-loving nature. - -To the great amusement of the girls she was always trying to imagine -a mystery that she might solve it, but in the past year she had -twice failed while two of her comrades who had no such ambition had -been successful, and so, no wonder was it that Betsy looked forward -to the desert as a place where she would surely find a mystery to -solve. - -Virginia, who had been born on the V. M. Ranch, which was twenty -miles from the town of Douglas, and who had lived there all her -seventeen years, was indeed overjoyed because she was returning to -the home she so loved, to her very dear brother Malcolm Davis and to -old Uncle Tex, who, when he was younger, had been the foreman of V. -M. - -The father of Barbara Wente had recently purchased the Dartley Ranch -which was four miles north of V. M. This he had given to his son -Peyton. Barbara had learned that the old house was interesting, but -she had never seen it as, with the other girls, she had left almost -at once after the deal had been completed, for the school in the -east. - -“What do you think, Virg?” Babs chattered as the four girls with -their hats on and their bags ready, sat peering ahead, “Peyton wrote -in his very last letter that he hasn’t even opened the old ranch -house yet. He is leaving it for us to do.” - -“I adore old houses,” Betsy began, when Virginia exclaimed as she -pointed out the windows. “See that dark hole in the mountain just -ahead of us?” The others leaned forward to look. - -“Oh, good!” Margaret exclaimed. “It’s the last tunnel, and Silver -Creek station is just beyond.” Megsy turned toward her adopted -sister, a flushed eagerness betraying the excitement she felt. “Just -think, Virg, in ten minutes we are to see Malcolm.” - -Betsy uttered a little excited squeal as the train plunged into the -darkness of the tunnel. - -“Virg, isn’t this a thrilling moment,” Barbara whispered, “not being -sure who is to be at the other end?” - -Sunlight again flashed into the car windows. Virginia stooped and -looked out. “There’s the little old station that’s the only house -for miles and miles around, but I don’t see anyone on the platform -except the old man who lives there. Wonder what has happened?” - -Mr. Wells, the Silver Creek station master, hurried forward when he -saw that the limited was slowing down. It never stopped unless it -had passengers. When the four girls alighted, the tallest placed her -bags on the platform and went toward the weather-tanned middle aged -man with hands outstretched. “Oh, Mr. Wells,” she exclaimed, and her -voice betrayed her anxiety, “why isn’t my brother here to meet me, -or Uncle Tex or one of the boys? I sent them a telegram. Didn’t you -get it?” - -The small boy, Davie, who had a front tooth missing, had come -running up from somewhere. “Yes’m, Miss Virginia,” he said -breathlessly, “I took the telegram over to V. M. two days ago jest -as soon as Pa give it to me. Mis’ Mahoy was all the folks I could -find. The men was out riding the range. She said they seemed to be -huntin’ for something. She didn’t know what, but they acted mighty -puzzlin’. Uncle Tex, though, he was ’spected back that night or the -next.” - -The girls had gathered around, listening, when suddenly the boy, who -felt very important, as he was the center of attention, suddenly -leaped across the platform and looked toward the north. “Pa,” he -shouted, “see that dust cloud a-comin’? D’y ’spose it’s a stampede -or suthin’? D’y ’spose—” - -“I do believe it’s our automobile.” Virginia shaded her eyes to gaze -through the dazzling sunshine. It was indeed, but it was approaching -in such a zig-zag manner that even Mr. Wells was puzzled. - -“I reckon the fellar at the steerin’ gear is plumb beat out. I -figger that thar car’s sort o’ runnin’ itself,” he speculated. - -The watchers were convinced that this was true for as the cloud of -sand cleared away, they could see the big seven passenger car that -belonged to the V. M. Ranch, but the driver was neither Lucky nor -Malcolm. - -“It can’t be Uncle Tex, for he doesn’t know how to drive,” Virginia -had just said, when Margaret exclaimed, “But it is Uncle Tex, and he -certainly doesn’t know how to drive. Oh, Virg, did you see the lunge -he took just then? I do believe he is going right over the tracks -and down into the dry creek instead of coming this way.” - -“Mighty-tighty!” The station master’s favorite expletive expressed -his consternation. “Cain’t nuthin’ be done to head him off? I dunno -a tarnel thing about them pesky iron-bronchos.” - -Virginia had caught one glance of the driver’s face as the front -wheel had struck a hummock of sand, causing the car to swerve. If it -should cross the tracks, it would plunge over the steep bank and -crash down among the huge rocks on the bed of the dry creek. - -Leaping from the platform Virginia shouted, “Uncle Tex, stop the -car!” - -Luckily it had slowed considerably since the sand, through which it -was ploughing, was deep and soft. Virginia sprang upon the running -board, leaned over and shut off the gas. - -“Uncle Tex,” she cried, “why did you risk your life that way?” The -old man removed his sombrero and was mopping his brow. “I dunno, -Miss Virginia, dearie, I foresee, now, I orter not have done it, but -it allays looked plumb easy, and when thar wan’t no one else to come -an’ meet yo’ all, I jest figgered as I’d take a chance.” - -The girl got in the car and skillfully brought it alongside the -platform. Then, leaping out, she began stowing the bags in back, -while Margaret and Babs welcomed the old man, who found, when he -tried to stand that his knees were “plumb beat out.” Betsy was -introduced, then Virginia asked, “Why didn’t Malcolm come?” - -Uncle Tex looked quickly around to be sure that Mr. Wells was out of -hearing, then he said softly, “I cain’t be tellin’ ye, least-wise, -not here, Miss Virginia, dearie. Malcolm said, ‘Keep it dark.’ He’s -all right, though. You needn’t be fearin’ as to that.” - -Betsy had heard enough of this conversation to be tingling with -curiosity and excitement. It certainly did sound to her as though -there was both mystery and adventure awaiting them, nor was she -wrong. - - - - -CHAPTER II—HUNTING THE SURPRISE - - -With Virginia at the wheel, the seven passenger car kept on the -well-beaten road that extended from the Silver Creek Junction to the -V. M. Ranch. - -Uncle Tex sat beside the girl whom he so loved and the three on the -rear seat often sent smiling glances, one to another, as they -noticed his pride in his “gal’s” skillful driving. - -“Seems powerful pleasin’ to have yo-all back, Miss Virginia dearie,” -the old man said as the car began the ascent of the mesa road. - -The girl at the wheel flashed him a bright smile. “Oh, but it’s good -to be home. I can hardly wait to reach the top of the trail.” Then -glancing back over her shoulder, she called “Betsy, in just another -moment you are to behold the nicest spot on earth, or, at least, it -is to me.” Then chancing to recall something, she inquired “Uncle -Tex, I’m just ever so curious to know what the surprise is that you -have for me. May I have three guesses?” - -She and Malcolm as children had always had three guesses whenever -the old man had brought them a treasure from out on the range. Then, -when they had guessed, they searched through his many pockets to -find it. The weather-tanned face wrinkled in an amused smile. “I -reckon ’twould take more’n three guesses, Miss Virginia, this time, -I reckon ’twould, an’ even then, ’twon’t be found in my pocket -nowise.” - -“Oho, that’s a hint. It’s something big!” Then over her shoulder. -“Girls, help guess. Megsy, you and Babs have lived with me at V. M., -so you might perhaps, think what Uncle Tex has planned for my -surprise.” - -“Maybe it’s a new hen-corral,” Margaret suggested. “I remember one -twilight last year when I went out to get the eggs, and found a -coyote in the hen house, Uncle Tex said the very first thing he was -going to do after we left was to build stronger fences.” - -The pleased grin on the old man’s face was evident even to the girls -on the back seat. “Ah was messin’ round fixin’ that fence long fore -yo-all’s train hit the big city, I reckon, but that guess missed the -heifer, so coil yer rope and throw again.” - -Betsy chuckled. She was delighted with the old man, not only because -he was such an interesting character but also because he was -lovable. - -“Hm’ let me see!” Babs pretended to think hard. “I recall now that -Virginia wished she had a pond near the wind mill so that she might -keep ducks.” - -“Oh, but Uncle Tex wrote me that he had made a duck pond for me just -as soon as spring rains were over, so that can’t be it.” - -The old man’s head was shaking. “Yo-all ain’t teched it yet,” he was -saying, when Virg uttered a little cry of joy. “Look ahead, Betsy, -quick, if you want to get the very first glimpse of V. M.” - -The little maid on the back seat stood up and peered between the two -in front as the car reached the edge of the plateau nearest the -ranch. - -There in the valley was the big rambling low-built adobe house, -beyond it were the bunk houses, the hen yard, the wrangling corral, -the pens for the cattle that needed temporary sheltering, the small -adobe house nearer the dry creek bottom in which lived the Mahoys, -and towering above them all was the huge red windmill, the great -wings of which were slowly turning in the gentle breeze that was -blowing from the west. - -[Illustration: There in the valley was the big rambling low-built -adobe house.] - -While the little stranger’s glance roamed from one of these -buildings to another, Virginia’s violet eyes were eagerly searching -the trails leading to the ranch, hoping that on one of them she -might see her brother returning from the mysterious errand about -which Uncle Tex had hinted and the nature of which as yet she did -not know. There was no one in sight. Not wishing her companions to -know how truly anxious she was, Virg stopped the car and turned with -a bright smile to exclaim: “Girls, welcome to my home.” - -Betsy was charmed with the inside of the ranch house as she had been -with the out. The great living room, with its wide fireplace on -which a mesquite root burned slowly, suggested cosy evenings spent -around it. - -The long library table scattered over with books and magazines, the -student lamp with its wide warm-colored shade, many comfortable arm -chairs, a piano and its companioning music box, bear skin rugs on -floor and wall, and pictures framed by the windows, of desert, sand -hill and distant mountains, furnished the most home-like room that -little Betsy had ever seen. - -“I’m going to just love it here,” she said, then to tease, she -merrily added, “if you can provide me with a mystery.” - -Virginia laughed. “Girls,” she turned to the other two, “since we -three are hostesses, and it is our aim to please, let’s make up a -mystery, but there, I musn’t tell Betsy what it is to be. In fact I -haven’t thought it out yet. But come, let’s take our bags to our -rooms for Uncle Tex is waiting to show us the surprise.” - -The two large, sun-flooded bedrooms were next each other with a door -opening between. - -Margaret and Virginia were to share the room which Virg had occupied -since her childhood, while Babs and Betsy were to have the other for -their very own. - -“I can hardly wait until our trunks come,” Babs prattled. “I am just -wild to see myself in my new cow-girl costume.” - -“You looked at yourself times enough in the school mirror,” Megsy -said to tease. - -“Perhaps, but the setting wasn’t right. It will look quite different -out here where the mesquite bushes grow,” Babs retorted. - -“I came so unexpected like,” Betsy deplored. “I didn’t have time to -buy me a khaki outfit, so what shall I do. I don’t want to look like -a tenderfoot.” - -“As though you could help it, whatever you wore!” Babs began, on -mischief-bent, but Virg solaced. “I’ll loan you one of mine that I -have outgrown. You won’t have to buy one just for the month that you -are with us.” But the little maid declared eagerly, “Oh yes, I will, -Virg, if there is a place to buy it. I’d love to wear it at my -aunt’s summer home in the east and make the boys envious.” - -Uncle Tex was seen coming slowly up from the garage, and Virg knew -that he was eager to show them what he had planned as a surprise. - -Catching Betsy and Babs by the hand and nodding a merry invitation -to Margaret, Virg led the way out of the wide front doors, but, -before she had gone many steps from the veranda, a big shaggy -creature hurled itself at her from the trail leading from the cabin -of the Mahoys. - -“Goodness!” Betsy cried in alarm, “Is it a desert wolf or a coyote?” -She needed no answer, for the creature, wagging itself for joy -sprang upon its beloved mistress and uttered queer little yelps of -delight. - -“Shags is plumb nigh as pleased to see yo-all, Miss Virginia dearie, -seems like, as yo’ old Uncle Tex was, though I reckon, he cain’t be, -quite.” - -A glance in the direction from which the dog had come revealed the -Mahoy family awaiting in front of their small adobe house to share -in the welcome, so, excusing herself, Virg ran down the trail, Shags -at her heels barking his glee. Mrs. Mahoy had a new baby in her arms -and Virginia beckoned the other girls to come and see it. - -“Ain’t she nice though?” It was Patsy, now aged ten, who looked -about at the group of girls who were eagerly peering into a flannel -bundle to find the wee bit baby. Virginia glowed. “Uncle Tex,” she -cried turning toward the old man who had ambled after them. “I do -believe this little baby is the surprise that you said we would find -on V. M. Ranch.” - -“Wall, I reckon ’twas one of ’em,” he confessed, “but thar’s -another, Miss Virginia, dearie. Spose yo-all scatter now and see -who’ll be furst to find it.” - -Then away the girls ran. Margaret led them to the hen-house, so -eager was she to be sure that the fences were coyote-proof. They -were indeed, for the wire fence extended so far underground that -none of the desert creatures would take the time to burrow beneath -it so near a residence of the enemy man. Too there was a roof of -wire netting over the small yard, which protected the feathered -brood from any of the vulturous birds of prey. - -“That certainly is improvement number one,” Virginia cried in -delight. “Many a time I have been heart-broken entirely because some -of my little new chicks have been carried away by pirate birds.” -They were leaving, when Megsy caught Virg’s arm as she squealed -gleefully, “I do believe that I’ve discovered the surprise. Hark! -Don’t you hear a faint peeping somewhere?” - -Virginia listened and then, noting that their escort’s grin was -broadening, if that were possible, she exclaimed, “Oh Uncle Tex, are -there really some baby chicks? Where are they? Please show them to -us?” - -The chicken yard gate was opened and the old man led them to the -sunny side of the hen house where, from between the bars of a barrel -coop, the yellow head of an anxious mother protruded as she clucked -a warning to fifteen balls of fluff that ran to her, tumbling on the -way and piping their fright. - -“Oh, the dear little things! Please let them stay a moment, Biddy -Mother,” Margaret implored. “I want to hold just one.” - -The one that was lifted ever so tenderly, begged so pitifully to be -set free, that Megsy put it down close to the coop and smiled to -watch it scud for the shelter of its mother’s wings. - -“Lucky little puff-ball!” Betsy said with a note of sadness in her -usually merry voice. “What wouldn’t I give to have a mother to run -to.” Uncle Tex, who had remained outside, happened to call just -then. “Better be hurryin’, Miss Virginia dearie. Pears like its mos’ -lunch time as yo-all names it.” - -Virginia glanced at her wrist watch. “True enough,” she exclaimed -“and now that I am home, Uncle Tex, you are to have a long vacation -from the kitchen. We girls will do all the cooking and brewing and -mopping and scrubbing and—” but the old man, shaking his head, -interrupted— - -“Wall, I reckon yo-all won’t have time to do much playin’ if yer -scheming that-a-way.” - -All unconsciously Virginia sighed. How she did wish that the -faithful Chinaman, who had been cook in her home since she was a -baby, had not, the year before, decided to revisit the land of his -birth. He had slipped away without giving notice, (although he had -told them months before that he was going, sometime), and he had -never returned. - -As they crossed the descending trail that led to the towering red -windmill, Virg glanced at the old man, and silently renewed her -resolve to relieve him of much of the kitchen work, which had been -his self-assumed task. They had tried Mexican cooks, Malcolm had -written her, but Uncle Tex had fretted through the brief stay of -each one, and had at last declared that he didn’t want any more -“cholos” messin’ round Miss Virginia’s kitchen, “spatterin’ it up,” -and that he’d take “keer” of it fer her himself, but Virg knew how, -during those long months of faithful service, his big heart had -yearned for the freedom of the range. “I’ll show him how much I -appreciate what he has done to make the home pleasant for my brother -while I was gone,” the girl had just decided when a cry from Betsy -and Babs, who had skipped on ahead attracted her attention. They -were standing near the windmill beckoning excitedly. “I do believe -they have found the surprise,” Virg confided to Margaret, then she -glanced inquiringly at the old man, but his beaming expression -revealed nothing. - -A moment later the something was revealed. - -“Oh Uncle Tex, how pretty! Did you make that all alone and for me?” -Virginia’s delight was indeed real and she was convinced, as were -the other girls, that at last they had found the surprise about -which Uncle Tex had written. Beyond the windmill and in the warm -shelter of its wide walls stood a little garden house over which a -blossoming vine was growing. Within was a table and four comfortable -chairs that had been entirely made of yucca stalks and had been -skillfully fashioned with infinite patience by the leathery, -wrinkled hands of the old cattleman. - -The garden house itself was made of yucca, the stalks being so long -and strong that Virginia knew, to procure them, the old man had to -visit a distant part of the desert where they grew. - -Just below the door of this summer house was the pond of which Uncle -Tex had written, and on it several ducks were lazily swimming. - -“There’s water enough for a garden, Miss Virginia dearie, but Ah -reckon’d as yo-all’d want to set out the sort of flowers yo’d like -best.” Then, as Virginia had not spoken, he asked, almost wistfully. -“Yo-all likes it, don’t yo’, Miss Virginia dearie?” - -There were tears in the violet eyes that turned toward him. “Like -it! Oh, Uncle Tex!” Her arms were about him and her soft young cheek -was pressed close to his leathery one. “I was just hoping mother -might know. She used so often to wish since there are no shade trees -near that we might have a cool, sheltered out-of-doors place where -we could take our books and sewing.” - -Then, fearing that the tender-hearted old man would regret not -having thought to make such a summer house in the long ago, she -exclaimed merrily, “This very day at four, we will serve afternoon -tea, and you, Uncle Tex, shall be the guest of honor.” Then, giving -the again smiling old man a sudden bear hug, she whispered in his -ear, “You dear, I’m going to think up the nicest kind of a surprise -and spring it on you—some day.” - -“When’s your birthday, Uncle Tex?” It was Margaret who asked. The -old man looked truly startled. “Me? Why, Ah’s plumb forgot. Sorto -seems like it comes in the summer, though.” He had removed his -sombrero and was scratching one ear meditatively. He seemed actually -to be trying to recall a forgotten date. - -“I’ll tell you what,” Babs sang out, “let’s pick out a day before -Betsy goes home and give Uncle Tex a surprise party.” - -“It won’t be much of a surprise, since you are telling him about -it,” Margaret began, but Barbara declared that it would be, since he -wouldn’t know, until he received the invitation, which day had been -chosen. - -They were walking toward the house as they chatted. Virginia and the -old man lingered back of the others. Margaret had made this -possible, for she felt sure that her adopted sister was anxious -about Malcolm’s prolonged absence, and, for that matter, she was -herself, and surely she had a right to be, since she was his ward. - -Virg had often glanced at the trails that led one of them toward the -sand hills, another toward Seven Peak Range, and a third toward -Puffed Snake Water Hole, but on none of them did horsemen appear. - -“Uncle Tex,” she said softly as she slipped a detaining arm in that -of her companion, “can’t you tell me why Malcolm is away at this -time? It must be something of a very serious nature to keep him from -home when he knew that I would be arriving this week.” - -There was a shade of anxiety on the face of the old man. “’Tis, Miss -Virginia dearie. Leastwise, Ah reckon ’tis. It all happened hurried -like. Lucky came ridin’ in ’long ’bout sundown two nights ago. -‘Ah’ve hit the trail sure sartin,’ was all Ah heard him say. Then -Malcolm buckled on his gun belt. ‘Keep it dark which way we ride,’ -he says to me, then they was gone. Ah was plumb puzzled and Ah sure -am still, but on certain thought Malcolm’d be comin’ back by now or -sendin’ word, knowin’ as yo-all was ’spected.” - -“Well, I’ll not worry,” the girl said wisely. “Malcolm never runs -into trouble needlessly.” Then, as they had overtaken the others, -Virginia called as gaily as she could, that her guests need not know -of her anxiety. “Who wants to be helper in the kitchen this noon? -I’m going thither to be chief cook.” - -“Oh, can’t we all help?” Margaret hurried to inquire. Then she -nudged Virg and nodded toward the old man who (trying to keep behind -them) was making frantic motions towards a kitchen window. When -Virginia turned, he attempted to assume such an innocent expression -that the girls were even more puzzled. - -Virg pretending not to have seen his gestures, caught his hardened -hand as she leaped up on the veranda, calling, “Uncle Tex, you come -too, and be my advisor. It’s so long since I have cooked, maybe I -have forgotten how.” - -Virginia felt sure that another of the old man’s surprises awaited -her in the kitchen, nor was she wrong. - - - - -CHAPTER III—MALCOLM’S RETURN - - -It was four in the afternoon and the girls, having had a long siesta -after their lunch, had donned their muslin dresses (for the station -master had arrived soon after noon with their trunks), and, taking -Barbara’s cherished tea set, without which she never traveled, they -had hied them to the summer house. Virg gathered a few of the -scarlet blossoms that grew wild after the rains. Nearly all of them -dried up but one clump had remained to welcome the girls. These she -placed on the yucca table. Margaret was carrying a plate of small -cakes. Betsy had a tray on which were five cups and saucers and tiny -spoons. Babs, at the end of the line, held the fragile pot of -delicate blue which was brimming with weak but hot tea. - -Virg stood back to admire the table when it was set. Then laughingly -she exclaimed: “I just can’t get over it. I never was more surprised -in all my life. When I opened the kitchen door and saw that dear old -Sing Long fussing around the stove, as though he weren’t expecting -us, I just had to rush up and hug him.” - -“Whizzle, but you certainly took the wind out of my sails, as Cousin -Bob says,” Betsy declared, “I’ve always been scared of Chinamen and -to see you actually embracing one! I dunno as I’ll ever recover from -the shock.” - -“I don’t believe there’s a kinder, nobler, more faithful race of -people on this earth,” Margaret championed, “and Sing Long is just -like home folks to Virginia, isn’t he Virg?” - -The shining-eyed girl nodded. “He surely is. Why, Betsy, Sing was -here before mother came as a bride. I’m so glad he wanted to come -back. I wouldn’t have Uncle Tex know it, not for worlds, but I was -rather dreading the responsibility of cooking for so many people, -and now we won’t have anything to do, but plan—” - -“Mysteries,” Betsy cut in. Then she asked: “Virg, I may be slow as a -detective, but I certainly do think the way you keep looking in -first one direction and then another is most mysterious.” - -The young hostess sat down in one of the comfortable yucca chairs. -“Have you noticed it?” she inquired, “Well, then, I’ll explain. I’m -not really worried, but I’ll confess I am puzzled.” - -She then told the other three girls all that Uncle Tex knew of her -brother’s sudden departure two nights before. - -Megsy smiled and nodded toward the little stranger-to-the-desert, -for, with a brow supposedly wrinkled in deep thought, she sat gazing -across the shining stretch of sand toward the mountains. - -“What do you make of it, Mistress Detective?” Babs asked merrily. - -“I don’t,” was the frank answer. “Virg, what do you?” - -“Well,” the oldest girl replied, “since Lucky rode in, after -nightfall, in such haste and told brother that he was sure he had -hit the trail, I conclude that there had been a—” - -“Oh, do you think it was a holdup, or something like that?” This -from the eager Betsy. - -“No, I don’t. I think a mountain lion may have been killing the -young calves and that Lucky and Slim have been trying to trail it.” - -“How disappointing! I’m not at all interested in solving a mystery -which has only a mountain lion in the leading part.” - -Babs teased. “I’ll say you aren’t. You wouldn’t want to start on any -clues that would lead you to a lion’s den.” - -“Girls,” Virg suddenly exclaimed, “our guest of honor has forgotten -to come. There he goes riding along the creek bottom, so we’ll have -to drink the tea, for, if we don’t, it will soon be cold.” - -“Oh dear, that is too bad! It’s piping hot now and this pot holds -six cups. Can’t we find another guest of honor to—” - -“Lookee! Lookee!” Betsy had leaped to her feet and was pointing -toward the trail that led from the sandhills. - -Two horsemen were approaching at a gallop, and Virginia cried, “Oh, -how I hope one of them is Brother Malcolm.” - -“Then the mystery will be solved,” Betsy exclaimed joyfully. - -As the horsemen neared, Virg and Margaret ran out of the summer -house and waved their handkerchiefs for they were no longer in doubt -as to the identity of the newcomers. - -There was an answering shout of joy from the one in the lead and -Malcolm leaped from his horse and ran toward them waving his -sombrero. The older cowboy led the ponies to the corral. - -“O brother, brother,” Virginia’s welcome was at once laughing and -tearful, as she was caught in the lad’s strong arms. “I’m glad, glad -I went away just for the joy of knowing what home means. Not that I -didn’t always love it here, but Oh, brother, you can’t guess how -many wakeful hours I had just hungering to hear your voice, and now, -if you’ll let me I’m going to stay right here for ever and ever and -ever.” - -The giant of a lad laughed happily as he turned to greet his ward, -who, with flushed cheeks and a wistful light in her tender brown -eyes, was waiting near until the brother and sister had welcomed -each other. Then Babs came and Betsy was introduced. “This is our -would-be young detective,” Virg said merrily. “She declares that the -desert is an ideal setting for a mystery and so we girls are going -to make up one and let her solve it.” - -“You won’t have to invent one,” Malcolm declared as he dropped into -the yucca chair toward which his sister had led him. “Lucky and I -have been awake two days and nights trying to solve one that is very -real. Slim is working on it, too, but he has a Mexican boy with him -and they have ridden toward Sonora.” - -“Oh Mr. Davis!” Betsy leaned forward eagerly. “What are the clews? -Do tell us.” - -But Virginia said: “Not until brother has had some refreshment.” -Then to Malcolm: “I don’t suppose you’ve had a thing to eat this -noon.” - -“Righto, and for that matter Lucky and I had very little for -breakfast. We had no idea that we would find ourselves on a blind -trail,” the lad began; then ended with: - -“So a cup of tea will do well for a starter.” He accepted the -delicate blue cup that Barbara handed him with an amused smile. - -Lucky was approaching shyly, sombrero in hand. Virginia, chancing to -see him, stepped out of the summer house and beckoned to him. - -His awkward bow when he was introduced would have amused Betsy at -another time, but just then her entire thought was given to the -mystery about which she was soon to hear. - -“No, ma’am, thanks.” Lucky twirled his hat and shifted from one foot -to the other when Barbara offered him one of the eggshell china -cups. “Ah jest wanted to say howdy to yo-all.” He was visibly -embarrassed. Then with a nod toward the house he added, “Sing said -frijoli all hottee.” - -Malcolm rose. “Young ladies,” he addressed them all, “if you will -permit us to satisfy our inner cravings, I’ll promise within the -hour to tell you all the clews we have been able to discover.” - -Lucky had gone on ahead and Virginia, linking her arm in that of her -brother, walked with him toward the house. - -“Can’t you give me an inkling of an idea as to what it is all about? -Is it anything we girls can help solve?” - -The lad was at once serious. “No, sister. You girls are better off -here at home with Uncle Tex, but we’ll report progress each time we -return.” - -Virginia looked troubled. “Oh brother, are you going away again? -Surely not today.” - -“Not until morning,” he replied. “We’ll both be better fit after a -good night’s sleep.” Then at the kitchen porch, she left him and -walked slowly back to the summer house. The three girls eagerly -awaited her. - -“Did Malcolm tell you the clews?” Of course this was from Betsy. -“Why, no,” Virginia declared. “I was so concerned about my brother -that I forgot to ask him where he had been or why.” Then Margaret -had an inspiration. - -“It’s after five by my little wrist watch and so I suggest that we -put away the tea things and have our supper of nice frijolies and -bread in the kitchen with the boys. They can tell us the clews while -we’re eating, for I am sure they will want to tumble into bed as -soon as they can.” - -Virginia looked at her other guests to see if the plan met with -their approval. She was not long left in doubt. “Oh, goodie, I’d -love to have supper with a real cowboy. My Cousin Bob will be green -with envy when I write him about it.” Betsy was gathering up the -spoons as she spoke. Soon the little procession approached the -house. - -Malcolm saw them coming and smiled. “I tell you, Lucky, it seems -mighty nice to see that sister of mine once more. Maybe it’s selfish -of me, but I hope she won’t want to go away again.” - -Lucky, having finished his supper, rose as the girls entered the -long kitchen that was flooded with the late afternoon sun. - -The middle aged cowboy spoke apologetically: “Miss Virginia, if -yo-all will excuse me, Ah’ll turn in. Ah reckon Ah cain’t keep -awake, an’ Malcolm here and me’s figgerin’ on hittin’ the trail -again come sunup.” - -When he was gone, Sing Long served the girls to heaping plates of -steaming frijolies, generous slices of cornbread and tumblers -brimming with creamy milk. This fare greatly delighted Betsy for it -was very different from that to which she was accustomed. - -Malcolm told Sing Long that he, too, might go, as they no longer -needed him. When they were alone, the giant of a lad smiled about at -the girls, who were eagerly awaiting the beginning of his story. - -“Now,” Virginia said when the door closed behind the Chinaman, “what -happened first?” - -“We heard about it last Monday,” Malcolm began, “Lucky and I were -loping slowly along down near the station. We were on the outlook -for strays when we saw little Davie Wells riding toward his home -from the direction of the Three Sand Hills as though a stampede of -cattle was about to overtake him.” - -“‘What’s up with the kid, d’ye reckon,’ Lucky asked me, and I -replied, ‘By the way he keeps looking back over his shoulder, you’d -think he was being pursued, but I don’t see anything chasing him.’ - -“When the lad was near enough for us to see his face, we knew, -without his telling us, that he was very much excited about -something. - -“‘Hi-o! Davie, has there been a train robbery?’ I shouted when he -was near enough to hear. He evidently had not seen us, but upon -hearing my voice, he wheeled his pony and galloped toward us. I -repeated my question. - -“‘Nope,’ he replied breathlessly. ‘Leastwise there ain’t been one -yet, but Pa says sure as a cactus ain’t a mesquite thar’ll be a -robbery in these here parts afore sunup tomorrow, Pa says it’s sure -sartin.’ - -“Of course we were interested. We never knew our respected station -master to prophesy anything but that it came to pass with almost -uncanny accuracy, so Lucky and I drew rein and listened to what the -little fellow had to tell, but when we had heard him out, all we -could make of it was that a queer kind of caravan had been seen -leaving Douglas early that morning headed toward Silver Creek. Davie -thought maybe there were half a dozen covered wagons and a dozen -mules and dogs, but he wasn’t certain. The cowboy who’d seen the -outfit hadn’t stopped to count them. - -“‘Gypsies, I reckon,’ was Lucky’s conclusion, ‘and if so, kid, your -pa’s right. Thar’ll be some stealin’ ’fore sunup sure sartin.’ Then -he looked at me with a puzzled expression as he said, ‘Malcolm, I -never heard tell of gypsies trailin’ across the desert hereabouts, -have you now?’ - -“I agreed that I had not, but the lad’s description seemed to fit -and so we let it go at that. - -“‘Wall, I must be off.’ Davie seemed suddenly to remember his former -haste but I detained him long enough to ask, ‘Where are you going in -such a hurry?’ - -“‘Over to Slater’s to warn ’em ‘bout that robbery as Pa says it’s -sure sartin.’ - -“Davie’s little wild pony needed no urging and a second later all we -could see of him was a racing sand cloud. I laughed, but Lucky -seemed to take the matter more seriously. ‘What do you make of it?’ -I asked when I had let him study on the matter in silence for -several moments. - -“‘Ah jest don’t,’ he replied. ‘Ah cain’t figure nohow why a caravan -of gypsies ’d start across this here trackless part of the desert.’ - -“‘It isn’t as trackless as it used to be,’ I reminded him, ‘for now -that all the ranchers own automobiles there’s a makeshift sort of a -road from one place to the next.’ - -“‘Mebbe so, but Ah cain’t figger out why gypsies would go to all the -trouble of draggin that there caravan o’ theirs through the sand -jest to be robbin’ ranches. They couldn’t make fast enough time to -get away with it. More’n likely, if they was gypsies, they-all -thought as how this might be a short cut to some place up north -where they’re bound for.’ - -“I agreed that Lucky’s version was probably the correct one, and, as -we saw no evidence of the reported caravan in our neighborhood, I -doubtless would never have thought of them again if it hadn’t been -for something which happened that very night.” - -Malcolm paused and the girls, having ceased eating to listen, leaned -forward with renewed interest. - -“Oh, brother, what happened? Please don’t stop there.” - -The lad smiled. “I only stopped to take a breath. That is -permissible, isn’t it?” - -“Oh-ee! I’m so excited.” Betsy’s flushed cheeks and glowing eyes -were evidence that what she said was true. “Did the gypsy caravan -come?” - -“Was the station master’s prophecy correct?” Margaret asked. - -“Were we robbed?” Virginia inquired anxiously. - -Malcolm rose. “Let’s go in by the fire,” he said. “Sing Long wants -to clean the table.” The Chinaman had been opening the door from his -room every few moments to see if the young people were through. -Following Malcolm’s suggestion the girls led the way into the big -living room. The lad put a dry mesquite root on the coals and then -sat down in his favorite grandfather chair. “Yes, indeed, something -of an unusual nature happened that night and this is what it was:” - - - - -CHAPTER IV—MALCOLM’S STORY - - -When the girls were seated about the fireplace, they turned eagerly -to the narrator of the tale which had been interrupted by their -moving from the kitchen to the living-room. - -“Let me see,” the lad was purposely tantalizing, “where did I end -the first chapter?” Then, before he could be prompted, he continued: -“Oh, yes; I remember. - -“After Davie Wells had left us, Lucky suggested that we ride over to -the Three Sand Hills. He wanted to climb to the top of the highest -one and take observations, so to speak, of the entire surrounding -country. It’s a hard climb, because of the sliding stones and sand, -but we made it and held to the giant yucca up there, while, with -shaded eyes we looked in every direction. It was an unusually clear -day and every object stood out as though it were magnified, but not -a sign of a gypsy wagon did we see. Lucky did make out a sand cloud -way to the north, but it wasn’t large enough to hold a caravan. -Lucky believed it to be made by a small herd of cattle trailing -toward Puffed Snake Water Hole. - -“It was dusk when we entered the ranch house, and Sing Long was the -only person at home. He had been baking all the afternoon in the -kitchen, and had neither seen nor heard anyone passing. We did not -tell him that we had been informed that a gypsy caravan, made up of -at least six covered wagons, had been seen leaving Douglas and -heading our way. We had decided that there really was nothing in the -report, and Sing Long was inclined to be imaginative. - -“After supper Lucky and I sat for a time in front of the fireplace. -I was reading, and, though Lucky held a newspaper and stared at it -as though he were deeply engrossed in some item of Douglas news, he -was evidently thinking all the time of what we had heard that -afternoon. His first remark proved this. - -“Suddenly he sat up very straight and seemed to be listening. ‘Did -you hear it?’ he asked. ‘A sort of a rattling noise?’ - -“I put down my book and listened. I heard nothing and I told him so. -‘That is nothing, except the bellowing of the prize yearlings that -we had driven into the corral the day before.’ It did seem as though -they were making more noise than they had during the day. - -“‘Wall, I reckon that’s only natural,’ Lucky tried to reassure -himself by sayin’. ‘They’re restless, them young steers air, being -shet in arter allays havin’ had the freedom of the range.’ He -returned to his newspaper and I to my book, but before many minutes -I was conscious of the fact that my companion was again listening -intently. I laughed. ‘Lucky,’ I remonstrated, ‘aren’t you -imaginative tonight? Surely you are not expecting a visit from -Davie’s Gypsy caravan, are you? That would be utterly impossible, -since only two hours ago you saw for yourself, when we were on the -top of Yucca Hill, that there was nothing of the kind for many miles -around.’ - -“‘Wall, I call’ate Ah am sort of skeerful. Truth is Ah never did -like them Gypsy folk. Ran into ’em once when Ah was a little shaver, -down in Texas, and Ah’ve given ’em a wide berth ever since.’ Then he -rose, saying, as he yawned and stretched: ‘Wall, sort o’ guess Ah’ll -turn in. Ah reckon Slim’s back from the border, or soon will be. -Ah’ll take one more look at the corral an’ see if them gates are -still barred.’ - -“‘All right, Lucky. S’long.’ Then I couldn’t resist teasing. ‘But -don’t stay awake all night listening for tambourines.’ - -“After he was gone, I became so interested in my book that I sat up -much later than usual. When I did decide to turn in, I first of all -stepped out on the front porch and looked around. - -“The bunk house was dark and there wasn’t a light anywhere on the -desert. I was sure that if Gypsies were camped nearby they would -have a night fire to protect them from wild animals and keep away -insects. - -“The prize yearlings in the corral were quieter, although every now -and then one would start a restless lowing which would awaken a few -others. Then a moment later, all would be silent. - -“They’re safe enough,” I thought as I turned in and went to bed. - -“I didn’t awaken until dawn, and then it was to slowly come to the -consciousness that someone was pounding on my door. I can’t remember -when I had ever locked it before. - -“‘Who’s there?’ I called, leaping half dazed from bed. - -“It was Lucky who answered, and, in his voice I sensed tragedy. - -“‘It’s me, Malcolm! The prize yearlings! They’re plumb gone!’ - -“Of course I was into my clothes before I was hardly awake, nor did -I fully grasp the meaning of what I had heard until I had flung open -the door and had beheld Lucky’s face, white in spite of the tan -which has been deepening there for the past forty years. One glance -at him and I knew that I had heard aright. - -“‘What do you make of it?’ we were swinging down the trail toward -the corral when I asked the question. - -“‘Gypsies, of course,’ was his laconic reply. - -“‘It doesn’t seem possible nor reasonable.’ I was not convinced, -but, of course, if the prize yearlings were really gone, someone had -taken them unless—‘Lucky,’ I said, ‘are you sure they didn’t break -through the fence somewhere?’ - -“‘Ah thought of that, but the tarnel thing is jest as whole as ’twas -when Slim got through mendin’ it only Saturday week.’ - -“Just then we reached the drop in the trail and I could see the -corral. Lucky had spoken truly; not a rail was misplaced, and, -although the gate was standing open and torn from its hinges, it was -evident that it had been broken by the impact of the stampeding -cattle. - -“I stood and stared almost stunned and hardly able to believe, even -then, that so tragic a disaster had come to us. ‘Lucky,’ I said, -‘are you sure you barred the gate? The yearlings couldn’t get -through there any more than through another part of the fence if it -were equally secure.’ - -“I saw at once that my companion was hurt. - -“I was sorry that I had asked the question, and I told him so. -‘Lucky,’ I said, with my hand on his shoulder, ‘there’s no one on -the entire desert more trustworthy than you are. Of course the -cattle got out some other way.’ - -“‘An’ the way was them gypsies.’ Lucky doggedly kept to his -preconceived theory that a band of thieving gypsies were sure to rob -us that night. - -“It didn’t seem possible to me, nor probable either, but I didn’t -tell him so. - -“What I did say was. ‘Let’s get a snack to eat, climb Yucca Hill -once more and see if there is any trace of the herd.’ Of course it -would be impossible for gypsies to drive them very far in the few -hours between midnight, when I turned in, and early dawn. - -“But Lucky seemed determined to believe the worst. ‘Not if they were -headed for the border,’ he replied. ‘They’d be across ’afore sunup -easy.’ - -“I knew that to be true but decided to take an observation from the -highest of the Three Sand Hills as soon as possible. Leaving our -horses at the bottom we began the ascent. I had the misfortune when -half way up to step on an insecure rock, which loosened and sent me -sliding to the desert again. Lucky had kept right on and soon -reached the top. I heard him shouting as he gestured excitedly. -‘What do you see?’ I called, feeling convinced that it was something -which had interested him, nor was I wrong. - -“‘It’s a tarnel whopper of a sand cloud and ’tisn’t Mexico way, -neither, so we can take hope from that.’ - -“I had scrambled to his side by that time and stood shading my eyes -from the glare of the rising sun. I, too, could see the rapidly -moving cloud of sand. - -“‘What do you make of it?’ I asked. - -“‘Ah reckon it’s our yearlings all right on a stampede. But what’s -puzzlin’ me is how a caravan on wheels that’s pulled by mules, as -Davie said ’twas, kin go ’long fast enough to keep up with ’em.’ - -“‘It couldn’t,’ I replied, ‘but a bunch of rustlers on bronchos -could keep up without half trying.’ - -“I was heart sick, Virg, at the thought that some clever cattle -thieves had made away with our prize stock. The distance that they -had already traveled, if they were our yearlings, was so great I -could have no hope of overtaking them. There was one thing that -puzzled me. That rapidly moving cloud of sand was headed directly -for the part of our desert that is called Burning Acres. Not a ranch -nor a water hole for miles and miles and sure death awaits man, -horse or cattle if they get stranded in that barren waste. - -“I was deeply discouraged. However, as we descended the hill I said: -‘Lucky, it’s a lost hope I guess, but the most we can do is to pack -enough grub to last a few days, take two extra mounts, all the -canteens we can carry and head that way.’ - -“That’s what we did, which brings the story up to the hour of our -departure.” - -“Did you find any trace of our yearlings?” Virginia’s query was -anxious, for she knew that herd had been the pride of her brother’s -heart. The lad shook his head. “No,” he said, “we didn’t. We rode as -far into the Burning Acres as we dared go. When our water supply was -half gone, we turned back, knowing that we would need an equal -amount on our return trip. We had ridden in silence for some time -when Lucky said: ‘Malcolm, Ah don’t hold that notion about gypsies -any more. Ah reckon the thieves was rustlers that knew their -business. Ah figger the fellow that told that yarn to Davie was -stringin’ him. Thar wan’t any wheeled caravan in these parts, of -that Ah’m sure sartin.’ - -“I was glad that he had come around to my way of thinking, but just -as we were leaving the Burning Acres, I saw Lucky, who was in the -lead, leap from his horse and examine the sand. Then turning, he -gestured, beckoning me to hurry.” - -Malcolm paused. “What had he found?” Betsy asked. She was sitting so -close to the edge of her chair that she seemed in danger of falling -off. - -“Well, when I reached the spot,” Malcolm knew that what he was going -to tell would astonish his hearers, “I saw Lucky pointing -triumphantly at what were unmistakable wheel tracks in the sand.” - -“Brother, do you really think that a band of gypsies has ridden into -those dreadful dry lands?” - -“I don’t know, Virg. We couldn’t stop to investigate as we were out -of water and so we returned to V. M. As it was noon, we ate the good -dinner Sing had ready for us and I turned in for an hour’s sleep but -Lucky could not rest, and so after having had not more than forty -winks of a doze, I heard him again riding away in search of further -evidence. - -“It was nearly dusk when he returned and he came on a gallop -shouting my name. I was out on the porch in a moment. ‘Ah think -Ah’ve hit a trail sure sartin this time,’ he called. I saw that he -was leading my horse and a fresh mount that was laden with supplies. - -“Uncle Tex rode in just then and seemed surprised to see that we -were starting out so near nightfall. He had been to his cabin on -Second Peak for several days and so had heard nothing of what had -happened. I didn’t wait to explain, but must have mystified him -greatly by calling, ‘Keep it dark which way we ride.’” - -Virginia nodded for the old man had told her that he was indeed -puzzled. “What did you find, brother?” she eagerly inquired. - -“The same wagon tracks a mile to the west of where we had seen them -before, but we could only find them in sheltered places. Of course -in the open they were quickly covered with the drifting sand. We -hunted for two days and all we found was this.” - -He drew a scarlet silk scarf with fringed edges from his leather -coat pocket. “That’s rather conclusive evidence that Lucky is right, -isn’t it?” his sister inquired. “Shouldn’t you say that a gypsy -woman might have used that scarf as a head covering?” - -“I don’t know much about gypsies,” the lad replied, and the tale -being told, he leaned back wearily. - -It was the quiet Margaret who noticed how truly tired her guardian -looked. “You’ve been over-working, Malcolm,” she said solicitously. -“It has been a terrible strain for you to keep awake day and night -with all the worry about the lost yearlings.” - -The lad smiled down at her as he rose. “I think we’ll have to change -places, Mistress Margaret,” he said. “I’ll be the ward and you the -guardian since you look after me so well.” The sweet face of the -girl was flushed, but, as Betsy had at that moment twisted the -scarlet scarf about her own head, no one noticed Megsy. - -When Malcolm was gone, the merry maid skipped lightly about on her -toes shaking an imaginary tambourine. - -“Betsy, you make a very fine gypsy,” Babs said, then, noting that -Virginia sat, quietly gazing at the fire as though she were deep in -thought, Barbara rested a hand on her arm as she added, “Virg, this -means a good deal of a loss, doesn’t it, to you and Malcolm?” - -The young hostess nodded, “Yes, dear, it does, but I am more -concerned about Malcolm’s anxiety than I am about the disappearance -of the yearlings. I do wish there was something that girls could do -to help.” - -Betsy had drawn near to listen. “Let’s get up just as soon as ever -we can awaken,” she suggested, “and let’s try to find the wagon -trails. If only I could solve this mystery, I’d be the happiest girl -in all the land.” - -Virginia, who understood the desert better than did her companions, -even those who had visited it the year before, hesitated. Well she -knew that it was very easy for even one desert-bred, to be lost in -the Burning Acres. Then, noticing how truly disappointed Betsy -looked, the young hostess conceded. “We can ride as far as the Three -Sand Hills if you wish.” And with this Betsy had to be content, but -how she did hope that they would go farther, and, Oh, if only she, -Betsy Clossen, could find the caravan trail and restore the missing -cattle. Her active brain was planning imaginary clews long after the -others were asleep and yet, she was the first to awaken as soon as a -faint grey light revealed the horizon. What would the day bring -forth, she wondered. - - - - -CHAPTER V—BETSY’S FIRST RIDE - - -Malcolm, weary indeed with the long hard riding on the three days -previous, did not waken, nor did Uncle Tex when, at a very early -hour, the four girls stole out of the ranch house and, while the -stars were still shining in the paling sky they skipped down to the -wrangling corral. In a nearby shelter hung the saddles and Virg, -with Margaret’s help, soon had the four ponies ready to ride. If -Malcolm had known of their expedition, he would have insisted upon -accompanying them, not knowing what dangers might await them. In -fact he had intended to warn Virginia not to leave the immediate -neighborhood of the ranch until he and Lucky had discovered the -hiding place of the mysterious caravan, but, although he thought of -it after he had retired, he reminded himself that it would be time -to tell them at breakfast. - -Virginia indeed had little hope of coming upon the trail of the -rumored caravan, for, during the night, a sandstorm had swept across -the desert and though of but brief duration, it would have -obliterated whatever tracks had been visible the day before. She had -thought of explaining this to the girls, but, knowing that Betsy -would be greatly disappointed, she decided to ride with them at -least as far as the Three Sand Hills. - -This she often did, and, as the hills were surrounded by a vast -waste of open desert, she knew that unless the gypsies were camped -on the other side of the hills themselves, they would not come -unexpectedly upon them. - -Betsy, before she had left school, had expected to be timid about -riding the western horses but Virg chose for her a gentle pony that -was well broken and so interested was the Eastern girl in the quest -upon which they were starting, that she found that she was not at -all afraid. - -The east was beginning to glow with pale rose and lilac when the top -of the mesa was reached and Virginia, in the lead, pointed, as they -all drew rein, to the Three Sand Hills that loomed dark and -isolated, standing alone like sentinels on an otherwise flat expanse -of desert. - -Betsy looked up with glowing eyes. “It’s wonderful!” she said, “just -to see this sun rise on the desert is worth a great deal, even if we -don’t find a trail.” - -Then they started on again riding single file. Betsy’s pony had -taken the lead which delighted the young rider. - -“It’s going to be a glorious day,” Margaret smiled back at Virg. “If -it weren’t for the lost yearlings and the anxiety it means to you -and Malcolm, I would be Oh, just ever so happy to think that we are -home again.” - -Virginia was pleased to hear her adopted sister call the desert -“home.” - -“Dear,” she said, “I am not going to worry over the loss nor will -Malcolm. Being unhappy and making others unhappy never restores the -thing that is lost. I mean to try to forget it as soon as we are -sure that the herd cannot be recovered.” - -For a moment they rode on in silence, then Megsy looked back again -and smilingly nodded toward Betsy, who, quite forgetting that she -intended to be afraid of Western horses, was leaning far over in her -saddle and gazing at the sand that had been ribbed and scalloped by -the wind during the night. Suddenly she stopped her pony to await -the others. “Virg,” she asked eagerly, “are we near the place where -Lucky first saw the wagon trail?” - -Virginia had to confess that they were yet many miles from the edge -of the Burning Acres where that trail had been seen. “I’m sorry to -disappoint you, Betsy,” she said, “but it would be impossible for us -to ride that far unless we were prepared for a hard journey and were -accompanied by Malcolm or Uncle Tex.” - -They paused at the foot of the group of hills and Betsy shuddered as -she said, “I don’t know why they seem so uncanny to me. Did anything -ever happen here, Virg, anything spooky?” - -“Why, nothing that I know about.” The Western girl laughed at the -eager expression on the face of their youngest. “What, for -instance?” - -“Oh, some famous bandit might have been captured and bound to that -giant yucca that stands all alone on the highest hill, and the -masked men who had captured him might have stood down here and shot -him, then silently ridden away while the vultures came with their -weird cries to—” - -Megsy put her hands over her ears. “Betsy,” she remonstrated, -“you’re telling the story of that moving picture we saw at Vine -Haven. My, but it was gruesome!” - -Betsy laughed mischievously but Virg said seriously, “Those popular -pictures give a very wrong impression of our desert life, as it -really is. Now, if the rest of you would like to climb to the top of -Yucca Hill, I’ll stay here with the ponies. It might be hard to -catch them if they strayed in search of grass, and I do want to get -home before Malcolm can miss us and be worried.” - -Betsy was scrambling down from the back of her patient mount as she -replied, “I’m going to climb up there, and stand right where the -bandit stood—and—” - -“Well, go on then.” It was Barbara who spoke. “We’ll wait for you -down here. I, for one, am not pining for such a hard climb before -breakfast.” - -“Do you dare me?” the twinkling eyed Betsy asked, her arms akimbo. - -“Double dare!” Babs retorted. Then they all laughed to see the speed -with which Betsy began the ascent, but she soon found that she -slipped back about as far as she progressed. However, in time, she -reached the top and holding to the giant yucca she waved her other -hand to the watching group. Then, shading her eyes, she looked long -and intently in the direction of the Burning Acres. Suddenly she -began to beckon wildly. Virginia was puzzled. “I wonder if she is -doing that to tease or if she has really seen something of -interest.” - -[Illustration: “It seems to be all wings, and it’s white, isn’t it?”] - -Virg was the first to climb to the top of Yucca Hill, Margaret -having offered to remain with the four ponies. Barbara, breathless, -reached them a moment later, in time to hear an excited Betsy -exclaim, as she pointed toward the south, “Virg did you ever see a -bird as big as that? It seems to be all wings, and it’s white, isn’t -it?” - -Babs protested. “Goodness Betsy. Did you call us way up here and in -such a hurry just to show us a bird?” - -But Virginia, whose eyes were keener, since she was used to desert -distances, watched the wide-winged object which was high in the air, -and at least half a mile away. - -“If it is a bird, which I doubt, it has hurt one of its wings for -surely it is not flying in—” she interrupted herself to exclaim: -“Oh, I see now! there goes one of the little whirlwinds that scud -over the desert so often. Whatever that flying thing is, it was -evidently tossed high in the air and is fluttering back to earth.” - -Virg had surmised correctly for, with awkward movements of -apparently wide stretched wings, the something, which had so aroused -Betsy’s curiosity, fluttered groundward, but before it touched the -sand it caught on the arm of a formidable thorny cactus which stood -near the mesa trail. Laughingly the girls descended and told the -curious Margaret what Betsy’s excitement had been over. - -“And there I had hoped that it might be a clew,” that maiden -mourned, as again, single file, they rode back toward V. M. - -“Not a wagon track have we found nor anything exciting or even -interesting,” Babs began, when Virg, being in the lead, called over -her shoulder as she pointed at the great cactus that appeared near -the trail not far ahead: - -“There’s your wide-winged bird, Betsy. Nothing but a newspaper that -tried to soar for a time but failed.” - -Since they were in a hurry to reach V. M. before the hour which -Malcolm had suggested that they have breakfast together, the girls -did not stop to examine the newspaper, but, when they had reached -the ranch yard, Betsy, who had been unusually quiet during the -downward ride, suddenly exclaimed: - -“Girls, I’m not sure but that we missed a clew, after all, when we -passed that newspaper. If you don’t mind, Virg, I’m going back and -get it. However,” and she smiled in a mischievous way, “if it’s all -the same to everybody, I guess I’d rather walk. It’s ages since I’ve -been on horseback, and I’m getting powerfully stiff.” - -“If you’ll wait until after breakfast I’ll go back with you,” Babs -told her friend. - -“Can’t be done, old dear,” Betsy declared. “Another whirlwind might -come along and where would my newspaper be?” - -“Well, do hurry. I can tell by a certain appetizing fragrance on the -air that ham and eggs are being prepared, and Oh! but I’m hungry.” - -Betsy acknowledged that she herself was most starved, but added that -if Babs had the real detective instinct which she possessed, mere -eating would not even be considered when there might be a clew to be -had for just a little effort. - -The three girls, having turned their unsaddled ponies into the -corral, walked arm in arm up to the house. Their youngest had -already started on a run toward the mesa trail. - -“It’s at least a quarter of a mile back to that cactus,” Virginia -said, “so we needn’t expect Betsy for quite a while.” - -But to their surprise, ten minutes later, as they were emerging from -their rooms, having changed their khaki riding habits for gingham -morning dresses, they heard a familiar voice shouting without. Then -the front door burst open and a most excited Betsy waved torn -fragments of an old newspaper as she cried: “It’s a clew, it is a -clew; just listen to this.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI—BETSY’S FIND - - -The girls gathered about Betsy Clossen to gaze eagerly at the torn -fragments of newspaper when that excited little maid burst into the -ranch living room announcing that she really had found a clew. - -“Where is it? I can’t see anything but plain print,” Babs chattered. - -“How did you get back so soon?” Virg inquired. “You couldn’t -possibly have climbed the mesa trail. You’ve only been gone ten -minutes and that would have taken you half an hour.” - -Betsy laughed. “I had an ally in another whirl-wind. I hadn’t gone -far when I saw torn fragments of the same newspaper that had been -caught on the cactus scudding toward me. Then a gust of wind blew -sand in my eyes and I had to turn my back. I was afraid that I had -lost the flying pieces, but luckily they had caught on a mesquite -bush right at my feet. I pounced on them and on the very top I found -written—” - -Betsy was holding the pieces back of her and just to tease she -asked, “Guess what!” - -“Oh Betsy, how provoking you are, must we guess?” Babs pondered a -moment then said, “Maybe it was something in the Romany tongue. That -is what they call the gypsies’ language, isn’t it?” - -But the would-be young detective shook her head and looked -inquiringly at Margaret. “Oh, I never could guess, can you Virg?” - -“Hm-m! Let me see. It might be a note scribbled by somebody on the -Burning Acres, who was trying to send a message to tell that he is -stranded and in need of aid.” - -“I don’t think that is it.” Betsy brought the paper around and held -it up that all might see. Then she pointed at some very fine writing -on an upper margin. “If it were intended for someone else to read, -it would be larger and clearer.” - -“What does it say?” Margaret inquired. But Betsy could not tell. -“Why, I thought you told us that you were sure that it is a clew to -the whereabouts of the gypsy caravan or of the stolen yearlings.” - -Betsy was about to defend her theory when Virginia, who had taken -the paper to the window that she might better see the very fine -writing, exclaimed: “It seems to be a memorandum of some kind. I can -read several words, but altogether they make but little sense. They -are ‘five miles beyond.’ I can’t make out beyond what, then comes -‘turn toward mountains,’ after that the pencil marks are blurred -until the last sentence, which is, ‘likely to make a find there.’” - -Betsy whirled toward Margaret, glowing, triumphant. “There now, -Mistress Doubter, isn’t that a clew and a fine one?” - -“Well,” the other maid replied rather reluctantly. “It might be, and -yet again it might be merely a paper that some mining prospector was -reading when a whirl-wind came along. What you read, Virg, would be -just about what a miner would jot down, don’t you think?” - -The Western girl nodded. “Yes, dear, I believe so. Wait until I get -the magnifying glass and perhaps the blurred part will be clearer.” - -While Virg had gone in search of it, Malcolm appeared calling, -“Ready for breakfast girls?” Then seeing their excited expressions, -he inquired: “What’s up?” Betsy’s words fairly tumbled out in her -eagerness to be the one to relate the story of her find. The lad -took the fragment and looked at it intently. “It wasn’t written by -the type of prospector who usually climbs over these mountains with -pick and shovel hunting for copper. In fact most of them can hardly -write at all,” was the lad’s decision. - -Virg at that moment appeared, and holding up the magnifying glass, -she exclaimed, “Now perhaps we will find out the secret hidden in -that blurred writing.” - -Even Malcolm believed that Betsy might have found a clew and they -all bent over the fragment of newspaper which Virginia had spread on -a table near the window. After several moments of intent scrutiny, -he told the girls what he believed was the meaning of the very fine -and frequently blurred hand writing. - -Betsy was elated. - -“Whizzle,” she exclaimed excitedly, “it is a clew after all. A whale -of a clew!” - -“Brother, read it again and then tell us what you make of it,” -Virginia urged. - -So once more Malcolm placed the magnifying glass over the torn -fragment of the newspaper and read the fine writing. - -“Tenderfoot, O. K. Wheels N. G. in desert. Ought to have known -better. Stuck for keeps, seems like. No ranches in sight. Don’t know -what to do with—” The paper was torn there. - -“Malcolm,” Virginia began anxiously, “do you suppose that the -missing word might have been yearlings? Has some tenderfoot -attempted to make away with our entire herd?” - -The lad looked serious but after a thoughtful moment he shook his -head. “I can’t believe it is possible. What paper is this, anyway?” - -“A page from the _Chicago Tribune_,” Betsy told him. Then, eager to -help solve the mystery, she hurried on to say: “Chicago is the place -where your cattle were to be sold, isn’t it?” - -“Yes, I planned shipping the yearlings in a few days. The empty cars -are on the side track at Silver Creek station this very minute. As -soon as Lucky and I had them loaded, we were to wire Douglas and the -cars were to be picked up by the freight that night.” - -“I know what Betsy thinks,” Virginia said. “She believes that some -tenderfoot rustler tried to steal the cattle and ship them as his -own. Would such a thing be possible, Malcolm?” - -“Possible, but not probable,” was the answer. - -“Then what do you make of it?” Margaret asked. - -“I don’t,” was the smilingly given reply. “But I do know that we -will all starve and that Sing Long will be on the rampage if we -don’t go out and eat the fine breakfast he has prepared for us.” - -“Whizzle! I have been so interested and excited that I had actually -forgotten that I am almost starved,” Betsy declared as they entered -the big sunny kitchen, at one end of which was a table that could -seat twelve without crowding, for, on the desert, one never knew -when a passing cowboy, or a group of them, might stop at meal time. - -When the first pangs of hunger had been satisfied, Virginia said: -“Now brother, tell us your theory.” - -“I’d like to hear Betsy’s first.” Malcolm was much amused by the -small, bright-eyed girl who took such an unusual interest (for one -feminine) in the solving of mysteries. - -They all turned to listen and so Betsy began. “Well, of course I -know very little about the ways of the desert, but I should think -that Virginia’s suggestion, a little while ago, might be the right -one. But since you doubt it, Malcolm, I’m beginning to think that -the something the writer didn’t know what to do with, might not be -the stolen yearlings after all.” - -The lad nodded. Then glancing at Margaret, he asked, “Who else has a -theory?” Flushing prettily as she always did when her guardian -addressed her, the quiet Megsy replied, “I don’t believe that I have -one, but I just know that you have, Malcolm. Won’t you tell it to -us?” - -“I may be wrong,” the lad began, “but, from the wording of the -memorandum, I believe a boy has written it, and surely a tenderfoot, -else he would not have tried to cross the desert in a prairie -schooner, if that’s what he has. Maybe he’s here for his health. -Many a lad finds his lungs in danger after years of hard study, and -they come out here to rough it and get strong again. Anyway, that’s -my guess. I don’t believe that the writer of this note has ever even -heard of our lost yearlings.” - -“Hark!” Virginia cried, springing up and running to the door. -“What’s all the commotion outside?” - -There was indeed a most unusual commotion not far away, but, from -the kitchen window nothing could be seen but the sandy door-yard, -the chicken corral, the outhouses and farther down the slope and -near the dry creek, the adobe cabin of the Mahoys. - -Malcolm, at once on the alert, caught his sombrero from its place -near the back door. He leaped from the porch without taking time to -descend the steps, and, before the astounded girls could speak, he -was racing for the corral that was down in the valley-like hollow -near the towering red windmill. - -“Girls!” Virg had listened but a moment when she whirled, her cheeks -burning, her eyes glowing, “Don’t you know what it means, that -bellowing of cattle and shouting of men?” - -“It sounds like a round-up to me,” Barbara ventured. - -“It is! It surely is! Oh, if only someone has found the lost -yearlings.” The four girls were running so fast that Virg had not -breath to finish her sentence. A second later they reached the top -of the trail and in the depression below them, they saw something -which filled their heart with rejoicing. - -“The yearlings! Oh how happy Malcolm will be,” Margaret cried. -“Virg, you too, how glad you must be!” - -“How do you suppose it happened?” Betsy was tremendously interested, -this being the first time she had witnessed the driving in of a -restless herd of cattle. - -“Slim found them,” Virg said. “See Megsy, how cleverly he herds them -toward the open gate of the corral. There’s one that is trying to -make a break.” - -“Goodness that wild one has turned. It’s charging right at that -cowboy. Slim, did you call him?” Betsy had her hand on her heart and -her eyes expressed terror, but Virginia laughed. “That’s nothing -unusual. Watch what happens.” - -It was quite evident that the young cowboy, Slim, had his eye on the -angry young steer that had stopped to paw the ground and snort in a -most threatening manner. The boy drew rein and coiled his rope. -Lucky and Malcolm were also in the saddle and they were trying to -quiet the remainder of the herd and drive them into the corral. Slim -backed his horse, all the time swinging his rope and keeping a -watchful eye on the snorting young steer. - -“Whizzle,” Betsy clutched Virginia’s arm and held tight. “I wish -Slim would look where he is going. He may back his horse right over -that cliff and into the dry creek.” - -“Don’t worry, dear. Slim knows every step his horse is taking even -though he isn’t looking. If I didn’t know how that cowboy of ours -can ride, I too, might be worried. There, now watch!” - -Angered beyond endurance by the whistling of the rope as it swung -round and round the head of Slim, the enraged creature which knew in -some way that this cowboy was depriving him of the freedom of the -range, made a sudden lunge, his head bent to bowl over whatever it -first struck. - -Betsy screamed, but the lowing of the restless cattle drowned her -cry. “He’ll be thrown! Why doesn’t Slim do something?” - -“He is waiting his time,” Virg said quietly. “See how his pony -leaped to one side. They’re well trained, those wiry bronchos.” - -Malcolm and Lucky, having driven the remainder of the herd into the -corral, had closed and barred the gate. Malcolm, however, stood -there ready to swing it open if the rebellious steer should be -headed that way, while Lucky rode out to assist Slim if his services -were needed, but they were not, for once again the young steer -plunged, the rope sung through the air, and catching the forefeet of -the animal, sent it with a thud to the ground. - -The loop of Lucky’s rope caught about its neck. Then, when Slim’s -rope had loosened, the creature scrambled to its feet, and, half -stunned, permitted itself to be led and driven into the corral. Then -the gates were again closed. - -“Now tell us, where did you find them?” Malcolm asked Slim. - -The good looking young cowboy removed his sombrero, wiped his hot -brow with his red bandana handkerchief and then burst into -unexpected laughter. - -“Well, Malcolm,” he chuckled, “Ah reckon that thar dod-busted steer -that’s been so plumb rampagious this mornin’ was at the bottom of -the whole thing.” - -“Then you don’t think that gypsies tried to steal them?” It was the -first time that Betsy had addressed Slim. - -He had not noticed the young stranger. Virginia, noting his -expression of surprise exclaimed, “Betsy, this is Slim our prize -broncho buster and sure shot roper.” - -The young cowboy laughed disparagingly. “Don’t take no stock in all -a-that, Miss Betsy,” he said. - -“Oh, I know it without being told,” was the young girl’s eager -response. “Didn’t I see you rope that wild steer with my very own -eyes.” - -Malcolm, anxious to know where the cattle had been found turned the -subject back to the point where it had digressed. - -“No, sir, ’twant gypsies nor yet again cattle thieves that let the -yearlings out of their pen. ’Twas that wild one himself.” - -“But, Slim, that doesn’t seem probable or possible for the fence was -not broken and the cattle cannot open the gate,” Malcolm was saying -when Betsy who had turned to glance at the corral in which the -restless herd was pacing back and forth, uttered a cry of warning. - -“Look! Quick! Slim is right! That wild steer is pushing the bar.” - -With a variety of expletives the cowboys leaped forward and were in -time to prevent a second escape of the herd. - -For sometime after that, they were engaged in making the fastening -of the gate more secure. The girls remained as interested -spectators. When Malcolm at last straightened up, he turned to them -and said with his pleasant smile, “And so, Mistress Betsy, we are -doomed to disappoint you, for there really isn’t any mystery to -unravel after all.” - -But Slim had again removed his sombrero and he was thoughtfully -rubbing his glossy brown hair. Suddenly he turned toward the little -stranger. - -“Ah say, Miss Betsy, what was that thar you asked me in the -beginning. ’Pears to me like ’twas suthin’ namin’ gypsies.” - -“Yes, it was.” Then eagerly, hopefully. “Mr. Slim, you didn’t see -anything of them while you were hunting for the cattle, did you?” - -“Wall now, I reckon mebbe I did and yet agin mebbe, I didn’t. Ah’m -not tolerably sartin’, but I saw suthin’ mighty perplexin’.” - -Then inquiringly to Malcolm. “You-all don’ figger that any copper -diggers ’d be loony enuf to cross the desert in a wagon, do you?” - -“No, indeed. I’m as good as certain that they wouldn’t,” Malcolm -began, when Betsy hopped up and down and clapped her hands as she -interrupted. “Oh! Oh! tell us quick, Mr. Slim, _did_ you see the -wagon? We’ve been hunting for it everywhere.” - -The cowboy was so plainly puzzled that Virginia told him the story -of the gypsy caravan as Davie had told it to Malcolm and Lucky. - -“Wall, all as I saw was tracks headin’, seemed like toward Puffed -Snake Water Hole. But Ah was driving the herd in jest then an’ -couldn’t leave to do no investigatin’.” - -“Good! I’m glad they were heading away from V. M. Ranch, whoever -they are.” Malcolm said then added: “Boys, I think we’d better all -three drive this herd in to the station. It’s going to take some -skillful handling to get them aboard the cars. It’s nine now and I -expected to get them loaded by this time.” Then anxiously, “Slim, -you’ve had a hard time of it this past twenty-four hours. You ought -to get some sleep before we start.” - -“Caint spare the time, Malcolm. Ah reckon thar’ll be enough for -sleep when this here herd is boxed up in the car. Ah reckon thar -will.” - -Lucky had been silently watching the restlessly lowing heard. -“Malcolm,” he said, “we’d better start, ’pears like. That wild one’s -got to wear a drag to keep it from boltin’, an’ that’ll make it -plumb slow goin’ for the rest.” - -“Right you are,” the young master of V. M. replied. “We certainly -don’t want to take any chances on a stampede today, since the cars -are scheduled to be picked up by the through freighter tonight at -seven.” Then, turning to his sister, he added, “Virg, will you girls -pack us some grub and we’ll start as soon as we can get the herd in -shape.” - -“Indeed we will.” Then catching the hands of two of her friends and -nodding to the third, away she ran toward the ranch house. - -“Oh, I just adore all this,” Betsy exclaimed an hour later when the -girls, having packed the saddle bags with good things until they -bulged, stood out on the front veranda watching the three cowboys as -they drove the still restless herd up over the mesa. - -“That poor wild steer will wish he had been less obstreperous,” the -quiet Margaret said. “He can hardly take a step without stumbling -over that long pole that drags between his front legs.” - -“I like him,” Babs surprised the others by remarking. “I like his -spirit. Somehow a desire for freedom seems to belong to the desert -and his surely is unquenchable, but next week he will be—” - -“Oh, do let’s forget that part of it.” Virginia spoke with unusual -seriousness. “I hate it.” Then noting the expressions of inquiry, -she explained. “I don’t understand in the least what makes me feel -so queerly about it. Nevertheless, I do. I don’t believe that we -have any right to take that wonderful thing, Life, from any creature -to which it has been given. We may find sometime that we have been -doing something grievously wrong. But there,” she added in a gayer -tone, “since I am the part owner of a business that raises live -stock for the sole purpose of taking life, it hardly behooves me to -moralize about it.” - -“Does Malcolm know that you feel that way?” Margaret asked. - -Virg shook her head. Then slipping her hand in that of her friend, -Megsy, said earnestly, “I agree with you. I’d heaps rather raise -beets to sell.” - -A merry laugh greeted this remark, and then Betsy, who was never -long content with just conversing exclaimed. “Virg, let’s do -something interesting right after lunch.” - -Virginia smiled. “I was going to suggest that we all take a siesta.” -Then she laughed at the dismay pictured in the face which a moment -before had been so eager. - -But the youngest was not to be daunted. Whirling toward Barbara, she -wheedled. “Babsie, you don’t want to sleep, do you? Let Megsy and -Virg siesticate if they wish, but suppose you and I go for a ride.” - -“I’ll make a bargain with you, Betsy.” It was Virg who was speaking. -“If you’ll be as quiet as a little mouse and let us, who wish to, -nap until three, we’ll all go for a ride anywhere you choose.” - -“Oh, will you, honest injun, cross your heart!” The would-be little -detective seemed more eager than before and the reason was that she -wanted to get Virginia to promise to do something without telling -her what it was. - -The unsuspecting older girl nodded, then as the bell was ringing -they all went in to lunch. Betsy lingered back of Virg and beckoning -Babs she whispered something in her ear. “Oh, Virg won’t do that,” -Barbara told her. - -“But she’ll have to. You yourself heard her promise to ride this -afternoon in any direction that I wish and I’m just wild to go -there.” - - - - -CHAPTER VII—A PLANNED RIDE - - -Directly after lunch, Virginia, Margaret and Barbara retired to -their rooms for the customary afternoon nap which seemed to be as -much a part of desert life as anything else in the routine. The sun -beat down upon the shimmering white sand relentlessly during the -noon hours and all live creatures were glad to seek the cool of some -shadow or to hide in underground burrows if that was according to -their nature. - -Betsy, unused to sleeping during the day, had decided to take that -time for letter writing. She was wild to tell her Cousin Bob, who -was fourteen, of all the exciting things which had befallen her -since her departure from boarding school such a very short time -before. - -How he would envy her. Virg had suggested that she write at the big -old desk which stood on the shady side of the long living room and -there, for a quiet hour the little girl sat scribbling as fast as -her pencil would fly and the story of her adventures was so -thrillingly told that the boy, who was to receive it, would indeed -be envious. She had just concluded with—“Virg hasn’t any idea where -I am going to suggest that we go for our ride when she wakes up, but -of course she’ll have to go because she has promised. I’m ever and -ever so sure that an exciting adventure awaits us and I’ll add it to -this letter before I send it. There’ll be plenty of time, anyway, -for the mail pouch is only taken to the station about twice a week.” - -It was at this point in the epistle that the three girls, who had -been asleep, appeared and they were dressed in their riding habits. - -“You’ll have to don yours, Betsy,” Babs called. “I’ll wait for you. -Virg and Megsy are going down to the corral to saddle our horses.” - -While the young would-be detective was changing her apparel, Babs -sat on the arm of a chair watching her. “Virg has forgotten all -about her promise to you,” she volunteered. “I heard her tell -Margaret that she wanted to ride over to Hog Canon and see the poor -dry ranchers who live there. She has brought some gifts for the -three children and their mother.” - -“Oh dear, isn’t that just too provoking. I did so want to ride in -the direction of that Puffed Snake Water Hole and see if we could -find the gypsy caravan, but, of course, if our hostess has other -plans, I suppose I’ll have to give up mine, only I don’t think she -should have promised. Honestly I don’t.” - -Babs hardly knew what to say. “But dear, you can visit that water -hole some other time, maybe tomorrow. Wouldn’t that do as well?” - -“Why, of course not Babs. You know as well as I do that if we are to -get there before that gypsy caravan moves on, we’ll have to go -today. They’re not going to just camp out there and wait to be -found.” - -“Well, you’ll have to be the one to remind Virg of her promise. I -won’t. I heard her say that the little woman who lives over in Hog -Canon is very frail and that she has brought her some things that -she needs just dreadfully.” - -Betsy sighed as she laced the riding boots that Virg had loaned her, -but all she said was “What’s a dry rancher anyway? Someone who’s -awfully poor I judge.” - -Babs nodded. “Yes indeed. Mr. Wallace, ‘Foolish Andy,’ I’ve heard -him called, is certainly not prosperous. Dry ranching means trying -to get along without water except such as can be caught in a cistern -during the rainy season. There’s no water for the few head of cattle -they have except in water holes. I guess they’re poor enough all -right.” - -Betsy stood up clothed, but only partly resigned to the seemingly -inevitable. “Virg would rather go on a visit of mercy any time than -try to unravel a mystery which shows how different we are,” she -confided to her companion as they ran down the trail that led to the -corral where the others awaited them with the four ponies saddled -and ready. - -A small pack-horse near had on its back two saddle bags well packed. -“Here you are,” Virg sang out, then noting an expression of -disappointment in the face of their youngest, the hostess recalled -something. “Oh Betsy,” she said self-rebukingly, “I completely -forgot that you were to choose the direction of our ride this -afternoon and here I have packed Old Stoic with food and gifts that -I want to take to the Wallace family over in Hog Canon. Well, I can -unpack him again if you wish me to keep that promise. - -“My only reason for wanting to go today is that the children have -heard that I am home from school, Slim told them, and they sent word -that they’re wild to see me, and Slim said I should have seen poor -Mrs. Wallace’s expression when she heard it. He said that it was as -though she had heard something that was going to give her a new -lease on life. - -“But of course one day more won’t matter if you wish to hold me to -my promise.” - -“I should say not, Virg!” Betsy spoke emphatically. “I was merely -going to suggest that we go over to that Puffed Snake Water Hole Mr. -Slim told about and see if we could find the gypsy caravan. But it -might be a wild-goose chase.” Virginia laughed. “It would be, I can -assure you. The odors around that water hole are such that even -gypsies wouldn’t linger there long. They are miles and miles away by -now.” But Betsy interrupted. “Virg, how can they be? Don’t you -recall what the writing on the newspaper said. ‘Stuck for keeps.’ No -ranches in sight.” - -“Then there’s no use visiting the Puffed Snake Water Hole for one -can plainly see Slater’s Ranch from there. Now the question is,” -Virg looked from one friend to another, “which way shall we go? Of -course we can visit Hog Canon tomorrow and—” - -“Indeed not! I’m not as selfish as all that. We’ll visit Hog Canon -and your poor family today, then tomorrow we’ll hunt for the gypsy -caravan.” - -Little did Betsy dream what her decision would lead to. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII—OLD STOIC - - -Single file the four mounted girls rode down the trail which led -across the dry creek bottom for a time and then ascended the rather -steep opposite bank. The fifth horse “Old Stoic” followed -faithfully. When they were again on the level trail, Virg in the -lead, smiled over her shoulder. Betsy just back of her was evidently -deep in thought. - -“What are you puzzling about now, little mystery solver?” she sang -out gaily. - -Betsy looked up brightly. “I’m trying to solve three things at -once.” - -Babs and Megsy rode up, and, as the sand was hard enough to permit, -they continued in a group which was better for conversation. - -“What are they? And how are you succeeding?” Each maid asked a -question. - -Betsy laughed. “I’m wondering what Puffed Snakes are. I’ve heard of -rattlers and copper heads and—and water snakes, but never Puffed -ones.” - -“Guess!” Virg turned to say. - -“I don’t have to guess because I know.” Margaret smiled at Betsy. -“Use that good brain of yours. It’s ever so easy. It isn’t the kind -of snake. It’s something that happens to it.” - -“Hm. Let me see. It’s the name of a water hole with a dreadful -odor.” Betsy seemed to be thinking hard. Suddenly she laughed. “Oh, -of course, that’s easy! A snake fell into the water hole, couldn’t -get out and puffed.” - -“Righto!” Virg had whirled her pony and to the great admiration of -the other girls, was riding backwards. - -“What was your second puzzle?” Babs asked. - -“Why this picturesque place ahead of us in the mountains, should be -called Hog Canon?” - -“Oh, that is too easy,” Megsy declared. - -“Probably because some former dry rancher tried to raise hogs,” Babs -suggested. - -“You are nearly right, but not entirely so. It was Nature itself -that raised the little wild hogs that ‘abounded,’ as the story books -say, in these mountains, but they are gone now or nearly so.” - -“Goodness, you don’t mean the kind that I’ve seen in pictures with -tusks that look so dangerous.” - -“No, not wild boars. These were very small creatures, I’ve heard -father say, but they were all gone when brother and I came to the -desert to live. Now what is your third puzzle.” - -“Why you named your pack horse Old Stoic.” - -“All you have to do is to look at him and that mystery is solved. He -hasn’t a spark of fire in his eye, he has never been known, within -the memory of the oldest inhabitant, to do anything but plod. I -guess the colt in him vanished years ago.” - -The girls all turned to look at the pack horse that was following -them but it deigned not to return their notice. It did indeed seem -to be stolid and stunned. Suddenly Virginia began to laugh. She was -riding ahead by that time and the others pressed forward to hear the -cause of her mirth. - -“What’s the joke, Virg,” Betsy said, “Let us all in on it. Is it -something about Old Stoic?” - -Virginia nodded. “Yes, it is,” she said merrily. “I believe after -all I have wronged the old horse. I recall now that brother modified -his statement that nothing could stir an interest in Stoic. There -was one thing he said that could.” - -“What was it?” Betsy was always curious about everything. None of -the girls had a brain more eagerly alert. - -“A bear! Malcolm said that Old Stoic can smell a bear farther than -any horse he ever rode and run faster to try to get away from it, -but apart from that, he shows no sign of interest in life except in -doing his duty as a pack animal and doing it well.” - -Betsy looked anxiously toward the rugged Seven Peak Range which they -were approaching. “I say, Virg,” she said, “there aren’t any bears -in the mountains these days are there?” - -Then the questioner sighed with relief when she heard the reply. - -“No, dear, nary a one, or so few that one seldom if ever appears. I -did hear Lucky say last winter that he saw bear tracks in the snow -way up north in the higher, colder mountains, but I don’t believe -they come down this way now-a-days. They did, though, when Lucky was -a boy. His father was a trapper and exciting tales he can tell. -We’ll get him to recount the most thrilling of them for us some -night when we’re all sitting around the fire.” - -The girls having ridden for several miles without stopping were -glad, when Virg suggested that they stop awhile in the shade of a -giant cactus. Dismounting, she ran back to Old Stoic who had stopped -with the others and slipping her hand into one of the saddle bags -she brought out four oranges. “I’m not robbing the Wallace family,” -she smilingly told them, “for I put these in here just for our very -own refreshment. I knew we’d all be hot and thirsty by the time we -reached this half-way point.” - -The girls were indeed glad to eat the sweet juicy fruit. Betsy, -unused to the saddle was also pleased to have a chance to stretch -her legs, and so, slipping from her mount, she threw herself down on -the sand, warm even in the shade of the cactus, but she was on her -feet again almost as quickly when she heard Babs laughingly caution -her. “Look out for tarantulas and scorpions.” - -“Too, you might be lying directly over the hole of a rattler,” Megsy -added. But Virg protested. “Let the poor girl rest. There isn’t a -poisonous creature in our immediate neighborhood, I’ll vouch for -that.” - -But Betsy would not lie down again. Pretending to want to make the -acquaintance of the pack horse she walked back toward where he so -patiently stood, half dozing. Patting him on the head she said, “Old -Stoic, if there’s a rattler or a tarantula, a scorpion or anything -else startling or unusual around, you let me know won’t you.” Then -she cried triumphantly. “Look girls, he’s nodding his head. He is -intelligent after all. He just assumes that dull uninterested -expression for reasons of his own. Maybe he’s a detective. That’s -just the way Dad does when he’s in a group where he expects to -overhear something of great importance. He acts as though he were -intently thinking of something far away.” - -The listeners laughed. “Honestly Betsy, I doubt your theory in this -case. I don’t believe Old Stoic thinks. He seems to just plod, but -now if you’re all rested enough, we’ll up in the saddle and away.” - -“Whizzle, but it’s hot, hotter, hottest!” Betsy exclaimed when they -had ridden a mile farther on their way. - -“Or, as the story books say, ‘The relentless tropical sun beat down -upon the lone traveler and his beast of burden. Nowhere about him on -the vast sandy waste could he see a sprig of vegetation that would -suggest a life-saving oasis—’” - -“Oh Babs, have a heart! I’d heaps rather have you spiel about ice -cream sodas and cool things like that if it’s all the same to you.” - -Virg smiled back over her shoulder. “Perhaps we ought to have waited -for a cooler hour,” she said. “I forgot that you Eastern girls are -not as used to our Arizona sun as I am, and, I’ll confess, it _is_ -rather warm, but there’s hope ahead, for in just a few moments we -will have sighted the canon up which we will soon be riding.” - -Betsy drew her sombrero farther down over her eyes, and then peered -ahead through the air that was quivering with the heat. - -The canon which they were nearing did not look inviting. There were -no green growths that would have suggested a cool brook flowing down -among them, only bare jagged rocks with here and there a scraggly -mesquite bush growing in the cracks of rock where sand had gathered. - -“Well, I don’t wonder the neighbors call the gentleman who chose -that canon as his dwelling place ‘foolish,’” she remarked with a -little disdainful grunt. - -“Oh, but that isn’t his chief folly, or rather, not the one for -which he is noted far and wide,” Virginia looked over her should to -inform them. - -“Why is he called Foolish Andy, Virg? I’ve often wondered,” Megsy -inquired. - -“It’s because he is an inventor. He is very well educated, and seems -always to be inventing something which he is sure will bring his -little family fame and fortune. Mrs. Wallace tells me that they were -comfortably well off, once upon a time, but that all they could save -had been squandered on one invention after another and they became -poorer and poorer until now they can hardly keep alive, but nothing -seems to quench Mr. Wallace’s faith in his inventive powers. I heard -brother say that the instrument he is now trying to perfect, he -believes will not only bring him the money he needs but be a great -boon to mankind, or at least to that portion of it that chooses the -desert places for a home.” - -“What is the instrument, Virg?” Megsy inquired. - -“It’s some very sensitive mechanism that is supposed to locate water -and that is why Mr. Wallace choose the driest section of the desert -in this neighborhood. He particularly likes Hog Canon, and his -theory is that since it was, once upon a time, overrun with small -hogs, there must then have been water. He believes, that the stream -took to flowing underground as they so often do in Arizona and that -his instrument will locate it. Then this land, which he has taken -up, homesteaded I mean, will be invaluable. Brother says he is right -about that, but the other ranchers have no faith whatever in his -invention. At least it hasn’t succeeded. Mr. Slater is a very -wealthy, progressive man and when the Wallaces first moved here, he -took an interest in the instrument. When he was about to have a well -dug for his new windmill, he sent for Mr. Wallace to help him locate -a spot where he would be sure to find water. Fate was against the -inventor, for the very spot where an excellent well has been dug, -the instrument reported no water. That is why the poor man, who -still clings to his faith in the invention is called ‘Foolish -Andy’.” - -“He ought to be put in an insane asylum,” was Betsy’s indignant -verdict. “The very idea of his being permitted to bring such -misfortune on the heads of his innocent wife and children. Why -doesn’t she leave him?” - -“For the simple or rather wonderful reason that she loves him and -has faith in him,” Virginia replied, “but, unfortunately, if he ever -does succeed, I fear it will be too late for his wife to share in -whatever prosperity will follow. If they don’t find water very soon -now, the little woman will have slipped away. Slim tells me that she -seems to be holding to life by a thread. That will mean three more -children left motherless in the world.” - -Betsy flared. “I just hate that selfish man! I’m sorry we came! I -know I won’t be able to speak civilly to him.” But Virg remarked, -“You’ll be surprised to find how different he is from the man you -have pictured. Now, here’s where we turn to enter the canon. Why, -what is the matter with Old Stoic?” The girls whirled in their -saddles to look at the pack horse. To their amazement they saw that -it had stopped and was staring at the dark entrance of the canon -ahead with a look of fear, ears thrown back and every muscle -quivering. - -“Oh, it must be a bear,” Betsy cried, when, with a shrill frightened -whistle, Old Stoic turned tail toward the mountains, and, burdened -though he was, raced across the trackless sand, but not toward home. - - - - -CHAPTER IX—WAS IT A BEAR - - -“Do you think old Stoic saw a bear?” Margaret asked as the girls, -puzzled indeed, by the faithful creature’s strange and unexpected -behavior sat in their saddles, two of them gazing anxiously into the -dark entrance of the canon, while the third, Virg, watched the -flight of their pack animal. - -“Oh I can’t believe it possible that there is a bear about,” she -said. “We are very near the Wallaces’ cabin now, that is, it’s not -more than half a mile away and bears do not venture near settlements -if they know it.” - -“Maybe this one is a big grizzly and maybe he’s eaten the Wallace -family all up and perhaps be coming now to—” - -Megsy laughed at the wide-eyed Betsy. “To eat us, I suppose you are -going to say. But honestly, dear child, if he has eaten five -Wallaces and their burros, I don’t believe he’ll have much of an -appetite for delicacies like us.” - -Betsy turned rebuking eyes. “I don’t see how you can joke at a time -like this when maybe something terrible is about to happen.” - -Virg was relieved to see that the pack horse had come to a -stand-still in the shade of a giant cactus about an eighth of a mile -away. “Girls,” she suggested, “would you like to wait here until I -go and get Old Stoic or—” - -“What!” Betsy fairly screamed. “We stay here when any minute a bear -or something is going to come right out of the canon? Nixie for -mine. Where you go, there I’ll go too.” - -The other girls could not keep from laughing which further increased -the indignation of their youngest. “Laugh if you want to,” she said, -“but didn’t Virg tell us herself that Old Stoic never showed sign of -fear except when a bear was near?” - -Their hostess agreed. “I’ll confess I did. That is what brother told -me, but of course there must be something else that can frighten our -faithful pack animal.” Then with sudden animation and pointing -toward the mountains a little way beyond them, Virginia cried: -“Look! girls, look!” - -Every one gazed, expecting to see something very unusual, Betsy -alone was convinced that it would be a huge grizzly. - -“Why, that’s nothing but smoke.” Babs spoke regretfully. She had -almost hoped that it would be a bear for she knew, what Betsy did -not, that they were harmless unless cornered or attacked. - -“Why Virginia, surely Old Stoic isn’t afraid of smoke, is he?” -Margaret turned inquiringly toward her adopted sister. - -“No indeed! Brother always takes that pack horse with him when he -goes to the mine and they have camp fires every night.” - -“What do you suppose this smoke means? A camp?” Barbara began when -Betsy interrupted eagerly. “Oh Virg, maybe that’s where the gypsy -caravan is stuck. Do you suppose it might be?” - -Virginia shaded her eyes and gazed long at the jutting point of rock -which hid from their sight whatever was beyond it. “It’s a fire of -course,” she told them. “Shall we ride over and see who is camping -there?” - -“Oh yes, let’s!” Betsy was her old brave self again. She had no fear -of gypsies nor of cattle rustlers she was sure, though she had never -seen any of them except on the screen. - -A short gallop took them to a point where they could see the fire. -Virg, in the lead, uttered a cry of surprise, then turned and -beckoned. “It is the gypsy caravan, or at least it is a covered -wagon, like a prairie schooner of the olden days, I should say, but -there seems to be no one around. Shall we go closer?” - -“Of course!” This emphatically from Betsy. “Haven’t I been -wild—crazy to find this very caravan, and you don’t suppose I’d -leave without seeing the gypsies. Anyway, aren’t they in trouble? -Don’t you remember the handwriting said ‘Stuck for keeps. No ranches -in sight’.” So Virg laughingly led the way toward the apparently -deserted covered wagon. - -“We’re wrong about one thing,” the young mistress of V. M. remarked. -“This is not the caravan that was stuck, for the wheels are quite -free, at present, anyway.” - -“I wonder where the gypsies are.” Betsy was dismounting as she -spoke. “I’m going up to their front door and knock,” she informed -the others. This she did pounding loudly on the wooden sides of the -wagon. A low growl from within was the only answer but it was -sufficient, as Betsy said afterwards, to make her hair stand on end. -With a shrill cry she took to her heels and where she would have -gone, it is hard to know, had she not suddenly been confronted by a -girl of about sixteen who had leaped from between the flaps of the -tent-like covering. Her expression was at first puzzled, then merry -and apologetic. - -Holding out her hand to Betsy, she exclaimed, “Oh, do forgive us for -having given you such a dreadful scare when you came to call.” Then -her sweeping glance, which held an inquiry, included them all. “You -have come to call, haven’t you?” - -Virginia had dismounted and the other two girls did likewise. “We -did not really start out with that intention, we’ll have to -confess,” she said, with her friendliest smile, “because you see we -did not know of your existence.” Then, fearing that this was not -quite truthful, she concluded. “That is, we did, and we didn’t.” - -Noting the puzzled expression in the fine face of the girl she was -addressing, Virginia told the whole story of the tale that the -station master’s boy had told of the large caravan of thieving -gypsies, and of their subsequent loss of cattle, their search for -the caravan, the finding of the wagon trail and then the newspaper -with its message. - -“Oh, Brother Gordon must have written that. We were stuck for a day -and a night but some prospectors, I think they were called, came -along and dug us out. We’re on our way back to Douglas now, but -we’ve stopped here to get water and fill our canteens. Oh good, here -comes brother. He’s been up the canon where the prospectors told us -we would find a rancher who had water in a cistern.” - -A tall lad, too pale to be a real Westerner, appeared on a loping -run from the canon beyond. “No luck, sister,” he had started to say -when he saw the three strangers and their horses. - -“We have guests,” the girl called happily. Then to the others: “You -can’t guess how glad I am to see someone of my own age and I’m just -wild to know who you are and where you came from. Can’t you stay and -have supper with us? We have it very early and it’s now after -three.” - -The lad came up and snatching off his hat, he stood waiting for his -sister’s invitation to be acknowledged, but not accepted, as Virg -told them that their home was some distance and that her brother -would be troubled if he returned from Silver Creek and found her not -there. “But now since we have met so informally, let’s introduce -ourselves,” she concluded. This was done and the four visitors found -that instead of gypsies, the two were the son and daughter of a -copper magnate whose name was very familiar to Virginia, since he it -was who owned many of the mines and smelting founderies in Douglas -and Bisbee. - -“We are truly tenderfoots,” the girl, whose name was Annette -Traylor, told them, “for our home is in New York City and we have -never before been on the desert where our dad came from college to -prospect so many years ago. He’s always telling us tales of his -adventures and so this year, when brother broke down in his freshman -year at Yale, dad said the best thing for us to do would be to visit -his old haunts on the desert. He was coming West to inspect some -mines and as he was to be busy for about two weeks, he put us in the -care of an old man whom he had known years ago and told him to show -us the sights.” - -“Then you’re not alone?” Virginia looked about for a guide but saw -no one. - -Annette smiled. “Yes, we are, quite alone and unprotected. You see -it happened in this wise. We hadn’t been gone more than a day from -Douglas when Old Piute, as Dad called the guide who was part Indian -and the rest French, got sick, and so we sent him back. He didn’t -want to go, but we could easily see that he was too ill to travel, -so we gave him the money Dad had promised him if he returned us -safely to Douglas in two weeks. Then we gave him one of the burros -in our train and he sadly rode away. We could see him shaking his -old grizzled head until he was out of sight. Brother declared that a -youth who was wise enough to go to Yale ought to be wise enough to -drive a team of wiry horses over the desert. You see where we made -the mistake was in not minding Old Piute. He told us to keep to the -roads where autos travel, but brother thought there would be no -adventures along a beaten way and so he turned out into the open -desert and the third day we stuck.” - -The lad laughed in a hearty boyish manner. “Well, I’m glad we did -since we met one of the most interesting characters I ever knew -outside of the ‘Dick Dead-eye’ books and, too, we acquired a bear.” - -“A what?” Betsy’s eyes were big and round. - -The lad nodded. “Yes indeed, a real bear. The old miner had had him -since his cub-hood days and he’s as tame a pet as one could wish to -see.” - -Virginia laughed. “Which brings us back to the first part of our -visit to you.” Then she told about Old Stoic and how he had -evidently smelled the bear and had taken to his heels. Gordon -Traylor was delighted. “Great Stuff,” he said inelegantly. Then -added, “Miss Virginia, loan me your horse and I’ll bring back the -truant member of your band.” - -Virg shaded her eyes and remarked. “Good. He is still patiently -waiting in the shade of distant cactus, and while you are gone, -we’ll get better acquainted with your sister.” - - - - -CHAPTER X—A VISIT TO HOG CANON - - -Half an hour later the girls saw Annette’s brother returning, -leading the faithful old pack animal who had evidently forgotten his -former fear and was plodding along with his usual lack of interest -in all about him, until, as they neared the mountains a breeze -evidently carried the scent of the creature he so feared. - -However the lad had been expecting this very thing to happen and he -was on the watch. At the first movement of Old Stoic, Gordon had -whirled in his saddle and was holding firmly to the rope by which he -was leading the pack animal. - -But try as he might to persuade, to assure, to command, the stolid -creature would not move. He did not attempt to run away but having -planted all four feet squarely in the sand, mule fashion, there he -stood and would not budge. - -Laughingly Virginia leaped to her horse’s back, and galloped out to -lend what assistance she might. - -She patted Old Stoic, assured him that it was only a tame bear and -was not in any way a creature to be feared, but the stubborn animal -blinked and winked his expressionless eyes and just stood. - -“I’ll tell you what,” Virg suggested. “Let’s lead him away from your -camp. There’s a trail up to the Wallace cabin from beyond that -jutting out rock. It’s about an eighth of a mile from here and as -the wind is not blowing in that direction, I believe Old Stoic will -soon again forget the near presence of a bear.” This was done. The -small horse began to walk when Gordon pulled him in another -direction. When the watching girl observed that the pack animal was -willing to be led to the point she had indicated, she said that she -would ride back to the covered wagon and tell the girls to accompany -her. Although Gordon had recently visited the cabin in the canon in -search of water, he had seen no one but the boy Peter who had -gloomily told him that they didn’t have any to spare. - -The lad having always had a secret desire to be an inventor, and -having, in fact, won the admiration of his boy friends by fashioning -all kinds of mechanical devices for toys in his own shop, was very -eager to see the man who had a vision which he could not fulfill. - -“May Annette and I go with you?” he asked eagerly. - -“Why, of course, you may. We’ll be glad to have you. You will like -poor Mr. Wallace. He is very lovable in spite of his queerness.” - -Meanwhile Betsy having been permitted to peep at the tame bear -(which to her thought had growled at her in a manner most untame) -was glad indeed when Virg rode up and told them all to accompany -her. Single file they rode up the narrow rugged trail, Virg in the -lead and Gordon last that he might still hold the guiding rope -attached to Old Stoic not knowing at what minute the wind might -change and startle the pack animal into flight. - -As they neared the shack-like cabin, half hidden by overhanging -boulders, Virg gave a call with which she always heralded her -approach. Instantly three children ran pell mell to the top of the -trail, their homely freckled faces shining with their joy at seeing -the good angel friend whom they had so missed. - -Little Jane, aged six, hopped up and down so fast (clapping her -hands all the time) that her two braids bobbed merrily. - -Thoughtful eyed Sara, who was so like her faithful mother, smiled -too, but made no move of welcome although her heart was just as -glad. Twelve year old Peter raced to meet them down the trail and -catching Virginia’s bridle, he looked up with adoration in his -red-brown eyes. “Oh, Miss Virgie,” he cried, “Ma’s been that eager -to have you come home from the East. Often I’ve heard her say, -‘Somehow things will be better when Miss Virginia comes’.” - -There were sudden tears in the eyes of the girl, and reaching down -she put her hand over the small brown one on her horse’s head. - -“I’m glad to get home, Peter. How are your mother and dad?” - -There was a shade of anxiety on the boy’s freckled face. “Pa’s been -took queer this very day,” he said looking up toward the cabin as -though he feared he might be overheard, “and Ma says now with the -water most gone, she just doesn’t know what we are to do. There -weren’t any late rains and the cistern’s most empty.” - -“Dear boy, your mother must not worry about that. There’s plenty of -water at V. M. and you are welcome to all you can carry.” But the -girl’s heart was heavy for even as she made the offer, she knew that -there would be no convenient way of packing water so many miles -across the desert. - -Having dismounted on the small flat space which served as a -dooryard, the others turned anxiously to Virg. “Ought we to remain,” -Annette Traylor inquired. “If the Wallaces have this new trouble, we -might be intruding.” - -But Gordon stepped forward and said earnestly, “Miss Virginia, I -would like to meet Mr. Wallace. I believe that I can be of service -to him.” - -Mrs. Wallace, more pale and fragile than when Virg had gone east to -school, appeared in the doorway and Virginia went forward to greet -her. The girls saw her bend and kiss the sunken cheek and were -touched at the light of tenderness in the face of the older woman. - -It was evident that the girl was inquiring about poor Mr. Wallace. -“I don’t know what has happened exactly. Something that discouraged -him so much that he just gave up and ever since he’s sat there in -his chair around on the north side of the cabin and staring into -space, though once in a while he does say something, but it’s about -his instrument and I don’t understand.” - -Meanwhile Gordon had seen the listless figure of the man, and, with -an earnest desire to be of service, he had walked toward him. - -“Good afternoon, Mr. Wallace,” the boy said, hoping to attract the -attention of the inventor, but the dreamy grey-blue eyes of the -thin, kindly-faced man did not move from what seemed to be one -definite spot farther up the canon. - -The boy, noting that the girls had gone in the cabin with the -mother, sat on a rock near to wait until a more opportune moment to -again address the man who seemed deep in thought. - -At last, in a voice that seemed infinitely sad, the inventor spoke. -“I’ve failed! I was so sure it could be done, but now, I know the -truth. I’ve failed!” - -“In what way have you failed, Mr. Wallace?” Again hopefully the boy -ventured a remark. - -This time the dreamy grey-blue eyes turned toward him. “I was sure -there was a hidden spring up there,” he said more to himself than to -a listener. “But the instrument doesn’t show water and I won’t -dynamite until it does.” - -Gordon, more interested than he thought wise to show, asked, “Mr. -Wallace, may I see your instrument?” - -The older man nodded and pointed toward a long narrow wooden box on -the ground near. - -Reverentially the lad knelt and lifted the cover. There lay an -instrument of delicate mechanism. At the sight of it, the inventor’s -eyes burned and leaning forward he said, Gordon thought almost -angrily, “Give it to me! I’ll break it into a thousand pieces. I’ve -given my life’s blood to try to perfect it, I’ve caused untold -suffering to my wife and children, but, God knows, I meant no harm. -I had faith in it. I dreamed that a fortune would be theirs, -everything, everything, schooling for the kiddies, Peter was to go -to Yale where I went.” - -Gordon was on his feet at once, and, grasping the thin hand of the -man, he cried in boyish glee, “I say, Mr. Wallace, I’m bully glad -that you went to Yale. And don’t you worry. It’s always darkest -before the dawn, you know that. Peter’ll make college. Everything -will turn out all right. You see if it doesn’t. Don’t give up. Keep -your faith.” - -The dreamy eyes had turned toward the boy when he began this -enthusiastic outburst, and in them there gradually dawned a light of -understanding. - -“Who are you?” the man inquired as one awakening from a sleep. “I -haven’t seen you before, have I?” - -“No, Mr. Wallace. I’m just passing this way, but I’m ever so -interested in your invention. Won’t you come up to the spot where -you are sure there is water, or ought to be, and show me how it -works.” - -There was a sudden renewed eagerness in the eyes of the poor man who -had been so scoffed and laughed at. “Why, would you really like to -see it work?” he asked as though hardly able to believe his ears. - -“Wouldn’t I though,” the lad had hold of the man’s hand and was -firmly lifting him to his feet. Then he added confidentially, “I’m -something of an inventor myself in a small way. I say, Mr. Wallace, -I’ll bet you have a good thing there. May be it needs a little -different adjusting. Let’s try it out.” - -It was pitiful to see the joy in the dim eyes of the man who had -failed. Here was someone, what if only a boy, someone who had faith -in him. With shaking hands he lifted the instrument he had a moment -before threatened to break into a thousand pieces, and with an -eagerness he had never again expected to feel, he led the way up, up -the canon with a sureness of step that amazed the lad who had such a -brief time before pitied his weakness. - -“Are you good for a stiff climb?” the man turned to call. “There’s a -wall of rock ahead that’s as perpendicular as a barn door, but -there’s no way but to go up over it to reach the spot which I am -sure long years ago was the source of a water way. See! See!” he -cried excitedly. “Now, you know why I am so sure there has been -water here.” - -The lad, looking ahead at the huge boulder, saw on its surface a -smooth, many-colored groove which could only have been made by -running water. “It wasn’t much of a volume, I’ll agree, but there -_was_ water, but where is it now?” Then again inquiringly, “Do you -think you can climb it?” - -“Certainly, sir, if you can,” the boy replied, amazed though that -the man so recently weak, could even think of making the attempt. - -“Well, then, follow me closely. I’ve been up so many times, I know -just where the indentures in the rock will serve for steps.” - -The lad inwardly confessed that it was an almost impossible feat, -but if one Yale man could accomplish it, he assured himself, then so -too could another. - -At length they stood above the boulder and saw that the canon had -narrowed until the rocks overhanging on one side often touched the -opposite wall. - -“There’s a hidden spring, I am convinced, somewhere about here,” the -man’s eyes were no longer dreamy but shining with the light of -rekindled faith. - -“I believe you are right, Mr. Wallace.” The lad leaped to a spot -where he saw another of the smoothed grooves in the rocks. “Let’s -try it here,” he suggested. The instrument was set up, and Mr. -Wallace explained that if there were water, it was his hope that the -sensitized swinging needle would dip and point toward it, but it -made no movement at all. - -The lad on his knees was watching it intently. Looking up he saw the -old expression of despair returning to the ashen face of the man. -That would never do. Hope _must_ be kept alive. - -“I say, Mr. Wallace, don’t you think maybe that needle’s held too -tight? Have you ever tried loosening that minute screw there? Gee, -but I’d jolly like to try that experiment.” - -Almost mechanically the inventor put his hand in a large leather -pocket and drew out an infinitesimally small screw driver. “Do what -you wish,” he said as he sat upon a flat rock and leaned his head on -his hands. “I’ve failed. Not that I have any reason to be sure that -there _is_ water here, but it did not move over at Slaters and there -_was_ water.” - -While the man talked, the boy, with heart beating like a -trip-hammer, was actually praying for inspiration while he loosened -ever so little the tiny screw that held the sensitive needle. But -even then, it did not stir. - -“I say, Mr. Wallace, may I take it higher up? Way to the very top of -the canon?” - -The older man shook his head. “No use, son. There aren’t any -watermarks farther up and it’s almost impassible.” - -“But, may I try?” - -A silent, resigned nod was the only answer and so securing the -instrument, the lad carefully climbed over boulders, higher and -higher. At last he stopped. Mr. Wallace had spoken truly, there were -no signs of the water marks that had been made, no one knew how many -years before. Retracing his steps, he turned a little to the right. -Something seemed to impell him to stoop and look into a fissure -where a boulder, perhaps ages before, had been rent asunder by some -tremendous power, an earth-quake, without doubt. - -It was an almost impossible feat to hold himself so that he could -thrust the instrument into the fissure, but he did it, and with a -startling suddenness, the sensitive needle dipped straight down. - -“Mr. Wallace! Mr. Wallace! Come quick! I’ve found the spring.” - -The boy’s triumphant cry rang out, reverberating down the canon and -penetrating even the again dulled senses of the inventor. Not for -one moment did the boy doubt that the needle was telling the truth. - -Unable to wait for the older man to climb to him, Gordon fairly -leaped down from rock to rock, though he wondered afterwards at the -sureness with which he had stepped, and catching the man’s hand, he -dragged him up, up until the fissure was seen in a perilous place -beyond and below. - -“Why son, you couldn’t get down there. No one could,” the man said. - -“But I did! See! I just chanced to find the way. I guess my guardian -angel showed it to me. The instrument’s in that fissure and the -needle dipped. Mr. Wallace, it dipped straight down. Oh, if only we -had some dynamite.” - -The boy’s faith was just the spur the older man needed. “There’s -dynamite in a cavern just below here,” he said. “Wait, we’ll bring a -stick and shoot it off.” - -The boy secured the instrument and took it to a place of safety. - -“We’ll have to make a long fuse,” the man told the lad. “We don’t -want to take any chances with flying rock.” Then he looked at the -sun. “We ought to get back to the cabin in half an hour. I’ll time -it for about then.” - -This was done and then the two scrambled back down the rocks. How -Gordon hoped the fire of the fuse would not be extinguished. Too, he -hoped the explosion would not take place before they reached the -girls lest they should be too greatly frightened. - - * * * * * - -During the absence of the man and boy, Virginia glanced often at her -watch. She did want to see Gordon before she left to thank him for -having procured her pack animal and to urge him to bring his sister -to V. M. before returning to Douglas. She was sure that Malcolm -would wish her to do so. But the afternoon was wearing away and, as -they did not return, the girl at last arose saying: “I fear that we -cannot wait longer.” Then to the little mother, whose expression was -much happier than when the visitors had arrived, she said, “Tell Mr. -Wallace how sorry I am, not to have seen him this time, but I shall -come again and often, and do remember, dear Mrs. Wallace, the V. M. -Ranch house is large and if you run out of water in a few days, as -you fear, I want you all to come to us until your cistern can be -refilled.” - -There were tears of gratitude in the eyes of the frail woman. “I -don’t understand why it is,” she said, “but now that you are here, -Miss Virgie, I feel confident that all will be well, somehow.” - -They were out in the plateau-like dooryard and each girl had a horse -by the bridle which was lucky when a deafening report like thunder -boomed through the mountains. - -“W-what was that?” Betsy cried in alarm, but Mrs. Wallace at once -quieted their fears, for it was a sound she had often heard. “It’s -my Peter dynamiting for water,” she said sadly. “But he won’t find -it. He never has.” But little Peter whose eyes had been afire with -enthusiasm had raced toward the canon bed and was seen waving and -beckoning frantically. “Ma,” he shouted, “I hear it. I’m as sure as -anything that I hear water.” - -The girls listened and far up in the canon they heard a rushing -sound that came nearer and nearer, then they heard something else. A -shout of triumph, then a man and boy appeared and in the face of the -inventor was light, an inner radiance of great joy. - -He seemed to see no one but the wife he loved. Going straight toward -her, with arms outstretched, he cried, “Molly, Molly, little girl! -We’ve succeeded at last, you and I! Thank God your days of privation -are over.” Then turning to the lad he said, “But I can’t call it all -my invention. It was your thought that perfected it. I’ll share with -you.” But the boy exclaimed, “Mr. Wallace, you alone are the -inventor of that instrument. It would have been only a matter of -time before you thought to make the slight change that I suggested.” - -Then, although it seemed as though they just must stay to rejoice -with their friends, Virginia was reminded by the lowness of the sun -that she must start on the homeward way. - -Annette and Gordon decided to remain in their present camp until the -morrow. Then, although they would like nothing better than to visit -V. M., the lad decided that he did not care to chance being stuck -again in the sand and so he accepted Virginia’s advice that he start -out for Slater’s Ranch early the next day. - -“Mr. Slater is the richest man on the desert. You will have no -trouble reaching his place,” the girl assured him, “and from there -into town is one of the best roads anywhere to be found as he keeps -it up himself, or rather he has the peons in his employ constantly -working on it.” Then, holding out her hand to Annette, Virg said, -“If your father is not ready to return East, we shall be glad to -have you and Gordon visit us. If you will send us word, we will come -for you in our car.” - -Two hours later, when the girls were dismounting near the corral at -V. M., Betsy said, “Well, wasn’t that all just like a story book -adventure?” Then going to the pack horse, she patted him as she -laughingly said, “And, although he doesn’t know it, Old Stoic was -the hero.” - - - - -CHAPTER XI—LETTERS OF INTEREST - - -The girls had reached home just in time, for hardly had they removed -their sombreros when there arose a shouting without and a pounding -of horses’ feet. - -“Good, the boys are back,” Babs cried running to throw open the wide -front door. - -“Ohee, what a bulging mail bag,” Betsy who had closely followed -shouted gleefully. “There must be a million letters or more in it.” - -Malcolm swung from his tired horse and giving it a friendly slap, -bade it go to the corral with its companions. Lucky and Slim, as he -knew, would attend to its needs. - -“We had a close call.” Malcolm tossed his sombrero on the table, -placing the mail bag beside it, then sank wearily in his favorite -grandfather chair. - -“What happened?” Virg inquired with interest. “Did that wild steer -try to lead a stampede even with the drag on?” - -“No, not that,” her brother replied. “The poor creature seemed to -have lost all desire to make a break for freedom. The close call was -that when we drove the herd into the corral at the station, Mr. -Wells came running up and said that he had just received a wire that -the cars were to be taken on by a freighter that was due to arrive -two hours sooner than scheduled, and didn’t we work though. - -“Then was the time the young steer might have made trouble had he -but known. However, he didn’t attempt it, but walked up into his -prison as meekly as a sheep would have done.” Then the boy laughed, -“I suppose you’ll think I’m foolish, but I certainly had a decided -impulse at that moment to give him his freedom. It came over me how -I would rejoice, were I in his place, if I once again found myself -roaming where I would, out on the range with only the blue sky above -me and the distant mountains for walls. Luckily the freighter came -along before I had carried out my sentimental inclination, else our -check would have been that much less, Virg, when it comes from -Chicago.” - -Margaret, remembering what Virginia had said about hating to raise -cattle just to have their freedom taken from them, realized that -something of the same sentiment was in the heart of the brother, -although he had not fully realized it as the girl had. - -“You look just too weary for words, Malcolm,” Megsy said, leaping up -from the window seat. “I’m going to make you some lemonade.” - -“Make enough for Lucky too, will you? Slim won’t need any. He’ll be -dead to the world before you could get a lemon squeezed. He hasn’t -had an hour’s sleep in two nights and a day.” - -“I’ll help.” Babs skipped by the side of her friend kitchenward. - -“And while you’re gone, I’ll sort the mail.” Virginia was emptying -the contents of the leather pouch out on the long library table as -she spoke. - -Betsy watched eagerly. Suddenly she pounced on a large envelope -addressed in a boy’s hand writing. “It’s from Cousin Bob, sure -certain! I wonder if they’re still quarantined. If so I ’spect this -letter has been—what do you call it—fumigated.” - -“Two for Babs and two for me and not one for Megsy. That’s too bad. -I hope she will not feel left out,” the youngest said, but Virg -glanced up smilingly. “No indeed! Margaret is too generous and -loving to ever feel neglected or left out. That is a form of -selfishness. Then, more-over, all of Megsy’s home people are right -here, for, you know, Betsy, she belongs to us. Malcolm is her -guardian and I am her adopted sister.” - -“I hear a jingle approaching,” Malcolm rose as the little pitcher -bearer entered the room. He went forward ostensibly to carry it, but -he took the opportunity to say softly, “I’m mighty glad my little -ward is home again.” - -The flush which always mounted to the quiet girl’s cheeks when this -lad addressed her made her unusually pretty, but, as yet Malcolm had -given it no thought. Virg had been the only girl he had ever known -intimately and he supposed a certain reserve, which Margaret surely -had, was responsible for the pretty flush. - -“Any mail for me?” Babs was following with a tray on which were five -tumblers. - -“Two letters and both from boys or I miss my guess.” Betsy was -peering at the letters that lay side by side on the table. - -“Then it is easy to know who they are from.” Babs having passed the -tumblers, picked them up and looked at them curiously. “This one is -from dear old brother Peyton.” Then lifting an eager face she -addressed her hostess. “Virg, I hope you won’t think I’m lacking in -appreciation of your hospitality if I say that I’d like to ride over -to my brother’s ranch tomorrow. I’ve made you a real long visit.” - -“Three days isn’t an eternity!” Betsy put in, but Megsy said: “It -seems like one sometimes, when one is separated from home folks.” - -“You are right,” Virg said, slipping a loving arm around the waist -of the pretty friend who was sometimes called “The Dresden China -girl.” “We would love to have you stay longer with us, but I know -you must be ever so eager to see Peyton.” To herself the thought -came, unbidden. “And so too am I.” Then to her brother. “Why isn’t -Peyton here Malcolm? I thought surely he would be at the train to -meet us with you.” - -The boy drank the lemonade gratefully before he replied. “I don’t -know, sister. I have been expecting to hear from him for a week. I -did hear in a round-about way, that is one of Mr. Slater’s cowboys -passing V. M. last Friday week, stopped and took dinner with us. He -said Peyton was having some trouble with his Mexican herders and -didn’t think best to leave them, although he was inclined to believe -that a new one, who had recently arrived, might prove more -trustworthy than the others had. But suppose you read your letter, -Babs. That may tell us what you want to know.” - -It did, for in it Peyton told his sister that he had deeply -regretted not having been at the station and then he related his -reason, which was much the same as that which had been reported by -the Slater cowboy. - -But it was the last part of the letter which caused a stir in the -little group. - - -“Much as I want to see you, dear sister, I’m going to ask you to -remain at V. M. a short time longer or until I am sure whether or no -there is going to be an outbreak among these Mexican herders. I am -writing Virginia today to ask her to permit my little sister to be -her guest a few days, perhaps a week longer. By that time I will -know how much I can rely on my new overseer. You understand, Sis, I -wouldn’t want to ride over to V. M. and find, when I return, that -these peons had driven my prize cattle across the border, nor would -I want you and your friends to come here until I am sure that my -herders are not of the bandit class. - -“I hope you _are_ disappointed, however, for selfishly I very much -want my sister to come and open up the old house that she is to make -into a home for her loving brother. - - Peyton.” - - -Virginia looked at Malcolm with an expression of anxiety. “Do you -feel that Peyton is in any real danger?” she asked. “If an outbreak -of any kind should occur, I mean.” - -“No, I think not,” Malcolm replied. Then Virg read her own little -letter from Peyton whom she had once known as “Trusty Tom,” but that -former time was never referred to by any of them. - -Megsy noticed that her adopted sister did not read aloud her letter -from the brother of Barbara, and she believed that she knew why. It -was not hard for even a casual observer to notice how sincerely the -lad admired Virginia. - -“Well, then that’s settled,” the hostess smiled lovingly at Babs. -“Now we may keep with us a certain little girl whom we all love.” - -“Why Barbara,” Margaret then exclaimed as she noted a look of real -concern on the pretty face, “what has Benjy written to make you seem -so troubled? Has he found his mother worse?” - -“He didn’t know when he wrote this. It’s just a few lines that he -scribbled at the station in Red Riverton. You know he expected his -brother Harry Wilson to meet him, and he wasn’t there but his own -horse had been sent for him. Benj is just ever so sure that means -his mother is not so well. I do hope she will live. I never knew two -boys to care more for a mother than they do.” - -“She is such a lovable, motherly woman,” Virginia said earnestly. -“Everyone who knows her, loves her. She always reminds me of a hen -with a brood and even when the chickens are away, she is sort of -spreading her wings with a welcome for any one in trouble who needs -their comforting shelter, but it’s nearly a year now that she has -not been well.” - -“It’s too bad that Harry doesn’t seem to care to marry. If only Mrs. -Wilson had a nice daughter to take the responsibility of home-making -for a time, she could get a real rest.” - -Virginia astonished the others by saying, “Girls, surely you know -that Harry does care for someone, but I’m afraid his mother would -never willingly accept that someone for a daughter.” - -Margaret said. “I, too, have felt sure that Harry cares for our -wonderful Winona, as who, knowing her well, does not. She is one of -the noblest characters I have ever met, and I know you think so too, -Virg.” - -“Indeed I do,” was the emphatic reply, “but one can understand how a -mother might feel that a member of the Papago tribe would not be a -suitable wife for her idolized son, but Winona would. They are more -nearly kin, mentally and—and what shall I say, in their love for -the wide spaces of the desert, than any two I ever knew. You know -Harry likes nothing better than to ride far away into the mountains -studying the rocks and trying to read the messages of the ages in -the different formations. Had he been able to leave home, he would -have studied along those lines. Of course he is, even now, and what -is more, our Winona is the very first girl who has ever appealed to -him as a companion.” - -“Isn’t it about time Winona finished that course of practical -nursing that she was taking when she left us at boarding school?” It -was Barbara who asked the question. - -Virg nodded, then for the first time glanced at the second letter -that she held. “Oh, good, this is from our Winona and since it was -written on the train, she may be in her walled-in village home this -very minute.” - -“May we all hear what she has written?” Babs asked. - -“Of course,” Virginia made herself comfortable on the window seat -and then began to read. Malcolm, having excused himself, had retired -to his own room for a much needed nap. - -Dear White Lily: - -At last I am homeward bound glad, deep in the heart of me, that I -have learned a way to be of real service to my father’s people, who, -having lost faith in their old Medicine Man, had no one to whom they -could take their little ones when they were hurt or ill. - -I shall be there in two days, and, dear friend, I am not alone. With -me is a comrade of my childhood, but I must tell you how it all -happened. - -One day when I went on duty, I found in the ward much excitement for -a lad who was being called brave had been brought in and no one knew -who he was. He was too exhausted to be conscious it seemed, for he -had no real illness and so could not tell about himself. - -The story was that in one of the city tenements a plague broke out -which terrorized the neighborhood. Many became ill and those who -were not strong died. It was so terrible a plague that few -volunteered to help. Kind old Doctor Quinton gave his services and -risked his life but alone he could do little. It was when he was -completely worn out that this youth, who said that he was a medical -student, volunteered to take the place of the good doctor while he -took a much needed rest. Nor would the lad leave his post when the -older physician returned. They were too much occupied with real -service to ask who he might be or from where he had come, but, at -last, he too had succumbed, not to the plague but to weariness and -they had brought him to the hospital. - -I listened to the story and said that I would like to see the lad -who had been willing to sacrifice his life for humanity. - -White Lily, when I saw him, so thin and tired, lying on a cot in the -ward, I knew him at once. It was Fleet Foot, one of the Papago boys -who accompanied the kindly missionary who had taken three of our -lads as you recall, to a school for Indian boys. I had not seen him -since that long ago day, but he had changed little. - -You, White Lily, will know what finding Fleet Foot meant to me, for -is he not one of my father’s people? I cared for him as tenderly as -a sister might. Then the good doctor took him to his country home, -that he might grow strong away from the noise of the city, but, when -I had finished my course, Fleet Foot wished to return with me to our -village and so together we are now nearing the end of our long -journey. Will you not soon ride north to our village and remain with -me as long as you wish. - -My friendliest thoughts I send to Margaret and Barbara if they are -with you. - - Your Winona. - - -At the close of the letter, the four girls were all thinking the -same thing but it was the quiet Margaret who voiced it. “Poor -Harry!” she said. “For of course this Papago lad, who is of her own -people, will be the one Winona will love and eventually marry.” - -“I shall be sorry if this is true,” Virginia remarked, “for Harry -Wilson is so unlike other boys. He may never again find just the -companion he wishes.” - -Then, as the dinner gong was sounding, the girls sprang up to -hastily remove their khaki suits and don their house-dresses. - -Meanwhile what of the neighbors farther north? - - - - -CHAPTER XII—BENJY ARRIVES HOME - - -In the meantime when Benjy Wilson left the train at Red Riverton, he -glanced about anxiously hoping that his brother Harry would be there -to meet him. He had been the only passenger to descend to the -platform and, almost at once, the station master hurried up to him -to say that his brother had been in a few days before and had told -him to keep on the watch-out for Benjy. “He said he mightn’t be able -to get in to meet you an’ if he didn’t, you’d find yer little horse -Clipper over to the stables waitin’ for yo’.” Then the kindly man -searched in the pockets of his blue denim coat and drew from one of -them a letter. “Likewise he left this for you to sorto’ explain -things.” - -“Thank you, Mr. Hendrix. I’ll go at once after Clipper,” the boy -said with a break in his voice, which drew from the sympathetic old -man the query. “Yo’ ma wan’t any worse last yo’ heard, was she? Hal -was in a hurry t’other day, I didn’t get to ask.” - -“I’m afraid mother isn’t very well,” then fearing that he would cry -from dread and loneliness, (never before had his older brother -failed to meet him), the lad picked up his bags and hurried away -toward the stables that were just beyond the station. - -The boy naturally happy and optimistic was sadly troubled. The pony -was glad indeed to see his young master and showed it in every way -that he could. - -It was not until the town had been left behind and Benjy was riding -on a desert trail that he opened the letter which the station master -had given him. With tear dimmed eyes he read: - - -“Dear Ben, - -“I have not wanted to worry you needlessly and I have not been sure, -(even now I am not sure), that there is real need for alarm, but I -decided that I must warn you before you arrive, that you may be -prepared for a great change in our mother’s appearance. She was -strong and well when you left eleven months ago, but now she is -frail and wearies at the least exertion. I am telling you, not to -frighten you, (for it may merely mean that our mother is growing -older or that she needs a complete rest), but I want you to be -prepared for the change so that you will not exclaim about it when -you arrive. It would be a great shock to our father, who, (perhaps -because it has come so gradually), seems as yet unconscious of it. -In mother’s own brave, cheerful way, she hides it from him. When he -comes home each night, weary from a hard day’s work on the ranch, -she is always at the head of the table, with her bright smile, and a -good supper is waiting. Of late I have managed to ride home an hour -earlier each night that I might help to prepare it. - -“The one thing which has prevented my being greatly worried is -mother’s own attitude in the matter. She insists that there is -nothing radically wrong; that she is merely tired, as one often is -in the spring, and she laughingly, said last night: ‘When little -Benjy comes home, I’m going to play fine lady for a fortnight. Then -you will see how well and strong I will be.’ - -“Ben, old pal, don’t take this letter too much to heart, but I do -think best to have you prepared for the change in the mother who is -our all. If I were sure that I could get to the station to meet you, -would not have written this. I’ll be there if I can possibly make -it. - - “Your brother, Hal” - - -But he hadn’t been there. - -As the boy rode along over the hard sand trail he thought of his -quiet, dependable brother, who was so like their mother. - -“Hal would have come if he could possibly have made it,” he said -with a half sob, as he realized the probable meaning of his older -brother’s absence. - -“He never promised to do a thing in all his life but that he did -it.” Then the lad’s thoughts returned to his little boyhood, when he -had learned that the older brother’s word could be trusted -unfailingly. - -“If Hal promised to make a kite or whittle a top on the first stormy -day that we were shut in, he never forgot it, never tried to get out -of it. Quite the contrary, Hal would be the first to say: ‘Bring -along your kite materials, little Ben. This is the day I promised -I’d make one for you.’ - -“I’m going to be just like him,” Benjy thought. “Mother is right. -The man you want for a friend is the one you can trust.” - -The first half of the ride was over level desert trails that had -been beaten hard by cattle and horses, but farther on the way grew -rough and rocky and there was a high rugged mountain range to be -crossed, for, on the other side, lay the wide, sheltered valley -belonging to the Wilson ranch. - -Reaching the water-hole about noon, Benjy dismounted to permit his -horse to drink. - -Again in the saddle, he petted the beautiful pony’s head. “Clipper, -old pal,” he said in a tone of sympathetic understanding, “I’m sorry -to ask you to climb High Pine Mountain trail without giving you a -chance to rest before we start upgrade, but I’ll have to do it this -time. I’ll make it up to you, though, old pal, you see if I don’t.” - -The pony seemed pleased to feel his young master’s caress. He tossed -his head, looked back over his shoulder and whinnied a reply. It was -at that moment that the horse stepped on a rolling stone, scrambled -madly to keep his foothold, stepped off the narrow, ascending trail -and rolled with his rider into a shallow ravine. The fall had been -but slight and Benjy leaped to his feet unhurt, but Clipper arose -with more difficulty, and when he attempted to walk he limped and -held his right forefoot as though it pained him. - -Poor Benjy felt as though everything was against him, but, just at -that moment he seemed to see his dear mother’s face and to hear her -say as she so often had, “Benjy, Boy, courage wins.” - -“I know it, mother,” the lad replied aloud with a half sob, and -putting one arm around the pony’s neck he choked back the tears that -had tried to come, as he said, “I’m awfully sorry you’re hurt, -Clipper. I ought to have let you rest for a while at the water-hole. -I guess we’ll have to keep going somehow, but I won’t ride you. If -you don’t have to carry a load, don’t you think you can climb the -trail, old pal?” - -Clipper, looking at his young master, whinnied again, but, though he -tried he could not walk without pain. - -Just at that moment, Benjy heard a pounding of horses’ feet. At -first he thought it might be a herd of the small wild ponies that -sometimes were seen near the mountains, but as he waited and watched -around the jutting rocks there appeared a tall Indian lad seated on -a pony, leading another that he had evidently just captured from a -wild herd and followed by a third small horse. - -Benjy climbed high on a rock and halooed at the top of his voice but -the rider was going in the direction of the Indian village and away -from Benjy. Again the lad shouted but each second took the galloping -horses farther and farther away from him. - -Realizing that his voice could not be heard, the boy stood still -watching the retreating figures and wondering what he ought to do, -when suddenly he became tense and alert. - -The wild pony that had been captured by the Indian lad made a sudden -break for liberty. After rearing, it made a backward lunge and the -rope that had been an improvised halter was torn from the hand of -its captor; then snorting shrilly, the small horse galloped away and -back toward the mountains. - -The dangling rope, snapping this way and that at his heels, -terrorized him, and, with eyes wild, he raced as he had never raced -before. Plunging blindly, he headed directly for the spot where -Benjy stood watching. In an instant the boy had formed a plan. -Leaping behind a mesquite bush, he crouched waiting the oncoming -horse. Nearer and louder came the swift pounding of hoofs, then, -just as the lad had hoped, the dragging rope was flung toward him. -The boy endeavored to seize it, but the pony had seen him, and, -rearing on his hind feet, he whirled, but that very motion made him -captive, for the rope swung around the stout mesquite bush and held -long enough for Benjy to make it fast. - -Then the boy wisely ran out of reach of the wildly plunging horse, -which enraged at his unexpected recapture, snorted and dragged so -hard on the rope that Benjy feared the bush would be uprooted. - -The Indian lad was galloping toward them at top speed, followed by -the faithful pony. “Hold him if you can!” was the cry that reached -Benjy’s ears. It was English, which meant that the rider was either -Strong Heart, or Fleet Foot of whom he had not heard. - -A lasso whirled through the air as the rider neared. It coiled like -a snake about the forefeet of the rearing pony and pulled him to the -ground. - -“What a beautiful little horse you have there,” Benjy said by way of -greeting. - -The stoical Indian lad bowed. “I had none and so I have captured him -for my own, but he would have been lost again if you had not made -him fast.” - -Then he asked, “What is wrong with your pony?” - -Benjy told in a few words about his great anxiety concerning his -mother, of his eagerness to reach her soon as possible and about -poor Clipper’s mishap. - -The Indian lad lifted the hurt foot, and taking his soft leather -belt, he wound it tightly about the strain. Rising, Fleet Foot, for -it was that fine Indian lad, bade Benjy place his saddle on the -horse that had been following, adding that he would take Clipper to -the village and give him care. “He will be all right in a few -weeks,” the Indian lad said. “I hope so,” Benjy replied, “Clipper -and I have been pals ever since I was a little shaver.” - -Then, having thanked Fleet Foot the boy again started up the long -hard trail. - -It was nearly dusk when he reached the summit. Looking down into the -valley, he could see the group of white-washed buildings that were -home to him. With a sob he reached out both arms. “Mother! Mother!” -he said, “I’m coming. I’ll be with you soon now.” - - - - -CHAPTER XIII—MOTHER! - - -As Benjy neared his ranch home he saw that a dim light was burning -in his mother’s room. This confirmed his fears that the one he so -loved was really ill. Urging his steed to a gallop, he was soon -dismounting at the corral, where he left his pony. The front door -quietly opened and his brother appeared. He advanced with -outstretched hands. - -“Hal,” the young lad said, with a sob, “is our mother ill?” - -“I don’t know, Benny Boy,” was the reply. “Mother insists that she -is merely tired and that she is going to remain in bed until she is -rested, and you must pretend that you believe her. It will be hard -for you, fearfully hard, but it must be done. Come. Our mother has -been listening all day. Just now she called to me and said: ‘Son, go -quickly and open the door. My little boy has come home.’ She knows -that you are here and so we must not delay longer or she will think -it strange.” - -Never before had the young lad been through so hard an ordeal. He -longed to put his arms about his big, strong brother and sob out his -dread and grief, but instead, he had to choke back his tears and -enter the dimly lighted room with a smile. - -“Little Ben,” the woman on the bed called, with infinite love and -tenderness in her voice. - -“Mother mine,” the lad replied as he sank on his knees and pressed -his cheek against hers. Tears would come but in the dim light they -were not seen and his voice sounded cheerful. - -“Brother tells me that you are taking a week’s rest. I am so glad. -You have needed one for a long time and now Hal and I will show you -what fine daughters we would have been, if we hadn’t been sons.” - -Harry, standing at the foot of the bed was proud of his brother. -Benjy had always been so loved and petted, (even he had given in to -the younger lad sometimes when he thought it might be unwise), that -he had feared Benjy might not be strong enough to rise to the -emergency, but he was doing so bravely. In a voice that sounded -natural to his mother, Benjy said: “I’m most starved, Mummie, I hope -your new cook can make pies and things as well as you can.” - -The older boy had noted a sudden anxious expression on the dear -face, for the mother was reproaching herself for having remained in -bed when her little Ben was coming home, hungry. - -“Indeed, I can,” Hal hastened to say: “You’ll find the larder filled -with the choicest viands.” - -Kissing the pale cheek, Benjy left the room, turning at the door to -toss a kiss and send back a bright smile, but it was to his own room -that he went. Throwing himself down on the bed, he sobbed and -sobbed. There Hal found him ten minutes later. “I can’t live without -my mother,” the younger boy said, “I can’t! I can’t!” - -Harry put a comforting arm about his brother. “May heaven grant that -we need not for many years to come.” - -Then placing a hand on each shoulder, he looked straight into his -brother’s eyes. “Benny boy,” he said, “I’m counting on you. It’s -hard; well do I know how hard, but cheerful courage is all that our -father and mother must see. I have been waiting for your return. Now -I am going to ride to Red Riverton for a doctor. I will be back -tomorrow morning early, if all goes well.” - -“Hal!” Benjy exclaimed, “you aren’t going to take that long hard -ride tonight. You know that it isn’t safe to go through Red River -mountain pass alone after dark.” - -“Even so, there must not be another moment’s delay. I must go -tonight. I want you to keep your door open. If our mother stirs, go -to her.” - -“I won’t try to sleep,” the younger boy replied. “I do not waken -easily. I’ll sit up all night.” Hal grasped his brother’s hand to -show his approval and then he was gone. It was the hardest night -that Benjy Wilson ever lived through, but in it he left his -heedless, selfish boyhood in which he had accepted all that his -mother had done for him, as due, and realized that he, too, must -share the burdens and responsibilities that came every day. When Hal -returned at the grey of the next dawn, one glance at his tired -brother assured him that his confidence in the younger boy had not -been misplaced. Then followed a long half hour filled with anxiety -of waiting while the kindly physician made a thorough examination of -the little woman so loved by these two boys. - -“Where’s our father?” Benjy suddenly asked as he looked up from the -fire on the hearth at which he had been thoughtfully gazing since -the kindly physician had entered their mother’s room fifteen minutes -before. - -“Father went to visit the North camp last week and he has not yet -returned,” Harry said. “I am glad, for he does not know that our -mother has given up trying to keep about. That of course would worry -him greatly. I hope that she will be much better before he returns. -Dad depends on mother so completely for his comfort and happiness -that I fear he would collapse if he knew the truth, as, of course he -must know it soon.” - -Again they were silent and it was still another quarter of an hour -before the door opened. Both boys were on their feet at once eagerly -scanning the face of the physician. His cheerful smile was -encouraging. - -“Lads,” he said as he placed a hand on the shoulder of each, “your -mother is not going to die. Mrs. Wilson has unwisely permitted a -condition to exist for a long time which should have been corrected -months ago. There are very few casualties resulting from the -operation which your mother must undergo.” - -There was a sudden glad light in the face of the older lad. - -“Doctor Warren,” he said, “the hope you are giving us is the -greatest joy that has ever come into my life.” - -The elderly physician, gazing at the earnest faces, thought that he -had never met finer boys. Worthy sons of a brave, courageous little -mother. - -“Now tell us what we are to do.” The load of dread that had been -crushing Harry’s heart having been lifted, the lad was eager to be -of active service. - -“Your mother must remain in bed until we can build up her strength,” -the physician replied. “Perhaps for two weeks, and then we will take -her to the Red Riverton hospital and have the slight operation -performed, but, first of all I must procure a nurse.” - -The physician put his hands in his pockets and turning, gazed -thoughtfully at the fire. “There is an epidemic in Red Riverton and -I do not like to engage a nurse from there to care for your mother.” -Then he glanced up at Hal. “Do you know of anyone near here who -would come?” - -“I do,” was Benjy’s eager response. “Our good friend Winona will -come, I am sure she will, Doctor Warren. She just received a diploma -as a practical nurse from the Red Cross Hospital on the Hudson.” - -“Fine!” the physician replied. “How soon can we have her here? Where -does she live?” - -The reply brought a puzzled expression to the face of the doctor. - -“An Indian maiden?” he said with a rising inflection. “I have heard -of the Papagoes and that they are a remnant of a very superior tribe -of red men, but I had not supposed that an Indian girl could possess -the qualities required for a nurse. Are you quite sure that it would -be wise to have her?” - -Strange things happen, stranger than fiction. Before Hal could -reply, there was the sound of horses’ feet in the yard, and a moment -later a light rapping on the front door. - -Hal sprang to open it, and there stood the maiden about whom they -had been talking, with little Red Feather at her side. - -“Friend Harry,” she said. “Fleet Foot told me that your mother is -ill. I thought you might need me.” - -The lad stepped forward, his hand outstretched. - -“We do indeed need you,” he replied, his voice tense with emotion. -Then turning to the older man he added, “Doctor Warren, this is -Nurse Winona.” - -The physician was deeply impressed with the quiet dignity of the -really beautiful Indian girl. Like all others, who knew her, the -good man at first could not have told why he thought her beautiful. - -Before entering the house, the maid turned and said a few words in -the Papago tongue, then little Red Feather, without a word of -farewell, mounted his small horse and rode away. - -Doctor Warren asked to be permitted to speak alone with the young -nurse, and the boys withdrew to prepare a lunch for both the -newcomer and the physician who had a long and hard ride ahead of -him. - -After asking about the training which Winona had received at the Red -Cross Hospital, Doctor Warren said: - -“Your remuneration will be the same that would be given a nurse from -Red Riverton.” - -Then it was that the older man knew why the Indian girl was -beautiful. “It is a service of friendship that I came to offer,” she -quietly replied. “Will you tell me what I am to do?” - -An hour later the physician left feeling sure that his directions -would be carried out to the letter. He had learned that an Indian -maiden could not only be a sincere friend but also an intelligent -nurse. - -Before Doctor Warren departed he asked Harry to accompany him to the -corral. As they walked together, the physician said: “From the -conversation I have had with your nurse, I believe her to be very -capable, and luckily, just before she left the East, she had the -care of a little woman whose condition was the same as your mother’s -and so we will trust her to use her own judgment whenever she wishes -to do so.” - -Mrs. Wilson who had supposed that she had not much longer to be with -the little family she so loved, was overjoyed when she realized that -she would soon be strong again. - -She was lying in the darkened room when Harry entered a few moments -after the doctor’s departure. At his side she saw someone dressed in -blue with white cap and apron. She was too weak to wonder from where -the apparition had come, and so she accepted Winona’s presence as a -matter of course believing that she had accompanied the doctor from -Red Riverton. Harry merely said, “Mother, this is your nurse.” - -The little woman held out a frail hand and smiled wanly, then she -closed her eyes and rested. She was conscious all that day that she -was being tenderly cared for, and, toward evening when Benjy knelt -at her side, in answer to her anxious query, he told his mother that -the new nurse was also a fine cook. Mrs. Wilson who had wished that -she was up that she might prepare the good things her younger son so -liked, felt a sense of relief that did much toward restoring her -needed strength. - -Never once in the two weeks that followed did the little woman -suspect that the slender dark-eyed girl who cared for her was the -Indian maiden of whom she had heard. Winona, with her black hair -coiled under her nurse’s cap in her blue and white gown might easily -have been taken for a French girl. - -Harry, wishing his mother to learn to love Winona without prejudice -had asked Benjy to address her merely as “Nurse.” - -At the end of a fortnight, Mrs. Wilson was strong enough to sit up. -When Harry believed that his presence was no longer needed at home, -he rode to the northern camp to tell his father what had happened. -He was greatly relieved because he could now honestly say that all -would be well. - -This was not hard for the older man to believe, for on their return -they found the little mother seated in the living room and beaming a -welcome when they opened the front door. From that day, she rapidly -regained her strength, and, at the end of the fortnight, she was -driven in a big comfortable car to Red Riverton. It was on that ride -that Mrs. Wilson made a discovery which pleased her greatly. It was -that her son, Harry, really cared for the girl who had nursed her so -tenderly. How she knew this she could not have told, perhaps it was -just a mother’s intuition. - -Another two weeks passed and the happy family was once more gathered -in the ranch home. Mrs. Wilson was soon strong enough to walk about -the house, and, the long weeks of anxiety having ended, the members -of the household again went about their tasks in a natural manner. -Benjy returned with his father to the North Camp and Harry asked -Winona if she would like to ride with him to inspect a water-hole -not far away. Mrs. Wilson had urged her to go, saying that for an -hour she could get along nicely alone. It was during that hour that -she learned the real identity of her nurse. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV—A DEEP LOVE REVEALED - - -Mrs. Wilson sat in a big comfortable chair in front of the wide -hearth on which a log that the boys had dragged down from the -mountains, was cheerily burning. The frail woman smiled happily as -she watched the flames. How wonderful it was to know that after all -she was going to live, perhaps many more years to minister to her -little family. In her heart there had been a secret fear for months -that she was soon to leave them. - -She leaned back among the pillows that her nurse had arranged so -comfortably before she had departed for a short horseback ride with -Harry. - -From where she sat Mrs. Wilson could look out of the window and -watch the trail down which she would soon see the young people -returning. - -Then again she fell to dreaming. Perhaps she would live long enough -to see both of her boys married, and it might be that in some future -day she would be seated in front of this same fireplace watching -another log burn and holding a wee grandchild. Tears sprang to her -eyes as she pictured her beloved husband growing old with her and -little ones playing about them. - -This happy reverie was interrupted by the sound of approaching -ponies. It might be the men from the North Camp for the nurse and -Harry had not been gone long enough to be returning. She sat -watching the picture framed by her window. As the hurrying -hoof-beats neared, she guessed, and truly, that there were more than -two ponies, for, down the part of the trail that she could see, -single file, came six small, wiry horses. Instantly she knew that -their riders were from the Indian village. - -The little black-haired boy in the lead wore a red feather in the -band about his head, and, at his side rode a tall, slender girl with -a scarlet blanket about her shoulders. There were four others, but -they were dressed in khaki. It was only by their black hair and -dusty complexions that she knew that they, too, were Indians. Then -it was that Mrs. Wilson recalled something which of late she had -forgotten. It was that an Indian maiden from this same Papago -village had been East to a fashionable boarding school with Barbara -Wente, the fairy-like little girl who was so liked by Benjy. - -Perhaps the Winona of whom she had heard, was the tall, graceful -Indian maiden riding in the lead with the lad of the red feather, -Mrs. Wilson thought, and then, idly, she wondered where they were -going. Perhaps to some hunting camp farther north in the mountains. - -She was not long left in doubt regarding the destination of the -riders, for, almost as soon as they had passed from her vision, -there came a rapping on the front door. - -Harry had made her promise that she would not leave her chair and so -she called, “come in,” hoping that one among the strange visitors -might be able to understand the language that she spoke. - -The door opened at once and a tall young man with a clear, direct -gaze stood before her. To the little woman’s surprise, he spoke -excellent English. - -“Madame Wilson, I am Strong Heart, chief of the tribe of Papagoes. -It is my wish to converse with my sister. One month ago Red Feather -returned with the message that Winona was to remain with you and be -your nurse.” - -There was a rush of conflicting emotions in the heart of the -listener, and foremost among them was the sudden realization that -her son, Harry, loved, really loved an Indian maiden. If her voice -shook a little as she replied, Strong Heart did not notice it for -her words were friendly as they always were to any fellow-being. - -“My very kind nurse then is your sister?” she inquired. “I have been -too ill to wonder who she was or from where she came.” Then, fearing -that in some way this had lacked in graciousness, she added simply -and sincerely: “Strong Heart, we all dearly love your sister. She -has truly been an angel in our home.” - -And, even as she spoke, Mrs. Wilson knew that it was the truth. -Harry loved Winona and so too did his mother. Then she directed the -Indian lad to the water-hole toward which Winona and Harry had -ridden, and, when the visitors were gone, she sat for a long time -watching the fire and thinking: “My boy shall never know that I -regret his choice, and yet, do I really regret it, for a nobler girl -he could not have chosen.” - -In the meantime Winona and Harry had been riding at a canter. Then, -letting their horses walk more slowly, they conversed quietly -together. They spoke of his mother and Harry expressed to the dusky -girl at his side his great appreciation of her services. - -By now and then asking a question the lad persuaded Winona to talk -about her year at school. She ended by telling of Fleet Foot and she -described in glowing terms his deed of heroism. Harry Wilson, -listening, believed that Winona cared for the Indian lad about whom -she was talking, and, a few moments later he was convinced that his -surmise had been correct. - -Suddenly they had been halted by a whooping call from little Red -Feather, and, turning in their saddles, they drew rein and waited -for the Papagoes to ride up. Instantly Harry knew that the tall, -arrow-straight youth, who whirled his pony about that he might speak -to Winona, was the one of whom he had just heard. - -They rode apart, somewhat, and for a time seemed unconscious of the -presence of the others as they talked earnestly in low undertones. - -Harry tried to be interested in a conversation with Strong Heart -concerning the condition of water-holes at that time of the year, -but now and then he found his gaze wandering in the direction of his -mother’s nurse while his thought assured him that Winona naturally -would care more for one of her own people than for one of another -race. - -When the young Papagoes had ridden away toward the mountain trail -which they would have to cross to reach their walled-in village, the -other two, after visiting the water-hole, returned to the Wilson -ranch. Winona was in the lead and each was thoughtfully silent. As -they neared the house Harry hastily hastened his pony and rode at -the girl’s side. She looked up with a smile so radiant that the lad -was more than ever assured that her visit with Fleet Foot had -brought her great happiness. - -“Dear girl,” he thought, “from now on I will try to think of her as -I would of a sister. After all, mother will need one of her boys -just to care for her.” Aloud he said, “Winona, Ben and I have often -wished we had a sister. You have been to all of us in our trouble -what I believe she would have been. I hope you will come often to -visit in our home.” - -The girl turned and looked at him frankly. “Thank you, Harry,” she -said, simply. It was then that Hal was convinced that the Indian -girl had never thought of him other than a dear friend and -companion. - -When they reached the ranch house, Harry took both of the horses to -the corral, while Winona quietly entered the living room, believing, -and truly, that she would find Mrs. Wilson dozing in her comfortable -chair. - -For a moment Winona stood gazing at the sweet face to which the -color of health was slowly returning. Then, quietly, she tip-toed -close and, bending, she lightly kissed the forehead beneath the soft -gray hair. - -She was not usually demonstrative, but, although even her dearest -friend had never guessed it, there had always been in the heart of -this Indian girl a yearning for that wonderful something that she -had never had, the love of a mother. - -When a few moments later the little woman opened her eyes it was to -see her quiet nurse again in the neat blue and white uniform -preparing the evening meal. - -Harry came in and offered his services, which were accepted. -Winona’s manner, usually so reserved, seemed almost joyous. - -“Friend of mine,” she said, “I have a beautiful secret and I think I -will tell it to you.” - - * * * * * - -It was after the evening meal. Mrs. Wilson had been made comfortable -for the night and the young people thought her asleep as they sat -near the hearth in the living room and spoke quietly together. - -“You promised to tell me a beautiful secret,” the lad said, a dread -heavy at his heart. “May I hear it now?” - -“Yes,” the girl replied, turning her clear gaze toward him. “It is -about Fleet Foot.” - -“I knew it,” was the unexpected response, and Winona looked up -inquiringly. “Why, how could you know it?” Then, as the lad did not -answer, she continued: “This afternoon I told you about the kind, -elderly physician in the East who was so pleased with Fleet Foot’s -spirit of a sacrifice, and how, when the lad was well enough to be -moved from the hospital, Doctor Quinton took him to his country home -in New Jersey, where he remained through the three lovely months of -spring?” - -Harry nodded. He could not understand why Winona was beginning her -story in this way if the secret was what he believed it to be, that -the Indian maiden and Fleet Foot cared for each other. - -“Are you listening, Harry?” the girl asked, for the lad was gazing -at the burning log with a faraway expression in his grey-blue eyes. - -He turned and smiled at her. “Indeed I am, Winona,” he said, “I am -greatly interested in what you have to tell me.” - -“So am I, greatly interested,” the girl continued. “It is all like a -beautiful poem, and yet, true. The summer home of this kind old -physician is a picturesque log cabin in the midst of a pine wood -just above a clear blue lake which Fleet Foot described as a -wonderful mirror reflecting every fleecy white cloud that sailed -above it by day and every star at night. When they first arrived at -the cabin they heard singing somewhere among the pines, and then, -skipping toward them came a gold-and-white fairy of a girl who was -Sylvia, the granddaughter of Doctor Quinton. She was delighted -because her ‘dear old grand-dad,’ as she called him, had brought a -comrade, and, as the days passed, Fleet Foot learned to love this -lassie who was so unlike—well, so unlike the Papago maidens. - -“He called her ‘Sunshine-on-a-Dancing-Brook.’ Fleet Foot never spoke -of his love, for he believed that the physician, much as he liked -him, would not wish him to marry his granddaughter, the flower of -his life, but when Fleet Foot came West, that little flower drooped, -and then it was that Doctor Quinton learned that Sylvia cared for -Fleet Foot, really cared, and now comes the wonderful part of it -all. Yesterday my friend had a letter from the elderly physician -asking him to return to them if he really loved his little -‘Sunshine-on-a-Dancing-Brook.’ Fleet Foot came to say goodbye, for -tomorrow he departs.” - -There was a glad light in the eyes of the listener. - -“Winona,” Harry said, more impulsively than he had ever before -spoken, “I thought you cared for Fleet Foot and I was sad, for I do -so want to try to win your love.” - -Winona did not reply at once, and, as there was only the light of -the fire about them, the lad could not tell by her expression what -she might be thinking. - -When the girl spoke, she said: “Harry, your mother wants you to -marry one of your own people.” - -It was then that they heard a soft voice calling to them, “Come to -me, both of you.” - -They entered the dimly lighted room and stood by the bedside. The -little woman smiled up at them and in her eyes there was a new -tenderness. Holding out a frail hand, she said: “I have always -wanted a little girl, Winona. Won’t you be my beloved daughter?” - -The young people knelt and she placed their hands together. “Now,” -she said, “my dearest wish has been fulfilled. My older son is to -have just the wife that I would choose for him.” - - - - -CHAPTER XV—A MYSTERY AT LAST - - -A week after the arrival of Peyton’s letter, suggesting that his -sister remain longer, another came with quite a different request. -In it the lad assured them all of his great faith in his new -overseer. - -“Trujillo seems to have complete control of his helpers. In fact, at -times, I think that they treat him reverentially, which, of course I -cannot understand, but I am now confident that there will be no -uprising among the peons and so Babsie I do hope that Virginia and -your other girl friends will come to Three Cross and make you as -long a visit as you have made them, longer indeed, if they can be -spared.” - -“Oh, Virg, will you go, you and Betsy and Megsy? I’d so love to have -you all with me when I open up that old house. You know Peyton has -been living in one of the small adobes, not wishing to open up the -big place until I came. Virg, you’ve been there time and again. I -remember how Mrs. Dartley called you her ‘Angel of Mercy.’” - -“As everyone else does on the desert or anywhere,” Margaret put in. - -Virg laughed. “And all because I rode over to Three Cross one day -and applied first aid measures when the Dartley baby was cutting -teeth.” - -“What did you do?” Betsy inquired. - -“Rubbed the poor little gums with a sterilized thimble till the wee -teeth poked through,” Virginia replied. - -Barbara was eager to be away and so the very next morning, while it -was still cool, they rode to the North, promising Malcolm to return -in a fortnight. - -Peyton, expecting them, had ridden a few miles southward to meet -them and joyous was the reunion between the brother and sister, but -it was at Virginia’s side that the lad was soon riding. - -The old ranch house which they were approaching (and which Mr. Wente -had purchased from the Dartleys), was one of the most picturesque on -the desert. It was a large Spanish adobe built around an inner court -over which were hanging balconies. The windows were barred; wide -verandas surrounded it on all sides, and each room had a door -opening thereon. A clump of cottonwood trees grew around a -water-hole in the door-yard. The house was very old and in some -places the adobe walls were crumbling. - -Mr. Dartley had been too poor to repair it, and Peyton, since he had -acquired it, had been too much occupied with the cattle he had -purchased to attend to renovating the house. - -“What a wonderful old place it is,” Virginia said as she smiled at -the lad. - -“It looks wonderful to me,” he replied, “because I keep hoping that -someday it will be your home as well as mine.” - -Before the girl could reply, Babs galloped up alongside. “Oh Virg,” -she said with sparkling eyes. “I just know I’m going to love this -old place. If only there were blossoming vines climbing over the -veranda, wouldn’t it be beautiful?” - -It was hard for the maiden addressed to think of vines just then, -but she smilingly replied, “Yes, dear, I am sure they would. Your -well is never dry and anything will grow on the desert if it is well -watered.” - -“Oh Virg, are you making a pun?” Betsy Clossen called as she and -Margaret rode up within hearing. - -Virginia laughed as she gaily replied, “Maybe I am. I don’t feel -accountable just at this particular moment.” - -Peyton glanced at the flushed pretty face of the speaker and -wondered why Virginia seemed confused but he did not have another -moment alone with her for they were entering the door-yard where a -cowboy, apparently a Mexican of the better class, advanced to take -their ponies. - -“Who is your new acquisition, brother?” Barbara asked as she gazed -with interest at the graceful Mexican lad, who, having made almost -courtly salutations to the young ladies, had, without speaking, -turned and led the horses toward the corral. - -Peyton remonstrated. “Don’t you know enough about the ways of the -desert, little sister, not to ask who anyone is? I really am as -ignorant concerning the past of my faithful head rider Trujillo as -you are. He blew in one day last March—literally blew in! We were -having one of those terrible hurricanes which frequently visit us in -the spring. For the first time since I had acquired ‘The Three Cross -Ranch’ I was desperately dismal. The only capable cowboy I had, -departed to become overseer elsewhere, and I was left with the -shiftless Mexican peons who knowing my ignorance, took advantage of -it. Then, as though that were not trouble enough, a blinding -sandstorm came, and I feared my newly acquired herd would be driven -by it over into Mexico. It was in the midst of all this that I heard -a pounding on the front door. Opening it, I let in a whirl of wind -and sand and also this Mexican lad, Trujillo. - -“I was desperate for companionship just then, and, although he did -not speak English, he could understand my Spanish and I told him my -woes. When the tale was finished, the sandstorm had passed. Silently -the stranger arose. I believed that he was leaving without a word of -gratitude for the refreshment I had given him. I watched him mount -his weary horse and ride down to the bunk house. He called to the -peons and they gathered about him. I saw them bring him a fresh -mount and then they all rode away with him toward the South. I -thought dismally that perhaps he had come to take them away from me, -but, toward evening I heard them all returning. They had rounded up -my frightened, scattering herd, and, before dark, the cattle were -safe in the five-acre enclosure. Then the stranger came to say -adios, but I persuaded him to remain until morning and he is still -here.” - -“I believe there is a mystery about your Trujillo,” Betsy Clossen -said. “Wouldn’t it be interesting if we could find out what it is?” - -The other girls laughed. - -“Betsy is always on a still hunt for a mystery,” Babs told her -brother, as they walked toward the house. “We call her Detective -Betsy in school, but, as yet, she has never discovered one worth the -effort to unravel. School girls are not mysterious.” - -“Personally, I think one might find a mystery in this old house,” -Margaret said. “If walls had tongues as well as ears what -interesting stories it could tell.” - -Peyton led the way within, and the young people, standing in the -long living room which extended across the entire front of the -house, uttered varying exclamations of delight. - -“It’s just the sort of a room one sees on the screen when the home -of a Spanish Don is being pictured, isn’t it?” Margaret said. “The -original owners were Spanish, were they not?” - -“Yes,” Peyton replied, “Don Carlos Spinoza was a wealthy Spaniard, -who became a political outlaw during one of the frequent uprisings -in Mexico City. He remained in hiding with his family in the -mountains near here for some time and finally built this house. This -interesting old furniture belonged to him. Later, when his friends -were in power, he returned and rescued the family paintings and -other treasures from their home in Mexico. However, after a year or -two of isolation the Donna and their beautiful daughter became -discontented and yearned once more for the gay life to which they -had been accustomed. Don Carlos had many political enemies in -Mexico, and so he had no desire to return. At last he sold this -place for a small sum to Mr. Dartley and left for Spain.” - -“Mrs. Dartley did not appreciate this mahogany furniture,” Virginia -told them. “She often said she wished that she could make a bonfire -of it all and buy some nice, new chairs that didn’t have carvings to -catch the dust.” - -“But she could not because the old furniture and family paintings -were only left here temporarily, or so the story goes, but years -have passed and no one has returned to claim them.” - -Virginia smiled. “Poor Mrs. Dartley looked strangely out of place in -the midst of all this grandeur. She was a dear and ever so kind -hearted, but I often thought that the Dons and Donnas looking down -from the walls must have wondered what had happened and how they -chanced to be living with folk who dressed in gingham instead of -silk. But they didn’t see her often, for this room was usually left -in darkened solitude, for the Dartley family lived almost entirely -in the kitchen.” - -Suddenly Barbara inquired: “Betsy, why are you staring so hard at -the painting of that grand old Donna? Does the picture fascinate -you?” - -Betsy laughed at them over her shoulder. “You know I have an active -imagination,” she replied, “and so you will not be surprised to hear -me say that I believe I have met this fine lady somewhere.” - -“That would be impossible, my dear girl,” Margaret protested, “for -that Donna could not possibly be living now.” - -“I do believe that the lovely dark-eyed Senorita in this picture is -her daughter,” Virginia said, “and here she is again older and with -a little girl standing by her side and a beautiful dark-eyed baby -boy on her lap. It really is too bad that the descendants of the -Spinoza family cannot have these paintings in their gallery wherever -they are. In Spain, I suppose, as they have never been heard from -since they departed so long ago.” - -“Girls,” Babs said, “it is growing dusky in here, which reminds me -that the sun will soon set and that the beds are not made and that -I, for one, am ravenously hungry.” - -“Lead us to your culinary department, Peyton, and we will spread out -our picnic lunch. Good, here comes the cowboy, Trujillo. Now Betsy, -you begin solving the mystery, but don’t let the poor lad know that -you are trying to unravel him,” Virginia cautioned, as they entered -the more modern kitchen which, since it faced toward the west, was -bright with the late afternoon sunshine. At one end was the great -black range, which had been the pride of the good housekeeper, who -so recently lived there. - -Across the other end was the long dining table and near the windows -were plain wooden rockers which Mrs. Dartley had made comfortable -with soft cushioned seats, covered with bright colored materials, -for this had been the home part of the house for her little family. - -The solemn grandeur of the other rooms had depressed the rancher’s -wife and she once confided to Virginia that the life-sized portraits -hanging around the walls gave her the shivers. “Those painted folks -all have beady black eyes and they watch every move I make,” she had -said. “It doesn’t matter which part of the room I walk to, their -eyes turn and keep a spyin’ at me. It’s too spooky a place to live -in. I don’t step a foot in that room, month in and month out, if I -can help myself.” - -It was partly because of this uncanny closed room that Mrs. Dartley -had been so eager to have her husband sell the Three Cross Ranch -that she might return to the Middle-West and to the farmer folk -whose pleasant houses were all furnished in the simple way that she -liked. - -During the evening meal, Peyton asked many questions of the girls -concerning their year at school. Margaret, Virginia and Babs -chattered of one thing and another. Suddenly Virg, wondered why the -usually loquacious Betsy Clossen was keeping so still. She looked -across the table and saw that the would-be young detective seemed to -be deep in thought. Now and then she would glance at the Mexican -cowboy who sat opposite. Since he did not understand the English -language, the girls did not attempt to converse with him, although -Peyton frequently addressed Trujillo in Spanish. - -Virg smiled to herself, for she guessed, and rightly, that Betsy was -trying to imagine a mystery about the really good-looking, dark -young stranger—that she might solve it. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI—A MYSTERIOUS ROOM - - -The boys went down to the corral after supper and the girls being -left alone decided to see what the long darkened front room looked -like at night. - -Virg, in the lead, was carrying a burning candle. - -“Leave the kitchen door standing open until we have lighted one of -these hanging lamps,” she said. - -Babs did this and they had advanced to the middle of the room when a -breeze from somewhere swept through, blew out the tiny flame on the -candle and closed the kitchen door with a bang. Babs uttered a -shrill scream. - -“Be still girls,” Virg said in her calm voice. “There is nothing to -be afraid of even if we are in the dark. Now all of you stand here -where you are. I know this house better than any of the rest of you -and so I will grope my way back and reopen the kitchen door.” - -Betsy Clossen’s detective instinct was on the alert. She seized Virg -by the arm as she whispered, “There’s something queer about this. -The light in the kitchen must also have been put out, otherwise we -would see it shining under the door, wouldn’t we?” - -“I should think so,” Virg said slowly as she paused, then she added, -“even so, I will investigate. The boys are near. If we are -frightened, we will call them.” - -She groped her way toward the wall, where she believed she would -find the kitchen door. “Good!” she told the waiting group. “Here it -is.” But, when she turned the knob, the door would not open. She -pushed and pulled, but all to no effect. - -“Please call Peyton,” Megsy implored. “I have the chilly shivers -going up and down my spine. I just know this house is haunted and -that the haunt is angry because we came, and wishes to scare us -away.” - -“Girls,” Betsy Clossen said in a low voice, “I believe that I -understand it all. It’s that mysterious Trujillo. He has some object -in living here, I’ll wager, and he fears that this object, whatever -it is, will be defeated if so many girls are around to watch him, -and so he is trying to scare us away. Well, I for one shall stay.” - -Virginia’s laugh from out of the dark sounded merry and natural. -Then, just at that moment, having found the right knob, she opened -the kitchen door and a flood of light from the big lamp fell upon -the huddled group. - -Margaret and Babs darted for the home-like kitchen as though it were -a harbor of safety but Betsy Clossen remained in the darkness. -“Virg,” she called, “let the other girls stay there and you bring -one of the small lamps that won’t blow out easily and let’s look -around and see where the wind came in that blew out the candle and -slammed the door.” - -“Don’t think that we feel offended, Betsy,” Margaret called as she -sank down in a big comfortable kitchen rocker. “I have no yearning -to unravel mysteries. You and Virg may have all of the honor and all -of the shivers.” - -“Ditto!” Babs said as she sat in another of the rockers and drew it -closer to the stove. Virginia having found a lantern, lighted it and -again entered the long silent front room. Having closed the kitchen -door, she turned to speak to Betsy, but, to her surprise, the other -girl was nowhere to be seen. - -Believing that her friend had hidden, just to mystify her, Virginia -went about the room holding her lantern high and peering behind the -big, heavily-carved mahogany furniture. At first she was in no way -alarmed, but, when each nook and corner had been searched, she stood -still, troubled indeed. She had not wanted to call the name of her -friend for she knew that the two more timid girls in the kitchen -would hear and become alarmed, but, at last, there being no other -alternative she said, “Betsy, where are you?” Then she stood -listening, but the moaning of the wind down the chimney was the only -sound that she could hear. - -What could have become of Betsy? Perhaps she had stepped out of the -front door and was hiding on the porch, but, when Virg turned to -look, she saw that the heavy wooden doors were barred on the inside. - -The usually calm Virginia was becoming troubled and she was indeed -glad to hear Peyton entering the kitchen. She would have to tell -them all now, and have them join in the search for Betsy who had so -mysteriously disappeared. - -“Virg, what is the matter? You look as though you had seen a ghost,” -Megsy exclaimed, as she sprang up from her comfortable rocker when -she saw Virginia returning from the dark, silent front room. - -Peyton had just entered the kitchen. Having blown the light out in -his lantern, he was hanging it on its peg, but upon hearing -Margaret’s startled exclamation, he whirled and looked at Virg. He -noted that she was very pale and seemed greatly agitated. - -This was indeed unusual, for as long as he had known this calm girl, -she had been mistress of every situation that had arisen. He took a -quick step toward her, fearing that she would faint. - -Babs, too, had risen. Virg spoke almost incoherently: “Betsy, she’s -lost—disappeared,” she told them. - -Peyton protested in amazement. “But Virg, how could Betsy be lost. -She has been right here in the house all of the time, hasn’t she?” - -Then Virg told the lad just what had happened. - -“I do not wonder that Trujillo has aroused Betsy’s curiosity,” -Peyton remarked. “For that matter, if it were not the custom of the -desert to ask no questions, I believe that I, myself, would be -tempted to ask him who he really is and from whence he came. He is -greatly the superior of the Mexican peons that I have working here -and they obey his slightest word as though they too recognized his -superiority. He seems content to be my foreman, for he has said -nothing about leaving. In fact he seldom speaks. He replies -graciously in perfect Spanish when I address him, but says almost -nothing of his own accord. But Virg, what has all this to do with -Betsy? How can she have disappeared?” - -“It certainly is mysterious,” that maiden replied. “Not ten minutes -ago we were all in the front room. Betsy said that she wanted to see -what it would look like when those queer hanging lamps were -lighted.” - -“I said we ought not to go,” Babs interrupted, tremulously, “and -now, if anything has happened to Betsy we’ll—” - -“Why, sister, nothing could happen to her right here in our own -house,” Peyton declared in a tone of conviction. Then to Virg, he -added: “Please tell me the rest of your story.” - -“As Babs says, she and Megsy were in favor of remaining in the -well-lighted and far more comfortable kitchen, but Betsy begged and -so we all went with her, carrying only a lighted candle. We had not -gone far into the room when the door closed with a bang and the -flame on the candle went out, although I did not feel a stir of -wind. Of course we returned to the kitchen, all but Betsy. She -suggested that the other girls stay by the stove and that I return -to her with a lighted lantern. I was not away from her five minutes, -but when I went back Betsy was not standing where I had left her, -and where she had promised to remain. I supposed that she was hiding -somewhere, and so I held the lantern high and looked behind all of -those massive pieces of carved furniture, but I could not find her. -Then I called her name, softly, but there was no reply. By that time -I was truly frightened and when I heard you returning, I came at -once to ask you to join me in searching for her.” - -Peyton looked more puzzled than troubled. “Virg,” he said, “if this -were a tale in a story-book, we might think that Betsy had fallen -through a trap-door, but surely there is nothing of that sort in -this old ranch house, even though it was built—” he paused and -snapped his fingers. “Hum!” he exclaimed, “the plot thickens. Come -to think of it, this house was built by an old Spanish Don who was a -political outlaw from Mexico. For months he hid in the mountains -with his wife, children and servants. Then, when he believed that he -had evaded his pursuers, his peons built this adobe house and so it -is very possible that he might have built some sort of trap-door -through which they could all quickly disappear and evade capture. -Come,” he added, as he swung open the door into the dark, silent -front room, “we’ll make a thorough search but I still feel convinced -that your Detective Betsy is hiding to tease.” - - - - -CHAPTER XVII—WHERE BETSY WAS HIDING - - -But the searchers were soon convinced that Betsy was not hiding to -tease. Peyton lighted all of the heavy brass hanging lamps but they -did little to illumine the long, dark room. Indeed, their dim light -made the corners darker and more ghostly than they had been before. -Each girl was carrying a lantern and the room was searched more -thoroughly than it had been by Virginia alone. - -“Perhaps Betsy climbed out of a window and is hiding out doors,” -Babs suggested. - -“That would be an impossible feat,” Peyton replied, “for, in common -with all Spanish houses, these windows are barred.” - -As he spoke the lad turned and walked toward the fireplace. He -looked into its cavernous opening and carefully examined the walls -and chimney. Turning back into the room, Peyton met Virginia and -they exchanged discouraged glances. “I simply cannot understand it,” -the boy said in a low tone. - -Before Virginia could reply, a startled cry rang out. They both -whirled, expecting to see Betsy, but instead it was Babs who was -gazing at one of the barred windows as though she had seen the ghost -about which she had been talking. - -Peyton leaped to her side. “Barbara,” he said, “why are you staring -at the window in that wild way? I can see nothing.” - -“No, you can’t now,” the girl replied. “It is gone—the face—” - -“I believe that mischievous Betsy Clossen is outside peering in at -us and laughing to think how she is fooling us all,” Virginia said -in almost a natural tone. “I know her of old. She loves to tease.” - -But Babs shook her head as she continued to gaze at the barred -window. - -“It wasn’t Betsy,” she whispered. “It was a dark face. I think -Trujillo.” - -“Girls, you come back to the kitchen,” Peyton said, “and bar the -door after me. I am going to see if Betsy Clossen is really hiding -outside. If she is the kind of a girl who would cause you all this -concern just to play a prank, I think you would better send her back -East when she is found.” - -“I, too, thought at first that she was hiding to tease,” Margaret -said, “but Betsy really has good common-sense and she would not -continue to frighten us in this way. Now, I am sure that something -has happened to her.” - -Peyton was much more troubled than he wished the girls to know. It -was his house and they were his guests, and his sister’s. Too, he -had been quietly watching his new Mexican overseer for the past few -weeks, as some of his actions seemed very strange. - -Then Peyton left the kitchen. - -“Oh, how I do wish this mystery was solved,” Margaret declared as -she sank down in a rocker, her eyes watching the closed door leading -into the front room, but almost instantly she was on her feet again -clutching Virginia’s arm. - -“Look! Quick!” she whispered. “Didn’t the door open a crack?” - -Virginia laughed. “No, no, child,” she replied. “Don’t let your -imagination run riot. I am sure there is some perfectly natural -commonplace reason for Betsy’s disappearance. You girls know -perfectly well that there is no such thing as a ghost. You hear -stories about them but you never met a single person who ever saw -one.” - -Then they were silent, just waiting, they knew not for what. - -In the meantime Peyton had gone down to the bunk-house. - -The lad knew that the girl could not have left the room by any of -the exits known to him. The front door had been heavily barricaded -by the Spanish Don on the inside and as Peyton did not use that -room, he had not opened the massive wooden doors. The windows were -barred and the only door of which he had knowledge was the one -leading into the kitchen. Suddenly he recalled that there was -another door but he had found it locked, with no key in evidence, -and believing it led into a store room of some kind, he had thought -little of it. - -When Babs had cried out that she had seen a face peering in at one -of the barred windows, a dark face that looked like Trujillo’s, -Peyton had determined to go at once to the bunk-house and find out -the whereabouts of his head rider. - -There was a very long adobe building in which the ten peons lived -together. Not far from it was one small solitary adobe which had -been built for the overseer of the Three Cross Ranch. It was in this -that Trujillo slept, although he took his meals with Peyton at the -big house. The owner of the ranch felt that this was a courtesy due -his head rider, and, moreover Trujillo had served him well by saving -his cattle on the day of his first appearance in the wild March -blizzard. - -As he thought of these things, he rebuked himself for having doubted -the loyalty of his Mexican cowboy in whom he had so much faith that -he had placed him in charge of the entire ranch, and yet, try as he -might to banish it, he could not but agree with Betsy that there was -something very mysterious about Trujillo. - -The long adobe was lighted and the Mexicans squatting on the floor -were intent on a game which they played every evening. - -Peyton quietly passed the open door and did not attract their -attention. He went at once to the overseer’s adobe dwelling. It was -dark. The door was standing open and in the faint light of the -rising moon, Peyton could see that the single room was unoccupied. - -“Trujillo,” he said softly, but there was no response. - -Peyton, troubled indeed, turned back toward the ranch house. He did -not inquire of the peons the whereabouts of Trujillo, for the -overseer never associated with his helpers although he treated them -kindly. - -What should he do? What could he do? The lad was thinking as he -again ascended the steps and entered the kitchen door. It was then -that he heard a crash followed by a shrill cry in the front room. - -Instantly the girls were on their feet and they were all staring at -the closed door when it burst open and Betsy Clossen rushed in. Her -face was very pale and she was so excited that at first she could -not speak. - -“Betsy, is it really you?” Barbara exclaimed joyfully as she caught -her friend in her arms. - -“I’m not sure certain it is, myself,” Betsy replied as she sank down -in a rocker. “I’ve had the most exciting experience.” - -The others gathered about her. “Do tell us just what happened,” -Virginia said. - -“Well, when you left me standing alone in the dark room, I happened -to take a step backward and that caused me to sit down very suddenly -in a big mahogany chair. I caught at the arms and I must have pushed -a button that was part of the carving. Instantly I realized that I -was slowly sinking, although it was so dark I could not tell just -what was happening. The floor seemed to have opened under me and -very quietly and easily the chair was descending like an elevator. -At last I was convinced that I had been let down through a -trap-door. I could hear it closing above me. I found myself in a -dark room. I didn’t dare leave the chair, however, so there I sat, -shouting lustily for help, but I could not make you hear. I must -have been there an hour when I decided that I would experiment with -the chair. I thought that if by pushing one knob I had caused it to -descend into the cellar-like room, there must be another knob that -would lift it again. At last I found such a contrivance, pushed it -and slowly the chair ascended. I gave a cry of joy when I was once -more in the front room, I sprang from the chair, knocking over a -small table which fell with a crash and here I am. Now that it’s all -over, I am glad that it happened. What an exciting experience it -will be to tell Cousin Bob.” - -“And so you see, girls, the mysterious Trujillo had nothing to do -with it,” Virginia said. - -Peyton, however, remembering the unoccupied bunk-house of the -overseer was still troubled, but a moment later his fears concerning -the loyalty of his cowboy were set at rest. The galloping of a -horse’s feet was heard and then a hallooing. Peyton swung open the -door and Trujillo stood there. - -Rapidly in Spanish he told the other lad that one of the peons had -reported early in the evening that a yearling had fallen into a -water-hole and that together they had departed to endeavor to rescue -it. Luckily there was but little water in the hole and the young -cow, though greatly frightened, was unhurt and they had brought it -back to keep for a few days in the hospital corral. - -This was all so commonplace that it restored the girls to a more -normal state of mind and Peyton rebuked himself for having doubted -his head rider who was ever serving him so faithfully. - -“Now, let’s go to bed, girls, and forget all that has happened. We -are quite used to elevators and since we know that the Don, who -built this house, needed some way to hide quickly from his pursuers, -we can easily understand his descending chair. Tomorrow I intend to -take a ride in it.” - -Virginia’s matter of fact tone calmed the younger and more nervous -girls and soon they retired. - -The recent owners of the Three Cross Ranch had built a wing leading -from the kitchen. This contained two simply furnished bedrooms which -the four girls were to occupy. - -Betsy Clossen was the last to fall asleep. She kept wondering where -she had seen Trujillo before. Nowhere, that she could remember, and -yet, if not, why did she seem to be haunted with the idea that she -had seen him. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII—AN ELEVATOR CHAIR - - -The next day the girls were awakened by the sun shining in at their -open windows; young calves in the near corral were calling to their -mothers and the hens in the chicken yard at the back of the house -were cheerily clucking as they busily scratched for their breakfast. - -This was all so commonplace that the girls arose, laughing as they -spoke of their fears of the night before. As soon as their morning -meal had been finished, Betsy Clossen wished to visit the scene of -her recent adventure, and so all together they entered the dark, -silent front room. - -There were heavy wooden blinds on all of the windows except the one -through which Babs on the night before had seen a dusky face -peering. - -“Girls,” the little mistress of the Three Cross Ranch exclaimed, -“since this is to be my home, I am going to frighten away the ghost -by letting in the sunshine. Virg, will you help me unbar these -wooden blinds?” - -Willing hands assisted and soon the sunshine was flooding in, -revealing the wonderful old mahogany furniture. There was dust deep -in each of the carvings, while long deserted cobwebs stretched -across corners and they, too, were dust laden. - -“It is all very fine, I’ve no doubt,” Babs began, as, with arms -akimbo she looked about at her new possessions, “but I certainly do -wish that the Spanish Don to whom all this grandeur belongs would -return and claim it. I’m like Mrs. Hartley, I would just love to -have this long, big room furnished in the cozy, comfortable way to -which I am accustomed.” - -“Well, I certainly would take those paintings down from the wall,” -Margaret declared with a shudder. “I would rather have any number of -ghosts than those foreign folks watching every move I made. Honest -Injun, they give me the chilly shivers staring at one the way they -do.” - -Virginia laughed. “Where’s Betsy Clossen?” she suddenly inquired. - -While the other girls had been busy removing the wooden blinds, that -maiden had been experimenting with her “elevator” chair. As Virg -spoke, the girls heard a gay shout and turned in time to see Betsy’s -head disappearing below the floor. They ran in that direction and -reached the spot just as the trap-door closed and snapped into -place. - -Babs shook her finger at the spot as she declared: “Mysterious -chair, this is the very last day that you will operate. I’m going to -make this wonderful long room livable and I surely don’t want chairs -that will carry some unsuspecting guest down to the cellar.” - -Margaret laughed merrily. - -“Wouldn’t it be amusing, though, if one did have a solemn, serious -caller, a deacon or someone like that, who happened to sit on this -chair and suddenly disappear? You had better keep it, Babs, it may -come in handy.” - -But the little housekeeper vigorously shook her head. “No, my mind -is made up once for all. Every bit of this foreign furniture is -going to be stored in an outhouse until the rightful owner claims -it, and I am going to Douglas when you girls return to V. M. Ranch -and buy just the things that I would enjoy having.” - -“I wonder why Betsy doesn’t come back,” Margaret remarked. She had -been intently watching the trap door to see what would happen next. - -The three girls knelt and called in chorus: “Betsy! Are you down -there? Why don’t you bring the elevator chair up again?” There was -no reply. Not a sound from below could they hear. The girls tried to -open the trap-door, but the contrivance that secured it was -underneath the floor. - -“What if the machinery doesn’t work?” Margaret said, looking up in -sudden dismay, “Betsy might smother down there.” - -“Who is talking about me?” a merry voice called. The astonished -girls sprang to their feet and whirled around. There was the -laughing Betsy standing back of them. - -The other three crowded about. “Did you make any new discoveries? -Tell us what happened!” - -“Well, when I reached the cellar,” Betsy began, “I hunted about to -find the other knob, the one that would lift me again to this room, -but lo and behold, it appeared to have lost its magic. I pulled on -it and pushed, but the chair did not move. I could hear you calling -to me, although your voices sounded faint and far. I replied but I -was sure that you could not hear. Then I sat for a few moments -thinking what I ought to do next. Of course I knew that you would -soon call for help if I did not return and that Peyton would break -open the trap. When my eyes became accustomed to the darkness, I -thought I saw a door at the far side of the room. Groping my way -toward it, I found that it opened easily. Just beyond was a spiral -stairway which I ascended. At the top was another door, but it was -locked. I was about to pound upon it, when I happened to touch a key -which I turned and here I am.” - -“Oh!” Virginia exclaimed. “I remember that door. It is the one I -tried to open last night when the candle blew out, but I found it -locked. Peyton said he supposed that it led into a store room but he -had never been curious enough about the matter to investigate.” - -Babs was opening the windows, letting in the cool morning breeze. -“I’m going to ask Peyton if we can’t have these bars removed,” she -declared as she stood peering through them. “I feel as though I were -in a jail looking out between bars this way.” Suddenly she uttered -an exclamation which took all of the girls hurrying to her side. - -“What is it, Babs? What do you see? Why are you staring so intently -at the ground?” were the questions hurled at her. Babs whirled about -and faced them, her eyes wide with excitement. “This is the window -through which I saw a Mexican last night peering in at us,” she -said. - -The others nodded. “You all laughed at me and declared that I was -letting my imagination run riot.” Then she added, exultingly, -“Follow me, young ladies, and you will discover that I, too, am a -very fine detective.” - -Much mystified, the girls trooped out of the kitchen door and around -the house. Babs, in the lead, stopped and picked up something from -the ground not far from the barred window. Turning she held aloft a -peculiarly shaped key. - -“This probably will solve the mystery for us,” she declared. “Good, -there is Peyton. Hail him, Betsy, will you?” - -The lad mounted, was about to start with several peons for the -valley pasture when he heard the girls calling. Whirling his horse -and bidding the Mexicans wait his return, he galloped up. -Dismounting, he asked Babs what was wanted of him. He listened to -her story, almost believing that she had been imaginative until she -produced the strangely shaped key as evidence that some one had been -there. - -“Brother, did you ever see that key before?” Babs eagerly inquired. - -The lad nodded. “Yes,” he replied. “I saw it lying on Trujillo’s bed -yesterday morning when I went to his bunk early to ask his advice -before beginning the work of the day. I picked up the key at the -time and examined it because of its queer shape, but I made no -comment as the matter I had called to discuss was much more -important. However, I cannot believe that my trusted overseer would -spy upon the actions of my sister and her guests. There must be some -other solution of this mystery,” he said. Then he added: “Please say -nothing concerning it and I will try to find out the truth about the -whole matter.” - -Peyton slipped the key into one of his coat pockets and lifting his -hat to the girls he rode away. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX—THE GIRL DETECTIVE - - -Betsy Clossen in her role of young detective watched for an -opportunity to slip away from the others as she wished to think out -some plan by which she might be able to discover the real identity -of the mysterious Mexican, Trujillo. - -When Peyton had said that he had seen the oddly shaped key only the -morning before in the bunkhouse of his overseer, Betsy was more than -ever convinced that Trujillo’s presence on the Three Cross ranch was -not merely because he needed employment. And yet what could he want? -Peyton had no money on the place. Betsy had heard him tell his -sister only the night before that he would have to ride to Douglas -the following day to visit the bank and procure the money he would -need to pay the peons for a month’s work. - -There were no treasures in the old Spanish house that Trujillo could -wish to possess. The mahogany furniture was valuable, no doubt, but -much too heavy for anyone to spirit away, and the only other -possible treasures in the room which Babs called haunted were the -paintings of the family of Don Carlos Spinoza. Surely no one would -wish to steal those. In fact if any one did, Babs would gladly -assist them, so eager was she to remove from the walls of her new -home the life-sized portraits of those “foreigners.” - -“I don’t believe I’m a very good detective after all,” Betsy sighed. -“I don’t seem to hit upon the right clue to start from,” she thought -as she followed a trail leading, she did not notice where, so -intently was she thinking and gazing at the ground. - -“I have three main facts to work with,” she told herself. “The first -is that Trujillo is mysterious, even Peyton thinks that. The second -is the dark face that peered through the barred window last night -when the girls were searching for me and the third is that the -person who peered dropped an oddly shaped key which Peyton had seen -in the room of his overseer. - -“The conclusion to be drawn is that Trujillo is remaining at the -Three Cross ranch, not because of the remuneration he receives, but -in order to obtain some information, since there is nothing valuable -to carry away.” - -“Three Cross,” she repeated to herself. “That surely is a queer name -for a cattle ranch. Oh, I remember now! Peyton said that old Don -Carlos was very religious, and that somewhere on the place he had -erected a shrine on which were three crosses and that he went there -to implore protection from his pursuing political enemies. I must -ask Babs where—” Betsy suddenly paused and looked about her. She -saw that the trail she had been following seemed to end abruptly in -a lonely sheltered hollow among sand hills. In front of the girl -stood an old shrine above which were three wooden crosses. One had -fallen to the ground, another leaned far over, but the center one -was erect and seemed to be more firmly established in the sand than -the other two had been. - -Betsy stood looking around, awed by the loneliness of the place, -when suddenly, through the stillness there arose a long-drawn-out -wail. With a startled cry the girl turned and fled. She ran back -over the trail as she had never run before. - -When she felt that she was a safe distance away she turned and -looked back, almost believing that she would see some ghostly figure -pursuing her. Standing on the top of a sand hill, its lean length -silhouetted against the bright sky, she saw a lone coyote. She -shuddered and looked back again, but at last she was convinced that -the wolf of the desert had no intention of following her but had -departed for some other haunt. - -Slowing her pace, Betsy soliloquized: “Well, I discovered something, -even though it may have nothing to do with unraveling the mystery. -Now let me see, where did I leave off? Oh, yes; I had decided that -Trujillo is staying on this ranch for some reason other than that of -employment, and yet it cannot be to steal, for there is nothing on -the place that one would want, and—” Suddenly Betsy stood still and -stared into space, thinking intently. Then she laughed. “I’m a great -detective, I must say. I haven’t given a moment’s thought to the -most important clue of all—the key! Trujillo must think there is -something around here to unlock, otherwise why did he have the key?” -The overseer had arrived in a March blizzard, she had heard Peyton -tell, without box or baggage of any kind, nor had he obtained any -since his arrival. - -“Hum,” thought the would-be detective. “I see it all now. There is a -treasure hidden at the house, probably in the front room which has -always been kept closed, and Trujillo had planned that night to slip -in, unobserved, but having seen a light in the room, he had first -peered through the window and had then beat a hasty retreat. Hurray -for me!” Betsy concluded exultingly. “The mystery is solved. I do -believe.” - -She was nearing the house and she saw the girls on the porch -beckoning to her. - -“Where have you been? Lunch is ready,” Margaret called. - -“Oh, just for a walk,” was Betsy’s non-committal reply. She had -decided to say nothing of her discovery until she had had time to -look around a little more all by herself. But the would-be detective -was to hear something that noon which convinced her that she was -following the wrong clue. - - - - -CHAPTER XX—A QUEER KEY - - -The girls were seated about the table at one end of the big -comfortable kitchen and, it being Margaret’s turn to play waitress, -she was passing a dish of frijolies when they heard a horse -galloping under the windows. “Peyton has returned just in time,” -Megsy announced, but, when the door opened, it was Trujillo who -appeared. He seemed to be much excited, but what he said caused a -great deal more excitement among his listeners, for in perfectly -good English he inquired: - -“Senoritas, have you seen an oddly shaped key? It is an antique and -of great value to me, though to no one else. I left it in my -bunk-house yesterday morning. I recall having seen your brother,” -turning to address the astonished Barbara, “when he picked it up and -examined it. Since then I have given the key no thought, but a -moment ago, chancing to look for it, I could not find it. Believing -that Senor Peyton, without thought had slipped it into his pocket, I -came here in search of him.” - -Barbara cast a helpless glance at the ever calm Virginia, who -replied: “Trujillo, the key about which you speak, is, I am sure, -the one that we found close to the house early this morning. We gave -it to Peyton. He is spending the day at the valley pasture directing -the mending of the fence around the grass lands.” - -“I thank you, Senorita,” the tall dark lad said, sweeping his -sombrero in a courtly manner. - -When he was gone in search of his employer, the girls sank back in -the chairs from which they had risen, and, one and all uttered some -characteristic exclamation. - -“Silver fishes in a shining sea,” Betsy Clossen said, and although -the remark could mean nothing, it was evident that the speaker meant -a great deal. “I surely am a wonderful detective,” she declared. -“Every clue I thought I had has vanished.” Then turning to Babs, she -added: “Didn’t you tell us that Trujillo could not speak English?” - -That maiden looked puzzled. “I don’t seem to recall why I thought he -couldn’t,” she confessed. “Probably because he never did in all the -time he has been here.” - -Virginia smiled: “We haven’t been here two days as yet,” she -reminded them, “and we have made no effort to converse with -Trujillo. We just took it for granted he wouldn’t understand us. -Well, one thing is certain and that is that Trujillo did not peer in -the window nor drop the key and I am glad that he didn’t. Everything -Peyton has told us about him has been so fine and noble, I would be -sorry to discover that he was a spy.” - -“Hark! What was that?” Virginia had risen and was listening, -intently. There was the sound of something heavy falling in the -front room, then a hurrying of feet and the slamming of a door. - -Virginia fearlessly entered the room which was flooded with -sunlight, since the blinds had been removed. She went at once to the -door opening upon the spiral stairway. It was unlocked early that -morning. The other girls had cautiously followed and were searching -for the something which had fallen. “There it is,” Margaret -whispered, pointing. - -The something that had fallen with a crash proved to be a rock which -had been pried out of the wall of the fireplace. - -“Oh, girls,” Betsy said, her eyes glowing. “We’re on the trail of -whoever it was peered in last night. There is something in this room -that he wants. Of course we have decided definitely that it wasn’t -Trujillo, and—” - -“I’m not so sure of that.” It was the quiet Margaret who spoke and -the others turned toward her. - -“Not sure? Why of course we’re sure. If he had dropped the key, he -wouldn’t have to ask where it had been lost, would he?” Babs -inquired. - -“Oh, I know what Margaret means,” Betsy interrupted. “She thinks -that in order to throw suspicion away from himself, he would pretend -ignorance of the whereabouts of the key. Then, when we directed him -to the valley pasture, what could be simpler than for him to pretend -to go there, but in reality to wheel back when he was out of our -sight and return to procure whatever it is that he seems to want.” - -The girls had returned to the kitchen and were huddled as far from -the front room as they could get and were whispering together -excitedly. - -“Well,” Betsy confessed. “I’ve always wanted a mystery to unravel, -but I seem doomed to failure now that I really have one. It grows -more mysterious every minute.” - -Margaret had to laugh at her friend’s dismal expression. “Betsy,” -she said to tease, “I’ll dare you to ride down to the cellar room in -your elevator chair and see who is hiding there. Someone must be, -for he just went down the spiral stairs and locked the door behind -him.” - -The would-be detective shook her head. “I told you this morning that -the machinery is broken. That chair is doomed to remain in the -cellar.” - -To verify her statement, Betsy drew the reluctant Margaret toward -the door, opened it cautiously and peered into the front room. Then -she closed it with a bang, and turned a pale face toward the girls. -“The chair—it’s in its right place. Someone has ridden up in it and -must be hiding in the front room. How I wish Peyton would come. I -for one have had enough mystery to last for a lifetime.” - -“Here comes brother, and someone is riding at his side. I declare, -it’s Trujillo, and so the intruder must be someone else. I do wish -they would hurry. I’m expecting any minute that something is going -to happen,” Babs declared. - -Margaret, who had opened the door leading to the back porch, uttered -an exclamation of astonishment, then, turning she beckoned as she -said: “Come, quick! Something is happening right this minute.” - -What the girls, crowding into the open doorway, saw was the figure -of a peon crouching and creeping along behind a hedge of mesquite -bushes. He kept watching the trail down which he saw Peyton and -Trujillo descending, and, when they were close to him, he lay flat -on the sand burrowing as deep as he could in his endeavor to escape -detection. - -The riders, deeply engrossed in their conversation, were not looking -in that direction, and when Margaret saw that they were riding past -the mesquite clump without seeing the hiding peon, she ran out on -the porch and hallooed to them, making frantic motions. These might -not have been understood by the two riders, but the ignorant and -greatly frightened Mexican, believing that his hiding place was -being revealed, took to his feet and raced for the sand hills. -Peyton and Trujillo, seeing him, wheeled their horses and galloped -in pursuit, and he was quickly overtaken. - -“It is Pinez, whom we recently engaged.” Trujillo said in English, -which the peon could not understand. “I have been watching him for -several days. Last week I sent him to town for my mail and I was -convinced that one of my letters was being withheld from me.” Then -turning to the sullen peon, he asked: “Pinez, why were you hiding? -Have you a letter that belongs to me?” - -“Si, Senor,” was the reply, and from his pocket the Mexican drew an -envelope, much soiled from frequent handling. - -Trujillo’s face brightened. “It is for this that I have been -waiting,” was his remark, which greatly mystified Peyton, but he -made no comment. - -Then the overseer addressed the peon in Spanish, saying: “Pinez, you -are dismissed. Return to Sonora but say nothing of the content of -this letter.” - -The peon’s manner was deferential in the extreme. Turning, he walked -toward the long bunk-house from which, half an hour later, the girls -saw him ride away toward the South on the small, mottled horse on -which he had so recently arrived. - -All through lunch the two boys talked about the affairs of the ranch -as though nothing mysterious or unusual had happened. After the noon -meal was finished the overseer turned toward the little mistress of -Three Cross saying with frank pleasantness: “Senorita, I have heard -you speak of a front room that you call haunted. With your kind -permission, I would like to visit that room in your company.” - -Babs was too well bred to show the astonishment she certainly felt. -“Come, let us all go in there,” she replied, rising. - -Trujillo stepped aside with Peyton to permit Barbara and her girl -friends to enter. Betsy regretted that she had to go ahead as she -wished to watch the overseer’s every move, for she felt that now, if -ever, she would prove that she was really a good detective. She -believed that the moment for solving the mystery had come. - -Trujillo walked about, gazing especially at the life-sized portraits -upon the walls. Indeed he was so absorbed in one and another that he -seemed to quite forget their presence. - -He stood for a long time before the painting of a beautiful young -Spanish mother with a dark-eyed little girl on her lap and a tall, -handsome youth standing at her side. - -Trujillo, directly beneath this painting, turned and smiled at the -almost breathless girls. He was about to speak, but before he could -utter a word, there was a glad cry from Betsy Clossen. - -“I know now who you are,” she exclaimed glowingly. “You are the -little boy in that painting, grown up!” - -Trujillo bowed in his courtly way. “Si Senorita. I am Trujillo -Carlos Spinoza. Now I will tell you why I am here.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXI—TRUJILLO IDENTIFIED - - -When Trujillo announced that he was indeed the lad portrayed in the -painting, now grown, Betsy Clossen was overjoyed that she had -unraveled the mystery as she had so desired. Notwithstanding the -fact that the Spanish youth closely resembled the portrait of the -boy in the picture hanging directly above his head, not one of the -other young people had observed this. - -“Oh, I am so glad!” Babs joyfully exclaimed. “Now you will take all -this furniture away, won’t you? Because it really belongs to your -family, you know. Mrs. Dartley said that Don Carlos Spinoza asked -permission to leave this room furnished, promising to remove -everything in it at his first opportunity. That being so long ago we -feared no one was ever coming to claim it.” - -Before the Spanish lad could reply, Peyton asked: “Trujillo, why did -you not tell me at once who you were?” - -“Merely because I did not know that I had reached the ranch which -had formerly belonged to my grandfather. I believed it to be miles -north of here. But, let me begin at the beginning of my story. When -we left this place years ago with my grandfather, Don Carlos -Spinoza, we all went to Spain, where we remained until recently. The -sudden death of my grandfather followed by a financial crash left my -mother, sister and me almost penniless. It was then that mother told -me that I, as the only living grandson, was really the owner of a -large estate in Mexico, which had been a gift to my ancestors from -the king of Spain and that this land grant could not be confiscated -nor sold except with the signed consent of the heir thereto. - -“When I inquired why they had left this rich heritage, for the -estate is in Sonora and the mines are of great value, mother told -me, for the first time, that we had been political exiles from -Mexico. However, she believed that the government had been -completely changed and that we might now return with safety and take -possession of the land of our fathers. Soon after this we set sail -for America, and my mother and sister are now in Mexico awaiting my -return.” - -“But Trujillo, even yet I do not understand the reason for your -sojourn here as my overseer,” Peyton said. - -The Spanish youth smiled. “No, but you will as I continue my story. -When we reached Mexico City we were welcomed by old friends of the -family, who informed us that soon after our flight our estate had -been confiscated and occupied by the political enemies of my -grandfather. On looking into the matter I found that this family had -papers proving, (or so it would seem), that the land grant had -really belonged to their ancestors and had been usurped by my great -grandfather. - -“It was evident that we could not disprove their claim, as we had no -papers whatever to show. Then it was that my mother recalled her -father’s futile effort on the day that he died to tell her of the -location of some very important papers. So overcome had she been -with grief that she had been unable to heed even the little he could -say, and so, when later she tried to recall what my grandfather had -endeavored to tell her, she could not. - -“It was then that I determined to ride across the desert, finding, -if I could, the ranch to which my grandfather had fled when he -became a political exile. I doubt if I would ever have found my way -here had it not been that I was driven far from the trail I was -following by the wild blizzard which you will recall. I at once -accepted your offer, partly because I needed money to send to my -mother, and also because I thought I might learn something which -would enable me to locate the ranch formerly belonging to my -grandfather. When you told me that you had recently come from the -East and had obtained the ranch from the Dartleys, in whose family -it had been for many years, I did not question you more, not -dreaming that this was the place for which I was searching. - -“The letter which Pinez was concealing was from my mother telling me -that she had suddenly recalled what her father had said in his last -hour. ‘The land grant—Three Cross.’ - -“Of course I had often heard you speak of this place as The Three -Cross Ranch and now, when I enter this room for the first time and -find myself surrounded with portraits of my family, I realize that -this is where the lost papers are to be found.” - -“Trujillo, why was Pinez searching for those papers?” It was -Margaret who spoke. The Spanish youth turned toward her as he -replied: “I believe his plan was to find them and then hold them -until I offered him a large reward.” Then smiling directly at Betsy, -he added: “Senorita, since you so cleverly discovered my identity, -will you not also discover for me the hiding place of my land -grant?” - -The little would-be detective felt greatly honored to be chosen as -aide to the handsome Spanish youth, and she determined to make every -effort to find the hidden papers. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII—SEARCHING FOR THE LAND GRANT - - -Betsy Clossen had hardly slept a wink the night following her -discovery of the real identity of the mysterious Trujillo. She kept -thinking and thinking of a possible hiding place for the lost papers -which, when found, would restore to the family of Don Carlos Spinoza -their rightful estate. - -“How I do hope I may be the one to find them,” was her last -conscious thought at night and her first on waking the next morning. - -It was not yet daybreak, but Betsy quietly arose, dressed and -tiptoed out of the room without having disturbed Margaret from her -peaceful slumber. - -Reaching the kitchen, Betsy stood for a moment trying to think where -she would begin her search. Then, suddenly, she remembered -something. The peon had been trying to pry the stones from the walls -of the great old fireplace. There might be a secret opening with a -stone fitted in to conceal it. Lighting a lantern, for it was still -dark, Betsy stole into the long silent front room, not without many -a tremor of fear, for, even now, when the mystery was nearly solved, -the place seemed haunted with the many foreign faces gazing down at -her from the walls. - -Trying not to look at them as they were revealed one by one in the -dim light of her lantern, Betsy went at once to the fireplace. She -did not attempt to pry out the stones, but tried to find one that -looked as though it had not been securely fastened and could easily -be removed. - -However, each stone within her reach was cemented to its neighbor, -and, convinced at last that her search at the fireplace was to be -unrewarded, she turned away. Walking to the center of the room, she -stood looking about, trying to recall all of the detective stories -she had ever read. - -There was always a secret panel in the wall which revealed a hidden -treasure if one could but find the spring, but these walls were -adobe and there were no panels. True, there was the small dark -cellar into which the elevator chair descended, and from which -spiral ascended, and yet, did she quite dare to go down in that -dungeon-like place alone while the rest of the household slept? -Betsy suddenly lifted her head and listened intently. She had heard -soft foot-steps approaching in the kitchen, then the door opened -cautiously. It was Margaret who appeared, pale and wide eyed. - -“What in the world are you doing here, Betsy?” she inquired, as she -advanced into the room. “I woke up and found you were gone. I -thought you might be walking in your sleep. You were so restless all -night and kept saying things.” - -“What did I say?” Betsy inquired curiously. - -“Nothing that made any sense as far as I could tell,” was the reply. -“You kept mumbling every now and then, but once you sat right up in -bed and said in the queerest voice: ‘Three crosses. That’s where the -papers are.’ I shook you and whispered, ‘Betsy, what are you -saying?’ but you lay down again and did not reply. Then I realized -that you had been asleep all of the time.” - -The eyes of the young would-be detective were glowing with sudden -inspiration. Seizing the wondering Margaret by the arm, she -exclaimed: “Come with me, Megsy!” and before the other girl could -realize what was happening, she was being dragged across the kitchen -and out of the house where the desert lay silent and uncanny in the -deepest darkness of the night, which comes just before the dawn. - -Margaret, being of a more timid nature, was truly frightened when -she saw that Betsy was dragging her farther and farther away from -the ranch house and toward the lonely sand hills. The truth of the -matter was that at any other time, Betsy would have been frightened -also, but at present she was possessed of just one idea which was -that the papers for which they were searching were hidden, in all -probability, at the Shrine of The Three Crosses. When Margaret told -her what she had said in her sleep, Betsy believed that the message -had come to her as an inspiration, and so sure was she of this, that -for the moment she had become unconscious of fear; too, she had -forgotten the lean, gaunt wolf of the desert, whose long drawn-out -wail had so startled her on the occasion of her last visit. - -“Betsy, let go of my arm,” Margaret managed to gasp, “and tell me -where we are going.” Then a terrible thought came to Megsy. What if -Betsy should be walking in her sleep after all, and what if she were -taking them both to some place where harm would befall them. So -convinced was Margaret that this was the real explanation of her -friend’s actions that she whirled about as soon as Betsy loosened -the clasp on her arm and raced back toward the ranch house. A light -appeared in the small adobe, then, as she was about to pass, the -door opened and Trujillo stepped out. In the grey light of the early -dawn, Margaret’s flying form was easily seen and the overseer, much -mystified by the appearance of one of the girls in such seemingly -terrorized flight, quickly overtook her. - -“Senorita,” he exclaimed when she turned a white face toward him. -“What is the matter? Where have you been? What have you seen?” - -“Oh, I am so glad you came,” Megsy replied. “I was going after -Peyton. Betsy Clossen is walking in her sleep. I just know that she -is, and she’ll come to some harm if we don’t bring her back. She -says the queerest things about lost papers being hidden at the -Shrine of The Three Crosses. I never heard of such a place. Did you, -Senor?” - -Trujillo replied in the negative. He had never heard the peons -mention a shrine and surely they would know if there were one. - -“Wait here, Senorita, I will get horses and we will follow your -friend.” - -When Margaret had deserted Betsy, for a moment the young would-be -detective felt a strong desire to turn and race after her, but she -would not permit herself to do this. She was so eager to find the -lost papers and she was more than ever convinced, as she thought -about the matter, that they were probably near the shrine. This had -been the daily haunt of the old Don who had prayed that his estate -might be restored to him. What would be more natural than that he -would conceal the papers there, believing, as he probably did, that -his political enemies when they found him would confiscate the -documents, making it impossible for him to prove that the land grant -had really belonged to his ancestors. - -As Betsy neared the lonely sand hills, she dreaded more and more the -moment when she would enter the sheltered dug-out where she had -found the shrine. She knew that, loud as she might call, no one -would hear. - -“Oh, I can’t go on! I can’t! I can’t” she exclaimed, her -fearlessness suddenly deserting her. Then it was that she heard -something weird indeed. - -In a voice that sounded almost like a mournful echo, some one was -calling. Then in her heart there was a sudden joyful realization of -the truth. Some one was shouting her name and the sand hills were -sending back the echo: “Betsy, where are you?” - -“Here! Here!” she replied as she ran out to meet the approaching -riders. Of course she might have known that Margaret would soon -return with one of the boys. - -She was glad to recognize that the other rider was Trujillo. As they -drew near, the Spanish youth saw that the girl standing alone near -the sand hills did not look as courageous as her fearless actions -had implied. Instead her face was pale, her eyes wide, although her -expression was one of gladness, because she was no longer alone. - -Betsy was not asleep, of that Trujillo was convinced. Leaping to the -ground, he exclaimed: “Senorita, what mad fancy brought you to this -lonely place before the dawning of the day?” - -“Oh, senor, the papers! I am sure, as sure as one can be when one -does not really know, that they are hidden somewhere near the Shrine -of the Three Crosses.” - -“Three Crosses?” Margaret repeated. “That is what you said in your -sleep.” - -“Where is the shrine, senorita?” Trujillo inquired. Betsy led the -way between the sand hills to the small dug-out in which were three -large wooden crosses. One had fallen to the sand, another leaned -over, but the third stood erect. Trujillo bared his head and knelt -upon the sand for a moment in prayer. The girls could understand -that the lad must indeed feel awed to find himself before the shrine -which had been so often visited by his grandfather, Don Carlos -Spinoza. He soon arose and when he turned toward them they knew that -he had been deeply affected. Then in a tone of conviction he said: - -“Senorita, your dream, I am sure, is to be fulfilled. My -grandfather’s last words were: ‘The land grant at the Three -Crosses.’ If he had meant at the Three Cross ranch, he would not -have used the plural.” - -Then Trujillo stood gazing about him, thinking intently. He was -trying to decide the probable hiding place of the document he -sought. Suddenly his thought was interrupted by an exclamation from -Betsy, the girl was gazing as though fascinated at the large wooden -cross standing erect between the two that had fallen. - -“Senor,” she said, “there must be some reason why that cross in the -center has stood while the others have not. It must have a firmer -foundation. Do you not think so?” - -“I do indeed,” was the reply of the youth, who at once knelt and -began digging at the base of the cross. The sand on top was soft, -but, as he advanced, he found that it became more difficult to -remove. The action of the rain and sun during the ten years since -the cross had been erected had hardened it until it was the nature -of sand stone. - -He arose. “Senorita Betsy,” he said, “our surmise was not correct -after all. There seems to be nothing holding this cross but the -hardened sand.” - -Betsy was keenly disappointed, although she was not entirely -convinced. Trujillo left the girls standing alone while he advanced -farther into the cave-like dug-out. It extended deeper into the sand -hills than he had at first supposed. He did not advance far, -however, but stopped suddenly and gazed intently into the interior, -and then, assuming an attitude of seeming indifference, he returned. -He did not wish to startle the girls by telling them that he had -seen two green eyes gleaming in the darkness at the back of the -cave. He believed the creature to be either a mountain lion or a -coyote, which of late had been killing the young calves. - -“Senoritas,” he said in a voice which did not betray his real -concern, “our friends at the ranch house will be troubled because we -do not return. The breakfast hour is long passed. I suggest that we -come here later in the day, bringing with us a pick and shovel that -we may make a thorough investigation.” - -As he spoke, he led the girls away from the crosses to the place -where the ponies were. - -“Promise me you won’t search for the papers unless I am with you,” -Betsy implored. The Spanish youth smiled at the pretty, flushed face -of the pleading girl, as he replied: “I promise, Senorita.” - -All that morning Betsy watched and waited. She almost lost faith in -the promise of Trujillo when, at last, she beheld him returning from -the sand hills, accompanied by Peyton, but when she saw that they -were armed with guns and did not carry a shovel or pick, she knew -that they had been on some other mission. - -Trujillo rode to the ranch house and entering the living room, he -said to the eager girl: “If you are ready, Senorita Betsy, we will -go at once.” - -Margaret and Virginia were busily employed in the kitchen, but they -glanced up when they heard the cantering of horses’ hoofs beneath -the window. - -“I wonder where Betsy and Trujillo are going,” Virg said. Margaret, -who had been sworn to secrecy, did not reply. - -“Oh, I presume they are still searching for the land grant papers,” -Megsy said. “I’d heaps rather be in this sunny, comfortable kitchen -making pies, wouldn’t you, Virg?” - -The older girl smiled. “Perhaps it is well that we have different -interests,” she replied. “Some of us like to do adventurous things -and some of us like to do the quiet, homely things, but I really -enjoy both the desert life and then home life.” Then she added, with -one of her radiant smiles: “I do believe, Megsy, that I am a natural -born enjoyer.” - -“You are indeed,” her friend responded, admiringly. “You always seem -so happy and contented, Virg, wherever you are. Tell me your -secret.” - -Virginia put her arm about Margaret and drew her down to the sunny -window-seat, as she replied: “Mother often told me that we ought to -let our lives blossom as a flower unfolds, just peacefully and -trustingly, enjoying the song of a bird, and the warmth of the sun -and whatever beauty is near us. Many people try to force their life -blossoms open and are so continually reaching for something beyond, -that they never really enjoy the loveliness that is near them and so -they become worried and weary. Every morning I ask myself: ‘What -happiness can I find and give _today_ in the place where I am? That -keeps me contented and happy.” Then springing up, she laughingly -added: “Yum! Doesn’t the pie smell good? I do hope everyone will be -here in time for lunch.” But it was long after the lunch hour before -Betsy and Trujillo returned. - -In the meantime Betsy and Trujillo had reached the sand hills and -were standing in front of the three crosses. Trujillo glanced into -the cave beyond the shrine. Little did his companion know that in -the darkness there was a newly made grave. - -At Betsy’s suggestion he began at once to dig beneath the middle -cross. The pick was needed to break the sand stone, but suddenly it -struck something that did not break. One corner of an iron box was -revealed, which however, was so firmly imbedded in the rock that it -took a long time to entirely free it. Betsy, after the first -exultant exclamation, had stood silently watching. - -How she did hope that this box contained the land grant document -that the mother and sister of Trujillo might have their home -restored to them. - -When at last the box was freed, they both knelt beside it to see if -the key hole was as queerly shaped as was the key that the mother of -Trujillo had given him. When they found that it fitted exactly, -Betsy’s joy could no longer be restrained, and leaping up, she -clapped her hands and uttered varied exclamations of delight. - -Trujillo glanced at her with a happy smile. “Senorita,” he said, -“before I open this box, I want you to promise me something. If the -papers are here, and if our home is restored, will you and your -friends come some day, and visit us? My mother and my sister -Carmelita will welcome you gladly.” - -Then the key turned and the box was opened. There was a glad cry -from the girl who had been watching breathlessly, for there lay a -packet of yellowing papers. Placing them in his pocket, the Spanish -lad rose and held out his hand to his flushed and excited companion. -“Senorita Betsy,” he said, his melodious voice tense with feeling, -“I thank you for your interest and my mother and sister will want to -thank you when, with your friends, you can visit us.” - -Then leaving the heavy iron box in the sand by the crosses, these -two rode back to the ranch house to tell the others that, at last, -the long lost papers had been found. - -[Illustration: There lay a packet of yellowing papers.] - -“I shall leave for Mexico tomorrow if Monsieur Peyton can spare me, -but before I go I shall return alone to the shrine and leave the -three crosses standing, firm and erect, in the memory of my -grandfather.” - -And this Trujillo did, going to the shrine at sunrise on the -following morning. Then directly after breakfast, the Spanish youth -rode away to the south. - -“Girls,” Betsy cried, “how I do wish, before I have to return East, -that we might visit the beautiful Carmelita Spinoza.” - -“Stranger things than that have happened,” Virginia replied. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII—ALARM ABOUT MALCOLM - - -A few days after the departure of Trujillo, Virginia remarked one -morning at breakfast, “Barbara, I feel much as you did when you were -with us at V. M., a great anxiety, which I cannot understand, to -return home and see if all is well with Malcolm. The truth is I have -been away from him and from dear old Uncle Tex for so many, many -months, that I feel sure they were sorry to have me desert them, -and, so, if Margaret and Betsy are willing, I think we would better -return to V. M. today.” - -The pretty face of Babs plainly showed her disappointment, and -Virginia hastened to add, “Won’t you come with us, Barbara, or, if -not that, perhaps, Betsy would like to make you a longer visit here -at Three Cross.” - -A sudden hopeful brightening in the blue eyes of Barbara brought -from her dear friend Betsy an immediate acceptance of the plan, and, -so, an hour later, that they might start before the sun was high, -the two who were departing bade goodbye to the three who were to -remain and rode away, looking back often to wave and smile. - -When at last they had crossed the ridge which hid the Three Cross -Ranch from their view and were riding along the level desert, -Margaret looked anxiously, inquiringly at her friend. - -“Dear, you seem very thoughtful. Are you troubled about anything in -particular?” - -The questioner was more than ever puzzled when she saw the morning -glow in the truly beautiful face that was turned toward her. - -“No, sister of mine, I was thinking of something very wonderful, but -just for a time it must be my secret.” - -Virginia was recalling an hour that she and Peyton had spent alone -the evening before, sitting on a huge boulder that was near the -ranch house. It had been a gloriously moonlighted night, and, for a -long time, they had remained silent, just content, it would seem, to -be together in that truest and rarest of all forms of comradeship. -Then quietly Virg had led Peyton to talk of his ranch, his interest, -and of what he had done while she had been away. - -Somehow, in the magic of the loveliness all about them, it had -seemed but natural that the lad should tell her of his love. - -“May I hope, Virginia, that some day, you will be here with -me,—with us?” And Virginia’s reply had been seriously given. “Ask -me that again when I am eighteen, will you Peyton?” - -And with that answer the lad had to be content, but in it he found -much to cause him to rejoice; much that gave him hope. - -It was a strange coincidence, that, at that moment, as Virginia was -thinking over the conversation of the night before, Megsy should -ask, “Virg, who do you suppose will be the first girl of our -acquaintance to marry?” - -Her companion smiled, “Why dear, I don’t know,” she replied. “Babs -and Betsy are far too young, some way, to even think of such things. -Betsy declares that she is to be wedded to her career and Barbara, -though she likes Benjy Wilson has not as yet even thought of -romance.” - -“Well, I am sure it will not be me.” Virg thought she heard Margaret -sigh and this puzzled her. Quick was her response. “I’m not so sure -of that, Megsy. You are so sweet and lovable, I know you will be -stolen away from me long before I am ready to lose you.” Then, as -they reached the top of the mesa, she continued happily, “Oh, how -good it is to see V. M. Ranch again. This time I do hope that -brother of mine will be at home to greet us. I have had so much -change and recreation this past year that I actually feel guilty. It -has been all work and responsibility for Malcolm.” - -“I have a plan to suggest,” Megsy said. “Let’s insist that Malcolm -take a two weeks’ vacation and go away somewhere so isolated that he -could not possibly receive there a message about the ranch.” - -Virg shook her head. “I don’t believe that we could persuade my -brother to go,” she replied. - -“I’m going to try,” was Margaret’s quiet response. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV—AND THE REASON FOR IT - - -The girls entered the ranch house living room and stood looking -about. - -“How queer not to hear a sound,” Margaret said. “Why does it seem so -much more still than usual do you suppose?” - -“Perhaps because we do not hear the shouting of the Mahoy children,” -Virg replied. “They are usually at play in the door yard at this -hour. Let’s go over to their home and ask Mrs. Mahoy where everyone -is.” - -With a heart filled with an unaccountable foreboding, Virg led the -way to the small adobe back of the big ranch house and nearer the -dry creek. - -As they approached they saw the four small children seated on the -porch step huddled together. The oldest girl was softly crying, the -two younger ones looked frightened, as though something had happened -which they could not understand, and Patsy, though his lips were -quivering, seemed to be trying not to cry. - -Virginia leaped forward, and kneeling put her arms about the sobbing -girl, then, looking at the boy, she said, “Patsy, lad, what has -happened? Is your mother—” - -She said no more, for the door opened and the little Irish woman -appeared. She had on her hat and carried a bundle. The kneeling girl -sprang to her feet. “Mrs. Mahoy,” she said with a new alarm in her -heart, “where are you going? Has anything happened in the mine?” - -The little woman nodded. “Indeed there has, Miss Virginia. It’s -caved in somewheres. A boy from Slater’s just rode over to get you, -but bein’ as you wasn’t here, I was starting mesilf. It’s thankful I -am as ye’ve come, for I was beside mesilf entoirely not knowin’ what -to do wid the children. Me Pat is all right, the saints be praised, -but—” she hesitated. - -“Malcolm, what about Malcolm?” It was Margaret who asked the -question, her eyes thought of what might have happened to her -guardian. - -The little Irish woman hardly knew how to reply. “The boy said as -how they hadn’t found him yet,” she told them, “but, like as not, -they have by this time,” she hastened to add. “Uncle Tex went right -back with the boy an’ I was goin’ mesilf with liniments and -bandages.” - -“I will take them, Mrs. Mahoy. You stay with the children.” Then -turning to the other girl, Virginia added: “Margaret, perhaps you -would better remain at home. I’ll send the Slater boy back with a -message as soon as I know that all is well.” - -She glanced anxiously at her adopted sister. There had been a long -ride already that morning and Megsy was not as strong as the other. - -“I am going with you,” was the quiet reply, and Virg knew that when -Margaret spoke that way there was nothing more to be said. - -Mrs. Mahoy had disappeared, but was quickly back in the open -doorway, her hat removed. “Miss Virginia,” she said, “I’ve put the -kettle on and in a minute now I’ll have a snack for you to be eatin’ -before yez start on the ride to the mine.” - -Half an hour later the girls were again in the saddle and were -following the trail across Dry Creek toward Seven Peak Range. -Virginia’s heart was filled with self-reproach, because she had -permitted Malcolm to carry more than his share of the -responsibility, and yet, how could she have helped it? It had been -all work and no play for him ever since their father died. Suddenly -she realized that Margaret was riding close at her side. - -“Dear,” Megsy said, and there was a quiver in her voice, “try not to -grieve yet. Wait until we know more. I feel sure that all is well -with my guardian.” But was all well with the brave, strong, quiet -Malcolm? - - - - -CHAPTER XXV—AN HOUR OF SUSPENSE - - -As the girls neared the Second Peak their anxiety increased. They -could see men hurrying about near the mine and they urged their -horses to greater speed. However, one man, chancing to look in their -direction, seemed to be much concerned because of their rapid -approach and, seizing a red flag, he climbed out on the over-hanging -rocks and waved frantically, while another, leaping to his side, -motioned the girls to stay back. - -They then drew rein and Margaret exclaimed: “What can it mean, do -you suppose?” - -“I think they must be going to blast,” Virginia replied, her face -white as she shaded her eyes and gazed intently in the direction of -the seemingly excited men. - -“But, how can they blast if Malcolm, if anyone is buried in the -mine?” - -“I don’t understand,” Virg told her, “but I’m not going to worry -more than I can help until I know that there is really something to -worry about.” - -“One of the men is mounting a horse now,” Margaret said. “Perhaps he -is coming to explain to us what is happening.” - -This surmise proved true, for they saw a cowboy approaching them on -a racing mustang. “It’s Rusty Pete from the Slater Ranch. At least -our suspense will soon be over, for he will tell us what it all -means.” - -It was very evident by the expression on the face of the cowboy that -he dreaded telling the message he had been sent to convey. So -pre-occupied and concerned was he that he jerked upon the reins of -his mustang in a manner which his steed wrongly interpreted and the -result was that it reared and plunged and arrived in the -neighborhood of the girls in so nervous a state that it was with -difficulty quieted long enough for the rider to speak. - -“What have you to tell us, Pete?” Virginia eagerly inquired, when at -last the restive horse was for a moment standing with all four feet -upon the ground, although it continued to whistle and paw the sand -with its right fore foot. - -Rusty Pete was evidently at a loss for words to express his message. -“Your brother, Miss Virginia,” he began, “that is, they’re going to -blast,” he hurried on as though he couldn’t complete the sentence he -had started, “and they sent me to say, don’t come nearer, till they -signal.” - -Virg, believing that the cowboy was about to ride away again, leaned -over and put her hand on his arm. “Tell me, Pete,” she implored, -“what has happened to my brother?” - -Before the cowboy could reply there was a flash of fire on Second -Peak, an upheaval of rock and smoke, and a thundering noise that -reverberated through the mountains echoing back from the far peaks, -and then a shower of sand and bits of stone fell all about them. The -horses, stung by the sharp edges of this unexpected fusilade, leaped -and plunged, and it was sometime before they could be quieted. -Excited shouts from the mine then attracted their attention. They -turned to see another rider approaching them with all haste. - -“It’s Uncle Tex, and he has good news, I am sure,” Virg exclaimed, -“for see, he is waving his sombrero and shouting joyfully.” - -Virginia leaped to the ground and ran toward the approaching -horseman, who also dismounted and took the sobbing girl in his arms. - -“Uncle Tex! Uncle Tex!” she cried “Tell me, has anything happened to -my brother?” - -“Thar! Thar! Miss Virginia, dearie,” the old man said, consolingly, -though tears were trembling on his wrinkled cheeks, “something did -happen to Master Malcolm, but he’s all right now. We sure had to -take an awful big chance blastin’ that way, but we didn’t durst wait -to ask what you’d have us do, we just had to do it, and Heaven be -praised ’twas the right thing. Master Malcolm’s safe and they’ll be -fetchin’ him along in a minute. - -“You see, Miss Virginia, dearie, ’twas this a-way,” the old man -continued. “Master Malcolm was bent on goin’ into a new tunnel along -side of a vein that had just been opened. Pat Mahoy warned him as -’twasn’t safe yet, bein’ as the struts weren’t all up, but Master -Malcolm said he was in a hurry to get back to V. M., to be thar when -you gurls returned, and so he took the chance. Wall, Pat Mahoy says -’twas just as he prognosticated. Master Malcolm hadn’t no more’n -disappeared into the new tunnel when there was a rumblin’ noise as -Pat knew meant trouble. He ran shouting, but though he saw Master -Malcolm turn back ’twas too late. The rocks and dirt up above -crushed down, shuttin’ him out, but more rocks kept slidin’ down and -’twasn’t safe no how. Then ’twas they took the chance to blast the -big rock from the openin’. When ’twas all over, they found Master -Malcolm a little way in lying white as a ghost and most smothered, -seemed like, but he came to, quick enough, when he was fetched out. -Howsomever it will be a long time before he gets his strength back, -I’m a-thinkin’. He’s all wore out anyway. I’ve been noticin’ it for -months past, but he wouldn’t stop a peggin’, but now I guess as -he’ll have to take a rest.” - -Virginia saw a slow moving procession leaving the mine. She again -mounted her pony and rode in that direction, closely followed by the -others. A wagon that was used for hauling timber had been quickly -changed by the miners into an ambulance, bedding having been piled -on the cross boards, and, as it neared, the girls saw Malcolm lying -listless as though he were too weary to move. However, when Virginia -rode up alongside, her brother smiled wanly. - -“I’m all right, Sis,” he said. “I tried to get buried too soon, I -guess.” Then with a sigh as though the exertion of speaking had been -too much for him, he closed his eyes, nor did he open them again -during the long, slow ride over the desert. - -It was with great difficulty that the crossing of the Dry Creek was -made, but, in the late afternoon the anxious Mrs. Mahoy saw the -procession slowly climbing up the sloping trail back of the ranch -house. She hurried out to meet them. - -“Was me Pat all right?” was her first query, and when she had -received a reply in the affirmative, the little woman added: “It’s -bakin’ I’ve been all the arternoon, Miss Virginia, for I was -thinkin’ as thar’d be many to feed.” - -“Thank you for you thoughtfulness,” the young mistress of V. M. -said, with sincere appreciation. - -Margaret assisted Mrs. Mahoy to spread the many good things on the -long kitchen table that the miners who had accompanied them might -have a hearty supper before their return to Second Peak. - -Uncle Tex and Virginia meanwhile helped Malcolm into his own bed, -and for the first time in many years the lad turned toward his -sister and said: “Virgie, I’m so tired, tired clear through.” - -“I know you are brother, dear,” Virginia said, as she knelt by his -side and held his listless hand to her cheek. “I haven’t mothered -you as much as I should have done, but from now on you are going to -just rest. I don’t know yet what we’re going to do, but it’s going -to be something different and wonderful.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI—MAKING PLANS - - -“Where, Oh where shall we take my brother for a complete rest?” -Virginia had softly closed the door of Malcolm’s bedroom, having -told that giant of a lad that he must sleep all of the afternoon. - -He had laughed at the suggestion. It did indeed seem preposterous. -In all of his nineteen years, he had never slept in the day-time. -When his sister had left him, he determined to rise, dress and steal -out of the window and down to the corral, but when he had tried to -stand, he found that he was not as strong as he had supposed, and he -was actually glad to lie down again, and, being truly weak and -weary, he was soon asleep. - -Margaret looked up from her sewing. She and Virginia were planning -to cut over two of their dresses that were still pretty, but which -they had outgrown. Megsy’s was to be for six year old Jane Wallace, -while Virg was to make one for ten year old Sari. - -“Are we really going to take my guardian somewhere?” she asked -eagerly, adding at once. “I do hope so, Virg! What a heavy burden of -responsibility he has had since your father died. I don’t know where -you would find another boy, only sixteen as he was then, who would -have the courage to attempt to run a big ranch and compete with men -old enough to be his father.” Margaret’s voice had a ring of -enthusiasm in which there was mingled much of admiration and perhaps -something more. - -But no praise of her brother seemed to the listener to be more than -he deserved. Seating herself on the window seat, she took from a -basket, (which had been made in the Indian village), a pretty gold -brown dress. Holding it up, she asked: “Megsy, don’t you think this -especially suits little Sari? There’s a glint of gold in that brown -hair of hers and I’m not at all sure but that there is in her -thoughtful eyes as well.” Her companion nodded. “I’m glad I have -outgrown this rose colored muslin,” Margaret added. “Janey will just -love it, and she’ll look like a little wild rose-bud in it. I think -she’s the sweetest child, and Oh Virg, now since that nice Gordon -Traylor helped Mr. Wallace to perfect his water locating device that -forlorn family in Hog Canon won’t be so poor, will they?” - -But Virginia shook her head as though she were not at all sure that -immediate prosperity would follow. “Of course they have water now on -their place, but water won’t buy cattle, nor food, nor clothes. I -fear that prosperity is still far removed. Unless,” Virg had dropped -her sewing on her lap and was gazing thoughtfully out of the window, -“unless Mr. Wallace can induce some rich men to be pardners with -him. Without capital, he cannot make his invention of much value to -him.” - -“Hark, what’s all the shouting?” Margaret looked up to inquire. “It -sounds like wild Indians let loose. Isn’t it a shame, whatever it -is, for it surely will waken Malcolm and we did so want him to -sleep.” - -Virginia had leaped to the door to see who was coming. “Oh, good,” -she cried. “It’s Babs and Betsy and Peyton no less. Of course they -don’t know about brother and so would not think of being quiet.” - -Skipping out on the wide veranda, Megsy and Virg waved to the three -who were galloping down the mesa trail, but they had ceased their -shouting, having correctly interpreted Virg’s signal when she put -her fingers to her lips. - -“Is anyone sick?” Barbara inquired as she dismounted and gave the -mistress of V. M. a girlish hug. - -The other two listened anxiously. “Yes, that is, not exactly sick, -but I’ll tell you all about it when you come in. There’s Patsy -Mahoy.” The small Irish boy came on a run when Virg beckoned, and he -was proud indeed when she asked him to take the three ponies to the -corral. “Now we’ll go in and I’ll tell you what has happened. My, -Betsy, you and Babs look flushed and warm. It’s pretty hot riding so -far in the sun. Sit down, everybody, and I’ll go to our cooling -cellar and bring up some nice lemonade that Megsy and I made only an -hour ago, thinking that brother might like some every now and then.” - -“Let me get it,” Margaret was on her feet as she spoke. “You can -tell the story of the mine much better than I can.” And so Virg took -the chair her adopted sister had vacated and told to anxious -listeners how, when she and Margaret had returned from the Three -Cross Ranch, there had been no one at all at V. M. Then from poor -frightened Mrs. Mahoy they had learned of the cave-in over at the -mine. - -“Oh Virg!” Babs cried in alarm. “Your brother wasn’t hurt, was he?” - -“No, thank heaven, not really hurt,” the girl replied with fervent -gratitude, “but he was buried in that smothering place for several -hours. Uncle Tex thinks there must have been an air current -somewhere, or Malcolm could not have lived until they blasted.” - -“Blasted!” Peyton repeated in surprise. “That was taking a big -chance, wasn’t it?” - -“Yes, indeed! I shudder to think of it now, but then, when it was -the only thing that could possibly save my brother, it had to be -done of course.” - -“And you say he wasn’t hurt in the least?” - -“Not hurt, but he is so weak that he cannot stand alone, or rather -he could not then, and now he is asleep I am sure.” Then turning to -the listening lad, Virginia asked, “Peyton, where would you suggest -that brother be taken to have as complete a rest as he needs. I -would like to go to some place where even the scenery would be -different and where he couldn’t see a cow or a cowboy or anything -that would suggest his own occupation.” - -For a thoughtful moment the lad looked steadily into the questioning -eyes of the girl he loved. “Virginia,” he said at last, “if I were -as tired as Malcolm is, I know where I would want you to take me.” - -If there was an emphasis on the pronoun, it was unnoticed by the -others, but a sudden flush in the cheeks of Virginia and a tender -light in the eyes of the lad told more than mere words could. - -But when the girl spoke, it was as though her only thought had been -her brother’s welfare, as, indeed, it really had been. - -“Once, in the days of my rambling life,” it was the first time that -Peyton had ever referred to the time when he had run away from home -because his father was unkindly severe, “I boarded the train in -Boston and went to the end of the line, so to speak, and found -myself in paradise, if ever there was one on this earth of ours.” - -“Oh, then you must have been in California,” Margaret leaned forward -to exclaim. “That, of course, would be the end of the line if you -were crossing the continent, for there is nothing beyond but ocean. -I went there once with Mother when she was trying to get well, and -Oh, how wonderful it is! I’ve often hoped that I might go again, -although I would not want to revisit the same place, not where -little Mother and I were together.” - -“Of course not, dear,” the thoughtful Virginia had slipped an arm -about her adopted sister. Then glancing again at the lad who seldom -looked at anything or anyone but her, she asked. “Then you think -California the best place for us to take brother for a vacation and -to get back his strength?” - -“I do indeed. That’s where I’d want to go. Hark!” the lad lifted a -finger and listened. “I think I hear Malcolm calling.” - -“Oh yes, he must have awakened.” Virginia was skipping toward the -closed door at the opposite end of the long living room. “If he is -awake Peyton, I will call you.” Then the door opened and closed -again. The lad walked to the window and looked out. How all of the -brightness of the room had seemed to vanish when Virginia left it, -he was thinking. Then he rebuked himself, for dearly he loved his -pretty little “Dresden China” sister. He had heard the girls call -her that, because she seemed so breakable and withal so exquisitely -pink and blue and gold, with her fluffy sunlit curls, her eyes that -were like June skies and her rose-bud complexion which the winds of -the desert did not seem to want to tan. He did indeed, love her, but -his love for Virginia was different, so very different! But God had -planned it that way. Such love indeed was a gift from the Father of -them all and was to be treated reverentially, although, who could -treat it otherwise? It was with a start that the lad whirled when he -heard his name called. Virginia had returned and was standing by the -table pouring lemonade into a glass. “Brother has awakened and I -have propped him up on two pillows,” she was saying. “Will you take -this to him, Peyton, but don’t tell him as yet that we are planning -to take him away from his beloved ranch, for, if you do, he will -declare that everything will go to pieces if he isn’t here to hold -it together. We’ve got to plan a way to make him think, that, for a -time, V. M. will be better off, under different management.” Virg’s -smile, as she handed the brimming glass to the lad, was so frank and -friendly that he wondered, if, after all, it was merely comradeship -that she felt for him. Well, he could wait. He had promised never -again to mention his love for her until she was eighteen and she was -but seventeen now. However hard it might be, he meant to keep that -promise. Of one thing he was sure. Even though Virg might not care -for him in the big way yet, neither did she love any other lad. When -the door had closed behind Peyton, Betsy cried. “Oh good, here comes -Slim from the station and he has the Mail Bag.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXVII—UNEXPECTED NEWS - - -“Letters!! Letters! Who wants a letter?” Betsy Clossen had skipped -out to the wide veranda to receive the mail bag from the -good-looking young cowboy Slim. - -“I do!” - -“I’ll take three!” Megsy and Babs cried in chorus. - -“Oh Barbara, what a piggy-wig you are. Three indeed! Now, just to -punish you, it’s Virg who shall have the three and you only one.” -Betsy had poured the contents of the bag on the big library table -and was looking it over. Margaret and Virginia had returned to their -sewing. That latter maid found herself strangely indifferent to -whether or no there would be a letter for her. This she could easily -understand since, was she not at home with Uncle Tex and Malcolm, -and the girls she liked best were right then in the room with her, -and Peyton would not need to write her the weekly letter she had -received while she had been away at boarding school. Betsy -interrupted her thoughts by saying: “I was a prophet! Here are three -letters for Miss Virginia Davis. Guess, Virg, if you can, who they -may be from?” - -That tall slender maiden, being addressed, dropped her sewing in her -lap, as she replied, “I’d like to hear from dear Mrs. Martin. Is -there a foreign stamp on any of them, Betsy? Our beloved principal -must be in Japan, I suppose, about now, on her around the world -tour.” - -“Nary a foreign stamp. Well, since you can’t guess, I’ll give them -to you and when you open them up you will know who they are from.” - -“What a brilliant remark!” Barbara teased, but Virg having accepted -the letters Betsy had handed her, attracted the attention of them -all by exclaiming, “Well, if this isn’t the queerest! I’m just ever -so sure that the handwriting on this envelope is Winona’s, but it is -postmarked Red Riverton. What can she be doing up there? Ever since -she wrote that she was back on the desert with that nice Indian lad, -Fleet Foot, I have been hoping that she would come over to see us.” - -As she talked, Virginia was opening the envelope. The first line in -the letter caused her to cry joyfully, “Girls! Girls! Listen to -this!” - -“Dear White Lily,” the letter began. “I was married yesterday—” - -“What! Winona married to Fleet Foot?” Margaret and Betsy exclaimed -in excited chorus. - -“I’m sure I don’t know,” Virg told them. “Just wait a minute and -we’ll find out.” Her eyes went rapidly down the sheet and then -turning she gave Margaret an ecstatic little hug. “Oh, what glorious -news! Think of it! Our wonderful Winona has married that splendid -Harry Wilson. It seems that his mother has been ill for a long time -and Winona has been there as nurse ever since we came from school. -That’s why we haven’t seen her.” Then, turning a page, Virg read -aloud: - - -“I had never even thought of marrying anyone. Of course I knew that -most of all I admired Harry, but I believed that his mother would -want him to marry one of his own kind, but, Virginia, can you think -how great is my happiness when I tell you that his mother loves me, -really loves me, and asked me to be her daughter. - -“I have always been so alone, for my father, Chief Grey Hawk, and my -brother, Strong Heart, were much away, that it seems strange to me -that anyone should care. - -“I told Harry that much as I love him, I feared that it would be -hard for me to be as domestic as his wife should be, for there are -times when I feel that I am kin to the wind that sweeps over the -desert or to the bird that flies where it will. Then it was that -Harry told me his own good news. He has received an appointment as -state geologist and we are soon to start on horseback (our honeymoon -we call it) and travel all over Arizona that he may obtain specimens -of rock to send to Smithsonian Institute. - -“We would not go were it not that Mrs. Wilson is rapidly regaining -her strength and that her recently widowed sister in the East is -coming to keep house, and to make this her home. - -“I am sorry not to see my school-mates before we depart, but that -cannot be, as we leave on horseback at dawn tomorrow and journey -north.” - - -There were tears in the eyes of Virginia as she lifted them from the -letter to look at her friends. - -“How happy they are going to be,” she said, “I am glad for them -both.” - -“We were wondering who among us would be the first bride,” Betsy -remarked. “We little thought, did we, that it would be Winona?” - -Betsy Clossen had recognized her aunt’s handwriting on one of her -letters and so when Margaret asked which was to be read next, that -maiden eagerly announced, “Mine, please, for I do want to know what -Aunt Laura has to say. If the quarantine has been lifted, she will -want me to be coming home, and, although I have had the most -wonderful time here on the desert, and I am endlessly grateful to -you, Virginia, for having invited me, for you saved me from a most -desolate month all alone in school, still, of course, if the twins -have recovered, I do want to spend part of my vacation at my -mother-aunt’s Cape Cod home.” - -“I know dear,” Virginia replied, as she clasped her friend’s hand. -“Although other places may be interesting, there is no place quite -like the one that shelters our own home people. Read your letter and -tell us about it.” - -The missive did not take long to read. - - -“Darling girl,” it began. “I rejoice to be able to tell you that the -quarantine has been lifted and that the twins are wild to see their -best loved cousin Bettykins, and, as for me, my heart is yearning -for my sister’s motherless little daughter, so come, dear, just as -soon as the fastest train bound for the East can bring you to three -people who so dearly love you. - -“One of them being, Your Aunt Laura.” - - -“I don’t know whether to laugh or cry,” Betsy told them. “I’m so -glad somebody loves me that way. Mother and Aunt Laura were twins, -and she seems more like a mother to me than my other two aunts, -although, they, too, are nice.” Then putting her arms impulsively -about her hostess, she exclaimed, “Virginia, how can I thank you for -having been so kind, and you, too, Margaret.” She reached out and -clasped the hand of her other friend. Then she asked eagerly: “Virg, -shall you mind if I begin to pack at once and take the next train -East?” - -“Of course not, dear, I know just how you feel and we will help you, -but if you really take the next train, we will all have to rush to -get you ready.” - -“My letters can wait,” Margaret said unselfishly. “They are from -members of our Lucky Thirteen Club, and although I know that they -will be filled with jolly news items, they will be just as -interesting later.” - -As Megsy spoke, she placed her unopened letters between the pages of -a magazine on the table for safe keeping and then she joined the -other girls who were already opening Betsy’s trunk, preparing to -pack. - -That maiden had skipped to Malcolm’s room to tell him the news, but -she had found him asleep and, knowing that rest was one thing -required to restore his strength, she had tiptoed out. Three hours -later, she went again to his door, this time her hat and coat on. - -The lad had been informed by his sister of Betsy’s sudden and -unexpected departure and was prepared to say goodbye. - -“Miss Cossen,” he said as he held out his hand, “I hear that you are -a wonderful detective, and so, if we ever have need of your -services, may we send for you?” - -Betsy laughed. “Indeed yes, and don’t forget,” she replied, “for I -know that I will be just as wild to come back as I am now to go home -to Aunt Laura and the twins.” - -Another three hours had passed and Margaret and Virginia were again -in the living room having escorted Betsy to Silver Creek Junction, -where the train, being on time, had borne her away. - -“Well,” Virginia remarked as she sank down in a big easy chair, -“what a whirl of a day we have had. I am almost dizzy-tired. First -there was that exciting news about Winona’s marriage and then for -the last six hours we have rushed madly to get that dear girl -started for the place that is home to her. Now the next thing for us -to do is to decide where we shall take Malcolm for a complete rest.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXVIII—A PLACE TO GO - - -“I like Peyton’s suggestion that we go to California. I wish he had -been able to stay longer and tell us more about what he saw when he -was there. He might recall just the very place for us to take -Malcolm,” Megsy said. - -“I invited them to remain all night,” Virg remarked as she took up -her sewing, “but Peyton thinks, now that his trusted overseer, -Trujillo, has gone back to Mexico, that he had better not leave his -ranch long at a time until he has another equally dependable.” The -two of whom they were speaking had ridden back to “Three Cross” when -Margaret and Virginia had accompanied Betsy to the station at Silver -Creek. - -“What did I do with my letters, Virg?” Margaret had suddenly -recalled that she had not opened her mail. “I put them into -something for safe keeping. Oh yes, here they are! Why, I declare. -One of them is for you.” - -“Oho, this is great! It’s from Eleanor Pettes! I was hoping to hear -from her soon. She told me when she came to our closing exercises at -Vine Haven that she had written a story which she believed to be the -very best thing she had ever done and she was actually going to send -it to a real magazine. I suppose by now she has heard from it. How I -do hope that it was accepted.” - -“Eleanor writes so exceptionally well and had so much experience -editing the school magazine before she went to college prep that I -am sure, in time, she is bound to succeed,” Margaret was remarking -when her companion, having opened the letter, uttered a little -squeal of delight. - -“What is it, Virg? Has Eleanor sold her story? I am sure by the way -your eyes are shining that there must be good news.” - -Virginia had continued to silently read down the first page, then -she looked up, her face aglow. “Good? It’s glorious! Just wait until -you hear.” Then she read aloud from the delicately scented missive: - - -“Dear Kindred Spirit, - -“If I were not afraid of falling from the literary pedestal upon -which I know that you two girls have placed me, I would begin this -letter with some expressive school girl slang. ‘Gee whiliker, but -it’s corking good news.’ But since Betsy Clossen can use that more -naturally than I can, I’ll simply say that I am amazed beyond -comprehending what this wonderful thing is which has happened. I -find myself rubbing my eyes and pinching myself as did Alice in -Wonderland. ‘Can it be really true?’ I ask myself a dozen times a -day. Then, fearing it to be but a dream, or a plot that I have -planned for a story, I go again to my desk and take the letter -therefrom and re-read what it has to say on the subject. You never -could guess what it is, no one could. I couldn’t myself if I didn’t -know, so I will have to tell you. - -“I have inherited Something. I just had to start that with a capital -letter, for the inheritance surely deserves it. In fact it ought to -be all capital letters. Have I sufficiently aroused your curiosity? -Well, then, harken and you shall hear. - -“A great-aunt of my Dad’s (goodness knows how old she was, I don’t), -has left me her estate. Think of that, Virginia, if you can grasp a -thing so stupendous. I’ll agree it’s very hard to believe all at -once and sudden like. This same estate, it seems, is located in the -Garden of Eden, not figuratively, but really true. The name of the -place, however, on the railroad map (I don’t suppose it’s big enough -to be on a school geography), is San Ceritos and it’s in California, -that Paradise-on-earth that you and I have heard so much about. When -I say that I am wild to behold it with my own eyes, I only faintly -describe my feelings. Think of it, Virg, you who love nature as much -as I do, this estate of mine has mountains to shelter it at the back -and its wooded acres slope down to the sea. Dad says that the water -in that sheltered cove is at times as blue as the Mediterranean, and -I own it; or, that is, I own half of it, but the mysterious part of -all this is that I don’t know who owns the other half and I haven’t -any way of finding out. The will is the queerest! - -“Dad says that his Great-Aunt Myra was always called eccentric by -everyone who knew her. It seems that when she was a young girl she -was engaged, but on the very eve of her wedding day something -happened. Dad doesn’t know what, but his Great-Aunt Myra never -married. - -“Dad’s parents came East when he was a little fellow, and, although -he heard now and then of this aunt who had shut herself up in her -mountain and sea-encircled home, neither he, nor any of the kin that -he knew of, had really corresponded with her. She didn’t even know -of my existence until last year and it was just the merest chance -that she learned of it even then. It happened this way: You remember -last winter in school when we girls had such a fad for looking up -our family trees. Well, when I came home for the holidays, I asked -Dad to tell me about every Pettes he could think of. It was a stormy -night and we sat in the cosy library by the fireplace and I wrote -down on a pad all the names and addresses he could recall. At last -he came to this great-aunt. He just happened to think of her, and, -girls, what if he hadn’t? I decided to write to each of these -relatives, and, since Aunt Myra was the oldest living branch on the -family tree, out of courtesy I began with her and sent her my -picture, the one I had taken last May Day at school. I didn’t hear a -word in reply, I wasn’t even sure that she had received it, until -last week a legal-looking envelope arrived addressed to me. It -contained the startling information I have just imparted. - -“Well, as I said before, the will of my Dad’s Great-Aunt Myra is -surely the queerest. One might think that the dear old lady was _non -compos mentis_, but no, her attorney and servants report that up to -the last her mind was sane and sound. Of course, I am glad, for, if -she had not been mentally all right, the will, queer as it is, would -have been null and void, and your Kindred Spirit would not be -writing this thrilling epistle to tell you of her almost -incomprehensible inheritance. - -“The will, of course, is couched in high-sounding legal terms, and -so I’ll just tell you the gist of it. - -“‘I, Myra Pettes, do hereby will and bequeath one-half of my estate, -located between the Sierra Padre Mountains and the sea, to Eleanor -Pettes, the daughter of my grand-nephew, Oris Pettes, on condition -that she never opens the locked door of the upper front room until -she has found Hugh Ward, to whom I will and bequeath the other half -of my estate. When he has been found, they are to enter the room -together.’ - -“Did you ever hear of anything like that outside of a story-book? Of -course, _in_ a story queer things are to be expected, but in the -humdrum life of a school girl one doesn’t anticipate occurrences so -mysterious and exciting. - -“Hugh Ward! Who in the world do you suppose he is? Dad says he never -heard the name before, and even Great-Aunt Myra’s attorney reports -that he has no knowledge whatever of the man, young or old. They -have advertised in every paper in the country, but have had no -reply. I suppose he is some very old gentleman whom my Aunt Myra -knew when she was young. Perhaps we ought to hunt for him in a ‘home -for the aged and infirm.’ - -“Well, be that as it may, I am supposed to go West and occupy my new -possession; that is, all but the locked front room, and, since the -housekeeper, in sending a description of the place, informs me that -there are twenty rooms, ten of them being sleeping apartments, I -presume I will be able to get along without entering the one that is -locked. I don’t see how one lone-maiden can occupy ten bedrooms. Dad -is obliged to go to Europe this month. - -“Now harken and hear something which I think thrilling. Dad says I -may invite you and Margaret and Babs and the brothers I have heard -you tell about, Peyton and Malcolm, to accompany me when I visit my -new estate. I’m to have the use of Dad’s private car. For once I’m -glad he is a high-up railway official, and I’ll telegraph you at -what hour we will side-track at Douglas. If you can accept, be there -bag and baggage. I’m so excited I can hardly keep my feet on earth. -Sometimes I feel as though I were going to spin away up in the air. -Goodbye for now. I’ll telegraph tomorrow. - - “Your K. S. - “Eleanor.” - - -Virginia looked up with glowing eyes. “It sounds like magic, doesn’t -it?” she inquired. “We wish for a place to go, in fact, we were -wishing that we might go to this very California, and here is a -letter inviting us to do so.” - -Margaret was equally delighted and excited. “It’s perfectly -wonderful,” she agreed. “But, Virg, I didn’t suppose that dignified -girl could be so, well, girlishly jubilant about anything. Maybe -because she was a senior at school, I always thought she was -unusually mature, I mean.” - -“News like this is enough to make any one act hilarious,” Virg -declared. “Moreover, although Eleanor has a dignified carriage, I -know that she is very enthusiastic about ever so many things.” - -“Of course, you know her much better than I do,” Megsy agreed, -“since it was she who showed you how to edit the school magazine, -and, of course, you had an opportunity to get better acquainted, as -you spent hours together. I don’t wonder that Eleanor calls you -‘Kindred Spirit.’ I always did think that Winona and Eleanor were -more mental companions for you than any of the rest of us. Don’t -think I’m jealous, Virg. Honestly, I am not. I am glad that you do -love them, and even more glad that I have something no one can take -from me, and that is the great happiness of being your adopted -sister.” Then rising, Megsy held out her hand as she said, “If -Malcolm is awake, let’s read the letter to him and then tell him our -plan.” - -Silently Virginia rose and tenderly she kissed the quiet Margaret. -“I do love you, little sister, and you occupy a place in my heart -that no one else shall ever have.” Then with arms about each other, -they went softly toward the closed door. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIX—MALCOLM’S DECISION - - -Malcolm listened to the enthusiastic chatter of the two girls, who, -having read Eleanor’s letter to him were each trying to outdo the -other in thinking up arguments that might persuade the lad that -accepting the invitation was the very best thing that he could do -and just what he should do to regain his strength. - -“But who will conduct the V. M. Ranch? Tell me that,” the lad -protested. - -“Uncle Tex was overseer whenever Dad went away, and if our father -could trust his judgment, surely we can.” - -“Righto, and, with such able helpers as Slim and Lucky, I really -have nothing to fear on that score, and yet, of course, they might -need my advice now and then. Did your friend, Eleanor, mention a -town from which one could telegraph?” - -“Why, no, she didn’t, but of course there are towns everywhere. -However, that is the one thing we want to get you away from, a long -distance telephone or any other method of easy communication, for -every day you would be wanting to call up and find out if V. M. were -all right.” - -Then, as Malcolm still hesitated, Virg hastened on to say, “Of -course, I didn’t know that we might go to California, as I only just -now received this letter, but I _did_ know that we wanted to go -_somewhere_, and so, yesterday, I talked it all over with dear old -Uncle Tex and he agrees with me that it is your duty to all of us to -go where you can rest and when I said, ‘You could take charge of V. -M. just as you used to do for Dad, couldn’t you?’ Well, Malcolm, I -wish you could have seen that dear old man’s face. Glowing doesn’t -describe it. ‘Miss Virginie, dearie, Ah’d take it as powerful -complimentin’ if Malcolm’d trust me, Ah sure would, an Lucky an’ -Slim’d stand by me, that’s sartin’, was what he said, and his voice -trembled, brother, honestly it did.” - -“I know how he feels,” the lad declared earnestly. “Uncle Tex has -felt much like an old horse may, one that we feel has outlived its -usefulness and is given pasturage for the rest of its life. Dad told -us that he once had a horse like that. He thought it had served him -long enough, and so he did not permit any of the boys to ride it, -but after a time, he noticed that the old horse used to come up to -the bars when its companions were being saddled and actually looked -wistful, as though it were being left out. Then came the day of the -great stampede. You’ve heard Father tell about it time and again, -Virg, how the boys were all away helping Mr. Slater with his -roundup, and only old Peter left in the fenced-in pasture. The boys -had cut out our cattle and had started them for home, Dad says, when -all of a sudden he heard a noise that sounded like distant thunder. -As it neared, he knew it to be the pounding of hoofs; then he could -hear the bellowing of frightened cattle. He was alone on the ranch -and the only horse nearby was old Peter. - -“Dad ran to the rise of ground above the dry creek and saw that the -maddened herd was swerving toward the north and might be lost in -that waterless part of the desert called ‘The Burning Acres.’ While -he was wondering what could be done to stop them, he heard a shrill -whistling neigh from old Peter. Dad turned in time to see that horse -race across the small pasture and leap that high-barred fence, nor -did it stop, but kept on galloping as it had in its younger days, -directly toward the mass of surging cattle. Dad said he was sure the -old horse would be trampled to death. Many a time, in years gone by, -he himself had ridden Peter when he wanted to turn cattle back, and -now, though riderless, the old horse seemed bent on doing that very -thing. Dad said he held his breath, but the unexpected happened. The -cattle, not knowing what to make of the horse that was hurling -itself at them, did swerve, and then, to Dad’s great joy, they -descended into a dry creek where, since they could not run, they -were soon under the control of the cowboys who came riding on ponies -that were covered with lather.” - -“What of old Peter?” Megsy inquired. “Did he die then from -exhaustion?” - -“Indeed not!” Malcolm told her. “And never again was he treated as -though his days of usefulness were all over. Dad himself rode him, -not on hard rides, to be sure, but whenever he was just going to the -station or to visit with a neighbor, and, after that, the old horse -seemed much more content.” Then turning to his sister, the lad said, -“I recalled that story when you told me how almost wistfully eager -Uncle Tex was to be once more trusted as overseer of the place. And -he shall be, too. Dear faithful old man.” - -“Then you will go with us? You will let us take you to this -wonderful San Ceritos?” the two girls cried at once. - -Laughingly the lad held out a hand to each of them. “Damsels fair,” -he said, “take me wherever you wish, but now please depart. I wish -to lay my plans.” - -Then Margaret accused, “Malcolm, there are twinkles in your eyes. I -do believe that you are amused at something.” - -The lad, who still held the hand of his ward, turned and looked at -her, then he smiled again as though he were pleased with what he -saw, as indeed he well might be, for Margaret had been so excited -that her cheeks were flushed and as pink as roses, while her dreamy -brown eyes were shining like stars. Then, as the lad continued to -gaze at her, the color deepened, and, withdrawing her hand, she said -mischievously, “Virginia, perhaps we better go, since Malcolm has -just told us that he prefers his own thoughts to our company.” - -“I’ve changed my mind,” the lad declared. “I’d rather have you -stay.” - -Virginia, who for the last few moments had been busy in another part -of the room, turned suddenly and looked intently at her brother as -though she were surprised about something. He was usually so -serious, so occupied with business that she had forgotten that he -could tease. Then her face brightened, and stooping, she kissed him -lightly on the forehead. “You are much better, dear, aren’t you?” -she said, then taking her friend by the arm, she continued, “Come, -Megsy, let’s hie us to our rooms and select the wardrobe we are to -take with us. Eleanor’s telegram may come tomorrow and we will then -have not more than three days to prepare for the journey.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXX—A SCARE - - -Late that afternoon the two girls went out to feed the hens and -then, as was often their custom, they climbed the trail to the mesa -that they might watch the sunset. On their return, Margaret gathered -a few late desert flowers to place on the table beside Malcolm’s -bed. It was still daylight when they returned and Megsy went at once -to the closed door and tapped thereon. There was no response. What -could it mean? Even if Malcolm had fallen asleep, the rapping would -have awakened him. Beckoning to Virginia, she whispered anxiously, -“Oh, Virg, what can have happened? Your brother can’t have lost -consciousness, could he?” - -There was a sudden terror in the heart of Virginia. Leaping forward, -she turned the knob, but the door was locked. Before they could be -thoroughly frightened, however, they heard a merry laugh, and there -stood Malcolm back of them. He had on his nice wooly bathrobe that -the girls had given him for Christmas and his comfortable slippers. - -“You see,” he apologized, “I’ve never had an opportunity to wear -them before, because this is the first time I’ve ever been even near -sick, so please don’t scold, and I _did_ want to get up and have -supper with you girls. It seems to me that I’ve been in bed for -weeks.” - -“One, only, to be accurate,” his sister corrected. “Malcolm, you sit -down in this easy chair at once and let me feel your pulse.” - -“Very well, nurse,” the lad smilingly complied. In fact he was glad -to sink into the big comfortable chair, which was drawn close to the -hearth. He wasn’t as strong as he had expected to be. Virginia -brought a knitted blanket to put over his knees while Margaret put -sofa pillows back and around him. - -“If I’m treated this way,” he beamed, “I’m not at all sure that I’ll -want to get well.” - -“Let’s have our supper in here by the fire,” Virginia suggested. - -“Oh yes, let’s,” Megsy seconded. “Now, what ought our patient to -eat? Bring me a pencil and paper and I’ll write my order.” There was -again that merry twinkle in the eyes that were often so serious. - -Margaret skipped to the big writing desk and returned with the -requested materials. “And while you think about it, Virg and I will -prepare for the feast.” They brought Virginia’s work table from her -room and spread it with a dainty lunch cloth and put Margaret’s red -blossoms in the center. “I don’t see what Malcolm can be writing,” -Virginia said. “He ought only to have eggs on toast or something -like that.” But when a moment later she looked at the paper which -the lad gaily presented, she said, “Why Malcolm Davis, you’ve -ordered everything that you ought not to have. Creamed oysters, of -all things!” - -“Perhaps they wouldn’t hurt him,” interceded Margaret. “And you know -the thing you have a hankering for is supposed to be what you need.” -Then clapping her hands girlishly, she exclaimed, “Oh Virg, please -say that we may have them. I’ll get the chafing dish out of my -trunk. You know what fun we had in school with it. Then you get two -cans of oysters, the milk, butter and seasoning, and we can prepare -it all right here on the table. Wouldn’t that be jolly?” - -Virginia agreed that it would. Then she prepared the toast while -Margaret, flushed and happy because she could do something for her -beloved guardian, stirred up the cream sauce and dropped in the -oysters. Malcolm, leaning back in solid comfort, watched and -admired. At last he commented, “Did ever a chap in all the world -have two such sisters to take care of him!” - -There was a sudden twinge in the heart of Margaret. What could it -mean? Surely she was glad, glad to have the splendid Malcolm call -her “sister.” There was a note of tender wistfulness in her voice, -which she herself did not know when she replied, “We would do -anything, give up anything, Oh, it doesn’t matter what, if it would -add to your happiness, Brother Malcolm.” Almost unconsciously the -girl was thinking of the time that would surely come when someone, -perhaps now unknown to them, would take in his life a place closer -than that of sister. - -“Toast’s ready! How about the creamed oysters?” Virginia looked up -from the hearth where she had been kneeling. - -“It’s done to a turn.” Megsy’s voice was merry once more. Then Virg -put the buttered slices of toast on each plate, and Margaret placed -dainty portions of the creamed oysters on them. - -Malcolm ate with greater relish than he had since he had been ill or -rather exhausted, for he had no definite malady, just extreme -weariness. When he asked for a second portion, he pretended to look -imploringly at Virginia as though he feared she would say, “You have -had sufficient for tonight.” And, indeed, maybe she might have said -something of the kind, but Margaret was refilling his plate and it -was too late to protest. - -When the dainty little meal was over and the small table had been -carried away, Malcolm smiled contentedly at the two girls, who sank -into nearby chairs, the light from the fire falling on their faces. -For a time they were silent, each thinking his or her own thoughts. -At last Malcolm said, “Virg, are they worth the proverbial penny?” - -The girl looked up brightly. “I was wondering how we are to convey -Eleanor’s invitation to Babs and Peyton,” she replied. “I do hope -that they can accompany us.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXXI—DAWN THOUGHTS - - -The next morning before daylight Margaret was conscious that someone -was stirring in the room next to hers. Becoming more fully awake, -she rose, drew on her kimono and slippers and tiptoed to the door -which stood open between the bedrooms of the two girls. - -In the dim grey light she saw Virginia dressing. She was donning her -riding khakis. - -“Why, Virg!” Megsy exclaimed in surprise, “where away so early? You -aren’t going to ride to the Three Cross Ranch, are you, to tell Babs -and Peyton about the invitation?” - -“Not this morning, dear. I want to wait until we receive the -telegram from Eleanor that I may be more definite in what I have to -tell them.” - -“Then, where are you going? I might guess the Papago Village, only I -know that Winona is not there.” - -Virginia smiled brightly. “It’s an odd fancy, this of mine,” she -confessed, “but last night I had a dream; one of those wonderfully -realistic dreams when you feel sure that you are awake and that the -something is actually happening. I dreamed that you and I had ridden -over to Hog Canon to see the Wallace family. You know, Megsy, my -conscience has troubled me because, after our first visit, I never -went again and that was at least three weeks ago. Mrs. Wallace and -the children have so little to interest them that even a visit from -their neighbors seems like a treat.” - -Megsy, seated on the edge of the bed, remarked, “I don’t believe -they feel that way about neighbors in general, but just about -Virginia Davis in particular.” - -The girl, who was lacing her high riding boots, looked up with a -smile. “My friends spoil me, don’t they, Megsy. It’s well that I -know myself as I am not as they try to picture me. While I’m gone, -will you take good care of my brother? I want him to stay in bed all -morning, though you may have Sing Long make him some nice broth at -ten if you will. However, I expect to be back long before that.” - -Virginia had not asked her friend to accompany her and Margaret, -though she had thought of requesting to be allowed do so, believed -that for some reason Virg wished to be alone, nor was she wrong. - -It was still the grey of early dawn when the girl ran down the trail -leading to the small pasture where the ponies remained at night. -Some of them were lying down and others were tugging at an enclosed -haystack which was kept filled with the long desert grass that grew -in the valley pasture, a mile from the house. But one among them -whinnied as the girl approached and, kicking up frolicsome heels, he -cantered to the bars, knowing well that his mistress was about to -let them down. And he was right. - -“Good morning, Comrade,” Virginia said as she smoothed his nose -affectionately. “Would you like to take me for a ride this morning?” - -Again the pony whinnied. “Of course, I knew you would, and if you -won’t tell, I’ll tell you a secret. I wanted to be all alone just -once more before I go away. There’s something I want to think about. -It doesn’t have to be decided just yet; not until I’m nearer -eighteen, but I do want to be thinking about it.” - -Then kissing the flipping ear of her apparently interested -companion, the girl started on a light run to the shed near the -great windmill where the saddles hung. Comrade, with colt-like -antics, followed. It was evident that he was trying to express the -joy that he, too, felt at being the only companion his loved -mistress desired. - -They had crossed the dry creek bed and had climbed up on the high -opposite bank before a flush of rose appeared in the eastern skies. -Virginia drew rein and sat for one long silent moment watching the -loveliness of the dawning day. A fleecy white cloud near the horizon -became opalescent with first one exquisitely delicate color and then -another. Then with a burst of glory, the sun rose in sheets of -flaming gold and the desert, which had been like a gloomy waste of -desolation but a moment before, was transformed to a wide billowing -expanse of shimmering silvery-grey. - -Jack rabbits fearlessly gamboled about the girl and pony; birds sang -and a wren darted from its nest in the top of a choya cactus to -contentedly return again to its wee young when it knew that the one -who was passing by was a friend of all things that live. - -The trail dipped into a hollow where mesquite grass grew. Instantly -there was a whirring rush of wings and a flock of quail soared high -into the air, to whirl, a moment later, and settle back to their -former feeding place. It made the heart of the girl rejoice because -her wild neighbors seemed to know that she was one of them. - -“We’re all kin folks, somehow, though we can’t understand, and why -try, since the sages of all time have not yet been able to tell how -a wee seed can fashion a flower. After all, Comrade, if we’re just -kind to every form of life we meet on this wonderful earth, I think -we will have done the best we know.” - -There was a long stretch of sand to be crossed before the Seven Peak -Range would be reached and the girl, watching the trail ahead, -gradually became unconscious of all about her and was once again on -the rock in the moonlight with the lad who loved her at her side. - -“I might think that I care enough to marry Peyton,” she was -thinking, “but would it be quite fair to others? There are Barbara, -and Malcolm and Margaret to consider. I just couldn’t leave my -wonderful brother all alone on V. M. My adopted sister I might take -to Three Cross with me, if I went to live there, but Malcolm—I just -can’t leave him! First he lost the mother whom he so idolized, and -then our father, and never did a boy have a closer pal than Dad was, -and now if I go, he will lose his only sister and be so lonely and -so all alone. I only wish he might meet some nice girl for whom he -could care as Peyton cares for me, but he does not seem to feel the -need of love; I mean, not that way.” - -Then it was that another thought suggested. “Perhaps it is just -because he has you that he has not thought of bringing another -mistress to V. M. Perhaps he would care for someone, if he knew you -were going away.” - -Suddenly there was a rush of tears in the violet eyes, and -impulsively leaning her cheek against her pony’s head, Virginia said -with a little half sob, “Oh Comrade, I don’t believe after all that -I really care for Peyton as much as I should, for I can’t bear the -thought of leaving my very own home where Mother and Dad were so -happy and where I have been so loved. I can’t think of any other -girl I would want there, but just Margaret, and, of course, she -would want to go with me.” - -Then looking up with a smile that flashed through the tears she held -out her arms to the shining sky. “Little Mother,” she said softly, -as though she were really addressing someone, “I am forgetting that -you told me to let my life blossom as quietly and trustingly as a -flower unfolds, knowing that the right thing will come at the right -time.” Then again the girl ruminated, “How topsy-turvy would be this -universe of ours if the flowers said to themselves, ‘Dear me, I -wonder now if I’d better open up my petals to the sun; no telling -how soon clouds may come and my bloom spoiled in a storm.’ - -“Comrade, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to trust, and let -my life blossom as it will. What would Brother Malcolm think if he -knew that I am trying to marry him to someone whom as yet he doesn’t -know?” Then as the canon trail had been reached, Virg turned her -pony’s head that way and slowly began the ascent. - - - - -CHAPTER XXXII—NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS - - -It was Peter Wallace who first saw the approaching visitor. -Instantly his joyful shout rang out, “Ma! Ma! Here she is! Here’s -Miss Virgie just as you were a-wishing.” - -So, after all, Mrs. Wallace had been wanting to see the girl and, -with a panicky feeling in her heart, she hoped that nothing was -seriously wrong. “What if someone were ill or—” She had no time for -further surmizing, for Comrade, having reached the top of the trail, -made it possible for her to see the little house overhung with -sheltering rocks. What she saw amazed her more than anything she had -fancied. - -Trunks stood packed and strapped on the small front porch. The house -had evidently been closed for an indefinite period as there were -wooden blinds at the windows barred across, and the entire family -was arrayed as for a journey. Mr. Wallace at the moment was busily -boarding up the front door. - -Had the water supply ceased? Were they being forced to leave and -where could they be going? But it was evident by the shining face of -the little mother that the something that had happened must be of a -pleasant nature. “Oh, Miss Virginia,” she was hurrying forward with -hands outstretched as soon as the girl had dismounted, “how I did -want to see you before we left, but I just couldn’t think of a way. -I believe I sent you messages all day yesterday to say goodbye. Did -you get any of them?” - -“I did indeed, Mrs. Wallace. That’s why I came,” the girl replied, -glad indeed that she had followed her intuitive guiding. Then, as -her roving eyes seemed to be asking a question, the mother hurried -on to answer it. “You wonder where we are going. It’s almost like an -answer to prayer. In fact, I think it _is_ an answer, and a -fulfillment of Dad’s faith. We’re going to Douglas to live where the -children can get a schooling.” - -“I am going to Yale,” freckled-faced Peter put in excitedly. - -“Ssh! Sonny, you mustn’t be telling that around, or folks will think -you’re a bit queer. Little boys don’t go to Yale, and you’ll have to -study powerfully hard and be extra smart to ever get there, won’t -he, Miss Virginia?” - -“I believe he’ll make it.” The girl had placed a loving hand on the -hair that was sunburnt, for the boy’s expression had been suddenly -crestfallen. “Keep it always as your goal, Peter, and before many -years you’ll be writing me a letter telling me that you’re on your -way to that great Eastern college.” Then to the mother, “Now, please -begin at the beginning and tell me what has happened? Did the water -give out?” - -It was Mr. Wallace who replied as he advanced with a hand -outstretched. “Indeed it did not and it’s the water that has brought -us our wonderful good luck, or rather, the instrument, I suppose.” - -Virginia’s expressive face encouraged the speaker to continue, which -he did. “You recall that fine lad who camped down at the entrance to -the canon, the one who came up here with you?” - -“Yes, indeed, the Traylors. I have been hoping we’d hear more about -both of them. Have you seen them again?” - -“Well, not exactly seen them, but Mr. Traylor sent a legal -representative to see me. He said that, because of his son’s glowing -descriptions of my invention, he wanted to back me financially in -having it patented. He also offered me a splendid position in -connection with his smelting founderies in Douglas and Bisbee. It -seems that for some time he has been trying to perfect some -labor-saving devices and he believes, and so do I, that it can be -done.” - -“And it isn’t something we’re taking on chance either,” Mrs. Wallace -hastened to explain. “Dad, of course, is pretty much of a dreamer -but this is a sure income for five years with a signed contract -backing it.” - -At this point, Peter, who had evidently been watching from a peak -higher up, flew down to the group crying excitedly, “It’s coming, -Ma! Mr. Slater’s truck that’s to take us to town.” - -“Well, I don’t know when I have heard more wonderful news,” the -visiting girl declared. “I won’t say goodbye, for, after all, you -are still to remain one of my neighbors. Douglas, being only twenty -miles away, with a good road between it and V. M., is almost nearer -via our auto, then it is to Hog Canon on horseback.” - -Then she shook hands with the grown-ups, kissed the children, who -clung to her, left a bundle with Sari and another with Jane, telling -Peter that his would come later, and rode away. - -“Don’t open them yet,” the mother said. “I know what’s in them. Miss -Virgie told me. They are pretty dresses that she and her friend have -made for you girlies. They’ll be just what you need for starting in -school. Goodness, where is your Dad?” - -“There he is, high up where the spring is. Now, he’s coming. Hurry -Pop! Mr. Slater’s cowboys are coming up the trail to pack our trunks -down.” - -The man’s eyes glowed, but he spoke no word. Silently he reached out -his hand and clasped that of his faithful little wife, and she -understood. - -The End. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIRGINIA'S RANCH -NEIGHBORS *** - -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 an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. 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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="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: Virginia's Ranch Neighbors</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Grace May North</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: December 19, 2021 [eBook #66974]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: Roger Frank and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIRGINIA'S RANCH NEIGHBORS ***</div> - -<h1>VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS</h1> - -<hr class='tps' /> - -<div id='001' class='mt10 mb10 w001'> - <img src='images/illus-001.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> - <p class='caption'>They were entering the door-yard where a cowboy advanced to take their ponies.</p> -</div> - -<hr class='tps' /> - -<div class='tac'> - <div class='fs12 mb10'>VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS</div> - <div class='mb10'>By GRACE MAY NORTH</div> - <div>Author of</div> - <div class='fs09'>“Virginia of V. M. Ranch,” “Virginia at Vine Haven,”<br /> - “Virginia’s Adventure Club,” “Virginia’s Romance.”</div> - <div id='002' class='mt10 mb10 w002'> - <img src='images/illus-002.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> - </div> - <div>A. L. BURT COMPANY</div> - <div>Publishers    New York</div> - <div class='fs09'>Printed in U. S. A.</div> -</div> - -<hr class='tps' /> - -<div class='tac'> -<div class='mb10'>THE<br /> -<span class='fs12'>VIRGINIA DAVIS SERIES</span></div> -<div class='mb05'>A SERIES OF STORIES FOR GIRLS OF TWELVE<br /> -TO SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE<br /> -By GRACE MAY NORTH</div> -<div class="tac"> - <div style="display:inline-block; text-align:left; font-size:0.9em;"> - <div class="cbline">VIRGINIA OF V. M. RANCH</div> - <div class="cbline">VIRGINIA AT VINE HAVEN</div> - <div class="cbline">VIRGINIA’S ADVENTURE CLUB</div> - <div class="cbline">VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS</div> - <div class="cbline">VIRGINIA’S ROMANCE</div> - </div> -</div> -<div class='mb05 mt10 fs09'> -Copyright, 1924<br /> -By A. L. BURT COMPANY<br /> -VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS</div> -<div>Made in “U. S. A.”</div> -</div> - -<hr class='tps' /> - -<h2 id='chI' class='chapter' title='I. HOME ONCE MORE'> - <span class='fs12'>VIRGINIA’S RANCH NEIGHBORS</span><br /><br /> - <span class='fs12'>CHAPTER I</span><br/> - <span>HOME ONCE MORE</span> -</h2> - -<p>“Oh Virg, are we really to arrive at your desert -home this morning?” Betsy Clossen exclaimed the -first moment that she opened her eyes on the fifth -day after their departure from the Vine Haven -Boarding School.</p> - -<p>“Not until nearly noon,” Virginia, who was -dressing in the lower berth, smiled up at the eager -face that peered down from the upper.</p> - -<p>“And will your nice brother Malcolm be there -to meet us, do you suppose?”</p> - -<p>“I certainly hope so. I wired him from Chicago -that we were to be on this train. If he can’t come -himself, for any reason, he will surely send Lucky -over with the car.”</p> - -<p>“That’s one disillusioning thing about the -desert,” Betsy continued. “I’m powerfully sorry -that you have an automobile. It’s heaps too modern. -I wish we were to be met with a—well a -prairie schooner or something like that.”</p> - -<p>Virg laughed. “I’m afraid you are going to be -disappointed in us, Betsy. You’ll find V. M. really -quite tame if you have been reading Wild West -stories.” Then Margaret said quietly to her berth -companion, “I do wish something exciting would -happen the moment we arrive, don’t you, Virg?”</p> - -<p>The older girl smiled but shook her sunny head. -“No need to wish for that these days, dear. Life -in Arizona is not nearly as thrilling as it is in the -city of New York, if one can believe the newspapers.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t tell Betsy, for if she thinks it is to be too -commonplace, it will take all the thrill of expectancy -out of it for her. You know she is never really -enjoying herself unless there is a mystery to unravel -or some adventure awaiting her.”</p> - -<p>Fifteen minutes later the four girls were in the -dining car.</p> - -<p>Betsy beamed on her companions. The early -morning sun falling on her red-brown hair made it -shine like burnished gold.</p> - -<p>“Even your freckles look gilded this morning,” -Barbara teased.</p> - -<p>The pug nose of the youngest wrinkled at her -tormentor, then with an excited little squeal she exclaimed, -“Oh, isn’t the desert just gloriously lonesome -looking? Those mountains over there are so -bleak and gray and the canons so dark! I can’t see -a living thing anywhere, can you?”</p> - -<p>Margaret, being questioned, peered out at the -wide sandy waste of desert stretching to the distant -mountains that rose grim, gray and forbidding. -Here and there a clump of greasewood or of mesquite -was half buried in mounds of sand that the -frequent whirlwinds had left.</p> - -<p>Betsy shivered. “Girls,” she said solemnly, “the -very scene teems with mystery. I just feel sure -that an exciting adventure is about to begin at most -any moment. The setting is perfect for one. I’m -going to watch that sandhill over there as long as -it’s in sight. I expect to see a Mexican bandit peer -around it and utter a shrill cry which will mean—”</p> - -<p>“Do the young ladies wish oatmeal this morning?” -It was the suave waiter who had interrupted, -and although the girls gave their orders with -solemn faces, they laughed merrily when they were -again alone.</p> - -<p>“It’s too bad to disappoint you, Betsy, but that’s -about the way all of your hoped-for adventures will -end,” Virginia told her friend.</p> - -<p>The four girls, Virginia Davis, the seventeen-year-old -mistress of V. M. Ranch and her adopted -sister, Margaret Selover, who was sixteen, their -neighbor, Barbara Blair Wente, also sixteen, and -Virginia’s guest, Betsy Clossen, who as yet was but -fifteen, had traveled from Vine Haven, where they -had been attending boarding school for the past -year.</p> - -<p>Although the other three girls were well acquainted -with the Arizona desert, Betsy Clossen had never -been west of Chicago. However, she had often frequented -that big city, as she had many others in -the east, for her father was a famous detective who -was often following clues that led him from Chicago -to New York, and, at first, not wanting to be -parted from his motherless little girl, he had taken -her with him, but at last, believing that he was doing -the child an injustice, he had placed her in the Vine -Haven boarding school, where she had since remained, -making friends of all whom she met. The -years she had spent as her father’s close companion -had given her an insight into the ways of -unraveling mysteries and the game had fascinated her adventure-loving -nature.</p> - -<p>To the great amusement of the girls she was always -trying to imagine a mystery that she might -solve it, but in the past year she had twice failed -while two of her comrades who had no such ambition -had been successful, and so, no wonder was -it that Betsy looked forward to the desert as a place -where she would surely find a mystery to solve.</p> - -<p>Virginia, who had been born on the V. M. Ranch, -which was twenty miles from the town of Douglas, -and who had lived there all her seventeen years, -was indeed overjoyed because she was returning to -the home she so loved, to her very dear brother Malcolm -Davis and to old Uncle Tex, who, when he -was younger, had been the foreman of V. M.</p> - -<p>The father of Barbara Wente had recently purchased -the Dartley Ranch which was four miles -north of V. M. This he had given to his son Peyton. -Barbara had learned that the old house was -interesting, but she had never seen it as, with the -other girls, she had left almost at once after the deal -had been completed, for the school in the east.</p> - -<p>“What do you think, Virg?” Babs chattered as -the four girls with their hats on and their bags -ready, sat peering ahead, “Peyton wrote in his very -last letter that he hasn’t even opened the old ranch -house yet. He is leaving it for us to do.”</p> - -<p>“I adore old houses,” Betsy began, when Virginia -exclaimed as she pointed out the windows. “See -that dark hole in the mountain just ahead of us?” -The others leaned forward to look.</p> - -<p>“Oh, good!” Margaret exclaimed. “It’s the last -tunnel, and Silver Creek station is just beyond.” -Megsy turned toward her adopted sister, a flushed -eagerness betraying the excitement she felt. “Just -think, Virg, in ten minutes we are to see Malcolm.”</p> - -<p>Betsy uttered a little excited squeal as the train -plunged into the darkness of the tunnel.</p> - -<p>“Virg, isn’t this a thrilling moment,” Barbara -whispered, “not being sure who is to be at the other -end?”</p> - -<p>Sunlight again flashed into the car windows. -Virginia stooped and looked out. “There’s the -little old station that’s the only house for miles and -miles around, but I don’t see anyone on the platform -except the old man who lives there. Wonder -what has happened?”</p> - -<p>Mr. Wells, the Silver Creek station master, hurried -forward when he saw that the limited was -slowing down. It never stopped unless it had passengers. -When the four girls alighted, the tallest -placed her bags on the platform and went toward -the weather-tanned middle aged man with hands -outstretched. “Oh, Mr. Wells,” she exclaimed, -and her voice betrayed her anxiety, “why isn’t my -brother here to meet me, or Uncle Tex or one of -the boys? I sent them a telegram. Didn’t you get -it?”</p> - -<p>The small boy, Davie, who had a front tooth -missing, had come running up from somewhere. -“Yes’m, Miss Virginia,” he said breathlessly, “I -took the telegram over to V. M. two days ago jest -as soon as Pa give it to me. Mis’ Mahoy was all -the folks I could find. The men was out riding the -range. She said they seemed to be huntin’ for -something. She didn’t know what, but they acted -mighty puzzlin’. Uncle Tex, though, he was -’spected back that night or the next.”</p> - -<p>The girls had gathered around, listening, when -suddenly the boy, who felt very important, as he -was the center of attention, suddenly leaped across -the platform and looked toward the north. “Pa,” -he shouted, “see that dust cloud a-comin’? D’y -’spose it’s a stampede or suthin’? D’y ’spose—”</p> - -<p>“I do believe it’s our automobile.” Virginia -shaded her eyes to gaze through the dazzling sunshine. -It was indeed, but it was approaching in -such a zig-zag manner that even Mr. Wells was -puzzled.</p> - -<p>“I reckon the fellar at the steerin’ gear is plumb -beat out. I figger that thar car’s sort o’ runnin’ itself,” -he speculated.</p> - -<p>The watchers were convinced that this was true -for as the cloud of sand cleared away, they could -see the big seven passenger car that belonged to the -V. M. Ranch, but the driver was neither Lucky nor -Malcolm.</p> - -<p>“It can’t be Uncle Tex, for he doesn’t know how -to drive,” Virginia had just said, when Margaret -exclaimed, “But it is Uncle Tex, and he certainly -doesn’t know how to drive. Oh, Virg, did you see -the lunge he took just then? I do believe he is going -right over the tracks and down into the dry -creek instead of coming this way.”</p> - -<p>“Mighty-tighty!” The station master’s favorite -expletive expressed his consternation. “Cain’t -nuthin’ be done to head him off? I dunno a tarnel -thing about them pesky iron-bronchos.”</p> - -<p>Virginia had caught one glance of the driver’s -face as the front wheel had struck a hummock of -sand, causing the car to swerve. If it should cross -the tracks, it would plunge over the steep bank and -crash down among the huge rocks on the bed of -the dry creek.</p> - -<p>Leaping from the platform Virginia shouted, -“Uncle Tex, stop the car!”</p> - -<p>Luckily it had slowed considerably since the -sand, through which it was ploughing, was deep -and soft. Virginia sprang upon the running board, -leaned over and shut off the gas.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Tex,” she cried, “why did you risk your -life that way?” The old man removed his sombrero -and was mopping his brow. “I dunno, Miss -Virginia, dearie, I foresee, now, I orter not have -done it, but it allays looked plumb easy, and when -thar wan’t no one else to come an’ meet yo’ all, I -jest figgered as I’d take a chance.”