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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..f66fb1e --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #68426 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/68426) diff --git a/old/68426-0.txt b/old/68426-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 9b82505..0000000 --- a/old/68426-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7042 +0,0 @@ - The Project Gutenberg eBook of Two fares east - -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: Two fares east - -Author: Tuttle, W. C. (Wilbur C.) - -Release Date: June 29, 2022 [eBook #68426] - Most recently updated: March 21, 2023 - -Langauge: English - -Publisher: United States, The Butterick Publishing Company,1926. - -Credits: Roger Frank and Sue Clark - - *** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TWO FARES EAST *** - - - - - -Two Fares East - - -by W. C. Tuttle - - - - -CHAPTER I: WEDDING NIGHT - - -The ranch-house of Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H outfit was ablaze with -light. Two lanterns were suspended on the wide veranda which almost -encircled the rambling old house; lanterns were hanging from the corral -fence, where already many saddle-horses and buggy teams were tied. -Lanterns hung within the big stable and there was a lantern suspended to -the crosstree of the big estate. - -It was a big night at the Flying H. One of the stalls in the stable was -piled full of a miscellaneous collection of empty five-gallon cans, -cow-bells, shotguns; in fact, every kind of a noise-maker common to the -cattle country was ready for the final words of the minister. For this -was to be the biggest shivaree ever pulled off on the Tumbling River -range. - -Inside the living-room was the assembled company, sitting stiffly around -the room, more than conscious of the fact that they were all dressed up. -Old gray-bearded cattlemen, munching away at their tobacco; old ladies, -dressed in all the finery at their limited command; cowboys, -uncomfortable in celluloid collars and store clothes; old Uncle Hozie, -red of face, grinning at everybody and swearing under his breath at Aunt -Emma, who had shamed him into wearing an old Prince Albert coat which -had fitted him fifty pounds ago. - -“Look like you was the groom, Hozie,” chuckled one of the old cattlemen. -“Gosh, yo’re shore duded-up!” - -“Glad I ain’t,” said Uncle Hozie quickly. “All them wimmin upstairs, -blubberin’ over the bride. Haw, haw, haw, haw! She’d ort to have on a -swimmin’ suit. Haw, haw, haw, haw!” - -He winked one eye expressively and jerked his head toward the kitchen. -His actions were full of meaning. - -Curt Bellew got to his feet, stretched his six-foot frame, smoothed his -beard and tramped down heavily on one foot. - -“Settin’ makes me stiff,” he said apologetically. “Got t’ move around a -little.” - -He half limped toward the kitchen door. - -“Does kinda cramp yuh, Curt,” agreed old Buck West. - -His wife reached for him, but too late. He didn’t look toward her, but -followed Curt Bellew. - -One by one they complained of inaction and sauntered out. - -“I never seen so many men cravin’ exercise,” declared Mrs. West. -“Ordinarily Buck’s a great setter.” - -The women grinned knowingly at each other. They all knew Uncle Hozie had -opened the liquor. Aunt Emma came down the stairs, looking quickly -around the room. - -“Oh, they’re all out in the kitchen, Emmy,” said Mrs. Bellew. “Said they -was gettin’ cramped from settin’ around.” - -“Oh, I s’pose Hozie couldn’t wait any longer. He swore he’d get drunk. -Said he had to get drunk in order to forget that coat he’s got on. But -he’s been pretty temp’rance for the last year or so, and a little mite -of liquor won’t hurt him.” - -“I s’pose it’s all right,” said Mrs. West dubiously. “How is Peggy?” - -“Standin’ it right good,” said Aunt Emma. “Never seen a prettier bride -in my life. Laura Hatton dressed her, and that girl does show good -taste, even if she is from the East.” - -“I never set no great store by Easterners,” said Mrs. Bellew. “But -Laura’s nice. And she’s pretty, too. She’s sure put the Injun sign on -‘Honey’ Bee. That boy ain’t worth the powder it would take t’ blow him -to Halifax. This may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s as true as I’m -settin’ here; Honey Bee cut L.H. on the side of my organ.” - -“No!” exclaimed the chorus. - -“Yessir! With his pocket-knife. Carved ’em right into that polished -wood. I said, ‘My ----, Honey--what’r yuh doin’?” - -“He jist kinda jerked back and looked at his knife, like he didn’t know. -And then he says: - -“‘Mrs. Bellew, I begs yore pardon--I thought it was a tree.’” - -“He thought it was a tree?” exclaimed Mrs. West. - -“Uh-huh. Dreamin’, I tell yuh. Thought he was out in the woods.” - -“Good thing yuh caught him,” said Mrs. Selby, a little old lady. “He’d -prob’ly put his own initials in it, too.” - -“Crazier ’n a bedbug!” declared Grandma Owens, whose ninety years -allowed her to speak definitely. - -“Love, Grandma,” said Mrs. Bellew. - -“Same thing, Annie. I’ve watched ‘em for ninety year, and they ain’t no -difference--love and lunacy. Has the preacher come yet?” - -“Not yet. Listen!” - -From the kitchen came the sound of voices raised in song. - -“Wa-a-a-ay do-o-o-on yon-n-n-n-der in the co-o-orn-field.” - -“Drunk!” said Grandma flatly. - -“Drinking,” corrected Aunt Emma. “Most of ’em can stand more than Hozie -can, and he ain’t drunk until he insists on soloin’ ‘Silver Threads -Among the Gold’. Up to that time he can undress himself and hang up his -shirt, but when he starts on ‘Silver Threads’ he can’t even take off his -own boots.” - -“I wish they’d quit before Reverend Lake comes,” said Mrs. West. “He -might not be in accord with such doings.” - -“Won’t he?” Aunt Emma laughed softly. “Henry Lake may be pious, but he -ain’t Puritanical. If he hears ’em, he’ll probably come in through the -kitchen. Henry Lake has been givin’ us the gospel for twenty-five years, -and no man can do that in this country, if he goes too strong against -liquor.” - -“Honey and Joe ought to be showin’ up,” said Mrs. Bellew. - -“Oh, they’ll be here in time,” laughed Aunt Emma. “This is the first -time Joe ever got married, and don’t you ever think Honey Bee is goin’ -to be absent when there’s a chance to stand up at a weddin’ with Laura -Hatton.” - -Jim Wheeler came in from the kitchen and halted just inside the room. He -was a big, gnarled sort of man, with mild blue eyes and an unruly mop of -gray hair. His new boots creaked painfully and he seemed ill at ease in -his new black suit and rumpled tie. Jim and Uncle Hozie were brothers, -and Jim was the father of the bride-to-be. - -“Preacher ain’t here yet?” asked Jim, drawing out a huge silver watch. -“It’s almost eight o’clock.” - -“Oh, he’ll be here,” assured Aunt Emma. “Peggy looks beautiful, Jim.” - -“Uh-huh.” The big man seemed a trifle sad. - -“You don’t seem to mind losin’ yore daughter, Jim,” said Mrs. West. “I -remember when Sally got married; Buck cried.” - -“Prob’ly drunk,” said Jim unfeelingly. - -“Well, I like that, Jim Wheeler!” - -A vision in white came down the stairs and halted near the bottom. It -was Laura Hatton, the Easterner, who had come to Pinnacle City to attend -the wedding of her old school chum. Laura was a tiny little blonde with -big blue eyes and a laughing mouth which dismayed every cowboy in the -Tumbling River country--except Honey Bee, who had been christened James -Edward Bee. - -“Wouldn’t you ladies like to come up and see the bride?” she asked. -“She’s just simply a dream. Why, if I looked as pretty in wedding -clothes as Peggy does, I’d turn Mormon.” - -Jim Wheeler watched them go up the stairs and heard their exclamations -of astonishment. Out in the kitchen an improvised quartet was singing -“Wait till the clouds roll by, Jennie.” Jim Wheeler shook his head -sadly. - -“Don’t seem to mind losing your daughter,” he muttered. - -Oh, but he did mind it. She would live in her own home. Her mother had -been dead ten years. After her death it seemed to Jim Wheeler that -nothing could ever fill that void. But Peggy had grown to womanhood, -filling the old ranch-house with her joyful presence, and Jim Wheeler -had thanked God for a daughter like her. Now she would go away to a home -of her own. - -“Nobody but me and Wong Lee left,” said Wheeler sadly. “And he’s only a ----- Chinaman.” - -Some one was knocking on the door, breaking in on Wheeler’s thoughts. He -opened the door for the minister of the Tumbling River country. Henry -Lake was a tall, lean-faced man, near-sighted, dressed in a rusty suit -of black. Weddings, funerals or Sunday sermons, he had worn that suit as -long as any of them could remember. - -He peered closely at Jim Wheeler, shoving out a bony hand. “Howdy, Jim,” -he said pleasantly. - -“Hello, Henry. Got here at last, eh?” - -The minister nodded slowly. - -“My old horse isn’t as fast as she used to be, Jim. We’re both getting -old, it seems. But--” he looked at his watch--“I’m near enough on time. -Where’s everybody?” - -“Wimmin are upstairs with the bride, and the men--” Jim hesitated and -glanced toward the kitchen door. - -“Carry me-e-e-e ba-a-ack to ol’ Virginny,” wailed a tenor, while a -baritone roared, “While the old mill wheel turns ’round, I’ll love you, -Ma-a-a-a-ary; when the bee-e-e-e-es--” - -And then came the reedy falsetto of Hozie Wheeler-- - -“Da-a-a-arling, I am growing o-o-o-old.” - -The minister nodded slowly. - -“The perfectly natural reaction, Jim. The sentiment contained in corn -and rye.” - -“Like a little shot, Henry?” - -“Not now, Jim; later, perhaps. Is the groom here yet?” - -“Not yet. Him and Honey ought to be here any minute now.” - -The women were coming back down the stairs, and the minister went to -shake hands with them. Aunt Emma cocked one ear toward the kitchen, and -a look of consternation crossed her face. She grasped Jim by the arm and -whispered in his ear: - -“Shake Hozie loose, Jim! He’s silver-threadin’ already.” - -Jim nodded and went to the kitchen. - -And while the Flying H resounded with good cheer, while more guests -arrived and while Peggy Wheeler waited--Honey Bee buzzed angrily about -Pinnacle City. Honey had just arrayed himself in a blue made-to-order -suit, patent-leather shoes and a brown derby hat. Everything had come -with the suit, and Honey cursed the tailor for having acute astigmatism. - -The pants were a full six inches too short and at least that much too -big around the waist. Honey managed to squeeze a number eight foot into -the number six shoe. And the hat should have been a seven and -one-quarter, instead of a six and seven-eighths. - -Honey Bee was a medium-sized youth of twenty-five, with tow-colored -hair, shading to a roan at the ends, blue eyes, tilted nose and a large -mouth. The blue eyes were large and inquiring and the mouth grinned at -everything. Honey was a top-hand cowboy, even if he was somewhat of a -dreamer. - -But just now there was no smile on Honey’s mouth. He had hired a horse -and buggy from the livery-stable and had tied the horse in front of the -sheriff’s office. It just happened that Joe Rich, the sheriff, was going -to marry Peggy Wheeler, and had promised Honey to meet him at the office -at half-past seven. - -Every cowboy in the Tumbling River range envied Joe. Never had there -been a lovelier girl than Peggy Wheeler, and none of the boys would -admit that Joe was worthy of her. - -“It’s a love match, pure and simple,” Honey had declared. “Peggy’s pure -and Joe’s simple.” - -But just now Honey was calling Joe stronger things than simpleton. It -was nearing eight o’clock, and no Joe in sight. The office was closed. -Len Kelsey, Joe’s deputy, was out at the Flying H, probably drinking -more than was good for him. - -Honey didn’t like Len. Possibly it was because Honey thought that Joe -should have appointed him as deputy. And it is barely possible that Joe -would have appointed Honey, except that, in order to swing a certain -element, he had made a pre-election promise to appoint Len. - -Joe was barely twenty-three years of age. Too young, many of the -old-timers said, to be a sheriff of Tumbling River. But Joe won the -election. He was a slender young man, slightly above the average in -height, with a thin, handsome face, keen gray eyes and a firm mouth. He -had been foreman of the Flying H, and Uncle Hozie had mourned the -passing of a capable cowhand. - -“Plumb ruined,” declared the old man. “Never be worth a ---- for -anythin’ agin’. County offices has ruined more men than liquor and -cards.” - -Honey Bee sat in the buggy, resting his shining feet across the -dashboard in order to lessen the pain. The coat was a little tight -across the shoulders, and Honey wondered whether the tucks would show -where he had gathered in the waistband of the trousers. His -cartridge-belt made a decided bulge under his tight vest, but he had no -other belt; and no cowboy would ever lower himself to wear suspenders. -They were the insignia of a farmer. - -“I wish I knowed what kind of a figure that ---- tailor had in mind when -he built this here suit,” said Honey to himself. “I know ---- well I -measured myself accurately. I might ’a’ slipped a little on some of it, -bein’ as I had to do a little stoopin’; but never as much as this shows. -Now, where in ---- is Joe Rich?” - -It was eight o’clock by Honey’s watch. He got out of the buggy and -almost fell down. His feet had gone to sleep. And when he made a sudden -grab for the buggy wheel he heard a slight rip in the shoulder-seam of -his coat. - -“My ----, I’m comin’ apart!” he grunted. - -Honey had not seen Joe since about five o’clock, and something seemed to -tell him that everything was not right. Joe slept in the office. He and -Len Kelsey were together the last time Honey had seen them, and Joe said -he was going to get a shave. But the barber shop was closed now. - -Honey limped around to Joe’s stable and found Joe’s horse there. Then he -went back to the buggy. It was after eight now, and the wedding was -scheduled for eight-thirty. It was over two miles to the Flying H from -Pinnacle City and Honey knew that the buggy horse was not a fast -stepper. - -Honey swore dismally and stood on one foot. He needed a big drink to -kill the pain. Across the street was the Pinnacle bar, the most popular -saloon in town. There was sure to be several men in there and they would -be sure to make some remarks about Honey’s clothes. - -Farther down the street was the Arapaho bar. Honey did not like the -place. “Limpy” Nelson owned the Arapaho, and Honey did not like Limpy. -But Honey knew that no one would make remarks about his appearance down -there, because Honey’s friends frequented the Pinnacle--and friends were -the only ones entitled to make remarks. - -So Honey stifled his pride and went to the Arapaho, where he leaned -against the bar. Old Limpy was the only person there, except a drunk -sprawled across a card-table near the rear of the place. - -Limpy squinted at Honey and shifted his eyes toward the back of the room -as he slid the glasses across the bar. - -“Didn’t somebody say that the sheriff was gittin’ married t’night?” -asked Limpy. - -Honey poured out his drink and looked at it wearily. Lifting the glass, -he looked critically at it. - -“Yeah,” he said slowly. “I’m waitin’ for him.” - -“That’s him back there,” Limpy pointed toward the rear. - -“Eh?” Honey jerked around, staring. “What’s that, Limpy?” - -“Joe Rich. Drunk as an owl.” - -“For ----’s sake!” Honey dropped his glass and limped back to the table -where Joe Rich sprawled. He slapped Joe on the shoulder, swearing -foolishly. - -“Joe! Joe, you ---- fool! Wake up, can’tcha?” - -But Joe merely grunted heavily. He was still wearing the clothes he had -worn when Honey saw him last, and he had not shaved. - -Dead drunk on his marriage night! Honey sagged weakly against the table, -speechless. He could visualize all those people out at the Flying H, -waiting for them. He shoved away from the table and looked at Limpy. - -“My God, this is awful, Limpy! He was to get married at eight-thirty. -It’s almost that right now, and look at him!” - -“Pretty drunk,” nodded Limpy. - -“Dead t’ the world! Who’d he get drunk with?” - -“Alone, I reckon. He was shore polluted when he came here. Got a couple -more with Len and went to sleep back there.” - -Honey groaned painfully. Joe reeked of whisky. - -“Oh, you ---- fool!” wailed Honey. “Joe, can’tcha wake up? Let’s go for -a walk. Joe! A-a-a-aw, you drunken bum!” - -Two men came in and walked up to the bar. They were Ed Merrick and Ben -Collins. Merrick owned the Circle M outfit, and Ben was one of his -cowboys. Merrick had been the one who supported Joe Rich and had asked -Joe to appoint Len Kelsey deputy. Len had worked for the Circle M for -several years. - -They came back and looked at Joe. - -“And this is his weddin’ night!” wailed Honey. - -“For ---- sake!” snorted Merrick disgustedly. “He was goin’ to marry -Peggy Wheeler.” - -“Loaded to the gills,” declared Ben. “He’s shore a ---- of a fine -specimen for sheriff.” - -“Yuh can throw that in a can!” snapped Honey. “Since when did the Circle -M start judgin’ morals?” - -Evidently Ben did not know; so he shut his mouth. - -“What are yuh goin’ to do?” asked Merrick. - -“Put him to bed. My ----, I can’t take him out to the Flyin’ H. Joe! You -brainless idiot, wake up!” - -“We better help yuh, Honey,” said Merrick. “He’s plumb floppy.” - -Honey managed to get the office key from Joe’s pocket, and between the -three of them they managed to carry Joe back to his office, where they -put him on his bed. - -“What’ll yuh do about it?” asked Merrick when they came out. - -“God only knows, Merrick!” wailed Honey. “I can’t go out there and say -he’s drunk. Oh, why didn’t the ---- fool get shot, or somethin’? -I--I--aw ----, I’ve got to go out there. I hope to ---- the horse runs -away and breaks my neck. But there ain’t much hopes,” dismally. “These -Pinnacle livery horses never did run away from home. Well, I--thanks for -helpin’ me put him to bed.” - -Honey limped out, untied the horse and got into the buggy. - -“I’d rather go to a funeral any old time,” he told the horse as they -left town.” - -“By ----, I’d rather go to my own funeral. But it can’t be helped; I’ve -got to tell ’em.” - -It is not difficult to imagine the frame of mind of those at the Flying -H when eight-thirty passed and no sign of the groom and best man. The -aged minister paced up and down the veranda, trying to make himself -believe that everything was all right. - -Down by the big gate stood Jim Wheeler, a dim figure beneath the hanging -lantern. All hilarity had ceased in the kitchen. Uncle Hozie was seated -in the living-room between Aunt Emma and Grandma Owens, grinning widely -at nothing whatever. - -Upstairs in a bedroom were Peggy Wheeler and Laura Hatton. An old clock -on a dresser ticked loudly, its hands pointing at a quarter of nine. -Peggy sat on a bed, her hands folded in her lap. She was a decided -brunette, taller than Laura, brown-eyed; well entitled to the honor of -being the most beautiful girl in the Tumbling River country. - -There were tears in her brown eyes, and she bit her lip as Laura turned -from the front window, shaking her blond head. - -“Nobody in sight, Peggy. I just can’t understand it.” - -Peggy shook her head. She couldn’t trust herself to talk just now. Aunt -Emma came slowly up the stairs and looked in at Peggy. - -“I’ll betcha the buggy broke down,” she said. “They’ll both come walkin’ -in pretty soon. Peggy, you dry them tears. Joe’s all right. Yuh can’t -tell what’s happened. Bein’ the sheriff, he might have been called at -the last minute. The law don’t wait on marriages. You just wait and see, -Peggy.” - -“Oh, I hope everything is all right,” sighed Peggy. “He’s twenty minutes -late right now, Aunt Emma.” - -Still they did not come. Some of the cowboys volunteered to ride back to -Pinnacle City to see what the trouble might be, when the long-looked-for -buggy hove in sight. They could see it far down the road in the -moonlight. Laura had seen it from the bedroom window and came running -back to Peggy. - -“Good gracious, stand up, Peggy!” she exclaimed. “Your gown is all -wrinkled. They’re coming at last. Heavens, your cheeks are all -tear-streaked! No, don’t wipe them! You little goose, why did you shed -all those tears?” - -“Well, what would you have done?” laughed Peggy, allowing Laura to -smooth her gown. - -“I wouldn’t cry, that’s a sure thing.” - -She darted back to the window, flinging the curtain aside. - -“They’ve stopped at the gate,” she said. “I think they are talking to -your father. Now he’s coming with them.” - -Aunt Emma came running up the stairs, calling to Peggy. - -“They’re here,” she called. “Goodness knows, it’s time.” - -“I’m ready, Aunt Emma,” called Peggy. - -Laura still stood at the window, watching the buggy come up to the -veranda. But only Honey Bee got out of the buggy. He was talking to Jim -Wheeler and forgot to tie the horse. Then they came into the house. A -babel of questions assailed Honey, but Jim Wheeler’s heavy voice -silenced them. Came several moments of silence. Laura had stepped back -beside Peggy, who was listening. - -“There ain’t goin’ to be no weddin’,” said Jim Wheeler slowly. “Joe Rich -is dead drunk.” - -A silence followed Jim’s announcement. Peggy looked at Laura, and the -blood slowly drained from her cheeks. She grasped for the foot of the -bed to steady herself. Then came Honey’s voice: - -“Aw, ---- it, don’t look at me thataway!” he wailed. “This wasn’t -anythin’ I could help. I was to meet him at seven-thirty, and he didn’t -show up; so I waited until after eight. Then I found him in the Arapaho -saloon--asleep.” - -Aunt Emma was coming up the stairs, bringing the news to Peggy. She -didn’t realize that Peggy had heard all of it. They met at the top of -the stairs, and Peggy went past her, clinging to the railing. Aunt Emma -touched her on the arm, but Peggy did not look up. At the top of the -stairs stood Laura, her eyes wide, the tears running down her cheeks. - -Peggy went into the living-room and stopped just inside the doorway. The -minister caught sight of her and crossed the room, but she brushed him -aside. - -“Honey,” she said breathlessly, “is that all true?” - -Honey Bee shifted his weight to one foot, nodding jerkily. - -“My ----, I wouldn’t lie to yuh, Peggy!” he said. “It shore is ---- to -have to tell the truth in a case like this. All the way from town I’ve -tried to frame up a lie, but it wasn’t no use, Peggy. Mebbe it was my -feet. A feller with an eight foot can’t think of no lies in a six shoe.” - -Peggy’s eyes swept the assemblage of old friends, and their faces seemed -blurred. No one spoke. Her father stood beside her, grim-faced, stunned. - -“I’m sorry,” said Peggy simply, and went back toward the stairs. - -Slowly the crowd gathered up their belongings and went away. Even Uncle -Hozie was shocked to sobriety. Finally there was no one left in the big -living-room except Honey Bee. He took off his shoes and coat and was -going toward the front door when Laura Hatton came down the stairs. She -had been crying. - -Honey stared at her and she stared at Honey. - -“Huh-howdy,” said Honey, bobbing his head. “Nice weather.” - -Then he tried to bow, and the effort pulled the waistband of his pants -away from his belt. He made a quick grab, and saved the day. - -“Oh, why did you have to come and tell her a thing like that?” asked -Laura. “Why didn’t you lie like a gentleman?” - -“Lie like a gentleman?” Honey stared at her, his hands clutching the -coat, shoes and waistline. - -“Yes--lie!” said Laura fiercely. “You could have told that Joe had to -chase horse-thieves, or something like that.” - -“Uh-huh,” grunted Honey. “Well, yeah, I could.” - -“Well, why didn’t you?” - -“Them’s why!” Honey flung down the offending shoes. “By ----, yuh can’t -be pretty and smart at the same time! Folks say that brains are in yore -head, but they’re not. They’re in yore feet, I tell yuh! Pinch yore feet -and yuh can’t think. That’s why I had to tell the truth.” - -“I suppose so,” said Laura sadly. “Perhaps it is all for the best. You -better go home, Mr. Bee; you’re half undressed.” - -“Half?” gasped Honey. “If anythin’ makes me let loose--I’m all -undressed! Good night.” - -Honey climbed into his buggy and drove back to Pinnacle City, sadder and -wiser, as far as clothes were concerned. The outfit had cost him forty -dollars. He sat down on the brown derby when he got into the seat, but -he was too disgusted to move off it. - -He turned the horse over to the stableman and went to the Pinnacle -Saloon in his sock-feet, carrying his coat. Some of the men who had been -at the Flying H were at the saloon, having a drink before going home. -Len Kelsey, the deputy, was there. Len was a tall skinny, swarthy young -man, inclined to be boastful of his own abilities. - -“You seen Joe?” asked Honey. - -Len shook his head. - -“Mebbe we better go over and see how he’s comin’ along,” suggested -Honey. - -They walked over to the office and found Joe still on the bed, snoring -heavily. He opened his eyes when Honey shook the bed, and looked around -in a bewildered way. - -“Whazamatter?” he asked thickly. - -“When yuh sober up, you’ll find out,” growled Honey. “You shore raised ----- and put a chunk under it tonight, pardner.” - -“Huh?” - -Joe lifted himself on one elbow and stared at the lamp. He blinked -owlishly and looked at Honey. Joe’s eyes were bloodshot and he breathed -jerkily. - -“Whatcha mean?” he asked. - -“Do you know what night this is?” asked Honey. - -Joe squinted one eye thoughtfully. - -“What night? What--” he sank back on the pillow and shut his eyes. - -“Pretty sick,” observed Len. “Better let him sleep it off.” - -“Oh, I suppose,” said Honey. - -He threw some covers over Joe and they went out together, after turning -the lamp down low. - -But Joe did not go back to sleep. His head ached and his throat was so -dry he could hardly swallow. Finally he got out of bed and staggered -over to the table, where he turned up the lamp. - -For several minutes he stood against the table, rubbing his head and -trying to puzzle things out. On a chair near the bed was a white shirt -and collar, gleaming white in the light of the lamp. On the floor was a -new pair of shoes. - -Suddenly the mist lifted from Joe’s brain and he remembered. It came to -him like an electric shock. He was to be married! - -He stumbled to the door and flung it open. It was dark out there, the -street deserted. Wonderingly he looked at his watch. - -Eleven o’clock! - -Slowly he went back to the bed and sat down, holding his head in his -hands. What night was it? he wondered. Was it the night of his -marriage--or the night before? No, it couldn’t be the night before. He -remembered everything. And now he remembered that Honey was wearing a -white collar. Nothing but a marriage or a funeral would cause Honey to -wear a white collar. - -He felt nauseated, dry-throated. What had he done? There was a light in -the Pinnacle Saloon; so he went over there. The cool night air revived -him a little, but his legs did not track very well. - -Honey and Len were at the bar, talking with the bartender, when Joe came -in. - -“Gosh, you shore look like the breakin’ up of a hard winter, pardner,” -observed Honey. - -Joe came up to the bar and hooked one elbow over the polished top. He -wanted to sit down, but forced himself to stand. - -“Honey,” he said hoarsely, “what night is this?” - -“What night? Joe, you ---- fool, this was yore weddin’ night!” - -Joe sagged visibly and Honey caught him by the arm. - -“You better set down,” advised Len. - -Joe allowed Honey to lead him to a chair, where he slumped weakly, -staring wide-eyed at Honey. - -“My weddin’ night?” he whispered. “Honey, don’t lie to me!” - -“Nobody lyin’ to yuh, Joe.” - -Joe slid down in the chair, his face the color of wood ashes. He lifted -his right hand almost to his face, but let it fall to his knee. - -“Don’t lie, Honey!” It was a weak whisper. There was still hope left. - -“I ain’t lyin’, Joe,” said Honey sadly. “Good God, I wish I was! Len was -there; he can tell yuh. I waited for yuh, like I said I would, Joe. But -you never showed up. It was after eight o’clock when I went huntin’ yuh, -and ---- yore hide, I found yuh in the Arapaho, drunk as a boiled owl.” - -“Drunk as a boiled owl,” whispered Joe. - -“Y’betcha. I couldn’t take yuh, Joe. ----, I’d do anythin’ for yuh, and -you know it; but I couldn’t take yuh out there thataway, so I put yuh to -bed.” - -Joe groaned painfully. - -“They--they were out there--everybody, Honey?” - -“Everybody, Joe. I tried to think up a lie to tell ’em, but my feet hurt -so ---- bad that I couldn’t even think. I had to tell ’em the truth. It -was nine o’clock. Aw, it was awful.” - -Joe had sunk down in the chair, breathing like a runner who had just -finished a hard race. - -“I seen Peggy,” said Honey. “My ----, but she was beautiful! And you -hurt her, Joe. I could tell she was hurt bad, but she jist said she was -sorry.” - -“Oh, my God, don’t!” - -Joe lurched out of the chair, panting, hands clenched. Suddenly he flung -his hands up to his eyes. - -“Oh, what have I done? I don’t understand it. I must have been crazy. Am -I crazy now--or dreaming? No, I’m not dreamin’; so I must be crazy. Dead -drunk on my weddin’--oh, what’s the matter with the world, anyway?” - -He stood in the middle of the saloon, his eyes shut, his face twisted -with the pain of it all. He stumbled forward and would have fallen had -not Honey grasped him. - -“You better go and sleep on it, pardner,” advised Honey. - -“Sleep? With this on my mind?” - -“Well, yuh got drunk with it on yore mind.” - -“Aw, don’t rub it in on him,” said the bartender. “Better have a drink, -Joe. You sure need bracin’.” - -“He don’t need any more drinks,” declared Honey. “Good gosh, he plumb -reeks of it yet. What he needs is sleep.” - -“Sleep?” Joe smiled crookedly. “Oh, what can I do? I feel like I was all -dead, except my mind.” - -“Come out to the ranch with me, Joe,” urged Honey. - -“And face the Bellew family?” - -“You’ve got to face ’em all, sooner or later, Joe.” - -“I suppose that’s true! Honey, what did they say? What did they do?” - -“What could they do, Joe? I don’t think they said much. I know Peggy -didn’t. They jist acted like they was stunned. It was worse ’n a -funeral.” - -“Hozie was drunk, and it sobered him,” offered Len. - -“Poor old Hozie,” said Joe. “All my friends--once.” - -“Aw, they’ll get over it, Joe,” said Honey. “They all like you awful -well.” - -“Did like me, Honey. Oh, I’m all through. I may not have any brains, but -in spite of what I’ve done, I’ve got some pride left. I can’t face ’em. -I know what they’re saying! - -“‘Drunken bum! Drunken bum!’ Oh, I know it, Honey. No matter whether I’m -guilty or not, I’ll always be the drunken bum who forgot his own -weddin’. Is there anybody or anythin’ lower than I am?” - -“You could put on a plug-hat and walk under a snake’s belly,” said Honey -unfeelingly. “I’m not upholdin’ yuh, cowboy. Far be it from me to -interrupt yuh when yuh start sayin’ mean things about yourself; but that -don’t alter the fact that I’m yore friend, and I ask yuh to come out to -the bunk-house and sleep yourself into a sane frame of mind. Right now -yo’re as crazy as a locoed calf.” - -Joe shook his head. - -“Thank yuh, Honey, but I’m goin’ to saddle my horse and see if the wind -will straighten me out. I’m sick as a fool, and I’ve got a lot of -thinkin’ to do.” - -Joe lurched out of the saloon and stumbled across the street, heading -for his stable. Honey shook his head sadly and went back to the bar. - -“He’s shore sufferin’,” said the bartender. - -“Yeah, he is,” nodded Honey sadly. “He’s gittin’ all the hell a man ever -gits. Yuh don’t have to die a sinner to get punished, I happen to know. -Some gits it right here.” - -“Have you suffered?” asked the bartender. - -“What in ---- do yuh think I’m runnin’ around in my socks for? I’ll say -I’ve suffered. Let’s have one more drink.” - - - - -CHAPTER II: “HANGING IS TOO GOOD—” - - -Pinnacle City was the oldest settlement in the Tumbling River country -and had always been the county seat since the boundary lines had been -drawn. Originally the place had been only a small settlement and the -houses had been built along a wagon-road. And as the place grew larger -this road became the main street, with very little added to the original -width. In several places the road had twisted to avoid a mud-hole, and -the main street was consequently very crooked. - -But Pinnacle City had never become a metropolis. It was still the small -cow-town; muddy in winter, dusty in summer, with poorly made wooden -sidewalks which followed the contour of the ground fairly closely. The -railroad had added little to Pinnacle City except a brick-red depot, -warehouse and some loading corrals. - -Eighteen miles southeast was the town of Kelo, and twelve miles -northwest was the town of Ransome. Tumbling River ran southwest, cutting -straight through the center of the valley. A short distance west of -Pinnacle City were the high pinnacles of the Tumbling range, which gave -the town its name. Barbed-wire had never made its appearance in the -Tumbling River range, feed was good and there was plenty of water. - -[Illustration: Map of ranches around Pinnacle City] - -Five outfits ranged their stock in the Pinnacle City end of the Tumbling -River range, the farthest away from town being Ed Merrick’s Circle M, -located about eight miles due south. Midway between the town and the -Circle M, and just on the east bank of Tumbling River, was Jim Wheeler’s -HJ ranch. - -Southwest, about three miles from town, was Curt Bellew’s Lazy B. This -was on the west side of the river. A little less than three miles to the -northeast of Pinnacle City was Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H; and four -miles northwest of town was Buck West’s 3W3 outfit. - -Jim Wheeler’s ranch was just between the wagon-road and the railroad, on -the way to Kelo. The two bridges were less than half a mile apart. Jim -Wheeler’s wife had died when Peggy was a little slip of a girl, but Jim -had kept his ranch and raised his daughter, aided and abetted by Aunt -Emma Wheeler, who had wanted to raise her. The HJ was a small ranch. Jim -had been content to run a few cattle and horses. Wong Lee, the Chinese -cook, had been with the HJ for years, and Jim swore that the county had -always assessed Wong as personal property of the HJ. - -Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H was a larger outfit, employing three -cowboys, Lonnie Myers, Dan Leach and “Nebrasky” Jones, known as the -“Heavenly Triplets,” possibly because there was nothing heavenly about -any of them. Lonnie was a loud-talking boy from the Milk River country; -Dan Leach hailed from eastern Oregon, and Nebrasky’s cognomen disclosed -the State of his nativity. Uncle Hozie called them his debating society -and entered into their State arguments in favor of Arizona. - -Curt Bellew’s Lazy B supported three cowboys: Eph Harper, “Slim” Coleman -and Honey Bee. Mrs. Bellew contended that the ranch could be handled -with one man, but that Curt wanted to match Hozie Wheeler in numbers. -She pointed out the fact that Buck West could run his 3W3 outfit with -only two men, Jimmy Black and Abe Liston, just because Buck wasn’t so -lazy he couldn’t do some of the work himself. Which of course was a -gentle hint that Curt might do more himself. - -The Circle M ranged more stock than any of the other ranches and only -carried three men besides Ed Merrick. Ben Collins, “Dutch” Siebert and -Jack Ralston made up the personnel of the Circle M, since Len Kelsey had -left them to take up his duties as deputy sheriff under Joe Rich. - -* * * * * - -It was the morning following the wedding which had not taken place that -Joe Rich rode up to the Flying H. All night long he had ridden across -the hills, fighting out with himself to decide what to do, and he was a -sorry-looking young man when he drew rein near the veranda of the Flying -H ranch-house. He had ridden away without coat, hat or chaps. His -trouser-legs were torn from riding past brush, his face scratched, his -hair disheveled. - -Uncle Hozie saw him from the window and came down to him. Lonnie Myers -and Nebrasky were at the corral, saddling their horses. They merely -glanced in his direction, recognizing him, but paying no attention. -Uncle Hozie looked Joe over critically, but said nothing. - -“Well, why don’t yuh say somethin’?” demanded Joe wearily. “My ----, -Hozie, don’t just stand there! Swear at me, if yuh feel thataway.” - -Uncle Hozie shook his head slowly and sighed. He had drunk a little too -much the night before, and his spirits were not overly bright. A tin can -rattled loudly, and they looked toward the stable, where Dan Leach was -throwing out the stuff they had stacked in the stall for the shivaree. - -Joe’s eyes closed tightly for a moment and he turned his head away. He -knew what those noise producers had been meant for. A cow-bell clattered -among the cans. Lonnie and Nebrasky were watching Joe from the corral. - -“I don’t feel like cussin’ anybody,” said Uncle Hozie. - -“Not even me?” asked Joe. - -“You? Nope. What’sa use, Joe? If yuh cuss folks before they do wrong it -might do some good. Afterward, it’s no use. Yuh can’t wipe out what a -man writes in the book of fate, Joe.” - -“And I shore wrote a page last night, Hozie.” - -“Yea-a-ah, I’d tell a man yuh did, Joe.” Uncle Hozie cocked one eye and -looked at Joe. - -“There’s by actual count, seventeen ---- fools in this Tumblin’ River -range--and yo’re all of ’em, Joe.” - -“I admit it, Hozie.” - -“You do? My ----, you didn’t think for a minute yuh could deny it, -didja? Huh! Why don’tcha git down? My ----, I hate to talk to a man on a -horse! Especially the mornin’ after. Kinda hurts my eyes to look up.” - -Joe shook his head. - -“No, I can’t stay, Hozie.” - -“Nobody asked yuh to, did they?” - -“No. Is Peggy here yet?” - -“No, she ain’t, Joe,” softly. “They went home last night--her and Jim -and Laura Hatton. Jim thought it was best. Emma tried to get ’em to stay -a while, but they kinda wanted to be at home, where there wouldn’t be -anybody to ask questions.” - -“To ask questions!” echoed Joe. “That’s the worst of it.” - -“I dunno,” sighed Hozie. “It’s the first weddin’ I ever seen that -raveled right out thataway. Honey Bee showed up with his coat in one -hand and his shoes in the other. He shore was the worst-lookin’ best man -I ever seen.” - -“Poor old Honey.” - -“Yeah, yuh ought to feel sorry for somebody, Joe. I don’t sabe yuh; by -----, I don’t! I thought I knew yuh, but I reckon I don’t. I ain’t said -what I think about yuh to anybody. Mebbe I ain’t had no chance; so many -folks has said what they thought about it that I’ve kinda got their -ideas and mine all tangled up. Mebbe after while I’ll git my own ideas -straightened up to where I know they’re all mine, I’ll look ’em over.” - -“I suppose they’d like to hang me, Hozie.” - -“Hang yuh? Huh! Reminds me of a Dutchman I knowed. He runs into a gang -of punchers that was goin’ to lynch a horse thief. Dutchy runs into ’em, -and asks what it’s all about. - -“‘Vat iss it all about?’ asks Dutchy. - -“‘Goin’ to hang a horse thief,’ says a puncher. - -“‘Oh, dot’s too bad,’ says Dutchy. ‘You shouldn’t hang a man for -stealing von horse.’ - -“‘It was yore horse, Dutchy.’ - -“‘So-o-o-o? Don’t hang him; dot’s too good for him. Let me kick him in -de pants.’” - -Joe smiled bitterly. - -“Do you think hangin’ is too good for me, Hozie?” he asked. - -“I don’t say it is, Joe; but when I got a look at Peggy last night I -shore wanted to give yuh some of the Dutchman’s medicine.” - -Joe wiped the back of his hand across his cheek and wet his lips with a -dry tongue. - -“I reckon I’m all through in Tumblin’ River, Hozie.” - -“Well,” Uncle Hozie bit off a huge chew of tobacco and masticated -rapidly, thoughtfully. “Well, Joe, it ain’t for me to say. I got up as -far as ‘Silver Threads’ last night myself, but of course it wasn’t my -weddin’ night. But, accordin’ to some remarks I heard expressed last -night, the folks of the Tumblin’ River ain’t takin’ up no collection to -buy yuh a monument. Yuh see, Joe, Peggy is kinda well liked.” - -“Kinda well liked! My ----!” Joe shut his jaw tightly and fumbled at his -reins. “I’ll be goin’, Hozie.” - -“Yeah? Well.” Hozie spat thoughtfully, but did not look up at Joe. - -“Be good to yourself,” he said slowly. - -Joe turned and rode away, never looking back. Hozie sat down on the -veranda and Aunt Emma came out. She had been watching from a window. - -“What did he have to say?” she asked. - -“Joe? Oh, nothin’ much.” - -“What excuse did he offer?” - -“None.” - -“Didn’t deny bein’ drunk?” - -“Didn’t mention it.” - -“Feel sorry about it, Hozie?” - -“Didn’t say.” - -“Well, what in the world did you two talk about?” - -“Public opinion.” - -Aunt Emma snorted. - -“Public opinion, eh? Did you tell him what you thought of him?” - -“Nope; wasn’t quite clear in my own mind, Emma.” - -“I suppose not. If Jim hadn’t stopped yuh last night--” - -“Oh, I know,” Hozie smiled softly. “My voice was kinda good, too. Curt -Bellew said he never heard me sing so well.” - -“Curt was drunk, too.” - -“Thasso. Prob’ly accounts for him likin’ my voice. I’d like to sing to a -sober man some day and get an honest opinion.” - -“No sober man would listen to you, Hozie.” - -“I s’pose not,” Uncle Hozie sighed deeply. “I suppose it’s jist sort of -a drunken bond between inebriates that makes me feel sorry for Joe Rich, -Emma; but I do. He looked so doggone helpless and lonesome this mornin’. -No, I didn’t tell him I felt sorry. He don’t deserve sympathy.” - -“He don’t deserve anythin’,” declared Aunt Emma. - -“Hangin’--mebbe.” - -“And you feel sorry for him?” - -“I want to, Emma.” Uncle Hozie turned and looked at her. “I’ve worked -with that boy a lot. Me and him have rubbed knees on some hard rides, -and I kinda looked on Joe like I would on my own son. He was straight -and square--until now, Emma. Mebbe,” he hesitated for a moment, “mebbe -I’m feelin’ sorry for the Joe Rich of yesterday.” - -“Well, that’s different, Hozie,” said Aunt Emma softly, and went back in -the house. She had thought a lot of Joe Rich of yesterday, too. - -Joe rode back to Pinnacle City and stabled his tired horse. He had spent -all his savings for a little four-room house on the outskirts of -Pinnacle and had gone in debt for the furnishings. It was to have been -their home. - -Len Kelsey was asleep in the office when Joe came in and sat down at his -desk. He woke up and looked curiously at Joe. - -“Wondered where yuh was, Joe,” he said sleepily. - -“Yeah?” - -Joe drew out a sheet of paper, dipped a pen in the ink bottle and began -writing. Kelsey turned over and went to sleep again. - -Joe finished writing, folded the paper and walked out of the office. -Just south of his office was the old two-story frame-building -court-house, and as Joe started to enter the front door he met Jim -Wheeler and Angus McLaren, chairman of the board of county -commissioners. - -McLaren was a big, raw-boned Scot who owned a general store in Kelo. -McLaren, Ed Merrick and Ross Layton, of Ransome, composed the board of -commissioners. - -Joe Rich stopped short as he faced Jim Wheeler. For possibly five -seconds the HJ cattleman stared at the sheriff of Tumbling River, and -then, without a word, he struck Joe square in the face, knocking him out -through the doorway, where Joe went to his haunches on the sidewalk, -dazed, bleeding from his nose and mouth. - -Quickly the big Scotsman stepped in front of Wheeler, grasping him with -both hands. - -“Stop it, Jim!” he ordered. - -Wheeler stepped back, his face crimson with anger, but saying nothing. - -Joe did not get up, nor did he even look at Wheeler, who stepped past -McLaren and went slowly up the street. - -“Are ye hurt much, Joe?” asked McLaren not unkindly. He knew all about -what had happened the night before. - -Joe did not reply. He got slowly to his feet and leaned against the -building, while he drew out the folded sheet of paper. Then he unpinned -the silver star from the bosom of his soiled shirt, pinned it to the -sheet of paper and handed it to McLaren. Then he turned and went slowly -down the street. - -McLaren stared after him. Joe Rich staggered slightly, but he was not -drunk. McLaren unfolded the paper and read it carefully. It was Joe’s -resignation, written to the board of county commissioners. McLaren put -it in his pocket. - -“Life’s queer,” said the big Scot thoughtfully. “Yesterday he was Joe -Rich, sheriff of Tumblin’ River, the luckiest young man in the world. -And today--nobody! Ye never know yer luck, so ye don’t; and who has the -right to judge him?” - -He turned and went back to his office. - -Joe staggered off the main street and went down through an alley. He -wanted to get off the street; to be where no one would talk to him. -Strangely enough he felt no pain from the blow. Except for the fact that -his face was bleeding, he was not aware he had been hurt. - -The thought of Jim Wheeler knocking him down hurt worse than any blow, -and he moved along blindly; not going anywhere--just away from -everybody. He did not realize where he was until he heard a voice speak -his name. - -He was standing beside a picket-fence, and there was Honey Bee, holding -the reins of his horse. The picket-fence was the one around Joe’s house; -the one Aunt Emma had called “Honeymoon Home.” - -“I seen yuh cuttin’ across this way,” explained Honey. “My ----, yuh -shore got an awful lookin’ face on yuh, cowboy. Horse kick yuh?” - -Joe shook his head. He didn’t want to talk with Honey Bee, but he knew -there was no chance of getting away from him. Honey was tying his horse -to the fence, and now he came over to Joe. - -“Mebbe we better go in the house, Joe,” he said. “Yuh got to wash off -that blood.” - -Joe nodded and followed Honey to the house. It was not locked. Folks did -not lock their houses in the Tumbling River country. Honey filled a -basin with water and found a towel. Honey was rather rough but -effective. - -“Yo’re a ---- of a lookin’ thing,” he declared. - -“Thasall right,” mumbled Joe. “Thanks, Honey.” - -Joe slumped back in a rocking-chair and closed his eyes, while Honey put -away the basin and towel. - -“I’m wonderin’ what the other feller looks like,” said Honey, as he -manufactured a cigaret. - -“Jim Wheeler,” said Joe. - -“The ----! Did Jim Wheeler hit yuh, Joe?” - -“Yeah.” - -“Well, I’ll be ----! Jim Wheeler! What did he say, Joe?” - -“Nothin’. Wasn’t anythin’ to be said.” - -“Uh-huh. Makes it kinda hard for yuh, cowboy. Anyway, yuh had to meet -him sooner or later. Ain’tcha goin’ out to see Peggy?” - -“No, I can’t do that, Honey.” - -“I s’pose