</p> - -<p>The girl got in the car and skillfully brought it -alongside the platform. Then, leaping out, she began -stowing the bags in back, while Margaret and -Babs welcomed the old man, who found, when he -tried to stand that his knees were “plumb beat out.” -Betsy was introduced, then Virginia asked, “Why -didn’t Malcolm come?”</p> - -<p>Uncle Tex looked quickly around to be sure that -Mr. Wells was out of hearing, then he said softly, -“I cain’t be tellin’ ye, least-wise, not here, Miss -Virginia, dearie. Malcolm said, ‘Keep it dark.’ -He’s all right, though. You needn’t be fearin’ as -to that.”</p> - -<p>Betsy had heard enough of this conversation to -be tingling with curiosity and excitement. It certainly -did sound to her as though there was both -mystery and adventure awaiting them, nor was she -wrong.</p> - -<h2 id='chII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='II. HUNTING THE SURPRISE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER II</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>HUNTING THE SURPRISE</span> -</h2> - -<p>With Virginia at the wheel, the seven passenger -car kept on the well-beaten road that extended from -the Silver Creek Junction to the V. M. Ranch.</p> - -<p>Uncle Tex sat beside the girl whom he so loved -and the three on the rear seat often sent smiling -glances, one to another, as they noticed his pride -in his “gal’s” skillful driving.</p> - -<p>“Seems powerful pleasin’ to have yo-all back, -Miss Virginia dearie,” the old man said as the car -began the ascent of the mesa road.</p> - -<p>The girl at the wheel flashed him a bright smile. -“Oh, but it’s good to be home. I can hardly wait to -reach the top of the trail.” Then glancing back over -her shoulder, she called “Betsy, in just another moment -you are to behold the nicest spot on earth, or, at -least, it is to me.” Then chancing to recall something, -she inquired “Uncle Tex, I’m just ever so -curious to know what the surprise is that you have -for me. May I have three guesses?”</p> - -<p>She and Malcolm as children had always had -three guesses whenever the old man had brought -them a treasure from out on the range. Then, when -they had guessed, they searched through his many -pockets to find it. The weather-tanned face -wrinkled in an amused smile. “I reckon ’twould -take more’n three guesses, Miss Virginia, this time, -I reckon ’twould, an’ even then, ’twon’t be found -in my pocket nowise.”</p> - -<p>“Oho, that’s a hint. It’s something big!” Then -over her shoulder. “Girls, help guess. Megsy, you -and Babs have lived with me at V. M., so you might -perhaps, think what Uncle Tex has planned for my -surprise.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe it’s a new hen-corral,” Margaret suggested. -“I remember one twilight last year when -I went out to get the eggs, and found a coyote in -the hen house, Uncle Tex said the very first thing -he was going to do after we left was to build -stronger fences.”</p> - -<p>The pleased grin on the old man’s face was evident -even to the girls on the back seat. “Ah was -messin’ round fixin’ that fence long fore yo-all’s -train hit the big city, I reckon, but that guess -missed the heifer, so coil yer rope and throw -again.”</p> - -<p>Betsy chuckled. She was delighted with the old -man, not only because he was such an interesting -character but also because he was lovable.</p> - -<p>“Hm’ let me see!” Babs pretended to think hard. -“I recall now that Virginia wished she had a pond -near the wind mill so that she might keep ducks.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, but Uncle Tex wrote me that he had made -a duck pond for me just as soon as spring rains -were over, so that can’t be it.”</p> - -<p>The old man’s head was shaking. “Yo-all ain’t -teched it yet,” he was saying, when Virg uttered a -little cry of joy. “Look ahead, Betsy, quick, if you -want to get the very first glimpse of V. M.”</p> - -<p>The little maid on the back seat stood up and -peered between the two in front as the car reached -the edge of the plateau nearest the ranch.</p> - -<p>There in the valley was the big rambling low-built -adobe house, beyond it were the bunk houses, -the hen yard, the wrangling corral, the pens for the -cattle that needed temporary sheltering, the small -adobe house nearer the dry creek bottom in which -lived the Mahoys, and towering above them all was -the huge red windmill, the great wings of which -were slowly turning in the gentle breeze that was -blowing from the west.</p> - -<div id='005' class='mt10 mb10 w005'> - <img src='images/illus-005.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> - <p class='caption'>There in the valley was the big rambling low-built - adobe house.</p> -</div> - -<p>While the little stranger’s glance roamed from -one of these buildings to another, Virginia’s violet -eyes were eagerly searching the trails leading to the -ranch, hoping that on one of them she might see -her brother returning from the mysterious errand -about which Uncle Tex had hinted and the nature -of which as yet she did not know. There was no -one in sight. Not wishing her companions to know -how truly anxious she was, Virg stopped the car -and turned with a bright smile to exclaim: “Girls, -welcome to my home.”</p> - -<p>Betsy was charmed with the inside of the ranch -house as she had been with the out. The great living -room, with its wide fireplace on which a mesquite -root burned slowly, suggested cosy evenings -spent around it.</p> - -<p>The long library table scattered over with books -and magazines, the student lamp with its wide -warm-colored shade, many comfortable arm chairs, -a piano and its companioning music box, bear skin -rugs on floor and wall, and pictures framed by the -windows, of desert, sand hill and distant mountains, -furnished the most home-like room that little -Betsy had ever seen.</p> - -<p>“I’m going to just love it here,” she said, then to -tease, she merrily added, “if you can provide me -with a mystery.”</p> - -<p>Virginia laughed. “Girls,” she turned to the -other two, “since we three are hostesses, and it is -our aim to please, let’s make up a mystery, but -there, I musn’t tell Betsy what it is to be. In fact -I haven’t thought it out yet. But come, let’s take -our bags to our rooms for Uncle Tex is waiting to -show us the surprise.”</p> - -<p>The two large, sun-flooded bedrooms were next -each other with a door opening between.</p> - -<p>Margaret and Virginia were to share the room -which Virg had occupied since her childhood, while -Babs and Betsy were to have the other for their -very own.</p> - -<p>“I can hardly wait until our trunks come,” Babs -prattled. “I am just wild to see myself in my new -cow-girl costume.”</p> - -<p>“You looked at yourself times enough in the -school mirror,” Megsy said to tease.</p> - -<p>“Perhaps, but the setting wasn’t right. It will -look quite different out here where the mesquite -bushes grow,” Babs retorted.</p> - -<p>“I came so unexpected like,” Betsy deplored. “I -didn’t have time to buy me a khaki outfit, so what -shall I do. I don’t want to look like a tenderfoot.”</p> - -<p>“As though you could help it, whatever you -wore!” Babs began, on mischief-bent, but Virg -solaced. “I’ll loan you one of mine that I have -outgrown. You won’t have to buy one just for the -month that you are with us.” But the little maid -declared eagerly, “Oh yes, I will, Virg, if there is -a place to buy it. I’d love to wear it at my aunt’s -summer home in the east and make the boys envious.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Tex was seen coming slowly up from the -garage, and Virg knew that he was eager to show -them what he had planned as a surprise.</p> - -<p>Catching Betsy and Babs by the hand and nodding -a merry invitation to Margaret, Virg led the -way out of the wide front doors, but, before she -had gone many steps from the veranda, a big -shaggy creature hurled itself at her from the trail -leading from the cabin of the Mahoys.</p> - -<p>“Goodness!” Betsy cried in alarm, “Is it a desert -wolf or a coyote?” She needed no answer, for the -creature, wagging itself for joy sprang upon its -beloved mistress and uttered queer little yelps of -delight.</p> - -<p>“Shags is plumb nigh as pleased to see yo-all, -Miss Virginia dearie, seems like, as yo’ old Uncle -Tex was, though I reckon, he cain’t be, quite.”</p> - -<p>A glance in the direction from which the dog -had come revealed the Mahoy family awaiting in -front of their small adobe house to share in the welcome, -so, excusing herself, Virg ran down the trail, -Shags at her heels barking his glee. Mrs. Mahoy -had a new baby in her arms and Virginia beckoned -the other girls to come and see it.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t she nice though?” It was Patsy, now -aged ten, who looked about at the group of girls -who were eagerly peering into a flannel bundle to -find the wee bit baby. Virginia glowed. “Uncle -Tex,” she cried turning toward the old man who -had ambled after them. “I do believe this little baby -is the surprise that you said we would find on V. M. -Ranch.”</p> - -<p>“Wall, I reckon ’twas one of ’em,” he confessed, -“but thar’s another, Miss Virginia, dearie. Spose -yo-all scatter now and see who’ll be furst to find it.”</p> - -<p>Then away the girls ran. Margaret led them to -the hen-house, so eager was she to be sure that the -fences were coyote-proof. They were indeed, for -the wire fence extended so far underground that -none of the desert creatures would take the time to -burrow beneath it so near a residence of the enemy -man. Too there was a roof of wire netting over -the small yard, which protected the feathered brood -from any of the vulturous birds of prey.</p> - -<p>“That certainly is improvement number one,” -Virginia cried in delight. “Many a time I have -been heart-broken entirely because some of my little -new chicks have been carried away by pirate birds.” -They were leaving, when Megsy caught Virg’s arm -as she squealed gleefully, “I do believe that I’ve -discovered the surprise. Hark! Don’t you hear a -faint peeping somewhere?”</p> - -<p>Virginia listened and then, noting that their escort’s -grin was broadening, if that were possible, -she exclaimed, “Oh Uncle Tex, are there really -some baby chicks? Where are they? Please show -them to us?”</p> - -<p>The chicken yard gate was opened and the old -man led them to the sunny side of the hen house -where, from between the bars of a barrel coop, the -yellow head of an anxious mother protruded as she -clucked a warning to fifteen balls of fluff that ran -to her, tumbling on the way and piping their fright.</p> - -<p>“Oh, the dear little things! Please let them stay -a moment, Biddy Mother,” Margaret implored. “I -want to hold just one.”</p> - -<p>The one that was lifted ever so tenderly, begged -so pitifully to be set free, that Megsy put it down -close to the coop and smiled to watch it scud for -the shelter of its mother’s wings.</p> - -<p>“Lucky little puff-ball!” Betsy said with a note -of sadness in her usually merry voice. “What -wouldn’t I give to have a mother to run to.” Uncle -Tex, who had remained outside, happened to call -just then. “Better be hurryin’, Miss Virginia -dearie. Pears like its mos’ lunch time as yo-all -names it.”</p> - -<p>Virginia glanced at her wrist watch. “True -enough,” she exclaimed “and now that I am home, -Uncle Tex, you are to have a long vacation from -the kitchen. We girls will do all the cooking and -brewing and mopping and scrubbing and—” but -the old man, shaking his head, interrupted—</p> - -<p>“Wall, I reckon yo-all won’t have time to do -much playin’ if yer scheming that-a-way.”</p> - -<p>All unconsciously Virginia sighed. How she did -wish that the faithful Chinaman, who had been -cook in her home since she was a baby, had not, the -year before, decided to revisit the land of his birth. -He had slipped away without giving notice, (although -he had told them months before that he was -going, sometime), and he had never returned.</p> - -<p>As they crossed the descending trail that led to -the towering red windmill, Virg glanced at the old -man, and silently renewed her resolve to relieve -him of much of the kitchen work, which had been -his self-assumed task. They had tried Mexican -cooks, Malcolm had written her, but Uncle Tex had -fretted through the brief stay of each one, and had at -last declared that he didn’t want any more “cholos” -messin’ round Miss Virginia’s kitchen, “spatterin’ -it up,” and that he’d take “keer” of it fer her himself, -but Virg knew how, during those long months -of faithful service, his big heart had yearned for -the freedom of the range. “I’ll show him how -much I appreciate what he has done to make the -home pleasant for my brother while I was gone,” -the girl had just decided when a cry from Betsy and -Babs, who had skipped on ahead attracted her attention. -They were standing near the windmill -beckoning excitedly. “I do believe they have found -the surprise,” Virg confided to Margaret, then she -glanced inquiringly at the old man, but his beaming -expression revealed nothing.</p> - -<p>A moment later the something was revealed.</p> - -<p>“Oh Uncle Tex, how pretty! Did you make -that all alone and for me?” Virginia’s delight -was indeed real and she was convinced, as were the -other girls, that at last they had found the surprise -about which Uncle Tex had written. Beyond -the windmill and in the warm shelter of its wide -walls stood a little garden house over which a blossoming -vine was growing. Within was a table and -four comfortable chairs that had been entirely made -of yucca stalks and had been skillfully fashioned -with infinite patience by the leathery, wrinkled -hands of the old cattleman.</p> - -<p>The garden house itself was made of yucca, the -stalks being so long and strong that Virginia knew, -to procure them, the old man had to visit a distant -part of the desert where they grew.</p> - -<p>Just below the door of this summer house was -the pond of which Uncle Tex had written, and on -it several ducks were lazily swimming.</p> - -<p>“There’s water enough for a garden, Miss Virginia -dearie, but Ah reckon’d as yo-all’d want to -set out the sort of flowers yo’d like best.” Then, -as Virginia had not spoken, he asked, almost wistfully. -“Yo-all likes it, don’t yo’, Miss Virginia -dearie?”</p> - -<p>There were tears in the violet eyes that turned -toward him. “Like it! Oh, Uncle Tex!” Her -arms were about him and her soft young cheek -was pressed close to his leathery one. “I was just -hoping mother might know. She used so often to -wish since there are no shade trees near that we -might have a cool, sheltered out-of-doors place -where we could take our books and sewing.”</p> - -<p>Then, fearing that the tender-hearted old man -would regret not having thought to make such a -summer house in the long ago, she exclaimed -merrily, “This very day at four, we will serve afternoon -tea, and you, Uncle Tex, shall be the guest -of honor.” Then, giving the again smiling old man -a sudden bear hug, she whispered in his ear, “You -dear, I’m going to think up the nicest kind of a -surprise and spring it on you—some day.”</p> - -<p>“When’s your birthday, Uncle Tex?” It was -Margaret who asked. The old man looked truly -startled. “Me? Why, Ah’s plumb forgot. Sorto -seems like it comes in the summer, though.” He -had removed his sombrero and was scratching one -ear meditatively. He seemed actually to be trying -to recall a forgotten date.</p> - -<p>“I’ll tell you what,” Babs sang out, “let’s pick -out a day before Betsy goes home and give Uncle -Tex a surprise party.”</p> - -<p>“It won’t be much of a surprise, since you are -telling him about it,” Margaret began, but Barbara -declared that it would be, since he wouldn’t -know, until he received the invitation, which day -had been chosen.</p> - -<p>They were walking toward the house as they -chatted. Virginia and the old man lingered back -of the others. Margaret had made this possible, -for she felt sure that her adopted sister was anxious -about Malcolm’s prolonged absence, and, for that -matter, she was herself, and surely she had a right -to be, since she was his ward.</p> - -<p>Virg had often glanced at the trails that led one -of them toward the sand hills, another toward -Seven Peak Range, and a third toward Puffed -Snake Water Hole, but on none of them did horsemen -appear.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Tex,” she said softly as she slipped a detaining -arm in that of her companion, “can’t you -tell me why Malcolm is away at this time? It must -be something of a very serious nature to keep him -from home when he knew that I would be arriving -this week.”</p> - -<p>There was a shade of anxiety on the face of the -old man. “’Tis, Miss Virginia dearie. Leastwise, -Ah reckon ’tis. It all happened hurried like. Lucky -came ridin’ in ’long ’bout sundown two nights ago. -‘Ah’ve hit the trail sure sartin,’ was all Ah heard -him say. Then Malcolm buckled on his gun belt. -‘Keep it dark which way we ride,’ he says to me, -then they was gone. Ah was plumb puzzled and -Ah sure am still, but on certain thought Malcolm’d -be comin’ back by now or sendin’ word, knowin’ as -yo-all was ’spected.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll not worry,” the girl said wisely. -“Malcolm never runs into trouble needlessly.” -Then, as they had overtaken the others, Virginia -called as gaily as she could, that her guests need not -know of her anxiety. “Who wants to be helper in -the kitchen this noon? I’m going thither to be chief -cook.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, can’t we all help?” Margaret hurried to inquire. -Then she nudged Virg and nodded toward -the old man who (trying to keep behind them) was -making frantic motions towards a kitchen window. -When Virginia turned, he attempted to assume -such an innocent expression that the girls were even -more puzzled.</p> - -<p>Virg pretending not to have seen his gestures, -caught his hardened hand as she leaped up on the -veranda, calling, “Uncle Tex, you come too, and be -my advisor. It’s so long since I have cooked, maybe -I have forgotten how.”</p> - -<p>Virginia felt sure that another of the old man’s -surprises awaited her in the kitchen, nor was she -wrong.</p> - -<h2 id='chIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='III. MALCOLM’S RETURN'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER III</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>MALCOLM’S RETURN</span> -</h2> - -<p>It was four in the afternoon and the girls, having -had a long siesta after their lunch, had donned their -muslin dresses (for the station master had arrived -soon after noon with their trunks), and, taking Barbara’s -cherished tea set, without which she never -traveled, they had hied them to the summer house. -Virg gathered a few of the scarlet blossoms that -grew wild after the rains. Nearly all of them dried -up but one clump had remained to welcome the girls. -These she placed on the yucca table. Margaret was -carrying a plate of small cakes. Betsy had a tray on -which were five cups and saucers and tiny spoons. -Babs, at the end of the line, held the fragile pot of -delicate blue which was brimming with weak but hot -tea.</p> - -<p>Virg stood back to admire the table when it was -set. Then laughingly she exclaimed: “I just can’t -get over it. I never was more surprised in all my -life. When I opened the kitchen door and saw that -dear old Sing Long fussing around the stove, as -though he weren’t expecting us, I just had to rush -up and hug him.”</p> - -<p>“Whizzle, but you certainly took the wind out of -my sails, as Cousin Bob says,” Betsy declared, “I’ve -always been scared of Chinamen and to see you -actually embracing one! I dunno as I’ll ever recover -from the shock.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe there’s a kinder, nobler, more -faithful race of people on this earth,” Margaret -championed, “and Sing Long is just like home folks -to Virginia, isn’t he Virg?”</p> - -<p>The shining-eyed girl nodded. “He surely is. -Why, Betsy, Sing was here before mother came as -a bride. I’m so glad he wanted to come back. I -wouldn’t have Uncle Tex know it, not for worlds, -but I was rather dreading the responsibility of cooking -for so many people, and now we won’t have anything -to do, but plan—”</p> - -<p>“Mysteries,” Betsy cut in. Then she asked: -“Virg, I may be slow as a detective, but I certainly -do think the way you keep looking in first one direction -and then another is most mysterious.”</p> - -<p>The young hostess sat down in one of the comfortable -yucca chairs. “Have you noticed it?” she -inquired, “Well, then, I’ll explain. I’m not really -worried, but I’ll confess I am puzzled.”</p> - -<p>She then told the other three girls all that Uncle -Tex knew of her brother’s sudden departure two -nights before.</p> - -<p>Megsy smiled and nodded toward the little -stranger-to-the-desert, for, with a brow supposedly -wrinkled in deep thought, she sat gazing across the -shining stretch of sand toward the mountains.</p> - -<p>“What do you make of it, Mistress Detective?” -Babs asked merrily.</p> - -<p>“I don’t,” was the frank answer. “Virg, what -do you?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” the oldest girl replied, “since Lucky rode -in, after nightfall, in such haste and told brother that -he was sure he had hit the trail, I conclude that there -had been a—”</p> - -<p>“Oh, do you think it was a holdup, or something -like that?” This from the eager Betsy.</p> - -<p>“No, I don’t. I think a mountain lion may have -been killing the young calves and that Lucky and -Slim have been trying to trail it.”</p> - -<p>“How disappointing! I’m not at all interested in -solving a mystery which has only a mountain lion in -the leading part.”</p> - -<p>Babs teased. “I’ll say you aren’t. You wouldn’t -want to start on any clues that would lead you to a -lion’s den.”</p> - -<p>“Girls,” Virg suddenly exclaimed, “our guest of -honor has forgotten to come. There he goes riding -along the creek bottom, so we’ll have to drink the -tea, for, if we don’t, it will soon be cold.”</p> - -<p>“Oh dear, that is too bad! It’s piping hot now and -this pot holds six cups. Can’t we find another -guest of honor to—”</p> - -<p>“Lookee! Lookee!” Betsy had leaped to her feet -and was pointing toward the trail that led from the -sandhills.</p> - -<p>Two horsemen were approaching at a gallop, and -Virginia cried, “Oh, how I hope one of them is -Brother Malcolm.”</p> - -<p>“Then the mystery will be solved,” Betsy exclaimed -joyfully.</p> - -<p>As the horsemen neared, Virg and Margaret ran -out of the summer house and waved their handkerchiefs -for they were no longer in doubt as to the -identity of the newcomers.</p> - -<p>There was an answering shout of joy from the -one in the lead and Malcolm leaped from his horse -and ran toward them waving his sombrero. The -older cowboy led the ponies to the corral.</p> - -<p>“O brother, brother,” Virginia’s welcome was at -once laughing and tearful, as she was caught in the -lad’s strong arms. “I’m glad, glad I went away just -for the joy of knowing what home means. Not that -I didn’t always love it here, but Oh, brother, you -can’t guess how many wakeful hours I had just hungering -to hear your voice, and now, if you’ll let me -I’m going to stay right here for ever and ever and -ever.”</p> - -<p>The giant of a lad laughed happily as he turned to -greet his ward, who, with flushed cheeks and a wistful -light in her tender brown eyes, was waiting near -until the brother and sister had welcomed each other. -Then Babs came and Betsy was introduced. “This -is our would-be young detective,” Virg said merrily. -“She declares that the desert is an ideal setting for -a mystery and so we girls are going to make up one -and let her solve it.”</p> - -<p>“You won’t have to invent one,” Malcolm declared -as he dropped into the yucca chair toward which his -sister had led him. “Lucky and I have been awake -two days and nights trying to solve one that is very -real. Slim is working on it, too, but he has a -Mexican boy with him and they have ridden toward -Sonora.”</p> - -<p>“Oh Mr. Davis!” Betsy leaned forward eagerly. -“What are the clews? Do tell us.”</p> - -<p>But Virginia said: “Not until brother has had -some refreshment.” Then to Malcolm: “I don’t suppose -you’ve had a thing to eat this noon.”</p> - -<p>“Righto, and for that matter Lucky and I had -very little for breakfast. We had no idea that we -would find ourselves on a blind trail,” the lad began; -then ended with:</p> - -<p>“So a cup of tea will do well for a starter.” He -accepted the delicate blue cup that Barbara handed -him with an amused smile.</p> - -<p>Lucky was approaching shyly, sombrero in hand. -Virginia, chancing to see him, stepped out of the -summer house and beckoned to him.</p> - -<p>His awkward bow when he was introduced would -have amused Betsy at another time, but just then -her entire thought was given to the mystery about -which she was soon to hear.</p> - -<p>“No, ma’am, thanks.” Lucky twirled his hat and -shifted from one foot to the other when Barbara -offered him one of the eggshell china cups. “Ah jest -wanted to say howdy to yo-all.” He was visibly -embarrassed. Then with a nod toward the house -he added, “Sing said frijoli all hottee.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm rose. “Young ladies,” he addressed them -all, “if you will permit us to satisfy our inner -cravings, I’ll promise within the hour to tell you all the -clews we have been able to discover.”</p> - -<p>Lucky had gone on ahead and Virginia, linking -her arm in that of her brother, walked with him -toward the house.</p> - -<p>“Can’t you give me an inkling of an idea as to -what it is all about? Is it anything we girls can -help solve?”</p> - -<p>The lad was at once serious. “No, sister. You -girls are better off here at home with Uncle Tex, -but we’ll report progress each time we return.”</p> - -<p>Virginia looked troubled. “Oh brother, are you -going away again? Surely not today.”</p> - -<p>“Not until morning,” he replied. “We’ll both be -better fit after a good night’s sleep.” Then at the -kitchen porch, she left him and walked slowly back -to the summer house. The three girls eagerly -awaited her.</p> - -<p>“Did Malcolm tell you the clews?” Of course this -was from Betsy. “Why, no,” Virginia declared. “I -was so concerned about my brother that I forgot to -ask him where he had been or why.” Then Margaret -had an inspiration.</p> - -<p>“It’s after five by my little wrist watch and so I -suggest that we put away the tea things and have our -supper of nice frijolies and bread in the kitchen with -the boys. They can tell us the clews while we’re -eating, for I am sure they will want to tumble into -bed as soon as they can.”</p> - -<p>Virginia looked at her other guests to see if the -plan met with their approval. She was not long left -in doubt. “Oh, goodie, I’d love to have supper with -a real cowboy. My Cousin Bob will be green with -envy when I write him about it.” Betsy was gathering -up the spoons as she spoke. Soon the little -procession approached the house.</p> - -<p>Malcolm saw them coming and smiled. “I tell -you, Lucky, it seems mighty nice to see that sister -of mine once more. Maybe it’s selfish of me, but -I hope she won’t want to go away again.”</p> - -<p>Lucky, having finished his supper, rose as the -girls entered the long kitchen that was flooded with -the late afternoon sun.</p> - -<p>The middle aged cowboy spoke apologetically: -“Miss Virginia, if yo-all will excuse me, Ah’ll turn -in. Ah reckon Ah cain’t keep awake, an’ Malcolm -here and me’s figgerin’ on hittin’ the trail again -come sunup.”</p> - -<p>When he was gone, Sing Long served the girls to -heaping plates of steaming frijolies, generous slices -of cornbread and tumblers brimming with creamy -milk. This fare greatly delighted Betsy for it was -very different from that to which she was accustomed.</p> - -<p>Malcolm told Sing Long that he, too, might go, -as they no longer needed him. When they were -alone, the giant of a lad smiled about at the girls, who -were eagerly awaiting the beginning of his story.</p> - -<p>“Now,” Virginia said when the door closed behind -the Chinaman, “what happened first?”</p> - -<p>“We heard about it last Monday,” Malcolm began, -“Lucky and I were loping slowly along down near -the station. We were on the outlook for strays when -we saw little Davie Wells riding toward his home -from the direction of the Three Sand Hills as though -a stampede of cattle was about to overtake him.”</p> - -<p>“‘What’s up with the kid, d’ye reckon,’ Lucky -asked me, and I replied, ‘By the way he keeps looking -back over his shoulder, you’d think he was being -pursued, but I don’t see anything chasing him.’</p> - -<p>“When the lad was near enough for us to see his -face, we knew, without his telling us, that he was -very much excited about something.</p> - -<p>“‘Hi-o! Davie, has there been a train robbery?’ -I shouted when he was near enough to hear. He -evidently had not seen us, but upon hearing my -voice, he wheeled his pony and galloped toward us. -I repeated my question.</p> - -<p>“‘Nope,’ he replied breathlessly. ‘Leastwise there -ain’t been one yet, but Pa says sure as a cactus ain’t -a mesquite thar’ll be a robbery in these here parts -afore sunup tomorrow, Pa says it’s sure sartin.’</p> - -<p>“Of course we were interested. We never knew -our respected station master to prophesy anything -but that it came to pass with almost uncanny accuracy, -so Lucky and I drew rein and listened to -what the little fellow had to tell, but when we had -heard him out, all we could make of it was that a -queer kind of caravan had been seen leaving Douglas -early that morning headed toward Silver Creek. -Davie thought maybe there were half a dozen covered -wagons and a dozen mules and dogs, but he -wasn’t certain. The cowboy who’d seen the outfit -hadn’t stopped to count them.</p> - -<p>“‘Gypsies, I reckon,’ was Lucky’s conclusion, ‘and -if so, kid, your pa’s right. Thar’ll be some stealin’ -’fore sunup sure sartin.’ Then he looked at me -with a puzzled expression as he said, ‘Malcolm, I -never heard tell of gypsies trailin’ across the desert -hereabouts, have you now?’</p> - -<p>“I agreed that I had not, but the lad’s description -seemed to fit and so we let it go at that.</p> - -<p>“‘Wall, I must be off.’ Davie seemed suddenly -to remember his former haste but I detained him -long enough to ask, ‘Where are you going in such a -hurry?’</p> - -<p>“‘Over to Slater’s to warn ’em ‘bout that robbery -as Pa says it’s sure sartin.’</p> - -<p>“Davie’s little wild pony needed no urging and -a second later all we could see of him was a racing -sand cloud. I laughed, but Lucky seemed to take -the matter more seriously. ‘What do you make -of it?’ I asked when I had let him study on the -matter in silence for several moments.</p> - -<p>“‘Ah jest don’t,’ he replied. ‘Ah cain’t figure nohow -why a caravan of gypsies ’d start across this -here trackless part of the desert.’</p> - -<p>“‘It isn’t as trackless as it used to be,’ I reminded -him, ‘for now that all the ranchers own -automobiles there’s a makeshift sort of a road from -one place to the next.’</p> - -<p>“‘Mebbe so, but Ah cain’t figger out why gypsies -would go to all the trouble of draggin that there -caravan o’ theirs through the sand jest to be robbin’ -ranches. They couldn’t make fast enough time to -get away with it. More’n likely, if they was gypsies, -they-all thought as how this might be a short cut to -some place up north where they’re bound for.’</p> - -<p>“I agreed that Lucky’s version was probably the -correct one, and, as we saw no evidence of the -reported caravan in our neighborhood, I doubtless -would never have thought of them again if it hadn’t -been for something which happened that very night.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm paused and the girls, having ceased eating -to listen, leaned forward with renewed interest.</p> - -<p>“Oh, brother, what happened? Please don’t stop -there.”</p> - -<p>The lad smiled. “I only stopped to take a breath. -That is permissible, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p>“Oh-ee! I’m so excited.” Betsy’s flushed cheeks -and glowing eyes were evidence that what she said -was true. “Did the gypsy caravan come?”</p> - -<p>“Was the station master’s prophecy correct?” -Margaret asked.</p> - -<p>“Were we robbed?” Virginia inquired anxiously.</p> - -<p>Malcolm rose. “Let’s go in by the fire,” he said. -“Sing Long wants to clean the table.” The Chinaman -had been opening the door from his room every -few moments to see if the young people were -through. Following Malcolm’s suggestion the -girls led the way into the big living room. The -lad put a dry mesquite root on the coals and then -sat down in his favorite grandfather chair. “Yes, -indeed, something of an unusual nature happened -that night and this is what it was:”</p> - -<h2 id='chIV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='IV. MALCOLM’S STORY'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IV</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>MALCOLM’S STORY</span> -</h2> - -<p>When the girls were seated about the fireplace, -they turned eagerly to the narrator of the tale -which had been interrupted by their moving from -the kitchen to the living-room.</p> - -<p>“Let me see,” the lad was purposely tantalizing, -“where did I end the first chapter?” Then, before -he could be prompted, he continued: “Oh, yes; I -remember.</p> - -<p>“After Davie Wells had left us, Lucky suggested -that we ride over to the Three Sand Hills. -He wanted to climb to the top of the highest one -and take observations, so to speak, of the entire -surrounding country. It’s a hard climb, because of -the sliding stones and sand, but we made it and -held to the giant yucca up there, while, with shaded -eyes we looked in every direction. It was an unusually -clear day and every object stood out as -though it were magnified, but not a sign of a gypsy -wagon did we see. Lucky did make out a sand -cloud way to the north, but it wasn’t large enough -to hold a caravan. Lucky believed it to be made by -a small herd of cattle trailing toward Puffed Snake -Water Hole.</p> - -<p>“It was dusk when we entered the ranch house, -and Sing Long was the only person at home. He -had been baking all the afternoon in the kitchen, -and had neither seen nor heard anyone passing. -We did not tell him that we had been informed that -a gypsy caravan, made up of at least six covered -wagons, had been seen leaving Douglas and heading -our way. We had decided that there really was -nothing in the report, and Sing Long was inclined -to be imaginative.</p> - -<p>“After supper Lucky and I sat for a time in front -of the fireplace. I was reading, and, though Lucky -held a newspaper and stared at it as though he were -deeply engrossed in some item of Douglas news, he -was evidently thinking all the time of what we had -heard that afternoon. His first remark proved this.</p> - -<p>“Suddenly he sat up very straight and seemed -to be listening. ‘Did you hear it?’ he asked. ‘A -sort of a rattling noise?’</p> - -<p>“I put down my book and listened. I heard -nothing and I told him so. ‘That is nothing, except -the bellowing of the prize yearlings that we -had driven into the corral the day before.’ It did -seem as though they were making more noise than -they had during the day.</p> - -<p>“‘Wall, I reckon that’s only natural,’ Lucky tried -to reassure himself by sayin’. ‘They’re restless, -them young steers air, being shet in arter allays -havin’ had the freedom of the range.’ He returned -to his newspaper and I to my book, but before -many minutes I was conscious of the fact that my -companion was again listening intently. I laughed. -‘Lucky,’ I remonstrated, ‘aren’t you imaginative -tonight? Surely you are not expecting a visit from -Davie’s Gypsy caravan, are you? That would be -utterly impossible, since only two hours ago you -saw for yourself, when we were on the top of -Yucca Hill, that there was nothing of the kind for -many miles around.’</p> - -<p>“‘Wall, I call’ate Ah am sort of skeerful. Truth -is Ah never did like them Gypsy folk. Ran into -’em once when Ah was a little shaver, down in -Texas, and Ah’ve given ’em a wide berth ever -since.’ Then he rose, saying, as he yawned and -stretched: ‘Wall, sort o’ guess Ah’ll turn in. Ah -reckon Slim’s back from the border, or soon will -be. Ah’ll take one more look at the corral an’ see if -them gates are still barred.’</p> - -<p>“‘All right, Lucky. S’long.’ Then I couldn’t -resist teasing. ‘But don’t stay awake all night listening -for tambourines.’</p> - -<p>“After he was gone, I became so interested in -my book that I sat up much later than usual. When -I did decide to turn in, I first of all stepped out on -the front porch and looked around.</p> - -<p>“The bunk house was dark and there wasn’t a -light anywhere on the desert. I was sure that if -Gypsies were camped nearby they would have a -night fire to protect them from wild animals and -keep away insects.</p> - -<p>“The prize yearlings in the corral were quieter, -although every now and then one would start a -restless lowing which would awaken a few others. -Then a moment later, all would be silent.</p> - -<p>“They’re safe enough,” I thought as I turned in -and went to bed.</p> - -<p>“I didn’t awaken until dawn, and then it was to -slowly come to the consciousness that someone was -pounding on my door. I can’t remember when I -had ever locked it before.</p> - -<p>“‘Who’s there?’ I called, leaping half dazed -from bed.</p> - -<p>“It was Lucky who answered, and, in his voice -I sensed tragedy.</p> - -<p>“‘It’s me, Malcolm! The prize yearlings! -They’re plumb gone!’</p> - -<p>“Of course I was into my clothes before I was -hardly awake, nor did I fully grasp the meaning of -what I had heard until I had flung open the door -and had beheld Lucky’s face, white in spite of the -tan which has been deepening there for the past -forty years. One glance at him and I knew that I -had heard aright.</p> - -<p>“‘What do you make of it?’ we were swinging -down the trail toward the corral when I asked the -question.</p> - -<p>“‘Gypsies, of course,’ was his laconic reply.</p> - -<p>“‘It doesn’t seem possible nor reasonable.’ I was -not convinced, but, of course, if the prize yearlings -were really gone, someone had taken them unless—‘Lucky,’ -I said, ‘are you sure they didn’t break -through the fence somewhere?’</p> - -<p>“‘Ah thought of that, but the tarnel thing is jest -as whole as ’twas when Slim got through mendin’ -it only Saturday week.’</p> - -<p>“Just then we reached the drop in the trail and I -could see the corral. Lucky had spoken truly; not -a rail was misplaced, and, although the gate was -standing open and torn from its hinges, it was -evident that it had been broken by the impact of the -stampeding cattle.</p> - -<p>“I stood and stared almost stunned and hardly -able to believe, even then, that so tragic a disaster -had come to us. ‘Lucky,’ I said, ‘are you sure -you barred the gate? The yearlings couldn’t get -through there any more than through another part -of the fence if it were equally secure.’</p> - -<p>“I saw at once that my companion was hurt.</p> - -<p>“I was sorry that I had asked the question, and I -told him so. ‘Lucky,’ I said, with my hand on his -shoulder, ‘there’s no one on the entire desert more -trustworthy than you are. Of course the cattle got -out some other way.’</p> - -<p>“‘An’ the way was them gypsies.’ Lucky doggedly -kept to his preconceived theory that a band -of thieving gypsies were sure to rob us that night.</p> - -<p>“It didn’t seem possible to me, nor probable -either, but I didn’t tell him so.</p> - -<p>“What I did say was. ‘Let’s get a snack to eat, -climb Yucca Hill once more and see if there is any -trace of the herd.’ Of course it would be impossible -for gypsies to drive them very far in the few hours -between midnight, when I turned in, and early -dawn.</p> - -<p>“But Lucky seemed determined to believe the -worst. ‘Not if they were headed for the border,’ -he replied. ‘They’d be across ’afore sunup easy.’</p> - -<p>“I knew that to be true but decided to take an observation -from the highest of the Three Sand Hills -as soon as possible. Leaving our horses at the bottom -we began the ascent. I had the misfortune -when half way up to step on an insecure rock, -which loosened and sent me sliding to the desert -again. Lucky had kept right on and soon reached -the top. I heard him shouting as he gestured excitedly. -‘What do you see?’ I called, feeling convinced -that it was something which had interested -him, nor was I wrong.</p> - -<p>“‘It’s a tarnel whopper of a sand cloud and ’tisn’t -Mexico way, neither, so we can take hope from -that.’</p> - -<p>“I had scrambled to his side by that time and stood -shading my eyes from the glare of the rising sun. -I, too, could see the rapidly moving cloud of sand.</p> - -<p>“‘What do you make of it?’ I asked.</p> - -<p>“‘Ah reckon it’s our yearlings all right on a stampede. -But what’s puzzlin’ me is how a caravan on -wheels that’s pulled by mules, as Davie said ’twas, -kin go ’long fast enough to keep up with ’em.’</p> - -<p>“‘It couldn’t,’ I replied, ‘but a bunch of rustlers -on bronchos could keep up without half trying.’</p> - -<p>“I was heart sick, Virg, at the thought that some -clever cattle thieves had made away with our prize -stock. The distance that they had already traveled, -if they were our yearlings, was so great I could -have no hope of overtaking them. There was one -thing that puzzled me. That rapidly moving cloud -of sand was headed directly for the part of our -desert that is called Burning Acres. Not a ranch -nor a water hole for miles and miles and sure death -awaits man, horse or cattle if they get stranded in -that barren waste.</p> - -<p>“I was deeply discouraged. However, as we -descended the hill I said: ‘Lucky, it’s a lost hope -I guess, but the most we can do is to pack enough -grub to last a few days, take two extra mounts, all -the canteens we can carry and head that way.’</p> - -<p>“That’s what we did, which brings the story up -to the hour of our departure.”</p> - -<p>“Did you find any trace of our yearlings?” Virginia’s -query was anxious, for she knew that herd -had been the pride of her brother’s heart. The lad -shook his head. “No,” he said, “we didn’t. We -rode as far into the Burning Acres as we dared go. -When our water supply was half gone, we turned -back, knowing that we would need an equal amount -on our return trip. We had ridden in silence for -some time when Lucky said: ‘Malcolm, Ah don’t -hold that notion about gypsies any more. Ah -reckon the thieves was rustlers that knew their -business. Ah figger the fellow that told that yarn -to Davie was stringin’ him. Thar wan’t any -wheeled caravan in these parts, of that Ah’m sure -sartin.’</p> - -<p>“I was glad that he had come around to my way -of thinking, but just as we were leaving the Burning -Acres, I saw Lucky, who was in the lead, leap -from his horse and examine the sand. Then turning, -he gestured, beckoning me to hurry.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm paused. “What had he found?” Betsy -asked. She was sitting so close to the edge of her -chair that she seemed in danger of falling off.</p> - -<p>“Well, when I reached the spot,” Malcolm knew -that what he was going to tell would astonish his -hearers, “I saw Lucky pointing triumphantly at -what were unmistakable wheel tracks in the sand.”</p> - -<p>“Brother, do you really think that a band of -gypsies has ridden into those dreadful dry lands?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know, Virg. We couldn’t stop to investigate -as we were out of water and so we returned -to V. M. As it was noon, we ate the good -dinner Sing had ready for us and I turned in for -an hour’s sleep but Lucky could not rest, and so -after having had not more than forty winks of a -doze, I heard him again riding away in search of -further evidence.</p> - -<p>“It was nearly dusk when he returned and he came -on a gallop shouting my name. I was out on the -porch in a moment. ‘Ah think Ah’ve hit a trail -sure sartin this time,’ he called. I saw that he was -leading my horse and a fresh mount that was laden -with supplies.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Tex rode in just then and seemed surprised -to see that we were starting out so near -nightfall. He had been to his cabin on Second -Peak for several days and so had heard nothing of -what had happened. I didn’t wait to explain, but -must have mystified him greatly by calling, ‘Keep -it dark which way we ride.’”</p> - -<p>Virginia nodded for the old man had told her -that he was indeed puzzled. “What did you find, -brother?” she eagerly inquired.</p> - -<p>“The same wagon tracks a mile to the west of -where we had seen them before, but we could only -find them in sheltered places. Of course in the open -they were quickly covered with the drifting sand. -We hunted for two days and all we found was -this.”</p> - -<p>He drew a scarlet silk scarf with fringed edges -from his leather coat pocket. “That’s rather conclusive -evidence that Lucky is right, isn’t it?” his -sister inquired. “Shouldn’t you say that a gypsy -woman might have used that scarf as a head covering?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know much about gypsies,” the lad replied, -and the tale being told, he leaned back wearily.</p> - -<p>It was the quiet Margaret who noticed how truly -tired her guardian looked. “You’ve been over-working, -Malcolm,” she said solicitously. “It has -been a terrible strain for you to keep awake day -and night with all the worry about the lost yearlings.”</p> - -<p>The lad smiled down at her as he rose. “I think -we’ll have to change places, Mistress Margaret,” -he said. “I’ll be the ward and you the guardian -since you look after me so well.” The sweet face -of the girl was flushed, but, as Betsy had at that -moment twisted the scarlet scarf about her own -head, no one noticed Megsy.</p> - -<p>When Malcolm was gone, the merry maid -skipped lightly about on her toes shaking an imaginary -tambourine.</p> - -<p>“Betsy, you make a very fine gypsy,” Babs said, -then, noting that Virginia sat, quietly gazing at the -fire as though she were deep in thought, Barbara -rested a hand on her arm as she added, “Virg, this -means a good deal of a loss, doesn’t it, to you and -Malcolm?”</p> - -<p>The young hostess nodded, “Yes, dear, it does, but -I am more concerned about Malcolm’s anxiety than -I am about the disappearance of the yearlings. I -do wish there was something that girls could do -to help.”</p> - -<p>Betsy had drawn near to listen. “Let’s get up -just as soon as ever we can awaken,” she suggested, -“and let’s try to find the wagon trails. If -only I could solve this mystery, I’d be the happiest -girl in all the land.”</p> - -<p>Virginia, who understood the desert better than -did her companions, even those who had visited it -the year before, hesitated. Well she knew that -it was very easy for even one desert-bred, to be lost -in the Burning Acres. Then, noticing how truly -disappointed Betsy looked, the young hostess conceded. -“We can ride as far as the Three Sand -Hills if you wish.” And with this Betsy had to -be content, but how she did hope that they would -go farther, and, Oh, if only she, Betsy Clossen, could -find the caravan trail and restore the missing cattle. -Her active brain was planning imaginary clews long -after the others were asleep and yet, she was the -first to awaken as soon as a faint grey light revealed -the horizon. What would the day bring forth, she -wondered.</p> - -<h2 id='chV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='V. BETSY’S FIRST RIDE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER V</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>BETSY’S FIRST RIDE</span> -</h2> - -<p>Malcolm, weary indeed with the long hard riding -on the three days previous, did not waken, nor -did Uncle Tex when, at a very early hour, the four -girls stole out of the ranch house and, while the -stars were still shining in the paling sky they skipped -down to the wrangling corral. In a nearby shelter -hung the saddles and Virg, with Margaret’s help, -soon had the four ponies ready to ride. If Malcolm -had known of their expedition, he would have -insisted upon accompanying them, not knowing what -dangers might await them. In fact he had intended -to warn Virginia not to leave the immediate neighborhood -of the ranch until he and Lucky had discovered -the hiding place of the mysterious caravan, -but, although he thought of it after he had retired, -he reminded himself that it would be time to tell -them at breakfast.</p> - -<p>Virginia indeed had little hope of coming upon -the trail of the rumored caravan, for, during the -night, a sandstorm had swept across the desert and -though of but brief duration, it would have obliterated -whatever tracks had been visible the day -before. She had thought of explaining this to the -girls, but, knowing that Betsy would be greatly -disappointed, she decided to ride with them at least -as far as the Three Sand Hills.</p> - -<p>This she often did, and, as the hills were surrounded -by a vast waste of open desert, she knew -that unless the gypsies were camped on the other -side of the hills themselves, they would not come -unexpectedly upon them.</p> - -<p>Betsy, before she had left school, had expected -to be timid about riding the western horses but -Virg chose for her a gentle pony that was well -broken and so interested was the Eastern girl in the -quest upon which they were starting, that she -found that she was not at all afraid.</p> - -<p>The east was beginning to glow with pale rose -and lilac when the top of the mesa was reached and -Virginia, in the lead, pointed, as they all drew rein, -to the Three Sand Hills that loomed dark and -isolated, standing alone like sentinels on an otherwise -flat expanse of desert.</p> - -<p>Betsy looked up with glowing eyes. “It’s -wonderful!” she said, “just to see this sun rise on the -desert is worth a great deal, even if we don’t find -a trail.”</p> - -<p>Then they started on again riding single file. -Betsy’s pony had taken the lead which delighted -the young rider.</p> - -<p>“It’s going to be a glorious day,” Margaret -smiled back at Virg. “If it weren’t for the lost -yearlings and the anxiety it means to you and Malcolm, -I would be Oh, just ever so happy to think -that we are home again.”</p> - -<p>Virginia was pleased to hear her adopted sister -call the desert “home.”</p> - -<p>“Dear,” she said, “I am not going to worry over -the loss nor will Malcolm. Being unhappy and -making others unhappy never restores the thing -that is lost. I mean to try to forget it as soon as we -are sure that the herd cannot be recovered.”</p> - -<p>For a moment they rode on in silence, then Megsy -looked back again and smilingly nodded toward -Betsy, who, quite forgetting that she intended to -be afraid of Western horses, was leaning far over -in her saddle and gazing at the sand that had been -ribbed and scalloped by the wind during the night. -Suddenly she stopped her pony to await the others. -“Virg,” she asked eagerly, “are we near the place -where Lucky first saw the wagon trail?”</p> - -<p>Virginia had to confess that they were yet many -miles from the edge of the Burning Acres where -that trail had been seen. “I’m sorry to disappoint -you, Betsy,” she said, “but it would be impossible -for us to ride that far unless we were prepared for -a hard journey and were accompanied by Malcolm -or Uncle Tex.”</p> - -<p>They paused at the foot of the group of hills and -Betsy shuddered as she said, “I don’t know why -they seem so uncanny to me. Did anything ever -happen here, Virg, anything spooky?”</p> - -<p>“Why, nothing that I know about.” The Western -girl laughed at the eager expression on the face -of their youngest. “What, for instance?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, some famous bandit might have been captured -and bound to that giant yucca that stands all -alone on the highest hill, and the masked men who -had captured him might have stood down here and -shot him, then silently ridden away while the vultures -came with their weird cries to—”</p> - -<p>Megsy put her hands over her ears. “Betsy,” she -remonstrated, “you’re telling the story of that moving -picture we saw at Vine Haven. My, but it was -gruesome!”</p> - -<p>Betsy laughed mischievously but Virg said seriously, -“Those popular pictures give a very wrong -impression of our desert life, as it really is. Now, -if the rest of you would like to climb to the top of -Yucca Hill, I’ll stay here with the ponies. It might -be hard to catch them if they strayed in search of -grass, and I do want to get home before Malcolm -can miss us and be worried.”</p> - -<p>Betsy was scrambling down from the back of her -patient mount as she replied, “I’m going to climb -up there, and stand right where the bandit stood—and—”</p> - -<p>“Well, go on then.” It was Barbara who spoke. -“We’ll wait for you down here. I, for one, am not -pining for such a hard climb before breakfast.”</p> - -<p>“Do you dare me?” the twinkling eyed Betsy -asked, her arms akimbo.</p> - -<p>“Double dare!” Babs retorted. Then they all -laughed to see the speed with which Betsy began -the ascent, but she soon found that she slipped back -about as far as she progressed. However, in time, -she reached the top and holding to the giant yucca -she waved her other hand to the watching group. -Then, shading her eyes, she looked long and intently -in the direction of the Burning Acres. Suddenly -she began to beckon wildly. Virginia was -puzzled. “I wonder if she is doing that to tease or -if she has really seen something of interest.”</p> - -<div id='003' class='mt10 mb10 w003'> - <img src='images/illus-003.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> - <p class='caption'>“It seems to be all wings, and it’s white, isn’t it?”</p> -</div> - -<p>Virg was the first to climb to the top of Yucca -Hill, Margaret having offered to remain with the -four ponies. Barbara, breathless, reached them a -moment later, in time to hear an excited Betsy exclaim, -as she pointed toward the south, “Virg did -you ever see a bird as big as that? It seems to -be all wings, and it’s white, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p>Babs protested. “Goodness Betsy. Did you call -us way up here and in such a hurry just to show -us a bird?”</p> - -<p>But Virginia, whose eyes were keener, since she -was used to desert distances, watched the wide-winged -object which was high in the air, and at -least half a mile away.</p> - -<p>“If it is a bird, which I doubt, it has hurt one of -its wings for surely it is not flying in—” she interrupted -herself to exclaim: “Oh, I see now! there -goes one of the little whirlwinds that scud over the -desert so often. Whatever that flying thing is, it -was evidently tossed high in the air and is fluttering -back to earth.”</p> - -<p>Virg had surmised correctly for, with awkward -movements of apparently wide stretched wings, the -something, which had so aroused Betsy’s curiosity, -fluttered groundward, but before it touched the -sand it caught on the arm of a formidable thorny -cactus which stood near the mesa trail. Laughingly -the girls descended and told the curious Margaret -what Betsy’s excitement had been over.</p> - -<p>“And there I had hoped that it might be a clew,” -that maiden mourned, as again, single file, they rode -back toward V. M.</p> - -<p>“Not a wagon track have we found nor anything -exciting or even interesting,” Babs began, when -Virg, being in the lead, called over her shoulder as -she pointed at the great cactus that appeared near -the trail not far ahead:</p> - -<p>“There’s your wide-winged bird, Betsy. Nothing -but a newspaper that tried to soar for a time -but failed.”</p> - -<p>Since they were in a hurry to reach V. M. before -the hour which Malcolm had suggested that -they have breakfast together, the girls did not stop -to examine the newspaper, but, when they had -reached the ranch yard, Betsy, who had been unusually -quiet during the downward ride, suddenly -exclaimed:</p> - -<p>“Girls, I’m not sure but that we missed a clew, -after all, when we passed that newspaper. If you -don’t mind, Virg, I’m going back and get it. -However,” and she smiled in a mischievous way, “if it’s -all the same to everybody, I guess I’d rather walk. -It’s ages since I’ve been on horseback, and I’m getting -powerfully stiff.”</p> - -<p>“If you’ll wait until after breakfast I’ll go back -with you,” Babs told her friend.</p> - -<p>“Can’t be done, old dear,” Betsy declared. “Another -whirlwind might come along and where -would my newspaper be?”</p> - -<p>“Well, do hurry. I can tell by a certain appetizing -fragrance on the air that ham and eggs are -being prepared, and Oh! but I’m hungry.”</p> - -<p>Betsy acknowledged that she herself was most -starved, but added that if Babs had the real detective -instinct which she possessed, mere eating -would not even be considered when there might be -a clew to be had for just a little effort.</p> - -<p>The three girls, having turned their unsaddled -ponies into the corral, walked arm in arm up to -the house. Their youngest had already started -on a run toward the mesa trail.</p> - -<p>“It’s at least a quarter of a mile back to that -cactus,” Virginia said, “so we needn’t expect Betsy -for quite a while.”</p> - -<p>But to their surprise, ten minutes later, as they -were emerging from their rooms, having changed -their khaki riding habits for gingham morning -dresses, they heard a familiar voice shouting without. -Then the front door burst open and a most -excited Betsy waved torn fragments of an old newspaper -as she cried: “It’s a clew, it is a clew; just -listen to this.”</p> - -<h2 id='chVI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='VI. BETSY’S FIND'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>BETSY’S FIND</span> -</h2> - -<p>The girls gathered about Betsy Clossen to gaze -eagerly at the torn fragments of newspaper when -that excited little maid burst into the ranch living -room announcing that she really had found a clew.</p> - -<p>“Where is it? I can’t see anything but plain -print,” Babs chattered.</p> - -<p>“How did you get back so soon?” Virg inquired. -“You couldn’t possibly have climbed the mesa trail. -You’ve only been gone ten minutes and that would -have taken you half an hour.”</p> - -<p>Betsy laughed. “I had an ally in another whirl-wind. -I hadn’t gone far when I saw torn fragments -of the same newspaper that had been caught on the -cactus scudding toward me. Then a gust of wind -blew sand in my eyes and I had to turn my back. -I was afraid that I had lost the flying pieces, but -luckily they had caught on a mesquite bush right -at my feet. I pounced on them and on the very top -I found written—”</p> - -<p>Betsy was holding the pieces back of her and just -to tease she asked, “Guess what!”</p> - -<p>“Oh Betsy, how provoking you are, must we -guess?” Babs pondered a moment then said, “Maybe -it was something in the Romany tongue. That -is what they call the gypsies’ language, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p>But the would-be young detective shook her head -and looked inquiringly at Margaret. “Oh, I never -could guess, can you Virg?”</p> - -<p>“Hm-m! Let me see. It might be a note scribbled -by somebody on the Burning Acres, who was trying -to send a message to tell that he is stranded and in -need of aid.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t think that is it.” Betsy brought the paper -around and held it up that all might see. Then she -pointed at some very fine writing on an upper margin. -“If it were intended for someone else to read, -it would be larger and clearer.”</p> - -<p>“What does it say?” Margaret inquired. But -Betsy could not tell. “Why, I thought you told us -that you were sure that it is a clew to the whereabouts -of the gypsy caravan or of the stolen yearlings.”</p> - -<p>Betsy was about to defend her theory when Virginia, -who had taken the paper to the window that -she might better see the very fine writing, exclaimed: -“It seems to be a memorandum of some kind. I can -read several words, but altogether they make but -little sense. They are ‘five miles beyond.’ I can’t -make out beyond what, then comes ‘turn toward -mountains,’ after that the pencil marks are blurred -until the last sentence, which is, ‘likely to make a find -there.’”</p> - -<p>Betsy whirled toward Margaret, glowing, triumphant. -“There now, Mistress Doubter, isn’t that a -clew and a fine one?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” the other maid replied rather reluctantly. -“It might be, and yet again it might be merely a -paper that some mining prospector was reading -when a whirl-wind came along. What you read, -Virg, would be just about what a miner would jot -down, don’t you think?”</p> - -<p>The Western girl nodded. “Yes, dear, I believe -so. Wait until I get the magnifying glass and perhaps -the blurred part will be clearer.”</p> - -<p>While Virg had gone in search of it, Malcolm appeared -calling, “Ready for breakfast girls?” Then -seeing their excited expressions, he inquired: -“What’s up?” Betsy’s words fairly tumbled out in -her eagerness to be the one to relate the story of her -find. The lad took the fragment and looked at it -intently. “It wasn’t written by the type of -prospector who usually climbs over these mountains with -pick and shovel hunting for copper. In fact most -of them can hardly write at all,” was the lad’s decision.</p> - -<p>Virg at that moment appeared, and holding up -the magnifying glass, she exclaimed, “Now perhaps -we will find out the secret hidden in that blurred -writing.”</p> - -<p>Even Malcolm believed that Betsy might have -found a clew and they all bent over the fragment of -newspaper which Virginia had spread on a table -near the window. After several moments of intent -scrutiny, he told the girls what he believed was the -meaning of the very fine and frequently blurred -hand writing.</p> - -<p>Betsy was elated.</p> - -<p>“Whizzle,” she exclaimed excitedly, “it is a clew -after all. A whale of a clew!”</p> - -<p>“Brother, read it again and then tell us what you -make of it,” Virginia urged.</p> - -<p>So once more Malcolm placed the magnifying -glass over the torn fragment of the newspaper and -read the fine writing.</p> - -<p>“Tenderfoot, O. K. Wheels N. G. in desert. -Ought to have known better. Stuck for keeps, seems -like. No ranches in sight. Don’t know what to do -with—” The paper was torn there.</p> - -<p>“Malcolm,” Virginia began anxiously, “do you -suppose that the missing word might have been -yearlings? Has some tenderfoot attempted to make -away with our entire herd?”</p> - -<p>The lad looked serious but after a thoughtful -moment he shook his head. “I can’t believe it is -possible. What paper is this, anyway?”</p> - -<p>“A page from the <i>Chicago Tribune</i>,” Betsy told -him. Then, eager to help solve the mystery, she -hurried on to say: “Chicago is the place where your -cattle were to be sold, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I planned shipping the yearlings in a few -days. The empty cars are on the side track at Silver -Creek station this very minute. As soon as Lucky -and I had them loaded, we were to wire Douglas -and the cars were to be picked up by the freight that -night.”</p> - -<p>“I know what Betsy thinks,” Virginia said. “She -believes that some tenderfoot rustler tried to steal -the cattle and ship them as his own. Would such a -thing be possible, Malcolm?”</p> - -<p>“Possible, but not probable,” was the answer.</p> - -<p>“Then what do you make of it?” Margaret asked.</p> - -<p>“I don’t,” was the smilingly given reply. “But I -do know that we will all starve and that Sing Long -will be on the rampage if we don’t go out and eat -the fine breakfast he has prepared for us.”</p> - -<p>“Whizzle! I have been so interested and excited -that I had actually forgotten that I am almost -starved,” Betsy declared as they entered the big -sunny kitchen, at one end of which was a table that -could seat twelve without crowding, for, on the -desert, one never knew when a passing cowboy, or -a group of them, might stop at meal time.</p> - -<p>When the first pangs of hunger had been satisfied, -Virginia said: “Now brother, tell us your theory.”</p> - -<p>“I’d like to hear Betsy’s first.” Malcolm was much -amused by the small, bright-eyed girl who took such -an unusual interest (for one feminine) in the solving -of mysteries.</p> - -<p>They all turned to listen and so Betsy began. -“Well, of course I know very little about the ways -of the desert, but I should think that Virginia’s suggestion, -a little while ago, might be the right one. -But since you doubt it, Malcolm, I’m beginning to -think that the something the writer didn’t know what -to do with, might not be the stolen yearlings after -all.”</p> - -<p>The lad nodded. Then glancing at Margaret, he -asked, “Who else has a theory?” Flushing prettily -as she always did when her guardian addressed her, -the quiet Megsy replied, “I don’t believe that I have -one, but I just know that you have, Malcolm. Won’t -you tell it to us?”</p> - -<p>“I may be wrong,” the lad began, “but, from the -wording of the memorandum, I believe a boy has -written it, and surely a tenderfoot, else he would not -have tried to cross the desert in a prairie schooner, -if that’s what he has. Maybe he’s here for his -health. Many a lad finds his lungs in danger after -years of hard study, and they come out here to rough -it and get strong again. Anyway, that’s my guess. -I don’t believe that the writer of this note has ever -even heard of our lost yearlings.”</p> - -<p>“Hark!” Virginia cried, springing up and running -to the door. “What’s all the commotion outside?”</p> - -<p>There was indeed a most unusual commotion not -far away, but, from the kitchen window nothing -could be seen but the sandy door-yard, the chicken -corral, the outhouses and farther down the slope and -near the dry creek, the adobe cabin of the Mahoys.</p> - -<p>Malcolm, at once on the alert, caught his sombrero -from its place near the back door. He leaped from -the porch without taking time to descend the steps, -and, before the astounded girls could speak, he was -racing for the corral that was down in the valley-like -hollow near the towering red windmill.</p> - -<p>“Girls!” Virg had listened but a moment when she -whirled, her cheeks burning, her eyes glowing, -“Don’t you know what it means, that bellowing of -cattle and shouting of men?”</p> - -<p>“It sounds like a round-up to me,” Barbara ventured.</p> - -<p>“It is! It surely is! Oh, if only someone has found -the lost yearlings.” The four girls were running so -fast that Virg had not breath to finish her sentence. -A second later they reached the top of the trail and -in the depression below them, they saw something -which filled their heart with rejoicing.</p> - -<p>“The yearlings! Oh how happy Malcolm will be,” -Margaret cried. “Virg, you too, how glad you must -be!”</p> - -<p>“How do you suppose it happened?” Betsy was -tremendously interested, this being the first time she -had witnessed the driving in of a restless herd of -cattle.</p> - -<p>“Slim found them,” Virg said. “See Megsy, how -cleverly he herds them toward the open gate of the -corral. There’s one that is trying to make a break.”</p> - -<p>“Goodness that wild one has turned. It’s charging -right at that cowboy. Slim, did you call him?” -Betsy had her hand on her heart and her eyes expressed -terror, but Virginia laughed. “That’s -nothing unusual. Watch what happens.”</p> - -<p>It was quite evident that the young cowboy, Slim, -had his eye on the angry young steer that had -stopped to paw the ground and snort in a most -threatening manner. The boy drew rein and coiled -his rope. Lucky and Malcolm were also in the -saddle and they were trying to quiet the remainder -of the herd and drive them into the corral. Slim -backed his horse, all the time swinging his rope and -keeping a watchful eye on the snorting young steer.</p> - -<p>“Whizzle,” Betsy clutched Virginia’s arm and -held tight. “I wish Slim would look where he is -going. He may back his horse right over that cliff -and into the dry creek.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t worry, dear. Slim knows every step his -horse is taking even though he isn’t looking. If I -didn’t know how that cowboy of ours can ride, I too, -might be worried. There, now watch!”</p> - -<p>Angered beyond endurance by the whistling of the -rope as it swung round and round the head of Slim, -the enraged creature which knew in some way that -this cowboy was depriving him of the freedom of -the range, made a sudden lunge, his head bent to -bowl over whatever it first struck.</p> - -<p>Betsy screamed, but the lowing of the restless -cattle drowned her cry. “He’ll be thrown! Why -doesn’t Slim do something?”</p> - -<p>“He is waiting his time,” Virg said quietly. “See -how his pony leaped to one side. They’re well -trained, those wiry bronchos.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm and Lucky, having driven the remainder -of the herd into the corral, had closed and barred -the gate. Malcolm, however, stood there ready to -swing it open if the rebellious steer should be headed -that way, while Lucky rode out to assist Slim if his -services were needed, but they were not, for once -again the young steer plunged, the rope sung through -the air, and catching the forefeet of the animal, sent -it with a thud to the ground.</p> - -<p>The loop of Lucky’s rope caught about its neck. -Then, when Slim’s rope had loosened, the creature -scrambled to its feet, and, half stunned, permitted -itself to be led and driven into the corral. Then the -gates were again closed.</p> - -<p>“Now tell us, where did you find them?” Malcolm -asked Slim.</p> - -<p>The good looking young cowboy removed his -sombrero, wiped his hot brow with his red bandana -handkerchief and then burst into unexpected -laughter.</p> - -<p>“Well, Malcolm,” he chuckled, “Ah reckon that -thar dod-busted steer that’s been so plumb rampagious -this mornin’ was at the bottom of the whole -thing.”</p> - -<p>“Then you don’t think that gypsies tried to steal -them?” It was the first time that Betsy had addressed -Slim.</p> - -<p>He had not noticed the young stranger. Virginia, -noting his expression of surprise exclaimed, “Betsy, -this is Slim our prize broncho buster and sure shot -roper.”</p> - -<p>The young cowboy laughed disparagingly. “Don’t -take no stock in all a-that, Miss Betsy,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I know it without being told,” was the young -girl’s eager response. “Didn’t I see you rope that -wild steer with my very own eyes.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm, anxious to know where the cattle had -been found turned the subject back to the point -where it had digressed.</p> - -<p>“No, sir, ’twant gypsies nor yet again cattle thieves -that let the yearlings out of their pen. ’Twas that -wild one himself.”</p> - -<p>“But, Slim, that doesn’t seem probable or possible -for the fence was not broken and the cattle cannot -open the gate,” Malcolm was saying when Betsy -who had turned to glance at the corral in which the -restless herd was pacing back and forth, uttered a -cry of warning.</p> - -<p>“Look! Quick! Slim is right! That wild steer is -pushing the bar.”</p> - -<p>With a variety of expletives the cowboys leaped -forward and were in time to prevent a second escape -of the herd.</p> - -<p>For sometime after that, they were engaged in -making the fastening of the gate more secure. The -girls remained as interested spectators. When Malcolm -at last straightened up, he turned to them and -said with his pleasant smile, “And so, Mistress Betsy, -we are doomed to disappoint you, for there really -isn’t any mystery to unravel after all.”</p> - -<p>But Slim had again removed his sombrero and -he was thoughtfully rubbing his glossy brown hair. -Suddenly he turned toward the little stranger.</p> - -<p>“Ah say, Miss Betsy, what was that thar you asked -me in the beginning. ’Pears to me like ’twas suthin’ -namin’ gypsies.”</p> - -<p>“Yes, it was.” Then eagerly, hopefully. “Mr. -Slim, you didn’t see anything of them while you were -hunting for the cattle, did you?”</p> - -<p>“Wall now, I reckon mebbe I did and yet agin -mebbe, I didn’t. Ah’m not tolerably sartin’, but I -saw suthin’ mighty perplexin’.”</p> - -<p>Then inquiringly to Malcolm. “You-all don’ figger -that any copper diggers ’d be loony enuf to cross -the desert in a wagon, do you?”</p> - -<p>“No, indeed. I’m as good as certain that they -wouldn’t,” Malcolm began, when Betsy hopped up -and down and clapped her hands as she interrupted. -“Oh! Oh! tell us quick, Mr. Slim, <i>did</i> you see the -wagon? We’ve been hunting for it everywhere.”</p> - -<p>The cowboy was so plainly puzzled that Virginia -told him the story of the gypsy caravan as Davie had -told it to Malcolm and Lucky.</p> - -<p>“Wall, all as I saw was tracks headin’, seemed like -toward Puffed Snake Water Hole. But Ah was -driving the herd in jest then an’ couldn’t leave to do -no investigatin’.”</p> - -<p>“Good! I’m glad they were heading away from -V. M. Ranch, whoever they are.” Malcolm said -then added: “Boys, I think we’d better all three drive -this herd in to the station. It’s going to take some -skillful handling to get them aboard the cars. It’s -nine now and I expected to get them loaded by this -time.” Then anxiously, “Slim, you’ve had a hard -time of it this past twenty-four hours. You ought -to get some sleep before we start.”</p> - -<p>“Caint spare the time, Malcolm. Ah reckon thar’ll -be enough for sleep when this here herd is boxed -up in the car. Ah reckon thar will.”</p> - -<p>Lucky had been silently watching the restlessly -lowing heard. “Malcolm,” he said, “we’d better -start, ’pears like. That wild one’s got to wear a drag -to keep it from boltin’, an’ that’ll make it plumb slow -goin’ for the rest.”</p> - -<p>“Right you are,” the young master of V. M. -replied. “We certainly don’t want to take any -chances on a stampede today, since the cars are -scheduled to be picked up by the through freighter -tonight at seven.” Then, turning to his sister, he -added, “Virg, will you girls pack us some grub and -we’ll start as soon as we can get the herd in shape.”</p> - -<p>“Indeed we will.” Then catching the hands of -two of her friends and nodding to the third, away -she ran toward the ranch house.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I just adore all this,” Betsy exclaimed -an hour later when the girls, having packed the saddle -bags with good things until they bulged, stood out -on the front veranda watching the three cowboys -as they drove the still restless herd up over the mesa.</p> - -<p>“That poor wild steer will wish he had been less -obstreperous,” the quiet Margaret said. “He can -hardly take a step without stumbling over that long -pole that drags between his front legs.”</p> - -<p>“I like him,” Babs surprised the others by remarking. -“I like his spirit. Somehow a desire for freedom -seems to belong to the desert and his surely is -unquenchable, but next week he will be—”</p> - -<p>“Oh, do let’s forget that part of it.” Virginia -spoke with unusual seriousness. “I hate it.” Then -noting the expressions of inquiry, she explained. “I -don’t understand in the least what makes me feel -so queerly about it. Nevertheless, I do. I don’t believe -that we have any right to take that wonderful -thing, Life, from any creature to which it has been -given. We may find sometime that we have been -doing something grievously wrong. But there,” she -added in a gayer tone, “since I am the part owner of -a business that raises live stock for the sole purpose -of taking life, it hardly behooves me to moralize -about it.”</p> - -<p>“Does Malcolm know that you feel that way?” -Margaret asked.</p> - -<p>Virg shook her head. Then slipping her hand in -that of her friend, Megsy, said earnestly, “I agree -with you. I’d heaps rather raise beets to sell.”</p> - -<p>A merry laugh greeted this remark, and then -Betsy, who was never long content with just conversing -exclaimed. “Virg, let’s do something interesting -right after lunch.”</p> - -<p>Virginia smiled. “I was going to suggest that -we all take a siesta.” Then she laughed at the dismay -pictured in the face which a moment before had -been so eager.</p> - -<p>But the youngest was not to be daunted. Whirling -toward Barbara, she wheedled. “Babsie, you don’t -want to sleep, do you? Let Megsy and Virg siesticate -if they wish, but suppose you and I go for a ride.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll make a bargain with you, Betsy.” It was -Virg who was speaking. “If you’ll be as quiet as a -little mouse and let us, who wish to, nap until three, -we’ll all go for a ride anywhere you choose.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, will you, honest injun, cross your heart!” -The would-be little detective seemed more eager than -before and the reason was that she wanted to get -Virginia to promise to do something without telling -her what it was.</p> - -<p>The unsuspecting older girl nodded, then as the -bell was ringing they all went in to lunch. Betsy -lingered back of Virg and beckoning Babs she -whispered something in her ear. “Oh, Virg won’t -do that,” Barbara told her.</p> - -<p>“But she’ll have to. You yourself heard her -promise to ride this afternoon in any direction that -I wish and I’m just wild to go there.”</p> - -<h2 id='chVII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='VII. A PLANNED RIDE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A PLANNED RIDE</span> -</h2> - -<p>Directly after lunch, Virginia, Margaret and -Barbara retired to their rooms for the customary -afternoon nap which seemed to be as much a part of -desert life as anything else in the routine. The sun -beat down upon the shimmering white sand relentlessly -during the noon hours and all live creatures -were glad to seek the cool of some shadow or to -hide in underground burrows if that was according -to their nature.</p> - -<p>Betsy, unused to sleeping during the day, had decided -to take that time for letter writing. She was -wild to tell her Cousin Bob, who was fourteen, of -all the exciting things which had befallen her since -her departure from boarding school such a very -short time before.</p> - -<p>How he would envy her. Virg had suggested -that she write at the big old desk which stood on -the shady side of the long living room and there, -for a quiet hour the little girl sat scribbling as fast -as her pencil would fly and the story of her adventures -was so thrillingly told that the boy, who -was to receive it, would indeed be envious. She -had just concluded with—“Virg hasn’t any idea -where I am going to suggest that we go for our -ride when she wakes up, but of course she’ll have -to go because she has promised. I’m ever and ever -so sure that an exciting adventure awaits us and -I’ll add it to this letter before I send it. There’ll -be plenty of time, anyway, for the mail pouch is -only taken to the station about twice a week.”</p> - -<p>It was at this point in the epistle that the three -girls, who had been asleep, appeared and they were -dressed in their riding habits.</p> - -<p>“You’ll have to don yours, Betsy,” Babs called. -“I’ll wait for you. Virg and Megsy are going -down to the corral to saddle our horses.”</p> - -<p>While the young would-be detective was changing -her apparel, Babs sat on the arm of a chair -watching her. “Virg has forgotten all about her -promise to you,” she volunteered. “I heard her tell -Margaret that she wanted to ride over to Hog -Canon and see the poor dry ranchers who live there. -She has brought some gifts for the three children -and their mother.”</p> - -<p>“Oh dear, isn’t that just too provoking. I did so -want to ride in the direction of that Puffed Snake -Water Hole and see if we could find the gypsy -caravan, but, of course, if our hostess has other -plans, I suppose I’ll have to give up mine, only I -don’t think she should have promised. Honestly I -don’t.”