not. I was past there today--this mornin’. Saw Laura. Didn’t -sleep none, I reckon. She’s a darned pretty girl, but this mornin’ her -eyes shore looked like two burned holes in a blanket. I pulled off an -awful fox pass last night. I took off my coat and shoes, ’cause I shore -was in misery, and then Laura comes hoppin’ in on me. I has to make my -little bow, and my belt missed connections with my pants. Na-a-aw, I -saved myself, all right; but it shore needed quick action. Either that -tailor is awful cock-eyed, or I’m a queer built jigger.” - -“You didn’t see Peggy?” asked Joe softly. - -“Nope. I asked Laura how she was, and Laura asks me how any other girl -would be under them conditions. If I was you, I’d go out and have a talk -with her. But not the way yuh look now, Joe. Rest up a while. Let Len -Kelsey run the office for a few days.” - -“I resigned this mornin’, Honey.” - -“Yuh resigned? Yuh mean you’ve quit bein’ sheriff? Aw, ----, why didja -do that? You ---- idjit! Throwin’ up a job like that. -Ho-o-o-o--hum-m-m-m! Joe, yo’re a ---- fool.” - -“In every way, Honey.” - -“A-a-aw, I didn’t mean it thataway, Joe. You know me. I’d go to ---- and -half way back for you, and you know it. But you’ve shore dug yourself an -awful hole, and you’ll never git out by quittin’ thataway. Laura is -tryin’ to get Peggy to go home with her for a while. She’ll prob’ly have -one awful time convincin’ Jim Wheeler that it’s the best thing for Peggy -to do--but Laura is shore convincin’.” - -“You mean that Peggy would go East, Honey?” - -“Yeah, sure. She’s got friends back there; folks she knew where she went -to school with Laura. Mebbe it’s the best thing for her to do. Jim ain’t -got a lot of money, but he can afford it, I reckon. What do you figure -on doin’, Joe?” - -“Oh, I don’t know, Honey. I can’t make up my mind to anythin’. I just -run in circles, and every way I turn there’s a blank wall; no way out.” - -“Yeah, I s’pose so. Let’s go and buy a drink.” - -Joe shook his head. - -“I don’t think I’ll ever want another drink of liquor, Honey. I’m goin’ -to sleep a while, and mebbe I can think my way clear.” - -Honey came past the court-house and saw Jim Wheeler, Angus McLaren, Ed -Merrick and Ross Layton just going into the place. They were going to -consider the resignation of Joe Rich, and it did not take them long to -decide on an acceptance. - -Ross Layton was a saloon owner in Ransome. He was rather small, slightly -gray, and affected flowing ties and fancy vests. The rest of his raiment -was rather somber, a fact which had caused Honey Bee to remark-- - -“Looks like a ---- bouquet of flowers wrapped up in crêpe.” - -There was no argument over the appointment of Len Kelsey as the -successor of Joe Rich, and it was up to Len to pick his own deputy. They -went from the court-house to the sheriff’s office, where they told Len -of his good fortune. The skinny-faced deputy grinned widely and accepted -his honors. As the three men were leaving Len said to Merrick-- - -“Send Jack in to see me, Ed.” - -“All right, Len,” nodded Merrick. - -Len and Jack Ralston had been bunkies at the Circle M, and it would be -the natural thing for Len to appoint Jack as his deputy. - -McLaren had some business to attend to at the Pinnacle City bank, so he -left Merrick and Wheeler together. Layton had left them at the sheriff’s -office. - -“It’s sure funny how things change,” observed Merrick. - -The owner of the Circle M was slightly under forty years of age, above -medium height. He was rather good-looking and dressed well. However, he -looked more like a gambler than a county official and a solid citizen. -Perhaps this aspect was enhanced by the fact that he shaved regularly, -kept his black mustache trimmed and waxed to needle-like points, and -wore pants instead of overalls. - -“I was thinkin’ about Joe Rich,” said Merrick. - -Jim Wheeler shoved his hands deep in his pockets and did not lift his -eyes from serious contemplation of his own boot-toes. - -“I wanted to talk to yuh, Merrick,” he said slowly. “This sure has been -a blow to me. Laura Hatton wants Peggy to go home with her. I -dunno--mebbe’s it’s the best thing to do. I don’t mind layin’ my cards -on the table.” - -Jim Wheeler looked up at Merrick. - -“I owe the Pinnacle City bank seven thousand dollars and I can’t ask ’em -for any more, Merrick.” - -“Uh-huh.” Merrick did not seem impressed. - -“You know what the HJ ranch is, Merrick. Seven thousand is a lot of -money against it. I’ve got to have another thousand, if I send Peggy -back with Laura.” - -“Well, I might let yuh have it, Jim. Bank got a mortgage?” - -“Yeah.” - -“Well, I’ll take your note. How soon do yuh need it?” - -“Any time in the next couple of days.” - -“All right, I’ll let yuh have it, Jim.” - -They separated and Merrick went to the Pinnacle Saloon, where he met -Honey Bee. Honey had drunk enough to make him loquacious. - -“Didja accept Joe’s resignation?” asked Honey. - -“Nothin’ else to do,” replied Merrick. There was little love lost -between these two men. - -“Uh-huh.” Honey leaned against the bar and cuffed his hat to one side of -his head. - -“Who’sa sheriff now?” - -“Len Kelsey.” - -“O-o-o-oh, is that so? My, my! Things shore do change quick. If yuh had -a lawyer and a doctor in yore Circle M, you’d kinda run the whole danged -country, wouldn’t yuh?” - -“Oh, I don’t know,” Merrick grinned and invited Honey to have a drink. - -“Well, I’ll drink with yuh,” agreed Honey. “I’m sad at heart.” They -lifted their glasses to each other. - -“Hits Jim Wheeler pretty hard,” said Merrick gravely. - -“Sure does. Here’s how.” - -“He tells me,” said Merrick, placing his glass on the bar, “that his -daughter is goin’ East with Miss Hatton.” - -“Yeah, I heard that,” said Honey sadly. “I didn’t know it was all -settled.” - -“I reckon it is. Anyway, I’m makin’ a loan to Jim. He’s in kinda heavy -at the bank; so I’m lettin’ him have the money.” - -“Uh-huh. Well, that’s nice of yuh.” - -“Where’s Joe Rich, Honey?” - -“I left him down at his new place, settin’ there, lookin’ at nothin’. -That boy’s half crazy.” - -“Must have been more than half crazy,” declared Merrick. - -“Yeah. Now I’ll buy a drink.” - -Honey went back to Joe’s place before he went to the Lazy B, and found -Joe still sitting in the same chair. He told Joe what Merrick had said -about Jim’s borrowing money from Merrick to send Peggy with Laura. - -“How much did he have to borrow?” asked Joe. - -Honey didn’t know. - -“Jim Wheeler must be short of money,” said Honey. “Merrick said he was -in pretty deep with the Pinnacle bank. They accepted yore resignation -and appointed Len Kelsey, Joe.” - -“Quick work,” said Joe shortly. - -“Yeah, I’ll say it is. You were a fool to quit that job.” - -Honey left him there and rode out of town. He intended going straight -back to the Lazy B, but began thinking about Laura Hatton so strongly -that he found himself crossing the Tumbling River bridge before he -realized where he was heading. - -Jim Wheeler arrived there ahead of Honey, and was sitting on the porch, -talking with Peggy and Laura, while Jack Ralston, of the Circle M, sat -on a step, hat on the back of his head. Ralston was a tall, curly-headed -young man who thought quite a lot of Jack Ralston. He was a clever -roper, and one of the best bronc riders in the country. - -Honey scowled and wanted to keep right on riding, but he was so close -that it might look queer if he didn’t stop. Peggy went into the house -before Honey arrived. Ralston looked critically at Honey, nodded -shortly, and resumed conversation with Laura. - -Honey dismounted. Then he uncinched his saddle, shook it a little, and -took plenty of time cinching it again. He knew he was of a hair-trigger -disposition, and was trying to curb it. Ralston was telling Laura about -how he rode Derelict, a locally famous outlaw horse, at a recent rodeo. -Honey’s ears reddened slightly. Derelict had thrown Honey the day before -Ralston had ridden him, and it had taken ten minutes for Honey to -recover consciousness. - -“It must be wonderful to ride a bucking horse,” said Laura. “I saw -Lonnie Myers ride one at the Flying H. Oh, it was a lot of fun!” - -“That was just an ordinary bucker,” said Ralston. “Any puncher can ride -a half-broke bucker. Lots of the boys in this country think they’re -riders, but when it comes to fannin’ the real buckers--they don’t show -much. You wait until we have another rodeo, and I’ll show yuh some -ridin’.” - -“Yeah, he’s a good rider,” said Honey, still fussing with his latigo. -“Awful good rider. I shouldn’t be surprized if he’s half as good as he -thinks he is. Ridin’ broncs makes folks talk thataway. Of course, us -ord’nary punchers don’t go lookin’ for glory in the bronc corral, so we -never do get shook up very bad. But you can tell them good riders every -time. They’re kinda buck-drunk, as yuh might say. They ain’t very -tight-brained to begin with, and all that shock and jerk soon gits the -inside of their heads kinda rattly. - -“Oh, they’re all right, as far as that goes. Nobody expects ’em to do -anythin’ but ride buckers. But they don’t know it, and the way them -p’fessional bronc riders do talk! Mebbe they ain’t so much to blame, at -that; but everythin’ is ‘I’ with ’em. Rodeos are all right, I s’pose. -Folks get a lot of fun out of it; but them buckin’ contests shore do -bring in undesirable citizens.” - -Honey had spoken so earnestly that Laura Hatton did not realize he was -talking about Jack Ralston. - -But Jack Ralston knew. He got to his feet, glaring at Honey, who paid no -attention to him at all. He adjusted the split-ear headstall of his -bridle, looked it over critically and came over to the steps. Ralston -glanced from Honey to Laura and then shot a glance at Jim Wheeler, who, -in spite of the misery in his soul, was trying to stifle a laugh. - -“Well, I’ll be goin’,” said Ralston. “Good day.” - -Honey twisted his mouth into a wide grin as he watched Ralston ride -away. - -“He is very entertaining,” said Laura. - -“Who--Jack?” Honey grinned widely. “Liars mostly always are.” - -Jim Wheeler laughed and went into the house, for which Honey thanked him -mentally. Honey sat down on the steps, cuffed his hat to the back of his -head and sighed deeply. - -“How’s Peggy feelin’?” he asked. - -“Better. She’s going back home with me; it’s all settled.” - -“Uh-huh,” said Honey gloomily. “Lotta luck in that for me.” - -“For you?” - -“Yeah; you goin’ away.” - -“Oh!” Laura’s blue eyes opened wide. “Well, you knew I was only here on -a visit, Honey.” - -“Oh! shore; I knowed it. Yuh can’t stay, huh?” - -“Not very well.” - -“Uh-huh. I s’pose--” Honey hesitated awkwardly. “I s’pose you’ve got a -lot of fellers back East, eh?” - -He pointed north, but the direction made no difference. Laura smiled. - -“Fellows? A few--perhaps.” - -“Uh-huh.” Honey scuffed a heel against the step, rattling his -spur-chain. “I s’pose you’ll be gettin’ married, huh?” - -“When?” - -“Oh, some of these days,” gloomily. - -Laura shook her pretty head violently. “You bet I won’t! After what -happened last night I wouldn’t marry the best man on earth.” - -“I’m shore glad to hear yuh say that,” said Honey seriously. - -“Why?” demanded Laura quickly. - -“’Cause if yuh marry the man I hope yuh will, yuh shore won’t be gettin’ -the best man in the world.” - -Laura blushed and got to her feet. Honey got up, too, and they faced -each other. - -“You ain’t sore, are yuh, Laura?” he asked. - -She shook her head slowly. - -“No, Honey; I can’t get mad at you--but I do think you are awfully -funny.” - -She turned and walked into the house. Honey stared at the doorway for -several moments before going back to his horse. - -“She thinks I’m awfully funny,” he told his horse. “I must be--she -didn’t even crack a smile.” - - - - -CHAPTER III: THE NEW SHERIFF - - -The following morning Joe moved his few effects from the sheriff’s -office. Kelsey had just appointed Jack Ralston to act as his deputy, and -was showing him where everything was in the office. Kelsey was inclined -to be a little superior, and did not shake hands with Joe. - -“What do yuh figure on doin’, Joe?” asked Ralston. - -“Haven’t figured anythin’ yet, Jack. Probably leave in a few days.” - -Kelsey did not ask any questions, nor did he look up from the desk when -Joe went away. Joe took his belongings down to his little cottage, where -he selected the few things he would take with him. He would turn the -furniture and carpets back to the Pinnacle Merchandise Company and let -somebody handle the sale of the house. - -Later on he went up the street, intending to see about having the -furniture taken back, when he saw Jim Wheeler and Ed Merrick standing in -front of the Pinnacle Saloon. It suddenly struck Joe that this would be -a good chance to go out to the HJ and see Peggy. He was ashamed even to -face her, but he would feel like a dog if he went away from Tumbling -River without seeing her again. - -He turned and went to his stable, where he saddled his horse and rode -away. There were times during his journey out there when he turned back. -But he cursed himself for being a coward and went on. He was not going -to ask her to forgive him. That idea had never entered his head. - -Peggy was alone on the porch, sitting deep in an old rocking-chair, and -did not see Joe until he came up the steps. She started to get up, but -sank back, staring at him. Then the tears came and she threw one arm -across her face. - -“Don’t cry,” begged Joe. “Curse me, Peggy. I can stand it. I came out -here to be cursed--and to say good-by. I haven’t any excuse that you or -anybody else would believe; so I’m not askin’ anythin’--not excusin’ -myself. But I didn’t want to go away without seein’ yuh again.” - -“Oh, why did you do it, Joe?” she sobbed. “Why? Why?” - -“I dunno, Peggy. It’s done. There ain’t anythin’ I can do to make it any -different than it is. What’s the use of me sayin’ I’m sorry? I’ve been -to hell since that night, and it’s a rough road. But I just want yuh to -tell me good-by. It ain’t much to ask, even after what I’ve done. Just a -good-by, Peggy.” - -But she did not speak. Joe’s face was the color of wood ashes as he -turned and went down the steps to his horse. For several moments he -leaned against his horse, looking back at her, but she had not moved. -She was just a huddled heap in the old chair. The sunlight slanted under -a corner of the porch, striking across her hair. - -He shut his lips tightly, swung into the saddle and rode slowly away. -Peggy stirred. Laura had come to the doorway. She had been inside the -living-room, listening. - -“Where are you going, Joe?” asked Peggy softly. It was hardly more than -a whisper. Laura looked curiously at her, wondering. - -“You’re not going away--to stay, Joe?” said Peggy. - -“He’s gone, Peggy,” said Laura. “Didn’t you know?” - -Peggy looked up quickly, blinking the tears from her eyes, staring at -Laura. - -“Gone?” she asked. - -“My dear, he went away after he asked you to tell him good-by,” said -Laura. “Didn’t you know he went away?” - -“I didn’t know, Laura.” - -Peggy got to her feet and went to the side porch-railing. Far down the -road toward the river bridge was a little cloud of dust which showed the -passing of Joe Rich. Peggy turned and looked at Laura, but neither of -them spoke. Joe Rich had gone away without even a good-by from the girl -who still loved him; so there was nothing left to say. - -* * * * * - -Uncle Hozie Wheeler and Lonnie Myers were heading for the HJ ranch. They -had crossed the railroad right-of-way at an old wagon-road crossing and -struck the HJ road about half a mile west of the Tumbling River bridge. -One of the boys had heard that Peggy was going East, and Aunt Emma -rushed Hozie right down there to see whether there was any truth in the -report. Uncle Hozie didn’t care for the solitary ride; so he took Lonnie -along. Lonnie was long, lean, and sad of face, thin-haired and inclined -to freckle. He was prone to sing sad songs in a quavering tenor and, -besides that certain talent, had a developed sense of humor. - -“That’s wimmin for yuh, Lonnie,” declared Uncle Hozie. “All she had to -do was to hear that Peggy figures on goin’ away, and she chases us down -here. Prob’ly wants to put her up a lunch. Ma’s funny thataway. If -you’ve got good sense, you’ll stay single, Lonnie. Of course, there -ain’t liable to nobody pick yuh. You ain’t e-legible.” - -“What’s that, Hozie?” - -“E-legible? Oh, that’s a p’lite word, Lonnie. It means that you wouldn’t -be worth a lot to anybody. It means that nobody wants to hook a sucker -when the bass are bitin’.” - -“Oh, yeah. Joe Rich was e-legible, wasn’t he, Hozie?” - -“He was--” said Hozie dryly. “He was a big bass when he was hooked, but -a sucker when he was landed.” - -“Uh-huh. Say, that Hatton girl is shore a dinger. I never did see hair -and skin like she’s got. I’d be scared to touch her.” - -“So would I--if Honey Bee was lookin’, Lonnie.” - -“Aw, he jist thinks she’s his girl.” - -“Mebbe. Huh!” - -Uncle Hozie lifted in his stirrups and looked down the road. - -“What’s this we’re comin’ to, Lonnie?” - -It was Joe Rich, dismounted, standing in the middle of the road. -Standing against the brush on the river side of the road was Jim -Wheeler’s horse, and Jim Wheeler was in a huddled heap in the middle of -the road. - -Uncle Hozie and Lonnie dismounted quickly and went over to him. His -right leg was twisted in a peculiar position and his head had been badly -beaten. Uncle Hozie dropped to his knees and examined him as quickly as -possible. - -“Joe, for God’s sake, what happened to Jim?” he asked. - -“I don’t know,” said Joe dully. “He--his foot was caught in the stirrup, -Hozie. The horse dragged him. I just found him a minute ago. Yuh can see -his--his leg’s broke.” - -Joe pointed up the dusty road toward town. - -“Yuh can see where the horse dragged him.” - -The trail through the dust was plainly visible, and the condition of -Jim’s clothes showed what had happened. - -“Still alive,” panted Hozie. “Lonnie, ride to town as fast as yuh can. -Get a hack and the doctor. We can’t move him any other way.” - -Lonnie ran to his horse, mounted on the run and went racing up the road. -It was shady along the road; so they made no effort to move Wheeler. -Hozie paced up and down beside the road, his hands clenched. - -“Where have you been, Joe?” he asked. - -Joe, squatting on his heels beside the road, looked up at the old man. - -“I was over at the HJ, Hozie.” - -“Uh-huh. I wonder if there’s anythin’ we can do? By golly, I never felt -so danged helpless in my life. I tell yuh, Joe, he’s awful badly hurt.” - -“Awful bad, Hozie. I’m afraid he won’t live to get to town.” - -“And we can’t do a thing.” - -“Only wait, Hozie. Old Doc Curzon is pretty good. He’ll save Jim if it’s -possible.” - -It seemed hours before any one came. Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston were -the first to arrive. Kelsey looked at Jim Wheeler, listened to what -Hozie had to say and then walked up the road, trying to find the spot -where Jim had fallen out of his saddle. Ralston squatted on his heels, -smoking a cigaret, but had nothing to say. - -Then came the doctor, followed by Lonnie driving a livery team hitched -to a spring-wagon. Several cowboys were also among the interested -spectators. The old doctor made a quick examination, after which they -placed Jim Wheeler in the bottom of the spring-wagon and started back to -town. - -“How bad is he hurt, Doc?” asked Hozie anxiously. - -“Pretty ---- bad!” snapped the old doctor. “Leg broke once--mebbe twice. -Head battered up. Lucky to be alive. Be lucky to live. Don’t ask -questions until I know something.” - -“Hadn’t we better take him home?” asked Kelsey. - -“Take him to my place,” said the doctor. - -Joe mounted his horse and rode up beside Hozie. - -“Somebody ought to tell Peggy,” he said. - -Hozie nodded. - -“You want to go, Joe?” - -“You know I couldn’t, Hozie.” - -“Sure. Lonnie, you go and tell her. Jist tell her--” - -“A-a-a-aw, my ----!” snorted Lonnie. - -“Me? Aw, I’d make a mess of it, Hozie.” - -“Thasall right, Lonnie; it’s a mess already. Go ahead.” - -Lonnie went, but Lonnie didn’t want to; and he didn’t mind telling the -world that his vocation was punching cows and not being a messenger of -bad news. - -“Thasall right, Lonnie,” assured Hozie. “I won’t forget it.” - -“’F yuh think I will, yo’re crazy,” said Lonnie. - -Joe and Uncle Hozie rode back to Pinnacle City together. A crowd -gathered around the doctor’s house, waiting for a report on Jim’s -condition. But before such a report was forthcoming, Lonnie Myers drove -in with Peggy and Laura in a buggy from the HJ ranch. - -And when the report did come, it shocked every one. Jim Wheeler had died -from concussion of the brain. The crowd moved silently away. Jim Wheeler -was one of the old-timers, and his death, as Nebrasky Jones said, was “a -ter’ble jolt to mankind of Tumblin’ River.” - -Uncle Hozie took Peggy and Laura out to the Flying H, and Lonnie Myers -proceeded to drink more whisky than was good for him, in order to -forget. - -“I was in there when the doctor told ’em,” said Lonnie. -“Leave-that-bottle-where-it-is! I’m the only person that knows when I’ve -got enough. Jist like a marble statue, that girl was. Didn’t say -nothin’; didn’t do nothin’. Say! Why don’tcha git some liquor that’s got -stren’th?” - -“I betcha she feels bad, jist the same,” said “Slim” Coleman, of the -Lazy B. Slim wasn’t very bright. - -Lonnie looked pityingly at Slim. - -“Oh, I s’pose she does, Slim. If I was in yore place, I’d go away before -I tromp yuh to death.” - -“Aw, you ain’t goin’ to tromp nobody, Lonnie; yo’re drunk.” - -“I ain’t, but I will be,” solemnly. “And when I do git drunk, I’ll -prob’ly forget that yo’re jist plain ignorant, Slimmie. Now, you better -go spin yore rope where I can’t see nor hear yuh.” - -Nebrasky Jones joined Lonnie, and within an hour Dan Leach rode in from -the Flying H. Uncle Hozie and the girls had reached the ranch, and Dan -said there was too much grief for him; so he came to town. - -And thus the Heavenly Triplets got together. Nebrasky and Lonnie were -far ahead of Dan, so far as drinks were concerned, and were already -given to short crying spells. Lonnie insisted on repeating the story of -how they found Joe Rich with Jim Wheeler. According to Lonnie’s varying -stories, they found Joe and Jim everywhere along the road from the -Tumbling River bridge to Pinnacle City. - -Time after time he explained how he had broken the bad news to Peggy and -Laura. His diplomacy was wonderful to hear, and some of his speeches -left him breathless. When as a matter of fact he had said to Peggy: - -“Jim’s been dragged and they’re takin’ him to town. Dunno how bad he’s -hurt, but he shore looks dead to me.” - -Dan had been with them about an hour when Kelsey came to the Pinnacle -bar. Lonnie looked upon him with great disfavor. Joe had been a -particular bunkie of the Flying H boys, and they were still loyal. No -matter if Joe had resigned voluntarily, they felt that Len Kelsey was to -blame. - -Len walked back among the tables, where he talked to “Handsome” Harry -Clark, who owned the Pinnacle. Harry was not handsome by any known -standard of beauty, being a hard-faced, sandy-haired individual, with a -crooked nose and one sagging eyebrow, caused by stopping a beer bottle -in full flight. - -“I don’ like ’m,” declared Lonnie owlishly. “Heza disgrash to--to -anythin’ what’ver.” - -“My sen’ments to a i-ota,” said Nebrasky. “But what can yuh do, Lonnie? -Yo’re speakin’ of our sher’f, ain’tcha?” - -“O-o-o-oh, u-nan-i-mushly!” - -“Don’t be foolish,” advised Dan, who was half sober yet. “He’s the -sheriff, no matter if he should have been drowned in infancy.” - -“H’lo, Misser Cold-Feet,” grinned Lonnie. “Dan’s slowin’ up on us, -Nebrasky.” - -“Pos’tively,” nodded Nebrasky. “Old boy’s showin’ age.” - -“Aw, yo’re crazy,” flared Dan. “But what can yuh do?” - -“Flip ’m,” said Lonnie gleefully. - -The gentle art of flipping a man consisted of two men getting one on -each side of the one to be flipped, grasping him by arms and legs, and -turning him completely over. It is a queer sensation, and harmless, if -done right. Kelsey was inches taller than either Nebrasky or Lonnie. - -The boys goggled wisely at each other and waited. Kelsey finished his -conversation with Clark and came back past the bar. - -“That shore was awful bad about Jim Wheeler, wasn’t it?” said Dan Leach. - -The sheriff stopped beside the bar. - -“It shore was,” he said emphatically. “That horse must ’a’ dragged him -quite a ways.” - -“It was like thish,” explained Lonnie thickly. - -He moved to the left side of Kelsey, while Nebrasky stepped back, taking -his position at Kelsey’s right. - -“Me and Hozie Wheeler,” said Lonnie, “was ridin’--let ’er go, Nebrasky!” - -And before the unsuspecting sheriff knew what was happening he had been -grasped by arms and legs and was starting to imitate a Ferris wheel. - -Exerting all their strength, the two drunken cowboys managed to swing -Kelsey up to where his feet were almost pointing at the ceiling--but -there they stuck. Their leverage was gone. Kelsey’s six-shooter fell -from his holster, and his watch fell the full length of the chain, -striking Kelsey in the chin. - -Overbalanced, the two cowboys started staggering backward, stumbled into -a card-table and went down with a crash, letting the struggling Kelsey -drop squarely on the top of his head. - -The crash was terrific. Nebrasky went backward, almost to the wall, -working his feet frantically to try to catch up with his body, but went -flat on his back. Lonnie caromed off the card-table and landed on his -hands and knees, yelling for everybody to get out of his way. - -But Kelsey suffered most. He had fallen about three feet on the top of -his head, and was still seeing stars. Leach, being of a thoughtful turn -of mind, kicked Kelsey’s six-shooter down toward the middle of the room, -where it came to rest under a card-table. - -Several of the saloon employees, including Clark, the owner, came to -Kelsey’s assistance and sat him in a chair, where he caressed his head -and made funny noises. - -“You boys better go before he wakes up,” advised Clark. - -“Is that sho?” asked Lonnie thickly. “Shince when did the Flyin’ H -outfit learn t’ run, I’d crave to know?” - -“Tha’s my cravin’, likewise,” said Nebrasky, trying to put his hat on -upside down. “Whazze-e got any right to git mad ’bout, in the firs’ -place? Goo’ness, it was all in fun.” - -Kelsey was rapidly recovering, and he knew what had happened. His right -hand felt his empty holster, and his eyes searched the floor. He had -heard the gun fall when he was upside down. - -“It’s under that card-table up there,” said Clark. - -Kelsey saw it. He got up slowly and went toward his gun, while the -Heavenly Triplets walked straight out through the front doorway. -Possibly they did not go straight, but they were out of the saloon when -Kelsey recovered his gun. - -“I wouldn’t do anything, if I was you, Len,” said Clark. “They were all -drunk and didn’t realize.” - -“Didn’t they?” cried Len flatly. “Don’t never think they didn’t. It was -all framed up to dump me on my head. I know that gang.” - -“Better have a drink and forget it, Len.” - -“Yeah, that’s fine--for you. By ----, you never got a bump like -that--and forgot it.” - -Kelsey walked straight to the street, but there was no sign of the three -men from the Flying H. Kelsey lingered for several moments, then went on -toward his office, while into the back door of the Pinnacle Saloon came -Nebrasky, Lonnie and Dan, as if nothing had happened. - -“Kelsey is lookin’ for you three,” said Clark. - -“Kelsey?” Lonnie blinked seriously. “Kelsey? Oh, the sheriff? Lookin’ -for us?” - -“Whazze want?” asked Nebrasky. - -“You better wait and see, Nebrasky.” - -“Now that’s what I call shound advice, Harry.” - -“I betcha I know what he wants,” said Lonnie. “He wants us to turn him -the rest of the way over. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” - -This guess seemed so good to them that they sagged against the bar and -whooped merrily. - -Joe Rich, following the announcement of Jim Wheeler’s death, took his -horse back to the stable and then went to the store where he had -purchased his house furnishings and told the storekeeper to take them -back, as there was little chance of their ever being paid for. - -When Joe came out he met Angus McLaren, the big grave-faced Scotsman. - -“Isn’t it too bad about poor Jim Wheeler!” exclaimed Angus. “I just -heard of it, Joe.” - -Joe nodded. His nose and lips were still sore from the weight of Jim -Wheeler’s fist, and his right hand went involuntarily to his sore spots. -McLaren noticed this. - -“Ye shouldn’t bear any grudge now, Joe,” he said softly. - -“Grudge?” - -“Over what he did to ye, Joe.” - -Joe shook his head. - -“I suppose he had plenty of cause, Mac.” - -“No matter; he’s dead now. They say ye found him.” - -“Yeah, I did, Mac. I was on my way back from the HJ.” - -“He wasn’t dead then?” - -“No, not then. Hozie and Lonnie came along in a few minutes. He was -alive then, but I think he died on the way in.” - -While they were talking Len Kelsey came from the Pinnacle Saloon, -rubbing his head, and went down to his office. - -“Ye knew we appointed Len in your place, Joe?” asked McLaren. - -“I hear yuh did, Mac. And Len appointed Ralston, eh?” - -“That’s it. What do ye aim to do now?” - -“I think I’ll leave here, Mac. There’s nothin’ in Tumblin’ River for me -any more.” - -“Ye might get on with the Circle M. Merrick will be short one man, now -that Ralston is an officer.” - -“No, Mac; I don’t think I’ll stay.” - -“Mm-m-m-m,” McLaren considered Joe gravely. - -“Joe, I’d have banked on ye. There’s a lot more folks in this country -that would have bet a million to one that ye wouldn’t do a thing like ye -done. Why did ye do it?” - -Joe shook his head slowly. - -“Mac, there’s things that I don’t even know; so I can’t tell yuh -anythin’.” - -“Well, ye were drunk, weren’t ye?” - -“Ask Honey Bee, Ed Merrick, Ben Collins or Limpy Nelson. They all saw -me, Mac. That should be evidence enough.” - -“Ay,” McLaren sighed. “There seems to be plenty of evidence that you -played the fool. I dunno.” McLaren took a deep breath and expelled it -forcibly. “Well, I wish ye all the luck in the world, Joe Rich. I think -you are payin’ for yer own sins; but ye are a young man and the world is -wide.” - -They shook hands gravely and Joe went back to his little cottage. It -seemed queer that he should be leaving Pinnacle City; almost as queer as -the fact that Jim Wheeler was lying dead at the doctor’s office. Joe -didn’t know where he was going, except that it would be out through the -south end of the valley; possibly down into Arizona. He would travel -light. His war-bag contained a change of clothes, and that was all, -except for a few trinkets. - -He tied it to his saddle, covering it with a black slicker, and rode up -to the county treasurer’s office, where he drew a warrant for his -remaining salary. Then he cashed it at the Pinnacle City bank, and drew -out the few remaining dollars he had on deposit there. - -As he came from the bank he met Ed Merrick, who had just tied his horse -farther up the street. - -“Hello, Joe,” greeted Merrick. “What’s all this talk about Jim Wheeler -gettin’ killed?” - -“I reckon you heard right, Ed,” said Joe. - -“Horse drug him to death?” - -“Yeah.” - -“Well, I’ll be ----!” - -Merrick went on down the street, and Joe noticed that he walked fast, as -if he was in a big hurry. Joe heard some one call his name, and he -turned to see the Heavenly Triplets coming across the street toward him -from the Pinnacle Saloon. They were all very unsteady, but also very -earnest. - -Lonnie sagged back on his heels and considered the roll behind the -cantle of Joe’s saddle. He sagged ahead and drew the slicker aside -enough to disclose the war-bag. - -“Where you goin’, Joe?” he demanded. “All packed up, eh?” - -“I’m pullin’ out, Lonnie,” said Joe gravely. “I’m shore glad I had a -chance to say good-by to you boys.” - -“Na-a-awshir,” Nebrasky spoke with great deliberation. “Nobody c’n go -way like thish, Joseph. Nawshir. Gotta have big party. Misser Rich,” -gravely, “meet Misser Jones and Misser Leach.” - -Dan and Nebrasky shook hands seriously with Joe. - -“Pleased t’ meetcha,” said Nebrasky. “I used to know a sher’f that -looked like you, par’ner. Oh, ver’ mush like you! I slep’ in the same -bunk with him for two years. You jus’ passin’ through our fair city, -Misser Rich?” - -“Just passin’ through,” said Joe slowly. He saw Merrick and Kelsey -leaving the sheriff’s office. - -“Here comes Misser Kelsey,” grinned Lonnie. “’F he gits close enough -we’ll complete the swing on him, Nebrasky.” - -“He won’t never git close enough,” chuckled Dan. “That bird ain’t never -goin’ t’ light close to any of us.” - -Joe held out his hand to Lonnie, who gripped it quickly. - -“So-long, Lonnie,” said Joe. “Be good to yourself.” - -“Aw-right, Joe.” - -Joe shook hands with Dan and Nebrasky, who did it in a dumb sort of a -way. Perhaps they did not understand that Joe was leaving Tumbling -River. Joe turned to his horse and started to mount. Merrick and Kelsey -were close now, and Kelsey said to Joe-- - -“You ain’t leavin’ us, are yuh, Joe?” - -Joe nodded. - -“Yeah, I’m goin’, Len.” - -“Uh-huh. Mebbe yuh better wait a little while, Joe. Somethin’ has come -up just lately. Better tie yore horse and wait till we get this ironed -out.” - -“What do yuh mean, Len?” - -“Has Hozie gone home?” Len spoke to Lonnie. - -“Gone home? Of course he’s gone home. You seen him leave, didn’t yuh?” - -Kelsey nodded. Lonnie seemed belligerent. - -“When yuh found Jim Wheeler, yuh--uh--didn’t look in his pockets, didja, -Lonnie?” - -“Look in his pockets? What for, I’d crave to ask yuh?” - -Kelsey turned to Merrick. - -“Mebbe you better go down to the doctor’s place, Ed. Mebbe it’s still -there. I don’t reckon anybody looked.” - -Merrick nodded shortly and hurried away. Joe looked curiously at Kelsey, -but the new sheriff was leaning against a porch post, rolling a cigaret. - -“Just why had I ought to wait?” asked Joe. - -“Just for instance,” Kelsey lighted his cigaret. - -“That’s the new sheriff,” said Lonnie. “Cool and collected, always gets -his man. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” - -Kelsey winced. Nebrasky looked him over thoroughly. - -“That’s him,” declared Nebrasky. “Yuh gotta look close at him to tell. -Kelsey is his name. Belonged to the Circle M before the county bought -him.” - -“You think yo’re pretty ---- smart, don’t cha?” flared Kelsey. - -“Don’t ’tagonize him,” begged Dan. - -Joe stepped from his horse and faced Kelsey. - -“What’s the idea of askin’ me to wait, Len?” - -“Can’t tell yuh yet, Joe.” - -“Suppose I decided to go ahead?” - -“No, I don’t think yuh will.” - -“I’m not under arrest, am I?” - -“Not yet.” - -“Not yet, eh?” Joe laughed recklessly. “Well, I reckon I’ll be goin’ -then.” - -Joe turned back to his horse. - -“Yo’re not goin’!” snapped Kelsey. - -Joe whirled quickly. Kelsey had half-drawn his gun. It was a foolish -move on Kelsey’s part; he should have covered Joe, if he wanted to hold -him badly enough to resort to a gun-play. Joe did not hesitate. His -right hand jerked upward and he fired from his waist. - -Kelsey’s gun was out of the holster, but his hand flipped open and the -gun fell to the sidewalk. He staggered backward, clutching his right -forearm, while Joe swung into his saddle and rode swiftly out of town, -heading south. - -The revolver shot attracted plenty of attention, and it also served to -sober the Heavenly Triplets. Kelsey swore bitterly as he clawed away his -shirt sleeve. The heavy bullet had plowed its way through the muscles of -his forearm, but did not touch the bone. The shock of it had caused -Kelsey’s hand to jerk open, releasing his gun. - -Folks were crowding in from every direction, trying to find out what it -was all about. - -“You better pack that arm to the doctor,” advised Lonnie. - -Kelsey nodded and bit off more profanity. Ed Merrick came through the -crowd and quickly got the story of what had happened. - -“Go and get it dressed, Kelsey,” he said, after examining the wound. “No -bones broke. Is Jack at the office?” - -“Here,” said Ralston, shoving his way through. - -“Better get on Joe’s trail, Jack,” said Merrick quickly. “He--you don’t -need a warrant. Bring him back!” - -Ralston ran down the street, while the crowd demanded that Merrick tell -them what it was all about. But Merrick merely shut his lips and went to -the court-house, followed by Angus McLaren, who was as much at sea as -any of the crowd. - -Once inside their office McLaren asked Merrick what the trouble was all -about. - -“I’m not accusin’ Joe Rich,” said Merrick. “But he was the one who found -Jim Wheeler. Today I drew five thousand from the Pinnacle bank and -loaned it to Jim Wheeler on his note. He had that money on him when he -left town. There is no money in his pockets now, and no one has found -any money on him since he came back, or during the time of the first -examination. The money is gone, Mac.” - -“And Joe was the first man to find him,” muttered McLaren. “Five -thousand dollars! Merrick, that’s enough to tempt a man.” - -“Yo’re ---- right it is! And Joe shot Kelsey in the arm.” - -“Kelsey was drawin’,” reminded McLaren. “The boys say that Kelsey -reached for his gun first. Joe wasn’t under arrest.” - -“No, that’s true, Mac. But if Joe wasn’t guilty, why didn’t he stay -until it could be cleared up? Ah! there’s Ralston!” - -Through the window they saw the deputy ride up in front of the -court-house, where he talked with several men. Merrick and McLaren went -out to him. It seemed as if all the cowboys had disappeared. Ralston -spurred over in front of the Pinnacle and went into the saloon, but came -out again. - -McLaren smothered a grin. The cowboys knew that Ralston would deputize -them to ride with him, and they would be obliged to obey his orders; but -if he couldn’t find them--that was a different matter. - -“By ----, they all ducked!” snorted Ralston angrily. - -“Looks like it,” agreed Merrick. “Well, I’ll go with yuh, Jack. If we -can’t do any better, we might find some of the boys at my ranch. By -----, they won’t sneak out on yuh!” - -Merrick crossed the street to the Pinnacle hitch-rack and mounted his -horse. Ralston went back to the office and got an extra Winchester for -Merrick, and they rode away at a swift gallop. - -They had barely disappeared when the Heavenly Triplets showed up. They -had rolled under the sidewalk near where Joe had shot Kelsey. From the -depths of an empty wagon-box farther up the street came Abe Liston, of -the 3W3. Slim Coleman, of the Lazy B, sauntered out of the narrow alley -between the Pinnacle Saloon and a feed-store. - -The Heavenly Triplets were fairly sober now--too sober to think of -anything funny to do; so they headed for the Pinnacle Saloon. - -“Hey, you snake-hunters!” yelled Slim Coleman. “Didn’t yuh ride away -with the posse?” - -“We shore did!” replied Lonnie. “Couldn’t find a thing. C’mon and have a -drink, you man-hunter.” - -“Sheriffin’ does make a feller kinda dry,” admitted Slim. “I’ll go yuh -once, if I lose all m’hair. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! I’ll betcha Ralston is -mad enough to gnaw a nail.” - -“Well, he can go plumb to ----, as far as we’re concerned,” declared -Nebrasky. “Any old time we go huntin’ criminals, it’ll be when there -ain’t nothin’ else to do. Anyway, I don’t look upon the shootin’ of -Kelsey as a crime.” - -They lined up at the bar and offered to sing a song for the drinks. But -the bartender was a bit skeptical about the intrinsic value of anything -they might sing. - -“It’s all right with me, yuh understand,” explained the bartender. “But -when Handsome starts checkin’ up the till at night--you know what I -mean.” - -“Oh, shore,” nodded Lonnie. “Some folks never appreciate talent. Howja -like to have a free song?” - -“Oh, I can absorb anythin’ that don’t hurt the rest of yuh. All I ask is -that yuh don’t require my opinion. I’m honest.” - -Angus McLaren came in and Lonnie invited him to share their hospitality. -McLaren rarely drank anything, but no one had ever known him to refuse -an invitation. - -“We just got back from ridin’ with the deputy,” explained Nebrasky. -“Ridin’ allus makes me dry.” - -McLaren laughed and poured out a drink. - -“Well, here’s hopin’ they never even catch sight of Joe’s dust,” said -Leach. - -“I dunno,” said McLaren. “Ye see, boys, it’s a serious charge they’ve -put against Joe Rich.” - -“Serious!” snorted Lonnie. “To shoot Kelsey? Why, Kelsey was reachin’ -for--” - -“I know that, Lonnie. But that’s not the charge. Today Ed Merrick loaned -Jim Wheeler five thousand in cash and took Jim’s note for it. Jim rode -away with the money. There’s not a cent on poor Jim--and Joe was the one -who found him.” - -“A-a-a-a-aw, ----!” Lonnie dropped his glass on the floor. - -“Yuh mean to say that Joe got away with it?” asked Nebrasky. - -“I’m not sayin’ anythin’, Nebr-r-rasky. It was told to me. I went to the -bank, and they tell me Merrick drew the money.” - -“Well, for ----’s sake!” snorted Lonnie. “That’s awful!” - -“Aye, it is. Well, here’s luck, boys!” - -McLaren drained his glass alone. The Heavenly Triplets and Slim had no -taste for liquor now. They went outside and sat down on the edge of the -sidewalk, humped over like four crows on a fence-rail. - -For possibly five minutes they said nothing. Then Lonnie broke the -silence with-- - -“Joe’s turnin’ out to be a humdinger.” - -Nebrasky spat dryly and expounded--“Yuh never can tell which way a -dill-pickle will squirt.” - -“Five ’r no five--I hope he gits away,” said Leach. - -“I thought there was somethin’ funny about him bein’ in such a hurry to -git away,” said Slim. - -“And you know yo’re a ---- liar, Slim,” said Lonnie. - -“Yeah, I know it,” agreed Slim. - -“Might as well go home, I s’pose,” observed Nebrasky. - -“Yeah, and right here and now I want to proclaim,” said Lonnie, “there -ain’t goin’ to be no drawin’ straws and all that kinda stuff; sabe? I -don’t care a ---- which one of you two pelicans decide to break the news -at the Flyin’ H, but I want yuh to know it ain’t goin’ to be little -Lonnie. By ----, I’ve broke all the news I’m goin’ to today!” - -“I guess we better not say anythin’ to ’em a-tall,” decided Nebrasky. -“It ain’t no settled fact.” - -“Shore--jist let it kinda drift,” agreed Leach. - -“There goes Kelsey, wearin’ his arm in a sling,” said Slim. “He’s lucky -it ain’t his head.” - -“Come dang near bein’,” laughed Lonnie, and he headed for the -hitch-rack. - -Kelsey swore inwardly at the three punchers and wondered why Ralston -didn’t deputize some of them to go with him. He met Handsome Clark at -the door of a Chinese restaurant, and Clark told him that the cowboys -had all disappeared when Jack Ralston showed up, and that Merrick had -been the only one to ride with him. - -Clark did not know about the missing money until Kelsey told him about -it. - -“No wonder he plugged you,” said Clark. “He probably had all that money -on him.” - -“Probably. It was all in currency--big bills, mostly.” - -“How’s the arm?” - -“Don’t hurt much. Won’t be usin’ it for a while. I never looked for Joe -to shoot. He’s awful fast with a gun.” - -Clark nodded. - -“You drew first, didn’t you, Len?” - -“Mebbe I did. He said he was goin’. Yuh see, I didn’t want to arrest -him. There wasn’t any sure thing that the money wasn’t in Wheeler’s -pockets. I just asked Joe to wait, and when he insisted on goin’ I -didn’t know just what to do. If I’d had any sense, I’d have poked a gun -in his ribs and made him wait. Live and learn, I reckon.” - -“I suppose they’ll get him.” - -“Mebbe. Joe knows this country and he must ’a’ been set for a getaway. -Yuh can’t tell which way he’ll go. Headed out south, but he’s just as -liable to be ridin’ north now. He’s no fool. And two men might not be -able to find him. We can’t expect much help from the punchers.” - -“No, it seems that you can’t, Len. Being a sheriff in Tumbling River has -its drawbacks.” - -Len left McLaren and went to the depot, where he sent wires to Kelo and -Ransome, notifying the marshals of each place to watch for Joe Rich. And -then he went back to his office to nurse his aching arm and swear at -himself for half-drawing a six-shooter on a man like Joe Rich. - - - - -CHAPTER IV: RANGE FUNERAL - - -Bad news travels swiftly in the range country, and the following morning -there was quite a gathering of the clan at the Flying H. People came to -extend their sympathy to Peggy Wheeler and to the rest of the Wheeler -family. Even the Reverend Henry Lake and his slow-moving old buggy horse -showed up at the ranch, the minister dressed in his ancient best. - -Aunt Emma Wheeler, Aunt Annie Bellew, Grandma Owens and Mrs. Buck West -gathered together and talked in whispers of the white-faced girl -upstairs who did not want to talk with anybody, while the men stood -around at the rear of the house in the shade of the big cottonwood and -drank up the rest of Uncle Hozie’s wedding liquor. - -Honey Bee was there, longing for a chance to talk with Laura Hatton. A -little later on Len Kelsey, his arm in a sling, rode out. The Heavenly -Triplets were sober, but that did not prevent them from making a few -caustic remarks about the sheriff when they saw him coming. - -“You let him alone,” ordered Uncle Hozie. “My ----, ain’t there trouble -enough, without you startin’ a debate with the law? Lonnie, you haul in -yore horns; sabe?” - -“Aw, he gives me a itch,” growled Lonnie. - -“Go scratch yourself,” advised Uncle Hozie. - -Kelsey brought no news of Joe Rich. He said that Ralston and Merrick had -ridden through to Kelo, but found no trace of the fugitive. Ralston had -come back to Pinnacle City at midnight. - -“Yuh didn’t expect to catch him, didja?” asked Nebrasky. - -“Sure we’ll get him,” confidently. “May take a little while.” - -“Aw, ----!” snorted Lonnie. “You and Jack Ralston couldn’t foller a load -of hay through a fresh snow.” - -“Lonnie, I told yuh--” began Uncle Hozie. - -“Yeah, I heard yuh,” interrupted Lonnie. “I’m not ridin’ him.” - -Len smiled thinly. - -“Thasall right, Hozie. You folks have kinda got the wrong idea of all -this. I’m not an enemy of Joe Rich. My ----, I worked with him, didn’t -I? In my business yuh don’t have to hate a man to arrest him. There -ain’t nothin’ personal about me huntin’ for Joe. If he’s innocent, he -ought to stay and prove it. Yuh can’t jist sneeze a couple of times and -forget that five thousand dollars are missin’, can yuh?” - -“No, yuh shore can’t, Len,” agreed Uncle Hozie. - -Len didn’t stay long. His speech impressed all, except the three Flying -H cowpunchers. They had no real reason for disliking Len Kelsey, except -that he represented