</p> - -<p>Babs hardly knew what to say. “But dear, you -can visit that water hole some other time, maybe -tomorrow. Wouldn’t that do as well?”</p> - -<p>“Why, of course not Babs. You know as well as -I do that if we are to get there before that gypsy -caravan moves on, we’ll have to go today. -They’re not going to just camp out there and wait -to be found.”</p> - -<p>“Well, you’ll have to be the one to remind Virg -of her promise. I won’t. I heard her say that the -little woman who lives over in Hog Canon is very -frail and that she has brought her some things that -she needs just dreadfully.”</p> - -<p>Betsy sighed as she laced the riding boots that -Virg had loaned her, but all she said was “What’s -a dry rancher anyway? Someone who’s awfully -poor I judge.”</p> - -<p>Babs nodded. “Yes indeed. Mr. Wallace, -‘Foolish Andy,’ I’ve heard him called, is certainly -not prosperous. Dry ranching means trying to get -along without water except such as can be caught -in a cistern during the rainy season. There’s no -water for the few head of cattle they have except -in water holes. I guess they’re poor enough all -right.”</p> - -<p>Betsy stood up clothed, but only partly resigned -to the seemingly inevitable. “Virg would rather go -on a visit of mercy any time than try to unravel a -mystery which shows how different we are,” she -confided to her companion as they ran down the -trail that led to the corral where the others awaited -them with the four ponies saddled and ready.</p> - -<p>A small pack-horse near had on its back two saddle -bags well packed. “Here you are,” Virg sang -out, then noting an expression of disappointment -in the face of their youngest, the hostess recalled -something. “Oh Betsy,” she said self-rebukingly, -“I completely forgot that you were to choose the direction -of our ride this afternoon and here I have -packed Old Stoic with food and gifts that I want -to take to the Wallace family over in Hog Canon. -Well, I can unpack him again if you wish me to -keep that promise.</p> - -<p>“My only reason for wanting to go today is that -the children have heard that I am home from school, -Slim told them, and they sent word that they’re -wild to see me, and Slim said I should have seen -poor Mrs. Wallace’s expression when she heard it. -He said that it was as though she had heard something -that was going to give her a new lease on life.</p> - -<p>“But of course one day more won’t matter if you -wish to hold me to my promise.”</p> - -<p>“I should say not, Virg!” Betsy spoke emphatically. -“I was merely going to suggest that we -go over to that Puffed Snake Water Hole Mr. Slim -told about and see if we could find the gypsy caravan. -But it might be a wild-goose chase.” Virginia -laughed. “It would be, I can assure you. -The odors around that water hole are such that -even gypsies wouldn’t linger there long. They are -miles and miles away by now.” But Betsy interrupted. -“Virg, how can they be? Don’t you recall -what the writing on the newspaper said. -‘Stuck for keeps.’ No ranches in sight.”</p> - -<p>“Then there’s no use visiting the Puffed Snake -Water Hole for one can plainly see Slater’s Ranch -from there. Now the question is,” Virg looked -from one friend to another, “which way shall we -go? Of course we can visit Hog Canon tomorrow -and—”</p> - -<p>“Indeed not! I’m not as selfish as all that. We’ll -visit Hog Canon and your poor family today, then -tomorrow we’ll hunt for the gypsy caravan.”</p> - -<p>Little did Betsy dream what her decision would -lead to.</p> - -<h2 id='chVIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='VIII. OLD STOIC'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER VIII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>OLD STOIC</span> -</h2> - -<p>Single file the four mounted girls rode down the -trail which led across the dry creek bottom for a -time and then ascended the rather steep opposite -bank. The fifth horse “Old Stoic” followed faithfully. -When they were again on the level trail, Virg -in the lead, smiled over her shoulder. Betsy just -back of her was evidently deep in thought.</p> - -<p>“What are you puzzling about now, little mystery -solver?” she sang out gaily.</p> - -<p>Betsy looked up brightly. “I’m trying to solve -three things at once.”</p> - -<p>Babs and Megsy rode up, and, as the sand was -hard enough to permit, they continued in a group -which was better for conversation.</p> - -<p>“What are they? And how are you succeeding?” -Each maid asked a question.</p> - -<p>Betsy laughed. “I’m wondering what Puffed -Snakes are. I’ve heard of rattlers and copper heads -and—and water snakes, but never Puffed ones.”</p> - -<p>“Guess!” Virg turned to say.</p> - -<p>“I don’t have to guess because I know.” Margaret -smiled at Betsy. “Use that good brain of yours. It’s -ever so easy. It isn’t the kind of snake. It’s something -that happens to it.”</p> - -<p>“Hm. Let me see. It’s the name of a water hole -with a dreadful odor.” Betsy seemed to be thinking -hard. Suddenly she laughed. “Oh, of course, that’s -easy! A snake fell into the water hole, couldn’t get -out and puffed.”</p> - -<p>“Righto!” Virg had whirled her pony and to the -great admiration of the other girls, was riding backwards.</p> - -<p>“What was your second puzzle?” Babs asked.</p> - -<p>“Why this picturesque place ahead of us in the -mountains, should be called Hog Canon?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, that is too easy,” Megsy declared.</p> - -<p>“Probably because some former dry rancher tried -to raise hogs,” Babs suggested.</p> - -<p>“You are nearly right, but not entirely so. It was -Nature itself that raised the little wild hogs that -‘abounded,’ as the story books say, in these mountains, -but they are gone now or nearly so.”</p> - -<p>“Goodness, you don’t mean the kind that I’ve -seen in pictures with tusks that look so dangerous.”</p> - -<p>“No, not wild boars. These were very small -creatures, I’ve heard father say, but they were all -gone when brother and I came to the desert to live. -Now what is your third puzzle.”</p> - -<p>“Why you named your pack horse Old Stoic.”</p> - -<p>“All you have to do is to look at him and that -mystery is solved. He hasn’t a spark of fire in his -eye, he has never been known, within the memory -of the oldest inhabitant, to do anything but plod. I -guess the colt in him vanished years ago.”</p> - -<p>The girls all turned to look at the pack horse that -was following them but it deigned not to return their -notice. It did indeed seem to be stolid and stunned. -Suddenly Virginia began to laugh. She was riding -ahead by that time and the others pressed forward -to hear the cause of her mirth.</p> - -<p>“What’s the joke, Virg,” Betsy said, “Let us all -in on it. Is it something about Old Stoic?”</p> - -<p>Virginia nodded. “Yes, it is,” she said merrily. -“I believe after all I have wronged the old horse. I -recall now that brother modified his statement that -nothing could stir an interest in Stoic. There was -one thing he said that could.”</p> - -<p>“What was it?” Betsy was always curious about -everything. None of the girls had a brain more -eagerly alert.</p> - -<p>“A bear! Malcolm said that Old Stoic can smell -a bear farther than any horse he ever rode and run -faster to try to get away from it, but apart from -that, he shows no sign of interest in life except in -doing his duty as a pack animal and doing it well.”</p> - -<p>Betsy looked anxiously toward the rugged Seven -Peak Range which they were approaching. “I say, -Virg,” she said, “there aren’t any bears in the mountains -these days are there?”</p> - -<p>Then the questioner sighed with relief when she -heard the reply.</p> - -<p>“No, dear, nary a one, or so few that one seldom -if ever appears. I did hear Lucky say last winter -that he saw bear tracks in the snow way up north -in the higher, colder mountains, but I don’t believe -they come down this way now-a-days. They did, -though, when Lucky was a boy. His father was a -trapper and exciting tales he can tell. We’ll get him -to recount the most thrilling of them for us some -night when we’re all sitting around the fire.”</p> - -<p>The girls having ridden for several miles without -stopping were glad, when Virg suggested that they -stop awhile in the shade of a giant cactus. Dismounting, -she ran back to Old Stoic who had -stopped with the others and slipping her hand into -one of the saddle bags she brought out four oranges. -“I’m not robbing the Wallace family,” she smilingly -told them, “for I put these in here just for our very -own refreshment. I knew we’d all be hot and -thirsty by the time we reached this half-way point.”</p> - -<p>The girls were indeed glad to eat the sweet juicy -fruit. Betsy, unused to the saddle was also pleased -to have a chance to stretch her legs, and so, slipping -from her mount, she threw herself down on the -sand, warm even in the shade of the cactus, but she -was on her feet again almost as quickly when she -heard Babs laughingly caution her. “Look out for -tarantulas and scorpions.”</p> - -<p>“Too, you might be lying directly over the hole of -a rattler,” Megsy added. But Virg protested. “Let -the poor girl rest. There isn’t a poisonous creature -in our immediate neighborhood, I’ll vouch for that.”</p> - -<p>But Betsy would not lie down again. Pretending -to want to make the acquaintance of the pack horse -she walked back toward where he so patiently stood, -half dozing. Patting him on the head she said, -“Old Stoic, if there’s a rattler or a tarantula, a scorpion -or anything else startling or unusual around, -you let me know won’t you.” Then she cried triumphantly. -“Look girls, he’s nodding his head. He -is intelligent after all. He just assumes that dull -uninterested expression for reasons of his own. -Maybe he’s a detective. That’s just the way Dad -does when he’s in a group where he expects to overhear -something of great importance. He acts as -though he were intently thinking of something far -away.”</p> - -<p>The listeners laughed. “Honestly Betsy, I doubt -your theory in this case. I don’t believe Old Stoic -thinks. He seems to just plod, but now if you’re all -rested enough, we’ll up in the saddle and away.”</p> - -<p>“Whizzle, but it’s hot, hotter, hottest!” Betsy exclaimed -when they had ridden a mile farther on their -way.</p> - -<p>“Or, as the story books say, ‘The relentless -tropical sun beat down upon the lone traveler and his -beast of burden. Nowhere about him on the vast -sandy waste could he see a sprig of vegetation that -would suggest a life-saving oasis—’”</p> - -<p>“Oh Babs, have a heart! I’d heaps rather have you -spiel about ice cream sodas and cool things like that -if it’s all the same to you.”</p> - -<p>Virg smiled back over her shoulder. “Perhaps -we ought to have waited for a cooler hour,” she said. -“I forgot that you Eastern girls are not as used to -our Arizona sun as I am, and, I’ll confess, it <i>is</i> rather -warm, but there’s hope ahead, for in just a few -moments we will have sighted the canon up which -we will soon be riding.”</p> - -<p>Betsy drew her sombrero farther down over her -eyes, and then peered ahead through the air that -was quivering with the heat.</p> - -<p>The canon which they were nearing did not look -inviting. There were no green growths that would -have suggested a cool brook flowing down among -them, only bare jagged rocks with here and there a -scraggly mesquite bush growing in the cracks of -rock where sand had gathered.</p> - -<p>“Well, I don’t wonder the neighbors call the -gentleman who chose that canon as his dwelling -place ‘foolish,’” she remarked with a little disdainful -grunt.</p> - -<p>“Oh, but that isn’t his chief folly, or rather, not -the one for which he is noted far and wide,” Virginia -looked over her should to inform them.</p> - -<p>“Why is he called Foolish Andy, Virg? I’ve often -wondered,” Megsy inquired.</p> - -<p>“It’s because he is an inventor. He is very well -educated, and seems always to be inventing something -which he is sure will bring his little family -fame and fortune. Mrs. Wallace tells me that they -were comfortably well off, once upon a time, but -that all they could save had been squandered on one -invention after another and they became poorer and -poorer until now they can hardly keep alive, but -nothing seems to quench Mr. Wallace’s faith in his -inventive powers. I heard brother say that the instrument -he is now trying to perfect, he believes -will not only bring him the money he needs but be a -great boon to mankind, or at least to that portion of -it that chooses the desert places for a home.”</p> - -<p>“What is the instrument, Virg?” Megsy inquired.</p> - -<p>“It’s some very sensitive mechanism that is supposed -to locate water and that is why Mr. Wallace -choose the driest section of the desert in this neighborhood. -He particularly likes Hog Canon, and his -theory is that since it was, once upon a time, overrun -with small hogs, there must then have been -water. He believes, that the stream took to flowing -underground as they so often do in Arizona and that -his instrument will locate it. Then this land, which -he has taken up, homesteaded I mean, will be invaluable. -Brother says he is right about that, but -the other ranchers have no faith whatever in his invention. -At least it hasn’t succeeded. Mr. Slater -is a very wealthy, progressive man and when the -Wallaces first moved here, he took an interest in the -instrument. When he was about to have a well dug -for his new windmill, he sent for Mr. Wallace to -help him locate a spot where he would be sure to -find water. Fate was against the inventor, for the -very spot where an excellent well has been dug, the -instrument reported no water. That is why the -poor man, who still clings to his faith in the invention -is called ‘Foolish Andy’.”</p> - -<p>“He ought to be put in an insane asylum,” was -Betsy’s indignant verdict. “The very idea of his -being permitted to bring such misfortune on the -heads of his innocent wife and children. Why -doesn’t she leave him?”</p> - -<p>“For the simple or rather wonderful reason that -she loves him and has faith in him,” Virginia replied, -“but, unfortunately, if he ever does succeed, -I fear it will be too late for his wife to share in whatever -prosperity will follow. If they don’t find water -very soon now, the little woman will have slipped -away. Slim tells me that she seems to be holding to -life by a thread. That will mean three more children -left motherless in the world.”</p> - -<p>Betsy flared. “I just hate that selfish man! I’m -sorry we came! I know I won’t be able to speak -civilly to him.” But Virg remarked, “You’ll be surprised -to find how different he is from the man you -have pictured. Now, here’s where we turn to enter -the canon. Why, what is the matter with Old -Stoic?” The girls whirled in their saddles to look -at the pack horse. To their amazement they saw -that it had stopped and was staring at the dark entrance -of the canon ahead with a look of fear, ears -thrown back and every muscle quivering.</p> - -<p>“Oh, it must be a bear,” Betsy cried, when, with -a shrill frightened whistle, Old Stoic turned tail toward -the mountains, and, burdened though he was, -raced across the trackless sand, but not toward home.</p> - -<h2 id='chIX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='IX. WAS IT A BEAR'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER IX</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>WAS IT A BEAR</span> -</h2> - -<p>“Do you think old Stoic saw a bear?” Margaret -asked as the girls, puzzled indeed, by the faithful -creature’s strange and unexpected behavior sat in -their saddles, two of them gazing anxiously into the -dark entrance of the canon, while the third, Virg, -watched the flight of their pack animal.</p> - -<p>“Oh I can’t believe it possible that there is a bear -about,” she said. “We are very near the Wallaces’ -cabin now, that is, it’s not more than half a mile -away and bears do not venture near settlements if -they know it.”</p> - -<p>“Maybe this one is a big grizzly and maybe he’s -eaten the Wallace family all up and perhaps be -coming now to—”</p> - -<p>Megsy laughed at the wide-eyed Betsy. “To eat -us, I suppose you are going to say. But honestly, -dear child, if he has eaten five Wallaces and their -burros, I don’t believe he’ll have much of an appetite -for delicacies like us.”</p> - -<p>Betsy turned rebuking eyes. “I don’t see how -you can joke at a time like this when maybe something -terrible is about to happen.”</p> - -<p>Virg was relieved to see that the pack horse had -come to a stand-still in the shade of a giant cactus -about an eighth of a mile away. “Girls,” she suggested, -“would you like to wait here until I go and -get Old Stoic or—”</p> - -<p>“What!” Betsy fairly screamed. “We stay here -when any minute a bear or something is going to -come right out of the canon? Nixie for mine. -Where you go, there I’ll go too.”</p> - -<p>The other girls could not keep from laughing -which further increased the indignation of their -youngest. “Laugh if you want to,” she said, “but -didn’t Virg tell us herself that Old Stoic never -showed sign of fear except when a bear was near?”</p> - -<p>Their hostess agreed. “I’ll confess I did. That -is what brother told me, but of course there must -be something else that can frighten our faithful -pack animal.” Then with sudden animation and -pointing toward the mountains a little way beyond -them, Virginia cried: “Look! girls, look!”</p> - -<p>Every one gazed, expecting to see something very -unusual, Betsy alone was convinced that it would -be a huge grizzly.</p> - -<p>“Why, that’s nothing but smoke.” Babs spoke -regretfully. She had almost hoped that it would -be a bear for she knew, what Betsy did not, that -they were harmless unless cornered or attacked.</p> - -<p>“Why Virginia, surely Old Stoic isn’t afraid of -smoke, is he?” Margaret turned inquiringly toward -her adopted sister.</p> - -<p>“No indeed! Brother always takes that pack -horse with him when he goes to the mine and they -have camp fires every night.”</p> - -<p>“What do you suppose this smoke means? A -camp?” Barbara began when Betsy interrupted -eagerly. “Oh Virg, maybe that’s where the gypsy -caravan is stuck. Do you suppose it might be?”</p> - -<p>Virginia shaded her eyes and gazed long at the -jutting point of rock which hid from their sight -whatever was beyond it. “It’s a fire of course,” -she told them. “Shall we ride over and see who -is camping there?”</p> - -<p>“Oh yes, let’s!” Betsy was her old brave self -again. She had no fear of gypsies nor of cattle -rustlers she was sure, though she had never seen -any of them except on the screen.</p> - -<p>A short gallop took them to a point where they -could see the fire. Virg, in the lead, uttered a cry -of surprise, then turned and beckoned. “It is the -gypsy caravan, or at least it is a covered wagon, -like a prairie schooner of the olden days, I should -say, but there seems to be no one around. Shall we -go closer?”</p> - -<p>“Of course!” This emphatically from Betsy. -“Haven’t I been wild—crazy to find this very caravan, -and you don’t suppose I’d leave without seeing -the gypsies. Anyway, aren’t they in trouble? -Don’t you remember the handwriting said ‘Stuck -for keeps. No ranches in sight’.” So Virg laughingly -led the way toward the apparently deserted -covered wagon.</p> - -<p>“We’re wrong about one thing,” the young mistress -of V. M. remarked. “This is not the caravan -that was stuck, for the wheels are quite free, at -present, anyway.”</p> - -<p>“I wonder where the gypsies are.” Betsy was -dismounting as she spoke. “I’m going up to their -front door and knock,” she informed the others. -This she did pounding loudly on the wooden sides -of the wagon. A low growl from within was the -only answer but it was sufficient, as Betsy said -afterwards, to make her hair stand on end. With -a shrill cry she took to her heels and where she -would have gone, it is hard to know, had she not -suddenly been confronted by a girl of about sixteen -who had leaped from between the flaps of the tent-like -covering. Her expression was at first puzzled, -then merry and apologetic.</p> - -<p>Holding out her hand to Betsy, she exclaimed, -“Oh, do forgive us for having given you such a -dreadful scare when you came to call.” Then her -sweeping glance, which held an inquiry, included -them all. “You have come to call, haven’t you?”</p> - -<p>Virginia had dismounted and the other two girls -did likewise. “We did not really start out with that -intention, we’ll have to confess,” she said, with her -friendliest smile, “because you see we did not know -of your existence.” Then, fearing that this was not -quite truthful, she concluded. “That is, we did, and -we didn’t.”</p> - -<p>Noting the puzzled expression in the fine face of -the girl she was addressing, Virginia told the whole -story of the tale that the station master’s boy had -told of the large caravan of thieving gypsies, and -of their subsequent loss of cattle, their search for -the caravan, the finding of the wagon trail and then -the newspaper with its message.</p> - -<p>“Oh, Brother Gordon must have written that. -We were stuck for a day and a night but some prospectors, -I think they were called, came along and -dug us out. We’re on our way back to Douglas -now, but we’ve stopped here to get water and fill -our canteens. Oh good, here comes brother. He’s -been up the canon where the prospectors told us we -would find a rancher who had water in a cistern.”</p> - -<p>A tall lad, too pale to be a real Westerner, appeared -on a loping run from the canon beyond. -“No luck, sister,” he had started to say when he -saw the three strangers and their horses.</p> - -<p>“We have guests,” the girl called happily. Then -to the others: “You can’t guess how glad I am to -see someone of my own age and I’m just wild to -know who you are and where you came from. -Can’t you stay and have supper with us? We have -it very early and it’s now after three.”</p> - -<p>The lad came up and snatching off his hat, he -stood waiting for his sister’s invitation to be acknowledged, -but not accepted, as Virg told them -that their home was some distance and that her -brother would be troubled if he returned from Silver -Creek and found her not there. “But now since -we have met so informally, let’s introduce ourselves,” -she concluded. This was done and the four -visitors found that instead of gypsies, the two were -the son and daughter of a copper magnate whose -name was very familiar to Virginia, since he it was -who owned many of the mines and smelting founderies -in Douglas and Bisbee.</p> - -<p>“We are truly tenderfoots,” the girl, whose name -was Annette Traylor, told them, “for our home is -in New York City and we have never before been -on the desert where our dad came from college to -prospect so many years ago. He’s always telling us -tales of his adventures and so this year, when -brother broke down in his freshman year at Yale, -dad said the best thing for us to do would be to -visit his old haunts on the desert. He was coming -West to inspect some mines and as he was to be -busy for about two weeks, he put us in the care of -an old man whom he had known years ago and told -him to show us the sights.”</p> - -<p>“Then you’re not alone?” Virginia looked about -for a guide but saw no one.</p> - -<p>Annette smiled. “Yes, we are, quite alone and -unprotected. You see it happened in this wise. We -hadn’t been gone more than a day from Douglas -when Old Piute, as Dad called the guide who was -part Indian and the rest French, got sick, and so -we sent him back. He didn’t want to go, but we -could easily see that he was too ill to travel, so -we gave him the money Dad had promised him if -he returned us safely to Douglas in two weeks. -Then we gave him one of the burros in our train -and he sadly rode away. We could see him shaking -his old grizzled head until he was out of sight. -Brother declared that a youth who was wise enough -to go to Yale ought to be wise enough to drive a -team of wiry horses over the desert. You see -where we made the mistake was in not minding -Old Piute. He told us to keep to the roads where -autos travel, but brother thought there would be no -adventures along a beaten way and so he turned out -into the open desert and the third day we stuck.”</p> - -<p>The lad laughed in a hearty boyish manner. -“Well, I’m glad we did since we met one of the -most interesting characters I ever knew outside of -the ‘Dick Dead-eye’ books and, too, we acquired a -bear.”</p> - -<p>“A what?” Betsy’s eyes were big and round.</p> - -<p>The lad nodded. “Yes indeed, a real bear. The -old miner had had him since his cub-hood days and -he’s as tame a pet as one could wish to see.”</p> - -<p>Virginia laughed. “Which brings us back to the -first part of our visit to you.” Then she told about -Old Stoic and how he had evidently smelled the -bear and had taken to his heels. Gordon Traylor -was delighted. “Great Stuff,” he said inelegantly. -Then added, “Miss Virginia, loan me your horse -and I’ll bring back the truant member of your -band.”</p> - -<p>Virg shaded her eyes and remarked. “Good. -He is still patiently waiting in the shade of distant -cactus, and while you are gone, we’ll get better acquainted -with your sister.”</p> - -<h2 id='chX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='X. A VISIT TO HOG CANON'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER X</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A VISIT TO HOG CANON</span> -</h2> - -<p>Half an hour later the girls saw Annette’s brother -returning, leading the faithful old pack animal who -had evidently forgotten his former fear and was -plodding along with his usual lack of interest in all -about him, until, as they neared the mountains a -breeze evidently carried the scent of the creature he -so feared.</p> - -<p>However the lad had been expecting this very -thing to happen and he was on the watch. At the -first movement of Old Stoic, Gordon had whirled in -his saddle and was holding firmly to the rope by -which he was leading the pack animal.</p> - -<p>But try as he might to persuade, to assure, to command, -the stolid creature would not move. He did -not attempt to run away but having planted all four -feet squarely in the sand, mule fashion, there he -stood and would not budge.</p> - -<p>Laughingly Virginia leaped to her horse’s back, -and galloped out to lend what assistance she might.</p> - -<p>She patted Old Stoic, assured him that it was only -a tame bear and was not in any way a creature to -be feared, but the stubborn animal blinked and -winked his expressionless eyes and just stood.</p> - -<p>“I’ll tell you what,” Virg suggested. “Let’s lead -him away from your camp. There’s a trail up to the -Wallace cabin from beyond that jutting out rock. -It’s about an eighth of a mile from here and as the -wind is not blowing in that direction, I believe Old -Stoic will soon again forget the near presence of a -bear.” This was done. The small horse began to walk -when Gordon pulled him in another direction. When -the watching girl observed that the pack animal was -willing to be led to the point she had indicated, she -said that she would ride back to the covered wagon -and tell the girls to accompany her. Although Gordon -had recently visited the cabin in the canon in -search of water, he had seen no one but the boy Peter -who had gloomily told him that they didn’t have -any to spare.</p> - -<p>The lad having always had a secret desire to be an -inventor, and having, in fact, won the admiration -of his boy friends by fashioning all kinds of mechanical -devices for toys in his own shop, was very -eager to see the man who had a vision which he -could not fulfill.</p> - -<p>“May Annette and I go with you?” he asked -eagerly.</p> - -<p>“Why, of course, you may. We’ll be glad to have -you. You will like poor Mr. Wallace. He is very -lovable in spite of his queerness.”</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Betsy having been permitted to peep -at the tame bear (which to her thought had growled -at her in a manner most untame) was glad indeed -when Virg rode up and told them all to accompany -her. Single file they rode up the narrow rugged -trail, Virg in the lead and Gordon last that he might -still hold the guiding rope attached to Old Stoic not -knowing at what minute the wind might change and -startle the pack animal into flight.</p> - -<p>As they neared the shack-like cabin, half hidden -by overhanging boulders, Virg gave a call with -which she always heralded her approach. Instantly -three children ran pell mell to the top of the trail, -their homely freckled faces shining with their joy -at seeing the good angel friend whom they had so -missed.</p> - -<p>Little Jane, aged six, hopped up and down so fast -(clapping her hands all the time) that her two braids -bobbed merrily.</p> - -<p>Thoughtful eyed Sara, who was so like her faithful -mother, smiled too, but made no move of -welcome although her heart was just as glad. Twelve -year old Peter raced to meet them down the trail and -catching Virginia’s bridle, he looked up with adoration -in his red-brown eyes. “Oh, Miss Virgie,” he -cried, “Ma’s been that eager to have you come home -from the East. Often I’ve heard her say, ‘Somehow -things will be better when Miss Virginia comes’.”</p> - -<p>There were sudden tears in the eyes of the girl, -and reaching down she put her hand over the small -brown one on her horse’s head.</p> - -<p>“I’m glad to get home, Peter. How are your -mother and dad?”</p> - -<p>There was a shade of anxiety on the boy’s freckled -face. “Pa’s been took queer this very day,” he said -looking up toward the cabin as though he feared he -might be overheard, “and Ma says now with the -water most gone, she just doesn’t know what we are -to do. There weren’t any late rains and the cistern’s -most empty.”</p> - -<p>“Dear boy, your mother must not worry about -that. There’s plenty of water at V. M. and you are -welcome to all you can carry.” But the girl’s heart -was heavy for even as she made the offer, she knew -that there would be no convenient way of packing -water so many miles across the desert.</p> - -<p>Having dismounted on the small flat space which -served as a dooryard, the others turned anxiously -to Virg. “Ought we to remain,” Annette Traylor -inquired. “If the Wallaces have this new trouble, -we might be intruding.”</p> - -<p>But Gordon stepped forward and said earnestly, -“Miss Virginia, I would like to meet Mr. Wallace. -I believe that I can be of service to him.”</p> - -<p>Mrs. Wallace, more pale and fragile than when -Virg had gone east to school, appeared in the doorway -and Virginia went forward to greet her. The -girls saw her bend and kiss the sunken cheek and -were touched at the light of tenderness in the face -of the older woman.</p> - -<p>It was evident that the girl was inquiring about -poor Mr. Wallace. “I don’t know what has happened -exactly. Something that discouraged him so -much that he just gave up and ever since he’s sat -there in his chair around on the north side of the -cabin and staring into space, though once in a while -he does say something, but it’s about his instrument -and I don’t understand.”</p> - -<p>Meanwhile Gordon had seen the listless figure of -the man, and, with an earnest desire to be of service, -he had walked toward him.</p> - -<p>“Good afternoon, Mr. Wallace,” the boy said, -hoping to attract the attention of the inventor, but -the dreamy grey-blue eyes of the thin, kindly-faced -man did not move from what seemed to be one -definite spot farther up the canon.</p> - -<p>The boy, noting that the girls had gone in the -cabin with the mother, sat on a rock near to wait -until a more opportune moment to again address the -man who seemed deep in thought.</p> - -<p>At last, in a voice that seemed infinitely sad, the -inventor spoke. “I’ve failed! I was so sure it could -be done, but now, I know the truth. I’ve failed!”</p> - -<p>“In what way have you failed, Mr. Wallace?” -Again hopefully the boy ventured a remark.</p> - -<p>This time the dreamy grey-blue eyes turned toward -him. “I was sure there was a hidden spring -up there,” he said more to himself than to a listener. -“But the instrument doesn’t show water and I won’t -dynamite until it does.”</p> - -<p>Gordon, more interested than he thought wise to -show, asked, “Mr. Wallace, may I see your instrument?”</p> - -<p>The older man nodded and pointed toward a long -narrow wooden box on the ground near.</p> - -<p>Reverentially the lad knelt and lifted the cover. -There lay an instrument of delicate mechanism. At -the sight of it, the inventor’s eyes burned and leaning -forward he said, Gordon thought almost -angrily, “Give it to me! I’ll break it into a thousand -pieces. I’ve given my life’s blood to try to perfect -it, I’ve caused untold suffering to my wife and children, -but, God knows, I meant no harm. I had -faith in it. I dreamed that a fortune would be theirs, -everything, everything, schooling for the kiddies, -Peter was to go to Yale where I went.”</p> - -<p>Gordon was on his feet at once, and, grasping the -thin hand of the man, he cried in boyish glee, “I say, -Mr. Wallace, I’m bully glad that you went to Yale. -And don’t you worry. It’s always darkest before -the dawn, you know that. Peter’ll make college. -Everything will turn out all right. You see if it -doesn’t. Don’t give up. Keep your faith.”</p> - -<p>The dreamy eyes had turned toward the boy when -he began this enthusiastic outburst, and in them -there gradually dawned a light of understanding.</p> - -<p>“Who are you?” the man inquired as one awakening -from a sleep. “I haven’t seen you before, -have I?”</p> - -<p>“No, Mr. Wallace. I’m just passing this way, -but I’m ever so interested in your invention. Won’t -you come up to the spot where you are sure there is -water, or ought to be, and show me how it works.”</p> - -<p>There was a sudden renewed eagerness in the eyes -of the poor man who had been so scoffed and laughed -at. “Why, would you really like to see it work?” -he asked as though hardly able to believe his ears.</p> - -<p>“Wouldn’t I though,” the lad had hold of the -man’s hand and was firmly lifting him to his feet. -Then he added confidentially, “I’m something of an -inventor myself in a small way. I say, Mr. Wallace, -I’ll bet you have a good thing there. May be it needs -a little different adjusting. Let’s try it out.”</p> - -<p>It was pitiful to see the joy in the dim eyes of the -man who had failed. Here was someone, what if -only a boy, someone who had faith in him. With -shaking hands he lifted the instrument he had a -moment before threatened to break into a thousand -pieces, and with an eagerness he had never again -expected to feel, he led the way up, up the canon -with a sureness of step that amazed the lad who had -such a brief time before pitied his weakness.</p> - -<p>“Are you good for a stiff climb?” the man turned -to call. “There’s a wall of rock ahead that’s as perpendicular -as a barn door, but there’s no way but to -go up over it to reach the spot which I am sure long -years ago was the source of a water way. See! See!” -he cried excitedly. “Now, you know why I am so -sure there has been water here.”</p> - -<p>The lad, looking ahead at the huge boulder, saw -on its surface a smooth, many-colored groove which -could only have been made by running water. “It -wasn’t much of a volume, I’ll agree, but there <i>was</i> -water, but where is it now?” Then again inquiringly, -“Do you think you can climb it?”</p> - -<p>“Certainly, sir, if you can,” the boy replied, -amazed though that the man so recently weak, could -even think of making the attempt.</p> - -<p>“Well, then, follow me closely. I’ve been up so -many times, I know just where the indentures in the -rock will serve for steps.”</p> - -<p>The lad inwardly confessed that it was an almost -impossible feat, but if one Yale man could accomplish -it, he assured himself, then so too could another.</p> - -<p>At length they stood above the boulder and saw -that the canon had narrowed until the rocks overhanging -on one side often touched the opposite wall.</p> - -<p>“There’s a hidden spring, I am convinced, somewhere -about here,” the man’s eyes were no longer -dreamy but shining with the light of rekindled faith.</p> - -<p>“I believe you are right, Mr. Wallace.” The lad -leaped to a spot where he saw another of the -smoothed grooves in the rocks. “Let’s try it here,” -he suggested. The instrument was set up, and Mr. -Wallace explained that if there were water, it was -his hope that the sensitized swinging needle would -dip and point toward it, but it made no movement at -all.</p> - -<p>The lad on his knees was watching it intently. -Looking up he saw the old expression of despair returning -to the ashen face of the man. That would -never do. Hope <i>must</i> be kept alive.</p> - -<p>“I say, Mr. Wallace, don’t you think maybe that -needle’s held too tight? Have you ever tried loosening -that minute screw there? Gee, but I’d jolly like -to try that experiment.”</p> - -<p>Almost mechanically the inventor put his hand in -a large leather pocket and drew out an infinitesimally -small screw driver. “Do what you wish,” he said -as he sat upon a flat rock and leaned his head on -his hands. “I’ve failed. Not that I have any reason -to be sure that there <i>is</i> water here, but it did not -move over at Slaters and there <i>was</i> water.”</p> - -<p>While the man talked, the boy, with heart beating -like a trip-hammer, was actually praying for inspiration -while he loosened ever so little the tiny screw -that held the sensitive needle. But even then, it did -not stir.</p> - -<p>“I say, Mr. Wallace, may I take it higher up? -Way to the very top of the canon?”</p> - -<p>The older man shook his head. “No use, son. -There aren’t any watermarks farther up and it’s almost -impassible.”</p> - -<p>“But, may I try?”</p> - -<p>A silent, resigned nod was the only answer and -so securing the instrument, the lad carefully climbed -over boulders, higher and higher. At last he stopped. -Mr. Wallace had spoken truly, there were no signs -of the water marks that had been made, no one knew -how many years before. Retracing his steps, he -turned a little to the right. Something seemed to -impell him to stoop and look into a fissure where a -boulder, perhaps ages before, had been rent asunder -by some tremendous power, an earth-quake, without -doubt.</p> - -<p>It was an almost impossible feat to hold himself -so that he could thrust the instrument into the fissure, -but he did it, and with a startling suddenness, the -sensitive needle dipped straight down.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Wallace! Mr. Wallace! Come quick! I’ve -found the spring.”</p> - -<p>The boy’s triumphant cry rang out, reverberating -down the canon and penetrating even the again -dulled senses of the inventor. Not for one moment -did the boy doubt that the needle was telling the -truth.</p> - -<p>Unable to wait for the older man to climb to him, -Gordon fairly leaped down from rock to rock, -though he wondered afterwards at the sureness with -which he had stepped, and catching the man’s hand, -he dragged him up, up until the fissure was seen in -a perilous place beyond and below.</p> - -<p>“Why son, you couldn’t get down there. No one -could,” the man said.</p> - -<p>“But I did! See! I just chanced to find the way. -I guess my guardian angel showed it to me. The -instrument’s in that fissure and the needle dipped. -Mr. Wallace, it dipped straight down. Oh, if only -we had some dynamite.”</p> - -<p>The boy’s faith was just the spur the older man -needed. “There’s dynamite in a cavern just below -here,” he said. “Wait, we’ll bring a stick and shoot -it off.”</p> - -<p>The boy secured the instrument and took it to a -place of safety.</p> - -<p>“We’ll have to make a long fuse,” the man told -the lad. “We don’t want to take any chances with -flying rock.” Then he looked at the sun. “We -ought to get back to the cabin in half an hour. I’ll -time it for about then.”</p> - -<p>This was done and then the two scrambled back -down the rocks. How Gordon hoped the fire of the -fuse would not be extinguished. Too, he hoped the -explosion would not take place before they reached -the girls lest they should be too greatly frightened.</p> - -<hr class='tb' /> - -<p>During the absence of the man and boy, Virginia -glanced often at her watch. She did want to see -Gordon before she left to thank him for having -procured her pack animal and to urge him to bring -his sister to V. M. before returning to Douglas. She -was sure that Malcolm would wish her to do so. But -the afternoon was wearing away and, as they did -not return, the girl at last arose saying: “I fear that -we cannot wait longer.” Then to the little mother, -whose expression was much happier than when the -visitors had arrived, she said, “Tell Mr. Wallace -how sorry I am, not to have seen him this time, but -I shall come again and often, and do remember, dear -Mrs. Wallace, the V. M. Ranch house is large and if -you run out of water in a few days, as you fear, I -want you all to come to us until your cistern can be -refilled.”</p> - -<p>There were tears of gratitude in the eyes of the -frail woman. “I don’t understand why it is,” she -said, “but now that you are here, Miss Virgie, I feel -confident that all will be well, somehow.”</p> - -<p>They were out in the plateau-like dooryard and -each girl had a horse by the bridle which was lucky -when a deafening report like thunder boomed -through the mountains.</p> - -<p>“W-what was that?” Betsy cried in alarm, but -Mrs. Wallace at once quieted their fears, for it was -a sound she had often heard. “It’s my Peter -dynamiting for water,” she said sadly. “But he -won’t find it. He never has.” But little Peter whose -eyes had been afire with enthusiasm had raced toward -the canon bed and was seen waving and beckoning -frantically. “Ma,” he shouted, “I hear it. I’m -as sure as anything that I hear water.”</p> - -<p>The girls listened and far up in the canon they -heard a rushing sound that came nearer and nearer, -then they heard something else. A shout of triumph, -then a man and boy appeared and in the face of the -inventor was light, an inner radiance of great joy.</p> - -<p>He seemed to see no one but the wife he loved. -Going straight toward her, with arms outstretched, -he cried, “Molly, Molly, little girl! We’ve succeeded -at last, you and I! Thank God your days of privation -are over.” Then turning to the lad he said, “But I -can’t call it all my invention. It was your thought -that perfected it. I’ll share with you.” But the boy -exclaimed, “Mr. Wallace, you alone are the inventor -of that instrument. It would have been only a matter -of time before you thought to make the slight -change that I suggested.”</p> - -<p>Then, although it seemed as though they just -must stay to rejoice with their friends, Virginia -was reminded by the lowness of the sun that she -must start on the homeward way.</p> - -<p>Annette and Gordon decided to remain in their -present camp until the morrow. Then, although -they would like nothing better than to visit V. M., -the lad decided that he did not care to chance being -stuck again in the sand and so he accepted Virginia’s -advice that he start out for Slater’s Ranch early the -next day.</p> - -<p>“Mr. Slater is the richest man on the desert. You -will have no trouble reaching his place,” the girl assured -him, “and from there into town is one of the -best roads anywhere to be found as he keeps it up -himself, or rather he has the peons in his employ -constantly working on it.” Then, holding out her -hand to Annette, Virg said, “If your father is not -ready to return East, we shall be glad to have you -and Gordon visit us. If you will send us word, we -will come for you in our car.”</p> - -<p>Two hours later, when the girls were dismounting -near the corral at V. M., Betsy said, “Well, wasn’t -that all just like a story book adventure?” Then -going to the pack horse, she patted him as she laughingly -said, “And, although he doesn’t know it, Old -Stoic was the hero.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XI. LETTERS OF INTEREST'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>LETTERS OF INTEREST</span> -</h2> - -<p>The girls had reached home just in time, for -hardly had they removed their sombreros when -there arose a shouting without and a pounding of -horses’ feet.</p> - -<p>“Good, the boys are back,” Babs cried running -to throw open the wide front door.</p> - -<p>“Ohee, what a bulging mail bag,” Betsy who -had closely followed shouted gleefully. “There -must be a million letters or more in it.”</p> - -<p>Malcolm swung from his tired horse and giving -it a friendly slap, bade it go to the corral with its -companions. Lucky and Slim, as he knew, would -attend to its needs.</p> - -<p>“We had a close call.” Malcolm tossed his sombrero -on the table, placing the mail bag beside it, -then sank wearily in his favorite grandfather chair.</p> - -<p>“What happened?” Virg inquired with interest. -“Did that wild steer try to lead a stampede even -with the drag on?”</p> - -<p>“No, not that,” her brother replied. “The poor -creature seemed to have lost all desire to make a -break for freedom. The close call was that when -we drove the herd into the corral at the station, -Mr. Wells came running up and said that he had -just received a wire that the cars were to be taken -on by a freighter that was due to arrive two hours -sooner than scheduled, and didn’t we work though.</p> - -<p>“Then was the time the young steer might have -made trouble had he but known. However, he -didn’t attempt it, but walked up into his prison as -meekly as a sheep would have done.” Then the -boy laughed, “I suppose you’ll think I’m foolish, -but I certainly had a decided impulse at that moment -to give him his freedom. It came over me -how I would rejoice, were I in his place, if I once -again found myself roaming where I would, out on -the range with only the blue sky above me and the -distant mountains for walls. Luckily the freighter -came along before I had carried out my sentimental -inclination, else our check would have been that -much less, Virg, when it comes from Chicago.”</p> - -<p>Margaret, remembering what Virginia had said -about hating to raise cattle just to have their freedom -taken from them, realized that something of -the same sentiment was in the heart of the brother, -although he had not fully realized it as the girl had.</p> - -<p>“You look just too weary for words, Malcolm,” -Megsy said, leaping up from the window seat. -“I’m going to make you some lemonade.”</p> - -<p>“Make enough for Lucky too, will you? Slim -won’t need any. He’ll be dead to the world before -you could get a lemon squeezed. He hasn’t had -an hour’s sleep in two nights and a day.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll help.” Babs skipped by the side of her -friend kitchenward.</p> - -<p>“And while you’re gone, I’ll sort the mail.” Virginia -was emptying the contents of the leather -pouch out on the long library table as she spoke.</p> - -<p>Betsy watched eagerly. Suddenly she pounced -on a large envelope addressed in a boy’s hand writing. -“It’s from Cousin Bob, sure certain! I wonder -if they’re still quarantined. If so I ’spect this -letter has been—what do you call it—fumigated.”</p> - -<p>“Two for Babs and two for me and not one for -Megsy. That’s too bad. I hope she will not feel -left out,” the youngest said, but Virg glanced up -smilingly. “No indeed! Margaret is too generous -and loving to ever feel neglected or left out. That -is a form of selfishness. Then, more-over, all of -Megsy’s home people are right here, for, you know, -Betsy, she belongs to us. Malcolm is her guardian -and I am her adopted sister.”</p> - -<p>“I hear a jingle approaching,” Malcolm rose as -the little pitcher bearer entered the room. He went -forward ostensibly to carry it, but he took the opportunity -to say softly, “I’m mighty glad my little -ward is home again.”</p> - -<p>The flush which always mounted to the quiet -girl’s cheeks when this lad addressed her made her -unusually pretty, but, as yet Malcolm had given it -no thought. Virg had been the only girl he had -ever known intimately and he supposed a certain -reserve, which Margaret surely had, was responsible -for the pretty flush.</p> - -<p>“Any mail for me?” Babs was following with a -tray on which were five tumblers.</p> - -<p>“Two letters and both from boys or I miss my -guess.” Betsy was peering at the letters that lay -side by side on the table.</p> - -<p>“Then it is easy to know who they are from.” -Babs having passed the tumblers, picked them up -and looked at them curiously. “This one is from -dear old brother Peyton.” Then lifting an eager -face she addressed her hostess. “Virg, I hope you -won’t think I’m lacking in appreciation of your -hospitality if I say that I’d like to ride over to my -brother’s ranch tomorrow. I’ve made you a real -long visit.”</p> - -<p>“Three days isn’t an eternity!” Betsy put in, but -Megsy said: “It seems like one sometimes, when -one is separated from home folks.”</p> - -<p>“You are right,” Virg said, slipping a loving arm -around the waist of the pretty friend who was -sometimes called “The Dresden China girl.” “We -would love to have you stay longer with us, but I -know you must be ever so eager to see Peyton.” -To herself the thought came, unbidden. “And so -too am I.” Then to her brother. “Why isn’t Peyton -here Malcolm? I thought surely he would be -at the train to meet us with you.”</p> - -<p>The boy drank the lemonade gratefully before he -replied. “I don’t know, sister. I have been expecting -to hear from him for a week. I did hear in a -round-about way, that is one of Mr. Slater’s cowboys -passing V. M. last Friday week, stopped and -took dinner with us. He said Peyton was having -some trouble with his Mexican herders and didn’t -think best to leave them, although he was inclined -to believe that a new one, who had recently arrived, -might prove more trustworthy than the others had. -But suppose you read your letter, Babs. That may -tell us what you want to know.”</p> - -<p>It did, for in it Peyton told his sister that he had -deeply regretted not having been at the station and -then he related his reason, which was much the -same as that which had been reported by the Slater -cowboy.</p> - -<p>But it was the last part of the letter which caused -a stir in the little group.</p> - -<p class='mt10'>“Much as I want to see you, dear sister, I’m going -to ask you to remain at V. M. a short time -longer or until I am sure whether or no there is -going to be an outbreak among these Mexican -herders. I am writing Virginia today to ask her -to permit my little sister to be her guest a few days, -perhaps a week longer. By that time I will know -how much I can rely on my new overseer. You -understand, Sis, I wouldn’t want to ride over to -V. M. and find, when I return, that these peons had -driven my prize cattle across the border, nor would -I want you and your friends to come here until I -am sure that my herders are not of the bandit class.</p> - -<p>“I hope you <i>are</i> disappointed, however, for selfishly -I very much want my sister to come and open up -the old house that she is to make into a home for -her loving brother.</p> - -<p class='tar sc mb10'>Peyton.”</p> - -<p>Virginia looked at Malcolm with an expression -of anxiety. “Do you feel that Peyton is in any real -danger?” she asked. “If an outbreak of any kind -should occur, I mean.”</p> - -<p>“No, I think not,” Malcolm replied. Then Virg -read her own little letter from Peyton whom she -had once known as “Trusty Tom,” but that former -time was never referred to by any of them.</p> - -<p>Megsy noticed that her adopted sister did not -read aloud her letter from the brother of Barbara, -and she believed that she knew why. It was not -hard for even a casual observer to notice how sincerely -the lad admired Virginia.</p> - -<p>“Well, then that’s settled,” the hostess smiled -lovingly at Babs. “Now we may keep with us a -certain little girl whom we all love.”</p> - -<p>“Why Barbara,” Margaret then exclaimed as she noted -a look of real concern on the pretty face, “what has -Benjy written to make you seem so troubled? Has he -found his mother worse?”</p> - -<p>“He didn’t know when he wrote this. It’s just -a few lines that he scribbled at the station in Red -Riverton. You know he expected his brother -Harry Wilson to meet him, and he wasn’t there but -his own horse had been sent for him. Benj is just -ever so sure that means his mother is not so well. -I do hope she will live. I never knew two boys to -care more for a mother than they do.”</p> - -<p>“She is such a lovable, motherly woman,” Virginia -said earnestly. “Everyone who knows her, -loves her. She always reminds me of a hen with -a brood and even when the chickens are away, she -is sort of spreading her wings with a welcome for -any one in trouble who needs their comforting -shelter, but it’s nearly a year now that she has not -been well.”</p> - -<p>“It’s too bad that Harry doesn’t seem to care to -marry. If only Mrs. Wilson had a nice daughter -to take the responsibility of home-making for a -time, she could get a real rest.”</p> - -<p>Virginia astonished the others by saying, “Girls, -surely you know that Harry does care for someone, -but I’m afraid his mother would never willingly -accept that someone for a daughter.”</p> - -<p>Margaret said. “I, too, have felt sure that Harry -cares for our wonderful Winona, as who, knowing her -well, does not. She is one of the noblest characters -I have ever met, and I know you think so too, Virg.”</p> - -<p>“Indeed I do,” was the emphatic reply, “but one -can understand how a mother might feel that a -member of the Papago tribe would not be a suitable -wife for her idolized son, but Winona would. -They are more nearly kin, mentally and—and what -shall I say, in their love for the wide spaces of the -desert, than any two I ever knew. You know -Harry likes nothing better than to ride far away -into the mountains studying the rocks and trying -to read the messages of the ages in the different -formations. Had he been able to leave home, he -would have studied along those lines. Of course he -is, even now, and what is more, our Winona is the -very first girl who has ever appealed to him as a -companion.”</p> - -<p>“Isn’t it about time Winona finished that course -of practical nursing that she was taking when she -left us at boarding school?” It was Barbara who -asked the question.</p> - -<p>Virg nodded, then for the first time glanced at -the second letter that she held. “Oh, good, this is -from our Winona and since it was written on the -train, she may be in her walled-in village home this -very minute.”</p> - -<p>“May we all hear what she has written?” Babs -asked.</p> - -<p>“Of course,” Virginia made herself comfortable -on the window seat and then began to read. Malcolm, -having excused himself, had retired to his -own room for a much needed nap.</p> - -<p>Dear White Lily:</p> - -<p>At last I am homeward bound glad, deep in the -heart of me, that I have learned a way to be of real -service to my father’s people, who, having lost faith -in their old Medicine Man, had no one to whom -they could take their little ones when they were -hurt or ill.</p> - -<p>I shall be there in two days, and, dear friend, -I am not alone. With me is a comrade of my childhood, -but I must tell you how it all happened.</p> - -<p>One day when I went on duty, I found in the -ward much excitement for a lad who was being -called brave had been brought in and no one knew -who he was. He was too exhausted to be conscious -it seemed, for he had no real illness and so could -not tell about himself.</p> - -<p>The story was that in one of the city tenements -a plague broke out which terrorized the neighborhood. -Many became ill and those who were not -strong died. It was so terrible a plague that few -volunteered to help. Kind old Doctor Quinton gave -his services and risked his life but alone he could -do little. It was when he was completely worn out -that this youth, who said that he was a medical -student, volunteered to take the place of the good -doctor while he took a much needed rest. Nor -would the lad leave his post when the older -physician returned. They were too much occupied -with real service to ask who he might be or from -where he had come, but, at last, he too had succumbed, -not to the plague but to weariness and they -had brought him to the hospital.</p> - -<p>I listened to the story and said that I would like -to see the lad who had been willing to sacrifice his -life for humanity.</p> - -<p>White Lily, when I saw him, so thin and tired, -lying on a cot in the ward, I knew him at once. It -was Fleet Foot, one of the Papago boys who accompanied -the kindly missionary who had taken three of -our lads as you recall, to a school for Indian boys. -I had not seen him since that long ago day, but he -had changed little.</p> - -<p>You, White Lily, will know what finding Fleet -Foot meant to me, for is he not one of my father’s -people? I cared for him as tenderly as a sister -might. Then the good doctor took him to his country -home, that he might grow strong away from the -noise of the city, but, when I had finished my -course, Fleet Foot wished to return with me to our -village and so together we are now nearing the end -of our long journey. Will you not soon ride north -to our village and remain with me as long as you -wish.</p> - -<p>My friendliest thoughts I send to Margaret and -Barbara if they are with you.</p> - -<p class='tar mb10'>Your\ \ \ \ <span class='sc'>Winona</span>.</p> - -<p>At the close of the letter, the four girls were all -thinking the same thing but it was the quiet Margaret -who voiced it. “Poor Harry!” she said. -“For of course this Papago lad, who is of her own -people, will be the one Winona will love and eventually -marry.”</p> - -<p>“I shall be sorry if this is true,” Virginia remarked, -“for Harry Wilson is so unlike other boys. -He may never again find just the companion he -wishes.”</p> - -<p>Then, as the dinner gong was sounding, the girls -sprang up to hastily remove their khaki suits and -don their house-dresses.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile what of the neighbors farther north?</p> - -<h2 id='chXII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XII. BENJY ARRIVES HOME'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>BENJY ARRIVES HOME</span> -</h2> - -<p>In the meantime when Benjy Wilson left the -train at Red Riverton, he glanced about anxiously -hoping that his brother Harry would be there to -meet him. He had been the only passenger to descend -to the platform and, almost at once, the station -master hurried up to him to say that his brother -had been in a few days before and had told him to -keep on the watch-out for Benjy. “He said he -mightn’t be able to get in to meet you an’ if he -didn’t, you’d find yer little horse Clipper over to -the stables waitin’ for yo’.” Then the kindly man -searched in the pockets of his blue denim coat and -drew from one of them a letter. “Likewise he left -this for you to sorto’ explain things.”</p> - -<p>“Thank you, Mr. Hendrix. I’ll go at once after -Clipper,” the boy said with a break in his voice, -which drew from the sympathetic old man the -query. “Yo’ ma wan’t any worse last yo’ heard, -was she? Hal was in a hurry t’other day, I -didn’t get to ask.”</p> - -<p>“I’m afraid mother isn’t very well,” then fearing -that he would cry from dread and loneliness, -(never before had his older brother failed to meet -him), the lad picked up his bags and hurried away -toward the stables that were just beyond the station.</p> - -<p>The boy naturally happy and optimistic was -sadly troubled. The pony was glad indeed to see -his young master and showed it in every way that -he could.</p> - -<p>It was not until the town had been left behind -and Benjy was riding on a desert trail that he -opened the letter which the station master had given -him. With tear dimmed eyes he read:</p> - -<p class='ni mt10'>“Dear Ben,</p> - -<p>“I have not wanted to worry you needlessly and -I have not been sure, (even now I am not sure), -that there is real need for alarm, but I decided that -I must warn you before you arrive, that you may -be prepared for a great change in our mother’s appearance. -She was strong and well when you left -eleven months ago, but now she is frail and wearies -at the least exertion. I am telling you, not to -frighten you, (for it may merely mean that our -mother is growing older or that she needs a complete -rest), but I want you to be prepared for the -change so that you will not exclaim about it when -you arrive. It would be a great shock to our father, -who, (perhaps because it has come so gradually), -seems as yet unconscious of it. In mother’s own -brave, cheerful way, she hides it from him. When -he comes home each night, weary from a hard day’s -work on the ranch, she is always at the head of the -table, with her bright smile, and a good supper is -waiting. Of late I have managed to ride home an -hour earlier each night that I might help to prepare -it.</p> - -<p>“The one thing which has prevented my being -greatly worried is mother’s own attitude in the -matter. She insists that there is nothing radically -wrong; that she is merely tired, as one often is in -the spring, and she laughingly, said last night: -‘When little Benjy comes home, I’m going to play -fine lady for a fortnight. Then you will see how -well and strong I will be.’</p> - -<p>“Ben, old pal, don’t take this letter too much to -heart, but I do think best to have you prepared for -the change in the mother who is our all. If I were -sure that I could get to the station to meet you, -would not have written this. I’ll be there if I can -possibly make it.</p> - -<p class='tar mb10'>“Your brother,\ \ \ \ <span class='sc'>Hal</span>.”</p> - -<p>But he hadn’t been there.</p> - -<p>As the boy rode along over the hard sand trail -he thought of his quiet, dependable brother, who -was so like their mother.</p> - -<p>“Hal would have come if he could possibly have -made it,” he said with a half sob, as he realized the -probable meaning of his older brother’s absence.</p> - -<p>“He never promised to do a thing in all his life -but that he did it.” Then the lad’s thoughts returned -to his little boyhood, when he had learned -that the older brother’s word could be trusted unfailingly.</p> - -<p>“If Hal promised to make a kite or whittle a top -on the first stormy day that we were shut in, he -never forgot it, never tried to get out of it. Quite -the contrary, Hal would be the first to say: ‘Bring -along your kite materials, little Ben. This is the -day I promised I’d make one for you.’</p> - -<p>“I’m going to be just like him,” Benjy thought. -“Mother is right. The man you want for a friend -is the one you can trust.”</p> - -<p>The first half of the ride was over level desert -trails that had been beaten hard by cattle and -horses, but farther on the way grew rough and -rocky and there was a high rugged mountain range -to be crossed, for, on the other side, lay the wide, -sheltered valley belonging to the Wilson ranch.</p> - -<p>Reaching the water-hole about noon, Benjy dismounted -to permit his horse to drink.</p> - -<p>Again in the saddle, he petted the beautiful -pony’s head. “Clipper, old pal,” he said in a tone -of sympathetic understanding, “I’m sorry to ask -you to climb High Pine Mountain trail without -giving you a chance to rest before we start upgrade, -but I’ll have to do it this time. I’ll make it up to -you, though, old pal, you see if I don’t.”</p> - -<p>The pony seemed pleased to feel his young master’s -caress. He tossed his head, looked back over -his shoulder and whinnied a reply. It was at that -moment that the horse stepped on a rolling stone, -scrambled madly to keep his foothold, stepped off -the narrow, ascending trail and rolled with his -rider into a shallow ravine. The fall had been but -slight and Benjy leaped to his feet unhurt, but Clipper -arose with more difficulty, and when he attempted -to walk he limped and held his right forefoot -as though it pained him.</p> - -<p>Poor Benjy felt as though everything was -against him, but, just at that moment he seemed -to see his dear mother’s face and to hear her say -as she so often had, “Benjy, Boy, courage wins.”</p> - -<p>“I know it, mother,” the lad replied aloud with a -half sob, and putting one arm around the pony’s -neck he choked back the tears that had tried to -come, as he said, “I’m awfully sorry you’re hurt, -Clipper. I ought to have let you rest for a while -at the water-hole. I guess we’ll have to keep going -somehow, but I won’t ride you. If you don’t have -to carry a load, don’t you think you can climb the -trail, old pal?”</p> - -<p>Clipper, looking at his young master, whinnied -again, but, though he tried he could not walk without -pain.</p> - -<p>Just at that moment, Benjy heard a pounding of -horses’ feet. At first he thought it might be a herd -of the small wild ponies that sometimes were seen -near the mountains, but as he waited and watched -around the jutting rocks there appeared a tall Indian -lad seated on a pony, leading another that he -had evidently just captured from a wild herd and -followed by a third small horse.</p> - -<p>Benjy climbed high on a rock and halooed at the -top of his voice but the rider was going in the direction -of the Indian village and away from Benjy. -Again the lad shouted but each second took the -galloping horses farther and farther away from -him.</p> - -<p>Realizing that his voice could not be heard, the -boy stood still watching the retreating figures and -wondering what he ought to do, when suddenly he -became tense and alert.</p> - -<p>The wild pony that had been captured by the -Indian lad made a sudden break for liberty. After -rearing, it made a backward lunge and the rope that -had been an improvised halter was torn from the -hand of its captor; then snorting shrilly, the small -horse galloped away and back toward the mountains.</p> - -<p>The dangling rope, snapping this way and that -at his heels, terrorized him, and, with eyes wild, -he raced as he had never raced before. Plunging -blindly, he headed directly for the spot where Benjy -stood watching. In an instant the boy had formed -a plan. Leaping behind a mesquite bush, he -crouched waiting the oncoming horse. Nearer and -louder came the swift pounding of hoofs, then, just -as the lad had hoped, the dragging rope was flung -toward him. The boy endeavored to seize it, but -the pony had seen him, and, rearing on his hind -feet, he whirled, but that very motion made him -captive, for the rope swung around the stout mesquite -bush and held long enough for Benjy to make -it fast.</p> - -<p>Then the boy wisely ran out of reach of the -wildly plunging horse, which enraged at his unexpected -recapture, snorted and dragged so hard on -the rope that Benjy feared the bush would be uprooted.</p> - -<p>The Indian lad was galloping toward them at -top speed, followed by the faithful pony. “Hold -him if you can!” was the cry that reached Benjy’s -ears. It was English, which meant that the rider -was either Strong Heart, or Fleet Foot of whom -he had not heard.</p> - -<p>A lasso whirled through the air as the rider -neared. It coiled like a snake about the forefeet of -the rearing pony and pulled him to the ground.</p> - -<p>“What a beautiful little horse you have there,” -Benjy said by way of greeting.</p> - -<p>The stoical Indian lad bowed. “I had none and -so I have captured him for my own, but he would -have been lost again if you had not made him fast.”</p> - -<p>Then he asked, “What is wrong with your -pony?”</p> - -<p>Benjy told in a few words about his great anxiety -concerning his mother, of his eagerness to reach -her soon as possible and about poor Clipper’s mishap.</p> - -<p>The Indian lad lifted the hurt foot, and taking -his soft leather belt, he wound it tightly about the -strain. Rising, Fleet Foot, for it was that fine -Indian lad, bade Benjy place his saddle on the horse -that had been following, adding that he would take -Clipper to the village and give him care. “He will -be all right in a few weeks,” the Indian lad said. -“I hope so,” Benjy replied, “Clipper and I have -been pals ever since I was a little shaver.”</p> - -<p>Then, having thanked Fleet Foot the boy again -started up the long hard trail.</p> - -<p>It was nearly dusk when he reached the summit. -Looking down into the valley, he could see the -group of white-washed buildings that were home -to him. With a sob he reached out both arms. -“Mother! Mother!” he said, “I’m coming. I’ll be -with you soon now.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XIII. MOTHER!'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XIII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>MOTHER!</span> -</h2> - -<p>As Benjy neared his ranch home he saw that a -dim light was burning in his mother’s room. This -confirmed his fears that the one he so loved was -really ill. Urging his steed to a gallop, he was -soon dismounting at the corral, where he left his -pony. The front door quietly opened and his -brother appeared. He advanced with outstretched -hands.</p> - -<p>“Hal,” the young lad said, with a sob, “is our -mother ill?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know, Benny Boy,” was the reply. -“Mother insists that she is merely tired and that -she is going to remain in bed until she is rested, -and you must pretend that you believe her. It will -be hard for you, fearfully hard, but it must be done. -Come. Our mother has been listening all day. -Just now she called to me and said: ‘Son, go -quickly and open the door. My little boy has come -home.’ She knows that you are here and so we -must not delay longer or she will think it strange.”</p> - -<p>Never before had the young lad been through so -hard an ordeal. He longed to put his arms about -his big, strong brother and sob out his dread and -grief, but instead, he had to choke back his tears -and enter the dimly lighted room with a smile.</p> - -<p>“Little Ben,” the woman on the bed called, with -infinite love and tenderness in her voice.</p> - -<p>“Mother mine,” the lad replied as he sank on his -knees and pressed his cheek against hers. Tears -would come but in the dim light they were not seen -and his voice sounded cheerful.</p> - -<p>“Brother tells me that you are taking a week’s -rest. I am so glad. You have needed one for a -long time and now Hal and I will show you what -fine daughters we would have been, if we hadn’t -been sons.”</p> - -<p>Harry, standing at the foot of the bed was proud -of his brother. Benjy had always been so loved -and petted, (even he had given in to the younger -lad sometimes when he thought it might be unwise), -that he had feared Benjy might not be strong -enough to rise to the emergency, but he was doing -so bravely. In a voice that sounded natural to his -mother, Benjy said: “I’m most starved, Mummie, -I hope your new cook can make pies and things as -well as you can.”</p> - -<p>The older boy had noted a sudden anxious expression -on the dear face, for the mother was reproaching -herself for having remained in bed when -her little Ben was coming home, hungry.</p> - -<p>“Indeed, I can,” Hal hastened to say: “You’ll find -the larder filled with the choicest viands.”</p> - -<p>Kissing the pale cheek, Benjy left the room, turning -at the door to toss a kiss and send back a bright -smile, but it was to his own room that he went. -Throwing himself down on the bed, he sobbed and -sobbed. There Hal found him ten minutes later. -“I can’t live without my mother,” the younger boy -said, “I can’t! I can’t!”</p> - -<p>Harry put a comforting arm about his brother. -“May heaven grant that we need not for many -years to come.”</p> - -<p>Then placing a hand on each shoulder, he looked -straight into his brother’s eyes. “Benny boy,” he -said, “I’m counting on you. It’s hard; well do I -know how hard, but cheerful courage is all that our -father and mother must see. I have been waiting -for your return. Now I am going to ride to Red -Riverton for a doctor. I will be back tomorrow -morning early, if all goes well.”</p> - -<p>“Hal!” Benjy exclaimed, “you aren’t going to -take that long hard ride tonight. You know that -it isn’t safe to go through Red River mountain pass -alone after dark.”</p> - -<p>“Even so, there must not be another moment’s -delay. I must go tonight. I want you to keep your -door open. If our mother stirs, go to her.”</p> - -<p>“I won’t try to sleep,” the younger boy replied. -“I do not waken easily. I’ll sit up all night.” Hal -grasped his brother’s hand to show his approval -and then he was gone. It was the hardest night that -Benjy Wilson ever lived through, but in it he left -his heedless, selfish boyhood in which he had accepted -all that his mother had done for him, as due, -and realized that he, too, must share the burdens -and responsibilities that came every day. When -Hal returned at the grey of the next dawn, one -glance at his tired brother assured him that his -confidence in the younger boy had not been misplaced. -Then followed a long half hour filled with -anxiety of waiting while the kindly physician made -a thorough examination of the little woman so -loved by these two boys.</p> - -<p>“Where’s our father?” Benjy suddenly asked as -he looked up from the fire on the hearth at which -he had been thoughtfully gazing since the kindly -physician had entered their mother’s room fifteen -minutes before.</p> - -<p>“Father went to visit the North camp last week -and he has not yet returned,” Harry said. “I am -glad, for he does not know that our mother has -given up trying to keep about. That of course -would worry him greatly. I hope that she will be -much better before he returns. Dad depends on -mother so completely for his comfort and happiness -that I fear he would collapse if he knew the truth, -as, of course he must know it soon.”</p> - -<p>Again they were silent and it was still another -quarter of an hour before the door opened. Both -boys were on their feet at once eagerly scanning the -face of the physician. His cheerful smile was encouraging.</p> - -<p>“Lads,” he said as he placed a hand on the -shoulder of each, “your mother is not going to die. -Mrs. Wilson has unwisely permitted a condition to -exist for a long time which should have been corrected -months ago. There are very few casualties -resulting from the operation which your mother -must undergo.”</p> - -<p>There was a sudden glad light in the face of the -older lad.</p> - -<p>“Doctor Warren,” he said, “the hope you are -giving us is the greatest joy that has ever come into -my life.”</p> - -<p>The elderly physician, gazing at the earnest faces, -thought that he had never met finer boys. Worthy -sons of a brave, courageous little mother.</p> - -<p>“Now tell us what we are to do.” The load of -dread that had been crushing Harry’s heart having -been lifted, the lad was eager to be of active service.</p> - -<p>“Your mother must remain in bed until we can -build up her strength,” the physician replied. -“Perhaps for two weeks, and then we will take her -to the Red Riverton hospital and have the slight -operation performed, but, first of all I must procure -a nurse.”</p> - -<p>The physician put his hands in his pockets and -turning, gazed thoughtfully at the fire. “There is -an epidemic in Red Riverton and I do not like -to engage a nurse from there to care for your -mother.” Then he glanced up at Hal. “Do you -know of anyone near here who would come?”</p> - -<p>“I do,” was Benjy’s eager response. “Our good -friend Winona will come, I am sure she will, Doctor -Warren. She just received a diploma as a practical -nurse from the Red Cross Hospital on the -Hudson.”</p> - -<p>“Fine!” the physician replied. “How soon can -we have her here? Where does she live?”</p> - -<p>The reply brought a puzzled expression to the -face of the doctor.</p> - -<p>“An Indian maiden?” he said with a rising inflection. -“I have heard of the Papagoes and that -they are a remnant of a very superior tribe of red -men, but I had not supposed that an Indian girl -could possess the qualities required for a nurse. -Are you quite sure that it would be wise to have -her?”</p> - -<p>Strange things happen, stranger than fiction. -Before Hal could reply, there was the sound of -horses’ feet in the yard, and a moment later a light -rapping on the front door.</p> - -<p>Hal sprang to open it, and there stood the maiden -about whom they had been talking, with little Red -Feather at her side.</p> - -<p>“Friend Harry,” she said. “Fleet Foot told me -that your mother is ill. I thought you might need -me.”</p> - -<p>The lad stepped forward, his hand outstretched.</p> - -<p>“We do indeed need you,” he replied, his voice -tense with emotion. Then turning to the older man -he added, “Doctor Warren, this is Nurse Winona.”</p> - -<p>The physician was deeply impressed with the -quiet dignity of the really beautiful Indian girl. -Like all others, who knew her, the good man at -first could not have told why he thought her -beautiful.</p> - -<p>Before entering the house, the maid turned and -said a few words in the Papago tongue, then little -Red Feather, without a word of farewell, mounted -his small horse and rode away.</p> - -<p>Doctor Warren asked to be permitted to speak -alone with the young nurse, and the boys withdrew -to prepare a lunch for both the newcomer and the -physician who had a long and hard ride ahead of -him.</p> - -<p>After asking about the training which Winona -had received at the Red Cross Hospital, Doctor -Warren said:</p> - -<p>“Your remuneration will be the same that would -be given a nurse from Red Riverton.”</p> - -<p>Then it was that the older man knew why the -Indian girl was beautiful. “It is a service of friendship -that I came to offer,” she quietly replied. -“Will you tell me what I am to do?”</p> - -<p>An hour later the physician left feeling sure that -his directions would be carried out to the letter. -He had learned that an Indian maiden could not -only be a sincere friend but also an intelligent nurse.</p> - -<p>Before Doctor Warren departed he asked Harry -to accompany him to the corral. As they walked -together, the physician said: “From the conversation -I have had with your nurse, I believe her to -be very capable, and luckily, just before she left -the East, she had the care of a little woman whose -condition was the same as your mother’s and so -we will trust her to use her own judgment whenever -she wishes to do so.”</p> - -<p>Mrs. Wilson who had supposed that she had not -much longer to be with the little family she so -loved, was overjoyed when she realized that she -would soon be strong again.</p> - -<p>She was lying in the darkened room when Harry -entered a few moments after the doctor’s departure. -At his side she saw someone dressed in blue -with white cap and apron. She was too weak to -wonder from where the apparition had come, and -so she accepted Winona’s presence as a matter of -course believing that she had accompanied the doctor -from Red Riverton. Harry merely said, -“Mother, this is your nurse.”</p> - -<p>The little woman held out a frail hand and -smiled wanly, then she closed her eyes and rested. -She was conscious all that day that she was being -tenderly cared for, and, toward evening when Benjy -knelt at her side, in answer to her anxious query, he -told his mother that the new nurse was also a fine -cook. Mrs. Wilson who had wished that she was -up that she might prepare the good things her -younger son so liked, felt a sense of relief that did -much toward restoring her needed strength.</p> - -<p>Never once in the two weeks that followed did -the little woman suspect that the slender dark-eyed -girl who cared for her was the Indian maiden of -whom she had heard. Winona, with her black hair -coiled under her nurse’s cap in her blue and white -gown might easily have been taken for a French -girl.</p> - -<p>Harry, wishing his mother to learn to love Winona -without prejudice had asked Benjy to address -her merely as “Nurse.”