the law, and that he had succeeded Joe Rich. And -they were loyal to Joe, even if he was guilty as charged. Theirs was not -a fickle friendship; not something that merely endured in fair weather. - -Uncle Hozie talked long and earnestly with the minister over the funeral -arrangements, and together they went up the stairs to talk with Peggy. -Laura left them and came down to the veranda, where Honey Bee beamed -with delight. - -“I was scared I wasn’t goin’ to see yuh,” he said softly. “How’s Peggy -standin’ it?” - -Laura sighed and shook her pretty head. “Peggy would be all right, if -all those women wouldn’t sit around and talk about corpses they have -seen. They all talk about successful funerals! As though any funeral -could be a success! And they all gabble about Joe Rich. Honey, I -actually think that some of them believe Joe Rich killed Uncle Jim.” - -“Eh?” Honey jerked back, staring at her. - -“Ex-cuse my language, but that’s a ---- of an idea! Who started that?” - -“Oh, I don’t know. They talked about Uncle Jim being a good rider and a -sober man and that the saddle did not turn. And he had all that money -with him.” - -“Well, I’ll be darned!” snorted Honey. “Did Peggy know Jim Wheeler was -borrowin’ that money from Merrick?” - -“Yes. She didn’t know how much. Now she says she can’t go. They talk -about Uncle Jim having a big mortgage at the bank, and with this five -thousand from Merrick--” - -“Lotta money,” mused Honey Bee. “Huh-how soon do yuh aim to leave, -Laura?” - -“I don’t know. Not until after things are straightened up for Peggy. I -sent Dad a wire, telling him that our plans had been changed.” - -“Then yuh won’t be goin’ for a while, eh?” Honey sighed with relief. -“That’s shore fine. Yuh won’t go back to the HJ, will yuh?” - -“I think so. Wong Lee is still there and Uncle Hozie said one of his -boys could go down there and help run the place.” - -“Yea-a-a-ah? Uh-huh. Which one, I wonder?” - -“I don’t know. Uncle Hozie spoke about Lonnie Myers.” - -“Oh, yeah--Lonnie. Ain’t settled yet, eh?” - -“No; he just spoke about it a while ago.” - -Uncle Hozie and the minister came out, talking softly; so Laura hurried -back upstairs to Peggy. Honey rubbed his chin thoughtfully and waited -for Uncle Hozie and the minister to end their conversation. - -And then Honey lost no time in backing Uncle Hozie against the wall. - -“Laura tells me that Peggy is goin’ back to the HJ, after the funeral, -Hozie.” - -Uncle Hozie nodded slowly. - -“She says she is, Honey.” - -“Yo’re a pretty good friend of mine, aint’cha, Hozie?” - -“Well--” Hozie pursed his lips and blinked at Honey--“I never throwed -any rocks at yuh when yuh wasn’t lookin’.” - -Honey leaned forward and whispered rapidly in Hozie’s ear. - -“Huh? O-o-oh!” Hozie understood. - -A few minutes later Hozie met Curt Bellew near the kitchen door. - -“I jist wanted to ask yuh somethin’, Curt,” said Uncle Hozie. “I--uh--I -been talkin’ to Peggy. Yuh see, Curt, she’s goin’ to stay at the HJ, at -least a while. Won’t be nobody there but her and Laura and Wong Lee.” - -“Uh-huh.” - -“Well, I been talkin’ to her, yuh understand, Curt. She’s goin’ to need -one man to help run things. I--uh--she said she’d like to have Honey Bee -to run the place.” - -“Oh, yea-a-a-ah!” - -Curt lifted his eyebrows thoughtfully and hooked his thumbs over his -cartridge-belt. He nodded slowly. - -“Well, mebbe I can git along without that boy for a while, Hozie. He -prob’ly won’t want to do it. Honey’s funny thataway. But you tell him I -said he had to do it. If he kicks about makin’ the change--you tell him -to come to me.” - -“Yeah, I’ll do that, Curt,” solemnly. - -They looked at each other seriously for several moments. - -“And that ain’t the funniest part of it,” said Uncle Hozie. “Laura told -Honey that I was goin’ to loan ’em Lonnie Myers to run the HJ--and there -ain’t never been any mention of me loanin’ anybody.” - -“She made it all up, Hozie?” - -“’Course she did. Her father’s a broker in Philadelphia, and I s’pose -Laura inherited her ability to tell p’lite lies from him. But it’s all -right, ain’t it, Curt?” - -“Fine! Ma will be glad. She has to watch Honey like a hawk to keep him -from cuttin’ L.H. on all the furniture.” - -They chuckled together for several moments. Then-- - -“Hozie, what’s this talk about mebbe Jim’s death wasn’t an accident?” - -“Wimmin,” said Hozie quickly. “Old wimmin talkin’.” - -“Uh-huh. Yeah, I s’pose it is. I don’t like it, Hozie. But a while ago I -got to thinkin’ about Jim. Where’s that note? Ed Merrick must ’a’ signed -a copy for Jim. Merrick’s got his copy, signed by Jim.” - -“Whoever got the money must ’a’ took the note, Curt.” - -“I s’pose. The money was all in big bills. By golly, I hope they find -Joe Rich.” - -Uncle Hozie sighed deeply. He loved Joe Rich like a son, and it was -difficult for him to believe Joe guilty. - -“It hurts Peggy,” he said slowly. “It hurts her as much as the death of -her father. Yuh see, she loved Joe a lot.” - -“I reckon we all did, Hozie--up to the day he was to be married.” - -“Joe Rich of yesterday,” muttered Uncle Hozie. - -“Whatcha say, Hozie?” - -“Jist thinkin’ out loud, Curt. I’ll find Honey, and break the bad news -to him.” - -“Yeah; he’ll prob’ly be sore as ----.” - - - - -CHAPTER V: HASHKNIFE AND SLEEPY - - -It was several days after the funeral of Jim Wheeler, and things in the -Tumbling River range seemed back on an even keel again. Joe Rich was -still at large. The sheriff had broadcast Joe’s description, and the -county had offered a thousand dollars reward. - -Kelsey and Ralston still searched the Tumbling River hills, hoping that -Joe had not left the valley. Even the Heavenly Triplets were too busy to -annoy the sheriff, but were looking forward to payday. - -Honey Bee was firmly established at the HJ, much to the amusement of -every one. Uncle Hozie had never told him that Laura had fibbed about -Lonnie Myers’ going to run the ranch; so Honey believed Hozie had done -him a great favor. - -Peggy took little interest in anything. The shock had taken the spirit -all out of her, and she realized that it would only be a question of -time until the Pinnacle bank and Ed Merrick would own the HJ. Twelve -thousand is a lot of money. - -Aunt Emma did not like the arrangement at the HJ. - -“Them two girls livin’ alone with one man.” - -“Nothin’ of the kind,” denied Uncle Hozie. “Honey’s in love, and a man -in love ain’t more’n half a man. Anyway, there’s Wong Lee.” - -“A heathen Chinee!” - -“He’s a Chinaman, but I’ll betcha he’s as much of a Christian as any of -us.” - -“Anyway,” declared Aunt Emma, “I’m goin’ to spend all the time I can -with the girls.” - -Aunt Emma was one of those who believed that Jim Wheeler had not died -from an accident. She talked with the old doctor about the bruises on -Wheeler’s skull, and he told her that they were caused by Jim Wheeler’s -head striking the rocks. - -“But how did he fall off?” queried the old lady. “Jim was a good rider, -Doc. The saddle never turned with him.” - -The doctor shook his head. - -“I’m sure I don’t know, Mrs. Wheeler. I am not a detective. His leg was -broken from being hung in the stirrup, I suppose.” - -“He wasn’t hung to the stirrup when Joe found him.” - -“Wasn’t he? Perhaps Joe Rich knows more about it than we do, Mrs. -Wheeler.” - -“Sure--but where’s Joe?” - -“If I knew I’d be a thousand dollars better off than I am.” - -But few, if any, of the men thought that it had been anything but an -accident. A sudden dizziness, perhaps caused by indigestion, might have -made him fall. And the horse, even if it was well broken, might have got -frightened and dragged him. But there was no question about his being -robbed. - -It was the evening of the fifth day since Joe Rich had left Pinnacle -City when a long train of dusty cattle-cars drew into the town of Kelo. -Dusty, wild-eyed animals peered out through the barred sides of the -cars, bawling their displeasure. - -The wind was blowing a gale, and to the north an electric storm was -coming down the valley. But there was no rain; only wind and a depressed -atmosphere which presaged the coming storm. The engine clanked in past -the depot and stopped with a jerk that shortened every draw-bar in the -long line of cars. - -In the caboose of the cattle-train sat a cowboy, humped over on a bench, -holding his face in his hands. His broad shoulders twisted painfully and -he gave vent to a withering curse when the caboose almost jerked him off -the bench. - -On the opposite side of the car sat a tall, lean-faced cowboy, his sad -gray eyes contemplating the sufferer, who lifted his head, disclosing a -swollen jaw. Two other cowboys were seated on the floor of the car, -resting their backs against the side-seats, while they industriously -shot craps for dimes. - -“Hurt yuh pretty bad, Sleepy?” asked the tall cowboy. - -The sufferer lifted his head, nodded slowly and inserted a big -forefinger inside his mouth. - -“Wursh a glew har glog daged dantist libed.” - -He removed the finger, spat painfully and took his face in both hands -again. - -“Sleepy” Stevens was suffering the pangs of an aching molar. “Hashknife” -Hartley, the tall, lean cowboy, nodded understandingly. - -“It’s worse than I thought, Sleepy,” he said, his voice full of -sympathy. “You’ve got what they call a Eskimo abscess.” - -“Huh? How do yuh know?” - -“I can tell by yore talk--pure Eskimo.” - -“A-a-a-aw, ---! If you had this ---- tooth--” - -“We’re goin’ to water these animals at Pinnacle City,” offered one of -the crap-shooters. “You’ll have time to have that tooth pulled.” - -“Hadn’t ought to be far now,” observed Hashknife. - -He bent his long nose against the dirty window glass and peered out. The -wind whistled past, and the sand sifted through the window. A lightning -flash illuminated things and a rumble of thunder came to their ears. - -A few minutes later a brakeman, carrying a lighted lantern, swung -aboard. - -“Wires down,” he said shortly. - -“What’ll that do to us?” queried Hashknife. - -“Not much. We’re late and we ought to lay out here and let Number 4 pass -us, goin’ north; but we can’t get any orders, and the sidin’ is blocked -with a freight that broke an axle. We’ll go on to Pinnacle City, and the -passenger will have to foller us on a slow order.” - -“Quite a storm, eh?” remarked a crapshooter. - -“---- of a storm ahead of us,” declared the brakeman, going out again. - -Finally the engine sent out its shrill blasts, calling in the flagman, -and in a few moments the draw-bars jerked shudderingly. The cattle-train -was on its way again, picking up the conductor at the station. - -Sleepy groaned and hunched down in his chair. The tooth had been -thumping for eight hours. And there was a question in Sleepy’s mind -about finding a dentist in Pinnacle City. Few of the old cow-towns -boasted a dentist, and the local doctor was usually more or less of a -failure with forceps. - -The long cattle-train moved slowly. There was considerable of a grade -between Kelo and Pinnacle City, and the terrific head wind held them -back. The conductor and brakeman got into the crap game, trying to kill -time over the dreary eighteen-mile stretch. - -The train rumbled and clanked along, unable to make much headway. - -“Likely blow all the hair off them cow critters,” observed one of the -cowboys. - -The caboose was foggy with dust, and the oil lamps hardly made light -enough for them to see the spots on the worn dice. - -Suddenly the draw-bars clanked together and the caboose began stopping -by jerks. Sleepy swore painfully, when it jerked him upright. The engine -whistled shrilly, and the train ground to a stop. The conductor peered -out, swore softly and picked up his lantern. - -“Must be just about to the Tumbling River bridge,” he said. - -“How far is it from town?” asked Sleepy. - -“Couple of miles,” said the brakeman. - -He too had picked up his lantern, and they went outside. A moment later -the brakeman sprang back onto the steps. - -“Bridge on fire,” he said. “Lightnin’ must have struck it.” - -He lifted the top off a seat and took out several fuses which he tucked -under his arm, picked up a red lantern and hurried out to flag down the -track. Hashknife put on his sombrero and climbed off the caboose. It was -a long way to the front end of the train, and the wind threatened to -blow him off the side of the fill at any time. - -The Tumbling River bridge was about a hundred and fifty feet across, -built high above the stream. It was mostly of timber construction and -one span of it was burning merrily. - -Hashknife found the conductor and engineer looking over, both decided -that it would be folly to try to run it. It had evidently been burning -for quite a while. - -“That shore hangs us high and dry, don’t it?” asked Hashknife. - -The conductor nodded grimly. - -“We’re here for a while,” he said. “Can’t take a chance on that thing, -and we’ve got a passenger coming in behind us. They’ll be running slow, -and won’t be hard to flag. The best thing for you boys to do is to go to -bed. That span is sure to burn out in this wind.” - -The wind was so strong that they had to yell in order to converse. - -“Might as well be comfortable!” yelled the engineer. - -The conductor nodded and followed Hashknife back to the caboose, where -he broke the news to the rest of the boys. - -“Ain’t that ----?” wailed Sleepy. “Two miles from a dentist, and the -road on fire!” - -“Better go to bed, Sleepy,” said Hashknife. “Mebbe yuh can sleep it -off.” - -But Sleepy told them in no uncertain terms that sleep was out of the -question. One of the cowboys produced a pint of liquor, and this served -to put Sleepy in better spirits. No one denied him any of it. Hashknife -was curious about the passenger train which was following them, and went -on to the rear platform. - -Possibly they had been stopped for thirty minutes when Hashknife saw the -beams of the passenger engine. The road was fairly crooked for several -miles, and he could see the beams of the headlight, as it swung around -the curves, throwing streamers of light off across the hills. It was not -traveling fast. It came closer and closer, and Hashknife wondered why it -did not seem to pay any attention to the rear flagman. Of course he was -out of sight around a curve, but the speed of the passenger had not -diminished. - -It swung to the straight track, the beams of the headlight illuminating -the rear of the stalled train. It was then that the whistle shrieked and -the train quickly ground to a stop about a hundred yards short of the -caboose. - -A man dropped from the engine and came up to the caboose. It was a -uniformed brakeman. - -“What’s that ahead--a fire?” he asked, swinging up on the steps. - -“Bridge on fire,” said Hashknife. “Looks like we’re here for a while.” - -“Pshaw! Some wind, eh? Say, I wonder why nobody was flaggin’ the rear of -this train?” - -“They did,” declared Hashknife. “I saw the brakeman start back with his -fuses and lantern.” - -“You did? That’s funny, we never seen him.” - -The conductor came out and corroborated Hashknife. In a few minutes the -conductor of the passenger came along. He was a fussy little fat man, -very important. He wheezed his profanity. - -“Can’t get across, eh? ----! Wires down behind us. Nothing to do but -wait. How did it happen you didn’t send out a flag? We might have rammed -you.” - -“Flag went out!” snapped the freight conductor. - -“We didn’t see it,” said the brakeman. “I was in the cab.” - -“Anyway, he went back,” declared the freight conductor. “It’s no fault -of mine if you fellows can’t see.” - -“Any chance of putting the fire out?” asked the passenger conductor. - -“Not a chance. One whole span on fire and this wind is like a -blow-torch. Looks like a complete tie-up for this division. There’s a -section crew at Pinnacle City, but this will be a job for bridge -builders.” - -Hashknife went back in the caboose where Sleepy was lying on a seat, -still caressing a sore jaw. - -“Stuck completely,” said Hashknife. “No dentist for you tonight, -cowboy.” - -The brakeman came in to light a cigaret, and Hashknife questioned him -about Pinnacle City. - -“South of here is the wagon-bridge,” said the brakeman. “I ain’t -familiar with this country, so I can’t tell yuh how far it is, but it -can’t be a mile--not over that, anyway.” - -He went out, and Hashknife turned to Sleepy. - -“How about yuh, cowboy? It ain’t over three miles to town. Suppose we -walk over and find a dentist?” - -“----, I’d do anythin’ to stop this ache, Hashknife!” - -“All right.” - -Hashknife went down the car, where he picked up their war-bags and -brought them back. - -“You ain’t pullin’ out for keeps, are yuh?” asked one of the -crap-shooting cowboys. - -“Nope,” grinned Hashknife. “We’ll meet yuh in Pinnacle City. Only a fool -walks away and leaves his war-bag. Yuh never know what’s ahead of yuh.” - -He dug down in his bag and drew out a well-worn cartridge belt to which -was attached a scarred holster containing a heavy Colt revolver. He -looped the belt around his lean hips, yanked the buckle together and -proceeded to fill the cylinder with .45 cartridges. - -Sleepy released his jaw long enough to buckle on his own armament, and -swung the bag over his shoulder and they went out into the night. The -train crew had left the caboose steps as the two cowboys swung down off -the fill and stumbled their way to the barb-wire fence of the -right-of-way. - -“Blacker ’n the inside of a cat,” declared Sleepy, after they were away -from the lights of the train. “Look out yuh don’t fall off the river -bank.” - -“It shore is kinda vague,” said Hashknife. “Jist take it easy.” - -“Ain’t nobody breakin’ into a gallop,” retorted Sleepy. - -They were traveling through a thicket of jack-pines, which whipped them -across the face and tangled their feet. The wind was still blowing -furiously, and there was a spit of rain in the air. - -Hashknife was surging ahead, one hand flung up to protect his face from -the whipping branches, when he almost ran into some object. It flashed -into his mind that it was a range animal, perhaps a horse. Sleepy bumped -into Hashknife and stopped with a grunt. - -Then came the flash of a gun, a streak of flame that licked out into the -wind not over fifteen feet from them. The wind seemed fairly to blow the -report away from them. It was little more than a sharp pop. - -Hashknife stumbled over a little jack-pine and went to his knees while -Sleepy unceremoniously sat down. And then the animal was gone. Evidently -it had borne a rider. The wind prevented them from hearing which way it -went. - -Hashknife crawled back and found one of Sleepy’s boots. - -“Didn’t hit yuh, did it?” yelled Hashknife. - -“No! What do yuh make of it?” - -“Queer thing to do, Sleepy.” - -They got back to their feet. - -“How’s the tooth?” asked Hashknife. - -“Tooth? Oh, yeah. Say, I forgot it. Let’s go.” - -They went ahead again, stumbling along, while the rain increased, and -they began to be very uncomfortable. Added to their discomfort was the -knowledge that they had lost all sense of direction. Hashknife knew they -were traveling parallel to the river until they were shot at, and from -that time on he wasn’t sure of anything. - -He felt they had traveled more than a mile, but they found no -wagon-road. There were no stars to guide them, and the wind had shifted -several times. - -“‘We’re lost, the captain shouted,’” declared Sleepy, as they halted -against the bank of a washout, where the wind and rain did not strike -them so heavily. - -“That wind was blowin’ from the north when we started, and we tried to -foller the wind,” laughed Hashknife. “Is yore tobacco wet?” - -They rolled a smoke and considered things. - -“I wish we was back in that nice warm caboose,” said Sleepy. “Gosh, that -shore was a comfortable place. But this is jist my luck. It makes five -times we’ve started East with a train of cows--and never got out of the -sagebrush.” - -“Aw, we’ll pick ’em up in Pinnacle City, Sleepy.” - -“Yeah, that’s great. But where’s Pinnacle City?” - -“Two miles from the railroad bridge.” - -“Good guesser.” - -“It can’t be more than nine o’clock, Sleepy. By golly, there ought to be -somebody livin’ in this place-where-the-wind-comes-from.” - -“If they’re all like that jigger we ran into back there, I don’t care -about meetin’ ’em,” declared Sleepy. “Anyway, the tooth has quit -hurtin’. I think the swellin’ busted when we stopped at the bridge. That -engineer shore knows how to spike his mount’s tail to the earth!” - -“There’s only three things that are botherin’ me,” said Hashknife. “One -is: Why did that party take a shot at us? And the other two are my boots -full of water.” - -“And there’s another small matter,” said Sleepy flapping his arms -dismally. “We ain’t taken any nourishment since this mornin’, -Hashknife.” - -“Yeah, there’s that small matter,” agreed Hashknife. “Oh, if yuh ever -stop to check up on things, Sleepy, the world is all wrong. But never -stop grinnin’ and look back. The only place yuh ever see ghosts is -behind yuh.” - -“Well, that wasn’t no ghost that snapped his gun at us.” - -“He shore wasn’t, cowboy. That jigger was plumb alive. Well, I dunno but -what we might as well keep circlin’. Eventually we’ll wear a trail, if -we keep goin’ long enough. I wish I knew which was south.” - -They sloshed away from the brush and headed down a slope. - -“There’s a light!” exclaimed Sleepy. “Straight ahead.” - -A flurry of rain obliterated the light, but it flickered again. - -“Light in a winder,” said Sleepy. “Must be a house.” - -“Must be,” agreed Hashknife dryly. “Windows don’t usually occur without -a house in connection.” - -They struck a corral fence, followed it around to the stable and then -headed for the house. It was the HJ ranch. But these two cowboys were -far too wise to walk right up to a strange house in the dark, especially -after having been shot at so recently; so they sidled up to the house -and took a look through the window. - -It was a side window of the living-room, and in the room were Peggy -Wheeler, Laura Hatton and Honey Bee. It was evident to Hashknife and -Sleepy that the living-room roof had sprung a leak and the three people -were making an earnest endeavor to catch the water in a wash-tub, -dishpan and numerous other receptacles. - -A long dry period had warped the old shingles of the ranch-house to such -an extent that they leaked like a sieve. - -“Looks like a harmless place,” observed Hashknife. - -“And not a ---- of a lot of advantage over bein’ outside,” said Sleepy. -“Anyway, they look awful human.” - -They walked around to the front door, clumped up the steps and knocked -on the door. Honey Bee answered the knock by opening the door about six -inches and peering out. - -“We just wondered if yuh didn’t need a couple of good men to fix yore -roof,” said Hashknife seriously. - -Honey opened the door a little and peered out at them. He had never seen -either of them before, but the lamplight illuminated their faces enough -to show their grins. - -“Fix the roof?” he said slowly. “Oh, yeah. Well, I’ll bet we do need -help.” - -He opened the door. - -“C’mon in out of the wet.” - -They shuffled the mud off their boots and came in. The two girls stood -near the dining-room doorway, each of them holding a receptacle, looking -curiously at Hashknife, who removed his dripping hat and grinned widely -at them. Hashknife’s grin was irresistible. Honey grinned foolishly and -shuffled his feet. - -“My name’s Hartley,” said Hashknife. “This soakin’ wet object with me is -named Stevens. He was sufferin’ from a bad tooth, and we went huntin’ a -dentist in the rain.” - -“Yuh went huntin’ a dentist?” queried Honey foolishly. “Wh-where didja -expect to find one?” - -“Sounds kinda queer,” grinned Hashknife. “Yuh see, we was actin’ as a -couple of chambermaids to a train of cows, but the bridge caught on fire -and we got stalled. Sleepy’s tooth shore needed help; so we started out -to find the wagon-bridge, figurin’ to find this Pinnacle City. But we -didn’t find the bridge.” - -“Oh, yeah,” Honey scratched his head. “The railroad bridge caught fire. -Uh-huh. Ho-o-o-old on!” - -He ran across the room, grabbed up a wash-basin and placed it under a -fresh leak. Then he came back and introduced the girls to Hashknife and -Sleepy. - -“My name’s Bee,” he said. “B-e-e.” - -“Last or first?” asked Hashknife. - -“Last. Say, I better rustle some wood for that fireplace. Kinda take the -chill off the air. Gosh, you fellers shore are wet.” - -Honey hurried away for some wood, while Hashknife moved some of the -containers to more advantageous spots. There seemed to be no end to the -leaks in the HJ ranch-house. - -“Terrible, isn’t it?” smiled Peggy. - -It seemed to her that these two strange cowboys, even with their wet -garments and muddy boots, had brought a warmth and cheer to the ranch -that was sorely needed. - -“Oh, not so bad,” said Hashknife, squinting at a leak. “Didja ever stop -to think how much worse it would be if them few little spots were the -only place where it didn’t leak?” - -“That would be terrible,” declared Laura. - -“Yeah, it would. But suppose it leaked everywhere. That would be worse, -eh?” - -“Do you always look at things that way?” asked Peggy. - -“Mostly,” said Hashknife seriously. “Why not, Miss Wheeler? Sunlight is -brighter than shadows; and it’s a lot easier to find, if yuh look for -it. Bright things are easier to see than dark ones.” - -“You listen to him a while and he’ll prove to yuh that a leaky roof is a -godsend,” laughed Sleepy. - -“Well, ain’t it?” asked Hashknife. “If this roof hadn’t leaked, you -folks would probably have been in bed--and we wouldn’t have seen their -light, Sleepy.” - -“That is true,” said Laura. “Oh, it was way past bedtime at the HJ -ranch!” - -Honey came in with an armful of wood, which he threw in the big -fireplace. - -“I’m makin’ a bet you fellers are hungry,” he said. - -“Never mind that,” grinned Hashknife. “Point us the way to Pinnacle -City, and we’ll be on our way.” - -“Not in that rain,” declared Peggy quickly. - -She went into the kitchen, where she called Wong Lee. - -“Aw, don’t bother the cook,” begged Hashknife. “Pshaw, it ain’t worth -it.” - -“It’s no bother to Wong Lee,” said Peggy. “You boys get over by that -fire and dry out a little. Wong Lee will get you a meal, and Honey will -show you where to sleep. Laura and I will go to bed. Good night, -everybody.” - -“Good night, and thank yuh a thousand times.” - -Hashknife and Sleepy crossed the room and shook hands with the two -girls. Peggy smiled at Hashknife. - -“Thank you for coming,” she said. - -The two cowboys went back to the fire and removed some of their wet -garments, after which Hashknife went back to the porch and got their -water-proof war-bags, which contained some dry clothing. They could hear -Wong Lee shuffling about the kitchen, preparing them a meal. - -He came to the door and looked in on them. He was a little, wizen-faced -Celestial. - -“Yo’ like some ham-egg?” he asked. - -Hashknife grinned at him, but did not reply. A smile slowly stole across -the Chinaman’s face and he bobbed his head. - -“Yessa, velly good,” he said. “No tlouble.” - -“You kinda got the Injun sign on Wong Lee,” grunted Honey. “Darned old -rascal almost laughed. I tell yuh, he ain’t even smiled since Jim -Wheeler was killed.” - -“Thasso?” Hashknife borrowed Sleepy’s tobacco and rolled a cigaret. -“What happened to Jim Wheeler?” - -“Horse dragged him to death the other day.” - -Hashknife shuddered. The thought of a man’s hanging by one foot to a -stirrup never failed to rasp his nerves. He had seen men die that way, -and once when he was but a youngster he had been thrown from a wild -horse and had hung from a stirrup. Luckily the horse had whirled into a -fence corner, where another cowboy was able to hold the animal and -extricate Hashknife. - -“Tough way to die,” said Hashknife. - -“Y’betcha,” nodded Honey. “Head all busted up on the rocks, and his leg -twisted. Golly, it shore was awful! He owned this HJ outfit. I work for -the Flyin’ H, but I’m down here kinda helpin’ out. Hozie, Jim’s brother, -owns the Flyin’ H.” - -“Miss Wheeler is Jim’s daughter, eh?” - -“Uh-huh. It’s shore been a hard time for her, Hartley,” Honey lowered -his voice. “She was engaged to marry Joe Rich, and he got drunk on his -weddin’ night. Didn’t show up. Then Peggy aims to go East with Laura -Hatton. Yuh see, Jim wasn’t awful well heeled with money. He owes the -Pinnacle bank quite a lot; so he borrows five thousand from Ed Merrick, -who owns the Circle M, and gives Ed his note. - -“Ed gives him the money, and Jim starts home with it. And that’s the -last anybody ever seen of the money. Joe Rich was aimin’ to pull out of -the country; so he comes out to tell Peggy good-by. And Joe was the one -who found Jim Wheeler. Hozie Wheeler and Lonnie Myers comes ridin’ along -just a little later, and found Joe with Jim. - -“And when the sheriff finds out about the missin’ money, he tries to -make Joe wait for an investigation, and Joe pops him through the -gun-arm. That’s the last we saw of Joe. There’s a reward for him, and -the sheriff has been ridin’ the hocks off his horse, but ain’t found -nothin’. So yuh can see it’s been awful tough for Peggy.” - -Hashknife had been standing on one foot like a stork, holding the other -foot out to the blazing fire, while Honey sketched his story. Sleepy -hunched down, his back to the fire, his damp hair straggling down over -his forehead. - -“I wonder,” he said, “if it ain’t stopped rainin’ enough for us to go on -to town? We don’t want to miss that train, Hashknife.” - -“Joe Rich was the sheriff,” said Honey, as an afterthought. “But he -resigned the mornin’ after he got drunk. They made a sheriff out of his -deputy. Jim Wheeler knocked Joe down that mornin’, but Joe didn’t do -anythin’, they say.” - -“And it hadn’t ought to take long to fix that bridge,” said Sleepy. -“This rain would put the fire out.” - -“What kind of a jigger was this Joe Rich?” asked Hashknife curiously. - -“Jist salt of the earth, Hartley.” - -“Uh-huh,” thoughtfully. “And got so drunk he forgot to get married, eh?” - -“Yeah, that’s true,” sighed Honey. “I dunno why he did; and he never -said.” - -“Didn’t have no quarrel with the girl?” - -“----, no! Aw, it was to be a big marriage. I was to be best man. My -----, I almost crippled myself for life, tryin’ to wear number six -shoes.” - -“You come eat now?” asked Wong Lee. - -Honey sat down with them. Sleepy looked gloomily at Hashknife and -reminded him gently that sugar was for the coffee, and not for the eggs. - -Hashknife chuckled, but sobered quickly. The rain still pattered on the -old roof and dripped off the eaves. It was warm in the kitchen. - -“Five thousand dollars is a lot of money,” mused Hashknife, stirring his -coffee with a fork. He had used the same fork to dip sugar from the bowl -and did not seem to realize that it had all leaked out. - -Sleepy knew the symptoms and groaned inwardly. Years of association with -Hashknife had taught Sleepy to recognize the sudden moods of the tall -cowboy. Trouble and mystery affected Hashknife as the scent of upland -fowl affects a pointer. - -Hashknife, in the days of his callow youth, had been known as George. -His father, an itinerant minister in the Milk River country and head of -a big family, had had little time or money to do more than just let this -boy grow up. As soon as he was able to sit in a saddle he lived with the -cowboys and became one of them. - -Blessed with a balanced mind, possibly inherited from his father, who -surely needed a balanced mind to make both ends meet, the boy struck out -for himself, absorbing all kinds of knowledge, studying human nature. -Eventually he drifted to the ranch, which gave him his nickname, and -here he met the grinning Sleepy Stevens, whose baptismal name was David. - -From the Hashknife ranch their trail led to many places. Soldiers of -fortune they became, although Hashknife referred to themselves as -cowpunchers of disaster. From the wide lands of Alberta to the Mexican -Border they had left their mark. They did not stay long in any place, -unless fate decreed that a certain time must elapse before their work -was finished. And then they would go on, possibly poorer in pocket. -Their life had made them fatalists, had made them very human. To salve -their own consciences they declared that they were looking for the right -spot to settle down; a place to live out the rest of their life in -peaceable pursuits. - -But down in their hearts they knew that this place did not exist. They -wanted to see the other side of the hill. Hashknife’s brain rebelled -against a mystery. It seemed to challenge him to combat. Where range -detectives had failed utterly because they were unable to see beyond -actual facts, Hashknife’s analytical mind had enabled him to build up -chains of evidence that had cleared up mystery after mystery. - -But solving mysteries was not a business with them. They did not pose as -detectives. It merely happened that fate threw them into contact with -these things. Sleepy’s mind did not function with any more rapidity than -that of any average man, but he was blessed with a vast sense of humor, -bulldog tenacity and a faculty for using a gun when a gun was most -needed. - -Whether it was merely a pose or not, Sleepy always tried to prevent -Hashknife from getting interested in these mysteries of the range -country. He argued often and loud, but to no avail. But once started, -Sleepy worked as diligently as Hashknife. Neither of them were wizards -with their guns. No amount of persuasion would induce them to compete -with others in marksmanship, nor did they ever practise drawing a gun. - -“Leave that to the gun-men,” Hashknife had said. “We’re not gun-men.” - -Which was something that many men would take great pains to disprove, -along the back-trail of Hashknife and Sleepy. - -And right now, while he ate heavily of the HJ food, Sleepy Stevens knew -he was being dragged into the whirlpool of the Tumbling River range. He -could tell by the twitch of Hashknife’s nose, by the calculating squint -of his gray eyes; and if that was not enough--Hashknife was cutting a -biscuit with a knife and fork. - -“Five thousand is a lot of money for the HJ to lose,” agreed Honey. -“Take that along with the seven thousand owin’ to the Pinnacle City bank -and it jist about nails the HJ hide to the floor and leaves it there to -starve.” - -“Was Jim Wheeler a sickly man?” asked Hashknife. - -“Sickly? Not a bit; he was built like a bull.” - -“Drink much?” - -“Hardly ever took a drink.” - -“Ride a bad horse?” - -“Been ridin’ the same one three years, and it never made a bobble. Jim’s -broncscratchin’ days was over, Hartley.” - -“Uh-huh,” Hashknife rubbed his chin with the fork. “Was it goin’ to take -five thousand dollars for to ship that girl back East?” - -“Probably not.” - -“What kind of a feller is Ed Merrick?” - -“Good cow-man. He’s one of the county commissioners. Owned the Circle M -about five years, and is kind of a big man in the county. Mostly horse -outfit.” - -“Yuh say they made a sheriff out of the deputy?” - -“Yeah; Len Kelsey.” - -Honey described the trouble on the street between Kelsey and Rich, in -which Kelsey was wounded. He also told them how the cowboys hid out to -keep from being sworn in to follow the fugitive. This interested Sleepy. - -“Sounds like there was some reg’lar boys around here,” he said. - -“Oh, the boys like Joe,” grinned Honey. “You’d like him.” - -“I dunno. Any man that ain’t got no more sense than to get drunk and -miss a chance of a wife like that dark-haired girl ain’t very much of a -feller. Or the blonde one.” - -“The blonde one is my girl,” said Honey softly. - -Sleepy reached impulsively across the table and shook hands with Honey, -who looked foolish. - -“I’m glad yuh told me,” said Sleepy seriously. “Prob’ly save me a lot of -heartaches. She’s a dinger.” - -Hashknife shoved back from the table, thanking Wong Lee for his -hospitality. - -“Velly good,” Wong Lee bobbed his head. “No tlouble. You come some mo’.” - -“Mebbe we will, Wong.” - -“All lite; I cook plenty.” - -The rain had increased again, and Honey advised them against attempting -to go to Pinnacle City. It was not difficult to convince them. Sleepy’s -tooth did not ache any more, and their clothes were beginning to dry; so -they followed Honey down to the dry bunk-house and went to bed. - -* * * * * - -It did not take the rain long to extinguish the fire at the bridge, and -after an examination the train crews decided that it was still safe. -Many of the timbers were badly charred, and but for the heavy rain which -followed the wind, the whole bridge would have been doomed. - -The cattle-train, minus two of the cowhands, proceeded slowly to -Pinnacle City, where it took the siding. It would spend several hours -there, watering stock, and the man in charge expected Hashknife and -Sleepy to put in an appearance before leaving time. - -The passenger train drew in at the station, possibly an hour late. The -wires being down, it was impossible for them to get orders. The heavy -rain swept the wooden platform, but the depot agent trundled out some -express packages. The express car door was partly open, but there was no -messenger. - -The agent climbed into the car, and the first thing that greeted his eye -was the through safe, almost in the center of the car, its door torn -open. A single car light burned in the upper end of the car, and it was -there that the agent found the messenger, bound hand and foot. - -Running back to the depot, the agent told what he had found, and the -train crew hurried to the car, while another man went to get an officer. -In the waiting room of the depot the express messenger told what he knew -of the robbery. A man had struck him over the head, and he was a trifle -hazy about what had happened. - -The man had boarded the car at Kelo. The messenger said he had received -several packages from the agent at Kelo, and had gone to place them -before closing the door. The wind was blowing a gale, and he did not -hear the man come in. In fact he merely surmised that the man got on at -Kelo, because as far as he knew there was no other man than himself on -the car when they stopped at Kelo. - -At any rate, the man had forced him at the point of a revolver to close -and lock the door, and had made him sit down and wait for the train to -pull out. There was quite a long delay, and the bandit seemed rather -nervous. - -In fact he grew so nervous that he knocked the messenger unconscious -with his gun, and the messenger didn’t know that the safe had been blown -open. He dimly remembered a loud noise, but was in no shape to find out -what it was. Anyway, the robber had bound and placed him behind some -trunks out of the way of the explosion. - -He was just a little sick all over, yet he gave Len Kelsey a fairly good -description of the robber--as good as usually is given. A masked man of -medium height. Might have been tall, or possibly short. Wore black -sombrero, striped shirt, overalls and boots. No vest. The shirt might -have been blue and white--or red and green. The messenger wasn’t sure. -He noted particularly that the robber had a six-shooter in his right -hand, and that he wore leather cuffs--black leather, with silver stars -in a circle around the upper edge of the cuffs. - -“Was there any money in the safe?” asked Len. - -“A lot of it,” declared the messenger. “I don’t know how much. I’d like -to see a doctor about my head.” - -Slim Coleman, of the Lazy B, happened to be there at the depot, and he -walked back with Len Kelsey. - -“What do yuh think about it, Len?” he asked. - -“I dunno,” lied Len. - -Slim had noted the expression of Len’s face when the messenger told -about the leather cuffs. - -When Joe Rich had left Pinnacle City he was wearing a blue and white -striped shirt, black sombrero, overalls and a pair of black leather -cuffs, on which were riveted a lot of small, silver stars. Joe had done -the decorating himself, and Slim knew that no other cowboy in the -Tumbling River country wore a cuff like Joe’s. - -Len did not seem inclined to talk about it, so Slim went back to the -depot, where old Doctor Curzon was bandaging up the messenger’s head. A -drink of raw liquor had helped to make the messenger more sociable and -willing to talk. - -“You got a good look at his gun, didn’t yuh?” asked Slim. - -“I felt it,” smiled the messenger, wincing slightly from Doctor Curzon’s -ministrations. - -“What did it look like?” - -“Very large caliber--about six inches in diameter.” The man laughed at -his description. “Weighed a ton. Seriously, I can’t describe it, but it -seems to me that it had a white handle. Perhaps it was yellow, like -bone. You know what I mean--not pearl. It was a Colt, I am sure.” - -Slim sighed deeply. - -“Man wear any rings on his fingers?” - -“I didn’t see any.” - -Slim went back uptown. Joe Rich carried a Colt .45 with a yellow bone -handle. Slim remembered when Joe had carved out those pieces of bone, -working for days, at odd times, shaping the grip to fit his hand. Slim -didn’t know of another cowpuncher in the country that carried a -bone-handled gun. - -The news spread quickly around the town that the safe of the passenger -train had been blown by a lone bandit who wore silver stars on his cuffs -and carried a bone-handled gun. Joe Rich’s name did not need to be -mentioned. Len Kelsey did nothing, because there was nothing to be done. -The telegraph wires were down and there was no use in his riding out -into the storm. Even if the robber did get out at the river bridge, the -storm would wipe out any tracks he might make, and even if there were no -storm, how could he track one man? - -Len Kelsey was very wise. He stayed at home where it was warm and dry, -and went to bed. He had sufficient description to prove who had pulled -the job, and he had already worn out two perfectly good horses trying to -find this elusive young man. - - - - -CHAPTER VI: HASHKNIFE SMELLS A RAT - - -Sometime during that night the trouble shooters for the telegraph -company had repaired the break, and this enabled the despatchers to -straighten out the trains. The cattle-train headed out of Pinnacle City -the following morning, minus two cowboys. - -The depot agent knew about this, and told Len Kelsey that there were two -lost cowpunchers somewhere on the east side of the river. The agent knew -from what he had heard the crew of the cattle-train say that these men -had left the train, intending to walk down to the wagon-bridge. But he -also knew they had taken their war-bags with them and had buckled on -their belts and guns before leaving the train. - -“Kinda looks as though they intended missin’ the train,” said Kelsey. - -“Might be worth investigating, Sheriff. The passenger was close behind -the cattle-train for a long time out there by the bridge. And that -express messenger had been hit so hard on the head that he wasn’t sure -of anything.” - -“Sure--I’ll look into it,” agreed Len. “I won’t leave any stone -unturned.” - -He had read this in a book, and it sounded like the proper thing for a -sheriff to say. - -* * * * * - -Hashknife and Sleepy did not mention to Peggy that Honey Bee had told -them about her troubles. She was in good spirits that morning, and even -Wong Lee sang at his work. Laura told Honey that Peggy had talked quite -a while about the tall cowboy and his wonderful grin--and Honey told -Hashknife about it. - -“Didn’t either of ’em mention me?” asked Sleepy. “No? That’s tough. But -how could I grin, with my jaw all swelled? But that’s jist my luck!” - -Honey offered to take them to Pinnacle City in the buggy. They were -hitching up the horses when Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston rode in. - -“Now, what do them ---- whippoorwills want?” growled Honey. “That’s the -sheriff and deputy.” - -“What had we ought to do--put up our hands?” asked Sleepy. - -The two officers dismounted and spoke to Honey. - -“Howdy,” growled Honey. - -Hashknife could plainly see that Honey Bee did not care for these two -officers of the law. - -Len Kelsey studied Hashknife and Sleepy for a moment. - -“I reckon you boys are the two missin’ members of the cattle-train -outfit, eh?” - -“If there’s two missin’--we’re both of ’em,” said Hashknife gravely. -“Has the train left Pinnacle City?” - -“Before daylight.” - -“Stranded again,” groaned Sleepy. “I’ll never see the East, that’s a -cinch.” - -Hashknife hitched up his belt and leaned against the buggy. - -“Yuh wasn’t exactly lookin’ for us, was yuh?” he asked. - -“I don’t hardly think so,” replied Kelsey. “The safe on the express car -of the passenger train that stopped back of yuh at the bridge last night -was dynamited somewhere between Kelo and Pinnacle City.” - -Hashknife and Sleepy exchanged a quick glance. That might explain why a -shot had been fired at them in the dark. They had blundered into the -bandit who was making his getaway. - -“For gosh sake!” snorted Honey. “Did they get much, Len?” - -“Dunno how much. One man pulled the job, Honey--a man who wore black -leather cuffs with silver stars, and a bone handled six-shooter.” - -“Leather cuffs with silver stars and bone--” Honey stopped and came in -closer to the sheriff. - -“Are yuh sure of that, Len?” - -“That’s the messenger’s description.” - -“Well, for gosh sake!” - -Honey looked toward the house, shaking his head sadly. - -“You recognize the description?” asked Hashknife. - -“Joe Rich,” said Honey. “He made the stars and put ’em on a pair of -black cuffs and he made the bone handles for his gun. Yuh say yuh don’t -know how much he got, Len?” - -“No, I don’t, Honey. But it was enough, I reckon.” - -“Uh-huh. Excuse me, I forgot to introduce you gents.” - -After the introduction they all sat down on the steps of the bunk-house -and rolled smokes. Hashknife did not tell the sheriff about the shot -that was fired at them in the dark. - -“I dunno just where to start,” admitted Kelsey. “I’ve been huntin’ Joe -Rich all over these hills, and now he comes back and robs a train right -under my nose.” - -Kelsey, who was still wearing his arm in a sling, noticed Hashknife -looking at it. - -“A little souvenir of makin’ a fool move,” he said. - -“Yeah, I heard about it,” nodded Hashknife. “Joe Rich must be pretty -fast with a gun, eh?” - -“Fast enough,” growled Kelsey. “Funny, ain’t it? Here I was his deputy -all this time, and now I’m huntin’ him. Don’t seem right.” - -“Are yuh dead sure it is?” asked Hashknife seriously. - -Kelsey looked quickly at him. - -“Dead sure?” Kelsey laughed shortly. “Well, about as sure as anythin’ -could be, Hartley. I dunno what got into Joe. He was sure strong on -enforcin’ the law, and now he seems just as strong on breakin’ it.” - -“Them’s the kind that go wrong--when they do go,” said Ralston. - -“Yeah, you know a ---- of a lot about it,” snorted