</p> - -<p>At the end of a fortnight, Mrs. Wilson was -strong enough to sit up. When Harry believed that -his presence was no longer needed at home, he rode -to the northern camp to tell his father what had -happened. He was greatly relieved because he -could now honestly say that all would be well.</p> - -<p>This was not hard for the older man to believe, -for on their return they found the little mother -seated in the living room and beaming a welcome -when they opened the front door. From that day, -she rapidly regained her strength, and, at the end -of the fortnight, she was driven in a big comfortable -car to Red Riverton. It was on that ride that -Mrs. Wilson made a discovery which pleased her -greatly. It was that her son, Harry, really cared -for the girl who had nursed her so tenderly. How -she knew this she could not have told, perhaps it -was just a mother’s intuition.</p> - -<p>Another two weeks passed and the happy family -was once more gathered in the ranch home. Mrs. -Wilson was soon strong enough to walk about the -house, and, the long weeks of anxiety having -ended, the members of the household again went -about their tasks in a natural manner. Benjy returned -with his father to the North Camp and -Harry asked Winona if she would like to ride with -him to inspect a water-hole not far away. Mrs. -Wilson had urged her to go, saying that for an -hour she could get along nicely alone. It was during -that hour that she learned the real identity of -her nurse.</p> - -<h2 id='chXIV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XIV. A DEEP LOVE REVEALED'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XIV</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A DEEP LOVE REVEALED</span> -</h2> - -<p>Mrs. Wilson sat in a big comfortable chair in -front of the wide hearth on which a log that the -boys had dragged down from the mountains, was -cheerily burning. The frail woman smiled happily -as she watched the flames. How wonderful it was -to know that after all she was going to live, perhaps -many more years to minister to her little family. In -her heart there had been a secret fear for months -that she was soon to leave them.</p> - -<p>She leaned back among the pillows that her nurse -had arranged so comfortably before she had departed -for a short horseback ride with Harry.</p> - -<p>From where she sat Mrs. Wilson could look out -of the window and watch the trail down which she -would soon see the young people returning.</p> - -<p>Then again she fell to dreaming. Perhaps she -would live long enough to see both of her boys -married, and it might be that in some future day she -would be seated in front of this same fireplace -watching another log burn and holding a wee grandchild. -Tears sprang to her eyes as she pictured her beloved -husband growing old with her and little ones playing -about them.</p> - -<p>This happy reverie was interrupted by the sound -of approaching ponies. It might be the men from -the North Camp for the nurse and Harry had not -been gone long enough to be returning. She sat -watching the picture framed by her window. As -the hurrying hoof-beats neared, she guessed, and -truly, that there were more than two ponies, for, -down the part of the trail that she could see, single -file, came six small, wiry horses. Instantly she knew -that their riders were from the Indian village.</p> - -<p>The little black-haired boy in the lead wore a red -feather in the band about his head, and, at his side -rode a tall, slender girl with a scarlet blanket about -her shoulders. There were four others, but they -were dressed in khaki. It was only by their black -hair and dusty complexions that she knew that they, -too, were Indians. Then it was that Mrs. Wilson -recalled something which of late she had forgotten. -It was that an Indian maiden from this same Papago -village had been East to a fashionable boarding -school with Barbara Wente, the fairy-like little girl -who was so liked by Benjy.</p> - -<p>Perhaps the Winona of whom she had heard, was -the tall, graceful Indian maiden riding in the lead -with the lad of the red feather, Mrs. Wilson thought, -and then, idly, she wondered where they were going. -Perhaps to some hunting camp farther north in the -mountains.</p> - -<p>She was not long left in doubt regarding the destination -of the riders, for, almost as soon as they -had passed from her vision, there came a rapping on -the front door.</p> - -<p>Harry had made her promise that she would not -leave her chair and so she called, “come in,” hoping -that one among the strange visitors might be able to -understand the language that she spoke.</p> - -<p>The door opened at once and a tall young man -with a clear, direct gaze stood before her. To the -little woman’s surprise, he spoke excellent English.</p> - -<p>“Madame Wilson, I am Strong Heart, chief of -the tribe of Papagoes. It is my wish to converse -with my sister. One month ago Red Feather returned -with the message that Winona was to remain -with you and be your nurse.”</p> - -<p>There was a rush of conflicting emotions in the -heart of the listener, and foremost among them was -the sudden realization that her son, Harry, loved, -really loved an Indian maiden. If her voice shook -a little as she replied, Strong Heart did not notice -it for her words were friendly as they always were -to any fellow-being.</p> - -<p>“My very kind nurse then is your sister?” she inquired. -“I have been too ill to wonder who she was -or from where she came.” Then, fearing that in -some way this had lacked in graciousness, she added -simply and sincerely: “Strong Heart, we all dearly -love your sister. She has truly been an angel in our -home.”</p> - -<p>And, even as she spoke, Mrs. Wilson knew that -it was the truth. Harry loved Winona and so too -did his mother. Then she directed the Indian lad -to the water-hole toward which Winona and Harry -had ridden, and, when the visitors were gone, she sat -for a long time watching the fire and thinking: “My -boy shall never know that I regret his choice, and -yet, do I really regret it, for a nobler girl he could -not have chosen.”</p> - -<p>In the meantime Winona and Harry had been -riding at a canter. Then, letting their horses walk -more slowly, they conversed quietly together. -They spoke of his mother and Harry expressed to -the dusky girl at his side his great appreciation of -her services.</p> - -<p>By now and then asking a question the lad -persuaded Winona to talk about her year at school. -She ended by telling of Fleet Foot and she described -in glowing terms his deed of heroism. -Harry Wilson, listening, believed that Winona -cared for the Indian lad about whom she was talking, -and, a few moments later he was convinced -that his surmise had been correct.</p> - -<p>Suddenly they had been halted by a whooping -call from little Red Feather, and, turning in their -saddles, they drew rein and waited for the Papagoes -to ride up. Instantly Harry knew that the tall, -arrow-straight youth, who whirled his pony about -that he might speak to Winona, was the one of -whom he had just heard.</p> - -<p>They rode apart, somewhat, and for a time -seemed unconscious of the presence of the others -as they talked earnestly in low undertones.</p> - -<p>Harry tried to be interested in a conversation -with Strong Heart concerning the condition of -water-holes at that time of the year, but now and -then he found his gaze wandering in the direction -of his mother’s nurse while his thought assured -him that Winona naturally would care more for -one of her own people than for one of another race.</p> - -<p>When the young Papagoes had ridden away toward -the mountain trail which they would have to -cross to reach their walled-in village, the other -two, after visiting the water-hole, returned to the -Wilson ranch. Winona was in the lead and each -was thoughtfully silent. As they neared the house -Harry hastily hastened his pony and rode at the -girl’s side. She looked up with a smile so radiant -that the lad was more than ever assured that her -visit with Fleet Foot had brought her great happiness.</p> - -<p>“Dear girl,” he thought, “from now on I will -try to think of her as I would of a sister. After all, -mother will need one of her boys just to care for -her.” Aloud he said, “Winona, Ben and I have -often wished we had a sister. You have been to -all of us in our trouble what I believe she would -have been. I hope you will come often to visit -in our home.”</p> - -<p>The girl turned and looked at him frankly. -“Thank you, Harry,” she said, simply. It was -then that Hal was convinced that the Indian girl -had never thought of him other than a dear friend -and companion.</p> - -<p>When they reached the ranch house, Harry took -both of the horses to the corral, while Winona -quietly entered the living room, believing, and -truly, that she would find Mrs. Wilson dozing in -her comfortable chair.</p> - -<p>For a moment Winona stood gazing at the -sweet face to which the color of health was slowly -returning. Then, quietly, she tip-toed close and, -bending, she lightly kissed the forehead beneath -the soft gray hair.</p> - -<p>She was not usually demonstrative, but, although -even her dearest friend had never guessed it, there -had always been in the heart of this Indian girl a -yearning for that wonderful something that she had -never had, the love of a mother.</p> - -<p>When a few moments later the little woman -opened her eyes it was to see her quiet nurse again -in the neat blue and white uniform preparing the evening -meal.</p> - -<p>Harry came in and offered his services, which -were accepted. Winona’s manner, usually so reserved, -seemed almost joyous.</p> - -<p>“Friend of mine,” she said, “I have a beautiful -secret and I think I will tell it to you.”</p> - -<hr class='tb' /> - -<p>It was after the evening meal. Mrs. Wilson had -been made comfortable for the night and the young -people thought her asleep as they sat near the -hearth in the living room and spoke quietly together.</p> - -<p>“You promised to tell me a beautiful secret,” the -lad said, a dread heavy at his heart. “May I hear -it now?”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” the girl replied, turning her clear gaze -toward him. “It is about Fleet Foot.”</p> - -<p>“I knew it,” was the unexpected response, and -Winona looked up inquiringly. “Why, how could -you know it?” Then, as the lad did not answer, she -continued: “This afternoon I told you about the -kind, elderly physician in the East who was so -pleased with Fleet Foot’s spirit of a sacrifice, and -how, when the lad was well enough to be moved -from the hospital, Doctor Quinton took him to his -country home in New Jersey, where he remained -through the three lovely months of spring?”</p> - -<p>Harry nodded. He could not understand why -Winona was beginning her story in this way if the -secret was what he believed it to be, that the Indian -maiden and Fleet Foot cared for each other.</p> - -<p>“Are you listening, Harry?” the girl asked, for -the lad was gazing at the burning log with a faraway -expression in his grey-blue eyes.</p> - -<p>He turned and smiled at her. “Indeed I am, -Winona,” he said, “I am greatly interested in what -you have to tell me.”</p> - -<p>“So am I, greatly interested,” the girl continued. -“It is all like a beautiful poem, and yet, true. The -summer home of this kind old physician is a picturesque -log cabin in the midst of a pine wood just -above a clear blue lake which Fleet Foot described -as a wonderful mirror reflecting every fleecy white -cloud that sailed above it by day and every star at -night. When they first arrived at the cabin they -heard singing somewhere among the pines, and -then, skipping toward them came a gold-and-white -fairy of a girl who was Sylvia, the granddaughter -of Doctor Quinton. She was delighted because -her ‘dear old grand-dad,’ as she called him, had -brought a comrade, and, as the days passed, Fleet -Foot learned to love this lassie who was so unlike—well, -so unlike the Papago maidens.</p> - -<p>“He called her ‘Sunshine-on-a-Dancing-Brook.’ -Fleet Foot never spoke of his love, for he believed -that the physician, much as he liked him, would not -wish him to marry his granddaughter, the flower -of his life, but when Fleet Foot came West, that -little flower drooped, and then it was that Doctor -Quinton learned that Sylvia cared for Fleet Foot, -really cared, and now comes the wonderful part of -it all. Yesterday my friend had a letter from the -elderly physician asking him to return to them if he -really loved his little ‘Sunshine-on-a-Dancing-Brook.’ -Fleet Foot came to say goodbye, for tomorrow -he departs.”</p> - -<p>There was a glad light in the eyes of the listener.</p> - -<p>“Winona,” Harry said, more impulsively than -he had ever before spoken, “I thought you cared for -Fleet Foot and I was sad, for I do so want to try -to win your love.”</p> - -<p>Winona did not reply at once, and, as there was -only the light of the fire about them, the lad could -not tell by her expression what she might be thinking.</p> - -<p>When the girl spoke, she said: “Harry, your -mother wants you to marry one of your own people.”</p> - -<p>It was then that they heard a soft voice calling -to them, “Come to me, both of you.”</p> - -<p>They entered the dimly lighted room and stood -by the bedside. The little woman smiled up at -them and in her eyes there was a new tenderness. -Holding out a frail hand, she said: “I have always -wanted a little girl, Winona. Won’t you be my beloved -daughter?”</p> - -<p>The young people knelt and she placed their -hands together. “Now,” she said, “my dearest -wish has been fulfilled. My older son is to have -just the wife that I would choose for him.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XV. A MYSTERY AT LAST'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XV</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A MYSTERY AT LAST</span> -</h2> - -<p>A week after the arrival of Peyton’s letter, suggesting -that his sister remain longer, another came -with quite a different request. In it the lad assured -them all of his great faith in his new overseer.</p> - -<p>“Trujillo seems to have complete control of his -helpers. In fact, at times, I think that they treat -him reverentially, which, of course I cannot understand, -but I am now confident that there will be no -uprising among the peons and so Babsie I do hope -that Virginia and your other girl friends will come -to Three Cross and make you as long a visit as you -have made them, longer indeed, if they can be -spared.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, Virg, will you go, you and Betsy and -Megsy? I’d so love to have you all with me when -I open up that old house. You know Peyton has -been living in one of the small adobes, not wishing -to open up the big place until I came. Virg, you’ve -been there time and again. I remember how Mrs. -Dartley called you her ‘Angel of Mercy.’”</p> - -<p>“As everyone else does on the desert or anywhere,” -Margaret put in.</p> - -<p>Virg laughed. “And all because I rode over to -Three Cross one day and applied first aid measures -when the Dartley baby was cutting teeth.”</p> - -<p>“What did you do?” Betsy inquired.</p> - -<p>“Rubbed the poor little gums with a sterilized -thimble till the wee teeth poked through,” Virginia -replied.</p> - -<p>Barbara was eager to be away and so the very -next morning, while it was still cool, they rode to -the North, promising Malcolm to return in a fortnight.</p> - -<p>Peyton, expecting them, had ridden a few miles -southward to meet them and joyous was the reunion -between the brother and sister, but it was at -Virginia’s side that the lad was soon riding.</p> - -<p>The old ranch house which they were approaching -(and which Mr. Wente had purchased from -the Dartleys), was one of the most picturesque on -the desert. It was a large Spanish adobe built -around an inner court over which were hanging -balconies. The windows were barred; wide verandas -surrounded it on all sides, and each room had -a door opening thereon. A clump of cottonwood -trees grew around a water-hole in the door-yard. -The house was very old and in some places the -adobe walls were crumbling.</p> - -<p>Mr. Dartley had been too poor to repair it, and -Peyton, since he had acquired it, had been too much -occupied with the cattle he had purchased to attend -to renovating the house.</p> - -<p>“What a wonderful old place it is,” Virginia -said as she smiled at the lad.</p> - -<p>“It looks wonderful to me,” he replied, “because -I keep hoping that someday it will be your home as -well as mine.”</p> - -<p>Before the girl could reply, Babs galloped up -alongside. “Oh Virg,” she said with sparkling -eyes. “I just know I’m going to love this old place. -If only there were blossoming vines climbing over -the veranda, wouldn’t it be beautiful?”</p> - -<p>It was hard for the maiden addressed to think of -vines just then, but she smilingly replied, “Yes, -dear, I am sure they would. Your well is never -dry and anything will grow on the desert if it is -well watered.”</p> - -<p>“Oh Virg, are you making a pun?” Betsy Clossen -called as she and Margaret rode up within hearing.</p> - -<p>Virginia laughed as she gaily replied, “Maybe -I am. I don’t feel accountable just at this particular -moment.”</p> - -<p>Peyton glanced at the flushed pretty face of the -speaker and wondered why Virginia seemed confused -but he did not have another moment alone -with her for they were entering the door-yard -where a cowboy, apparently a Mexican of the better -class, advanced to take their ponies.</p> - -<p>“Who is your new acquisition, brother?” Barbara -asked as she gazed with interest at the graceful -Mexican lad, who, having made almost courtly -salutations to the young ladies, had, without speaking, -turned and led the horses toward the corral.</p> - -<p>Peyton remonstrated. “Don’t you know enough -about the ways of the desert, little sister, not to ask -who anyone is? I really am as ignorant concerning -the past of my faithful head rider Trujillo as you -are. He blew in one day last March—literally -blew in! We were having one of those terrible -hurricanes which frequently visit us in the spring. -For the first time since I had acquired ‘The Three -Cross Ranch’ I was desperately dismal. The only -capable cowboy I had, departed to become overseer -elsewhere, and I was left with the shiftless Mexican -peons who knowing my ignorance, took advantage -of it. Then, as though that were not trouble -enough, a blinding sandstorm came, and I feared -my newly acquired herd would be driven by it over -into Mexico. It was in the midst of all this that -I heard a pounding on the front door. Opening it, -I let in a whirl of wind and sand and also this Mexican -lad, Trujillo.</p> - -<p>“I was desperate for companionship just then, -and, although he did not speak English, he could -understand my Spanish and I told him my woes. -When the tale was finished, the sandstorm had -passed. Silently the stranger arose. I believed that -he was leaving without a word of gratitude for the -refreshment I had given him. I watched him mount -his weary horse and ride down to the bunk house. -He called to the peons and they gathered about him. -I saw them bring him a fresh mount and then they -all rode away with him toward the South. I -thought dismally that perhaps he had come to take -them away from me, but, toward evening I heard -them all returning. They had rounded up my -frightened, scattering herd, and, before dark, the -cattle were safe in the five-acre enclosure. Then -the stranger came to say adios, but I persuaded him -to remain until morning and he is still here.”</p> - -<p>“I believe there is a mystery about your -Trujillo,” Betsy Clossen said. “Wouldn’t it be interesting -if we could find out what it is?”</p> - -<p>The other girls laughed.</p> - -<p>“Betsy is always on a still hunt for a mystery,” -Babs told her brother, as they walked toward the -house. “We call her Detective Betsy in school, but, -as yet, she has never discovered one worth the effort -to unravel. School girls are not mysterious.”</p> - -<p>“Personally, I think one might find a mystery in -this old house,” Margaret said. “If walls had -tongues as well as ears what interesting stories it -could tell.”</p> - -<p>Peyton led the way within, and the young people, -standing in the long living room which extended -across the entire front of the house, uttered -varying exclamations of delight.</p> - -<p>“It’s just the sort of a room one sees on the screen -when the home of a Spanish Don is being pictured, -isn’t it?” Margaret said. “The original owners -were Spanish, were they not?”</p> - -<p>“Yes,” Peyton replied, “Don Carlos Spinoza was -a wealthy Spaniard, who became a political outlaw -during one of the frequent uprisings in Mexico -City. He remained in hiding with his family in the -mountains near here for some time and finally built -this house. This interesting old furniture belonged -to him. Later, when his friends were in power, he -returned and rescued the family paintings and other -treasures from their home in Mexico. However, -after a year or two of isolation the Donna and their -beautiful daughter became discontented and yearned -once more for the gay life to which they had been -accustomed. Don Carlos had many political -enemies in Mexico, and so he had no desire to return. -At last he sold this place for a small sum to -Mr. Dartley and left for Spain.”</p> - -<p>“Mrs. Dartley did not appreciate this mahogany -furniture,” Virginia told them. “She often said -she wished that she could make a bonfire of it all -and buy some nice, new chairs that didn’t have -carvings to catch the dust.”</p> - -<p>“But she could not because the old furniture and -family paintings were only left here temporarily, -or so the story goes, but years have passed and no -one has returned to claim them.”</p> - -<p>Virginia smiled. “Poor Mrs. Dartley looked -strangely out of place in the midst of all this -grandeur. She was a dear and ever so kind hearted, -but I often thought that the Dons and Donnas looking -down from the walls must have wondered what -had happened and how they chanced to be living -with folk who dressed in gingham instead of silk. -But they didn’t see her often, for this room was usually -left in darkened solitude, for the Dartley -family lived almost entirely in the kitchen.”</p> - -<p>Suddenly Barbara inquired: “Betsy, why are -you staring so hard at the painting of that grand -old Donna? Does the picture fascinate you?”</p> - -<p>Betsy laughed at them over her shoulder. “You -know I have an active imagination,” she replied, -“and so you will not be surprised to hear me say -that I believe I have met this fine lady somewhere.”</p> - -<p>“That would be impossible, my dear girl,” Margaret -protested, “for that Donna could not possibly -be living now.”</p> - -<p>“I do believe that the lovely dark-eyed Senorita -in this picture is her daughter,” Virginia said, “and -here she is again older and with a little girl standing -by her side and a beautiful dark-eyed baby boy -on her lap. It really is too bad that the descendants -of the Spinoza family cannot have these paintings -in their gallery wherever they are. In Spain, I suppose, -as they have never been heard from since they -departed so long ago.”</p> - -<p>“Girls,” Babs said, “it is growing dusky in here, -which reminds me that the sun will soon set and -that the beds are not made and that I, for one, am -ravenously hungry.”</p> - -<p>“Lead us to your culinary department, Peyton, -and we will spread out our picnic lunch. Good, -here comes the cowboy, Trujillo. Now Betsy, you -begin solving the mystery, but don’t let the poor -lad know that you are trying to unravel him,” Virginia -cautioned, as they entered the more modern -kitchen which, since it faced toward the west, was -bright with the late afternoon sunshine. At one -end was the great black range, which had been the -pride of the good housekeeper, who so recently -lived there.</p> - -<p>Across the other end was the long dining table -and near the windows were plain wooden rockers -which Mrs. Dartley had made comfortable with -soft cushioned seats, covered with bright colored -materials, for this had been the home part of the -house for her little family.</p> - -<p>The solemn grandeur of the other rooms had depressed -the rancher’s wife and she once confided -to Virginia that the life-sized portraits hanging -around the walls gave her the shivers. “Those -painted folks all have beady black eyes and they -watch every move I make,” she had said. “It -doesn’t matter which part of the room I walk to, -their eyes turn and keep a spyin’ at me. It’s too -spooky a place to live in. I don’t step a foot in -that room, month in and month out, if I can help -myself.”</p> - -<p>It was partly because of this uncanny closed room -that Mrs. Dartley had been so eager to have her -husband sell the Three Cross Ranch that she might -return to the Middle-West and to the farmer folk -whose pleasant houses were all furnished in the -simple way that she liked.</p> - -<p>During the evening meal, Peyton asked many -questions of the girls concerning their year at -school. Margaret, Virginia and Babs chattered of -one thing and another. Suddenly Virg, wondered -why the usually loquacious Betsy Clossen was keeping -so still. She looked across the table and saw -that the would-be young detective seemed to be -deep in thought. Now and then she would glance -at the Mexican cowboy who sat opposite. Since he -did not understand the English language, the girls -did not attempt to converse with him, although -Peyton frequently addressed Trujillo in Spanish.</p> - -<p>Virg smiled to herself, for she guessed, and -rightly, that Betsy was trying to imagine a mystery -about the really good-looking, dark young stranger—that -she might solve it.</p> - -<h2 id='chXVI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XVI. A MYSTERIOUS ROOM'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XVI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A MYSTERIOUS ROOM</span> -</h2> - -<p>The boys went down to the corral after supper -and the girls being left alone decided to see what the -long darkened front room looked like at night.</p> - -<p>Virg, in the lead, was carrying a burning candle.</p> - -<p>“Leave the kitchen door standing open until we -have lighted one of these hanging lamps,” she said.</p> - -<p>Babs did this and they had advanced to the middle -of the room when a breeze from somewhere swept -through, blew out the tiny flame on the candle and -closed the kitchen door with a bang. Babs uttered -a shrill scream.</p> - -<p>“Be still girls,” Virg said in her calm voice. -“There is nothing to be afraid of even if we are in -the dark. Now all of you stand here where you are. -I know this house better than any of the rest of you -and so I will grope my way back and reopen the -kitchen door.”</p> - -<p>Betsy Clossen’s detective instinct was on the alert. -She seized Virg by the arm as she whispered, -“There’s something queer about this. The light in -the kitchen must also have been put out, otherwise -we would see it shining under the door, wouldn’t -we?”</p> - -<p>“I should think so,” Virg said slowly as she -paused, then she added, “even so, I will investigate. -The boys are near. If we are frightened, we will -call them.”</p> - -<p>She groped her way toward the wall, where she -believed she would find the kitchen door. “Good!” -she told the waiting group. “Here it is.” But, when -she turned the knob, the door would not open. She -pushed and pulled, but all to no effect.</p> - -<p>“Please call Peyton,” Megsy implored. “I have -the chilly shivers going up and down my spine. I -just know this house is haunted and that the haunt -is angry because we came, and wishes to scare us -away.”</p> - -<p>“Girls,” Betsy Clossen said in a low voice, “I believe -that I understand it all. It’s that mysterious -Trujillo. He has some object in living here, I’ll -wager, and he fears that this object, whatever it is, -will be defeated if so many girls are around to watch -him, and so he is trying to scare us away. Well, I -for one shall stay.”</p> - -<p>Virginia’s laugh from out of the dark sounded -merry and natural. Then, just at that moment, having -found the right knob, she opened the kitchen -door and a flood of light from the big lamp fell -upon the huddled group.</p> - -<p>Margaret and Babs darted for the home-like -kitchen as though it were a harbor of safety but -Betsy Clossen remained in the darkness. “Virg,” she -called, “let the other girls stay there and you bring -one of the small lamps that won’t blow out easily -and let’s look around and see where the wind came -in that blew out the candle and slammed the door.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t think that we feel offended, Betsy,” Margaret -called as she sank down in a big comfortable -kitchen rocker. “I have no yearning to unravel -mysteries. You and Virg may have all of the honor -and all of the shivers.”</p> - -<p>“Ditto!” Babs said as she sat in another of the -rockers and drew it closer to the stove. Virginia -having found a lantern, lighted it and again entered -the long silent front room. Having closed the -kitchen door, she turned to speak to Betsy, but, to -her surprise, the other girl was nowhere to be seen.</p> - -<p>Believing that her friend had hidden, just to mystify -her, Virginia went about the room holding her -lantern high and peering behind the big, heavily-carved -mahogany furniture. At first she was in -no way alarmed, but, when each nook and corner -had been searched, she stood still, troubled indeed. -She had not wanted to call the name of her friend -for she knew that the two more timid girls in the -kitchen would hear and become alarmed, but, at last, -there being no other alternative she said, “Betsy, -where are you?” Then she stood listening, but the -moaning of the wind down the chimney was the only -sound that she could hear.</p> - -<p>What could have become of Betsy? Perhaps she -had stepped out of the front door and was hiding on -the porch, but, when Virg turned to look, she saw -that the heavy wooden doors were barred on the -inside.</p> - -<p>The usually calm Virginia was becoming troubled -and she was indeed glad to hear Peyton entering the -kitchen. She would have to tell them all now, and -have them join in the search for Betsy who had so -mysteriously disappeared.</p> - -<p>“Virg, what is the matter? You look as though -you had seen a ghost,” Megsy exclaimed, as she -sprang up from her comfortable rocker when she -saw Virginia returning from the dark, silent front -room.</p> - -<p>Peyton had just entered the kitchen. Having -blown the light out in his lantern, he was hanging -it on its peg, but upon hearing Margaret’s startled -exclamation, he whirled and looked at Virg. He -noted that she was very pale and seemed greatly -agitated.</p> - -<p>This was indeed unusual, for as long as he had -known this calm girl, she had been mistress of every -situation that had arisen. He took a quick step toward -her, fearing that she would faint.</p> - -<p>Babs, too, had risen. Virg spoke almost incoherently: -“Betsy, she’s lost—disappeared,” she -told them.</p> - -<p>Peyton protested in amazement. “But Virg, how -could Betsy be lost. She has been right here in the -house all of the time, hasn’t she?”</p> - -<p>Then Virg told the lad just what had happened.</p> - -<p>“I do not wonder that Trujillo has aroused Betsy’s -curiosity,” Peyton remarked. “For that matter, if -it were not the custom of the desert to ask no questions, -I believe that I, myself, would be tempted to -ask him who he really is and from whence he came. -He is greatly the superior of the Mexican peons that -I have working here and they obey his slightest word -as though they too recognized his superiority. He -seems content to be my foreman, for he has said -nothing about leaving. In fact he seldom speaks. He -replies graciously in perfect Spanish when I address -him, but says almost nothing of his own accord. But -Virg, what has all this to do with Betsy? How can -she have disappeared?”</p> - -<p>“It certainly is mysterious,” that maiden replied. -“Not ten minutes ago we were all in the front room. -Betsy said that she wanted to see what it would look -like when those queer hanging lamps were lighted.”</p> - -<p>“I said we ought not to go,” Babs interrupted, -tremulously, “and now, if anything has happened -to Betsy we’ll—”</p> - -<p>“Why, sister, nothing could happen to her right -here in our own house,” Peyton declared in a tone -of conviction. Then to Virg, he added: “Please tell -me the rest of your story.”</p> - -<p>“As Babs says, she and Megsy were in favor of -remaining in the well-lighted and far more comfortable -kitchen, but Betsy begged and so we all went -with her, carrying only a lighted candle. We had -not gone far into the room when the door closed -with a bang and the flame on the candle went out, -although I did not feel a stir of wind. Of course -we returned to the kitchen, all but Betsy. She suggested -that the other girls stay by the stove and -that I return to her with a lighted lantern. I was -not away from her five minutes, but when I went -back Betsy was not standing where I had left her, -and where she had promised to remain. I supposed -that she was hiding somewhere, and so I held the -lantern high and looked behind all of those massive -pieces of carved furniture, but I could not find her. -Then I called her name, softly, but there was no reply. -By that time I was truly frightened and when -I heard you returning, I came at once to ask you to -join me in searching for her.”</p> - -<p>Peyton looked more puzzled than troubled. -“Virg,” he said, “if this were a tale in a story-book, -we might think that Betsy had fallen through a trap-door, -but surely there is nothing of that sort in this -old ranch house, even though it was built—” he -paused and snapped his fingers. “Hum!” he exclaimed, -“the plot thickens. Come to think of it, -this house was built by an old Spanish Don who was -a political outlaw from Mexico. For months he hid -in the mountains with his wife, children and servants. -Then, when he believed that he had evaded -his pursuers, his peons built this adobe house and so -it is very possible that he might have built some sort -of trap-door through which they could all quickly disappear -and evade capture. Come,” he added, as he -swung open the door into the dark, silent front room, -“we’ll make a thorough search but I still feel convinced -that your Detective Betsy is hiding to tease.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXVII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XVII. WHERE BETSY WAS HIDING'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XVII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>WHERE BETSY WAS HIDING</span> -</h2> - -<p>But the searchers were soon convinced that -Betsy was not hiding to tease. Peyton lighted all -of the heavy brass hanging lamps but they did little -to illumine the long, dark room. Indeed, their dim -light made the corners darker and more ghostly -than they had been before. Each girl was carrying -a lantern and the room was searched more -thoroughly than it had been by Virginia alone.</p> - -<p>“Perhaps Betsy climbed out of a window and is -hiding out doors,” Babs suggested.</p> - -<p>“That would be an impossible feat,” Peyton replied, -“for, in common with all Spanish houses, -these windows are barred.”</p> - -<p>As he spoke the lad turned and walked toward -the fireplace. He looked into its cavernous opening -and carefully examined the walls and chimney. -Turning back into the room, Peyton met Virginia -and they exchanged discouraged glances. “I -simply cannot understand it,” the boy said in a low -tone.</p> - -<p>Before Virginia could reply, a startled cry rang -out. They both whirled, expecting to see Betsy, -but instead it was Babs who was gazing at one of -the barred windows as though she had seen the -ghost about which she had been talking.</p> - -<p>Peyton leaped to her side. “Barbara,” he said, -“why are you staring at the window in that wild -way? I can see nothing.”</p> - -<p>“No, you can’t now,” the girl replied. “It is -gone—the face—”</p> - -<p>“I believe that mischievous Betsy Clossen is outside -peering in at us and laughing to think how -she is fooling us all,” Virginia said in almost a -natural tone. “I know her of old. She loves to -tease.”</p> - -<p>But Babs shook her head as she continued to -gaze at the barred window.</p> - -<p>“It wasn’t Betsy,” she whispered. “It was a -dark face. I think Trujillo.”</p> - -<p>“Girls, you come back to the kitchen,” Peyton -said, “and bar the door after me. I am going to -see if Betsy Clossen is really hiding outside. If she -is the kind of a girl who would cause you all this -concern just to play a prank, I think you would -better send her back East when she is found.”</p> - -<p>“I, too, thought at first that she was hiding to -tease,” Margaret said, “but Betsy really has good -common-sense and she would not continue to -frighten us in this way. Now, I am sure that something -has happened to her.”</p> - -<p>Peyton was much more troubled than he wished -the girls to know. It was his house and they were -his guests, and his sister’s. Too, he had been -quietly watching his new Mexican overseer for the -past few weeks, as some of his actions seemed very -strange.</p> - -<p>Then Peyton left the kitchen.</p> - -<p>“Oh, how I do wish this mystery was solved,” -Margaret declared as she sank down in a rocker, her -eyes watching the closed door leading into the front -room, but almost instantly she was on her feet -again clutching Virginia’s arm.</p> - -<p>“Look! Quick!” she whispered. “Didn’t the -door open a crack?”</p> - -<p>Virginia laughed. “No, no, child,” she replied. -“Don’t let your imagination run riot. I am sure -there is some perfectly natural commonplace reason -for Betsy’s disappearance. You girls know -perfectly well that there is no such thing as a ghost. -You hear stories about them but you never met a -single person who ever saw one.”</p> - -<p>Then they were silent, just waiting, they knew -not for what.</p> - -<p>In the meantime Peyton had gone down to the -bunk-house.</p> - -<p>The lad knew that the girl could not have left -the room by any of the exits known to him. The -front door had been heavily barricaded by the -Spanish Don on the inside and as Peyton did not -use that room, he had not opened the massive -wooden doors. The windows were barred and the -only door of which he had knowledge was the one -leading into the kitchen. Suddenly he recalled that -there was another door but he had found it locked, -with no key in evidence, and believing it led into -a store room of some kind, he had thought little of -it.</p> - -<p>When Babs had cried out that she had seen a -face peering in at one of the barred windows, a -dark face that looked like Trujillo’s, Peyton had -determined to go at once to the bunk-house and find -out the whereabouts of his head rider.</p> - -<p>There was a very long adobe building in which -the ten peons lived together. Not far from it was -one small solitary adobe which had been built for -the overseer of the Three Cross Ranch. It was in -this that Trujillo slept, although he took his meals -with Peyton at the big house. The owner of the -ranch felt that this was a courtesy due his head -rider, and, moreover Trujillo had served him well -by saving his cattle on the day of his first appearance -in the wild March blizzard.</p> - -<p>As he thought of these things, he rebuked himself -for having doubted the loyalty of his Mexican -cowboy in whom he had so much faith that he had -placed him in charge of the entire ranch, and yet, -try as he might to banish it, he could not but agree -with Betsy that there was something very mysterious -about Trujillo.</p> - -<p>The long adobe was lighted and the Mexicans -squatting on the floor were intent on a game which -they played every evening.</p> - -<p>Peyton quietly passed the open door and did not -attract their attention. He went at once to the -overseer’s adobe dwelling. It was dark. The door -was standing open and in the faint light of the -rising moon, Peyton could see that the single room -was unoccupied.</p> - -<p>“Trujillo,” he said softly, but there was no response.</p> - -<p>Peyton, troubled indeed, turned back toward the -ranch house. He did not inquire of the peons the -whereabouts of Trujillo, for the overseer never associated -with his helpers although he treated them -kindly.</p> - -<p>What should he do? What could he do? The -lad was thinking as he again ascended the steps and -entered the kitchen door. It was then that he heard -a crash followed by a shrill cry in the front room.</p> - -<p>Instantly the girls were on their feet and they -were all staring at the closed door when it burst -open and Betsy Clossen rushed in. Her face was -very pale and she was so excited that at first she -could not speak.</p> - -<p>“Betsy, is it really you?” Barbara exclaimed joyfully -as she caught her friend in her arms.</p> - -<p>“I’m not sure certain it is, myself,” Betsy replied -as she sank down in a rocker. “I’ve had the most -exciting experience.”</p> - -<p>The others gathered about her. “Do tell us just -what happened,” Virginia said.</p> - -<p>“Well, when you left me standing alone in the -dark room, I happened to take a step backward and -that caused me to sit down very suddenly in a big -mahogany chair. I caught at the arms and I must -have pushed a button that was part of the carving. -Instantly I realized that I was slowly sinking, -although it was so dark I could not tell just what -was happening. The floor seemed to have opened -under me and very quietly and easily the chair was -descending like an elevator. At last I was convinced -that I had been let down through a trap-door. -I could hear it closing above me. I found -myself in a dark room. I didn’t dare leave the -chair, however, so there I sat, shouting lustily for -help, but I could not make you hear. I must have -been there an hour when I decided that I would experiment -with the chair. I thought that if by pushing -one knob I had caused it to descend into the -cellar-like room, there must be another knob that -would lift it again. At last I found such a contrivance, -pushed it and slowly the chair ascended. -I gave a cry of joy when I was once more in the -front room, I sprang from the chair, knocking over -a small table which fell with a crash and here I am. -Now that it’s all over, I am glad that it happened. -What an exciting experience it will be to tell Cousin -Bob.”</p> - -<p>“And so you see, girls, the mysterious Trujillo -had nothing to do with it,” Virginia said.</p> - -<p>Peyton, however, remembering the unoccupied -bunk-house of the overseer was still troubled, but -a moment later his fears concerning the loyalty of his -cowboy were set at rest. The galloping of a -horse’s feet was heard and then a hallooing. Peyton -swung open the door and Trujillo stood there.</p> - -<p>Rapidly in Spanish he told the other lad that -one of the peons had reported early in the evening -that a yearling had fallen into a water-hole and that -together they had departed to endeavor to rescue it. -Luckily there was but little water in the hole and -the young cow, though greatly frightened, was unhurt -and they had brought it back to keep for a few -days in the hospital corral.</p> - -<p>This was all so commonplace that it restored the -girls to a more normal state of mind and Peyton -rebuked himself for having doubted his head rider -who was ever serving him so faithfully.</p> - -<p>“Now, let’s go to bed, girls, and forget all that -has happened. We are quite used to elevators and -since we know that the Don, who built this house, -needed some way to hide quickly from his pursuers, -we can easily understand his descending chair. -Tomorrow I intend to take a ride in it.”</p> - -<p>Virginia’s matter of fact tone calmed the -younger and more nervous girls and soon they retired.</p> - -<p>The recent owners of the Three Cross Ranch -had built a wing leading from the kitchen. This -contained two simply furnished bedrooms which -the four girls were to occupy.</p> - -<p>Betsy Clossen was the last to fall asleep. She -kept wondering where she had seen Trujillo before. -Nowhere, that she could remember, and yet, if not, -why did she seem to be haunted with the idea that -she had seen him.</p> - -<h2 id='chXVIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XVIII. AN ELEVATOR CHAIR'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XVIII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>AN ELEVATOR CHAIR</span> -</h2> - -<p>The next day the girls were awakened by the -sun shining in at their open windows; young calves -in the near corral were calling to their mothers and -the hens in the chicken yard at the back of the house -were cheerily clucking as they busily scratched for -their breakfast.</p> - -<p>This was all so commonplace that the girls arose, -laughing as they spoke of their fears of the night -before. As soon as their morning meal had been -finished, Betsy Clossen wished to visit the scene of -her recent adventure, and so all together they entered -the dark, silent front room.</p> - -<p>There were heavy wooden blinds on all of the -windows except the one through which Babs on the -night before had seen a dusky face peering.</p> - -<p>“Girls,” the little mistress of the Three Cross -Ranch exclaimed, “since this is to be my home, I -am going to frighten away the ghost by letting in -the sunshine. Virg, will you help me unbar these -wooden blinds?”</p> - -<p>Willing hands assisted and soon the sunshine -was flooding in, revealing the wonderful old mahogany -furniture. There was dust deep in each of -the carvings, while long deserted cobwebs stretched -across corners and they, too, were dust laden.</p> - -<p>“It is all very fine, I’ve no doubt,” Babs began, -as, with arms akimbo she looked about at her new -possessions, “but I certainly do wish that the Spanish -Don to whom all this grandeur belongs would -return and claim it. I’m like Mrs. Hartley, I would -just love to have this long, big room furnished in -the cozy, comfortable way to which I am accustomed.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I certainly would take those paintings -down from the wall,” Margaret declared with a -shudder. “I would rather have any number of -ghosts than those foreign folks watching every -move I made. Honest Injun, they give me the -chilly shivers staring at one the way they do.”</p> - -<p>Virginia laughed. “Where’s Betsy Clossen?” -she suddenly inquired.</p> - -<p>While the other girls had been busy removing -the wooden blinds, that maiden had been experimenting -with her “elevator” chair. As Virg spoke, -the girls heard a gay shout and turned in time to -see Betsy’s head disappearing below the floor. -They ran in that direction and reached the spot just -as the trap-door closed and snapped into place.</p> - -<p>Babs shook her finger at the spot as she declared: -“Mysterious chair, this is the very last day that you -will operate. I’m going to make this wonderful -long room livable and I surely don’t want chairs -that will carry some unsuspecting guest down to -the cellar.”</p> - -<p>Margaret laughed merrily.</p> - -<p>“Wouldn’t it be amusing, though, if one did have -a solemn, serious caller, a deacon or someone like -that, who happened to sit on this chair and suddenly -disappear? You had better keep it, Babs, it may -come in handy.”</p> - -<p>But the little housekeeper vigorously shook her -head. “No, my mind is made up once for all. -Every bit of this foreign furniture is going to be -stored in an outhouse until the rightful owner -claims it, and I am going to Douglas when you -girls return to V. M. Ranch and buy just the things -that I would enjoy having.”</p> - -<p>“I wonder why Betsy doesn’t come back,” Margaret -remarked. She had been intently watching -the trap door to see what would happen next.</p> - -<p>The three girls knelt and called in chorus: “Betsy! -Are you down there? Why don’t you bring the -elevator chair up again?” There was no reply. -Not a sound from below could they hear. The girls -tried to open the trap-door, but the contrivance that -secured it was underneath the floor.</p> - -<p>“What if the machinery doesn’t work?” Margaret -said, looking up in sudden dismay, “Betsy -might smother down there.”</p> - -<p>“Who is talking about me?” a merry voice called. -The astonished girls sprang to their feet and -whirled around. There was the laughing Betsy -standing back of them.</p> - -<p>The other three crowded about. “Did you make -any new discoveries? Tell us what happened!”</p> - -<p>“Well, when I reached the cellar,” Betsy began, -“I hunted about to find the other knob, the one that -would lift me again to this room, but lo and behold, -it appeared to have lost its magic. I pulled on it -and pushed, but the chair did not move. I could -hear you calling to me, although your voices -sounded faint and far. I replied but I was sure -that you could not hear. Then I sat for a few moments -thinking what I ought to do next. Of -course I knew that you would soon call for help -if I did not return and that Peyton would break -open the trap. When my eyes became accustomed -to the darkness, I thought I saw a door at the far -side of the room. Groping my way toward it, I -found that it opened easily. Just beyond was a -spiral stairway which I ascended. At the top was -another door, but it was locked. I was about to -pound upon it, when I happened to touch a key -which I turned and here I am.”</p> - -<p>“Oh!” Virginia exclaimed. “I remember that -door. It is the one I tried to open last night when -the candle blew out, but I found it locked. Peyton -said he supposed that it led into a store room -but he had never been curious enough about the -matter to investigate.”</p> - -<p>Babs was opening the windows, letting in the -cool morning breeze. “I’m going to ask Peyton if -we can’t have these bars removed,” she declared as -she stood peering through them. “I feel as though -I were in a jail looking out between bars this way.” -Suddenly she uttered an exclamation which took -all of the girls hurrying to her side.</p> - -<p>“What is it, Babs? What do you see? Why are -you staring so intently at the ground?” were the -questions hurled at her. Babs whirled about and -faced them, her eyes wide with excitement. “This -is the window through which I saw a Mexican last -night peering in at us,” she said.</p> - -<p>The others nodded. “You all laughed at me and -declared that I was letting my imagination run -riot.” Then she added, exultingly, “Follow me, -young ladies, and you will discover that I, too, am -a very fine detective.”</p> - -<p>Much mystified, the girls trooped out of the -kitchen door and around the house. Babs, in -the lead, stopped and picked up something from the -ground not far from the barred window. Turning -she held aloft a peculiarly shaped key.</p> - -<p>“This probably will solve the mystery for us,” -she declared. “Good, there is Peyton. Hail him, -Betsy, will you?”</p> - -<p>The lad mounted, was about to start with several -peons for the valley pasture when he heard the girls -calling. Whirling his horse and bidding the Mexicans -wait his return, he galloped up. Dismounting, -he asked Babs what was wanted of him. He -listened to her story, almost believing that she had -been imaginative until she produced the strangely -shaped key as evidence that some one had been -there.</p> - -<p>“Brother, did you ever see that key before?” -Babs eagerly inquired.</p> - -<p>The lad nodded. “Yes,” he replied. “I saw it -lying on Trujillo’s bed yesterday morning when I -went to his bunk early to ask his advice before -beginning the work of the day. I picked up the key -at the time and examined it because of its queer -shape, but I made no comment as the matter I had -called to discuss was much more important. However, -I cannot believe that my trusted overseer -would spy upon the actions of my sister and her -guests. There must be some other solution of this -mystery,” he said. Then he added: “Please say -nothing concerning it and I will try to find out the -truth about the whole matter.”</p> - -<p>Peyton slipped the key into one of his coat -pockets and lifting his hat to the girls he rode away.</p> - -<h2 id='chXIX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XIX. THE GIRL DETECTIVE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XIX</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>THE GIRL DETECTIVE</span> -</h2> - -<p>Betsy Clossen in her role of young detective -watched for an opportunity to slip away from the -others as she wished to think out some plan by -which she might be able to discover the real identity -of the mysterious Mexican, Trujillo.</p> - -<p>When Peyton had said that he had seen the oddly -shaped key only the morning before in the bunkhouse -of his overseer, Betsy was more than ever -convinced that Trujillo’s presence on the Three -Cross ranch was not merely because he needed employment. -And yet what could he want? Peyton -had no money on the place. Betsy had heard him -tell his sister only the night before that he would -have to ride to Douglas the following day to visit -the bank and procure the money he would need to -pay the peons for a month’s work.</p> - -<p>There were no treasures in the old Spanish house -that Trujillo could wish to possess. The mahogany -furniture was valuable, no doubt, but much too -heavy for anyone to spirit away, and the only other -possible treasures in the room which Babs called -haunted were the paintings of the family of Don -Carlos Spinoza. Surely no one would wish to steal -those. In fact if any one did, Babs would gladly -assist them, so eager was she to remove from the -walls of her new home the life-sized portraits of -those “foreigners.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe I’m a very good detective after -all,” Betsy sighed. “I don’t seem to hit upon the -right clue to start from,” she thought as she followed -a trail leading, she did not notice where, so -intently was she thinking and gazing at the ground.</p> - -<p>“I have three main facts to work with,” she told -herself. “The first is that Trujillo is mysterious, -even Peyton thinks that. The second is the dark -face that peered through the barred window last -night when the girls were searching for me and the -third is that the person who peered dropped an -oddly shaped key which Peyton had seen in the -room of his overseer.</p> - -<p>“The conclusion to be drawn is that Trujillo is remaining -at the Three Cross ranch, not because of -the remuneration he receives, but in order to obtain -some information, since there is nothing valuable -to carry away.”</p> - -<p>“Three Cross,” she repeated to herself. “That -surely is a queer name for a cattle ranch. Oh, I -remember now! Peyton said that old Don Carlos -was very religious, and that somewhere on the -place he had erected a shrine on which were three -crosses and that he went there to implore protection -from his pursuing political enemies. I must -ask Babs where—” Betsy suddenly paused and -looked about her. She saw that the trail she had -been following seemed to end abruptly in a lonely -sheltered hollow among sand hills. In front of the -girl stood an old shrine above which were three -wooden crosses. One had fallen to the ground, another -leaned far over, but the center one was erect -and seemed to be more firmly established in the -sand than the other two had been.</p> - -<p>Betsy stood looking around, awed by the loneliness -of the place, when suddenly, through the -stillness there arose a long-drawn-out wail. With -a startled cry the girl turned and fled. She ran -back over the trail as she had never run before.</p> - -<p>When she felt that she was a safe distance away -she turned and looked back, almost believing that -she would see some ghostly figure pursuing her. -Standing on the top of a sand hill, its lean length -silhouetted against the bright sky, she saw a lone -coyote. She shuddered and looked back again, but -at last she was convinced that the wolf of the desert -had no intention of following her but had departed -for some other haunt.</p> - -<p>Slowing her pace, Betsy soliloquized: “Well, I -discovered something, even though it may have -nothing to do with unraveling the mystery. Now -let me see, where did I leave off? Oh, yes; I had -decided that Trujillo is staying on this ranch for -some reason other than that of employment, and -yet it cannot be to steal, for there is nothing on the -place that one would want, and—” Suddenly -Betsy stood still and stared into space, thinking intently. -Then she laughed. “I’m a great detective, -I must say. I haven’t given a moment’s thought -to the most important clue of all—the key! Trujillo -must think there is something around here to -unlock, otherwise why did he have the key?” The -overseer had arrived in a March blizzard, she had -heard Peyton tell, without box or baggage of any -kind, nor had he obtained any since his arrival.</p> - -<p>“Hum,” thought the would-be detective. “I see -it all now. There is a treasure hidden at the house, -probably in the front room which has always been -kept closed, and Trujillo had planned that night to -slip in, unobserved, but having seen a light in the -room, he had first peered through the window and -had then beat a hasty retreat. Hurray for me!” -Betsy concluded exultingly. “The mystery is solved. -I do believe.”</p> - -<p>She was nearing the house and she saw the girls -on the porch beckoning to her.</p> - -<p>“Where have you been? Lunch is ready,” Margaret -called.</p> - -<p>“Oh, just for a walk,” was Betsy’s non-committal -reply. She had decided to say nothing of her discovery -until she had had time to look around a little -more all by herself. But the would-be detective -was to hear something that noon which convinced -her that she was following the wrong clue.</p> - -<h2 id='chXX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XX. A QUEER KEY'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XX</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A QUEER KEY</span> -</h2> - -<p>The girls were seated about the table at one end -of the big comfortable kitchen and, it being Margaret’s -turn to play waitress, she was passing a dish -of frijolies when they heard a horse galloping under -the windows. “Peyton has returned just in time,” -Megsy announced, but, when the door opened, it -was Trujillo who appeared. He seemed to be much -excited, but what he said caused a great deal more -excitement among his listeners, for in perfectly good -English he inquired:</p> - -<p>“Senoritas, have you seen an oddly shaped key? -It is an antique and of great value to me, though to -no one else. I left it in my bunk-house yesterday -morning. I recall having seen your brother,” turning -to address the astonished Barbara, “when he -picked it up and examined it. Since then I have -given the key no thought, but a moment ago, chancing -to look for it, I could not find it. Believing that -Senor Peyton, without thought had slipped it into -his pocket, I came here in search of him.”</p> - -<p>Barbara cast a helpless glance at the ever calm -Virginia, who replied: “Trujillo, the key about -which you speak, is, I am sure, the one that we found -close to the house early this morning. We gave it -to Peyton. He is spending the day at the valley -pasture directing the mending of the fence around -the grass lands.”</p> - -<p>“I thank you, Senorita,” the tall dark lad said, -sweeping his sombrero in a courtly manner.</p> - -<p>When he was gone in search of his employer, the -girls sank back in the chairs from which they had -risen, and, one and all uttered some characteristic -exclamation.</p> - -<p>“Silver fishes in a shining sea,” Betsy Clossen said, -and although the remark could mean nothing, it was -evident that the speaker meant a great deal. “I -surely am a wonderful detective,” she declared. -“Every clue I thought I had has vanished.” Then -turning to Babs, she added: “Didn’t you tell us that -Trujillo could not speak English?”</p> - -<p>That maiden looked puzzled. “I don’t seem to -recall why I thought he couldn’t,” she confessed. -“Probably because he never did in all the time he has -been here.”</p> - -<p>Virginia smiled: “We haven’t been here two days -as yet,” she reminded them, “and we have made no -effort to converse with Trujillo. We just took it -for granted he wouldn’t understand us. Well, one -thing is certain and that is that Trujillo did not peer -in the window nor drop the key and I am glad that -he didn’t. Everything Peyton has told us about him -has been so fine and noble, I would be sorry to discover -that he was a spy.”</p> - -<p>“Hark! What was that?” Virginia had risen and -was listening, intently. There was the sound of -something heavy falling in the front room, then a -hurrying of feet and the slamming of a door.</p> - -<p>Virginia fearlessly entered the room which was -flooded with sunlight, since the blinds had been removed. -She went at once to the door opening upon -the spiral stairway. It was unlocked early that -morning. The other girls had cautiously followed -and were searching for the something which had -fallen. “There it is,” Margaret whispered, pointing.</p> - -<p>The something that had fallen with a crash proved -to be a rock which had been pried out of the wall of -the fireplace.</p> - -<p>“Oh, girls,” Betsy said, her eyes glowing. “We’re -on the trail of whoever it was peered in last night. -There is something in this room that he wants. Of -course we have decided definitely that it wasn’t -Trujillo, and—”</p> - -<p>“I’m not so sure of that.” It was the quiet Margaret -who spoke and the others turned toward her.</p> - -<p>“Not sure? Why of course we’re sure. If he had -dropped the key, he wouldn’t have to ask where it -had been lost, would he?” Babs inquired.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I know what Margaret means,” Betsy interrupted. -“She thinks that in order to throw suspicion -away from himself, he would pretend ignorance of -the whereabouts of the key. Then, when we directed -him to the valley pasture, what could be simpler than -for him to pretend to go there, but in reality to wheel -back when he was out of our sight and return to procure -whatever it is that he seems to want.”</p> - -<p>The girls had returned to the kitchen and were -huddled as far from the front room as they could -get and were whispering together excitedly.</p> - -<p>“Well,” Betsy confessed. “I’ve always wanted a -mystery to unravel, but I seem doomed to failure -now that I really have one. It grows more mysterious -every minute.”</p> - -<p>Margaret had to laugh at her friend’s dismal expression. -“Betsy,” she said to tease, “I’ll dare you -to ride down to the cellar room in your elevator chair -and see who is hiding there. Someone must be, for -he just went down the spiral stairs and locked the -door behind him.”</p> - -<p>The would-be detective shook her head. “I told -you this morning that the machinery is broken. That -chair is doomed to remain in the cellar.”</p> - -<p>To verify her statement, Betsy drew the reluctant -Margaret toward the door, opened it cautiously and -peered into the front room. Then she closed it with -a bang, and turned a pale face toward the girls. “The -chair—it’s in its right place. Someone has ridden up -in it and must be hiding in the front room. How I -wish Peyton would come. I for one have had enough -mystery to last for a lifetime.”</p> - -<p>“Here comes brother, and someone is riding at his -side. I declare, it’s Trujillo, and so the intruder -must be someone else. I do wish they would hurry. -I’m expecting any minute that something is going to -happen,” Babs declared.</p> - -<p>Margaret, who had opened the door leading to the -back porch, uttered an exclamation of astonishment, -then, turning she beckoned as she said: “Come, -quick! Something is happening right this minute.”</p> - -<p>What the girls, crowding into the open doorway, -saw was the figure of a peon crouching and creeping -along behind a hedge of mesquite bushes. He kept -watching the trail down which he saw Peyton and -Trujillo descending, and, when they were close to -him, he lay flat on the sand burrowing as deep as he -could in his endeavor to escape detection.</p> - -<p>The riders, deeply engrossed in their conversation, -were not looking in that direction, and when Margaret -saw that they were riding past the mesquite -clump without seeing the hiding peon, she ran out -on the porch and hallooed to them, making frantic -motions. These might not have been understood by -the two riders, but the ignorant and greatly -frightened Mexican, believing that his hiding place -was being revealed, took to his feet and raced for -the sand hills. Peyton and Trujillo, seeing him, -wheeled their horses and galloped in pursuit, and he -was quickly overtaken.</p> - -<p>“It is Pinez, whom we recently engaged.” Trujillo -said in English, which the peon could not understand. -“I have been watching him for several days. -Last week I sent him to town for my mail and I was -convinced that one of my letters was being withheld -from me.” Then turning to the sullen peon, he asked: -“Pinez, why were you hiding? Have you a letter -that belongs to me?”</p> - -<p>“Si, Senor,” was the reply, and from his pocket -the Mexican drew an envelope, much soiled from -frequent handling.</p> - -<p>Trujillo’s face brightened. “It is for this that I -have been waiting,” was his remark, which greatly -mystified Peyton, but he made no comment.</p> - -<p>Then the overseer addressed the peon in Spanish, -saying: “Pinez, you are dismissed. Return to Sonora -but say nothing of the content of this letter.”</p> - -<p>The peon’s manner was deferential in the extreme. -Turning, he walked toward the long bunk-house -from which, half an hour later, the girls saw him -ride away toward the South on the small, mottled -horse on which he had so recently arrived.</p> - -<p>All through lunch the two boys talked about the -affairs of the ranch as though nothing mysterious -or unusual had happened. After the noon meal was -finished the overseer turned toward the little mistress -of Three Cross saying with frank pleasantness: “Senorita, -I have heard you speak of a front room that -you call haunted. With your kind permission, I -would like to visit that room in your company.”</p> - -<p>Babs was too well bred to show the astonishment -she certainly felt. “Come, let us all go in there,” -she replied, rising.</p> - -<p>Trujillo stepped aside with Peyton to permit Barbara -and her girl friends to enter. Betsy regretted -that she had to go ahead as she wished to watch the -overseer’s every move, for she felt that now, if ever, -she would prove that she was really a good detective. -She believed that the moment for solving the mystery -had come.</p> - -<p>Trujillo walked about, gazing especially at the -life-sized portraits upon the walls. Indeed he was -so absorbed in one and another that he seemed to -quite forget their presence.</p> - -<p>He stood for a long time before the painting of a -beautiful young Spanish mother with a dark-eyed -little girl on her lap and a tall, handsome youth -standing at her side.</p> - -<p>Trujillo, directly beneath this painting, turned -and smiled at the almost breathless girls. He was -about to speak, but before he could utter a word, -there was a glad cry from Betsy Clossen.</p> - -<p>“I know now who you are,” she exclaimed glowingly. -“You are the little boy in that painting, -grown up!”</p> - -<p>Trujillo bowed in his courtly way. “Si Senorita. -I am Trujillo Carlos Spinoza. Now I will tell you -why I am here.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXI. TRUJILLO IDENTIFIED'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>TRUJILLO IDENTIFIED</span> -</h2> - -<p>When Trujillo announced that he was indeed -the lad portrayed in the painting, now grown, Betsy -Clossen was overjoyed that she had unraveled the -mystery as she had so desired. Notwithstanding -the fact that the Spanish youth closely -resembled the portrait of the boy in the picture hanging -directly above his head, not one of the other -young people had observed this.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I am so glad!” Babs joyfully exclaimed. -“Now you will take all this furniture away, won’t -you? Because it really belongs to your family, you -know. Mrs. Dartley said that Don Carlos Spinoza -asked permission to leave this room furnished, -promising to remove everything in it at his first opportunity. -That being so long ago we feared no -one was ever coming to claim it.”</p> - -<p>Before the Spanish lad could reply, Peyton asked: -“Trujillo, why did you not tell me at once who you -were?”</p> - -<p>“Merely because I did not know that I had reached -the ranch which had formerly belonged to my grandfather. -I believed it to be miles north of here. But, -let me begin at the beginning of my story. When -we left this place years ago with my grandfather, -Don Carlos Spinoza, we all went to Spain, where -we remained until recently. The sudden death of -my grandfather followed by a financial crash left my -mother, sister and me almost penniless. It was then -that mother told me that I, as the only living grandson, -was really the owner of a large estate in Mexico, -which had been a gift to my ancestors from the king -of Spain and that this land grant could not be confiscated -nor sold except with the signed consent of -the heir thereto.</p> - -<p>“When I inquired why they had left this rich -heritage, for the estate is in Sonora and the mines -are of great value, mother told me, for the first time, -that we had been political exiles from Mexico. However, -she believed that the government had been completely -changed and that we might now return with -safety and take possession of the land of our fathers. -Soon after this we set sail for America, and my -mother and sister are now in Mexico awaiting my -return.”</p> - -<p>“But Trujillo, even yet I do not understand the -reason for your sojourn here as my overseer,” Peyton -said.</p> - -<p>The Spanish youth smiled. “No, but you will as -I continue my story. When we reached Mexico City -we were welcomed by old friends of the family, who -informed us that soon after our flight our estate had -been confiscated and occupied by the political enemies -of my grandfather. On looking into the matter I -found that this family had papers proving, (or so it -would seem), that the land grant had really belonged -to their ancestors and had been usurped by my great -grandfather.</p> - -<p>“It was evident that we could not disprove their -claim, as we had no papers whatever to show. Then it -was that my mother recalled her father’s futile effort -on the day that he died to tell her of the location of -some very important papers. So overcome had she -been with grief that she had been unable to heed even -the little he could say, and so, when later she tried to -recall what my grandfather had endeavored to tell -her, she could not.</p> - -<p>“It was then that I determined to ride across the -desert, finding, if I could, the ranch to which my -grandfather had fled when he became a political -exile. I doubt if I would ever have found my way -here had it not been that I was driven far from the -trail I was following by the wild blizzard which you -will recall. I at once accepted your offer, partly -because I needed money to send to my mother, and -also because I thought I might learn something -which would enable me to locate the ranch formerly -belonging to my grandfather. When you told me -that you had recently come from the East and had -obtained the ranch from the Dartleys, in whose -family it had been for many years, I did not question -you more, not dreaming that this was the place for -which I was searching.</p> - -<p>“The letter which Pinez was concealing was from -my mother telling me that she had suddenly recalled -what her father had said in his last hour. ‘The land -grant—Three Cross.’</p> - -<p>“Of course I had often heard you speak of this -place as The Three Cross Ranch and now, when I -enter this room for the first time and find myself -surrounded with portraits of my family, I realize that -this is where the lost papers are to be found.”</p> - -<p>“Trujillo, why was Pinez searching for those -papers?” It was Margaret who spoke. The Spanish -youth turned toward her as he replied: “I believe -his plan was to find them and then hold them until -I offered him a large reward.” Then smiling directly -at Betsy, he added: “Senorita, since you so cleverly -discovered my identity, will you not also discover for -me the hiding place of my land grant?”</p> - -<p>The little would-be detective felt greatly honored -to be chosen as aide to the handsome Spanish youth, -and she determined to make every effort to find the -hidden papers.</p> - -<h2 id='chXXII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXII. SEARCHING FOR THE LAND GRANT'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>SEARCHING FOR THE LAND GRANT</span> -</h2> - -<p>Betsy Clossen had hardly slept a wink the -night following her discovery of the real identity -of the mysterious Trujillo. She kept thinking and -thinking of a possible hiding place for the lost -papers which, when found, would restore to the -family of Don Carlos Spinoza their rightful estate.</p> - -<p>“How I do hope I may be the one to find them,” -was her last conscious thought at night and her first -on waking the next morning.</p> - -<p>It was not yet daybreak, but Betsy quietly arose, -dressed and tiptoed out of the room without having -disturbed Margaret from her peaceful slumber.</p> - -<p>Reaching the kitchen, Betsy stood for a moment -trying to think where she would begin her search. -Then, suddenly, she remembered something. The -peon had been trying to pry the stones from the -walls of the great old fireplace. There might be a -secret opening with a stone fitted in to conceal it. -Lighting a lantern, for it was still dark, Betsy stole -into the long silent front room, not without many a -tremor of fear, for, even now, when the mystery -was nearly solved, the place seemed haunted with -the many foreign faces gazing down at her from -the walls.</p> - -<p>Trying not to look at them as they were revealed -one by one in the dim light of her lantern, Betsy -went at once to the fireplace. She did not attempt -to pry out the stones, but tried to find one that -looked as though it had not been securely fastened -and could easily be removed.</p> - -<p>However, each stone within her reach was cemented -to its neighbor, and, convinced at last that -her search at the fireplace was to be unrewarded, -she turned away. Walking to the center of the -room, she stood looking about, trying to recall all -of the detective stories she had ever read.</p> - -<p>There was always a secret panel in the wall which -revealed a hidden treasure if one could but find the -spring, but these walls were adobe and there were -no panels. True, there was the small dark cellar -into which the elevator chair descended, and from -which spiral ascended, and yet, did she quite dare -to go down in that dungeon-like place alone while -the rest of the household slept? Betsy suddenly -lifted her head and listened intently. She had -heard soft foot-steps approaching in the kitchen, -then the door opened cautiously. It was Margaret -who appeared, pale and wide eyed.</p> - -<p>“What in the world are you doing here, Betsy?” -she inquired, as she advanced into the room. “I -woke up and found you were gone. I thought you -might be walking in your sleep. You were so restless -all night and kept saying things.”</p> - -<p>“What did I say?” Betsy inquired curiously.</p> - -<p>“Nothing that made any sense as far as I could -tell,” was the reply. “You kept mumbling every -now and then, but once you sat right up in bed and -said in the queerest voice: ‘Three crosses. That’s -where the papers are.’ I shook you and whispered, -‘Betsy, what are you saying?’ but you lay down -again and did not reply. Then I realized that you -had been asleep all of the time.”</p> - -<p>The eyes of the young would-be detective were -glowing with sudden inspiration. Seizing the wondering -Margaret by the arm, she exclaimed: -“Come with me, Megsy!” and before the other girl -could realize what was happening, she was being -dragged across the kitchen and out of the house -where the desert lay silent and uncanny in the -deepest darkness of the night, which comes just before -the dawn.</p> - -<p>Margaret, being of a more timid nature, was truly -frightened when she saw that Betsy was dragging her -farther and farther away from the ranch house and -toward the lonely sand hills. The truth of the -matter was that at any other time, Betsy would -have been frightened also, but at present she was -possessed of just one idea which was that the -papers for which they were searching were hidden, -in all probability, at the Shrine of The Three -Crosses. When Margaret told her what she had -said in her sleep, Betsy believed that the message -had come to her as an inspiration, and so sure was -she of this, that for the moment she had become -unconscious of fear; too, she had forgotten the -lean, gaunt wolf of the desert, whose long drawn-out -wail had so startled her on the occasion of her -last visit.</p> - -<p>“Betsy, let go of my arm,” Margaret managed -to gasp, “and tell me where we are going.” Then -a terrible thought came to Megsy. What if Betsy -should be walking in her sleep after all, and what -if she were taking them both to some place where -harm would befall them. So convinced was Margaret -that this was the real explanation of her -friend’s actions that she whirled about as soon as -Betsy loosened the clasp on her arm and raced back -toward the ranch house. A light appeared in the -small adobe, then, as she was about to pass, the -door opened and Trujillo stepped out. In the grey -light of the early dawn, Margaret’s flying form -was easily seen and the overseer, much mystified by -the appearance of one of the girls in such seemingly -terrorized flight, quickly overtook her.</p> - -<p>“Senorita,” he exclaimed when she turned a -white face toward him. “What is the matter? -Where have you been? What have you seen?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I am so glad you came,” Megsy replied. “I -was going after Peyton. Betsy Clossen is walking -in her sleep. I just know that she is, and she’ll -come to some harm if we don’t bring her back. -She says the queerest things about lost papers being -hidden at the Shrine of The Three Crosses. I -never heard of such a place. Did you, Senor?”</p> - -<p>Trujillo replied in the negative. He had never -heard the peons mention a shrine and surely they -would know if there were one.</p> - -<p>“Wait here, Senorita, I will get horses and we -will follow your friend.”</p> - -<p>When Margaret had deserted Betsy, for a moment -the young would-be detective felt a strong -desire to turn and race after her, but she would not -permit herself to do this. She was so eager to find the -lost papers and she was more than ever convinced, -as she thought about the matter, that they were -probably near the shrine. This had been the daily -haunt of the old Don who had prayed that his -estate might be restored to him. What would be -more natural than that he would conceal the papers -there, believing, as he probably did, that his political -enemies when they found him would confiscate -the documents, making it impossible for him -to prove that the land grant had really belonged to -his ancestors.</p> - -<p>As Betsy neared the lonely sand hills, she -dreaded more and more the moment when she -would enter the sheltered dug-out where she had -found the shrine. She knew that, loud as she -might call, no one would hear.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I can’t go on! I can’t! I can’t” she exclaimed, -her fearlessness suddenly deserting her. -Then it was that she heard something weird indeed.</p> - -<p>In a voice that sounded almost like a mournful -echo, some one was calling. Then in her heart -there was a sudden joyful realization of the truth. -Some one was shouting her name and the sand hills -were sending back the echo: “Betsy, where are -you?”