Honey. - -“Well, it allus works out that way.” - -“It does, eh? I suppose yuh knowed two months ago that Joe Rich would -turn out bad. What do yuh use--palmistry or one of them glass balls?” - -“Aw, yuh don’t need to get sore, Honey.” - -“Thasso? Every time I think about Joe, I get sore. I wish I knowed where -he was hidin’ out.” - -“Me, too,” grinned Kelsey. “I’d be a thousand better off.” - -“Yea-a-a-ah? Well, when you find out where he is, yuh better take plenty -of help along to get him, Len; two of yuh ain’t enough.” - -Kelsey could see that the argument might wax rather hot; so he got to -his feet, stretched wearily and told Ralston they better be going. -Nobody asked them to stay. Honey looked after them morosely. - -“Don’t like ’em, eh?” queried Hashknife. - -“No! You boys go ahead and hitch up the team. I’ve got to tell the girls -about that robbery. I sure as ---- hate to tell Peggy that they think -Joe pulled that job, but I’d rather tell her than to have her get it -from somebody else.” - -The team was hitched when Honey came back, and he drove out to the main -road. - -“How did she take it?” asked Hashknife. Honey looked at Hashknife, a -pained expression on his face. - -“A-a-a-aw, ----!” he said explosively. - -“Does she believe it?” - -“Huh! I dunno what she believes. Yuh can’t tell nothin’ about a woman, -Hartley. She didn’t say anythin’. I was wonderin’ if she heard what I -told her, but I reckon she did. Anyway she didn’t say anythin’--jist -walked away.” - -They jolted along over the rough road. Honey turned to Hashknife, a grin -on his lips. - -“I ain’t no gentleman,” he said. - -“Ain’t yuh?” asked Hashknife. - -“Nossir,” Honey shook his head violently. “Can’t lie good enough. Laura -said I ought to be crowned with an ax-handle for comin’ in and tellin’ -Peggy that Joe Rich robbed the train. She said I should have lied about -it.” - -“Mebbe yuh should.” - -“Cinch! Giddap! I always think of a lie too late. Some day I’m goin’ to -be hung for tellin’ the truth.” - -“You’ll be the first puncher that ever had that honor,” said Sleepy. -“There’s that bridge we was huntin’ for, Hashknife. If we’d ’a’ found it -last night, we’d be on our way East right now.” - -“Glad yuh didn’t,” grinned Honey, as they rattled over the loose -floor-planks of the bridge. “It’s only a little ways out here to where -Jim Wheeler was killed. I’ll show yuh the place.” - -He drove off the bridge and around to the spot where Joe had found Jim -Wheeler. Honey knew the exact spot and drew just off the road. Hashknife -walked up and down the road while Honey explained things to him. The -rain of the night before had laid the dust, and the road was almost as -smooth as asphalt. - -After looking the place over they rode on to Pinnacle City, where they -met Uncle Hozie Wheeler and Aunt Emma. Honey introduced them to -Hashknife and Sleepy, and told how they happened to be in the Tumbling -River country. - -They had heard about the train robbery. It seemed to be the general -opinion that Joe Rich had done it. - -“I knowed him a long time,” said Uncle Hozie. “He never struck me as -bein’ a bad boy in any way. I don’t sabe him. Why he jist went all to ----- in a week!” - -“Does Peggy know about it?” asked Aunt Emma. - -“Yeah,” Honey nodded solemnly. “Yeah, she knows. But I’ve told her the -last bad news I’ll ever tell.” - -“Took it hard, did she, Honey?” - -“I dunno. She never said anythin’. Laura give me ----. Sometimes I think -that girl don’t care for the truth. Oh, if she wants lies, I reckon I -can supply her.” - -Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma were going to ride out to the HJ to see the -girls. Curt Bellew and Ed Merrick were at the Pinnacle. They shook hands -with Honey, who introduced Hashknife and Sleepy. - -“What do yuh think of Joe Rich now?” asked Curt, after he had invited -them to share his hospitality. - -“Jist the same as I always did,” declared Honey. “Somethin’ has gone -wrong with the boy. How’s the Circle M, Merrick?” - -“All right, Honey. I’ll bet yore old ranch-house leaked last night.” - -“Did it? My gosh, I’ll betcha it did. Ask Hartley and Stevens; they -showed up in the rain. Yuh see, they was on that stalled cow-train, and -Stevens had a toothache; so they tried to find their way to the -wagon-bridge in order to get to town. But I reckon they got kinda lost, -and ended up at the HJ.” - -Merrick laughed. - -“I don’t believe I could have found my way either--as well as I know the -country. Whew! It sure was dark and wet. My place didn’t leak, but it -got damp. Are you boys goin’ to be with us a while?” - -“I dunno,” Hashknife leaned an elbow on the bar and began rolling a -cigaret. “It looks as though Fate kinda dropped us off here for some -reason or other.” - -“Too bad it’s the slack season. I’m short two men of my regular crew, -but there ain’t enough work for me and Ben Collins and ‘Dutch’ Seibert. -Later on I might use yuh.” - -“I loaned Honey to the HJ,” laughed Bellew. “I’ve still got Eph Harper -and Slim Coleman on my hands. Ma says that’s two men too many. She allus -says I’m tryin’ to make a mountain out of a molehill--meanin’ that I -can’t ever hire enough men to make the Lazy B a big cow-outfit.” - -While they were drinking a man came in whom the bartender seemed to -know. It was the telegraph operator at the depot. He bought a drink and -a cigar. - -“I suppose the sheriff is hunting bandits,” he said. - -“We seen him out at the HJ this morn-in’,” offered Honey. - -The man nodded. - -“I was just over to his office, but there wasn’t anybody home. Had a -telegram for him from Ransome. They found a little gold penknife in the -express car. It didn’t belong to the messenger, he said. The wire said -there were the initials J. R. on the handle.” - -“J. R.?” said Honey. “Little gold knife! My gosh, that’s the knife Peggy -gave Joe for his birthday!” - -“I dunno,” said the man vacantly. “All I know is what the wire said. I -reckon it will keep until the sheriff gets back.” - -He went out, and Merrick laughed softly. - -“He guesses it will keep. Ha, ha, ha, ha!” - -Honey leaned on the bar and looked dismally at himself in the mirror. - -“I’ll not tell Peggy,” he declared, but amended it with, “I might come -right out and tell her that if anybody says they found Joe Rich’s gold -knife on that car--they lie.” - -“Why even mention it?” asked Hashknife. - -“Mebbe that’s the best thing to do. Oh, they’ve got Joe cinched!” - -“But he overlooked one bet,” said Hashknife thoughtfully. - -“What was that?” asked Merrick. - -“He forgot to carve his name on the safe.” - -“Is that meant to be serious?” asked Merrick. - -“No-o-o-o,” drawled Hashknife. “I suppose I’m jokin’.” - -“Aw, he wouldn’t write his name on the safe,” said Honey. - -“Might as well,” grinned Hashknife. “It sure shows that Joe is a -beginner at the game. A regular hold-up man don’t tag his work -thataway.” - -Merrick looked seriously at Hashknife. “You talk as though you were -familiar with hold-up men, Hartley.” - -“No; I just use common sense, Merrick.” - -“Uh-huh. Well, it’s a good thing to use. A lot of us don’t do it.” - -“No, that’s true,” admitted Hashknife seriously. - -Merrick scratched his chin and turned back to the bar. He wasn’t exactly -sure whether this tall, level-eyed cowboy was making fun of him or not. -He had the feeling that he was, but there was nothing to justify this -feeling. Both of the strange cowboys were very serious of face, and -Sleepy’s blue eyes looked entirely innocent. But Merrick did not know -that Sleepy’s innocent blue eyes were his greatest asset. - -“I wonder if the sheriff’s office had anythin’ to go on this mornin’,” -said Merrick. - -“Couple of horses,” replied Sleepy. “Now let me buy a drink, will yuh?” - -“I’ve got to go kinda easy,” said Curt Bellew. “I git down here and lap -up liquor, and have to eat cloves all the way back to the ranch.” - -“And then prove why yuh ate cloves,” grinned Honey. - -“Sure. Honey, if yo’re a wise boy, you’ll stay sober and single.” - -“A-a-aw, I don’t drink much, Curt.” - -“Yuh don’t get married much either, do yuh?” - -“Well,” laughed Honey, “I won’t get drunk and forget to get married.” - -Bellew and Merrick left the saloon and a few minutes later Honey, -Hashknife and Sleepy stocked up on tobacco and rode back to the HJ. - -“I feel foolish goin’ back there,” said Hashknife. “Kinda looks as -though we were imposin’ on yuh.” - -“Yuh throw that in a can,” said Honey. “Yo’re welcome to stay as long as -yuh can. I can’t quite sabe you two boys.” - -“Jist in what way?” - -“Well, I never seen yuh before until last night. Yuh come in and I -forget that I don’t know yuh. I tell yuh all about the trouble, -and--well, yuh know what I mean don’tcha? It jist seemed the natural -thing, to do. And Wong Lee took to yuh. Wong’s kinda funny thataway. - -“Why, sometimes the boys from the Circle M stop here. Yuh see they go -past here to their ranch from town. Wong ain’t never spoken to one of -’em. Other fellers show up here at meal-time, and Wong says nothin’. But -he shore talked to yuh, and promised yuh more meals. Do dogs ever foller -yuh?” - -“Sometimes,” laughed Hashknife. - -“I’ll betcha. Never bite yuh, do they?” - -“Haven’t yet.” - -“Never will. Huh!” Honey jerked up on the lines. “I know what the word -is. I read somethin’ about it in a magazine. It’s called personality. -Know what it means, Hartley?” - -“Yeah, I think I do.” - -“Well, that’s what you’ve got. Giddap, broncs! Joe Rich had it. His must -’a’ back-fired on him.” - -Hashknife laughed. Honey Bee was so sincere in his statements. - -“Was Rich a good sheriff?” asked Hashknife. - -“Y’betcha. Joe was a man that wouldn’t stop at anythin’ to enforce the -law. Some men kinda play fav’rites, yuh know. But Joe wasn’t that kind. -At least I don’t reckon he was, and I knew him awful well.” - -“How did it happen that you wasn’t his deputy?” - -“Politics,” explained Honey. “Merrick controls a lot of votes in this -county, and he told Joe he’d support him if he’d appoint Len Kelsey -deputy. Joe agreed, and it was the Merrick vote that won for Joe.” - -“Who was the other candidate?” - -“John Leeds, of Ransome. He’s a hard old customer, Hartley. He was -sheriff before Joe was elected, and he made a lot of enemies. Pretty -smart, too. I’ll betcha, if old John was sheriff he’d ’a’ been on the -trail of that robber before daylight. He was a sticker, old John was, -and nobody ever told him what to do. Mebbe that’s why he got beat.” - -They drove along to where Jim Wheeler had been killed, and Hashknife -leaned out of the buggy. But he did not say anything. They drove across -the bridge and to the HJ, where they saw the Flying H buggy team tied to -the front porch. - -“Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma,” said Honey. “They’re salt of the earth, -gents. Always tryin’ to do somethin’ for yuh. Aunt Emma hops all over -yuh for doin’ somethin’, but all the time she’s laughin’ inside at yuh. -They don’t make ’em any better. Hozie and Jim was pretty thick, and it -hurt Hozie to see old Jim pass out. He didn’t say much--but that’s his -way. Tears don’t show much--except moisture.” - -Hashknife and Sleepy went to the bunk-house, and did not see Uncle Hozie -and his wife until they were ready to drive away. Honey had told them -about the gold-handled knife, but did not tell Peggy. A little later Ed -Merrick stopped on his way out to the Circle M and talked with the three -cowboys about the robbery of the night before. He was expecting a horse -buyer from Kelo, so did not linger long. - -“How are prices in this range?” asked Hashknife. - -“Depends on the buyer,” replied Merrick. “Some of ’em play square with -yuh. The horse market ain’t very strong, and we have to almost take -what’s offered. This buyer wants quite a lot of horses, so he says.” - -“For Eastern market?” - -“Yeah, I think so. Anyway, the buyer is from the East.” - -Merrick rode away and a few minutes later Wong Lee rang the dinner bell. -Peggy and Laura did not eat with the boys, but a little later Hashknife -wandered around the rear of the house and found Peggy sitting on an old -bench in the shade of the cottonwoods, a picture of abject lonesomeness. - -Hashknife squatted down on his heels against the tree and rolled a -cigaret. Neither of them had spoken. Peggy sighed and leaned back -against the bole of the tree, watching Hashknife’s long, lean fingers -fashion a cigaret. - -“My, it’s shore peaceful out here!” said Hashknife. - -Peggy nodded slowly. - -“Yes, it is peaceful.” - -“It kinda looks as though we were imposin’ on yuh.” - -“You are not,” declared Peggy quickly. “I’m glad you came. And I don’t -know why I’m glad. Queer, isn’t it?” - -“Yeah, it’s queer. Life’s a queer thing. Yesterday we were on our way -East in that caboose, when the bridge caught fire and changed -everythin’. Yuh never know what will come tomorrow.” - -“I realize that, Mr. Hartley. I suppose Honey has told you of the things -that have happened lately.” - -“Well, yeah, I reckon we’ve heard quite a lot about it, ma’am. It shore -was tough luck. Are yuh goin’ away with Miss Hatton?” - -“No; I can’t.” - -“Uh-huh.” - -“Oh, it doesn’t matter,” she said wearily. “You see, I’ve got to stay -and see that things are straightened up. Dad owed the bank seven -thousand. Oh, I wish he had let things go as they were! I didn’t need -that trip. He was so thoughtful of me, and he thought I’d like to get -away for a while. Now he’s gone, and the ranch--we’ll have to sell -everything in order to pay the debts.” - -“That’s shore tough. Miss Wheeler, I’d like to know more about Joe Rich. -I don’t like to be personal, but I’d like to get yore opinion of him.” - -“My opinion?” Peggy laughed bitterly. “I don’t think it is worth much, -Mr. Hartley.” - -“Yore honest opinion, I mean.” - -“My honest opinion?” - -“Yeah. Yuh see we all have two opinions on things like that--the one we -express and the one we hide.” - -“I--I think I know what you mean, Mr. Hartley.” - -“Fine. I wish you’d leave the mister off my name. All my friends call me -Hashknife. When anybody says ‘Mr. Hartley’ I look around to see who -they’re speakin’ to. Now, yuh jist go ahead and tell me about Joe Rich.” - -Peggy looked earnestly at Hashknife. - -“Why should I? Why do you wish to know about Joe Rich--my opinion of -him? Who are you, anyway?” - -Hashknife studied his boot-toes for several moments, but finally looked -up at her with a grin in his eyes. - -“It’s kinda queer,” he admitted. “But I’m one of them funny folks who -always asks questions. All my life I’ve asked a lot of questions, Miss -Wheeler. Sometimes I find out things. I’m like the feller who said he -made up his mind to kiss every pretty woman he met. Somebody said-- - -“‘I’ll bet you got whipped a lot of times,’ and he said-- - -“‘Well, yeah, I did, but I shore got a lot of kisses.’ - -“And that’s the way with me--except that I was after answers instead of -kisses.” - -Peggy laughed with him. - -“But I don’t see yet,” she said. “What good will my opinion do you? What -do you want to know about Joe Rich?” - -“Well, it’s like this, Miss Wheeler: Yore opinion of him will go quite a -ways with me. If I was to come right out and ask yuh if yuh loved Joe -Rich in spite of everythin’ he’s done to yuh--what would yuh say?” - -Peggy turned her head away and rested her chin on her hand. After a -space of time she shook her head. - -“That isn’t a fair question,” she said softly. - -“No, but yuh gave me a fair answer,” said Hashknife. “I’d like to shake -hands with yuh, Miss Wheeler.” - -Wonderingly she shook hands with him, and he smiled down at her, his -gray eyes twinkling. - -“But I--I didn’t answer you,” she said, choking slightly. - -“Oh, yes yuh did, Peggy. I’m goin’ to call yuh Peggy. If yuh can love -him in spite of everythin’ he’s done, by golly, he’s worth savin’ for -yuh.” - -“Worth saving?” Peggy got to her feet. “I don’t understand. How can you -save him?” - -“I dunno exactly,” Hashknife scratched his head, tilting his sombrero -over one eye. “But there ain’t nothin’ that can’t be done.” - -“But what could save him? Why, they’re hunting for him now--offering a -big reward.” - -The tears came into her eyes and she turned away. Hashknife patted her -on the shoulder. - -“Keep smilin’,” he said softly. “Remember how it was here last night? -All wind and rain, wasn’t it? And today the sun is shinin’ and the sky -is blue. Life’s like that, Peggy. The old sky gets pretty black and all -clouded up, but the old sun is always on the job, and it breaks through -eventually.” - -“It is wonderful to look at things in that way, Hashknife.” - -“I think so, Peggy. My old man was that way. He preached the gospel in -bunk-houses and out on the range. But he didn’t wear a long face and say -long prayers. He said he wasn’t trying to make folks fit to die--he was -makin’ ’em fit to live. And after all, that’s the gospel. If yo’re fit -to live, yuh’ll be fit to die. And when yo’re fit to live yuh’ll always -see the sun behind the clouds.” - -Peggy smiled at him through her tears. “I’m glad you came here,” she -said simply, and went back to the house. - -Hashknife sat down on the bench and rolled a fresh cigaret. Sleepy had -been sitting on the bunk-house steps, but now he came up to Hashknife -and sat down beside him. - -“Well, what do yuh know, cowboy?” queried Sleepy. - -“What do I know?” Hashknife grinned wistfully at his smoke. “I know I’ve -bit off a ---- of a big chew for one man to masticate.” - -“Yeah,” nodded Sleepy, “yuh mostly always do, Hashknife.” - -“Uh-huh. Where’s Honey?” - -“Settin’ on the front porch with Laura. By golly, if this keeps up I’m -goin’ to get me a squaw! You at one end of the place and Honey at the -other. While Mister Stevens sets on the bunk-house steps all alone. And -he’s the best-lookin’ man on the ranch, too.” - -“Who is--Honey?” - -“Na-a-aw--Stevens! Honey’s second.” - -“And I’m third,” grinned Hashknife.” - -“Sure,” said Sleepy. “Wong Lee don’t count, because he’s a Chinaman.” - -“I’m glad one entry is scratched. There goes the sheriff and his hired -hand.” - -Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston rode past, heading for the old bridge. - -“Reckon they didn’t have very good luck,” observed Sleepy. “That must -’a’ been Joe Rich we almost ran into in the rain. He was just makin’ his -getaway, eh?” - -“Looks thataway, Sleepy. Mebbe we should ’a’ told the sheriff about it.” - -“That wouldn’t help him any; yuh can’t foller horse tracks.” - -“No, yuh can’t,” agreed Hashknife getting up. “I reckon we better go -down and see how many ridin’ rigs there are on this place, and pick out -a horse.” - -“Yuh mean to stay here a while, Hashknife?” - -“It ain’t an unpleasant place, is it?” - -“No-o-o, but--” - -“Yuh didn’t hope to catch that train, didja?” - -“The cattle-train? Certainly not.” - -“Have yuh got any other place you’d like to go to?” - -“No-o-o-o, I reckon not, Hashknife.” - -“Fine! Then yuh don’t mind stayin’ a day or so, eh?” - -They looked seriously at each other for a moment and both grinned widely -as they headed for the stable. - - - - -CHAPTER VII: CITY VS. RANGE - - -The following day William H. Cates, a special investigator of the -Wells-Fargo, came to Pinnacle City, and went into a lengthy session with -Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston. Cates was a big, burly man with a square -jaw and blue eyes. In fifteen minutes he knew as much as Kelsey did -about the robbery and the life of Joe Rich. - -Cates’ questions were snappy and to the point. But what he learned was -of little value to him. Cates was a city man, an ex-detective of San -Francisco. He knew much more about pavements than he did about ranges, -and he was not egotistical enough to expect much success in this case. - -“The idea seems to be--get Joe Rich,” he said. - -“Yeah, that’s the idea,” agreed Kelsey, resting his heels on the desk. -“But how are yuh goin’ to get him, pardner?” - -“We’ve been after him for days,” grumbled Ralston. - -“He got over twenty thousand that last haul,” said the detective. - -“My gosh, was there that much in the safe?” exploded Kelsey. “Whew!” - -“That much, at least, Sheriff. The company are offering a reward of -twenty-five hundred.” - -“I didn’t know they carried that much,” said Ralston. - -“Well, they do. Sometimes more, sometimes less.” - -“Well, what do yuh propose doin’?” asked Kelsey. - -“Keep looking for Joe Rich, I suppose. You say he’s got a lot of friends -around here?” - -Kelsey nodded glumly, remembering how the cowboys had avoided riding -after Joe. - -“Yeah, yuh can’t expect much help, Cates. They’ll all spot yuh--and -these cowpunchers can shore be clams.” - -“Oh, I’m not going out to hunt him,” smiled Cates. “I’d be a fool to do -that. When you boys can’t find him--what could I do? I don’t know this -country. Why, I haven’t been on a horse for fifteen years! - -“Nope,” Cates sighed deeply. “This is no job for a man like me. What -this needs is a man like Hashknife Hartley.” - -“Hashknife Hartley?” - -Kelsey pricked up his ears and took his feet off the desk. Jack Ralston -showed proper interest. - -Cates nodded slowly as he bit the end off a cigar. - -“Yes, he might do something with it. Ever hear of him?” - -“What about him?” asked Kelsey quickly. - -Cates smiled as he puffed his cigar. - -“I never met him,” he said slowly. “One of those sagebrush Sherlocks, I -suppose. Maybe I hadn’t ought to make fun of him--he did some good work -for my company. Oh, I’ve heard a lot about what he has done. It’s our -business to keep track of all those things, you see. But some of it -sounds rather mythical.” - -“Well, that’s shore funny,” said Kelsey. “There’s a Hartley and Stevens -out at the HJ ranch right now.” - -“Eh? Cates stared at Kelsey. “Hashknife Hartley?” - -“I dunno; name’s Hartley.” - -“Stevens? Huh! Say, I believe he has a partner by that name. Wouldn’t -that be funny if it was Hashknife Hartley. How do you get out to that HJ -ranch?” - -“We can take yuh out, Cates.” - -“Fine. But how do they happen to be here?” - -Kelsey told him about the burning bridge and the stalled cattle-train. - -“But do yuh reckon they’ll work on the case?” asked Jack Ralston. - -“We can soon find out. I’m curious to see him. It may not be the same -man, but we can soon find that out, too.” - -Kelsey obtained a buggy at the livery-stable, in which he and Cates rode -out to the HJ, while Ralston followed them on horseback. But they did -not find Hashknife and Sleepy at the ranch. Kelsey introduced Cates to -the two girls, and Cates found out that Hartley’s name was Hashknife. - -“They rode away this morning with Honey Bee,” said Peggy. “No, I don’t -know where they were going, Mr. Kelsey, nor when they’ll come back.” - -“I see,” nodded Cates. “Well, would you mind telling Hartley that -William Cates, of the Wells-Fargo, is in Pinnacle City and is anxious to -see him?” - -“Why, certainly I’ll tell him,” replied Peggy. “Do you know him?” - -Cates smiled and shook his head. - -“Only by reputation. I happened to mention his name to the sheriff and -found that he was here at your ranch. He will find me at the Pinnacle -Hotel.” - -They rode back to the gate, where Ralston told Kelsey he was going out -to the Circle M. - -“I’ve got a pair of boots out there,” explained Ralston. “And if I don’t -get ’em pretty soon, somebody’ll be wearin’ ’em.” - -Ralston spurred away, while Kelsey and Cates rode back to Pinnacle City. - -* * * * * - -In the meantime Hashknife, Sleepy and Honey were riding through the -hills south of the HJ. Hashknife rode a tall roan horse and Jim -Wheeler’s saddle and Sleepy bestrode a Roman-nosed buckskin and a saddle -which had been purchased for Peggy. - -Honey led them out on a high pinnacle where they could look over a great -part of the Tumbling River range. To the southwest, about a mile away, -was the Circle M ranch, half-hidden in a clump of green trees. To the -northwest was the Lazy B, three miles away, which Honey was able to -locate definitely by a gash in the hills. They could follow the windings -of Tumbling River for miles in each direction. To the east of them was -the railroad, winding around through the hills. - -They could see the ribbon of smoke from a passing train heading for -Kelo. Far down on the wagon-road they could see a lone rider heading for -the Circle M. It was Jack Ralston, going after his boots, though they -didn’t know it. - -“Is it possible to ford the river near the HJ?” asked Hashknife, as they -turned to ride back. - -“The old ford is about two hundred yards below the bridge,” said Honey. -“There’s an old sand-bar. Some of the old road may be washed out by this -time, but I reckon yuh could get across all right.” - -“Don’tcha like to cross on bridges?” grinned Sleepy. - -“Oh, sure. But sometimes I get finicky.” - -They swung down off the hills and struck the road, which they followed -back to the HJ. Peggy came down to the corral and delivered Cates’ -message to Hashknife. The tall cowboy did not change expression, but -leaned one elbow against the corral fence, as she told him about the -coming of Kelsey, Ralston and Cates to see him. - -“He didn’t know you were here,” she explained. “But he mentioned your -name, and Mr. Kelsey told him where he could find you.” - -“I don’t reckon I know Mr. Cates, Peggy.” - -“He said you didn’t, but he wants to see you.” - -“Oh, yeah. Thank yuh very much, Peggy. How are yuh feelin’?” - -“Better.” - -“That’s great. I hope Wong Lee won’t throw me out for the appetite I’ve -got tonight.” - -Peggy laughed and assured him that Wong Lee loved people who had big -appetites. Honey was a trifle curious about what Cates wanted. - -“Said he was a Wells-Fargo man, eh? Prob’ly a detective.” - -“Prob’ly,” said Hashknife dryly, hanging up his saddle. - -“Just about how in ---- did he happen to mention you?” wondered Sleepy. - -Hashknife did not reply, but Sleepy knew that he was just a trifle -curious himself. But both of them realized that they had figured in -deals which affected the Wells-Fargo, and it would not be at all strange -if an express company investigator had heard of them. - -But they did not go to Pinnacle City that night. Hashknife did not seem -at all interested in finding Mr. Cates, and Sleepy knew Hashknife too -well to insist that they go to town. But Cates was not to be denied a -chance to talk with Hashknife. He and Kelsey drove out to the HJ early -the following morning and found everybody at breakfast. - -Hashknife left the table and met them at the porch. Kelsey introduced -them, and Cates lost no time in telling Hashknife who he was and why he -was in the Tumbling River country. - -“But I can’t do any good here, Hartley. I was talking with the sheriff -about the case, and I told him it was a deal that required a man like -you. I hadn’t the slightest idea that you were here in the country. Yes, -we’ve heard a lot about you and your ability. I am sure the company will -pay you well for your services, and all I have to do is to send a wire.” - -“But there ain’t nothin’ to it, except catchin’ Joe Rich,” said -Hashknife. “I don’t know this country, Cates. When the sheriff’s office, -bein’ familiar with the country, can’t get him, what chance would a -stranger have? Anyway, I’m not a man-hunter, Cates.” - -“No?” Cates lifted his eyebrows slightly. “Perhaps some of the stories -I’ve heard were not true.” - -“They hardly ever are,” seriously. “No, you’ve got me wrong, Cates. -Never in my life did I go out and get a man who was wanted by the -law--never took a man with a price on his head. That’s a job for a -sheriff or a policeman.” - -“Well, maybe that’s true, Hartley. There’s a nice reward for Joe Rich. -Means about thirty-five hundred dollars.” - -“I don’t want it,” said Hashknife flatly. - -“Don’t want it?” Cates laughed huskily. “You’re a queer bird, Hartley. -Ain’t you interested in putting criminals behind the bars?” - -“Not a ---- bit. Don’t believe in the ‘eye for an eye’ theory. Never put -a man behind the bars that I didn’t wish it hadn’t happened.” - -“Do yuh mean to say that you never collected a reward?” asked Kelsey. - -“Never.” - -Kelsey laughed shortly. - -“You must be pretty ---- rich to turn down good money. Cates has told me -that you and yore pardner have cleaned up a lot of bad-man outfits, and -there’s usually a reward for a bad man.” - -“Unless he hides his light under a bushel, Kelsey.” - -“Uh-huh. Well, Joe Rich don’t hide his, that’s a cinch.” - -Hashknife grinned widely. - -“You’ve got to admire him, just the same. He’s operatin’ in his own -country, and he ain’t tryin’ to disguise himself a whole lot. And it -looks to me as though he’s makin’ a monkey out of yore office.” - -“What do yuh mean, Hartley?” - -“By stayin’ around here. It don’t look to me as though he was scared of -yuh, Kelsey.” - -“I see what yuh mean.” - -“Well, can’t I induce you to work with us, Hartley?” asked Cates. “I can -put you on the pay-roll in thirty minutes after I get back to town. I -tell you, I’m helpless; and the sheriff admits that he can’t do -anything.” - -Hashknife shook his head slowly. - -“No-o-o, I’m not interested, Cates. As I said before, it’s just a case -of goin’ out and gettin’ a man who knows every blade of grass in this -country by its first name. What the sheriff ought to do is to make up a -posse and comb this whole country. He must be hidin’ in the valley.” - -“Fine chance!” snorted Kelsey. “In the first place I’d have a hard time -gettin’ any men. Joe is too popular. And in the second place, with all -the friends Joe’s got--well, figure it out for yourself.” - -“Do yuh think somebody is hidin’ him, Kelsey?” - -“I won’t say that, but it could happen.” - -“Yeah, I think so,” nodded Hashknife. - -“Well, then you don’t care to come in on the deal, eh?” queried Cates. - -“Nope. Oh, I’m much obliged to yuh and all that, but it’s out of my -line, Cates. I wish yuh luck.” - -Cates laughed sourly. - -“I’ll need it, Hartley.” - -They shook hands with Hashknife and went back to their buggy. Hashknife -watched them ride away and turned to see Sleepy and Honey standing in -the doorway. - -“We snuck out and listened,” said Honey truthfully. - -Hashknife smiled at them and rolled a cigaret. - -“It kinda looks to me as though the law is stuck,” observed Honey. - -“It is,” smiled Hashknife. - -He scratched a match on the steps, lighted his cigaret and turned to -Honey. - -“Honey, who is there in this country that likes Joe Rich and didn’t like -Jim Wheeler?” - -Honey scratched his elbow on his hip and blinked. - -“Never heard of anythin’ like that,” he said. “Everybody liked Jim, and -everybody liked Joe. What’sa idea, Hashknife?” - -“Just curiosity. Everybody knows that Joe Rich stole that five thousand -from Jim Wheeler, and the sheriff thinks somebody is hidin’ Joe.” - -“I see yore idea. He thinks Joe is bein’ taken care of by somebody, eh?” - -“That’s the only solution, Honey. He’s got to eat and have a place to -hide out. It must be somebody that likes Joe too well to turn him in for -the reward--somebody that don’t care about the loss of the HJ.” - -“By golly, that’s right! But who could it be?” - -“That’s it,” grumbled Sleepy. - -“Well, he could ’a’ made out long enough to have robbed the train,” said -Honey. “He’s prob’ly high-tailin’ it out of the country right now. It -looks to me as though he’s about twenty-five thousand dollars ahead of -the game, and a man’s a ---- fool who never knows when he’s got enough.” - -“Easy money,” said Hashknife thoughtfully. “No man ever quits takin’ -easy money.” - -“Yuh don’t think he’ll try it again, do yuh?” asked Honey. - -“From my point of view--yeah, I think he will, Honey.” - -Honey snorted and threw away his cigaret. - -“I’ll betcha he’s pullin’ away from here awful fast. Joe ain’t no fool. -I’ll bet he knows when he’s had enough.” - -“Might be,” said Hashknife. “But I doubt it. Suppose we ride over to -town and have a look around.” - -Sleepy and Honey were more than willing. They told the girls they would -be back for supper. Peggy drew Hashknife aside and wanted to know what -the sheriff had in mind. Hashknife told her frankly that Cates was a -detective, and wanted him to help find Joe Rich. - -“Just why did he want you to help?” she asked. - -“Well, yuh see, it’s like this,” lied Hashknife. “Kelsey’s got the idea -that folks around here are too friendly with Joe to hunt him. Me and -Sleepy, bein’ strangers to Joe, might not be so particular.” - -“Oh, I see. And are you going to help him?” - -“No-o-o-o--I’m goin’ to help us find him, Peggy.” - -“But what good will that do?” - -“Any ‘good’ is better than we’ve got, Peggy.” - -“I suppose it is,” she sighed. “But I can’t see where it will help -anybody. If the law gets him--” - -“Mebbe--and mebbe not.” - -“What do you mean, Hashknife?” - -“I was just thinkin’ out loud, Peggy. Yuh quit worryin’ about things.” -He patted her on the arm. “We’ll be back for supper, and I’ll want to -see yuh grinnin’.” - -Hashknife went out to his horse, which was the one Jim Wheeler had -ridden the day he was killed. Hashknife noticed that the animal was a -trifle sore-footed; so he examined its hoofs and found that it wore no -shoes. - -He pulled the saddle off and put it on a chunky bay, turning the -sore-footed one back in the corral. The bay was shod in front. - -“Jim said somethin’ about’ goin’ to have that bronc shod,” said Honey. -“I remember him speakin’ about it a week before he was killed.” - -“I hate to see a horse limp,” said Hashknife. “I’d a lot rather walk.” - -They rode to Pinnacle City and Hashknife left Sleepy and Honey at the -Pinnacle Saloon, where several more cowboys were arguing at the bar. -After inquiring at the store, Hashknife found old Doctor Curzon’s -office. - -The old doctor was not busy. He considered Hashknife gravely when -Hashknife asked him about the death of Jim Wheeler. - -“Well, just what did you wish to know?” he asked. - -“All about it,” smiled Hashknife. “They tell me Jim Wheeler died from -concussion of the brain.” - -“You might call it that. His skull was crushed. Wonder he lived at all.” - -“And they tell me that his skull was crushed by the rocks.” - -“No doubt of it. I don’t believe you told me your name.” - -“Hartley. I’m out at the HJ ranch--Jim Wheeler’s place.” - -“Oh, yes. No, I don’t think there is any doubt of Wheeler’s head having -been crushed by the rocks. You know how a body would bound, fastened by -one foot to a stirrup.” - -“The rocks cut kinda deep, didn’t they, Doc?” - -“Mm-m-m-m--well, yes.” - -“Do yuh know--it’s a funny thing, Doc?” - -“What is?” - -“The fact that there ain’t a ---- rock as big as a pea on that whole -stretch of road where Wheeler was dragged.” - -“You say there isn’t?” - -“Well,” smiled Hashknife, “I said ‘there ain’t’. It amounts to the same -thing, I suppose. Your English is better than mine.” - -“But there must be rocks along there,” insisted the doctor. “Every one -seemed to take it for granted that--” - -“That’s the trouble, Doc--takin’ it for granted. I looked it over the -day after the rain, when the dust was settled; and it’s as smooth as a -billiard-table; not even a humpy spot on the road or along it. Go out -and see for yourself.” - -“Well, well! No, I’ll take your word for it. You don’t look like a -person who would lie about it. You have very good eyes, my friend.” - -“Thanks,” smiled Hashknife. - -“But to get back to Jim Wheeler. I believe it was Joe Rich who -discovered him first after the accident. They tell queer tales about Joe -Rich. I knew him.” - -“Like him?” - -“Very much. He--I believe he said that the foot was still in the -stirrup.” - -“This wound on the head,” said Hashknife. “Just where was it the worst, -Doc?” - -“Nearly on the crown. In fact it extended from just above the left ear -to the top of the head. Of course, it is easily possible for the horse -to have struck him with a sharp-shod hoof.” - -“On top of the head, Doc?” - -“Well, barely possible. Come to think of it, the wound did have that -appearance; as though a horseshoe might have crushed the skull.” - -“His horse wasn’t shod, Doc.” - -“It wasn’t shod?” - -The old doctor ran his hand through his white hair and squinted gravely. - -“Hadn’t been for weeks,” said Hashknife. - -“You are a detective?” asked the doctor quickly. - -Hashknife smiled and shook his head. - -“No, Doc; just curious.” - -“Mm-m-m-m-m,” the doctor studied the ceiling of his office. “No rocks, -no shoes. But the man had been dragged, Hartley. The skin showed -evidence of that, and his shirt was rubbed through. More than that, his -leg had been broken from a twist, and the pull of the stirrup.” - -“Look at it this way,” suggested Hashknife. “Suppose Jim Wheeler met a -man, who stopped him. This man strikes Wheeler over the head with a gun, -knocking him off the saddle. Then this man robs him. Perhaps this man -hooked one of Wheeler’s feet in the stirrup, struck the horse and let it -run away. Or, again, the foot might have hung in the stirrup when the -man fell from the horse. Wouldn’t it look as though it had been an -accident?” - -“No doubt of it, my friend. And in that case, it would appear that Joe -Rich had not only robbed Jim Wheeler, but had murdered him as well.” - -“There’s a lot of ways to look at it, Doc,” smiled Hashknife, as he -shook hands with the doctor. “I’m sure much obliged to yuh for yore help -in this matter. Yuh would be doin’ me another favor, if yuh don’t tell -anybody what we talked about.” - -“The ethics of my profession preclude such a thing.” - -“Well, thanks just the same, Doc. So long.” - -Hashknife went back to the Pinnacle, where he found Honey and Sleepy -buying drinks for the Heavenly Triplets, the three boys from the Flying -H. They tried to get Hashknife to join them, but he was in no mood to -join their festivities. After telling Sleepy he was going back to the -ranch, he mounted and rode out of town. - -Hashknife was satisfied after his talk with the doctor, that Jim Wheeler -had not died through an accident. That Joe Rich should have found -Wheeler dragged to unconsciousness and have robbed him was too much for -Hashknife to believe. Rich had been knocked down by Wheeler, and -Hashknife, not knowing Rich, would not have any idea of Rich’s nature. - -As Hashknife neared the spot where Wheeler had been found he saw two -saddled horses standing near the road. He drew rein and rode slowly -along, wondering where the riders might be. Then he saw them about fifty -feet off the road, looking around in some weeds and low brush. - -They were Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston. They did not see Hashknife until -he was almost up to their horses. Then they left off their search and -came over to him. - -“Howdy, gents,” grinned Hashknife. - -Kelsey showed a slight embarrassment but nodded pleasantly. - -“Just lookin’ around,” he said, as if his actions demanded an -explanation. “This is where they found Jim Wheeler, yuh know.” - -“That’s what they tell me. I reckon the rain wiped out any tracks yuh -might expect to find.” - -“Yeah, it did,” said Ralston quickly. “We found that out.” - -“No sign of Joe Rich, eh?” - -“Not a ---- sign!” snapped Kelsey, swinging into his saddle. - -“I reckon he’s a pretty smart lad,” said Hashknife. “What became of the -detective?” - -“He’s in town,” said Kelsey. “You should have taken him up on that deal, -Hartley. Made good wages out of it, even if yuh couldn’t find Joe Rich.” - -“No-o-o-o, I didn’t want the job. Joe’s got too many good friends around -here, Kelsey; and I might stop a bullet, if I knew too much.” - -“There’s a ---- of a lot of truth in that, Hartley.” - -“Sure,” grinned Hashknife. “I’m no fool.” - -“Playin’ safe, eh?” said Ralston. “Well, I don’t blame yuh. When a -feller’s a stranger, he can’t be too careful.” - -“I’ll watch my own hide,” declared Hashknife. “I dunno where that -feller, Cates, heard all that stuff about me. He must ’a’ got me mixed -with somebody else. Anyway, he’s all wrong if he thinks I’m huntin’ -rewards.” - -“Well,” laughed Kelsey, “he told me he didn’t believe half he had heard -about yuh.” - -“I’m shore glad about that,” said Hashknife simply. “Well, I’ve got to -be movin’ along, gents. Good huntin’ to yuh.” - -Hashknife rode on toward the ranch, while Kelsey and his deputy went on -to Pinnacle City. Kelsey swore softly at sight of the Heavenly Triplets’ -horses at the Pinnacle rack. - -“There’s two HJ broncs there, too,” observed Ralston. “That means Honey -Bee and Stevens. I don’t reckon we’ll have much to do with the Pinnacle -as long as they’re holdin’ forth.” - -And they were surely holding forth. Sleepy and Honey still had a little -money, and the boys from the Flying H were spending their next month’s -wages. William H. Cates, the detective, had fallen into their toils and -was enjoying it. - -Also, Mr. Cates was marveling at the amount of raw liquor they could -consume without showing it. Mr. Cates was rather proud of his own -ability, but he was beginning to have a hunch that before long he was -going to see a lot more men than were actually in the room. - -“Thish is lots of fun,” he announced. - -“Par’ner, you ain’t started,” declared Lonnie. “You stay with us and -we’ll show yuh bush’ls ’f di’monds. Oh, yessir, you’ll shee lots of ’m. -We’ll show yuh levity, y’ betcha.” - -Supper time came but none of them was hungry. Darkness came down upon -Pinnacle City, and still those six men leaned on the bar, their toasts -becoming more and more elaborate. Then Lonnie leaned his forehead -against the bar and wept bitterly. - -“Thish is all there ish,” he announced. “Nothin’ t’ do. Spen’ all day -gettin’ drunk, and there’s nothin’ t’ do but go home.” - -“O-o-o-oh, my!” wailed Nebrasky. “Tha’s a fac’. The jigger that wrote -‘Home, Sweet Home’ must ’a’ never got out. Wha’s to be done, I’d crave -to get an answer? No entertainment? Can’t you think of anythin’, Misser -Detective?” - -Not so Cates. He clung to the bar with both hands. - -“Let’s all go out to the ranch,” suggested Nebrasky. - -“Wha’ for?” queried Honey. “Uncle Hozie’d hop our necks.” - -“Le’s go for ride,” choked Cates. “Need --uk--air.” - -“That,” said Sleepy owlishly, “is a shuggestion.” - -“I know!” exploded Lonnie. “C’mere.” - -They followed him outside, much to the relief of the bartender, and -Lonnie unfolded his scheme. There were many drawbacks, but each and -every one was overcome. - -With great difficulty Lonnie Myers and Dan Leach secured their horses at -the hitch-rack, and they all weaved their erratic way down to the -Pinnacle livery-stable, where they circled to the rear. A shed with a -long sloping roof had been added to the stable at some remote time, and -within this stable was the hearse. - -The door was merely fastened with a hasp. They rolled the old hearse out -into the yard and tied two lariat ropes to the end of the tongue. The -ancient equipage of the dead was resplendent in a fresh coat of varnish -and the four horsetail plumes waved boldly from the corners of the top. - -They put Cates inside, because he was unable to climb to the top, while -Honey Bee, Sleepy and Nebrasky crowded together on the narrow seat. It -was quite a task to get both horses pulling at the same time, but once -they got the old hearse rolling it was no trick to keep it rolling. - -Around they went into the main street, gaining momentum each moment; so -much momentum, in fact, that the horses took notice of things and seemed -to desire more distance between themselves and this creaking equipage -with the yelping cowboys and flowing plumes. - -Lonnie’s mount was traveling one side of the street, while Dan’s mount -seemed to prefer the opposite sidewalk, while the hearse took a fairly -straight route up the middle of the street, until almost opposite the -Pinnacle City bank. Then Lonnie’s horse got tangled up in a hitch-rack -and Dan’s whirled and started the opposite direction. - -Crash! The front wheels of the hearse jack-knifed and struck the -sidewalk. - -Crash! The end of the swinging tongue took out one of the front windows -of the bank, while the hearse lurched to a standstill with the front -wheels against the front of the bank building. - -Sleepy was thrown off the seat when the wheels struck the sidewalk and -he landed on his hands and knees in the street. The sound of the wreck -was audible for quite a distance, and in a few minutes the hearse was -surrounded by a curious crowd. There was hardly enough light to see what -had happened. - -Sleepy staggered across the street and sat down on the sidewalk, feeling -very foolish over the whole thing. A horseman rode past him and stopped -at the hitch-rack. It was Lonnie Myers. Sleepy went over to him. - -“That ---- thing headed into the bank,” he told Lonnie. - -“My ----! It did? Whatcha know about that? Where’s the rest of the -gang?” - -“Let’s go over and have a look.” - -No one in the crowd seemed to know who had done it. Kelsey was there, as -was Jack Ralston. - -“Somebody got pretty ---- smart, it seems to me,” growled Kelsey. - -“Hey, Kelsey!” yelled a voice, “there’s a body inside the hearse.” - -“My ----, it’s Cates!” whispered Lonnie. “Let’s get away from here -before we all get arrested.” - -They hurried back to the Pinnacle bar where they found Dan Leach and -Nebrasky. Nebrasky had a lot of skin off his long nose and Dan limped in -one leg. None of them mentioned what had just taken place. They had a -drink, after which Lonnie leaned on the bar and wondered where Honey -might be. - -“The last time I seen him he was goin’ toward the bank,” said Sleepy -dryly. “Prob’ly wanted to borrow some money.” - -Jack Ralston came in and looked the boys over, but did not say anything. -Perhaps he had a fair idea as to who had taken the hearse, but he had no -evidence. Apparently these boys were merely having a friendly drink. - -“Have any of you gents seen that feller Cates?” he asked. - -“Cates?” Lonnie screwed up his eyes. “Oh, yeah--the detective! Why, I -think he died, didn’t he?” Lonnie turned to Nebrasky. - -“Oh, yeah--Cates. Believe he did, Lonnie.” - -“Uh-huh,” Lonnie turned to Ralston. “Yeah, he died. Have a drink, Jack?” - -“Nope.” - -Ralston turned on his heel and went out. - -“Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” laughed Nebrasky. “Wait’ll they find him.” - -“They found him,” said Sleepy. “We’ll probably have to pay for that -busted window.” - -“But wasn’t it worth it?” chuckled Nebrasky. “My ----, I never went -higher in my life. There goes the hearse.” - -They walked to the door and saw several men pulling the hearse back to -its shed. They could see a crowd in front of the bank, and apparently -there was a man on a ladder, nailing boards over the broken window. - -“Where in ---- is Honey?” asked Sleepy. “By golly, we’re shy one man!” - -“That’s right. Let’s go find him.” - -They wended their way to the Arapaho saloon, but did not find him there, -and then they made a systematic search of every place they could think -of. - -They finally came back past the bank, where they found the object of -their search sitting on the sidewalk, holding his head in his hands. -Lonnie almost fell over him in the dark. - -“Now, where in ---- have you been keepin’ youself?” demanded Lonnie. -“We’ve been lookin’ for yuh for about a week.” - -This was hardly true, because the accident had not happened more than -twenty minutes previous. - -Honey lifted his head and wiggled his arms. - -“I’m all right, I reckon,” he said huskily. “Didn’t any of you ord’nary -drunks see me go into the bank?” - -“See yuh go into the bank?” grunted Nebrasky. - -“Abs’lutely! Right through the window! I landed on my chin right in -front of the deposit window with one of them horsetail plumes in my -right hand.” - -“And didn’t get killed?” wondered Nebrasky. - -“Oh, ----, I got killed all right, as far as that’s concerned. Oh, my! I -heard a lot of folks talkin’ about the busted window, while I’m crawlin’ -around on my hands and knees, tryin’ to find a way out. - -“And then I got the scare of my life,” Honey laughed foolishly. “I found -a man in there.” - -“Yuh found a man in there?” queried Sleepy quickly. - -“Uh-huh. Honest Injun, cross m’ heart. He’s there yet, too, By golly, it -scared me so much that I got right up and walked out the back door. -Funniest feelin’ yuh--” - -“Hold on a minute!” snorted Sleepy. “You walked out the back door, -Honey?” - -“Shore did, Sleepy.” - -“Was it unlocked?” - -“Must ’a’ been--I jist turned the knob. I was on my hands and knees, -kinda crawlin’ and feelin’ along, when I got hold of somethin’ that -feels a lot like a man’s legs. I keeps on feelin’, and I keeps on -a-risin’, until my hands touch his face, and then I hightailed it -outside. I fell down over a box and bumped my head against the building, -but kept on goin’. I reckon I plumb circled this side of the street, and -just came back here a little while ago.” - -“Yo’re drunk,” declared Nebrasky. - -“I was drunk,” corrected Honey. “But by golly, I was sober a-plenty when -I felt that jigger.” - -“Is he there yet?” asked Lonnie. - -“----, I tell yuh he’s roped to the chair!” - -“Wait a minute,” said Sleepy. “You boys go over to the Pinnacle and let -me handle this, will yuh?” - -“Go to it,” said Lonnie. “C’mon, you fellers.” - -Sleepy went down the street to the sheriff’s office. He was perfectly -sober and none the worse for their escapade, except for a slightly -skinned knee. Both Kelsey and Ralston were at the office when Sleepy -came in. - -“Yuh better investigate the bank,” said Sleepy. “I just came past there, -and I thought I heard a man groanin’.” - -“Yeah?” Kelsey grinned knowingly. “Yuh did, eh? Just what kind of a game -are you punchers tryin’ to pull off now?” - -“Oh, well, go ahead and be a ---- fool,” sighed Sleepy, turning back to -the door. “I’m tellin’ yuh what I heard, tha’sall.” - -But Kelsey stopped him at the door. - -“Yuh think yuh heard a man groanin’, eh?” - -“It don’t make any difference,” said Sleepy. “Go on to bed. I’ll find -the man that owns the bank, and he’ll probably be interested.” - -“If this is a joke--” warned Kelsey picking up his hat. - -“I better go and get Warner, the cashier,” said Ralston. “He rooms at -MacRae’s place.” - -Ralston trotted down the street while Kelsey followed Sleepy back to the -front of the bank. They listened at the broken window, which had been -barred with some planks, but could hear nothing. - -“Yuh probably heard the wind blowing,” said Kelsey. - -“What wind?” asked Sleepy. - -Kelsey didn’t explain just which wind he had meant, as there was not a -breath of air stirring. In a few minutes Ralston joined them, panting -from his run. - -“Warner ain’t been there since supper, Len. He was workin’ tonight, they -said.” - -“And Old Man Ludlow, the president, is on a trip to the coast,” said -Len. “How in ---- are we goin’ to find out anythin’?” - -“Smash out another window,” suggested Ralston. - -“How about the back door?” asked Sleepy. - -They went around to the back and found the door sagging open. Kelsey -swore softly and led the way inside, where they lighted matches to guide -them. And they found just what Honey Bee had found--a man roped to a -chair and gagged. It was Warner, the cashier, his eyes blinking -foolishly at the light of Kelsey’s match, while Ralston took a -pocket-knife and severed the lariat rope which bound him. - -Warner was apparently unhurt. After they untied the gag he worked his -jaw painfully, rubbed his lips and managed to get back a measure of his -speech. - -Sleepy found a lamp, which he lighted, and the three men watched the -cashier stretch his arms and legs, grimacing as the returning -circulation pained him. - -“You better send a wire to Old Man Ludlow,” he said huskily. “Palace -Hotel, San Francisco. The bank has been cleaned out.” - -“Cleaned out, Warner?” asked Kelsey. - -“Look at the vault door.” - -It was wide open. The sheriff did not investigate. Sleepy stepped over -and peered inside. It was an old-fashioned vault with the ordinary -combination. Time locks had not come to Pinnacle City yet. - -“How many in the gang?” asked Kelsey. - -“One,” Warner spat painfully and rubbed his lips. “One man, Sheriff. I -was working tonight. I used the back door. When I unlocked it and -stepped outside, this man confronted me with a gun and forced me back -inside. - -“I refused to open the vault--at first. But he produced some dynamite -and told me was going to blow it open. He said he would tie me close -enough to see it bust. There wasn’t anything for me to do except to open -it. Then he roped me to a chair, put a gag in my mouth and helped -himself. There was enough light through that side window for me to see -that he put everything in a sack.” - -“Masked?” asked Kelsey. - -“Yes. I wish one of you would wire Ludlow. What was that crash that -broke the front window?” - -“Some drunken cowboys,” growled Kelsey. “How long before that did the -robbery take place?” - -“Possibly fifteen minutes. Might have been longer. But there was another -man in here after that crash. I couldn’t see what he looked like, but he -felt all over me and then I heard him go out through the back door.” - -Kelsey squinted closely at Sleepy, but Sleepy looked very innocent. His -blue eyes did not waver for an instant. - -“Pretty ---- queer!” snorted Kelsey. - -“Ain’t it?” agreed Sleepy. “Queerest thing I ever heard.” - -“It might have been the man who tied me up,” said Warner. - -Warner was a small, thin-faced man, slightly stooped, wearing -steel-bowed glasses. He took them from his pocket and hooked the bows -over his ears, his hands trembling. - -“Might have been,” agreed Sleepy. “Prob’ly took him quite a while to -clean out the place. How much did he get?” - -“I can’t tell you that, sir. I think Mr. Ludlow would like to hear about -it as soon as possible.” - -“No hurry; he can’t help any,” said Kelsey. “Warner, did you get a good -look at this robber?” - -“It was dark in here. He held a match in his left hand while I worked -the combination.” - -“Did, eh?” Kelsey seemed interested. “Well, how much of him didja see, -Warner?” - -“Not much, I’m afraid; only that arm in the light. You see, he stood -rather behind me.” - -“All right; and didja see that arm well enough to tell what it looked -like?” - -“Yes, I saw it well enough, I think. It--it looked like a--a--well, just -like an arm,” he finished weakly. - -“That’s fine,” sneered Kelsey. “All we’ve got to do is to find a man who -has a left arm that looks like an arm. Didn’t yuh see his clothes, his -hands, his gun?” - -“Yes, I--I saw his gun. Certainly I saw his gun.” - -“Was it like this one?” Kelsey jerked out his Colt and held it in front -of Warner. - -“No, not exactly. I think it had a white handle.” - -“Ah-hah! Now, about his sleeve, Warner. Did he wear leather cuffs?” - -“Yes, yes! I forgot them. Black, I think. Perhaps they merely looked -black. But the matchlight--there were silver ornaments, Sheriff. I -remember now--silver stars. It’s funny I didn’t remember before.” - -“Uh-huh. We’ll go and send that wire to Ludlow, Warner. Lock that back -door, will yuh, Warner. Not much use, at that; nothin’ left to steal. -Mebbe yuh better shut that vault door and spin the combination.” - -Warner went with the sheriff and deputy, while Sleepy cut across the -street and found the rest of the boys in front of the Pinnacle. From -there they could see the light in the bank, and they were burning with -curiosity. - -“Forget what you know, Honey,” warned Sleepy. “The rest of yuh don’t -know a thing; sabe? The bank was cleaned out by a lone bandit fifteen -minutes ahead of our smash. The man Honey found was Warner, the cashier. -He was roped and gagged, but he wasn’t knocked out.” - -“F’r ----’s sake!” snorted Honey. “That was it, eh?” - -“Yeah, and we better all head for home,” advised Sleepy. “We don’t know -a thing. The bank is as clean as a hound’s tooth and the man who cleaned -it out wore silver stars on his cuffs and used a white-handled gun. -Let’s mosey.” - -They all got their horses and headed out of town, the Heavenly Triplets -going to the Flying H, while Honey and Sleepy rode swiftly out to the HJ -where they woke Hashknife in the bunk-house and told him their story. He -sat up in bed and smoked a cigaret, his lean fingers scratching at his -unruly hair. - -“It looks to me as though Joe Rich missed his callin’ when he got -himself elected sheriff,” he said slowly. “That boy shore is featherin’ -his nest. And yuh had Mr. Cates laid out in the hearse, eh?” - -“Fit to be buried,” nodded Sleepy. “I reckon he was the only one that -didn’t do a high dive. That little cashier shore was scared. The robber -told him he’d either open the safe or get a front seat at the explosion. -And he held a match while the cashier worked the combination. By golly, -it’s so easy to do a thing like that, that I wonder why men work for a -dollar a day! It’s shore easy money.” - -“Easy to get, uneasy to keep, Sleepy.” - -“Yea-a-a-ah! Who in ---- is goin’ to get it away from him? You can -preach honesty to me all yuh want to, cowboy, but when I see a job done -as easy as that one--” - -“Aw, c’mon to bed, and stop yappin’. I want to think.” - - - - -CHAPTER VIII: CLUES - - -Nothing had ever happened in Pinnacle City that caused as much -excitement as the robbery of the bank. It was something that affected -nearly everybody in the Tumbling River country. As Uncle Hozie expressed -it-- - -“There’s a lot of ---- flat pocketbooks right now.” - -The news spread swiftly, and by noon of the following day the town was -filled with range-folk. The sheriff came in for the usual amount of -criticism, and a number of the cattlemen sat in his office, trying to -help him devise ways and means of putting a stop to Joe Rich’s -activities. A wire had been received from Old Man Ludlow, the president -of the bank, who was on his way back to Pinnacle. - -Uncle Hozie mourned the loss of eight thousand dollars, while Ed Merrick -swore himself red in the face over half that amount. He had drawn out -five thousand to lend to Jim Wheeler, thus cutting down his bank -deposit. - -But they were all losers; some of them more so than others, and Joe -Rich’s latest robbery bid fair to make times rather hard in Tumbling -River. It was a privately owned bank, and they knew that Ludlow could -not make good their losses. - -William H. Cates took the first train out of town. The sheriff had -hauled him out of the hearse and put him to bed. The following morning -he was filled with remorse over it all, but strangely enough he was -unable to tell just whom he had been with. He told the sheriff to do his -little best and boarded a train for the north. - -An examination of the vault disclosed the fact that the robber had taken -every cent of money, but had not bothered with any papers. Warner -refused even to make a guess at how much money was in the vault, but -admitted that it was more than was usually carried. The bank remained -closed. - -Hashknife, Sleepy and Honey came back to town that forenoon, but the -Heavenly Triplets did not show up. Merrick talked with Hashknife about -the robbery. Hashknife was not interested to any great extent. - -A little later on Hashknife was talking with Kelsey, when the depot -agent came to Kelsey. - -“Here’s a funny thing,” said the agent. “Remember the night the bridge -caught fire?” - -“Sure,” nodded Kelsey. “What about it?” - -“That night,” resumed the agent, “the rear brakeman of the cattle-train -went back to flag the passenger, and he’s never been seen since.” - -“What do yuh mean?” Kelsey was evidently puzzled. - -“Just what I said. I don’t know how he was passed up. The train was held -here quite a while, but the storm was bad, and nobody needed him, I -suppose. Down at the bridge both trains were stalled quite a while, and -there was no need of whistling in the flag from the cattle-train. - -“Oh, the company missed him the next day. But he was what is known as a -boomer brakeman, and they just thought he had stepped out without -drawing his pay. They do that once in a while--those boomers. But later -on they got to checking up on things, and the conductor remembered that -he hadn’t seen this man since the night at the bridge. Ransome is the -division point, you see; so he didn’t have much farther to go. The -reason they watered that stock here was because there were better -facilities than at Ransome.” - -“Well, that’s kinda queer,” said Kelsey. - -“I saw him go out to flag,” said Hashknife. “I remember that freight -conductor blamed the passenger crew for runnin’ past the flag. They said -they never seen it.” - -“Well, what do you suppose happened to him?” queried Kelsey. - -“Search me,” said the depot agent. “All I know is what I heard over the -wire.” - -Hashknife left the sheriff and found Sleepy and Honey. He told them what -the depot agent had said. A few minutes later they were heading for the -railroad bridge, going through the country where Hashknife and Sleepy -had walked the night of the bridge-fire. They tied their horses to the -right-of-way fence, crawled through and climbed up to the track level. - -The railroad had been graded along the side of the hill, so that the -opposite side dropped off about twenty or thirty feet, where the brush -grew thick along the fence. Hashknife estimated where the rear end of -the cattle-train would have been, and they walked back along the track -to the first curve. - -Just beyond that there was considerable seepage of water on the lower -side, where grew a profusion of tules and cattails, mingled with -wild-roses and willows. The bank was rather abrupt along here and heavy -brush grew between the track and the upper fence. - -Hashknife slid cautiously down this bank, hooking his heels into the -broken rock. There was more water, covered with a greenish slime. - -“Hook yore heels, cowboy,” laughed Sleepy. “One little mistake, and you -take a green-water bath.” - -Hashknife worked down to the water edge and went slowly along about -fifty feet. Then he stopped and sat back against the bank. For several -moments he studied the tangle of brush and green water. Then he turned -his head and looked up at the two men above him. - -“I’ve found him,” he said. - -“You’ve found him?” gasped Honey. - -“Uh-huh. One foot still on dry land. I thought it was just an old shoe. -He must ’a’ went in head first. There’s his lantern in the muck--just -the bottom of it stickin’ out.” - -Hashknife turned around and climbed up the bank. From the track level he -could not see the shoe nor the lantern. He heaped up a pile of stones -beside the track to mark the spot. - -“Ain’t we goin’ to take him out?” asked Sleepy. - -“Not me,” replied Hashknife. “That’s the sheriff’s job.” - -They rode back to the ranch and were just debating what to do, when Ben -Collins came along on his way to town from the Circle M. Honey called to -him and he stopped at the HJ gate. - -“You’ll probably see Kelsey in town,” said Honey. “Tell him we found the -brakeman of that cattle-train. He’s in the ditch on the west side of the -railroad track, about three hundred yards south of the bridge. We heaped -up a pile of rocks along the track, and the body is straight down from -that. Tell Kelsey he’ll need help to get the body.” - -Collins stared at Honey, his mouth agape. It was all Greek to him, it -seemed. - -“Well, I’ll be ----!” he snorted. “Let me get this straight.” - -He repeated what Honey had told him, making a few mistakes, which Honey -rectified. - -“But who killed him?” he demanded. - -“We don’t know, Ben.” - -“Well, I’ll be ----! All right, I’ll tell him.” - -Ben spurred his horse to a gallop and was soon out of sight. - -“They’ll have to come through this way to get him, won’t they?” asked -Hashknife. - -“Unless they want to carry the body across the railroad bridge. Good -gosh, things look worse for Joe Rich every day! I suppose he ran into -the brakeman, eh?” - -“Probably,” nodded Hashknife. “Of course he might have fell off the -track that night. The wind was awful. If he struck his head on the rocks -and slid into the water he’d die pretty quick. We’ll have to wait until -they take him out.” - -But they didn’t have to wait long. Inside an hour Kelsey, Ralston, Ben -Collins and Abe Liston, of the 3W3, rode in at the HJ. No one had told -Peggy and Laura about the dead man, and their curiosity was aroused by -the advent of the sheriff and his men. - -“Man got hit by a train out by the bridge,” said Hashknife. - -“Was he killed?” asked Laura. - -“I reckon he was.” - -Hashknife went out and talked with Kelsey, who seemed a trifle sore -about their finding the body. - -“I suppose yuh fooled around and wiped out all the clues,” he said -complainingly. - -“Well, I dunno,” smiled Hashknife. “We didn’t go near the body, -Sheriff.” - -“Didn’t, eh? Seems to me you was in a ---- of a sweat to get out there -ahead of the law.” - -“Did look thataway.” Hashknife did not cease smiling, with his mouth, -although his eyes were serious. - -“Just how do yuh figure this yore affair, Hartley?” - -“You do the figurin’,” suggested Hashknife. - -The sheriff glanced keenly at Hashknife’s eyes and decided to drop the -subject. - -“Oh, all right,” he said. “Yuh might come along and help us take the -body out.” - -“Yeah, I might,” said Hashknife. “But I don’t think I will. You’ve got -plenty men with yuh.” - -“Uh-huh.” Kelsey did not press the invitation, but rode away, followed -by his three men. - -Honey Bee grinned widely and did a shuffle in the dirt. - -“That’s tellin’ ’em, cowboy. You’ve got Kelsey’s goat. I could see it in -his face.” - -“Let’s go down to the bunk-house,” suggested Hashknife. “Them darned -girls ask too many questions. I reckon they suspect that this man was -killed at that hold-up, and I don’t want to worry Peggy any more. She -takes it too serious. By golly, she acts as though folks blamed her for -what Joe Rich has done.” - -“That’s Peggy,” sighed Honey. “Whitest little girl that ever lived. -Suppose we have a three-handed game of seven-up for a million dollars a -corner.” - -“You two go ahead,” said Hashknife. “I’ve got to think a while.” - -“Don’t yore head ever hurt yuh?” asked Honey. “You’ve done an awful lot -of thinkin since I knew yuh, Hashknife.” - -“He has to think an awful lot to get a little ways,” grinned Sleepy. - -Sleepy and Honey went into the bunk-house, and Laura wig-wagged to -Hashknife from the veranda of the ranch-house. - -“What about this dead man?” she demanded. - -“Dunno yet, Laura. He’s dead, but we don’t know what killed him.” - -He told her about the missing brakeman. Laura had been doing a little -thinking, and she confided to Hashknife that she was afraid that Jim -Wheeler had been killed by the man who stole the money. - -“Aunt Emma thinks so, too,” she said. “We had a talk about it the other -day. Joe was out here that day, you know. He came to tell Peggy good-by. -His lips were cut badly and he looked awful bad. But Peggy didn’t tell -him good-by. She was crying and didn’t hear him go away. She thought he -was still there. We found out later that Uncle Jim had knocked Joe down -on the street in Pinnacle City.” - -Hashknife nodded over this. He had heard it before. - -“But she still loves Joe Rich.” - -“I honestly think she does,” agreed Laura. - -“Did yuh hear about them findin’ Joe’s pocket-knife in the express car?” - -Laura hadn’t heard about it. - -“The knife that Peggy gave him for his birthday? Oh, what an awful thing -to do! Criminals always make mistakes, don’t they?” - -“Yeah, they shore do, Laura--bad ones, too.” - -Peggy came out on the veranda and sat down with them. - -“Tell me about that bank robbery,” she said to Hashknife. - -The tall cowboy sighed and reshaped the crown of his hat. - -“There ain’t much to tell, Peggy. A lone man met the cashier at the rear -door of the bank, forced him back, made him open the vault and then -roped and gagged the cashier. They say he got away with a lot of money. -Wasn’t anybody hurt.” - -“What was the description of that man, Hashknife?” - -“Wasn’t any--much. Yuh see, it was dark in there.” - -“Much?” sighed Peggy. “Oh, I know!” she suddenly blurted. “You try to -cover it. Please don’t do that, Hashknife.” - -Hashknife shook his head sadly. - -“That cashier was probably scared stiff, Peggy. Power of suggestion made -him see what the express messenger saw--the black leather cuffs with the -silver stars. Discount all that stuff. Keep smilin’, I tell yuh. A-a-aw, -shucks!” - -Hashknife jumped to his feet and walked away. Peggy was crying, and -Hashknife couldn’t stand tears. He went down and sat against the stable, -his hat pulled down over his eyes. And he was still there when the -sheriff and his men came back, bringing the body of the brakeman, -strapped across the saddle of Jack Ralston’s horse, while Jack rode -behind Kelsey. The body was covered with a dirty tarpaulin. - -Hashknife went out to meet them, and Kelsey thanked him for the marker. - -“It shore was well hidden,” he said, “and them rocks helped a lot. I -reckon this will kinda swell the reward for Joe Rich, Hartley. This man -was shot. Yuh can even see the powder marks on his coat, so it must ’a’ -been close work. We’ll shore ask for Joe Rich dead or alive now.” - -They rode on, and Hashknife leaned against the stable, his mind working -swiftly. Dead or alive! - -“Oh, I was afraid of that,” he told himself. - -He saddled his horse and went to the bunk-house, where he called to the -boys. - -“I’m goin’ to town,” he told them. “They just went past with that body. -The man was shot at close range, and they’ll offer a reward for Joe -Rich, dead or alive. I want to get a look at that body. Be back for -supper, and for gosh sake, don’t let Peggy know what they said!” - -Hashknife galloped away from the ranch, but did not try to overtake the -sheriff and his party. They took the body straight to the doctor’s -office. It happened that Doctor Curzon was the county coroner, and the -case would require an inquest. - -But the sheriff and his party did not stay more than fifteen minutes; so -Hashknife waited until they were out of sight before he rode up to the -doctor’s little home. - -The old doctor greeted him gravely and started to tell him about the -latest tragedy, but Hashknife stopped him. - -“I know all about it, Doc. What about that bullet? Did it go all the way -through?” - -The doctor nodded. - -“Yes, it did.” - -Hashknife sighed. He had hopes that the caliber of the bullet might give -him a clue. The doctor showed him the body. There was no mistaking the -corpse. It was that of the brakeman, but little changed from immersion. -The bullet had gone straight through his heart, and he had probably -plunged straight off the high bank into the slough. - -“Poor devil,” sighed Hashknife. “Anyway, he died quick, Doc. The wind -was blowin’ away from us, so we had no chance to hear the sound of the -shot. Anyway, I’m much obliged.” - -“You’re certainly welcome, sir. We will probably hold an inquest -tomorrow, and perhaps the sheriff will ask you to attend as a witness.” - -“All right, Doc.” - -Hashknife led his horse up to the main street and over to the Pinnacle -hitch-rack. Just beyond the hitch-rack was the end of the board sidewalk -which led down past the saloon. This end of the sidewalk was about two -feet higher than the ground level. It had been intended to continue the -walk, but this had never been done. Pedestrians usually ignored the -sidewalk at this point and went farther along, where the contour of the -ground permitted a lower step. - -Hashknife sat down on the end of this sidewalk, bracing his shoulders -against the corner of the building, and rolled a smoke. The sheriff was -at his office, talking with the depot agent, who was writing a telegram -to send to the railroad company at Ransome. - -Ben Collins’ and Abe Liston’s horses were at the Pinnacle hitch-rack; so -Hashknife surmised that they were retailing the story in the saloon. Two -youngsters came from the rear of the building, barefooted, -overalls-clad. One of them had a ball made of rags sewed through with -heavy thread; rather a lop-sided affair, but a ball, for all that. - -Hashknife smiled at them and they grinned back at him. - -“Throw me a catch,” he said, holding out his hands. - -The boy with the ball flipped it toward Hashknife, but his aim was -faulty and the ball struck the ground several feet in front of -Hashknife. It failed to bounce, but rolled heavily under the sidewalk. - -“Bum throwin’!” shrilled the other youngster. - -Hashknife laughed and dropped to his knees, crawling beneath the -sidewalk trying to reach the ball. - -“Lemme help yuh, mister,” said the boy who owned the ball. - -“I can get it,” said Hashknife. - -He picked it up and handed it absently back to the boy. In the -accumulated litter of old playing-cards, miscellaneous pieces of paper -and the general débris, his eyes caught sight of a certain piece of -paper. - -“Can’tcha git out?” asked the boy who had the ball. - -Hashknife backed out. He had forgotten the boys. In his hand was a -folded piece of paper, which he unfolded and read carefully. It was Jim -Wheeler’s copy of the note on which he had borrowed the money from Ed -Merrick. - -“Now, how in ---- did that get under there?” wondered Hashknife. He -studied the situation. Close to this spot was the hitch-rack. - -“He got on his horse at that rack,” said Hashknife to himself. “He -thought he put the note in his pocket, but didn’t; and the wind blew it -under the sidewalk. No wonder he didn’t have the note when they found -him.” - -He folded the note and put it carefully in his pocket. The two -youngsters were watching him closely, possibly wondering what he had -found. Hashknife stared at them for a moment, and a grin came to his -lips as he dug down in his pocket and drew out two quarters. - -“You boys buy yoreselves some candy,” he said, giving them the money. - -“Thank yuh, mister!” exploded one of them, and they raced across the -street to a store, all out of breath. Hashknife went to his horse, -mounted and rode out of town. - -The two boys lined up at the fly-specked candy counter and took plenty -of time in picking out what they wanted. Angus McLaren and Len Kelsey -came into the store, talking earnestly about the latest developments, -and stopped near the two boys. - -The old man behind the counter peered over his glasses at the boys. - -“Yuh want two-bits’ worth apiece?” he asked, rather awed at their -enormous purchases. “By golly, yuh must have struck a soap mine!” - -“Didn’t strike no mine,” said one of them. “How much are them chaklits, -Mr. Becker?” - -“Aw, you don’t want no chaklits!” snorted the other. “They don’t give -yuh hardly any for a dime. Gimme some mixed.” - -“I want some mixed, too, Mr. Becker, but I don’t want all of it mixed.” - -One of the boys turned and saw the sheriff and McLaren, who were smiling -at them. - -“Got two-bits apiece,” grinned the boy. “A tall cowpuncher gave it to -us.” - -“He’s that new puncher at the HJ,” explained the other. - -“Gave yuh each two-bits, eh?” smiled McLaren. “That was generous of him, -eh?” - -“Y’betcha. Over by the Pinnacle’ Saloon rack. I throwed my ball to him -an’ it went under the end of the sidewalk. He got under after it, an’ he -found somethin’, I think. Anyway, he was lookin’ at a paper when he got -out, an’ he gave us each two-bits.” - -“What kind of a piece of paper?” asked McLaren. - -“I seen it,” said the other boy, watching the merchant weigh the candy. -“It was kinda folded up--had printin’ on it. Say, Mr. Becker, are yuh -sure them scales don’t weight under?” - -They paid for their candy and went outside, looking into their sacks. - -“That must have been Hartley,” said Kelsey. “He didn’t lose any time in -followin’ us to town. He was at the HJ, when we brought the body past -there. I wonder what he found?” - -McLaren shook his head. He hadn’t any idea, nor was he interested in -knowing. - -Kelsey went back to the court-house, where he found Fred Coburn, the -county attorney, at his office. He laid the facts of the case before -Coburn, who listened to Kelsey’s story of finding the body of the -brakeman. - -“All right,” said Coburn briskly. “Make out a new reward notice, Len. -Offer the reward, dead or alive. I’ll file a charge of first degree -murder against Rich. Personally, I think he killed Jim Wheeler, although -that would be hard to make stick. This is a cinch. Better see if the -commissioners don’t want to boost that reward. When Ludlow comes, I’m -sure the bank will boost it. Rich is going to make one break too -many--and we’ll get him.” - -“That’s a cinch, Coburn. See yuh later.” - -As he came from the attorney’s office he met Ed Merrick, Angus McLaren -and Ross Layton, the three commissioners. - -“I was just going to look for you fellers,” he said. “Just had a talk -with Coburn about the reward. He’s goin’ to file first degree murder -against Joe Rich and wants me to make up a new reward notice, offering -it for him, dead or alive. How about boostin’ the ante, eh?” - -McLaren shook his head quickly. - -“I’m not in favor of it. There’s already thirty-five hundred offered, -and I’ve no doubt the railroad company will add to that for the death of -the brakeman.” - -“It would be worth a lot to have him behind the bars,” said Merrick -seriously. - -“Or under the sod,” added Layton. - -“Let’s boost it another thousand,” suggested Merrick. “It won’t hurt to -make it worth while.” - -McLaren turned to Layton. - -“What do ye say, Ross?” - -“Oh, it’s all right with me,” said the little man, hooking his thumbs -inside the armholes of his fancy vest. “Seems to me it’s like making -conversational bets--they’re never won or lost. Personally, I’d like to -see more action and less interest in what the man’s scalp is worth.” - -“Ye hit it, Ross,” laughed McLaren. - -“Well,” said Kelsey savagely, “in this country you’ve just about got to -buy a man like Joe Rich.” - -“Ye mean to make it worth while for somebody to forget friendship, -Kelsey?” - -“That’s just what I mean, McLaren!” - -“Oh, well, have it yer own way, lad. Friendship is a great thing, and -it’s har-rd to overcome with silver. As much of a law-abidin’ citizen as -I am, I’d vote to hang the man that would even betray Joe Rich for -money.” - -“You wouldn’t stretch friendship to cover a man who was wanted for -murder, would yuh, Mac?” asked Kelsey. - -“Friendship,” said McLaren heavily, “is ver-ry elastic. If it wasn’t -there’s few of us that would have any.” - -“By ----, that’s true!” snorted Layton. “I guess we’ll just leave that -reward as it is, Mac.” - -“All right, yo’re the doctors,” said Kelsey. “I merely wanted to speed -things up a little.” - -Merrick smiled thinly. - -“Joe Rich still has friends,” he said meaningly. - -McLaren’s eyes darkened, but he turned and walked away, with the -flowery-vested member from Ransome following in his wake, his black -coat-tails flapping, looking very much as Honey Bee had said--“a bouquet -of flowers wrapped up in crêpe.” - -Merrick and Ben Collins rode past the HJ a few hours later and stopped -to tell Hashknife that Kelsey wanted him and the other two boys at the -inquest on the following day. - -“Just a matter of form,” said Merrick. “You boys found the body, and I -think you were the last persons to see him alive; so the coroner will -require your testimony.” - -“Yeah; all right,” agreed Hashknife. “What time?” - -“About two o’clock in the afternoon.” - -Merrick’s white teeth flashed in a smile beneath his pointed black -mustache as he glanced toward the house, where Laura was standing, -looking out toward them. - -“Rather a pleasant place to stay, Hartley,” he said meaningly. - -Hashknife did not reply to this, but his gray eyes suddenly seemed to -change color and became very hard. Merrick shifted his gaze and lifted -his reins. - -“Well, we’ll be amblin’ on,” he said. “See yuh tomorrow.” - -Neither Merrick nor Collins said anything until they were well out of -earshot, when Collins glanced back and said: - -“Don’t fool with that jigger, Ed. Holee ----, didja see his eyes? Didja? -My ----, it went to forty below right then!” - -Merrick nodded grimly. - -“I guess that detective wasn’t far off when he said that Hartley wasn’t -all smiles.” - -Hashknife leaned against the gate-post and watched them fade away in the -dust. His eyes were normal now--lazy gray eyes which looked out across -the hills, but did not see them; and there was a smile on his wide -mouth. Laura was calling him from the veranda and he turned slowly to go -back. - -* * * * * - -It was supper time when Honey and Sleepy came back to the HJ and they -brought Slim Coleman with them. They had met Slim near the west end of -the bridge, and he rode over with them to have some supper before going -back to the Lazy B. - -Slim was almost the counterpart of Hashknife physically, being rather a -high-pocket sort of individual. The girls welcomed Slim, for he was as -one of the family--an old-timer in the Tumbling River and a bunkie of -Honey Bee’s when Honey was at the Lazy B. - -“It’s shore tough, this here offerin’ of a reward, dead or alive, for -Joe Rich,” said Slim, who did not have a particle of diplomacy in his -system. - -Peggy gasped and fled from the room, while Honey proceeded to upbraid -Slim for making such a foolish remark before Peggy. - -“Well, how’d I know?” wailed Slim. “Nobody told me she was still feelin’ -right toward Joe.” - -“Didn’t I tell yuh to not talk much about it?” demanded Honey angrily. -“I told yuh that when we was crossin’ the bridge.” - -“Yeah, I know yuh did. But I didn’t talk much. My ----, I only said it -was too bad!” - -“Well, that’s a lot, Slim. Peggy didn’t know they wanted Joe for -murder.” - -“Well, she knows it now. I s’pose I might as well be the one to break -the news to her.” - -“Oh, it don’t matter so much,” said Hashknife. “She’d find it out -tomorrow, anyway. We’re all to be called on that inquest--me and Sleepy -and Honey. It won’t amount to anythin’. They’ll just bring in a verdict -chargin’ Joe with the murder.” - -“I was talkin’ to Ross Layton before we left town,” said Honey. “Kelsey -is gettin’ out new reward notices. He wanted the commissioners to vote -more money on that reward, but Ross and Angus McLaren were against it.” - -“Kelsey’s got the idea that some of Joe’s friends are hidin’ him, and -that a bigger reward would make ’em trade him in.” Hashknife laughed -heartily. - -“That’s a new one, Honey. I’ve heard of lots of reasons for offerin’ -rewards, but that’s the first time I ever heard of tryin’ to buy off a -friendship.” - -“Well, that was Kelsey’s idea. He’s shore a bright sheriff. He thinks -that an added reward would cause Joe’s friends to pop him on the head -and bring him in.” - -“It might, at that,” said Hashknife. - -Wong Lee called them to supper, but the two girls did not come to the -table. - -“Slim, you raised ---- with yore remarks,” whispered Honey. - -“What do yuh mean?” - -“Ruined the girls’ appetites.” - -“Pshaw, I’m sorry about that.” - -They ate silently for several minutes, and then Slim laid down his knife -and fork. - -“I found somethin’ funny today,” he said. “I was ridin’ down a coulee, -kinda southeast of the Lazy B, and I finds a dead horse. Plenty buzzards -feedin’. But the funny part of it is this: That horse has been skinned. -Yessir, it shore had. I looked it all over and there ain’t a sign of -skin on it anywhere. And it kinda looked to me as though somebody had -pulled the shoes off it, too. Anyway, it never traveled far after the -shoes was taken off.” - -“Somebody needed horse-hide,” observed Honey, helping himself to more -food. - -“Yeah, I s’pose they did,” agreed Slim, resuming his meal. “It ain’t a -common thing for to skin a dead horse. It ain’t been dead a ---- of a -long time. I didn’t smell--” - -“Hey!” snorted Honey. “What the ---- do yuh think this is? We’re eatin’ -a meal, Slim.” - -“Oh, I beg yore pardon.” - -“Could yuh find it again?” asked Hashknife grinning. - -“Shore. If the wind’s blowin’ jist--” - -“Wait a minute!” snorted Honey. “You let up on that departed critter, or -I’ll--I’ll--” - -“All right, Honey.” - -“About how long had the animal been dead, Slim?” asked Hashknife. - -“Well, I’ll tell yuh, Hartley. Judgin’ from the--” - -“Oh, ----!” exploded Honey. - -He kicked back his chair and tramped out through the kitchen to the rear -of the house, where he sat down on the well-curb and rolled a smoke. - -Slim reached across the table, removed an egg from Honey’s plate and -placed it on his own. - -“I can allus git extra food thataway,” he grinned. “Honey ain’t very -strong. Too ---- much ’magination, I’d say.” - -They finished their supper and went down to the bunk-house. Slim wanted -to play pitch. Hashknife declined to be a party to any card arguments; -so he stayed out of the game and went back to the ranch-house, where he -found Wong Lee serving supper to Peggy and Laura. - -No reference was made to Slim’s statement about the reward, but it was -rather difficult to find any conversation that did not connect with the -troubles of Tumbling River. Laura essayed a few pieces of music on the -old upright organ, while Peggy curled up in an old rocker, her chin on -one hand. Hashknife sprawled on the sofa, his long legs crossed, while -the blue smoke curled up from his cigaret. - -“Don’t you sing, Hashknife?” Laura turned on the stool and looked at -Hashknife. - -“Yeah, I sing--sometimes.” - -“Come and sing us a song.” - -“No-o-o-o, I don’t think so, Laura. I’m what you’d call an absent-minded -singer. I never sing when I know just what I’m doin’.” - -“Joe used to sing,” said Peggy simply. - -“And he had a good voice, too,” added Laura. - -There was a long period of silence. Finally Hashknife got to his feet -and stood there for a long time, deep in thought. The two girls watched -him curiously. Suddenly he looked at them, and a smile spread across his -face. - -“I just got some good news,” he said. - -“You got some good news?” Laura got up from the stool and stared at him. -“How could you get some good news?” - -Hashknife laughed softly and sat down again. - -“I just got to thinkin’,” he said. “Sometimes I get news thataway. Go -ahead and play somethin’, Laura.” - -For possibly an hour Laura played snatches of old songs, playing -entirely by ear. Hashknife still sprawled on the sofa, his eyes closed. -Several times Laura and Peggy exchanged amused glances, thinking he was -asleep, but he was far from it. Finally Laura left the organ, and -Hashknife opened his eyes. - -“Play another one, Laura,” he asked. - -“Another one?” The little blond-headed girl laughed. “Why, I’ve been -playing for over an hour, Hashknife.” - -“Thasso?” He smiled at her. “That shows how much I enjoyed yore music.” - -“I don’t believe you were listening at all.” - -“Oh, yeah, I was.” - -The two girls decided to go to bed and left Hashknife to his -cigaret-rolling. For another hour he smoked, only moving to throw a -cigaret butt into the fireplace and to roll a fresh one. He had turned -the lamp down low when the girls left the room and now he blew out the -light, yawned heavily and went to the front door. - -It was dark outside and the wind was blowing. He could see the dull glow -of a light in the bunk-house window as he stepped off the porch. To the -left and to the rear of the bunk-house was the main stable, behind which -was part of the corral, which extended out from a front corner of the -stable. - -Hashknife was half-way to the bunk-house when something attracted his -attention. It was down near the stable and sounded very much like a -smothered cry. The wind was blowing from that direction. He stopped -short, peering through the darkness. There was something moving down -near the stable. - -Hashknife hurried toward the stable, wondering whether it had been a cry -or merely the sound of the stable door in the wind. Then he saw the bulk -of a moving horse swinging around as if frightened, and he could hear -the bang of the stable door swinging in the wind. - -But before he could determine just what was going on, the flame of a -revolver shot licked out toward him and he heard the bullet strike the -ranch-house. Again and again the gun flashed; but Hashknife had dropped -flat and was shooting back at the flashes. - -He heard the bunk-house door slam open. Sleepy was running toward him, -calling his name. The last flash came from the further corner of the -stable front as the shooter darted behind cover. Honey was behind -Sleepy, yelling for somebody to tell him what it was all about. - -“Stop yellin’!” snapped Hashknife. “One of yuh circle this side of the -corral. He’s behind the stable. C’mon!” - -Sleepy went galloping around the corral, while Hashknife and Honey swung -wide of the stable. But the willows and other brush grew down within -fifty feet of that side, affording plenty of cover for any one to make a -getaway. - -After a fifteen-minute search they gave up. It was so dark that a man -could merely lie down on the ground and be invisible. They met at the -front of the stable, and there they almost stumbled over Slim Coleman, -who was sitting up. They heard him swear long and earnestly. - -“What in ---- happened to you, Slim?” asked Honey. - -But Slim merely continued to swear, although he was able to walk back to -the bunk-house without assistance. He had a lump over his left ear, a -bruised nose, and some skin off his right knuckles. - -He blinked in the lamplight and tried to grin. - -“Talk about it,” urged Honey. - -“Talk about it, eh? Well, I dunno what to talk about. After I left the -bunk-house I went to git my bronc. Didn’t see a danged soul around -there, but when I led my horse out I runs slap-dab into somebody. I -thought it was one of you boys, comin’ out to see if I was gettin’ -started. - -“I started to say somethin’, when I got the flash of a six-gun barrel, -which almost knocked my nose off. It did jist scrape my nose. I couldn’t -see the feller very good, but I took a smash at him with my right fist, -and I think I hit that ---- gun. And then I got a wallop on the head and -I seen all kinds of fireworks. It jist keeled me over, and I ’member -tryin’ to yell for help. The rest of it is kinda hazy. Wheee-e! I’ve -shore got me an awful headache.” - -“But who in ---- was it?” wondered Honey. “Is there somebody tryin’ to -lay yuh out, Slim?” - -“Must be. Feel of that bump.” - -“Honey,” said Hashknife, “you better go up to the house and tell the -girls what that shootin’ was all about. Some of them bullets hit the -house. And bring back a pan of hot water, so we can fix Slim’s head.” - -Honey raced for the house and Slim sat down on a bunk. He was still a -little dazed. - -“Yore bronc is still there by the corral fence,” said Sleepy. - -“Uh-huh. I still had the lead-rope when I fell. Gee, I shore don’t sabe -it, boys. I dunno anybody that hates me enough to pop me in the dark. -It’s lucky he didn’t hit any of yuh.” - -“Missed me a mile,” grinned Hashknife. - -In a few minutes Honey came back carrying a pan of water. - -“The girls were scared stiff,” he said. “One of them bullets busted the -window on this side, and some of the others hit the house. They want me -to sleep in the ranch-house.” - -“I’ll bet that makes yuh sore,” grinned Sleepy. - -“Aw, jist put some horse-liniment on it and I’ll head for home,” said -Slim. “It don’t hurt much.” - -“Yo’re not goin’ home tonight,” declared Hashknife. “This is no night -for a tall jigger like you to be ridin’. Shuck off yore raiment and pile -into Honey’s bunk while me and Sleepy unsaddle yore bronc.” - -Slim’s protests were very feeble. - -“Curt Bellew will swear I got drunk and forgot to come home.” - -“We’ll be yore alibi, Slim,” assured Hashknife. “And more than that, I’m -goin’ to need yuh tomorrow.” - -“Well, all right. Go kinda tender on that pinnacle, cowboy. She’s shore -a blood-brother to a boil.” - -Hashknife fixed up Slim’s head and then went up to the ranch-house, -where he called Honey outside. - -“We won’t be here for breakfast,” he told Honey. “Me and Sleepy and Slim -are goin’ to take a ride early in the mornin’; sabe? They’re holdin’ -that inquest at two o’clock in the afternoon. You hitch up the buggy -team in the mornin’ and take the girls to town. Tell ’em I said for ’em -to go, Honey. Be there for the inquest.” - -“But what for, Hashknife?” - -“Just for fun, Honey. Good night.” - -“You’ll be at the inquest, won’t yuh?” - -“Sure, I’m the main witness.” - -* * * * * - -It was an hour before daylight when Hashknife, Sleepy and Slim Coleman -rode away from the HJ. Slim’s head was a little sore, but the swelling -was reduced. Sleepy protested against such an early start; which was the -natural thing for him to do, especially since he didn’t know where they -were going. - -They forded the river below the bridge--much to Sleepy’s disgust. He got -one boot full of water. - -“Bridge is too narrow,” said Hashknife, “and there’s too much brush on -the other side of it.” - -“You must be scared,” laughed Sleepy. - -The bootful of water made him feel particularly sarcastic. Anyway, he -didn’t like to ride with an empty stomach. - -“Yeah, I’m scared,” admitted Hashknife as they reached the other bank -and climbed to the top. - -“You take the lead, Slim,” he said. “Take us to that dead horse.” - -“All right. It’ll be kinda slow goin’ in the dark, but it’ll be daylight -by the time we get there. Got to swing wide of the river on account of -the breaks. We can eat breakfast at the Lazy B, if yuh want to.” - -“We’ll look at the horse first, Slim. We may not get any breakfast.” - -“That’s the ---- of bein’ pardner to a man who is so ---- curious he’ll -get up in the middle of the night to hunt for a dead horse,” said -Sleepy. - -They were obliged to travel slowly, and the cold morning wind caused -Sleepy to swear at his wet feet. He was uncomfortable, and didn’t care -who knew it. The stars faded, and a rosy glow in the east proclaimed the -coming of daylight. - -Slim knew the country well, and had little difficulty in locating the -correct coulee. A coyote streaked out through the brush and went loping -off across the hills. He wasn’t a bit curious about these cowboys. They -often carried rifles, and were not a bit particular which coyote they -shot at. - -They found the carcass, and Hashknife did not take long in his -examination. The other two men sat on their horses some distance away, -holding Hashknife’s horse. He came back and climbed into his saddle. - -“Shall we go to the Lazy B and eat?” asked Slim. - -Hashknife shook his head. - -“No time to eat, Slim. Is there a place where we can cross the river -down here?” - -“Yeah, there’s the old Circle M crossin’. They herd cattle across once -in a while.” - -“That’s fine. Lead us to it.” - -“My ---- , you’d think he was a sailor!” wailed Sleepy. “He must be -crazy about water. Oh, well, there’s no use arguin’ with him, Slim.” - -“You won’t miss yore breakfast,” assured Hashknife. “If I was as fat as -you are I’d welcome a fast.” - -“I don’t mind the breakfast but I’d like to know what it’s all about,” -said Slim. - -“Well, yuh won’t know,” declared Sleepy. “This jigger never tells. He’s -a single-handed secret society, he is, Slim.” - -Hashknife merely laughed and swung in beside them. - -“Are yuh pretty good with a six-gun, Slim?” - -“Pretty good? Meanin’ what, Hartley?” - -“Did yuh ever kill a man?” - -“Nope,” Slim shook his head violently. “Never had to.” - -“Would, if yuh had to, wouldn’t yuh?” - -“Sure--why not?” - -“Yuh may have to.” - -Sleepy straightened up in his saddle. Slim looked quickly at Sleepy who -was grinning widely. Sleepy always grinned when there was action in the -wind. - -“I don’t quite sabe the drift of this, Hartley,” said Slim. “Why should -I have to kill a man?” - -“To make him quit shootin’.” - -“Oh, yeah. Well--all right.” - -Slim drew his six-shooter, examined the cylinder critically and put it -back. - -“I wish I’d ’a’ practised more,” he said dryly. - -Hashknife grinned in appreciation. He felt that Slim was a dependable -man. They reached the west bank of the river and rode south for about a -quarter of a mile to the Circle M crossing. The water was not deep here. - -Old cottonwoods grew close to the water edge and there were many cattle -standing among the trees. The cowboys rode out to the open country, -almost within sight of the Circle M. Hashknife studied the country. -Farther on and to their left was a rather high butte, fairly well -covered with brush. - -“On the other side of that is the Circle M road, ain’t it?” asked -Hashknife. - -Slim nodded. - -“Circles the bottom of it on that side. It’s only a little ways to the -Circle M. There’s a little stream comes down on this side of the butte, -and the road crosses it.” - -Hashknife took the lead now. He rode to the south of the butte, -dismounted at the foot and tied his horse in the thick brush. The other -boys followed him, and they walked up through the brush to the top of -the butte. - -Below, and not over four hundred yards to the south, were the ranch -buildings of the Circle M. Hashknife squatted down on a rocky projection -and told the others to keep out of sight. There was enough high brush to -make an effectual screen. - -The ranch-house of the Circle M was a rambling affair consisting of but -one floor. The exterior was rough boards, weathered, unpainted. There -were two stables and a number of low sheds, branding corral, bucking -corral and general utility corrals. A number of loose horses were in the -larger corral. - -Smoke was pouring from the kitchen stovepipe, and in a few minutes a man -came from the stable and went to the house. - -“That’s Ben Collins,” said Slim. “I know his walk.” - -“Have they got a Chink cook?” asked Sleepy. - -“Nope. Dutch Siebert does most of the cookin’. He’s a puncher. Ed never -could keep a cook, it seems, so he uses Dutch. He’s an awful flat-head.” - -“Merrick?” - -“No--Siebert. Danged flat-faced, obstinate sort of a cuss.” - -Sleepy stretched out on the ground and pillowed his head on his arms. - -“Wake me up early, mother; I’m to be queen of the May,” he grinned. “If -yuh won’t tell me what we’re doin’ here, I’m goin’ to take a nap. Yuh -might as well sleep, Slim.” - -“Go ahead,” said Hashknife. “I’ll wake yuh up in time.” - -Slim needed no second invitation, but slid out full length. - -Hashknife made himself comfortable, but not to sleep. He kept an eye on -the ranch buildings, and several times he saw Merrick and Collins -together. He knew Merrick well enough to distinguish him at that -distance. - -Time dragged on and the sun grew hot up there on the top of that knoll, -but Hashknife had the patience of an Indian. It was nearly eleven -o’clock when he saw Merrick and Collins saddle their horses at the -corral. A third man came out from the house and talked with them, and -Hashknife was sure this man was Dutch Siebert. He was bigger than either -of the other two, who were fairly big men. - -In a little while Merrick and Collins mounted their horses and moved -away from the ranch on the road which led to Pinnacle City. They were -going to attend the inquest. Hashknife paid no more attention to them, -but noted the time of their leaving and estimated about how long it -would take them to reach the town. Dutch Siebert played with a dog in -the yard for a few minutes, then went into the house. - -Hashknife settled back and rolled a cigaret. Sleepy woke up, swore a few -lines, shifted to more shade and went back to sleep. But Hashknife did -not become impatient. He knew what he was going to do, and it was -something that required fairly accurate timing. He knew that Merrick and -Collins would ride fairly fast and would cover that eight miles in less -than an hour. - -It was thirty minutes past the noon hour when Hashknife woke Sleepy and -Slim. Both required some stretching to get the kinks out of their -muscles. Hashknife led the way back to the horses, where they mounted, -and circled around to the road near the place where the little stream -crossed it. Hashknife dismounted at the stream. They were almost in view -of the ranch, the main gate being just around a brushy turn in the road. - -Sleepy was curious as to what Hashknife intended doing, and his -curiosity was even greater when he saw Hashknife take a chunk of yellow -soap from his pocket. - -“What’sa big idea, cowboy?” he asked. “Goin’ to take a bath?” - -“Git off and help me,” grinned Hashknife. - -They dismounted and Sleepy held the horse while Hashknife filled his hat -with water, poured it over the shoulders of the animal and began rubbing -in the soap. - -“The idea is,” grunted Hashknife, “to make us look like we’ve come to -beat ----!” - -“Lather, eh?” grunted Slim. “Gimme half that soap, and I’ll fix up this -side. You hold the rollin’ stock, Sleepy.” - -It did not take long for them to make that horse look as if it had run -many miles. They splashed and rubbed until Hashknife stepped back and -grinned his appreciation. Then he scooped up a double handful of dust, -threw it in the air and let it settle on him, like white ash. - -“All right, boys,” he said, swinging into the saddle. “Stay where yuh -are until I go past. Then leave yore broncs here and sneak in, keepin’ -under cover. If I need yuh, you’ll get a signal. Now, get back, ’cause -I’m goin’ to throw dust.” - -He rode back about two hundred yards, swung the horse around and came -past them as fast as the horse could run. The pounding hoofs threw dust -all over them, but they tied their horses and ran along the road, -keeping against the brush. - -Hashknife did not slacken speed, until almost at the door of the -ranch-house. Big Dutch Siebert stepped to the doorway and the sliding -hoofs slithered gravel against the half-open door. - -Hashknife’s coming was so sudden that the Dutchman did not seem to know -just what to do. And Hashknife was out of the saddle and around to Dutch -almost before the horse came to a stop. Hashknife took one keen look -back up the road, whirled on Dutch and stepped to the threshold. - -“Get inside--quick!” snapped Hashknife. - -Siebert stepped back quickly. He was a huge man, flat of face, -narrow-eyed, one side of his mouth sagging from a big chew of tobacco. -Once his big right hand swayed back past his holstered gun, but came -away. He was being rushed so fast he didn’t have time to think. And -Dutch Siebert was not a fast thinker. - -“Ed sent me!” snapped Hashknife. “He didn’t dare to come, because -they’re watchin’ him. There’s been a leak, Dutch. Ed says to get Joe out -of here as fast as yuh can, because they’re comin’ to search the place. -You know what that means? Hurry up, you ---- fool; they’re comin’!” - -Siebert gasped foolishly, whirled on his heel and almost ran into the -kitchen. He grasped the heavy kitchen table, whirled it aside and -started to drop to one knee. Then he swung around. Dutch Siebert was -beginning to think. His hand jerked back to his gun, but he moved too -late. - -Hashknife was on top of him, driving him against the wall, while -Hashknife’s right hand, gripping a heavy gun, described a short downward -arc, and Dutch Siebert ceased to think for a while. - -Hashknife picked up Dutch’s gun, ran to the doorway and wig-wagged -wildly with both arms. Sleepy and Slim broke from the fringe of brush -and came running across the yard. - -“One of yuh go to the stable and get a rope!” yelled Hashknife. - -Sleepy veered off and headed for the stable. - -“Did the soap and water work?” asked Slim, panting from his run. - -“It always works,” grinned Hashknife. “C’mon in.” - - - - -CHAPTER IX: THE INQUEST - - -“Have you seen anythin’ of Slim Coleman, Len?” Curt Bellew leaned in -through the doorway of the sheriff’s office and spoke to Kelsey, who was -oiling a gun. - -“Ain’t seen him,” said Kelsey shortly. - -“That’s funny. He started for town yesterday. I’ve been all over this -darned place and I can’t find him and nobody has seen him.” - -Kelsey did not show much interest, so Curt snorted and walked away. He -was a little worried about Slim. Honey Bee and the two girls drove into -town and left their rig at the livery-stable. Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma -were in town, and the old lady immediately took charge of the girls, -much to Honey’s relief, because he didn’t know what to do with them. - -The Heavenly Triplets were in town but were keeping strictly sober. One -reason was that they were not only broke but badly in debt. The morning -train had brought the conductor, brakeman and fireman of the -cattle-train to identify the dead brakeman, and to testify at the -inquest. - -Curt Bellew, still looking for the missing Slim, ran into Honey Bee. It -seemed that everybody in town knew by this time that Slim was missing. - -“Aw, he was at the HJ all night,” said Honey. “He was goin’ home, all -right, Curt, but somebody bent a gun over his head. By golly, we had -quite a shootin’ scrape out there! Somebody emptied a gun at Hashknife -Hartley, but didn’t touch him.” - -“Honey, you ain’t lyin’, are yuh?” asked Curt. There were several -interested listeners. - -“I shore ain’t, Curt,” declared Honey. “Slim needed a little patchin’ -up, but he’s all right.” - -“Where is he now?” - -“I can’t tell yuh, Curt--because I don’t know m’self.” - -Several questions were fired at Honey, but he had the same answer for -each. In the meantime Curt went back to Kelsey’s office and asked him -whether he had heard about the shooting at the HJ. - -“What shootin’, Curt?” - -Curt told him what Honey had said about it. - -“Why would anybody hit Slim Coleman?” asked Kelsey. - -“That’s the question without any answer.” - -“Where are Hartley and Stevens?” - -“I dunno. Mebbe they’re with Slim.” - -Ed Merrick and Ben Collins rode in from the Circle M, and heard about -Slim’s experience before they had their horses tied. Abe Liston of the -3W3 gave them the news. - -“By ----, they can’t lay that on to Joe Rich,” declared Abe. “Slim and -Joe were darned good friends.” - -“Where’s Slim now?” asked Merrick. - -“Nobody knows, except that he’s with them other punchers at the HJ. -Honey Bee and the two girls just came in a while ago, and Honey says he -don’t know where they are.” - -Merrick found Honey a little later and asked him about the incident. He -told Merrick about the same story Abe had told, except that he -elaborated on the shooting in the dark between Hashknife and the unknown -gunman. - -“Well, what do yuh make of it?” asked Merrick. - -“I don’t know,” laughed Honey. “Looks like somebody had gone plumb -crazy.” - -“Does look like it, Honey. What did Hartley think?” - -“That feller never says what he thinks, Ed. He bandaged Slim’s head and -made him stay all night. Slim wanted to go home, but Hashknife told him -it was a bad night for a tall cowpuncher to be ridin’ around. - -“Him and Sleepy and Slim pulled out before daylight, but didn’t tell me -where they were goin’. Yuh never can find out anythin’ from Hashknife. -He just grins at yore questions. It’s a wonder they didn’t accuse me of -bustin’ Slim.” - -Honey laughed and grimaced at the thought. - -“Accuse you?” queried Merrick. - -“Yeah. Yuh see, Slim ruined my supper. He told about findin’ a horse -that had been skinned. Why in ---- anybody would skin a horse is a -mystery to me. But anyway, they got to talkin’ about that dead horse. -Hashknife was interested, it seemed, and when Slim saw it was botherin -me, they went strong.” - -Merrick laughed shortly. - -“Yeah, it’s a wonder they didn’t accuse yuh of hittin’ him. Mebbe they -went to look at the dead horse.” - -“I wouldn’t put it past ’em,” laughed Honey. “But they’ll be here for -the inquest, Ed.” - -Even with the range well represented in Pinnacle City there was not a -great deal of interest in the inquest over the body of the brakeman. He -was a stranger, and there was but one verdict to be brought in. It would -be merely a matter of form. In fact, the rewards were already printed, -charging Joe Rich with the murder and offering thirty-five hundred -dollars for him dead or alive, or for information that would lead to his -arrest. It did not mention conviction. As far as that goes, he was -already convicted. - -Old Doctor Curzon decided to hold the inquest in a court-room. The crowd -was too large for his little home and the county would not pay him for -trampled flowerbeds. The body had already been identified by the -trainmen. Aunt Emma, Peggy and Laura had taken seats in the Flying H -wagon. They were not going up to the court-room. Aunt Emma wanted to -find Honey and make him take the girls back home. - -“Why did he bring you?” demanded the old lady. “With all this talk goin’ -on! I’ll sure tell him where to head in!” - -“I think it was Hashknife’s idea, Auntie,” said Peggy wearily. - -“It was, eh? And who’s he to tell you what to do? The sooner you quit -cryin’ over Joe Rich the better you’ll be off. After all he’s done to -you! Peggy, you ought to have sense.” - -“There comes Hashknife now!” exclaimed Peggy. - -It seemed like a cry of hope. Something seemed to tell her that this -tall cowboy riding up the middle of the street, sitting very straight in -his saddle, was bringing a ray of sunshine. - -He did not seem interested in the crowd. Straight to the hitch-rack he -came, dismounted slowly and tied the horse. - -As he stepped away from the animal he saw the three women in the wagon -and smiled at them as he touched the brim of his hat with his right -hand. They watched him angle across the street, going toward the -sheriff’s office. Kelsey and Angus McLaren were coming from the office -and stopped to speak with Hashknife. After a few moments of conversation -they saw Kelsey turn and go back to the office with Hashknife. - -Peggy kept her eyes glued to the office door, disregarding the advice of -Aunt Emma, who was telling her what she should do. In a few minutes -Hashknife came slowly outside and back up the street. It was two -o’clock. - -Near the entrance of the court-house Hashknife met the Heavenly -Triplets, who were anxious to get a front seat. He said something to -Lonnie Myers, and after a few moments the three men followed him farther -up the street, where they held a short, earnest conversation. Following -the conversation the three men went back to the court-house and went -inside. - -Hashknife leaned against the front of the general store and rolled a -smoke. Jack Ralston and Buck West crossed the street from the Pinnacle -saloon, and Hashknife called to Jack. The deputy came over to him and -they held a short conversation, after which they headed for the -sheriff’s office and went inside. - -“There’s something goin on,” declared Peggy. “But where are Sleepy and -Slim, do you suppose?” - -“I can’t even suppose,” replied Aunt Emma. “I hope that inquest won’t -take long. Hozie will stay until the last dog is hung, you may be sure -of that. And us out here in this hot sun. But that’s a man for yuh!” - -“You came in for the inquest, didn’t you, Aunt Emma?” asked Laura. - -“I did not--Hozie did. I have no interest in things of that kind.” - -“There is Hashknife now!” exclaimed Peggy. - -The tall cowboy was standing at the door of the court-house, and none of -them had seen him leave the sheriff’s office. After a few moments of -deliberation, he went in and climbed the stairs. - -The rather spacious court-room was not filled. There were possibly fifty -people in the room. Lonnie Myers stood near the doorway at the top of -the stairs; Dan Leach was at the opposite corner, at the rear; while -Nebrasky Jones sat in a front seat, very erect and very dignified. - -Doctor Curzon had already selected a jury when Hashknife came in; and -the six men, Curt Bellew, Eph Harper, Jimmy Black of the 3W3, Buck West, -Fred Thornton, a feed-store keeper, and Jud Albertson, a blacksmith, -were occupying the jury-box. - -Fred Coburn, the prosecuting attorney, was the only lawyer in the room. -Hashknife moved down to the front and took the only available seat. -Across the aisle from him sat Ben Collins. Farther back and across the -aisle sat Merrick and Angus McLaren, the Circle M owner on the outside -seat. - -Old Doctor Curzon conferred with the attorney for several moments before -calling the inquest to order. - -“I believe we will have the testimony of the sheriff first,” he said, -looking around the room. - -But neither the sheriff nor deputy were in evidence. - -“Will some one call the sheriff?” asked Coburn. - -Hashknife got slowly to his feet and half turned in the narrow aisle, -while his glance swept the audience. His face seemed a little pale and -his lips were shut tightly. Then-- - -“The sheriff won’t be here,” he said distinctly. “Neither will the -deputy. Their evidence is locked up, and I’ve got the key in my pocket.” - -For several moments the room was hushed. - -“I don’t believe we quite understand you,” said Coburn. - -“It was plain English,” replied Hashknife. - -“But--but--” spluttered the attorney. No one else spoke; all were too -interested for words. - -“So we’ll jist have to do without ’em,” said Hashknife. “Yuh see, I’m -playin’ safe, folks.” - -His lips twisted to a grin, but his eyes were cold, mirthless. - -“This is an inquest over the body of a murdered man, a man who was shot -down in the performance of his duty, and he was killed at a time when -the lives of a lot of folks might have been at stake. - -“You’ve merely met here as a matter of form to make it legal to hunt -down and destroy Joe Rich. Ain’t I right?” - -“Perfectly!” snapped the attorney. - -“Uh-huh. Well, how would it be to git a little of that testimony from a -real interested party?” Hashknife glanced toward the doorway. - -“C’mon in,” he said loudly. - -The crowd surged around in their seats, gasping in amazement. Joe Rich -was limping down the aisle. He was clad in an old gray shirt and a pair -of bib-overalls, old misfitting shoes; his unshaven face, dirty; hair -matted. A gasp went up from the crowd as Joe halted beside Hashknife and -turned to look at them. He appeared years older, weak. His eyes were -bloodshot, and the wrists below the shirt-sleeves were scored from rope -burns. - -“The main witness,” said Hashknife. “Look him over, folks. Does he look -like a man who had killed and robbed?” - -Still the crowd did not move. They seemed content to sit still and gaze -at the man. Then a man strangled, a chair rattled. It was Ed Merrick, -the owner of the Circle M. He had whirled in his chair and started for -the door, running like a drunken man, but his way was blocked by Sleepy, -Slim Coleman and Lonnie Myers and three guns were shoved in his face. - -He stopped, staggered sidewise and whirled around, his gun in his hand. -But before he could use it, Sleepy and Lonnie landed on him with a rush -and he went down, struggling wildly. - -Ben Collins had not moved. He merely flinched when Hashknife leaned -across him and took away his gun. He seemed in a daze. - -“Got him!” panted Sleepy. - -Hashknife looked toward the doorway. Peggy was coming in, her eyes wide, -staring down at Joe who had not seen her. Slim touched her on the arm, -but she did not stop. - -Hashknife beckoned her and she ran down the aisle. Joe turned and saw -her coming toward him and the next moment he had her in his arms, while -Hashknife hastily sidestepped and took Ben Collins by the arm. - -“C’mon, Collins,” he said. “You need exercise.” - -“Lemme have him,” said Nebrasky. “Me and Dan can handle him real good. -I’ve got a rope handy.” - -“All right, Nebrasky.” - -Hashknife turned to face the prosecuting attorney. - -“What is this all about?” he demanded. “Don’t you realize what--” - -“Better than anybody else,” smiled Hashknife. “Here,” he handed a key to -Dan Leach. “There’s two more cells empty. Put Collins in one and Merrick -in the other.” - -“Well, I’ll be darned!” That was about as near as Fred Coburn ever came -to using profanity. - -Uncle Hozie was pawing at Hashknife, masticating violently and staring -at Joe Rich and Peggy. - -“Wh-what about him?” demanded Uncle Hozie, pointing at Joe. - -“Oh, don’t bother ’em,” grinned Hashknife. “Listen, you folks. I’ve got -the whole story. Dutch Siebert is hog-tied at the Circle M and we found -Joe Rich in a cellar under the house, where he’s been since the day he -rode out of town. - -“Joe Rich didn’t get drunk on his weddin’ night. He took two drinks of -liquor with Len Kelsey in the Arapaho saloon, and Len slipped him some -knockout drops. Joe knew he hadn’t been drunk, but there wasn’t any way -to prove it. Merrick practically forced Joe to appoint Kelsey, and it -was Merrick’s idea to discredit Joe in order to make Kelsey sheriff. -Merrick wanted to own the law. - -“Well, he done a ---- good job of it. - -In fact, he overdone his job. That bridge wasn’t hit by lightning; it -was set on fire to let Merrick get off that express car after he had -robbed the safe. Collins and Dutch Siebert were there with the horses, -and they set the fire. The brakeman ran into ’em and they killed him. -Anybody with any sense would have known it couldn’t be a one-man job. -The man who robbed that safe couldn’t have killed the brakeman, because -he was put out of the way before the train stopped. - -“And Joe Rich did not rob Jim Wheeler. That was done by Siebert and -Collins, after Merrick had given Wheeler just one thousand dollars. -Merrick made out two notes, and Jim Wheeler thought one was a duplicate. -He read his own--and signed Merrick’s which read ‘five thousand.’ But -Jim Wheeler lost his note, and I found it under the sidewalk, over there -by the Pinnacle Saloon. I don’t know how they found it out, but I reckon -they did, because last night they mistook Slim Coleman for me and batted -him over the head. - -“But they overdone the evidence part at both the train and at the bank. -I didn’t know Joe Rich, but from what I could learn he was -intelligent--too danged intelligent to wear those leather cuffs, lose a -knife with his initials on it and all that. Merrick and Jack Ralston -caught Joe that first day. That is, they downed his horse, and took him -to the Circle M. They had to skin that animal to keep anybody from -seein’ it was Joe’s horse. - -“And here’s the particularly devilish part of it all: They were tryin’ -to pile up a big reward, soak Joe with a murder charge and make it dead -or alive. Know what that means? It means that they were going to kill -Joe and get that money, make heroes out of themselves and live happy for -a long time on the money they’ve got in that cellar. That’s the story, -folks.” - -The room was in an uproar following the finish of the story. They wanted -to get outside where there was more room to talk. But Hashknife knew -they were going to do more than talk. They were clattering down the -stairs when Hashknife touched Joe on the arm. - -“Get down there,” he said softly. “Yo’re the sheriff yet, Joe--Kelsey’s -disqualified. Stop ’em at the door. They’ll listen to yuh, kid.” - -Joe ran from the room and they heard him going down the steps. Peggy was -looking at Hashknife, her eyes filled with tears, as she held out her -hands to him. - -“Oh, it was wonderful,” she said. “But I knew you would do something -wonderful; I knew it, Hashknife.” - -“Yeah,” he said bashfully. “It worked out pretty good.” - -“Oh, I don’t know how you did it, Hashknife. Everybody was against Joe. -Why did you think he was innocent? What made you think it was a plot -against him?” - -“I looked at you,” said Hashknife simply. “And I figured that a man -you’d love--well, I figured right, Peggy.” - -They went down the stairs. A crowd had gathered in front of the -sheriff’s office, and Joe was talking to them, backed against the door. -He was flanked on one side by Slim Coleman, and on the other by Honey -Bee. And then the crowd began to disperse. Aunt Emma and Peggy met them -at the bottom of the stairs, and Laura kissed Hashknife before he was -aware of her intentions. - -Angus McLaren came up to Hashknife and held out his hand. - -“Har-rtley, I’ve nothin’ to say. Ye take my breath away. If I’ve -anythin’ to say about it--Joe’s still sheriff. He talked ’em out of -usin’ ropes, and he’s suffered enough to entitle him to somethin’. And -there’s a reward for ye, man--the money that was offered for Joe Rich. -We’ve got him back, and he’s worth every cent we’re payin’ for him.” - -Hashknife smiled and shook his head. - -“We don’t want money, McLaren--only enough for two fares East. The rest -will help Peggy start housekeepin’ with the man she kept on lovin’, in -spite of ---- and high water.” - -“Two fares East?” queried McLaren. - -“Yeah. Yuh see, we missed our train the night we came.” - -“Oh, I see.” - -“And Sleepy will like it, yuh know. I have to kinda humor him once in a -while.” - -“But you’re not going away for years and years,” declared Peggy. “Not -after what you’ve done, Hashknife. Stay here in the Tumbling River with -all of us.” - -“Ye fit well in here,” said McLaren. - -“And here comes Joe,” said Laura. “We’ll see what he has to say about -you going away, Mister Man.” - -“And you tell me some time,” smiled Hashknife. “It’ll keep.” - -He hurried away to find Sleepy, who was regaling a crowd with a story of -the lathered horse. - -“It’s shore funny how things work out,” he said. “Here we were headin’ -East for a little trip, and all this happens.” - -“Are yuh goin’ to keep on headin’ East?” asked one of the crowd. - -“Not us,” said Sleepy. “I’m all out of the notion.” - -Hashknife turned and went across the street, where he intercepted -McLaren. - -“We’ve changed our minds about goin’ East,” he said. “We’ll take a -couple of horses and saddles instead of them tickets, McLaren.” - -“All right,” laughed McLaren. “Where are you goin’, lad?” - -“Somewhere on the other side of the hill.” - -“What hill, Hartley?” - -“The next one,” smiled Hashknife. - -Copyright, 1926, by the Butterick Publishing Company in the -United States and Great Britain. All Rights reserved. - -[Transcriber's Note: This story appeared in the December 31, 1926 issue -of Adventure magazine.] - - *** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TWO FARES EAST *** - -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™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -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 -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.</div> - -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Title: Two fares east</p> -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Author: Tuttle, W. C. (Wilbur C.)</p> -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Release Date: June 29, 2022 [eBook #68426]<br> -Most recently updated: March 21, 2023</p> -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Language: English</p> -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Publisher: United States, The Butterick Publishing Company,1926.</p> -<p style='display:block; font-family:serif; margin-bottom:0.5em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left;'>Credits: Roger Frank and Sue Clark</p> -<div style='all:initial; font-family:serif; display:block; font-size:1.2em; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:2em; text-align:center;'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TWO FARES EAST ***</div> -<div class='page'> -<h1>Two Fares East</h1> - -<div class='ce'> -<div>by W. C. Tuttle</div> -</div> -<div id='frontispiece' class='mt01 mb01 wfrontispiece'> -<img src='images/illus-fpc.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%'> -</div> -</div> -<h2>CHAPTER I: WEDDING NIGHT</h2> - -<p>The ranch-house of Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H outfit was ablaze with -light. Two lanterns were suspended on the wide veranda which almost -encircled the rambling old house; lanterns were hanging from the corral -fence, where already many saddle-horses and buggy teams were tied. -Lanterns hung within the big stable and there was a lantern suspended to -the crosstree of the big estate.</p> - -<p>It was a big night at the Flying H. One of the stalls in the stable was -piled full of a miscellaneous collection of empty five-gallon cans, -cow-bells, shotguns; in fact, every kind of a noise-maker common to the -cattle country was ready for the final words of the minister. For this -was to be the biggest shivaree ever pulled off on the Tumbling River -range.</p> - -<p>Inside the living-room was the assembled company, sitting stiffly around -the room, more than conscious of the fact that they were all dressed up. -Old gray-bearded cattlemen, munching away at their tobacco; old ladies, -dressed in all the finery at their limited command; cowboys, -uncomfortable in celluloid collars and store clothes; old Uncle Hozie, -red of face, grinning at everybody and swearing under his breath at Aunt -Emma, who had shamed him into wearing an old Prince Albert coat which -had fitted him fifty pounds ago.</p> - -<p>“Look like you was the groom, Hozie,” chuckled one of the old cattlemen. -“Gosh, yo’re shore duded-up!”</p> - -<p>“Glad I ain’t,” said Uncle Hozie quickly. “All them wimmin upstairs, -blubberin’ over the bride. Haw, haw, haw, haw! She’d ort to have on a -swimmin’ suit. Haw, haw, haw, haw!”</p> - -<p>He winked one eye expressively and jerked his head toward the kitchen. -His actions were full of meaning.</p> - -<p>Curt Bellew got to his feet, stretched his six-foot frame, smoothed his -beard and tramped down heavily on one foot.</p> - -<p>“Settin’ makes me stiff,” he said apologetically. “Got t’ move around a -little.”</p> - -<p>He half limped toward the kitchen door.</p> - -<p>“Does kinda cramp yuh, Curt,” agreed old Buck West.</p> - -<p>His wife reached for him, but too late. He didn’t look toward her, but -followed Curt Bellew.</p> - -<p>One by one they complained of inaction and sauntered out.</p> - -<p>“I never seen so many men cravin’ exercise,” declared Mrs. West. -“Ordinarily Buck’s a great setter.”</p> - -<p>The women grinned knowingly at each other. They all knew Uncle Hozie had -opened the liquor. Aunt Emma came down the stairs, looking quickly -around the room.</p> - -<p>“Oh, they’re all out in the kitchen, Emmy,” said Mrs. Bellew. “Said they -was gettin’ cramped from settin’ around.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I s’pose Hozie couldn’t wait any longer. He swore he’d get drunk. -Said he had to get drunk in order to forget that coat he’s got on. But -he’s been pretty temp’rance for the last year or so, and a little mite -of liquor won’t hurt him.”</p> - -<p>“I s’pose it’s all right,” said Mrs. West dubiously. “How is Peggy?”</p> - -<p>“Standin’ it right good,” said Aunt Emma. “Never seen a prettier bride -in my life. Laura Hatton dressed her, and that girl does show good -taste, even if she is from the East.”</p> - -<p>“I never set no great store by Easterners,” said Mrs. Bellew. “But -Laura’s nice. And she’s pretty, too. She’s sure put the Injun sign on -‘Honey’ Bee. That boy ain’t worth the powder it would take t’ blow him -to Halifax. This may sound like an exaggeration, but it’s as true as I’m -settin’ here; Honey Bee cut L.H. on the side of my organ.”</p> - -<p>“No!” exclaimed the chorus.</p> - -<p>“Yessir! With his pocket-knife. Carved ’em right into that polished -wood. I said, ‘My ⸺, Honey—what’r yuh doin’?”</p> - -<p>“He jist kinda jerked back and looked at his knife, like he didn’t know. -And then he says:</p> - -<p>“‘Mrs. Bellew, I begs yore pardon—I thought it was a tree.’”</p> - -<p>“He thought it was a tree?” exclaimed Mrs. West.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Dreamin’, I tell yuh. Thought he was out in the woods.”</p> - -<p>“Good thing yuh caught him,” said Mrs. Selby, a little old lady. “He’d -prob’ly put his own initials in it, too.”</p> - -<p>“Crazier ’n a bedbug!” declared Grandma Owens, whose ninety years -allowed her to speak definitely.</p> - -<p>“Love, Grandma,” said Mrs. Bellew.</p> - -<p>“Same thing, Annie. I’ve watched ‘em for ninety year, and they ain’t no -difference—love and lunacy. Has the preacher come yet?”</p> - -<p>“Not yet. Listen!”</p> - -<p>From the kitchen came the sound of voices raised in song.</p> - -<p>“Wa-a-a-ay do-o-o-on yon-n-n-n-der in the co-o-orn-field.”</p> - -<p>“Drunk!” said Grandma flatly.</p> - -<p>“Drinking,” corrected Aunt Emma. “Most of ’em can stand more than Hozie -can, and he ain’t drunk until he insists on soloin’ ‘Silver Threads -Among the Gold’. Up to that time he can undress himself and hang up his -shirt, but when he starts on ‘Silver Threads’ he can’t even take off his -own boots.”</p> - -<p>“I wish they’d quit before Reverend Lake comes,” said Mrs. West. “He -might not be in accord with such doings.”</p> - -<p>“Won’t he?” Aunt Emma laughed softly. “Henry Lake may be pious, but he -ain’t Puritanical. If he hears ’em, he’ll probably come in through the -kitchen. Henry Lake has been givin’ us the gospel for twenty-five years, -and no man can do that in this country, if he goes too strong against -liquor.”</p> - -<p>“Honey and Joe ought to be showin’ up,” said Mrs. Bellew.</p> - -<p>“Oh, they’ll be here in time,” laughed Aunt Emma. “This is the first -time Joe ever got married, and don’t you ever think Honey Bee is goin’ -to be absent when there’s a chance to stand up at a weddin’ with Laura -Hatton.”</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler came in from the kitchen and halted just inside the room. He -was a big, gnarled sort of man, with mild blue eyes and an unruly mop of -gray hair. His new boots creaked painfully and he seemed ill at ease in -his new black suit and rumpled tie. Jim and Uncle Hozie were brothers, -and Jim was the father of the bride-to-be.</p> - -<p>“Preacher ain’t here yet?” asked Jim, drawing out a huge silver watch. -“It’s almost eight o’clock.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, he’ll be here,” assured Aunt Emma. “Peggy looks beautiful, Jim.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.” The big man seemed a trifle sad.</p> - -<p>“You don’t seem to mind losin’ yore daughter, Jim,” said Mrs. West. “I -remember when Sally got married; Buck cried.”</p> - -<p>“Prob’ly drunk,” said Jim unfeelingly.</p> - -<p>“Well, I like that, Jim Wheeler!”</p> - -<p>A vision in white came down the stairs and halted near the bottom. It -was Laura Hatton, the Easterner, who had come to Pinnacle City to attend -the wedding of her old school chum. Laura was a tiny little blonde with -big blue eyes and a laughing mouth which dismayed every cowboy in the -Tumbling River country—except Honey Bee, who had been christened James -Edward Bee.</p> - -<p>“Wouldn’t you ladies like to come up and see the bride?” she asked. -“She’s just simply a dream. Why, if I looked as pretty in wedding -clothes as Peggy does, I’d turn Mormon.”</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler watched them go up the stairs and heard their exclamations -of astonishment. Out in the kitchen an improvised quartet was singing -“Wait till the clouds roll by, Jennie.” Jim Wheeler shook his head -sadly.</p> - -<p>“Don’t seem to mind losing your daughter,” he muttered.</p> - -<p>Oh, but he did mind it. She would live in her own home. Her mother had -been dead ten years. After her death it seemed to Jim Wheeler that -nothing could ever fill that void. But Peggy had grown to womanhood, -filling the old ranch-house with her joyful presence, and Jim Wheeler -had thanked God for a daughter like her. Now she would go away to a home -of her own.</p> - -<p>“Nobody but me and Wong Lee left,” said Wheeler sadly. “And he’s only a -⸺ Chinaman.”</p> - -<p>Some one was knocking on the door, breaking in on Wheeler’s thoughts. He -opened the door for the minister of the Tumbling River country. Henry -Lake was a tall, lean-faced man, near-sighted, dressed in a rusty suit -of black. Weddings, funerals or Sunday sermons, he had worn that suit as -long as any of them could remember.</p> - -<p>He peered closely at Jim Wheeler, shoving out a bony hand. “Howdy, Jim,” -he said pleasantly.</p> - -<p>“Hello, Henry. Got here at last, eh?”</p> - -<p>The minister nodded slowly.</p> - -<p>“My old horse isn’t as fast as she used to be, Jim. We’re both getting -old, it seems. But—” he looked at his watch—“I’m near enough on time. -Where’s everybody?”</p> - -<p>“Wimmin are upstairs with the bride, and the men—” Jim hesitated and -glanced toward the kitchen door.</p> - -<p>“Carry me-e-e-e ba-a-ack to ol’ Virginny,” wailed a tenor, while a -baritone roared, “While the old mill wheel turns ’round, I’ll love you, -Ma-a-a-a-ary; when the bee-e-e-e-es—”</p> - -<p>And then came the reedy falsetto of Hozie Wheeler—</p> - -<p>“Da-a-a-arling, I am growing o-o-o-old.”</p> - -<p>The minister nodded slowly.</p> - -<p>“The perfectly natural reaction, Jim. The sentiment contained in corn -and rye.”</p> - -<p>“Like a little shot, Henry?”</p> - -<p>“Not now, Jim; later, perhaps. Is the groom here yet?”</p> - -<p>“Not yet. Him and Honey ought to be here any minute now.”</p> - -<p>The women were coming back down the stairs, and the minister went to -shake hands with them. Aunt Emma cocked one ear toward the kitchen, and -a look of consternation crossed her face. She grasped Jim by the arm and -whispered in his ear:</p> - -<p>“Shake Hozie loose, Jim! He’s silver-threadin’ already.”</p> - -<p>Jim nodded and went to the kitchen.</p> - -<p>And while the Flying H resounded with good cheer, while more guests -arrived and while Peggy Wheeler waited—Honey Bee buzzed angrily about -Pinnacle City. Honey had just arrayed himself in a blue made-to-order -suit, patent-leather shoes and a brown derby hat. Everything had come -with the suit, and Honey cursed the tailor for having acute astigmatism.</p> - -<p>The pants were a full six inches too short and at least that much too -big around the waist. Honey managed to squeeze a number eight foot into -the number six shoe. And the hat should have been a seven and -one-quarter, instead of a six and seven-eighths.</p> - -<p>Honey Bee was a medium-sized youth of twenty-five, with tow-colored -hair, shading to a roan at the ends, blue eyes, tilted nose and a large -mouth. The blue eyes were large and inquiring and the mouth grinned at -everything. Honey was a top-hand cowboy, even if he was somewhat of a -dreamer.</p> - -<p>But just now there was no smile on Honey’s mouth. He had hired a horse -and buggy from the livery-stable and had tied the horse in front of the -sheriff’s office. It just happened that Joe Rich, the sheriff, was going -to marry Peggy Wheeler, and had promised Honey to meet him at the office -at half-past seven.</p> - -<p>Every cowboy in the Tumbling River range envied Joe. Never had there -been a lovelier girl than Peggy Wheeler, and none of the boys would -admit that Joe was worthy of her.</p> - -<p>“It’s a love match, pure and simple,” Honey had declared. “Peggy’s pure -and Joe’s simple.”</p> - -<p>But just now Honey was calling Joe stronger things than simpleton. It -was nearing eight o’clock, and no Joe in sight. The office was closed. -Len Kelsey, Joe’s deputy, was out at the Flying H, probably drinking -more than was good for him.</p> - -<p>Honey didn’t like Len. Possibly it was because Honey thought that Joe -should have appointed him as deputy. And it is barely possible that Joe -would have appointed Honey, except that, in order to swing a certain -element, he had made a pre-election promise to appoint Len.</p> - -<p>Joe was barely twenty-three years of age. Too young, many of the -old-timers said, to be a sheriff of Tumbling River. But Joe won the -election. He was a slender young man, slightly above the average in -height, with a thin, handsome face, keen gray eyes and a firm mouth. He -had been foreman of the Flying H, and Uncle Hozie had mourned the -passing of a capable cowhand.</p> - -<p>“Plumb ruined,” declared the old man. “Never be worth a ⸺ for -anythin’ agin’. County offices has ruined more men than liquor and -cards.”</p> - -<p>Honey Bee sat in the buggy, resting his shining feet across the -dashboard in order to lessen the pain. The coat was a little tight -across the shoulders, and Honey wondered whether the tucks would show -where he had gathered in the waistband of the trousers. His -cartridge-belt made a decided bulge under his tight vest, but he had no -other belt; and no cowboy would ever lower himself to wear suspenders. -They were the insignia of a farmer.</p> - -<p>“I wish I knowed what kind of a figure that ⸺ tailor had in mind when -he built this here suit,” said Honey to himself. “I know ⸺ well I -measured myself accurately. I might ’a’ slipped a little on some of it, -bein’ as I had to do a little stoopin’; but never as much as this shows. -Now, where in ⸺ is Joe Rich?”</p> - -<p>It was eight o’clock by Honey’s watch. He got out of the buggy and -almost fell down. His feet had gone to sleep. And when he made a sudden -grab for the buggy wheel he heard a slight rip in the shoulder-seam of -his coat.</p> - -<p>“My ⸺, I’m comin’ apart!” he grunted.</p> - -<p>Honey had not seen Joe since about five o’clock, and something seemed to -tell him that everything was not right. Joe slept in the office. He and -Len Kelsey were together the last time Honey had seen them, and Joe said -he was going to get a shave. But the barber shop was closed now.</p> - -<p>Honey limped around to Joe’s stable and found Joe’s horse there. Then he -went back to the buggy. It was after eight now, and the wedding was -scheduled for eight-thirty. It was over two miles to the Flying H from -Pinnacle City and Honey knew that the buggy horse was not a fast -stepper.</p> - -<p>Honey swore dismally and stood on one foot. He needed a big drink to -kill the pain. Across the street was the Pinnacle bar, the most popular -saloon in town. There was sure to be several men in there and they would -be sure to make some remarks about Honey’s clothes.</p> - -<p>Farther down the street was the Arapaho bar. Honey did not like the -place. “Limpy” Nelson owned the Arapaho, and Honey did not like Limpy. -But Honey knew that no one would make remarks about his appearance down -there, because Honey’s friends frequented the Pinnacle—and friends were -the only ones entitled to make remarks.</p> - -<p>So Honey stifled his pride and went to the Arapaho, where he leaned -against the bar. Old Limpy was the only person there, except a drunk -sprawled across a card-table near the rear of the place.</p> - -<p>Limpy squinted at Honey and shifted his eyes toward the back of the room -as he slid the glasses across the bar.</p> - -<p>“Didn’t somebody say that the sheriff was gittin’ married t’night?” -asked Limpy.</p> - -<p>Honey poured out his drink and looked at it wearily. Lifting the glass, -he looked critically at it.</p> - -<p>“Yeah,” he said slowly. “I’m waitin’ for him.”</p> - -<p>“That’s him back there,” Limpy pointed toward the rear.</p> - -<p>“Eh?” Honey jerked around, staring. “What’s that, Limpy?”</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich. Drunk as an owl.”</p> - -<p>“For ⸺’s sake!” Honey dropped his glass and limped back to the table -where Joe Rich sprawled. He slapped Joe on the shoulder, swearing -foolishly.</p> - -<p>“Joe! Joe, you ⸺ fool! Wake up, can’tcha?”</p> - -<p>But Joe merely grunted heavily. He was still wearing the clothes he had -worn when Honey saw him last, and he had not shaved.</p> - -<p>Dead drunk on his marriage night! Honey sagged weakly against the table, -speechless. He could visualize all those people out at the Flying H, -waiting for them. He shoved away from the table and looked at Limpy.</p> - -<p>“My God, this is awful, Limpy! He was to get married at eight-thirty. -It’s almost that right now, and look at him!”</p> - -<p>“Pretty drunk,” nodded Limpy.</p> - -<p>“Dead t’ the world! Who’d he get drunk with?”</p> - -<p>“Alone, I reckon. He was shore polluted when he came here. Got a couple -more with Len and went to sleep back there.”</p> - -<p>Honey groaned painfully. Joe reeked of whisky.</p> - -<p>“Oh, you ⸺ fool!” wailed Honey. “Joe, can’tcha wake up? Let’s go for -a walk. Joe! A-a-a-aw, you drunken bum!”</p> - -<p>Two men came in and walked up to the bar. They were Ed Merrick and Ben -Collins. Merrick owned the Circle M outfit, and Ben was one of his -cowboys. Merrick had been the one who supported Joe Rich and had asked -Joe to appoint Len Kelsey deputy. Len had worked for the Circle M for -several years.</p> - -<p>They came back and looked at Joe.</p> - -<p>“And this is his weddin’ night!” wailed Honey.</p> - -<p>“For ⸺ sake!” snorted Merrick disgustedly. “He was goin’ to marry -Peggy Wheeler.”</p> - -<p>“Loaded to the gills,” declared Ben. “He’s shore a ⸺ of a fine -specimen for sheriff.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh can throw that in a can!” snapped Honey. “Since when did the Circle -M start judgin’ morals?”</p> - -<p>Evidently Ben did not know; so he shut his mouth.