</p> - -<p>“Here! Here!” she replied as she ran out to -meet the approaching riders. Of course she might -have known that Margaret would soon return with -one of the boys.</p> - -<p>She was glad to recognize that the other rider -was Trujillo. As they drew near, the Spanish -youth saw that the girl standing alone near the sand -hills did not look as courageous as her fearless -actions had implied. Instead her face was pale, her -eyes wide, although her expression was one of gladness, -because she was no longer alone.</p> - -<p>Betsy was not asleep, of that Trujillo was convinced. -Leaping to the ground, he exclaimed: -“Senorita, what mad fancy brought you to this -lonely place before the dawning of the day?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, senor, the papers! I am sure, as sure as one -can be when one does not really know, that they -are hidden somewhere near the Shrine of the Three -Crosses.”</p> - -<p>“Three Crosses?” Margaret repeated. “That is -what you said in your sleep.”</p> - -<p>“Where is the shrine, senorita?” Trujillo inquired. -Betsy led the way between the sand hills to -the small dug-out in which were three large wooden -crosses. One had fallen to the sand, another leaned -over, but the third stood erect. Trujillo bared his -head and knelt upon the sand for a moment in -prayer. The girls could understand that the lad -must indeed feel awed to find himself before the -shrine which had been so often visited by his grandfather, -Don Carlos Spinoza. He soon arose and -when he turned toward them they knew that he had -been deeply affected. Then in a tone of conviction -he said:</p> - -<p>“Senorita, your dream, I am sure, is to be fulfilled. -My grandfather’s last words were: ‘The -land grant at the Three Crosses.’ If he had meant -at the Three Cross ranch, he would not have used -the plural.”</p> - -<p>Then Trujillo stood gazing about him, thinking -intently. He was trying to decide the probable -hiding place of the document he sought. Suddenly -his thought was interrupted by an exclamation -from Betsy, the girl was gazing as though fascinated -at the large wooden cross standing erect between -the two that had fallen.</p> - -<p>“Senor,” she said, “there must be some reason -why that cross in the center has stood while the -others have not. It must have a firmer foundation. -Do you not think so?”</p> - -<p>“I do indeed,” was the reply of the youth, who -at once knelt and began digging at the base of the -cross. The sand on top was soft, but, as he advanced, -he found that it became more difficult to -remove. The action of the rain and sun during -the ten years since the cross had been erected had -hardened it until it was the nature of sand stone.</p> - -<p>He arose. “Senorita Betsy,” he said, “our surmise -was not correct after all. There seems to be -nothing holding this cross but the hardened sand.”</p> - -<p>Betsy was keenly disappointed, although she was -not entirely convinced. Trujillo left the girls -standing alone while he advanced farther into the -cave-like dug-out. It extended deeper into the -sand hills than he had at first supposed. He did -not advance far, however, but stopped suddenly -and gazed intently into the interior, and then, assuming -an attitude of seeming indifference, he returned. -He did not wish to startle the girls by -telling them that he had seen two green eyes gleaming -in the darkness at the back of the cave. He believed -the creature to be either a mountain lion or -a coyote, which of late had been killing the young -calves.</p> - -<p>“Senoritas,” he said in a voice which did not betray -his real concern, “our friends at the ranch -house will be troubled because we do not return. -The breakfast hour is long passed. I suggest that -we come here later in the day, bringing with us a -pick and shovel that we may make a thorough investigation.”</p> - -<p>As he spoke, he led the girls away from the -crosses to the place where the ponies were.</p> - -<p>“Promise me you won’t search for the papers unless -I am with you,” Betsy implored. The Spanish -youth smiled at the pretty, flushed face of the -pleading girl, as he replied: “I promise, Senorita.”</p> - -<p>All that morning Betsy watched and waited. -She almost lost faith in the promise of Trujillo -when, at last, she beheld him returning from the -sand hills, accompanied by Peyton, but when she -saw that they were armed with guns and did not -carry a shovel or pick, she knew that they had been -on some other mission.</p> - -<p>Trujillo rode to the ranch house and entering the -living room, he said to the eager girl: “If you are -ready, Senorita Betsy, we will go at once.”</p> - -<p>Margaret and Virginia were busily employed in -the kitchen, but they glanced up when they heard -the cantering of horses’ hoofs beneath the window.</p> - -<p>“I wonder where Betsy and Trujillo are going,” -Virg said. Margaret, who had been sworn to -secrecy, did not reply.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I presume they are still searching for the -land grant papers,” Megsy said. “I’d heaps rather -be in this sunny, comfortable kitchen making pies, -wouldn’t you, Virg?”</p> - -<p>The older girl smiled. “Perhaps it is well that -we have different interests,” she replied. “Some of -us like to do adventurous things and some of us like -to do the quiet, homely things, but I really enjoy -both the desert life and then home life.” Then she -added, with one of her radiant smiles: “I do believe, -Megsy, that I am a natural born enjoyer.”</p> - -<p>“You are indeed,” her friend responded, admiringly. -“You always seem so happy and contented, -Virg, wherever you are. Tell me your secret.”</p> - -<p>Virginia put her arm about Margaret and drew -her down to the sunny window-seat, as she replied: -“Mother often told me that we ought to let our -lives blossom as a flower unfolds, just peacefully -and trustingly, enjoying the song of a bird, and the -warmth of the sun and whatever beauty is near us. -Many people try to force their life blossoms open -and are so continually reaching for something beyond, -that they never really enjoy the loveliness -that is near them and so they become worried and -weary. Every morning I ask myself: ‘What happiness -can I find and give <i>today</i> in the place -where I am? That keeps me contented and happy.” -Then springing up, she laughingly added: “Yum! -Doesn’t the pie smell good? I do hope everyone -will be here in time for lunch.” But it was long -after the lunch hour before Betsy and Trujillo returned.</p> - -<p>In the meantime Betsy and Trujillo had reached -the sand hills and were standing in front of the -three crosses. Trujillo glanced into the cave beyond -the shrine. Little did his companion know -that in the darkness there was a newly made grave.</p> - -<p>At Betsy’s suggestion he began at once to dig -beneath the middle cross. The pick was needed to -break the sand stone, but suddenly it struck something -that did not break. One corner of an iron -box was revealed, which however, was so firmly -imbedded in the rock that it took a long time to entirely -free it. Betsy, after the first exultant exclamation, -had stood silently watching.</p> - -<p>How she did hope that this box contained the -land grant document that the mother and sister of -Trujillo might have their home restored to them.</p> - -<p>When at last the box was freed, they both knelt -beside it to see if the key hole was as queerly shaped -as was the key that the mother of Trujillo had given -him. When they found that it fitted exactly, -Betsy’s joy could no longer be restrained, and leaping -up, she clapped her hands and uttered varied -exclamations of delight.</p> - -<p>Trujillo glanced at her with a happy smile. -“Senorita,” he said, “before I open this box, I want -you to promise me something. If the papers are -here, and if our home is restored, will you and your -friends come some day, and visit us? My mother -and my sister Carmelita will welcome you gladly.”</p> - -<p>Then the key turned and the box was opened. -There was a glad cry from the girl who had been -watching breathlessly, for there lay a packet of -yellowing papers. Placing them in his pocket, the -Spanish lad rose and held out his hand to his -flushed and excited companion. “Senorita Betsy,” -he said, his melodious voice tense with feeling, “I -thank you for your interest and my mother and -sister will want to thank you when, with your -friends, you can visit us.”</p> - -<p>Then leaving the heavy iron box in the sand by -the crosses, these two rode back to the ranch house -to tell the others that, at last, the long lost papers -had been found.</p> - -<div id='004' class='mt10 mb10 w004'> - <img src='images/illus-004.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%' /> - <p class='caption'>There lay a packet of yellowing papers.</p> -</div> - -<p>“I shall leave for Mexico tomorrow if Monsieur -Peyton can spare me, but before I go I shall return -alone to the shrine and leave the three crosses -standing, firm and erect, in the memory of my -grandfather.”</p> - -<p>And this Trujillo did, going to the shrine at sunrise -on the following morning. Then directly after -breakfast, the Spanish youth rode away to the -south.</p> - -<p>“Girls,” Betsy cried, “how I do wish, before I -have to return East, that we might visit the beautiful -Carmelita Spinoza.”</p> - -<p>“Stranger things than that have happened,” Virginia -replied.</p> - -<h2 id='chXXIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXIII. ALARM ABOUT MALCOLM'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXIII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>ALARM ABOUT MALCOLM</span> -</h2> - -<p>A few days after the departure of Trujillo, Virginia -remarked one morning at breakfast, “Barbara, -I feel much as you did when you were with us at -V. M., a great anxiety, which I cannot understand, -to return home and see if all is well with Malcolm. -The truth is I have been away from him and from -dear old Uncle Tex for so many, many months, that -I feel sure they were sorry to have me desert them, -and, so, if Margaret and Betsy are willing, I think -we would better return to V. M. today.”</p> - -<p>The pretty face of Babs plainly showed her disappointment, -and Virginia hastened to add, “Won’t -you come with us, Barbara, or, if not that, perhaps, -Betsy would like to make you a longer visit here at -Three Cross.”</p> - -<p>A sudden hopeful brightening in the blue eyes of -Barbara brought from her dear friend Betsy an immediate -acceptance of the plan, and, so, an hour -later, that they might start before the sun was high, -the two who were departing bade goodbye to the -three who were to remain and rode away, looking -back often to wave and smile.</p> - -<p>When at last they had crossed the ridge which hid -the Three Cross Ranch from their view and were -riding along the level desert, Margaret looked -anxiously, inquiringly at her friend.</p> - -<p>“Dear, you seem very thoughtful. Are you -troubled about anything in particular?”</p> - -<p>The questioner was more than ever puzzled when -she saw the morning glow in the truly beautiful face -that was turned toward her.</p> - -<p>“No, sister of mine, I was thinking of something -very wonderful, but just for a time it must be my -secret.”</p> - -<p>Virginia was recalling an hour that she and Peyton -had spent alone the evening before, sitting on a -huge boulder that was near the ranch house. It -had been a gloriously moonlighted night, and, for -a long time, they had remained silent, just content, -it would seem, to be together in that truest and rarest -of all forms of comradeship. Then quietly Virg had -led Peyton to talk of his ranch, his interest, and of -what he had done while she had been away.</p> - -<p>Somehow, in the magic of the loveliness all about -them, it had seemed but natural that the lad should -tell her of his love.</p> - -<p>“May I hope, Virginia, that some day, you will be -here with me,—with us?” And Virginia’s reply had -been seriously given. “Ask me that again when I -am eighteen, will you Peyton?”</p> - -<p>And with that answer the lad had to be content, -but in it he found much to cause him to rejoice; -much that gave him hope.</p> - -<p>It was a strange coincidence, that, at that moment, -as Virginia was thinking over the conversation of -the night before, Megsy should ask, “Virg, who do -you suppose will be the first girl of our acquaintance -to marry?”</p> - -<p>Her companion smiled, “Why dear, I don’t know,” -she replied. “Babs and Betsy are far too young, -some way, to even think of such things. Betsy -declares that she is to be wedded to her career and -Barbara, though she likes Benjy Wilson has not as -yet even thought of romance.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I am sure it will not be me.” Virg thought -she heard Margaret sigh and this puzzled her. Quick -was her response. “I’m not so sure of that, Megsy. -You are so sweet and lovable, I know you will be -stolen away from me long before I am ready to -lose you.” Then, as they reached the top of the -mesa, she continued happily, “Oh, how good it is to -see V. M. Ranch again. This time I do hope that -brother of mine will be at home to greet us. I have -had so much change and recreation this past year -that I actually feel guilty. It has been all work and -responsibility for Malcolm.”</p> - -<p>“I have a plan to suggest,” Megsy said. “Let’s -insist that Malcolm take a two weeks’ vacation and -go away somewhere so isolated that he could not -possibly receive there a message about the ranch.”</p> - -<p>Virg shook her head. “I don’t believe that we -could persuade my brother to go,” she replied.</p> - -<p>“I’m going to try,” was Margaret’s quiet response.</p> - -<h2 id='chXXIV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXIV. AND THE REASON FOR IT'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXIV</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>AND THE REASON FOR IT</span> -</h2> - -<p>The girls entered the ranch house living room and -stood looking about.</p> - -<p>“How queer not to hear a sound,” Margaret said. -“Why does it seem so much more still than usual -do you suppose?”</p> - -<p>“Perhaps because we do not hear the shouting of -the Mahoy children,” Virg replied. “They are -usually at play in the door yard at this hour. Let’s -go over to their home and ask Mrs. Mahoy where -everyone is.”</p> - -<p>With a heart filled with an unaccountable foreboding, -Virg led the way to the small adobe back of -the big ranch house and nearer the dry creek.</p> - -<p>As they approached they saw the four small children -seated on the porch step huddled together. The -oldest girl was softly crying, the two younger ones -looked frightened, as though something had happened -which they could not understand, and Patsy, -though his lips were quivering, seemed to be trying -not to cry.</p> - -<p>Virginia leaped forward, and kneeling put her -arms about the sobbing girl, then, looking at the -boy, she said, “Patsy, lad, what has happened? Is -your mother—”</p> - -<p>She said no more, for the door opened and the -little Irish woman appeared. She had on her hat -and carried a bundle. The kneeling girl sprang to -her feet. “Mrs. Mahoy,” she said with a new alarm -in her heart, “where are you going? Has anything -happened in the mine?”</p> - -<p>The little woman nodded. “Indeed there has, -Miss Virginia. It’s caved in somewheres. A boy -from Slater’s just rode over to get you, but bein’ as -you wasn’t here, I was starting mesilf. It’s thankful -I am as ye’ve come, for I was beside mesilf entoirely -not knowin’ what to do wid the children. Me -Pat is all right, the saints be praised, but—” she -hesitated.</p> - -<p>“Malcolm, what about Malcolm?” It was Margaret -who asked the question, her eyes thought of -what might have happened to her guardian.</p> - -<p>The little Irish woman hardly knew how to reply. -“The boy said as how they hadn’t found him yet,” -she told them, “but, like as not, they have by this -time,” she hastened to add. “Uncle Tex went right -back with the boy an’ I was goin’ mesilf with liniments -and bandages.”</p> - -<p>“I will take them, Mrs. Mahoy. You stay with -the children.” Then turning to the other girl, Virginia -added: “Margaret, perhaps you would better -remain at home. I’ll send the Slater boy back with -a message as soon as I know that all is well.”</p> - -<p>She glanced anxiously at her adopted sister. There -had been a long ride already that morning and -Megsy was not as strong as the other.</p> - -<p>“I am going with you,” was the quiet reply, and -Virg knew that when Margaret spoke that way there -was nothing more to be said.</p> - -<p>Mrs. Mahoy had disappeared, but was quickly -back in the open doorway, her hat removed. “Miss -Virginia,” she said, “I’ve put the kettle on and in -a minute now I’ll have a snack for you to be eatin’ -before yez start on the ride to the mine.”</p> - -<p>Half an hour later the girls were again in the saddle -and were following the trail across Dry Creek -toward Seven Peak Range. Virginia’s heart was -filled with self-reproach, because she had permitted -Malcolm to carry more than his share of the responsibility, -and yet, how could she have helped it? It -had been all work and no play for him ever since -their father died. Suddenly she realized that Margaret -was riding close at her side.</p> - -<p>“Dear,” Megsy said, and there was a quiver in her -voice, “try not to grieve yet. Wait until we know -more. I feel sure that all is well with my guardian.” -But was all well with the brave, strong, quiet Malcolm?</p> - -<h2 id='chXXV' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXV. AN HOUR OF SUSPENSE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXV</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>AN HOUR OF SUSPENSE</span> -</h2> - -<p>As the girls neared the Second Peak their anxiety -increased. They could see men hurrying about near -the mine and they urged their horses to greater speed. -However, one man, chancing to look in their direction, -seemed to be much concerned because of their -rapid approach and, seizing a red flag, he climbed -out on the over-hanging rocks and waved frantically, -while another, leaping to his side, motioned the girls -to stay back.</p> - -<p>They then drew rein and Margaret exclaimed: -“What can it mean, do you suppose?”</p> - -<p>“I think they must be going to blast,” Virginia -replied, her face white as she shaded her eyes and -gazed intently in the direction of the seemingly excited -men.</p> - -<p>“But, how can they blast if Malcolm, if anyone -is buried in the mine?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t understand,” Virg told her, “but I’m not -going to worry more than I can help until I know -that there is really something to worry about.”</p> - -<p>“One of the men is mounting a horse now,” Margaret -said. “Perhaps he is coming to explain to us -what is happening.”</p> - -<p>This surmise proved true, for they saw a cowboy -approaching them on a racing mustang. “It’s Rusty -Pete from the Slater Ranch. At least our suspense -will soon be over, for he will tell us what it all -means.”</p> - -<p>It was very evident by the expression on the face -of the cowboy that he dreaded telling the message -he had been sent to convey. So pre-occupied and -concerned was he that he jerked upon the reins of -his mustang in a manner which his steed wrongly -interpreted and the result was that it reared and -plunged and arrived in the neighborhood of the girls -in so nervous a state that it was with difficulty -quieted long enough for the rider to speak.</p> - -<p>“What have you to tell us, Pete?” Virginia eagerly -inquired, when at last the restive horse was for -a moment standing with all four feet upon the -ground, although it continued to whistle and paw -the sand with its right fore foot.</p> - -<p>Rusty Pete was evidently at a loss for words to -express his message. “Your brother, Miss Virginia,” -he began, “that is, they’re going to blast,” he hurried -on as though he couldn’t complete the sentence he -had started, “and they sent me to say, don’t come -nearer, till they signal.”</p> - -<p>Virg, believing that the cowboy was about to ride -away again, leaned over and put her hand on his arm. -“Tell me, Pete,” she implored, “what has happened -to my brother?”</p> - -<p>Before the cowboy could reply there was a flash -of fire on Second Peak, an upheaval of rock and -smoke, and a thundering noise that reverberated -through the mountains echoing back from the far -peaks, and then a shower of sand and bits of stone -fell all about them. The horses, stung by the sharp -edges of this unexpected fusilade, leaped and -plunged, and it was sometime before they could be -quieted. Excited shouts from the mine then attracted -their attention. They turned to see another -rider approaching them with all haste.</p> - -<p>“It’s Uncle Tex, and he has good news, I am sure,” -Virg exclaimed, “for see, he is waving his sombrero -and shouting joyfully.”</p> - -<p>Virginia leaped to the ground and ran toward the -approaching horseman, who also dismounted and -took the sobbing girl in his arms.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Tex! Uncle Tex!” she cried “Tell me, has -anything happened to my brother?”</p> - -<p>“Thar! Thar! Miss Virginia, dearie,” the old man -said, consolingly, though tears were trembling on -his wrinkled cheeks, “something did happen to Master -Malcolm, but he’s all right now. We sure had to -take an awful big chance blastin’ that way, but we -didn’t durst wait to ask what you’d have us do, we -just had to do it, and Heaven be praised ’twas the -right thing. Master Malcolm’s safe and they’ll be -fetchin’ him along in a minute.</p> - -<p>“You see, Miss Virginia, dearie, ’twas this a-way,” -the old man continued. “Master Malcolm was bent -on goin’ into a new tunnel along side of a vein that -had just been opened. Pat Mahoy warned him as -’twasn’t safe yet, bein’ as the struts weren’t all up, but -Master Malcolm said he was in a hurry to get back -to V. M., to be thar when you gurls returned, and so -he took the chance. Wall, Pat Mahoy says ’twas -just as he prognosticated. Master Malcolm hadn’t -no more’n disappeared into the new tunnel when -there was a rumblin’ noise as Pat knew meant -trouble. He ran shouting, but though he saw Master -Malcolm turn back ’twas too late. The rocks and -dirt up above crushed down, shuttin’ him out, but -more rocks kept slidin’ down and ’twasn’t safe no -how. Then ’twas they took the chance to blast the -big rock from the openin’. When ’twas all over, -they found Master Malcolm a little way in lying -white as a ghost and most smothered, seemed like, -but he came to, quick enough, when he was fetched -out. Howsomever it will be a long time before he -gets his strength back, I’m a-thinkin’. He’s all wore -out anyway. I’ve been noticin’ it for months past, -but he wouldn’t stop a peggin’, but now I guess as -he’ll have to take a rest.”</p> - -<p>Virginia saw a slow moving procession leaving the -mine. She again mounted her pony and rode in that -direction, closely followed by the others. A wagon -that was used for hauling timber had been quickly -changed by the miners into an ambulance, bedding -having been piled on the cross boards, and, as it -neared, the girls saw Malcolm lying listless as though -he were too weary to move. However, when Virginia -rode up alongside, her brother smiled wanly.</p> - -<p>“I’m all right, Sis,” he said. “I tried to get buried -too soon, I guess.” Then with a sigh as though the -exertion of speaking had been too much for him, he -closed his eyes, nor did he open them again during -the long, slow ride over the desert.</p> - -<p>It was with great difficulty that the crossing of -the Dry Creek was made, but, in the late afternoon -the anxious Mrs. Mahoy saw the procession slowly -climbing up the sloping trail back of the ranch house. -She hurried out to meet them.</p> - -<p>“Was me Pat all right?” was her first query, and -when she had received a reply in the affirmative, the -little woman added: “It’s bakin’ I’ve been all the -arternoon, Miss Virginia, for I was thinkin’ as thar’d -be many to feed.”</p> - -<p>“Thank you for you thoughtfulness,” the young -mistress of V. M. said, with sincere appreciation.</p> - -<p>Margaret assisted Mrs. Mahoy to spread the many -good things on the long kitchen table that the miners -who had accompanied them might have a hearty supper -before their return to Second Peak.</p> - -<p>Uncle Tex and Virginia meanwhile helped Malcolm -into his own bed, and for the first time in many -years the lad turned toward his sister and said: -“Virgie, I’m so tired, tired clear through.”</p> - -<p>“I know you are brother, dear,” Virginia said, as -she knelt by his side and held his listless hand to her -cheek. “I haven’t mothered you as much as I should -have done, but from now on you are going to just -rest. I don’t know yet what we’re going to do, but -it’s going to be something different and wonderful.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXVI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXVI. MAKING PLANS'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXVI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>MAKING PLANS</span> -</h2> - -<p>“Where, Oh where shall we take my brother for -a complete rest?” Virginia had softly closed the -door of Malcolm’s bedroom, having told that giant -of a lad that he must sleep all of the afternoon.</p> - -<p>He had laughed at the suggestion. It did indeed -seem preposterous. In all of his nineteen years, he -had never slept in the day-time. When his sister -had left him, he determined to rise, dress and steal -out of the window and down to the corral, but -when he had tried to stand, he found that he was -not as strong as he had supposed, and he was -actually glad to lie down again, and, being truly -weak and weary, he was soon asleep.</p> - -<p>Margaret looked up from her sewing. She and -Virginia were planning to cut over two of their -dresses that were still pretty, but which they had -outgrown. Megsy’s was to be for six year old -Jane Wallace, while Virg was to make one for ten -year old Sari.</p> - -<p>“Are we really going to take my guardian -somewhere?” she asked eagerly, adding at once. “I do -hope so, Virg! What a heavy burden of responsibility -he has had since your father died. I don’t -know where you would find another boy, only sixteen -as he was then, who would have the courage -to attempt to run a big ranch and compete with men -old enough to be his father.” Margaret’s voice -had a ring of enthusiasm in which there was -mingled much of admiration and perhaps something -more.</p> - -<p>But no praise of her brother seemed to the listener -to be more than he deserved. Seating herself -on the window seat, she took from a basket, (which -had been made in the Indian village), a pretty gold -brown dress. Holding it up, she asked: “Megsy, -don’t you think this especially suits little Sari? -There’s a glint of gold in that brown hair of hers -and I’m not at all sure but that there is in her -thoughtful eyes as well.” Her companion nodded. -“I’m glad I have outgrown this rose colored muslin,” -Margaret added. “Janey will just love it, and -she’ll look like a little wild rose-bud in it. I think -she’s the sweetest child, and Oh Virg, now since -that nice Gordon Traylor helped Mr. Wallace to -perfect his water locating device that forlorn -family in Hog Canon won’t be so poor, will they?”</p> - -<p>But Virginia shook her head as though she were -not at all sure that immediate prosperity would follow. -“Of course they have water now on their -place, but water won’t buy cattle, nor food, nor -clothes. I fear that prosperity is still far removed. -Unless,” Virg had dropped her sewing on her lap -and was gazing thoughtfully out of the window, -“unless Mr. Wallace can induce some rich men to -be pardners with him. Without capital, he cannot -make his invention of much value to him.”</p> - -<p>“Hark, what’s all the shouting?” Margaret -looked up to inquire. “It sounds like wild Indians -let loose. Isn’t it a shame, whatever it is, for it -surely will waken Malcolm and we did so want him -to sleep.”</p> - -<p>Virginia had leaped to the door to see who was -coming. “Oh, good,” she cried. “It’s Babs and -Betsy and Peyton no less. Of course they don’t -know about brother and so would not think of being -quiet.”</p> - -<p>Skipping out on the wide veranda, Megsy and -Virg waved to the three who were galloping down -the mesa trail, but they had ceased their shouting, -having correctly interpreted Virg’s signal when she -put her fingers to her lips.</p> - -<p>“Is anyone sick?” Barbara inquired as she -dismounted and gave the mistress of V. M. a girlish -hug.</p> - -<p>The other two listened anxiously. “Yes, that is, -not exactly sick, but I’ll tell you all about it when -you come in. There’s Patsy Mahoy.” The small -Irish boy came on a run when Virg beckoned, and -he was proud indeed when she asked him to take -the three ponies to the corral. “Now we’ll go in -and I’ll tell you what has happened. My, Betsy, -you and Babs look flushed and warm. It’s pretty -hot riding so far in the sun. Sit down, everybody, -and I’ll go to our cooling cellar and bring up some -nice lemonade that Megsy and I made only an hour -ago, thinking that brother might like some every -now and then.”</p> - -<p>“Let me get it,” Margaret was on her feet as she -spoke. “You can tell the story of the mine much -better than I can.” And so Virg took the chair -her adopted sister had vacated and told to anxious -listeners how, when she and Margaret had returned -from the Three Cross Ranch, there had been no one -at all at V. M. Then from poor frightened Mrs. -Mahoy they had learned of the cave-in over at the -mine.</p> - -<p>“Oh Virg!” Babs cried in alarm. “Your brother -wasn’t hurt, was he?”</p> - -<p>“No, thank heaven, not really hurt,” the girl replied -with fervent gratitude, “but he was buried in -that smothering place for several hours. Uncle -Tex thinks there must have been an air current -somewhere, or Malcolm could not have lived until -they blasted.”</p> - -<p>“Blasted!” Peyton repeated in surprise. “That -was taking a big chance, wasn’t it?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, indeed! I shudder to think of it now, but -then, when it was the only thing that could possibly -save my brother, it had to be done of course.”</p> - -<p>“And you say he wasn’t hurt in the least?”</p> - -<p>“Not hurt, but he is so weak that he cannot -stand alone, or rather he could not then, and now -he is asleep I am sure.” Then turning to the listening -lad, Virginia asked, “Peyton, where would -you suggest that brother be taken to have as complete -a rest as he needs. I would like to go to some -place where even the scenery would be different and -where he couldn’t see a cow or a cowboy or anything -that would suggest his own occupation.”</p> - -<p>For a thoughtful moment the lad looked steadily -into the questioning eyes of the girl he loved. -“Virginia,” he said at last, “if I were as tired as -Malcolm is, I know where I would want you to -take me.”</p> - -<p>If there was an emphasis on the pronoun, it was -unnoticed by the others, but a sudden flush in the -cheeks of Virginia and a tender light in the eyes of -the lad told more than mere words could.</p> - -<p>But when the girl spoke, it was as though her -only thought had been her brother’s welfare, as, indeed, -it really had been.</p> - -<p>“Once, in the days of my rambling life,” it was -the first time that Peyton had ever referred to the -time when he had run away from home because -his father was unkindly severe, “I boarded the -train in Boston and went to the end of the line, so -to speak, and found myself in paradise, if ever there -was one on this earth of ours.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, then you must have been in California,” -Margaret leaned forward to exclaim. “That, of -course, would be the end of the line if you were -crossing the continent, for there is nothing beyond -but ocean. I went there once with Mother when -she was trying to get well, and Oh, how wonderful -it is! I’ve often hoped that I might go again, although -I would not want to revisit the same place, -not where little Mother and I were together.”</p> - -<p>“Of course not, dear,” the thoughtful Virginia -had slipped an arm about her adopted sister. Then -glancing again at the lad who seldom looked at -anything or anyone but her, she asked. “Then you -think California the best place for us to take -brother for a vacation and to get back his -strength?”</p> - -<p>“I do indeed. That’s where I’d want to go. -Hark!” the lad lifted a finger and listened. “I -think I hear Malcolm calling.”</p> - -<p>“Oh yes, he must have awakened.” Virginia -was skipping toward the closed door at the opposite -end of the long living room. “If he is awake Peyton, -I will call you.” Then the door opened and -closed again. The lad walked to the window and -looked out. How all of the brightness of the room -had seemed to vanish when Virginia left it, he was -thinking. Then he rebuked himself, for dearly he -loved his pretty little “Dresden China” sister. He -had heard the girls call her that, because she -seemed so breakable and withal so exquisitely pink -and blue and gold, with her fluffy sunlit curls, her -eyes that were like June skies and her rose-bud -complexion which the winds of the desert did not -seem to want to tan. He did indeed, love her, but -his love for Virginia was different, so very different! -But God had planned it that way. Such -love indeed was a gift from the Father of them all -and was to be treated reverentially, although, who -could treat it otherwise? It was with a start that -the lad whirled when he heard his name called. -Virginia had returned and was standing by the -table pouring lemonade into a glass. “Brother has -awakened and I have propped him up on two pillows,” -she was saying. “Will you take this to him, -Peyton, but don’t tell him as yet that we are planning -to take him away from his beloved ranch, for, -if you do, he will declare that everything will go to -pieces if he isn’t here to hold it together. We’ve -got to plan a way to make him think, that, for a -time, V. M. will be better off, under different management.” -Virg’s smile, as she handed the brimming -glass to the lad, was so frank and friendly -that he wondered, if, after all, it was merely comradeship -that she felt for him. Well, he could wait. -He had promised never again to mention his love -for her until she was eighteen and she was but -seventeen now. However hard it might be, he -meant to keep that promise. Of one thing he was -sure. Even though Virg might not care for him -in the big way yet, neither did she love any other -lad. When the door had closed behind Peyton, -Betsy cried. “Oh good, here comes Slim from the -station and he has the Mail Bag.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXVII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXVII. UNEXPECTED NEWS'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXVII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>UNEXPECTED NEWS</span> -</h2> - -<p>“Letters!! Letters! Who wants a letter?” -Betsy Clossen had skipped out to the wide veranda -to receive the mail bag from the good-looking young -cowboy Slim.</p> - -<p>“I do!”</p> - -<p>“I’ll take three!” Megsy and Babs cried in chorus.</p> - -<p>“Oh Barbara, what a piggy-wig you are. Three -indeed! Now, just to punish you, it’s Virg who -shall have the three and you only one.” Betsy had -poured the contents of the bag on the big library -table and was looking it over. Margaret and Virginia -had returned to their sewing. That latter -maid found herself strangely indifferent to whether -or no there would be a letter for her. This she could -easily understand since, was she not at home with -Uncle Tex and Malcolm, and the girls she liked -best were right then in the room with her, and Peyton -would not need to write her the weekly letter -she had received while she had been away at boarding -school. Betsy interrupted her thoughts by saying: -“I was a prophet! Here are three letters for -Miss Virginia Davis. Guess, Virg, if you can, who -they may be from?”</p> - -<p>That tall slender maiden, being addressed, -dropped her sewing in her lap, as she replied, “I’d -like to hear from dear Mrs. Martin. Is there a foreign -stamp on any of them, Betsy? Our beloved -principal must be in Japan, I suppose, about now, -on her around the world tour.”</p> - -<p>“Nary a foreign stamp. Well, since you can’t -guess, I’ll give them to you and when you open -them up you will know who they are from.”</p> - -<p>“What a brilliant remark!” Barbara teased, but -Virg having accepted the letters Betsy had handed -her, attracted the attention of them all by exclaiming, -“Well, if this isn’t the queerest! I’m just ever -so sure that the handwriting on this envelope is -Winona’s, but it is postmarked Red Riverton. -What can she be doing up there? Ever since she -wrote that she was back on the desert with that nice -Indian lad, Fleet Foot, I have been hoping that she -would come over to see us.”</p> - -<p>As she talked, Virginia was opening the envelope. -The first line in the letter caused her to cry joyfully, -“Girls! Girls! Listen to this!”</p> - -<p>“Dear White Lily,” the letter began. “I was -married yesterday—”</p> - -<p>“What! Winona married to Fleet Foot?” Margaret -and Betsy exclaimed in excited chorus.</p> - -<p>“I’m sure I don’t know,” Virg told them. “Just -wait a minute and we’ll find out.” Her eyes went -rapidly down the sheet and then turning she gave -Margaret an ecstatic little hug. “Oh, what glorious -news! Think of it! Our wonderful Winona has -married that splendid Harry Wilson. It seems -that his mother has been ill for a long time and -Winona has been there as nurse ever since we came -from school. That’s why we haven’t seen her.” -Then, turning a page, Virg read aloud:</p> - -<p class='mt10'>“I had never even thought of marrying anyone. -Of course I knew that most of all I admired Harry, -but I believed that his mother would want him to -marry one of his own kind, but, Virginia, can you -think how great is my happiness when I tell you that -his mother loves me, really loves me, and asked me -to be her daughter.</p> - -<p>“I have always been so alone, for my father, Chief -Grey Hawk, and my brother, Strong Heart, were -much away, that it seems strange to me that anyone -should care.</p> - -<p>“I told Harry that much as I love him, I feared -that it would be hard for me to be as domestic as -his wife should be, for there are times when I feel -that I am kin to the wind that sweeps over the -desert or to the bird that flies where it will. Then -it was that Harry told me his own good news. He -has received an appointment as state geologist and -we are soon to start on horseback (our honeymoon -we call it) and travel all over Arizona that he may -obtain specimens of rock to send to Smithsonian -Institute.</p> - -<p>“We would not go were it not that Mrs. Wilson -is rapidly regaining her strength and that her recently -widowed sister in the East is coming to keep -house, and to make this her home.</p> - -<p>“I am sorry not to see my school-mates before -we depart, but that cannot be, as we leave on horseback -at dawn tomorrow and journey north.”</p> - -<p class='mt10'>There were tears in the eyes of Virginia as she -lifted them from the letter to look at her friends.</p> - -<p>“How happy they are going to be,” she said, “I -am glad for them both.”</p> - -<p>“We were wondering who among us would be -the first bride,” Betsy remarked. “We little -thought, did we, that it would be Winona?”</p> - -<p>Betsy Clossen had recognized her aunt’s handwriting -on one of her letters and so when Margaret -asked which was to be read next, that maiden -eagerly announced, “Mine, please, for I do want to -know what Aunt Laura has to say. If the quarantine -has been lifted, she will want me to be coming -home, and, although I have had the most wonderful -time here on the desert, and I am endlessly -grateful to you, Virginia, for having invited me, -for you saved me from a most desolate month all -alone in school, still, of course, if the twins have recovered, -I do want to spend part of my vacation at -my mother-aunt’s Cape Cod home.”</p> - -<p>“I know dear,” Virginia replied, as she clasped -her friend’s hand. “Although other places may be -interesting, there is no place quite like the one that -shelters our own home people. Read your letter and -tell us about it.”</p> - -<p>The missive did not take long to read.</p> - -<p class='mt10'>“Darling girl,” it began. “I rejoice to be able to -tell you that the quarantine has been lifted and that -the twins are wild to see their best loved cousin -Bettykins, and, as for me, my heart is yearning for -my sister’s motherless little daughter, so come, dear, -just as soon as the fastest train bound for the East -can bring you to three people who so dearly love -you.</p> - -<p class='mb10'>“One of them being, Your <span class='sc'>Aunt Laura</span>.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know whether to laugh or cry,” Betsy -told them. “I’m so glad somebody loves me that -way. Mother and Aunt Laura were twins, and she -seems more like a mother to me than my other two -aunts, although, they, too, are nice.” Then putting -her arms impulsively about her hostess, she exclaimed, -“Virginia, how can I thank you for having -been so kind, and you, too, Margaret.” She -reached out and clasped the hand of her other -friend. Then she asked eagerly: “Virg, shall you -mind if I begin to pack at once and take the next -train East?”</p> - -<p>“Of course not, dear, I know just how you feel -and we will help you, but if you really take the next -train, we will all have to rush to get you ready.”</p> - -<p>“My letters can wait,” Margaret said unselfishly. -“They are from members of our Lucky Thirteen -Club, and although I know that they will be filled -with jolly news items, they will be just as interesting -later.”</p> - -<p>As Megsy spoke, she placed her unopened letters -between the pages of a magazine on the table for safe -keeping and then she joined the other girls who -were already opening Betsy’s trunk, preparing to -pack.</p> - -<p>That maiden had skipped to Malcolm’s room to -tell him the news, but she had found him asleep -and, knowing that rest was one thing required to -restore his strength, she had tiptoed out. Three -hours later, she went again to his door, this time -her hat and coat on.</p> - -<p>The lad had been informed by his sister of -Betsy’s sudden and unexpected departure and was -prepared to say goodbye.</p> - -<p>“Miss Cossen,” he said as he held out his hand, -“I hear that you are a wonderful detective, and so, -if we ever have need of your services, may we send -for you?”</p> - -<p>Betsy laughed. “Indeed yes, and don’t forget,” -she replied, “for I know that I will be just as wild -to come back as I am now to go home to Aunt -Laura and the twins.”</p> - -<p>Another three hours had passed and Margaret -and Virginia were again in the living room having -escorted Betsy to Silver Creek Junction, where the -train, being on time, had borne her away.</p> - -<p>“Well,” Virginia remarked as she sank down in -a big easy chair, “what a whirl of a day we have -had. I am almost dizzy-tired. First there was that -exciting news about Winona’s marriage and then -for the last six hours we have rushed madly to get -that dear girl started for the place that is home to -her. Now the next thing for us to do is to decide -where we shall take Malcolm for a complete rest.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXVIII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXVIII. A PLACE TO GO'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXVIII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A PLACE TO GO</span> -</h2> - -<p>“I like Peyton’s suggestion that we go to -California. I wish he had been able to stay longer -and tell us more about what he saw when he was -there. He might recall just the very place for us -to take Malcolm,” Megsy said.</p> - -<p>“I invited them to remain all night,” Virg remarked -as she took up her sewing, “but Peyton -thinks, now that his trusted overseer, Trujillo, has -gone back to Mexico, that he had better not leave -his ranch long at a time until he has another equally -dependable.” The two of whom they were speaking -had ridden back to “Three Cross” when Margaret -and Virginia had accompanied Betsy to the -station at Silver Creek.</p> - -<p>“What did I do with my letters, Virg?” Margaret -had suddenly recalled that she had not opened -her mail. “I put them into something for safe keeping. -Oh yes, here they are! Why, I declare. One -of them is for you.”</p> - -<p>“Oho, this is great! It’s from Eleanor Pettes! -I was hoping to hear from her soon. She told me -when she came to our closing exercises at Vine -Haven that she had written a story which she believed -to be the very best thing she had ever done -and she was actually going to send it to a real magazine. -I suppose by now she has heard from it. -How I do hope that it was accepted.”</p> - -<p>“Eleanor writes so exceptionally well and had so -much experience editing the school magazine before -she went to college prep that I am sure, in time, -she is bound to succeed,” Margaret was remarking -when her companion, having opened the letter, -uttered a little squeal of delight.</p> - -<p>“What is it, Virg? Has Eleanor sold her story? -I am sure by the way your eyes are shining that -there must be good news.”</p> - -<p>Virginia had continued to silently read down the -first page, then she looked up, her face aglow. -“Good? It’s glorious! Just wait until you hear.” -Then she read aloud from the delicately scented -missive:</p> - -<p class='ni mt10'>“Dear Kindred Spirit,</p> - -<p>“If I were not afraid of falling from the literary -pedestal upon which I know that you two girls have -placed me, I would begin this letter with some expressive -school girl slang. ‘Gee whiliker, but it’s -corking good news.’ But since Betsy Clossen can -use that more naturally than I can, I’ll simply say -that I am amazed beyond comprehending what this -wonderful thing is which has happened. I find myself -rubbing my eyes and pinching myself as did -Alice in Wonderland. ‘Can it be really true?’ I -ask myself a dozen times a day. Then, fearing it to -be but a dream, or a plot that I have planned for a -story, I go again to my desk and take the letter -therefrom and re-read what it has to say on the subject. -You never could guess what it is, no one -could. I couldn’t myself if I didn’t know, so I will -have to tell you.</p> - -<p>“I have inherited Something. I just had to start -that with a capital letter, for the inheritance surely -deserves it. In fact it ought to be all capital letters. -Have I sufficiently aroused your curiosity? Well, -then, harken and you shall hear.</p> - -<p>“A great-aunt of my Dad’s (goodness knows -how old she was, I don’t), has left me her estate. -Think of that, Virginia, if you can grasp a thing -so stupendous. I’ll agree it’s very hard to believe -all at once and sudden like. This same estate, it -seems, is located in the Garden of Eden, not -figuratively, but really true. The name of the place, -however, on the railroad map (I don’t suppose it’s -big enough to be on a school geography), is San -Ceritos and it’s in California, that Paradise-on-earth -that you and I have heard so much about. -When I say that I am wild to behold it with my -own eyes, I only faintly describe my feelings. -Think of it, Virg, you who love nature as much as -I do, this estate of mine has mountains to shelter -it at the back and its wooded acres slope down to -the sea. Dad says that the water in that sheltered -cove is at times as blue as the Mediterranean, and I -own it; or, that is, I own half of it, but the mysterious -part of all this is that I don’t know who -owns the other half and I haven’t any way of finding -out. The will is the queerest!</p> - -<p>“Dad says that his Great-Aunt Myra was always -called eccentric by everyone who knew her. It -seems that when she was a young girl she was engaged, -but on the very eve of her wedding day -something happened. Dad doesn’t know what, but -his Great-Aunt Myra never married.</p> - -<p>“Dad’s parents came East when he was a little -fellow, and, although he heard now and then of this -aunt who had shut herself up in her mountain and -sea-encircled home, neither he, nor any of the kin -that he knew of, had really corresponded with her. -She didn’t even know of my existence until last year -and it was just the merest chance that she learned -of it even then. It happened this way: You remember -last winter in school when we girls had -such a fad for looking up our family trees. Well, -when I came home for the holidays, I asked Dad -to tell me about every Pettes he could think of. It -was a stormy night and we sat in the cosy library -by the fireplace and I wrote down on a pad all the -names and addresses he could recall. At last he -came to this great-aunt. He just happened to -think of her, and, girls, what if he hadn’t? I decided -to write to each of these relatives, and, since -Aunt Myra was the oldest living branch on the -family tree, out of courtesy I began with her and -sent her my picture, the one I had taken last May -Day at school. I didn’t hear a word in reply, I -wasn’t even sure that she had received it, until last -week a legal-looking envelope arrived addressed to -me. It contained the startling information I have -just imparted.</p> - -<p>“Well, as I said before, the will of my Dad’s -Great-Aunt Myra is surely the queerest. One -might think that the dear old lady was <i>non compos -mentis</i>, but no, her attorney and servants report -that up to the last her mind was sane and sound. -Of course, I am glad, for, if she had not been mentally -all right, the will, queer as it is, would have -been null and void, and your Kindred Spirit would -not be writing this thrilling epistle to tell you of her -almost incomprehensible inheritance.</p> - -<p>“The will, of course, is couched in high-sounding -legal terms, and so I’ll just tell you the gist of it.</p> - -<p>“‘I, Myra Pettes, do hereby will and bequeath -one-half of my estate, located between the Sierra -Padre Mountains and the sea, to Eleanor Pettes, -the daughter of my grand-nephew, Oris Pettes, on -condition that she never opens the locked door of -the upper front room until she has found Hugh -Ward, to whom I will and bequeath the other half -of my estate. When he has been found, they are -to enter the room together.’</p> - -<p>“Did you ever hear of anything like that outside -of a story-book? Of course, <i>in</i> a story queer -things are to be expected, but in the humdrum life -of a school girl one doesn’t anticipate occurrences -so mysterious and exciting.</p> - -<p>“Hugh Ward! Who in the world do you suppose -he is? Dad says he never heard the name before, -and even Great-Aunt Myra’s attorney reports -that he has no knowledge whatever of the man, -young or old. They have advertised in every paper -in the country, but have had no reply. I suppose he -is some very old gentleman whom my Aunt Myra -knew when she was young. Perhaps we ought to -hunt for him in a ‘home for the aged and infirm.’</p> - -<p>“Well, be that as it may, I am supposed to go -West and occupy my new possession; that is, all but -the locked front room, and, since the housekeeper, -in sending a description of the place, informs me -that there are twenty rooms, ten of them being sleeping -apartments, I presume I will be able to get -along without entering the one that is locked. I -don’t see how one lone-maiden can occupy ten bedrooms. -Dad is obliged to go to Europe this month.</p> - -<p>“Now harken and hear something which I think -thrilling. Dad says I may invite you and Margaret -and Babs and the brothers I have heard you tell -about, Peyton and Malcolm, to accompany me when -I visit my new estate. I’m to have the use of Dad’s -private car. For once I’m glad he is a high-up -railway official, and I’ll telegraph you at what hour -we will side-track at Douglas. If you can accept, be -there bag and baggage. I’m so excited I can hardly -keep my feet on earth. Sometimes I feel as though -I were going to spin away up in the air. Goodbye -for now. I’ll telegraph tomorrow.</p> - -<p class='mb10 tar'>“Your K. S.\ \ \ \ <br />“Eleanor.”</p> - -<p>Virginia looked up with glowing eyes. “It -sounds like magic, doesn’t it?” she inquired. “We -wish for a place to go, in fact, we were wishing -that we might go to this very California, and here -is a letter inviting us to do so.”</p> - -<p>Margaret was equally delighted and excited. -“It’s perfectly wonderful,” she agreed. “But, -Virg, I didn’t suppose that dignified girl could be -so, well, girlishly jubilant about anything. Maybe -because she was a senior at school, I always -thought she was unusually mature, I mean.”</p> - -<p>“News like this is enough to make any one act -hilarious,” Virg declared. “Moreover, although -Eleanor has a dignified carriage, I know that she is -very enthusiastic about ever so many things.”</p> - -<p>“Of course, you know her much better than I -do,” Megsy agreed, “since it was she who showed -you how to edit the school magazine, and, of -course, you had an opportunity to get better acquainted, -as you spent hours together. I don’t wonder -that Eleanor calls you ‘Kindred Spirit.’ I -always did think that Winona and Eleanor were more -mental companions for you than any of the rest of -us. Don’t think I’m jealous, Virg. Honestly, I -am not. I am glad that you do love them, and even -more glad that I have something no one can take -from me, and that is the great happiness of being -your adopted sister.” Then rising, Megsy held out -her hand as she said, “If Malcolm is awake, let’s -read the letter to him and then tell him our plan.”</p> - -<p>Silently Virginia rose and tenderly she kissed the -quiet Margaret. “I do love you, little sister, and -you occupy a place in my heart that no one else shall -ever have.” Then with arms about each other, they -went softly toward the closed door.</p> - -<h2 id='chXXIX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXIX. MALCOLM’S DECISION'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXIX</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>MALCOLM’S DECISION</span> -</h2> - -<p>Malcolm listened to the enthusiastic chatter of -the two girls, who, having read Eleanor’s letter to -him were each trying to outdo the other in thinking -up arguments that might persuade the lad that accepting -the invitation was the very best thing that -he could do and just what he should do to regain his -strength.</p> - -<p>“But who will conduct the V. M. Ranch? Tell -me that,” the lad protested.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Tex was overseer whenever Dad went -away, and if our father could trust his judgment, -surely we can.”</p> - -<p>“Righto, and, with such able helpers as Slim and -Lucky, I really have nothing to fear on that score, -and yet, of course, they might need my advice now -and then. Did your friend, Eleanor, mention a town -from which one could telegraph?”</p> - -<p>“Why, no, she didn’t, but of course there are -towns everywhere. However, that is the one thing -we want to get you away from, a long distance telephone -or any other method of easy communication, -for every day you would be wanting to call up and -find out if V. M. were all right.”</p> - -<p>Then, as Malcolm still hesitated, Virg hastened -on to say, “Of course, I didn’t know that we might -go to California, as I only just now received this -letter, but I <i>did</i> know that we wanted to go <i>somewhere</i>, -and so, yesterday, I talked it all over with -dear old Uncle Tex and he agrees with me that it is -your duty to all of us to go where you can rest and -when I said, ‘You could take charge of V. M. just -as you used to do for Dad, couldn’t you?’ Well, -Malcolm, I wish you could have seen that dear old -man’s face. Glowing doesn’t describe it. ‘Miss -Virginie, dearie, Ah’d take it as powerful complimentin’ -if Malcolm’d trust me, Ah sure would, an -Lucky an’ Slim’d stand by me, that’s sartin’, was -what he said, and his voice trembled, brother, honestly -it did.”</p> - -<p>“I know how he feels,” the lad declared earnestly. -“Uncle Tex has felt much like an old horse may, one -that we feel has outlived its usefulness and is given -pasturage for the rest of its life. Dad told us that -he once had a horse like that. He thought it had -served him long enough, and so he did not permit -any of the boys to ride it, but after a time, he noticed -that the old horse used to come up to the bars when -its companions were being saddled and actually -looked wistful, as though it were being left out. Then -came the day of the great stampede. You’ve heard -Father tell about it time and again, Virg, how the -boys were all away helping Mr. Slater with his -roundup, and only old Peter left in the fenced-in -pasture. The boys had cut out our cattle and had -started them for home, Dad says, when all of a sudden -he heard a noise that sounded like distant thunder. -As it neared, he knew it to be the pounding of -hoofs; then he could hear the bellowing of frightened -cattle. He was alone on the ranch and the only horse -nearby was old Peter.</p> - -<p>“Dad ran to the rise of ground above the dry -creek and saw that the maddened herd was swerving -toward the north and might be lost in that waterless -part of the desert called ‘The Burning Acres.’ While -he was wondering what could be done to stop them, -he heard a shrill whistling neigh from old Peter. Dad -turned in time to see that horse race across the small -pasture and leap that high-barred fence, nor did it -stop, but kept on galloping as it had in its younger -days, directly toward the mass of surging cattle. Dad -said he was sure the old horse would be trampled to -death. Many a time, in years gone by, he himself -had ridden Peter when he wanted to turn cattle back, -and now, though riderless, the old horse seemed bent -on doing that very thing. Dad said he held his -breath, but the unexpected happened. The cattle, -not knowing what to make of the horse that was -hurling itself at them, did swerve, and then, to Dad’s -great joy, they descended into a dry creek where, since -they could not run, they were soon under the control -of the cowboys who came riding on ponies that -were covered with lather.”</p> - -<p>“What of old Peter?” Megsy inquired. “Did he -die then from exhaustion?”</p> - -<p>“Indeed not!” Malcolm told her. “And never -again was he treated as though his days of usefulness -were all over. Dad himself rode him, not on -hard rides, to be sure, but whenever he was just -going to the station or to visit with a neighbor, and, -after that, the old horse seemed much more content.” -Then turning to his sister, the lad said, “I recalled -that story when you told me how almost wistfully -eager Uncle Tex was to be once more trusted as -overseer of the place. And he shall be, too. Dear -faithful old man.”</p> - -<p>“Then you will go with us? You will let us take -you to this wonderful San Ceritos?” the two girls -cried at once.</p> - -<p>Laughingly the lad held out a hand to each of -them. “Damsels fair,” he said, “take me wherever -you wish, but now please depart. I wish to lay my -plans.”</p> - -<p>Then Margaret accused, “Malcolm, there are -twinkles in your eyes. I do believe that you are -amused at something.”</p> - -<p>The lad, who still held the hand of his ward, turned -and looked at her, then he smiled again as though -he were pleased with what he saw, as indeed he well -might be, for Margaret had been so excited that her -cheeks were flushed and as pink as roses, while her -dreamy brown eyes were shining like stars. Then, -as the lad continued to gaze at her, the color deepened, -and, withdrawing her hand, she said mischievously, -“Virginia, perhaps we better go, since Malcolm -has just told us that he prefers his own thoughts -to our company.”</p> - -<p>“I’ve changed my mind,” the lad declared. “I’d -rather have you stay.”</p> - -<p>Virginia, who for the last few moments had been -busy in another part of the room, turned suddenly -and looked intently at her brother as though she were -surprised about something. He was usually so -serious, so occupied with business that she had forgotten -that he could tease. Then her face brightened, and -stooping, she kissed him lightly on the forehead. -“You are much better, dear, aren’t you?” she said, -then taking her friend by the arm, she continued, -“Come, Megsy, let’s hie us to our rooms and select -the wardrobe we are to take with us. Eleanor’s telegram -may come tomorrow and we will then have not -more than three days to prepare for the journey.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXX' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXX. A SCARE'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXX</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>A SCARE</span> -</h2> - -<p>Late that afternoon the two girls went out to feed -the hens and then, as was often their custom, they -climbed the trail to the mesa that they might watch -the sunset. On their return, Margaret gathered a -few late desert flowers to place on the table beside -Malcolm’s bed. It was still daylight when they returned -and Megsy went at once to the closed door -and tapped thereon. There was no response. What -could it mean? Even if Malcolm had fallen asleep, -the rapping would have awakened him. Beckoning -to Virginia, she whispered anxiously, “Oh, Virg, -what can have happened? Your brother can’t have -lost consciousness, could he?”</p> - -<p>There was a sudden terror in the heart of Virginia. -Leaping forward, she turned the knob, but -the door was locked. Before they could be thoroughly -frightened, however, they heard a merry laugh, -and there stood Malcolm back of them. He had on -his nice wooly bathrobe that the girls had given him -for Christmas and his comfortable slippers.</p> - -<p>“You see,” he apologized, “I’ve never had an opportunity -to wear them before, because this is the -first time I’ve ever been even near sick, so please -don’t scold, and I <i>did</i> want to get up and have supper -with you girls. It seems to me that I’ve been in -bed for weeks.”</p> - -<p>“One, only, to be accurate,” his sister corrected. -“Malcolm, you sit down in this easy chair at once -and let me feel your pulse.”</p> - -<p>“Very well, nurse,” the lad smilingly complied. -In fact he was glad to sink into the big comfortable -chair, which was drawn close to the hearth. He -wasn’t as strong as he had expected to be. Virginia -brought a knitted blanket to put over his knees while -Margaret put sofa pillows back and around him.</p> - -<p>“If I’m treated this way,” he beamed, “I’m not at -all sure that I’ll want to get well.”</p> - -<p>“Let’s have our supper in here by the fire,” Virginia -suggested.</p> - -<p>“Oh yes, let’s,” Megsy seconded. “Now, what -ought our patient to eat? Bring me a pencil and -paper and I’ll write my order.” There was again that -merry twinkle in the eyes that were often so serious.</p> - -<p>Margaret skipped to the big writing desk and -returned with the requested materials. “And while you -think about it, Virg and I will prepare for the feast.” -They brought Virginia’s work table from her room -and spread it with a dainty lunch cloth and put Margaret’s -red blossoms in the center. “I don’t see -what Malcolm can be writing,” Virginia said. “He -ought only to have eggs on toast or something like -that.” But when a moment later she looked at the -paper which the lad gaily presented, she said, “Why -Malcolm Davis, you’ve ordered everything that you -ought not to have. Creamed oysters, of all things!”</p> - -<p>“Perhaps they wouldn’t hurt him,” interceded -Margaret. “And you know the thing you have a -hankering for is supposed to be what you need.” -Then clapping her hands girlishly, she exclaimed, -“Oh Virg, please say that we may have them. I’ll -get the chafing dish out of my trunk. You know -what fun we had in school with it. Then you get -two cans of oysters, the milk, butter and seasoning, -and we can prepare it all right here on the table. -Wouldn’t that be jolly?”</p> - -<p>Virginia agreed that it would. Then she prepared -the toast while Margaret, flushed and happy because -she could do something for her beloved guardian, -stirred up the cream sauce and dropped in the oysters. -Malcolm, leaning back in solid comfort, watched and -admired. At last he commented, “Did ever a chap -in all the world have two such sisters to take care -of him!”</p> - -<p>There was a sudden twinge in the heart of Margaret. -What could it mean? Surely she was glad, -glad to have the splendid Malcolm call her “sister.” -There was a note of tender wistfulness in her voice, -which she herself did not know when she replied, -“We would do anything, give up anything, Oh, it -doesn’t matter what, if it would add to your happiness, -Brother Malcolm.” Almost unconsciously the -girl was thinking of the time that would surely come -when someone, perhaps now unknown to them, -would take in his life a place closer than that of -sister.</p> - -<p>“Toast’s ready! How about the creamed oysters?” -Virginia looked up from the hearth where she had -been kneeling.</p> - -<p>“It’s done to a turn.” Megsy’s voice was merry -once more. Then Virg put the buttered slices of -toast on each plate, and Margaret placed dainty portions -of the creamed oysters on them.</p> - -<p>Malcolm ate with greater relish than he had since -he had been ill or rather exhausted, for he had no -definite malady, just extreme weariness. When he -asked for a second portion, he pretended to look -imploringly at Virginia as though he feared she would -say, “You have had sufficient for tonight.” And, -indeed, maybe she might have said something of the -kind, but Margaret was refilling his plate and it was -too late to protest.</p> - -<p>When the dainty little meal was over and the -small table had been carried away, Malcolm smiled -contentedly at the two girls, who sank into nearby -chairs, the light from the fire falling on their faces. -For a time they were silent, each thinking his or her -own thoughts. At last Malcolm said, “Virg, are -they worth the proverbial penny?”</p> - -<p>The girl looked up brightly. “I was wondering -how we are to convey Eleanor’s invitation to Babs -and Peyton,” she replied. “I do hope that they can -accompany us.”</p> - -<h2 id='chXXXI' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXXI. DAWN THOUGHTS'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXXI</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>DAWN THOUGHTS</span> -</h2> - -<p>The next morning before daylight Margaret -was conscious that someone was stirring in the -room next to hers. Becoming more fully awake, -she rose, drew on her kimono and slippers and tiptoed -to the door which stood open between the bedrooms -of the two girls.</p> - -<p>In the dim grey light she saw Virginia dressing. -She was donning her riding khakis.</p> - -<p>“Why, Virg!” Megsy exclaimed in surprise, -“where away so early? You aren’t going to ride -to the Three Cross Ranch, are you, to tell Babs and -Peyton about the invitation?”</p> - -<p>“Not this morning, dear. I want to wait until -we receive the telegram from Eleanor that I may be -more definite in what I have to tell them.”</p> - -<p>“Then, where are you going? I might guess the -Papago Village, only I know that Winona is not -there.”</p> - -<p>Virginia smiled brightly. “It’s an odd fancy, -this of mine,” she confessed, “but last night I had -a dream; one of those wonderfully realistic dreams -when you feel sure that you are awake and that -the something is actually happening. I dreamed -that you and I had ridden over to Hog Canon to -see the Wallace family. You know, Megsy, my conscience -has troubled me because, after our first visit, -I never went again and that was at least three -weeks ago. Mrs. Wallace and the children have -so little to interest them that even a visit from their -neighbors seems like a treat.”</p> - -<p>Megsy, seated on the edge of the bed, remarked, -“I don’t believe they feel that way about neighbors -in general, but just about Virginia Davis in particular.”</p> - -<p>The girl, who was lacing her high riding boots, -looked up with a smile. “My friends spoil me, don’t -they, Megsy. It’s well that I know myself as I am -not as they try to picture me. While I’m gone, will -you take good care of my brother? I want him to -stay in bed all morning, though you may have Sing -Long make him some nice broth at ten if you will. -However, I expect to be back long before that.”</p> - -<p>Virginia had not asked her friend to accompany -her and Margaret, though she had thought of -requesting to be allowed do so, believed that for some -reason Virg wished to be alone, nor was she wrong.</p> - -<p>It was still the grey of early dawn when the girl -ran down the trail leading to the small pasture -where the ponies remained at night. Some of them -were lying down and others were tugging at an enclosed -haystack which was kept filled with the long -desert grass that grew in the valley pasture, a mile -from the house. But one among them whinnied as -the girl approached and, kicking up frolicsome -heels, he cantered to the bars, knowing well that his -mistress was about to let them down. And he was -right.</p> - -<p>“Good morning, Comrade,” Virginia said as she -smoothed his nose affectionately. “Would you like -to take me for a ride this morning?”</p> - -<p>Again the pony whinnied. “Of course, I knew you -would, and if you won’t tell, I’ll tell you a secret. -I wanted to be all alone just once more before I go -away. There’s something I want to think about. -It doesn’t have to be decided just yet; not until I’m -nearer eighteen, but I do want to be thinking about -it.”</p> - -<p>Then kissing the flipping ear of her apparently interested -companion, the girl started on a light run -to the shed near the great windmill where the -saddles hung. Comrade, with colt-like antics, followed. -It was evident that he was trying to express the joy -that he, too, felt at being the only companion his -loved mistress desired.</p> - -<p>They had crossed the dry creek bed and had -climbed up on the high opposite bank before a flush -of rose appeared in the eastern skies. Virginia drew -rein and sat for one long silent moment watching -the loveliness of the dawning day. A fleecy white -cloud near the horizon became opalescent with first -one exquisitely delicate color and then another. -Then with a burst of glory, the sun rose in sheets -of flaming gold and the desert, which had been like -a gloomy waste of desolation but a moment before, -was transformed to a wide billowing expanse of -shimmering silvery-grey.</p> - -<p>Jack rabbits fearlessly gamboled about the girl -and pony; birds sang and a wren darted from its -nest in the top of a choya cactus to contentedly return -again to its wee young when it knew that the -one who was passing by was a friend of all things -that live.</p> - -<p>The trail dipped into a hollow where mesquite -grass grew. Instantly there was a whirring rush -of wings and a flock of quail soared high into the -air, to whirl, a moment later, and settle back to -their former feeding place. It made the heart of the -girl rejoice because her wild neighbors seemed to -know that she was one of them.</p> - -<p>“We’re all kin folks, somehow, though we can’t -understand, and why try, since the sages of all time -have not yet been able to tell how a wee seed can -fashion a flower. After all, Comrade, if we’re just -kind to every form of life we meet on this wonderful -earth, I think we will have done the best we know.”</p> - -<p>There was a long stretch of sand to be crossed -before the Seven Peak Range would be reached and -the girl, watching the trail ahead, gradually became -unconscious of all about her and was once again on -the rock in the moonlight with the lad who loved -her at her side.</p> - -<p>“I might think that I care enough to marry Peyton,” -she was thinking, “but would it be quite fair -to others? There are Barbara, and Malcolm and -Margaret to consider. I just couldn’t leave my wonderful -brother all alone on V. M. My adopted sister -I might take to Three Cross with me, if I went to -live there, but Malcolm—I just can’t leave him! First -he lost the mother whom he so idolized, and then -our father, and never did a boy have a closer pal -than Dad was, and now if I go, he will lose his only -sister and be so lonely and so all alone. I only wish -he might meet some nice girl for whom he could -care as Peyton cares for me, but he does not seem -to feel the need of love; I mean, not that way.”</p> - -<p>Then it was that another thought suggested. -“Perhaps it is just because he has you that he has -not thought of bringing another mistress to V. M. -Perhaps he would care for someone, if he knew -you were going away.”</p> - -<p>Suddenly there was a rush of tears in the violet -eyes, and impulsively leaning her cheek against her -pony’s head, Virginia said with a little half sob, -“Oh Comrade, I don’t believe after all that I really -care for Peyton as much as I should, for I can’t -bear the thought of leaving my very own home -where Mother and Dad were so happy and where -I have been so loved. I can’t think of any other -girl I would want there, but just Margaret, and, -of course, she would want to go with me.”</p> - -<p>Then looking up with a smile that flashed through -the tears she held out her arms to the shining sky. -“Little Mother,” she said softly, as though she were -really addressing someone, “I am forgetting that -you told me to let my life blossom as quietly and -trustingly as a flower unfolds, knowing that the -right thing will come at the right time.” Then -again the girl ruminated, “How topsy-turvy would -be this universe of ours if the flowers said to themselves, -‘Dear me, I wonder now if I’d better open -up my petals to the sun; no telling how soon clouds -may come and my bloom spoiled in a storm.’</p> - -<p>“Comrade, that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going -to trust, and let my life blossom as it will. -What would Brother Malcolm think if he knew -that I am trying to marry him to someone whom -as yet he doesn’t know?” Then as the canon trail -had been reached, Virg turned her pony’s head that -way and slowly began the ascent.</p> - -<h2 id='chXXXII' - style='text-align:center; margin:2em auto 1em auto' - class='chapter' title='XXXII. NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS'> - <span style='font-size:1.2em'>CHAPTER XXXII</span><br/> - <span style='font-size:1.0em'>NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS</span> -</h2> - -<p>It was Peter Wallace who first saw the approaching -visitor. Instantly his joyful shout rang out, -“Ma! Ma! Here she is! Here’s Miss Virgie just as -you were a-wishing.”</p> - -<p>So, after all, Mrs. Wallace had been wanting to -see the girl and, with a panicky feeling in her heart, -she hoped that nothing was seriously wrong. “What -if someone were ill or—” She had no time for -further surmizing, for Comrade, having reached the -top of the trail, made it possible for her to see the -little house overhung with sheltering rocks. What -she saw amazed her more than anything she had -fancied.</p> - -<p>Trunks stood packed and strapped on the small -front porch. The house had evidently been closed -for an indefinite period as there were wooden blinds -at the windows barred across, and the entire family -was arrayed as for a journey. Mr. Wallace at the -moment was busily boarding up the front door.</p> - -<p>Had the water supply ceased? Were they being -forced to leave and where could they be going? But -it was evident by the shining face of the little mother -that the something that had happened must be of a -pleasant nature. “Oh, Miss Virginia,” she was hurrying -forward with hands outstretched as soon as -the girl had dismounted, “how I did want to see you -before we left, but I just couldn’t think of a way. I -believe I sent you messages all day yesterday to say -goodbye. Did you get any of them?”</p> - -<p>“I did indeed, Mrs. Wallace. That’s why I came,” -the girl replied, glad indeed that she had followed -her intuitive guiding. Then, as her roving eyes -seemed to be asking a question, the mother hurried -on to answer it. “You wonder where we are going. -It’s almost like an answer to prayer. In fact, I think -it <i>is</i> an answer, and a fulfillment of Dad’s faith. We’re -going to Douglas to live where the children can get -a schooling.”</p> - -<p>“I am going to Yale,” freckled-faced Peter put in -excitedly.</p> - -<p>“Ssh! Sonny, you mustn’t be telling that around, -or folks will think you’re a bit queer. Little boys -don’t go to Yale, and you’ll have to study powerfully -hard and be extra smart to ever get there, won’t he, -Miss Virginia?”</p> - -<p>“I believe he’ll make it.” The girl had placed a -loving hand on the hair that was sunburnt, for the -boy’s expression had been suddenly crestfallen. -“Keep it always as your goal, Peter, and before -many years you’ll be writing me a letter telling me -that you’re on your way to that great Eastern college.” -Then to the mother, “Now, please begin at -the beginning and tell me what has happened? Did -the water give out?”</p> - -<p>It was Mr. Wallace who replied as he advanced -with a hand outstretched. “Indeed it did not and it’s -the water that has brought us our wonderful good -luck, or rather, the instrument, I suppose.”</p> - -<p>Virginia’s expressive face encouraged the speaker -to continue, which he did. “You recall that fine lad -who camped down at the entrance to the canon, the -one who came up here with you?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, indeed, the Traylors. I have been hoping -we’d hear more about both of them. Have you seen -them again?”</p> - -<p>“Well, not exactly seen them, but Mr. Traylor -sent a legal representative to see me. He said that, -because of his son’s glowing descriptions of my invention, -he wanted to back me financially in having -it patented. He also offered me a splendid position -in connection with his smelting founderies in -Douglas and Bisbee. It seems that for some time -he has been trying to perfect some labor-saving devices -and he believes, and so do I, that it can be -done.”</p> - -<p>“And it isn’t something we’re taking on chance -either,” Mrs. Wallace hastened to explain. “Dad, -of course, is pretty much of a dreamer but this is a -sure income for five years with a signed contract -backing it.”</p> - -<p>At this point, Peter, who had evidently been -watching from a peak higher up, flew down to the -group crying excitedly, “It’s coming, Ma! Mr. -Slater’s truck that’s to take us to town.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I don’t know when I have heard more -wonderful news,” the visiting girl declared. “I -won’t say goodbye, for, after all, you are still to -remain one of my neighbors. Douglas, being only -twenty miles away, with a good road between it and -V. M., is almost nearer via our auto, then it is to -Hog Canon on horseback.”</p> - -<p>Then she shook hands with the grown-ups, kissed -the children, who clung to her, left a bundle with -Sari and another with Jane, telling Peter that his -would come later, and rode away.</p> - -<p>“Don’t open them yet,” the mother said. “I know -what’s in them. Miss Virgie told me. They are -pretty dresses that she and her friend have made -for you girlies. They’ll be just what you need for -starting in school. Goodness, where is your Dad?”</p> - -<p>“There he is, high up where the spring is. Now, -he’s coming. Hurry Pop! Mr. Slater’s cowboys are -coming up the trail to pack our trunks down.”</p> - -<p>The man’s eyes glowed, but he spoke no word. -Silently he reached out his hand and clasped that of -his faithful little wife, and she understood.</p> - -<p class='tac mt10 mb10'>The End.</p> - -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK VIRGINIA'S RANCH NEIGHBORS ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -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. 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