</p> - -<p>“What are yuh goin’ to do?” asked Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Put him to bed. My ⸺, I can’t take him out to the Flyin’ H. Joe! You -brainless idiot, wake up!”</p> - -<p>“We better help yuh, Honey,” said Merrick. “He’s plumb floppy.”</p> - -<p>Honey managed to get the office key from Joe’s pocket, and between the -three of them they managed to carry Joe back to his office, where they -put him on his bed.</p> - -<p>“What’ll yuh do about it?” asked Merrick when they came out.</p> - -<p>“God only knows, Merrick!” wailed Honey. “I can’t go out there and say -he’s drunk. Oh, why didn’t the ⸺ fool get shot, or somethin’? -I—I—aw ⸺, I’ve got to go out there. I hope to ⸺ the horse runs -away and breaks my neck. But there ain’t much hopes,” dismally. “These -Pinnacle livery horses never did run away from home. Well, I—thanks for -helpin’ me put him to bed.”</p> - -<p>Honey limped out, untied the horse and got into the buggy.</p> - -<p>“I’d rather go to a funeral any old time,” he told the horse as they -left town.”</p> - -<p>“By ⸺, I’d rather go to my own funeral. But it can’t be helped; I’ve -got to tell ’em.”</p> - -<p>It is not difficult to imagine the frame of mind of those at the Flying -H when eight-thirty passed and no sign of the groom and best man. The -aged minister paced up and down the veranda, trying to make himself -believe that everything was all right.</p> - -<p>Down by the big gate stood Jim Wheeler, a dim figure beneath the hanging -lantern. All hilarity had ceased in the kitchen. Uncle Hozie was seated -in the living-room between Aunt Emma and Grandma Owens, grinning widely -at nothing whatever.</p> - -<p>Upstairs in a bedroom were Peggy Wheeler and Laura Hatton. An old clock -on a dresser ticked loudly, its hands pointing at a quarter of nine. -Peggy sat on a bed, her hands folded in her lap. She was a decided -brunette, taller than Laura, brown-eyed; well entitled to the honor of -being the most beautiful girl in the Tumbling River country.</p> - -<p>There were tears in her brown eyes, and she bit her lip as Laura turned -from the front window, shaking her blond head.</p> - -<p>“Nobody in sight, Peggy. I just can’t understand it.”</p> - -<p>Peggy shook her head. She couldn’t trust herself to talk just now. Aunt -Emma came slowly up the stairs and looked in at Peggy.</p> - -<p>“I’ll betcha the buggy broke down,” she said. “They’ll both come walkin’ -in pretty soon. Peggy, you dry them tears. Joe’s all right. Yuh can’t -tell what’s happened. Bein’ the sheriff, he might have been called at -the last minute. The law don’t wait on marriages. You just wait and see, -Peggy.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I hope everything is all right,” sighed Peggy. “He’s twenty minutes -late right now, Aunt Emma.”</p> - -<p>Still they did not come. Some of the cowboys volunteered to ride back to -Pinnacle City to see what the trouble might be, when the long-looked-for -buggy hove in sight. They could see it far down the road in the -moonlight. Laura had seen it from the bedroom window and came running -back to Peggy.</p> - -<p>“Good gracious, stand up, Peggy!” she exclaimed. “Your gown is all -wrinkled. They’re coming at last. Heavens, your cheeks are all -tear-streaked! No, don’t wipe them! You little goose, why did you shed -all those tears?”</p> - -<p>“Well, what would you have done?” laughed Peggy, allowing Laura to -smooth her gown.</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t cry, that’s a sure thing.”</p> - -<p>She darted back to the window, flinging the curtain aside.</p> - -<p>“They’ve stopped at the gate,” she said. “I think they are talking to -your father. Now he’s coming with them.”</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma came running up the stairs, calling to Peggy.</p> - -<p>“They’re here,” she called. “Goodness knows, it’s time.”</p> - -<p>“I’m ready, Aunt Emma,” called Peggy.</p> - -<p>Laura still stood at the window, watching the buggy come up to the -veranda. But only Honey Bee got out of the buggy. He was talking to Jim -Wheeler and forgot to tie the horse. Then they came into the house. A -babel of questions assailed Honey, but Jim Wheeler’s heavy voice -silenced them. Came several moments of silence. Laura had stepped back -beside Peggy, who was listening.</p> - -<p>“There ain’t goin’ to be no weddin’,” said Jim Wheeler slowly. “Joe Rich -is dead drunk.”</p> - -<p>A silence followed Jim’s announcement. Peggy looked at Laura, and the -blood slowly drained from her cheeks. She grasped for the foot of the -bed to steady herself. Then came Honey’s voice:</p> - -<p>“Aw, ⸺ it, don’t look at me thataway!” he wailed. “This wasn’t -anythin’ I could help. I was to meet him at seven-thirty, and he didn’t -show up; so I waited until after eight. Then I found him in the Arapaho -saloon—asleep.”</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma was coming up the stairs, bringing the news to Peggy. She -didn’t realize that Peggy had heard all of it. They met at the top of -the stairs, and Peggy went past her, clinging to the railing. Aunt Emma -touched her on the arm, but Peggy did not look up. At the top of the -stairs stood Laura, her eyes wide, the tears running down her cheeks.</p> - -<p>Peggy went into the living-room and stopped just inside the doorway. The -minister caught sight of her and crossed the room, but she brushed him -aside.</p> - -<p>“Honey,” she said breathlessly, “is that all true?”</p> - -<p>Honey Bee shifted his weight to one foot, nodding jerkily.</p> - -<p>“My ⸺, I wouldn’t lie to yuh, Peggy!” he said. “It shore is ⸺ to -have to tell the truth in a case like this. All the way from town I’ve -tried to frame up a lie, but it wasn’t no use, Peggy. Mebbe it was my -feet. A feller with an eight foot can’t think of no lies in a six shoe.”</p> - -<p>Peggy’s eyes swept the assemblage of old friends, and their faces seemed -blurred. No one spoke. Her father stood beside her, grim-faced, stunned.</p> - -<p>“I’m sorry,” said Peggy simply, and went back toward the stairs.</p> - -<p>Slowly the crowd gathered up their belongings and went away. Even Uncle -Hozie was shocked to sobriety. Finally there was no one left in the big -living-room except Honey Bee. He took off his shoes and coat and was -going toward the front door when Laura Hatton came down the stairs. She -had been crying.</p> - -<p>Honey stared at her and she stared at Honey.</p> - -<p>“Huh-howdy,” said Honey, bobbing his head. “Nice weather.”</p> - -<p>Then he tried to bow, and the effort pulled the waistband of his pants -away from his belt. He made a quick grab, and saved the day.</p> - -<p>“Oh, why did you have to come and tell her a thing like that?” asked -Laura. “Why didn’t you lie like a gentleman?”</p> - -<p>“Lie like a gentleman?” Honey stared at her, his hands clutching the -coat, shoes and waistline.</p> - -<p>“Yes—lie!” said Laura fiercely. “You could have told that Joe had to -chase horse-thieves, or something like that.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh,” grunted Honey. “Well, yeah, I could.”</p> - -<p>“Well, why didn’t you?”</p> - -<p>“Them’s why!” Honey flung down the offending shoes. “By ⸺, yuh can’t -be pretty and smart at the same time! Folks say that brains are in yore -head, but they’re not. They’re in yore feet, I tell yuh! Pinch yore feet -and yuh can’t think. That’s why I had to tell the truth.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose so,” said Laura sadly. “Perhaps it is all for the best. You -better go home, Mr. Bee; you’re half undressed.”</p> - -<p>“Half?” gasped Honey. “If anythin’ makes me let loose—I’m all -undressed! Good night.”</p> - -<p>Honey climbed into his buggy and drove back to Pinnacle City, sadder and -wiser, as far as clothes were concerned. The outfit had cost him forty -dollars. He sat down on the brown derby when he got into the seat, but -he was too disgusted to move off it.</p> - -<p>He turned the horse over to the stableman and went to the Pinnacle -Saloon in his sock-feet, carrying his coat. Some of the men who had been -at the Flying H were at the saloon, having a drink before going home. -Len Kelsey, the deputy, was there. Len was a tall skinny, swarthy young -man, inclined to be boastful of his own abilities.</p> - -<p>“You seen Joe?” asked Honey.</p> - -<p>Len shook his head.</p> - -<p>“Mebbe we better go over and see how he’s comin’ along,” suggested -Honey.</p> - -<p>They walked over to the office and found Joe still on the bed, snoring -heavily. He opened his eyes when Honey shook the bed, and looked around -in a bewildered way.</p> - -<p>“Whazamatter?” he asked thickly.</p> - -<p>“When yuh sober up, you’ll find out,” growled Honey. “You shore raised -⸺ and put a chunk under it tonight, pardner.”</p> - -<p>“Huh?”</p> - -<p>Joe lifted himself on one elbow and stared at the lamp. He blinked -owlishly and looked at Honey. Joe’s eyes were bloodshot and he breathed -jerkily.</p> - -<p>“Whatcha mean?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“Do you know what night this is?” asked Honey.</p> - -<p>Joe squinted one eye thoughtfully.</p> - -<p>“What night? What—” he sank back on the pillow and shut his eyes.</p> - -<p>“Pretty sick,” observed Len. “Better let him sleep it off.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I suppose,” said Honey.</p> - -<p>He threw some covers over Joe and they went out together, after turning -the lamp down low.</p> - -<p>But Joe did not go back to sleep. His head ached and his throat was so -dry he could hardly swallow. Finally he got out of bed and staggered -over to the table, where he turned up the lamp.</p> - -<p>For several minutes he stood against the table, rubbing his head and -trying to puzzle things out. On a chair near the bed was a white shirt -and collar, gleaming white in the light of the lamp. On the floor was a -new pair of shoes.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the mist lifted from Joe’s brain and he remembered. It came to -him like an electric shock. He was to be married!</p> - -<p>He stumbled to the door and flung it open. It was dark out there, the -street deserted. Wonderingly he looked at his watch.</p> - -<p>Eleven o’clock!</p> - -<p>Slowly he went back to the bed and sat down, holding his head in his -hands. What night was it? he wondered. Was it the night of his -marriage—or the night before? No, it couldn’t be the night before. He -remembered everything. And now he remembered that Honey was wearing a -white collar. Nothing but a marriage or a funeral would cause Honey to -wear a white collar.</p> - -<p>He felt nauseated, dry-throated. What had he done? There was a light in -the Pinnacle Saloon; so he went over there. The cool night air revived -him a little, but his legs did not track very well.</p> - -<p>Honey and Len were at the bar, talking with the bartender, when Joe came -in.</p> - -<p>“Gosh, you shore look like the breakin’ up of a hard winter, pardner,” -observed Honey.</p> - -<p>Joe came up to the bar and hooked one elbow over the polished top. He -wanted to sit down, but forced himself to stand.</p> - -<p>“Honey,” he said hoarsely, “what night is this?”</p> - -<p>“What night? Joe, you ⸺ fool, this was yore weddin’ night!”</p> - -<p>Joe sagged visibly and Honey caught him by the arm.</p> - -<p>“You better set down,” advised Len.</p> - -<p>Joe allowed Honey to lead him to a chair, where he slumped weakly, -staring wide-eyed at Honey.</p> - -<p>“My weddin’ night?” he whispered. “Honey, don’t lie to me!”</p> - -<p>“Nobody lyin’ to yuh, Joe.”</p> - -<p>Joe slid down in the chair, his face the color of wood ashes. He lifted -his right hand almost to his face, but let it fall to his knee.</p> - -<p>“Don’t lie, Honey!” It was a weak whisper. There was still hope left.</p> - -<p>“I ain’t lyin’, Joe,” said Honey sadly. “Good God, I wish I was! Len was -there; he can tell yuh. I waited for yuh, like I said I would, Joe. But -you never showed up. It was after eight o’clock when I went huntin’ yuh, -and ⸺ yore hide, I found yuh in the Arapaho, drunk as a boiled owl.”</p> - -<p>“Drunk as a boiled owl,” whispered Joe.</p> - -<p>“Y’betcha. I couldn’t take yuh, Joe. ⸺, I’d do anythin’ for yuh, and -you know it; but I couldn’t take yuh out there thataway, so I put yuh to -bed.”</p> - -<p>Joe groaned painfully.</p> - -<p>“They—they were out there—everybody, Honey?”</p> - -<p>“Everybody, Joe. I tried to think up a lie to tell ’em, but my feet hurt -so ⸺ bad that I couldn’t even think. I had to tell ’em the truth. It -was nine o’clock. Aw, it was awful.”</p> - -<p>Joe had sunk down in the chair, breathing like a runner who had just -finished a hard race.</p> - -<p>“I seen Peggy,” said Honey. “My ⸺, but she was beautiful! And you -hurt her, Joe. I could tell she was hurt bad, but she jist said she was -sorry.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, my God, don’t!”</p> - -<p>Joe lurched out of the chair, panting, hands clenched. Suddenly he flung -his hands up to his eyes.</p> - -<p>“Oh, what have I done? I don’t understand it. I must have been crazy. Am -I crazy now—or dreaming? No, I’m not dreamin’; so I must be crazy. Dead -drunk on my weddin’—oh, what’s the matter with the world, anyway?”</p> - -<p>He stood in the middle of the saloon, his eyes shut, his face twisted -with the pain of it all. He stumbled forward and would have fallen had -not Honey grasped him.</p> - -<p>“You better go and sleep on it, pardner,” advised Honey.</p> - -<p>“Sleep? With this on my mind?”</p> - -<p>“Well, yuh got drunk with it on yore mind.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, don’t rub it in on him,” said the bartender. “Better have a drink, -Joe. You sure need bracin’.”</p> - -<p>“He don’t need any more drinks,” declared Honey. “Good gosh, he plumb -reeks of it yet. What he needs is sleep.”</p> - -<p>“Sleep?” Joe smiled crookedly. “Oh, what can I do? I feel like I was all -dead, except my mind.”</p> - -<p>“Come out to the ranch with me, Joe,” urged Honey.</p> - -<p>“And face the Bellew family?”</p> - -<p>“You’ve got to face ’em all, sooner or later, Joe.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose that’s true! Honey, what did they say? What did they do?”</p> - -<p>“What could they do, Joe? I don’t think they said much. I know Peggy -didn’t. They jist acted like they was stunned. It was worse ’n a -funeral.”</p> - -<p>“Hozie was drunk, and it sobered him,” offered Len.</p> - -<p>“Poor old Hozie,” said Joe. “All my friends—once.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, they’ll get over it, Joe,” said Honey. “They all like you awful -well.”</p> - -<p>“Did like me, Honey. Oh, I’m all through. I may not have any brains, but -in spite of what I’ve done, I’ve got some pride left. I can’t face ’em. -I know what they’re saying!</p> - -<p>“‘Drunken bum! Drunken bum!’ Oh, I know it, Honey. No matter whether I’m -guilty or not, I’ll always be the drunken bum who forgot his own -weddin’. Is there anybody or anythin’ lower than I am?”</p> - -<p>“You could put on a plug-hat and walk under a snake’s belly,” said Honey -unfeelingly. “I’m not upholdin’ yuh, cowboy. Far be it from me to -interrupt yuh when yuh start sayin’ mean things about yourself; but that -don’t alter the fact that I’m yore friend, and I ask yuh to come out to -the bunk-house and sleep yourself into a sane frame of mind. Right now -yo’re as crazy as a locoed calf.”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head.</p> - -<p>“Thank yuh, Honey, but I’m goin’ to saddle my horse and see if the wind -will straighten me out. I’m sick as a fool, and I’ve got a lot of -thinkin’ to do.”</p> - -<p>Joe lurched out of the saloon and stumbled across the street, heading -for his stable. Honey shook his head sadly and went back to the bar.</p> - -<p>“He’s shore sufferin’,” said the bartender.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, he is,” nodded Honey sadly. “He’s gittin’ all the hell a man ever -gits. Yuh don’t have to die a sinner to get punished, I happen to know. -Some gits it right here.”</p> - -<p>“Have you suffered?” asked the bartender.</p> - -<p>“What in ⸺ do yuh think I’m runnin’ around in my socks for? I’ll say -I’ve suffered. Let’s have one more drink.”</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER II: “HANGING IS TOO GOOD—”</h2> - -<p>Pinnacle City was the oldest settlement in the Tumbling River country -and had always been the county seat since the boundary lines had been -drawn. Originally the place had been only a small settlement and the -houses had been built along a wagon-road. And as the place grew larger -this road became the main street, with very little added to the original -width. In several places the road had twisted to avoid a mud-hole, and -the main street was consequently very crooked.</p> - -<p>But Pinnacle City had never become a metropolis. It was still the small -cow-town; muddy in winter, dusty in summer, with poorly made wooden -sidewalks which followed the contour of the ground fairly closely. The -railroad had added little to Pinnacle City except a brick-red depot, -warehouse and some loading corrals.</p> - -<p>Eighteen miles southeast was the town of Kelo, and twelve miles -northwest was the town of Ransome. Tumbling River ran southwest, cutting -straight through the center of the valley. A short distance west of -Pinnacle City were the high pinnacles of the Tumbling range, which gave -the town its name. Barbed-wire had never made its appearance in the -Tumbling River range, feed was good and there was plenty of water.</p> - -<div id='i001' class='mt01 mb01 wi001'> -<img src='images/illus-001.jpg' alt='' style='width:100%'> -</div> -<p>Five outfits ranged their stock in the Pinnacle City end of the Tumbling -River range, the farthest away from town being Ed Merrick’s Circle M, -located about eight miles due south. Midway between the town and the -Circle M, and just on the east bank of Tumbling River, was Jim Wheeler’s -HJ ranch.</p> - -<p>Southwest, about three miles from town, was Curt Bellew’s Lazy B. This -was on the west side of the river. A little less than three miles to the -northeast of Pinnacle City was Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H; and four -miles northwest of town was Buck West’s 3W3 outfit.</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler’s ranch was just between the wagon-road and the railroad, on -the way to Kelo. The two bridges were less than half a mile apart. Jim -Wheeler’s wife had died when Peggy was a little slip of a girl, but Jim -had kept his ranch and raised his daughter, aided and abetted by Aunt -Emma Wheeler, who had wanted to raise her. The HJ was a small ranch. Jim -had been content to run a few cattle and horses. Wong Lee, the Chinese -cook, had been with the HJ for years, and Jim swore that the county had -always assessed Wong as personal property of the HJ.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie Wheeler’s Flying H was a larger outfit, employing three -cowboys, Lonnie Myers, Dan Leach and “Nebrasky” Jones, known as the -“Heavenly Triplets,” possibly because there was nothing heavenly about -any of them. Lonnie was a loud-talking boy from the Milk River country; -Dan Leach hailed from eastern Oregon, and Nebrasky’s cognomen disclosed -the State of his nativity. Uncle Hozie called them his debating society -and entered into their State arguments in favor of Arizona.</p> - -<p>Curt Bellew’s Lazy B supported three cowboys: Eph Harper, “Slim” Coleman -and Honey Bee. Mrs. Bellew contended that the ranch could be handled -with one man, but that Curt wanted to match Hozie Wheeler in numbers. -She pointed out the fact that Buck West could run his 3W3 outfit with -only two men, Jimmy Black and Abe Liston, just because Buck wasn’t so -lazy he couldn’t do some of the work himself. Which of course was a -gentle hint that Curt might do more himself.</p> - -<p>The Circle M ranged more stock than any of the other ranches and only -carried three men besides Ed Merrick. Ben Collins, “Dutch” Siebert and -Jack Ralston made up the personnel of the Circle M, since Len Kelsey had -left them to take up his duties as deputy sheriff under Joe Rich.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>It was the morning following the wedding which had not taken place that -Joe Rich rode up to the Flying H. All night long he had ridden across -the hills, fighting out with himself to decide what to do, and he was a -sorry-looking young man when he drew rein near the veranda of the Flying -H ranch-house. He had ridden away without coat, hat or chaps. His -trouser-legs were torn from riding past brush, his face scratched, his -hair disheveled.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie saw him from the window and came down to him. Lonnie Myers -and Nebrasky were at the corral, saddling their horses. They merely -glanced in his direction, recognizing him, but paying no attention. -Uncle Hozie looked Joe over critically, but said nothing.</p> - -<p>“Well, why don’t yuh say somethin’?” demanded Joe wearily. “My ⸺, -Hozie, don’t just stand there! Swear at me, if yuh feel thataway.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie shook his head slowly and sighed. He had drunk a little too -much the night before, and his spirits were not overly bright. A tin can -rattled loudly, and they looked toward the stable, where Dan Leach was -throwing out the stuff they had stacked in the stall for the shivaree.</p> - -<p>Joe’s eyes closed tightly for a moment and he turned his head away. He -knew what those noise producers had been meant for. A cow-bell clattered -among the cans. Lonnie and Nebrasky were watching Joe from the corral.</p> - -<p>“I don’t feel like cussin’ anybody,” said Uncle Hozie.</p> - -<p>“Not even me?” asked Joe.</p> - -<p>“You? Nope. What’sa use, Joe? If yuh cuss folks before they do wrong it -might do some good. Afterward, it’s no use. Yuh can’t wipe out what a -man writes in the book of fate, Joe.”</p> - -<p>“And I shore wrote a page last night, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Yea-a-ah, I’d tell a man yuh did, Joe.” Uncle Hozie cocked one eye and -looked at Joe.</p> - -<p>“There’s by actual count, seventeen ⸺ fools in this Tumblin’ River -range—and yo’re all of ’em, Joe.”</p> - -<p>“I admit it, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“You do? My ⸺, you didn’t think for a minute yuh could deny it, -didja? Huh! Why don’tcha git down? My ⸺, I hate to talk to a man on a -horse! Especially the mornin’ after. Kinda hurts my eyes to look up.”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head.</p> - -<p>“No, I can’t stay, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Nobody asked yuh to, did they?”</p> - -<p>“No. Is Peggy here yet?”</p> - -<p>“No, she ain’t, Joe,” softly. “They went home last night—her and Jim -and Laura Hatton. Jim thought it was best. Emma tried to get ’em to stay -a while, but they kinda wanted to be at home, where there wouldn’t be -anybody to ask questions.”</p> - -<p>“To ask questions!” echoed Joe. “That’s the worst of it.”</p> - -<p>“I dunno,” sighed Hozie. “It’s the first weddin’ I ever seen that -raveled right out thataway. Honey Bee showed up with his coat in one -hand and his shoes in the other. He shore was the worst-lookin’ best man -I ever seen.”</p> - -<p>“Poor old Honey.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, yuh ought to feel sorry for somebody, Joe. I don’t sabe yuh; by -⸺, I don’t! I thought I knew yuh, but I reckon I don’t. I ain’t said -what I think about yuh to anybody. Mebbe I ain’t had no chance; so many -folks has said what they thought about it that I’ve kinda got their -ideas and mine all tangled up. Mebbe after while I’ll git my own ideas -straightened up to where I know they’re all mine, I’ll look ’em over.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose they’d like to hang me, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Hang yuh? Huh! Reminds me of a Dutchman I knowed. He runs into a gang -of punchers that was goin’ to lynch a horse thief. Dutchy runs into ’em, -and asks what it’s all about.</p> - -<p>“‘Vat iss it all about?’ asks Dutchy.</p> - -<p>“‘Goin’ to hang a horse thief,’ says a puncher.</p> - -<p>“‘Oh, dot’s too bad,’ says Dutchy. ‘You shouldn’t hang a man for -stealing von horse.’</p> - -<p>“‘It was yore horse, Dutchy.’</p> - -<p>“‘So-o-o-o? Don’t hang him; dot’s too good for him. Let me kick him in -de pants.’”</p> - -<p>Joe smiled bitterly.</p> - -<p>“Do you think hangin’ is too good for me, Hozie?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“I don’t say it is, Joe; but when I got a look at Peggy last night I -shore wanted to give yuh some of the Dutchman’s medicine.”</p> - -<p>Joe wiped the back of his hand across his cheek and wet his lips with a -dry tongue.</p> - -<p>“I reckon I’m all through in Tumblin’ River, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” Uncle Hozie bit off a huge chew of tobacco and masticated -rapidly, thoughtfully. “Well, Joe, it ain’t for me to say. I got up as -far as ‘Silver Threads’ last night myself, but of course it wasn’t my -weddin’ night. But, accordin’ to some remarks I heard expressed last -night, the folks of the Tumblin’ River ain’t takin’ up no collection to -buy yuh a monument. Yuh see, Joe, Peggy is kinda well liked.”</p> - -<p>“Kinda well liked! My ⸺!” Joe shut his jaw tightly and fumbled at his -reins. “I’ll be goin’, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah? Well.” Hozie spat thoughtfully, but did not look up at Joe.</p> - -<p>“Be good to yourself,” he said slowly.</p> - -<p>Joe turned and rode away, never looking back. Hozie sat down on the -veranda and Aunt Emma came out. She had been watching from a window.</p> - -<p>“What did he have to say?” she asked.</p> - -<p>“Joe? Oh, nothin’ much.”</p> - -<p>“What excuse did he offer?”</p> - -<p>“None.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t deny bein’ drunk?”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t mention it.”</p> - -<p>“Feel sorry about it, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t say.”</p> - -<p>“Well, what in the world did you two talk about?”</p> - -<p>“Public opinion.”</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma snorted.</p> - -<p>“Public opinion, eh? Did you tell him what you thought of him?”</p> - -<p>“Nope; wasn’t quite clear in my own mind, Emma.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose not. If Jim hadn’t stopped yuh last night—”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I know,” Hozie smiled softly. “My voice was kinda good, too. Curt -Bellew said he never heard me sing so well.”</p> - -<p>“Curt was drunk, too.”</p> - -<p>“Thasso. Prob’ly accounts for him likin’ my voice. I’d like to sing to a -sober man some day and get an honest opinion.”</p> - -<p>“No sober man would listen to you, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“I s’pose not,” Uncle Hozie sighed deeply. “I suppose it’s jist sort of -a drunken bond between inebriates that makes me feel sorry for Joe Rich, -Emma; but I do. He looked so doggone helpless and lonesome this mornin’. -No, I didn’t tell him I felt sorry. He don’t deserve sympathy.”</p> - -<p>“He don’t deserve anythin’,” declared Aunt Emma.</p> - -<p>“Hangin’—mebbe.”</p> - -<p>“And you feel sorry for him?”</p> - -<p>“I want to, Emma.” Uncle Hozie turned and looked at her. “I’ve worked -with that boy a lot. Me and him have rubbed knees on some hard rides, -and I kinda looked on Joe like I would on my own son. He was straight -and square—until now, Emma. Mebbe,” he hesitated for a moment, “mebbe -I’m feelin’ sorry for the Joe Rich of yesterday.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s different, Hozie,” said Aunt Emma softly, and went back in -the house. She had thought a lot of Joe Rich of yesterday, too.</p> - -<p>Joe rode back to Pinnacle City and stabled his tired horse. He had spent -all his savings for a little four-room house on the outskirts of -Pinnacle and had gone in debt for the furnishings. It was to have been -their home.</p> - -<p>Len Kelsey was asleep in the office when Joe came in and sat down at his -desk. He woke up and looked curiously at Joe.</p> - -<p>“Wondered where yuh was, Joe,” he said sleepily.</p> - -<p>“Yeah?”</p> - -<p>Joe drew out a sheet of paper, dipped a pen in the ink bottle and began -writing. Kelsey turned over and went to sleep again.</p> - -<p>Joe finished writing, folded the paper and walked out of the office. -Just south of his office was the old two-story frame-building -court-house, and as Joe started to enter the front door he met Jim -Wheeler and Angus McLaren, chairman of the board of county -commissioners.</p> - -<p>McLaren was a big, raw-boned Scot who owned a general store in Kelo. -McLaren, Ed Merrick and Ross Layton, of Ransome, composed the board of -commissioners.</p> - -<p>Joe Rich stopped short as he faced Jim Wheeler. For possibly five -seconds the HJ cattleman stared at the sheriff of Tumbling River, and -then, without a word, he struck Joe square in the face, knocking him out -through the doorway, where Joe went to his haunches on the sidewalk, -dazed, bleeding from his nose and mouth.</p> - -<p>Quickly the big Scotsman stepped in front of Wheeler, grasping him with -both hands.</p> - -<p>“Stop it, Jim!” he ordered.</p> - -<p>Wheeler stepped back, his face crimson with anger, but saying nothing.</p> - -<p>Joe did not get up, nor did he even look at Wheeler, who stepped past -McLaren and went slowly up the street.</p> - -<p>“Are ye hurt much, Joe?” asked McLaren not unkindly. He knew all about -what had happened the night before.</p> - -<p>Joe did not reply. He got slowly to his feet and leaned against the -building, while he drew out the folded sheet of paper. Then he unpinned -the silver star from the bosom of his soiled shirt, pinned it to the -sheet of paper and handed it to McLaren. Then he turned and went slowly -down the street.</p> - -<p>McLaren stared after him. Joe Rich staggered slightly, but he was not -drunk. McLaren unfolded the paper and read it carefully. It was Joe’s -resignation, written to the board of county commissioners. McLaren put -it in his pocket.</p> - -<p>“Life’s queer,” said the big Scot thoughtfully. “Yesterday he was Joe -Rich, sheriff of Tumblin’ River, the luckiest young man in the world. -And today—nobody! Ye never know yer luck, so ye don’t; and who has the -right to judge him?”</p> - -<p>He turned and went back to his office.</p> - -<p>Joe staggered off the main street and went down through an alley. He -wanted to get off the street; to be where no one would talk to him. -Strangely enough he felt no pain from the blow. Except for the fact that -his face was bleeding, he was not aware he had been hurt.</p> - -<p>The thought of Jim Wheeler knocking him down hurt worse than any blow, -and he moved along blindly; not going anywhere—just away from -everybody. He did not realize where he was until he heard a voice speak -his name.</p> - -<p>He was standing beside a picket-fence, and there was Honey Bee, holding -the reins of his horse. The picket-fence was the one around Joe’s house; -the one Aunt Emma had called “Honeymoon Home.”</p> - -<p>“I seen yuh cuttin’ across this way,” explained Honey. “My ⸺, yuh -shore got an awful lookin’ face on yuh, cowboy. Horse kick yuh?”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head. He didn’t want to talk with Honey Bee, but he knew -there was no chance of getting away from him. Honey was tying his horse -to the fence, and now he came over to Joe.</p> - -<p>“Mebbe we better go in the house, Joe,” he said. “Yuh got to wash off -that blood.”</p> - -<p>Joe nodded and followed Honey to the house. It was not locked. Folks did -not lock their houses in the Tumbling River country. Honey filled a -basin with water and found a towel. Honey was rather rough but -effective.</p> - -<p>“Yo’re a ⸺ of a lookin’ thing,” he declared.</p> - -<p>“Thasall right,” mumbled Joe. “Thanks, Honey.”</p> - -<p>Joe slumped back in a rocking-chair and closed his eyes, while Honey put -away the basin and towel.</p> - -<p>“I’m wonderin’ what the other feller looks like,” said Honey, as he -manufactured a cigaret.</p> - -<p>“Jim Wheeler,” said Joe.</p> - -<p>“The ⸺! Did Jim Wheeler hit yuh, Joe?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be ⸺! Jim Wheeler! What did he say, Joe?”</p> - -<p>“Nothin’. Wasn’t anythin’ to be said.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Makes it kinda hard for yuh, cowboy. Anyway, yuh had to meet -him sooner or later. Ain’tcha goin’ out to see Peggy?”</p> - -<p>“No, I can’t do that, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“I s’pose not. I was past there today—this mornin’. Saw Laura. Didn’t -sleep none, I reckon. She’s a darned pretty girl, but this mornin’ her -eyes shore looked like two burned holes in a blanket. I pulled off an -awful fox pass last night. I took off my coat and shoes, ’cause I shore -was in misery, and then Laura comes hoppin’ in on me. I has to make my -little bow, and my belt missed connections with my pants. Na-a-aw, I -saved myself, all right; but it shore needed quick action. Either that -tailor is awful cock-eyed, or I’m a queer built jigger.”</p> - -<p>“You didn’t see Peggy?” asked Joe softly.</p> - -<p>“Nope. I asked Laura how she was, and Laura asks me how any other girl -would be under them conditions. If I was you, I’d go out and have a talk -with her. But not the way yuh look now, Joe. Rest up a while. Let Len -Kelsey run the office for a few days.”</p> - -<p>“I resigned this mornin’, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh resigned? Yuh mean you’ve quit bein’ sheriff? Aw, ⸺, why didja -do that? You ⸺ idjit! Throwin’ up a job like that. -Ho-o-o-o—hum-m-m-m! Joe, yo’re a ⸺ fool.”</p> - -<p>“In every way, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“A-a-aw, I didn’t mean it thataway, Joe. You know me. I’d go to ⸺ and -half way back for you, and you know it. But you’ve shore dug yourself an -awful hole, and you’ll never git out by quittin’ thataway. Laura is -tryin’ to get Peggy to go home with her for a while. She’ll prob’ly have -one awful time convincin’ Jim Wheeler that it’s the best thing for Peggy -to do—but Laura is shore convincin’.”</p> - -<p>“You mean that Peggy would go East, Honey?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, sure. She’s got friends back there; folks she knew where she went -to school with Laura. Mebbe it’s the best thing for her to do. Jim ain’t -got a lot of money, but he can afford it, I reckon. What do you figure -on doin’, Joe?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I don’t know, Honey. I can’t make up my mind to anythin’. I just -run in circles, and every way I turn there’s a blank wall; no way out.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I s’pose so. Let’s go and buy a drink.”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head.</p> - -<p>“I don’t think I’ll ever want another drink of liquor, Honey. I’m goin’ -to sleep a while, and mebbe I can think my way clear.”</p> - -<p>Honey came past the court-house and saw Jim Wheeler, Angus McLaren, Ed -Merrick and Ross Layton just going into the place. They were going to -consider the resignation of Joe Rich, and it did not take them long to -decide on an acceptance.</p> - -<p>Ross Layton was a saloon owner in Ransome. He was rather small, slightly -gray, and affected flowing ties and fancy vests. The rest of his raiment -was rather somber, a fact which had caused Honey Bee to remark—</p> - -<p>“Looks like a ⸺ bouquet of flowers wrapped up in crêpe.”</p> - -<p>There was no argument over the appointment of Len Kelsey as the -successor of Joe Rich, and it was up to Len to pick his own deputy. They -went from the court-house to the sheriff’s office, where they told Len -of his good fortune. The skinny-faced deputy grinned widely and accepted -his honors. As the three men were leaving Len said to Merrick—</p> - -<p>“Send Jack in to see me, Ed.”</p> - -<p>“All right, Len,” nodded Merrick.</p> - -<p>Len and Jack Ralston had been bunkies at the Circle M, and it would be -the natural thing for Len to appoint Jack as his deputy.</p> - -<p>McLaren had some business to attend to at the Pinnacle City bank, so he -left Merrick and Wheeler together. Layton had left them at the sheriff’s -office.</p> - -<p>“It’s sure funny how things change,” observed Merrick.</p> - -<p>The owner of the Circle M was slightly under forty years of age, above -medium height. He was rather good-looking and dressed well. However, he -looked more like a gambler than a county official and a solid citizen. -Perhaps this aspect was enhanced by the fact that he shaved regularly, -kept his black mustache trimmed and waxed to needle-like points, and -wore pants instead of overalls.</p> - -<p>“I was thinkin’ about Joe Rich,” said Merrick.</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler shoved his hands deep in his pockets and did not lift his -eyes from serious contemplation of his own boot-toes.</p> - -<p>“I wanted to talk to yuh, Merrick,” he said slowly. “This sure has been -a blow to me. Laura Hatton wants Peggy to go home with her. I -dunno—mebbe’s it’s the best thing to do. I don’t mind layin’ my cards -on the table.”</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler looked up at Merrick.</p> - -<p>“I owe the Pinnacle City bank seven thousand dollars and I can’t ask ’em -for any more, Merrick.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.” Merrick did not seem impressed.</p> - -<p>“You know what the HJ ranch is, Merrick. Seven thousand is a lot of -money against it. I’ve got to have another thousand, if I send Peggy -back with Laura.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I might let yuh have it, Jim. Bank got a mortgage?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll take your note. How soon do yuh need it?”</p> - -<p>“Any time in the next couple of days.”</p> - -<p>“All right, I’ll let yuh have it, Jim.”</p> - -<p>They separated and Merrick went to the Pinnacle Saloon, where he met -Honey Bee. Honey had drunk enough to make him loquacious.</p> - -<p>“Didja accept Joe’s resignation?” asked Honey.</p> - -<p>“Nothin’ else to do,” replied Merrick. There was little love lost -between these two men.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.” Honey leaned against the bar and cuffed his hat to one side of -his head.</p> - -<p>“Who’sa sheriff now?”</p> - -<p>“Len Kelsey.”</p> - -<p>“O-o-o-oh, is that so? My, my! Things shore do change quick. If yuh had -a lawyer and a doctor in yore Circle M, you’d kinda run the whole danged -country, wouldn’t yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I don’t know,” Merrick grinned and invited Honey to have a drink.</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll drink with yuh,” agreed Honey. “I’m sad at heart.” They -lifted their glasses to each other.</p> - -<p>“Hits Jim Wheeler pretty hard,” said Merrick gravely.</p> - -<p>“Sure does. Here’s how.”</p> - -<p>“He tells me,” said Merrick, placing his glass on the bar, “that his -daughter is goin’ East with Miss Hatton.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I heard that,” said Honey sadly. “I didn’t know it was all -settled.”</p> - -<p>“I reckon it is. Anyway, I’m makin’ a loan to Jim. He’s in kinda heavy -at the bank; so I’m lettin’ him have the money.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Well, that’s nice of yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Where’s Joe Rich, Honey?”</p> - -<p>“I left him down at his new place, settin’ there, lookin’ at nothin’. -That boy’s half crazy.”</p> - -<p>“Must have been more than half crazy,” declared Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Yeah. Now I’ll buy a drink.”</p> - -<p>Honey went back to Joe’s place before he went to the Lazy B, and found -Joe still sitting in the same chair. He told Joe what Merrick had said -about Jim’s borrowing money from Merrick to send Peggy with Laura.</p> - -<p>“How much did he have to borrow?” asked Joe.</p> - -<p>Honey didn’t know.</p> - -<p>“Jim Wheeler must be short of money,” said Honey. “Merrick said he was -in pretty deep with the Pinnacle bank. They accepted yore resignation -and appointed Len Kelsey, Joe.”</p> - -<p>“Quick work,” said Joe shortly.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I’ll say it is. You were a fool to quit that job.”</p> - -<p>Honey left him there and rode out of town. He intended going straight -back to the Lazy B, but began thinking about Laura Hatton so strongly -that he found himself crossing the Tumbling River bridge before he -realized where he was heading.</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler arrived there ahead of Honey, and was sitting on the porch, -talking with Peggy and Laura, while Jack Ralston, of the Circle M, sat -on a step, hat on the back of his head. Ralston was a tall, curly-headed -young man who thought quite a lot of Jack Ralston. He was a clever -roper, and one of the best bronc riders in the country.</p> - -<p>Honey scowled and wanted to keep right on riding, but he was so close -that it might look queer if he didn’t stop. Peggy went into the house -before Honey arrived. Ralston looked critically at Honey, nodded -shortly, and resumed conversation with Laura.</p> - -<p>Honey dismounted. Then he uncinched his saddle, shook it a little, and -took plenty of time cinching it again. He knew he was of a hair-trigger -disposition, and was trying to curb it. Ralston was telling Laura about -how he rode Derelict, a locally famous outlaw horse, at a recent rodeo. -Honey’s ears reddened slightly. Derelict had thrown Honey the day before -Ralston had ridden him, and it had taken ten minutes for Honey to -recover consciousness.</p> - -<p>“It must be wonderful to ride a bucking horse,” said Laura. “I saw -Lonnie Myers ride one at the Flying H. Oh, it was a lot of fun!”</p> - -<p>“That was just an ordinary bucker,” said Ralston. “Any puncher can ride -a half-broke bucker. Lots of the boys in this country think they’re -riders, but when it comes to fannin’ the real buckers—they don’t show -much. You wait until we have another rodeo, and I’ll show yuh some -ridin’.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, he’s a good rider,” said Honey, still fussing with his latigo. -“Awful good rider. I shouldn’t be surprized if he’s half as good as he -thinks he is. Ridin’ broncs makes folks talk thataway. Of course, us -ord’nary punchers don’t go lookin’ for glory in the bronc corral, so we -never do get shook up very bad. But you can tell them good riders every -time. They’re kinda buck-drunk, as yuh might say. They ain’t very -tight-brained to begin with, and all that shock and jerk soon gits the -inside of their heads kinda rattly.</p> - -<p>“Oh, they’re all right, as far as that goes. Nobody expects ’em to do -anythin’ but ride buckers. But they don’t know it, and the way them -p’fessional bronc riders do talk! Mebbe they ain’t so much to blame, at -that; but everythin’ is ‘I’ with ’em. Rodeos are all right, I s’pose. -Folks get a lot of fun out of it; but them buckin’ contests shore do -bring in undesirable citizens.”</p> - -<p>Honey had spoken so earnestly that Laura Hatton did not realize he was -talking about Jack Ralston.</p> - -<p>But Jack Ralston knew. He got to his feet, glaring at Honey, who paid no -attention to him at all. He adjusted the split-ear headstall of his -bridle, looked it over critically and came over to the steps. Ralston -glanced from Honey to Laura and then shot a glance at Jim Wheeler, who, -in spite of the misery in his soul, was trying to stifle a laugh.</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be goin’,” said Ralston. “Good day.”</p> - -<p>Honey twisted his mouth into a wide grin as he watched Ralston ride -away.</p> - -<p>“He is very entertaining,” said Laura.</p> - -<p>“Who—Jack?” Honey grinned widely. “Liars mostly always are.”</p> - -<p>Jim Wheeler laughed and went into the house, for which Honey thanked him -mentally. Honey sat down on the steps, cuffed his hat to the back of his -head and sighed deeply.</p> - -<p>“How’s Peggy feelin’?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“Better. She’s going back home with me; it’s all settled.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh,” said Honey gloomily. “Lotta luck in that for me.”</p> - -<p>“For you?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah; you goin’ away.”</p> - -<p>“Oh!” Laura’s blue eyes opened wide. “Well, you knew I was only here on -a visit, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“Oh! shore; I knowed it. Yuh can’t stay, huh?”</p> - -<p>“Not very well.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. I s’pose—” Honey hesitated awkwardly. “I s’pose you’ve got a -lot of fellers back East, eh?”</p> - -<p>He pointed north, but the direction made no difference. Laura smiled.</p> - -<p>“Fellows? A few—perhaps.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.” Honey scuffed a heel against the step, rattling his -spur-chain. “I s’pose you’ll be gettin’ married, huh?”</p> - -<p>“When?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, some of these days,” gloomily.</p> - -<p>Laura shook her pretty head violently. “You bet I won’t! After what -happened last night I wouldn’t marry the best man on earth.”</p> - -<p>“I’m shore glad to hear yuh say that,” said Honey seriously.</p> - -<p>“Why?” demanded Laura quickly.</p> - -<p>“’Cause if yuh marry the man I hope yuh will, yuh shore won’t be gettin’ -the best man in the world.”</p> - -<p>Laura blushed and got to her feet. Honey got up, too, and they faced -each other.</p> - -<p>“You ain’t sore, are yuh, Laura?” he asked.</p> - -<p>She shook her head slowly.</p> - -<p>“No, Honey; I can’t get mad at you—but I do think you are awfully -funny.”</p> - -<p>She turned and walked into the house. Honey stared at the doorway for -several moments before going back to his horse.</p> - -<p>“She thinks I’m awfully funny,” he told his horse. “I must be—she -didn’t even crack a smile.”</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER III: THE NEW SHERIFF</h2> - -<p>The following morning Joe moved his few effects from the sheriff’s -office. Kelsey had just appointed Jack Ralston to act as his deputy, and -was showing him where everything was in the office. Kelsey was inclined -to be a little superior, and did not shake hands with Joe.</p> - -<p>“What do yuh figure on doin’, Joe?” asked Ralston.</p> - -<p>“Haven’t figured anythin’ yet, Jack. Probably leave in a few days.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey did not ask any questions, nor did he look up from the desk when -Joe went away. Joe took his belongings down to his little cottage, where -he selected the few things he would take with him. He would turn the -furniture and carpets back to the Pinnacle Merchandise Company and let -somebody handle the sale of the house.</p> - -<p>Later on he went up the street, intending to see about having the -furniture taken back, when he saw Jim Wheeler and Ed Merrick standing in -front of the Pinnacle Saloon. It suddenly struck Joe that this would be -a good chance to go out to the HJ and see Peggy. He was ashamed even to -face her, but he would feel like a dog if he went away from Tumbling -River without seeing her again.</p> - -<p>He turned and went to his stable, where he saddled his horse and rode -away. There were times during his journey out there when he turned back. -But he cursed himself for being a coward and went on. He was not going -to ask her to forgive him. That idea had never entered his head.</p> - -<p>Peggy was alone on the porch, sitting deep in an old rocking-chair, and -did not see Joe until he came up the steps. She started to get up, but -sank back, staring at him. Then the tears came and she threw one arm -across her face.</p> - -<p>“Don’t cry,” begged Joe. “Curse me, Peggy. I can stand it. I came out -here to be cursed—and to say good-by. I haven’t any excuse that you or -anybody else would believe; so I’m not askin’ anythin’—not excusin’ -myself. But I didn’t want to go away without seein’ yuh again.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, why did you do it, Joe?” she sobbed. “Why? Why?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno, Peggy. It’s done. There ain’t anythin’ I can do to make it any -different than it is. What’s the use of me sayin’ I’m sorry? I’ve been -to hell since that night, and it’s a rough road. But I just want yuh to -tell me good-by. It ain’t much to ask, even after what I’ve done. Just a -good-by, Peggy.”</p> - -<p>But she did not speak. Joe’s face was the color of wood ashes as he -turned and went down the steps to his horse. For several moments he -leaned against his horse, looking back at her, but she had not moved. -She was just a huddled heap in the old chair. The sunlight slanted under -a corner of the porch, striking across her hair.</p> - -<p>He shut his lips tightly, swung into the saddle and rode slowly away. -Peggy stirred. Laura had come to the doorway. She had been inside the -living-room, listening.</p> - -<p>“Where are you going, Joe?” asked Peggy softly. It was hardly more than -a whisper. Laura looked curiously at her, wondering.</p> - -<p>“You’re not going away—to stay, Joe?” said Peggy.</p> - -<p>“He’s gone, Peggy,” said Laura. “Didn’t you know?”</p> - -<p>Peggy looked up quickly, blinking the tears from her eyes, staring at -Laura.</p> - -<p>“Gone?” she asked.</p> - -<p>“My dear, he went away after he asked you to tell him good-by,” said -Laura. “Didn’t you know he went away?”</p> - -<p>“I didn’t know, Laura.”</p> - -<p>Peggy got to her feet and went to the side porch-railing. Far down the -road toward the river bridge was a little cloud of dust which showed the -passing of Joe Rich. Peggy turned and looked at Laura, but neither of -them spoke. Joe Rich had gone away without even a good-by from the girl -who still loved him; so there was nothing left to say.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>Uncle Hozie Wheeler and Lonnie Myers were heading for the HJ ranch. They -had crossed the railroad right-of-way at an old wagon-road crossing and -struck the HJ road about half a mile west of the Tumbling River bridge. -One of the boys had heard that Peggy was going East, and Aunt Emma -rushed Hozie right down there to see whether there was any truth in the -report. Uncle Hozie didn’t care for the solitary ride; so he took Lonnie -along. Lonnie was long, lean, and sad of face, thin-haired and inclined -to freckle. He was prone to sing sad songs in a quavering tenor and, -besides that certain talent, had a developed sense of humor.</p> - -<p>“That’s wimmin for yuh, Lonnie,” declared Uncle Hozie. “All she had to -do was to hear that Peggy figures on goin’ away, and she chases us down -here. Prob’ly wants to put her up a lunch. Ma’s funny thataway. If -you’ve got good sense, you’ll stay single, Lonnie. Of course, there -ain’t liable to nobody pick yuh. You ain’t e-legible.”</p> - -<p>“What’s that, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“E-legible? Oh, that’s a p’lite word, Lonnie. It means that you wouldn’t -be worth a lot to anybody. It means that nobody wants to hook a sucker -when the bass are bitin’.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah. Joe Rich was e-legible, wasn’t he, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“He was—” said Hozie dryly. “He was a big bass when he was hooked, but -a sucker when he was landed.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Say, that Hatton girl is shore a dinger. I never did see hair -and skin like she’s got. I’d be scared to touch her.”</p> - -<p>“So would I—if Honey Bee was lookin’, Lonnie.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, he jist thinks she’s his girl.”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe. Huh!”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie lifted in his stirrups and looked down the road.</p> - -<p>“What’s this we’re comin’ to, Lonnie?”</p> - -<p>It was Joe Rich, dismounted, standing in the middle of the road. -Standing against the brush on the river side of the road was Jim -Wheeler’s horse, and Jim Wheeler was in a huddled heap in the middle of -the road.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie and Lonnie dismounted quickly and went over to him. His -right leg was twisted in a peculiar position and his head had been badly -beaten. Uncle Hozie dropped to his knees and examined him as quickly as -possible.</p> - -<p>“Joe, for God’s sake, what happened to Jim?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” said Joe dully. “He—his foot was caught in the stirrup, -Hozie. The horse dragged him. I just found him a minute ago. Yuh can see -his—his leg’s broke.”</p> - -<p>Joe pointed up the dusty road toward town.</p> - -<p>“Yuh can see where the horse dragged him.”</p> - -<p>The trail through the dust was plainly visible, and the condition of -Jim’s clothes showed what had happened.</p> - -<p>“Still alive,” panted Hozie. “Lonnie, ride to town as fast as yuh can. -Get a hack and the doctor. We can’t move him any other way.”</p> - -<p>Lonnie ran to his horse, mounted on the run and went racing up the road. -It was shady along the road; so they made no effort to move Wheeler. -Hozie paced up and down beside the road, his hands clenched.</p> - -<p>“Where have you been, Joe?” he asked.</p> - -<p>Joe, squatting on his heels beside the road, looked up at the old man.</p> - -<p>“I was over at the HJ, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. I wonder if there’s anythin’ we can do? By golly, I never felt -so danged helpless in my life. I tell yuh, Joe, he’s awful badly hurt.”</p> - -<p>“Awful bad, Hozie. I’m afraid he won’t live to get to town.”</p> - -<p>“And we can’t do a thing.”</p> - -<p>“Only wait, Hozie. Old Doc Curzon is pretty good. He’ll save Jim if it’s -possible.”</p> - -<p>It seemed hours before any one came. Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston were -the first to arrive. Kelsey looked at Jim Wheeler, listened to what -Hozie had to say and then walked up the road, trying to find the spot -where Jim had fallen out of his saddle. Ralston squatted on his heels, -smoking a cigaret, but had nothing to say.</p> - -<p>Then came the doctor, followed by Lonnie driving a livery team hitched -to a spring-wagon. Several cowboys were also among the interested -spectators. The old doctor made a quick examination, after which they -placed Jim Wheeler in the bottom of the spring-wagon and started back to -town.</p> - -<p>“How bad is he hurt, Doc?” asked Hozie anxiously.</p> - -<p>“Pretty ⸺ bad!” snapped the old doctor. “Leg broke once—mebbe twice. -Head battered up. Lucky to be alive. Be lucky to live. Don’t ask -questions until I know something.”</p> - -<p>“Hadn’t we better take him home?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Take him to my place,” said the doctor.</p> - -<p>Joe mounted his horse and rode up beside Hozie.</p> - -<p>“Somebody ought to tell Peggy,” he said.</p> - -<p>Hozie nodded.</p> - -<p>“You want to go, Joe?”</p> - -<p>“You know I couldn’t, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Sure. Lonnie, you go and tell her. Jist tell her—”</p> - -<p>“A-a-a-aw, my ⸺!” snorted Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“Me? Aw, I’d make a mess of it, Hozie.”</p> - -<p>“Thasall right, Lonnie; it’s a mess already. Go ahead.”</p> - -<p>Lonnie went, but Lonnie didn’t want to; and he didn’t mind telling the -world that his vocation was punching cows and not being a messenger of -bad news.</p> - -<p>“Thasall right, Lonnie,” assured Hozie. “I won’t forget it.”</p> - -<p>“’F yuh think I will, yo’re crazy,” said Lonnie.</p> - -<p>Joe and Uncle Hozie rode back to Pinnacle City together. A crowd -gathered around the doctor’s house, waiting for a report on Jim’s -condition. But before such a report was forthcoming, Lonnie Myers drove -in with Peggy and Laura in a buggy from the HJ ranch.</p> - -<p>And when the report did come, it shocked every one. Jim Wheeler had died -from concussion of the brain. The crowd moved silently away. Jim Wheeler -was one of the old-timers, and his death, as Nebrasky Jones said, was “a -ter’ble jolt to mankind of Tumblin’ River.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie took Peggy and Laura out to the Flying H, and Lonnie Myers -proceeded to drink more whisky than was good for him, in order to -forget.</p> - -<p>“I was in there when the doctor told ’em,” said Lonnie. -“Leave-that-bottle-where-it-is! I’m the only person that knows when I’ve -got enough. Jist like a marble statue, that girl was. Didn’t say -nothin’; didn’t do nothin’. Say! Why don’tcha git some liquor that’s got -stren’th?”</p> - -<p>“I betcha she feels bad, jist the same,” said “Slim” Coleman, of the -Lazy B. Slim wasn’t very bright.</p> - -<p>Lonnie looked pityingly at Slim.</p> - -<p>“Oh, I s’pose she does, Slim. If I was in yore place, I’d go away before -I tromp yuh to death.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, you ain’t goin’ to tromp nobody, Lonnie; yo’re drunk.”</p> - -<p>“I ain’t, but I will be,” solemnly. “And when I do git drunk, I’ll -prob’ly forget that yo’re jist plain ignorant, Slimmie. Now, you better -go spin yore rope where I can’t see nor hear yuh.”</p> - -<p>Nebrasky Jones joined Lonnie, and within an hour Dan Leach rode in from -the Flying H. Uncle Hozie and the girls had reached the ranch, and Dan -said there was too much grief for him; so he came to town.</p> - -<p>And thus the Heavenly Triplets got together. Nebrasky and Lonnie were -far ahead of Dan, so far as drinks were concerned, and were already -given to short crying spells. Lonnie insisted on repeating the story of -how they found Joe Rich with Jim Wheeler. According to Lonnie’s varying -stories, they found Joe and Jim everywhere along the road from the -Tumbling River bridge to Pinnacle City.</p> - -<p>Time after time he explained how he had broken the bad news to Peggy and -Laura. His diplomacy was wonderful to hear, and some of his speeches -left him breathless. When as a matter of fact he had said to Peggy:</p> - -<p>“Jim’s been dragged and they’re takin’ him to town. Dunno how bad he’s -hurt, but he shore looks dead to me.”</p> - -<p>Dan had been with them about an hour when Kelsey came to the Pinnacle -bar. Lonnie looked upon him with great disfavor. Joe had been a -particular bunkie of the Flying H boys, and they were still loyal. No -matter if Joe had resigned voluntarily, they felt that Len Kelsey was to -blame.</p> - -<p>Len walked back among the tables, where he talked to “Handsome” Harry -Clark, who owned the Pinnacle. Harry was not handsome by any known -standard of beauty, being a hard-faced, sandy-haired individual, with a -crooked nose and one sagging eyebrow, caused by stopping a beer bottle -in full flight.</p> - -<p>“I don’ like ’m,” declared Lonnie owlishly. “Heza disgrash to—to -anythin’ what’ver.”</p> - -<p>“My sen’ments to a i-ota,” said Nebrasky. “But what can yuh do, Lonnie? -Yo’re speakin’ of our sher’f, ain’tcha?”</p> - -<p>“O-o-o-oh, u-nan-i-mushly!”</p> - -<p>“Don’t be foolish,” advised Dan, who was half sober yet. “He’s the -sheriff, no matter if he should have been drowned in infancy.”</p> - -<p>“H’lo, Misser Cold-Feet,” grinned Lonnie. “Dan’s slowin’ up on us, -Nebrasky.”</p> - -<p>“Pos’tively,” nodded Nebrasky. “Old boy’s showin’ age.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, yo’re crazy,” flared Dan. “But what can yuh do?”</p> - -<p>“Flip ’m,” said Lonnie gleefully.</p> - -<p>The gentle art of flipping a man consisted of two men getting one on -each side of the one to be flipped, grasping him by arms and legs, and -turning him completely over. It is a queer sensation, and harmless, if -done right. Kelsey was inches taller than either Nebrasky or Lonnie.</p> - -<p>The boys goggled wisely at each other and waited. Kelsey finished his -conversation with Clark and came back past the bar.</p> - -<p>“That shore was awful bad about Jim Wheeler, wasn’t it?” said Dan Leach.</p> - -<p>The sheriff stopped beside the bar.</p> - -<p>“It shore was,” he said emphatically. “That horse must ’a’ dragged him -quite a ways.”</p> - -<p>“It was like thish,” explained Lonnie thickly.</p> - -<p>He moved to the left side of Kelsey, while Nebrasky stepped back, taking -his position at Kelsey’s right.</p> - -<p>“Me and Hozie Wheeler,” said Lonnie, “was ridin’—let ’er go, Nebrasky!”</p> - -<p>And before the unsuspecting sheriff knew what was happening he had been -grasped by arms and legs and was starting to imitate a Ferris wheel.</p> - -<p>Exerting all their strength, the two drunken cowboys managed to swing -Kelsey up to where his feet were almost pointing at the ceiling—but -there they stuck. Their leverage was gone. Kelsey’s six-shooter fell -from his holster, and his watch fell the full length of the chain, -striking Kelsey in the chin.</p> - -<p>Overbalanced, the two cowboys started staggering backward, stumbled into -a card-table and went down with a crash, letting the struggling Kelsey -drop squarely on the top of his head.</p> - -<p>The crash was terrific. Nebrasky went backward, almost to the wall, -working his feet frantically to try to catch up with his body, but went -flat on his back. Lonnie caromed off the card-table and landed on his -hands and knees, yelling for everybody to get out of his way.</p> - -<p>But Kelsey suffered most. He had fallen about three feet on the top of -his head, and was still seeing stars. Leach, being of a thoughtful turn -of mind, kicked Kelsey’s six-shooter down toward the middle of the room, -where it came to rest under a card-table.</p> - -<p>Several of the saloon employees, including Clark, the owner, came to -Kelsey’s assistance and sat him in a chair, where he caressed his head -and made funny noises.</p> - -<p>“You boys better go before he wakes up,” advised Clark.</p> - -<p>“Is that sho?” asked Lonnie thickly. “Shince when did the Flyin’ H -outfit learn t’ run, I’d crave to know?”</p> - -<p>“Tha’s my cravin’, likewise,” said Nebrasky, trying to put his hat on -upside down. “Whazze-e got any right to git mad ’bout, in the firs’ -place? Goo’ness, it was all in fun.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey was rapidly recovering, and he knew what had happened. His right -hand felt his empty holster, and his eyes searched the floor. He had -heard the gun fall when he was upside down.</p> - -<p>“It’s under that card-table up there,” said Clark.</p> - -<p>Kelsey saw it. He got up slowly and went toward his gun, while the -Heavenly Triplets walked straight out through the front doorway. -Possibly they did not go straight, but they were out of the saloon when -Kelsey recovered his gun.</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t do anything, if I was you, Len,” said Clark. “They were all -drunk and didn’t realize.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t they?” cried Len flatly. “Don’t never think they didn’t. It was -all framed up to dump me on my head. I know that gang.”</p> - -<p>“Better have a drink and forget it, Len.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, that’s fine—for you. By ⸺, you never got a bump like -that—and forgot it.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey walked straight to the street, but there was no sign of the three -men from the Flying H. Kelsey lingered for several moments, then went on -toward his office, while into the back door of the Pinnacle Saloon came -Nebrasky, Lonnie and Dan, as if nothing had happened.</p> - -<p>“Kelsey is lookin’ for you three,” said Clark.</p> - -<p>“Kelsey?” Lonnie blinked seriously. “Kelsey? Oh, the sheriff? Lookin’ -for us?”</p> - -<p>“Whazze want?” asked Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“You better wait and see, Nebrasky.”</p> - -<p>“Now that’s what I call shound advice, Harry.”</p> - -<p>“I betcha I know what he wants,” said Lonnie. “He wants us to turn him -the rest of the way over. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”</p> - -<p>This guess seemed so good to them that they sagged against the bar and -whooped merrily.</p> - -<p>Joe Rich, following the announcement of Jim Wheeler’s death, took his -horse back to the stable and then went to the store where he had -purchased his house furnishings and told the storekeeper to take them -back, as there was little chance of their ever being paid for.</p> - -<p>When Joe came out he met Angus McLaren, the big grave-faced Scotsman.</p> - -<p>“Isn’t it too bad about poor Jim Wheeler!” exclaimed Angus. “I just -heard of it, Joe.”</p> - -<p>Joe nodded. His nose and lips were still sore from the weight of Jim -Wheeler’s fist, and his right hand went involuntarily to his sore spots. -McLaren noticed this.</p> - -<p>“Ye shouldn’t bear any grudge now, Joe,” he said softly.</p> - -<p>“Grudge?”</p> - -<p>“Over what he did to ye, Joe.”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head.</p> - -<p>“I suppose he had plenty of cause, Mac.”</p> - -<p>“No matter; he’s dead now. They say ye found him.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I did, Mac. I was on my way back from the HJ.”</p> - -<p>“He wasn’t dead then?”</p> - -<p>“No, not then. Hozie and Lonnie came along in a few minutes. He was -alive then, but I think he died on the way in.”</p> - -<p>While they were talking Len Kelsey came from the Pinnacle Saloon, -rubbing his head, and went down to his office.</p> - -<p>“Ye knew we appointed Len in your place, Joe?” asked McLaren.</p> - -<p>“I hear yuh did, Mac. And Len appointed Ralston, eh?”</p> - -<p>“That’s it. What do ye aim to do now?”</p> - -<p>“I think I’ll leave here, Mac. There’s nothin’ in Tumblin’ River for me -any more.”</p> - -<p>“Ye might get on with the Circle M. Merrick will be short one man, now -that Ralston is an officer.”</p> - -<p>“No, Mac; I don’t think I’ll stay.”</p> - -<p>“Mm-m-m-m,” McLaren considered Joe gravely.</p> - -<p>“Joe, I’d have banked on ye. There’s a lot more folks in this country -that would have bet a million to one that ye wouldn’t do a thing like ye -done. Why did ye do it?”</p> - -<p>Joe shook his head slowly.</p> - -<p>“Mac, there’s things that I don’t even know; so I can’t tell yuh -anythin’.”</p> - -<p>“Well, ye were drunk, weren’t ye?”</p> - -<p>“Ask Honey Bee, Ed Merrick, Ben Collins or Limpy Nelson. They all saw -me, Mac. That should be evidence enough.”</p> - -<p>“Ay,” McLaren sighed. “There seems to be plenty of evidence that you -played the fool. I dunno.” McLaren took a deep breath and expelled it -forcibly. “Well, I wish ye all the luck in the world, Joe Rich. I think -you are payin’ for yer own sins; but ye are a young man and the world is -wide.”</p> - -<p>They shook hands gravely and Joe went back to his little cottage. It -seemed queer that he should be leaving Pinnacle City; almost as queer as -the fact that Jim Wheeler was lying dead at the doctor’s office. Joe -didn’t know where he was going, except that it would be out through the -south end of the valley; possibly down into Arizona. He would travel -light. His war-bag contained a change of clothes, and that was all, -except for a few trinkets.</p> - -<p>He tied it to his saddle, covering it with a black slicker, and rode up -to the county treasurer’s office, where he drew a warrant for his -remaining salary. Then he cashed it at the Pinnacle City bank, and drew -out the few remaining dollars he had on deposit there.</p> - -<p>As he came from the bank he met Ed Merrick, who had just tied his horse -farther up the street.</p> - -<p>“Hello, Joe,” greeted Merrick. “What’s all this talk about Jim Wheeler -gettin’ killed?”</p> - -<p>“I reckon you heard right, Ed,” said Joe.</p> - -<p>“Horse drug him to death?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be ⸺!”</p> - -<p>Merrick went on down the street, and Joe noticed that he walked fast, as -if he was in a big hurry. Joe heard some one call his name, and he -turned to see the Heavenly Triplets coming across the street toward him -from the Pinnacle Saloon. They were all very unsteady, but also very -earnest.</p> - -<p>Lonnie sagged back on his heels and considered the roll behind the -cantle of Joe’s saddle. He sagged ahead and drew the slicker aside -enough to disclose the war-bag.</p> - -<p>“Where you goin’, Joe?” he demanded. “All packed up, eh?”</p> - -<p>“I’m pullin’ out, Lonnie,” said Joe gravely. “I’m shore glad I had a -chance to say good-by to you boys.”</p> - -<p>“Na-a-awshir,” Nebrasky spoke with great deliberation. “Nobody c’n go -way like thish, Joseph. Nawshir. Gotta have big party. Misser Rich,” -gravely, “meet Misser Jones and Misser Leach.”</p> - -<p>Dan and Nebrasky shook hands seriously with Joe.</p> - -<p>“Pleased t’ meetcha,” said Nebrasky. “I used to know a sher’f that -looked like you, par’ner. Oh, ver’ mush like you! I slep’ in the same -bunk with him for two years. You jus’ passin’ through our fair city, -Misser Rich?”</p> - -<p>“Just passin’ through,” said Joe slowly. He saw Merrick and Kelsey -leaving the sheriff’s office.</p> - -<p>“Here comes Misser Kelsey,” grinned Lonnie. “’F he gits close enough -we’ll complete the swing on him, Nebrasky.”</p> - -<p>“He won’t never git close enough,” chuckled Dan. “That bird ain’t never -goin’ t’ light close to any of us.”</p> - -<p>Joe held out his hand to Lonnie, who gripped it quickly.</p> - -<p>“So-long, Lonnie,” said Joe. “Be good to yourself.”</p> - -<p>“Aw-right, Joe.”</p> - -<p>Joe shook hands with Dan and Nebrasky, who did it in a dumb sort of a -way. Perhaps they did not understand that Joe was leaving Tumbling -River. Joe turned to his horse and started to mount. Merrick and Kelsey -were close now, and Kelsey said to Joe—</p> - -<p>“You ain’t leavin’ us, are yuh, Joe?”</p> - -<p>Joe nodded.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I’m goin’, Len.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Mebbe yuh better wait a little while, Joe. Somethin’ has come -up just lately. Better tie yore horse and wait till we get this ironed -out.”</p> - -<p>“What do yuh mean, Len?”</p> - -<p>“Has Hozie gone home?” Len spoke to Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“Gone home? Of course he’s gone home. You seen him leave, didn’t yuh?”</p> - -<p>Kelsey nodded. Lonnie seemed belligerent.</p> - -<p>“When yuh found Jim Wheeler, yuh—uh—didn’t look in his pockets, didja, -Lonnie?”</p> - -<p>“Look in his pockets? What for, I’d crave to ask yuh?”</p> - -<p>Kelsey turned to Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Mebbe you better go down to the doctor’s place, Ed. Mebbe it’s still -there. I don’t reckon anybody looked.”</p> - -<p>Merrick nodded shortly and hurried away. Joe looked curiously at Kelsey, -but the new sheriff was leaning against a porch post, rolling a cigaret.</p> - -<p>“Just why had I ought to wait?” asked Joe.</p> - -<p>“Just for instance,” Kelsey lighted his cigaret.</p> - -<p>“That’s the new sheriff,” said Lonnie. “Cool and collected, always gets -his man. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!”</p> - -<p>Kelsey winced. Nebrasky looked him over thoroughly.</p> - -<p>“That’s him,” declared Nebrasky. “Yuh gotta look close at him to tell. -Kelsey is his name. Belonged to the Circle M before the county bought -him.”</p> - -<p>“You think yo’re pretty ⸺ smart, don’t cha?” flared Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Don’t ’tagonize him,” begged Dan.</p> - -<p>Joe stepped from his horse and faced Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“What’s the idea of askin’ me to wait, Len?”</p> - -<p>“Can’t tell yuh yet, Joe.”</p> - -<p>“Suppose I decided to go ahead?”</p> - -<p>“No, I don’t think yuh will.”</p> - -<p>“I’m not under arrest, am I?”</p> - -<p>“Not yet.”</p> - -<p>“Not yet, eh?” Joe laughed recklessly. “Well, I reckon I’ll be goin’ -then.”</p> - -<p>Joe turned back to his horse.</p> - -<p>“Yo’re not goin’!” snapped Kelsey.</p> - -<p>Joe whirled quickly. Kelsey had half-drawn his gun. It was a foolish -move on Kelsey’s part; he should have covered Joe, if he wanted to hold -him badly enough to resort to a gun-play. Joe did not hesitate. His -right hand jerked upward and he fired from his waist.</p> - -<p>Kelsey’s gun was out of the holster, but his hand flipped open and the -gun fell to the sidewalk. He staggered backward, clutching his right -forearm, while Joe swung into his saddle and rode swiftly out of town, -heading south.</p> - -<p>The revolver shot attracted plenty of attention, and it also served to -sober the Heavenly Triplets. Kelsey swore bitterly as he clawed away his -shirt sleeve. The heavy bullet had plowed its way through the muscles of -his forearm, but did not touch the bone. The shock of it had caused -Kelsey’s hand to jerk open, releasing his gun.</p> - -<p>Folks were crowding in from every direction, trying to find out what it -was all about.</p> - -<p>“You better pack that arm to the doctor,” advised Lonnie.</p> - -<p>Kelsey nodded and bit off more profanity. Ed Merrick came through the -crowd and quickly got the story of what had happened.</p> - -<p>“Go and get it dressed, Kelsey,” he said, after examining the wound. “No -bones broke. Is Jack at the office?”</p> - -<p>“Here,” said Ralston, shoving his way through.</p> - -<p>“Better get on Joe’s trail, Jack,” said Merrick quickly. “He—you don’t -need a warrant. Bring him back!”</p> - -<p>Ralston ran down the street, while the crowd demanded that Merrick tell -them what it was all about. But Merrick merely shut his lips and went to -the court-house, followed by Angus McLaren, who was as much at sea as -any of the crowd.</p> - -<p>Once inside their office McLaren asked Merrick what the trouble was all -about.</p> - -<p>“I’m not accusin’ Joe Rich,” said Merrick. “But he was the one who found -Jim Wheeler. Today I drew five thousand from the Pinnacle bank and -loaned it to Jim Wheeler on his note. He had that money on him when he -left town. There is no money in his pockets now, and no one has found -any money on him since he came back, or during the time of the first -examination. The money is gone, Mac.”</p> - -<p>“And Joe was the first man to find him,” muttered McLaren. “Five -thousand dollars! Merrick, that’s enough to tempt a man.”</p> - -<p>“Yo’re ⸺ right it is! And Joe shot Kelsey in the arm.”</p> - -<p>“Kelsey was drawin’,” reminded McLaren. “The boys say that Kelsey -reached for his gun first. Joe wasn’t under arrest.”</p> - -<p>“No, that’s true, Mac. But if Joe wasn’t guilty, why didn’t he stay -until it could be cleared up? Ah! there’s Ralston!”</p> - -<p>Through the window they saw the deputy ride up in front of the -court-house, where he talked with several men. Merrick and McLaren went -out to him. It seemed as if all the cowboys had disappeared. Ralston -spurred over in front of the Pinnacle and went into the saloon, but came -out again.</p> - -<p>McLaren smothered a grin. The cowboys knew that Ralston would deputize -them to ride with him, and they would be obliged to obey his orders; but -if he couldn’t find them—that was a different matter.</p> - -<p>“By ⸺, they all ducked!” snorted Ralston angrily.</p> - -<p>“Looks like it,” agreed Merrick. “Well, I’ll go with yuh, Jack. If we -can’t do any better, we might find some of the boys at my ranch. By -⸺, they won’t sneak out on yuh!”</p> - -<p>Merrick crossed the street to the Pinnacle hitch-rack and mounted his -horse. Ralston went back to the office and got an extra Winchester for -Merrick, and they rode away at a swift gallop.</p> - -<p>They had barely disappeared when the Heavenly Triplets showed up. They -had rolled under the sidewalk near where Joe had shot Kelsey. From the -depths of an empty wagon-box farther up the street came Abe Liston, of -the 3W3. Slim Coleman, of the Lazy B, sauntered out of the narrow alley -between the Pinnacle Saloon and a feed-store.</p> - -<p>The Heavenly Triplets were fairly sober now—too sober to think of -anything funny to do; so they headed for the Pinnacle Saloon.</p> - -<p>“Hey, you snake-hunters!” yelled Slim Coleman. “Didn’t yuh ride away -with the posse?”</p> - -<p>“We shore did!” replied Lonnie. “Couldn’t find a thing. C’mon and have a -drink, you man-hunter.”</p> - -<p>“Sheriffin’ does make a feller kinda dry,” admitted Slim. “I’ll go yuh -once, if I lose all m’hair. Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! I’ll betcha Ralston is -mad enough to gnaw a nail.”</p> - -<p>“Well, he can go plumb to ⸺, as far as we’re concerned,” declared -Nebrasky. “Any old time we go huntin’ criminals, it’ll be when there -ain’t nothin’ else to do. Anyway, I don’t look upon the shootin’ of -Kelsey as a crime.”</p> - -<p>They lined up at the bar and offered to sing a song for the drinks. But -the bartender was a bit skeptical about the intrinsic value of anything -they might sing.</p> - -<p>“It’s all right with me, yuh understand,” explained the bartender. “But -when Handsome starts checkin’ up the till at night—you know what I -mean.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, shore,” nodded Lonnie. “Some folks never appreciate talent. Howja -like to have a free song?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I can absorb anythin’ that don’t hurt the rest of yuh. All I ask is -that yuh don’t require my opinion. I’m honest.”</p> - -<p>Angus McLaren came in and Lonnie invited him to share their hospitality. -McLaren rarely drank anything, but no one had ever known him to refuse -an invitation.</p> - -<p>“We just got back from ridin’ with the deputy,” explained Nebrasky. -“Ridin’ allus makes me dry.”</p> - -<p>McLaren laughed and poured out a drink.</p> - -<p>“Well, here’s hopin’ they never even catch sight of Joe’s dust,” said -Leach.</p> - -<p>“I dunno,” said McLaren. “Ye see, boys, it’s a serious charge they’ve -put against Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>“Serious!” snorted Lonnie. “To shoot Kelsey? Why, Kelsey was reachin’ -for—”</p> - -<p>“I know that, Lonnie. But that’s not the charge. Today Ed Merrick loaned -Jim Wheeler five thousand in cash and took Jim’s note for it. Jim rode -away with the money. There’s not a cent on poor Jim—and Joe was the one -who found him.”</p> - -<p>“A-a-a-a-aw, ⸺!” Lonnie dropped his glass on the floor.</p> - -<p>“Yuh mean to say that Joe got away with it?” asked Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“I’m not sayin’ anythin’, Nebr-r-rasky. It was told to me. I went to the -bank, and they tell me Merrick drew the money.”</p> - -<p>“Well, for ⸺’s sake!” snorted Lonnie. “That’s awful!”</p> - -<p>“Aye, it is. Well, here’s luck, boys!”</p> - -<p>McLaren drained his glass alone. The Heavenly Triplets and Slim had no -taste for liquor now. They went outside and sat down on the edge of the -sidewalk, humped over like four crows on a fence-rail.</p> - -<p>For possibly five minutes they said nothing. Then Lonnie broke the -silence with—</p> - -<p>“Joe’s turnin’ out to be a humdinger.”</p> - -<p>Nebrasky spat dryly and expounded—“Yuh never can tell which way a -dill-pickle will squirt.”</p> - -<p>“Five ’r no five—I hope he gits away,” said Leach.</p> - -<p>“I thought there was somethin’ funny about him bein’ in such a hurry to -git away,” said Slim.</p> - -<p>“And you know yo’re a ⸺ liar, Slim,” said Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I know it,” agreed Slim.</p> - -<p>“Might as well go home, I s’pose,” observed Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, and right here and now I want to proclaim,” said Lonnie, “there -ain’t goin’ to be no drawin’ straws and all that kinda stuff; sabe? I -don’t care a ⸺ which one of you two pelicans decide to break the news -at the Flyin’ H, but I want yuh to know it ain’t goin’ to be little -Lonnie. By ⸺, I’ve broke all the news I’m goin’ to today!”</p> - -<p>“I guess we better not say anythin’ to ’em a-tall,” decided Nebrasky. -“It ain’t no settled fact.”</p> - -<p>“Shore—jist let it kinda drift,” agreed Leach.</p> - -<p>“There goes Kelsey, wearin’ his arm in a sling,” said Slim. “He’s lucky -it ain’t his head.”</p> - -<p>“Come dang near bein’,” laughed Lonnie, and he headed for the -hitch-rack.</p> - -<p>Kelsey swore inwardly at the three punchers and wondered why Ralston -didn’t deputize some of them to go with him. He met Handsome Clark at -the door of a Chinese restaurant, and Clark told him that the cowboys -had all disappeared when Jack Ralston showed up, and that Merrick had -been the only one to ride with him.</p> - -<p>Clark did not know about the missing money until Kelsey told him about -it.</p> - -<p>“No wonder he plugged you,” said Clark. “He probably had all that money -on him.”</p> - -<p>“Probably. It was all in currency—big bills, mostly.”</p> - -<p>“How’s the arm?”</p> - -<p>“Don’t hurt much. Won’t be usin’ it for a while. I never looked for Joe -to shoot. He’s awful fast with a gun.”</p> - -<p>Clark nodded.</p> - -<p>“You drew first, didn’t you, Len?”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe I did. He said he was goin’. Yuh see, I didn’t want to arrest -him. There wasn’t any sure thing that the money wasn’t in Wheeler’s -pockets. I just asked Joe to wait, and when he insisted on goin’ I -didn’t know just what to do. If I’d had any sense, I’d have poked a gun -in his ribs and made him wait. Live and learn, I reckon.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose they’ll get him.”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe. Joe knows this country and he must ’a’ been set for a getaway. -Yuh can’t tell which way he’ll go. Headed out south, but he’s just as -liable to be ridin’ north now. He’s no fool. And two men might not be -able to find him. We can’t expect much help from the punchers.”</p> - -<p>“No, it seems that you can’t, Len. Being a sheriff in Tumbling River has -its drawbacks.”</p> - -<p>Len left McLaren and went to the depot, where he sent wires to Kelo and -Ransome, notifying the marshals of each place to watch for Joe Rich. And -then he went back to his office to nurse his aching arm and swear at -himself for half-drawing a six-shooter on a man like Joe Rich.</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER IV: RANGE FUNERAL</h2> - -<p>Bad news travels swiftly in the range country, and the following morning -there was quite a gathering of the clan at the Flying H. People came to -extend their sympathy to Peggy Wheeler and to the rest of the Wheeler -family. Even the Reverend Henry Lake and his slow-moving old buggy horse -showed up at the ranch, the minister dressed in his ancient best.</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma Wheeler, Aunt Annie Bellew, Grandma Owens and Mrs. Buck West -gathered together and talked in whispers of the white-faced girl -upstairs who did not want to talk with anybody, while the men stood -around at the rear of the house in the shade of the big cottonwood and -drank up the rest of Uncle Hozie’s wedding liquor.</p> - -<p>Honey Bee was there, longing for a chance to talk with Laura Hatton. A -little later on Len Kelsey, his arm in a sling, rode out. The Heavenly -Triplets were sober, but that did not prevent them from making a few -caustic remarks about the sheriff when they saw him coming.</p> - -<p>“You let him alone,” ordered Uncle Hozie. “My ⸺, ain’t there trouble -enough, without you startin’ a debate with the law? Lonnie, you haul in -yore horns; sabe?”</p> - -<p>“Aw, he gives me a itch,” growled Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“Go scratch yourself,” advised Uncle Hozie.</p> - -<p>Kelsey brought no news of Joe Rich. He said that Ralston and Merrick had -ridden through to Kelo, but found no trace of the fugitive. Ralston had -come back to Pinnacle City at midnight.</p> - -<p>“Yuh didn’t expect to catch him, didja?” asked Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Sure we’ll get him,” confidently. “May take a little while.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, ⸺!” snorted Lonnie. “You and Jack Ralston couldn’t foller a load -of hay through a fresh snow.”</p> - -<p>“Lonnie, I told yuh—” began Uncle Hozie.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I heard yuh,” interrupted Lonnie. “I’m not ridin’ him.”</p> - -<p>Len smiled thinly.</p> - -<p>“Thasall right, Hozie. You folks have kinda got the wrong idea of all -this. I’m not an enemy of Joe Rich. My ⸺, I worked with him, didn’t -I? In my business yuh don’t have to hate a man to arrest him. There -ain’t nothin’ personal about me huntin’ for Joe. If he’s innocent, he -ought to stay and prove it. Yuh can’t jist sneeze a couple of times and -forget that five thousand dollars are missin’, can yuh?”</p> - -<p>“No, yuh shore can’t, Len,” agreed Uncle Hozie.</p> - -<p>Len didn’t stay long. His speech impressed all, except the three Flying -H cowpunchers. They had no real reason for disliking Len Kelsey, except -that he represented the law, and that he had succeeded Joe Rich. And -they were loyal to Joe, even if he was guilty as charged. Theirs was not -a fickle friendship; not something that merely endured in fair weather.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie talked long and earnestly with the minister over the funeral -arrangements, and together they went up the stairs to talk with Peggy. -Laura left them and came down to the veranda, where Honey Bee beamed -with delight.</p> - -<p>“I was scared I wasn’t goin’ to see yuh,” he said softly. “How’s Peggy -standin’ it?”</p> - -<p>Laura sighed and shook her pretty head. “Peggy would be all right, if -all those women wouldn’t sit around and talk about corpses they have -seen. They all talk about successful funerals! As though any funeral -could be a success! And they all gabble about Joe Rich. Honey, I -actually think that some of them believe Joe Rich killed Uncle Jim.”</p> - -<p>“Eh?” Honey jerked back, staring at her.</p> - -<p>“Ex-cuse my language, but that’s a ⸺ of an idea! Who started that?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I don’t know. They talked about Uncle Jim being a good rider and a -sober man and that the saddle did not turn. And he had all that money -with him.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be darned!” snorted Honey. “Did Peggy know Jim Wheeler was -borrowin’ that money from Merrick?”</p> - -<p>“Yes. She didn’t know how much. Now she says she can’t go. They talk -about Uncle Jim having a big mortgage at the bank, and with this five -thousand from Merrick—”</p> - -<p>“Lotta money,” mused Honey Bee. “Huh-how soon do yuh aim to leave, -Laura?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know. Not until after things are straightened up for Peggy. I -sent Dad a wire, telling him that our plans had been changed.”</p> - -<p>“Then yuh won’t be goin’ for a while, eh?” Honey sighed with relief. -“That’s shore fine. Yuh won’t go back to the HJ, will yuh?”</p> - -<p>“I think so. Wong Lee is still there and Uncle Hozie said one of his -boys could go down there and help run the place.”</p> - -<p>“Yea-a-a-ah? Uh-huh. Which one, I wonder?”</p> - -<p>“I don’t know. Uncle Hozie spoke about Lonnie Myers.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah—Lonnie. Ain’t settled yet, eh?”</p> - -<p>“No; he just spoke about it a while ago.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie and the minister came out, talking softly; so Laura hurried -back upstairs to Peggy. Honey rubbed his chin thoughtfully and waited -for Uncle Hozie and the minister to end their conversation.</p> - -<p>And then Honey lost no time in backing Uncle Hozie against the wall.</p> - -<p>“Laura tells me that Peggy is goin’ back to the HJ, after the funeral, -Hozie.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie nodded slowly.</p> - -<p>“She says she is, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“Yo’re a pretty good friend of mine, aint’cha, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“Well—” Hozie pursed his lips and blinked at Honey—“I never throwed -any rocks at yuh when yuh wasn’t lookin’.”</p> - -<p>Honey leaned forward and whispered rapidly in Hozie’s ear.</p> - -<p>“Huh? O-o-oh!” Hozie understood.</p> - -<p>A few minutes later Hozie met Curt Bellew near the kitchen door.</p> - -<p>“I jist wanted to ask yuh somethin’, Curt,” said Uncle Hozie. “I—uh—I -been talkin’ to Peggy. Yuh see, Curt, she’s goin’ to stay at the HJ, at -least a while. Won’t be nobody there but her and Laura and Wong Lee.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I been talkin’ to her, yuh understand, Curt. She’s goin’ to need -one man to help run things. I—uh—she said she’d like to have Honey Bee -to run the place.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yea-a-a-ah!”</p> - -<p>Curt lifted his eyebrows thoughtfully and hooked his thumbs over his -cartridge-belt. He nodded slowly.</p> - -<p>“Well, mebbe I can git along without that boy for a while, Hozie. He -prob’ly won’t want to do it. Honey’s funny thataway. But you tell him I -said he had to do it. If he kicks about makin’ the change—you tell him -to come to me.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I’ll do that, Curt,” solemnly.</p> - -<p>They looked at each other seriously for several moments.</p> - -<p>“And that ain’t the funniest part of it,” said Uncle Hozie. “Laura told -Honey that I was goin’ to loan ’em Lonnie Myers to run the HJ—and there -ain’t never been any mention of me loanin’ anybody.”</p> - -<p>“She made it all up, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“’Course she did. Her father’s a broker in Philadelphia, and I s’pose -Laura inherited her ability to tell p’lite lies from him. But it’s all -right, ain’t it, Curt?”</p> - -<p>“Fine! Ma will be glad. She has to watch Honey like a hawk to keep him -from cuttin’ L.H. on all the furniture.”</p> - -<p>They chuckled together for several moments. Then—</p> - -<p>“Hozie, what’s this talk about mebbe Jim’s death wasn’t an accident?”</p> - -<p>“Wimmin,” said Hozie quickly. “Old wimmin talkin’.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Yeah, I s’pose it is. I don’t like it, Hozie. But a while ago I -got to thinkin’ about Jim. Where’s that note? Ed Merrick must ’a’ signed -a copy for Jim. Merrick’s got his copy, signed by Jim.”</p> - -<p>“Whoever got the money must ’a’ took the note, Curt.”</p> - -<p>“I s’pose. The money was all in big bills. By golly, I hope they find -Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie sighed deeply. He loved Joe Rich like a son, and it was -difficult for him to believe Joe guilty.</p> - -<p>“It hurts Peggy,” he said slowly. “It hurts her as much as the death of -her father. Yuh see, she loved Joe a lot.”</p> - -<p>“I reckon we all did, Hozie—up to the day he was to be married.”</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich of yesterday,” muttered Uncle Hozie.</p> - -<p>“Whatcha say, Hozie?”</p> - -<p>“Jist thinkin’ out loud, Curt. I’ll find Honey, and break the bad news -to him.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah; he’ll prob’ly be sore as ⸺.”</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER V: HASHKNIFE AND SLEEPY</h2> - -<p>It was several days after the funeral of Jim Wheeler, and things in the -Tumbling River range seemed back on an even keel again. Joe Rich was -still at large. The sheriff had broadcast Joe’s description, and the -county had offered a thousand dollars reward.</p> - -<p>Kelsey and Ralston still searched the Tumbling River hills, hoping that -Joe had not left the valley. Even the Heavenly Triplets were too busy to -annoy the sheriff, but were looking forward to payday.</p> - -<p>Honey Bee was firmly established at the HJ, much to the amusement of -every one. Uncle Hozie had never told him that Laura had fibbed about -Lonnie Myers’ going to run the ranch; so Honey believed Hozie had done -him a great favor.</p> - -<p>Peggy took little interest in anything. The shock had taken the spirit -all out of her, and she realized that it would only be a question of -time until the Pinnacle bank and Ed Merrick would own the HJ. Twelve -thousand is a lot of money.</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma did not like the arrangement at the HJ.</p> - -<p>“Them two girls livin’ alone with one man.”</p> - -<p>“Nothin’ of the kind,” denied Uncle Hozie. “Honey’s in love, and a man -in love ain’t more’n half a man. Anyway, there’s Wong Lee.”</p> - -<p>“A heathen Chinee!”</p> - -<p>“He’s a Chinaman, but I’ll betcha he’s as much of a Christian as any of -us.”</p> - -<p>“Anyway,” declared Aunt Emma, “I’m goin’ to spend all the time I can -with the girls.”</p> - -<p>Aunt Emma was one of those who believed that Jim Wheeler had not died -from an accident. She talked with the old doctor about the bruises on -Wheeler’s skull, and he told her that they were caused by Jim Wheeler’s -head striking the rocks.</p> - -<p>“But how did he fall off?” queried the old lady. “Jim was a good rider, -Doc. The saddle never turned with him.”</p> - -<p>The doctor shook his head.</p> - -<p>“I’m sure I don’t know, Mrs. Wheeler. I am not a detective. His leg was -broken from being hung in the stirrup, I suppose.”</p> - -<p>“He wasn’t hung to the stirrup when Joe found him.”</p> - -<p>“Wasn’t he? Perhaps Joe Rich knows more about it than we do, Mrs. -Wheeler.”</p> - -<p>“Sure—but where’s Joe?”</p> - -<p>“If I knew I’d be a thousand dollars better off than I am.”</p> - -<p>But few, if any, of the men thought that it had been anything but an -accident. A sudden dizziness, perhaps caused by indigestion, might have -made him fall. And the horse, even if it was well broken, might have got -frightened and dragged him. But there was no question about his being -robbed.</p> - -<p>It was the evening of the fifth day since Joe Rich had left Pinnacle -City when a long train of dusty cattle-cars drew into the town of Kelo. -Dusty, wild-eyed animals peered out through the barred sides of the -cars, bawling their displeasure.</p> - -<p>The wind was blowing a gale, and to the north an electric storm was -coming down the valley. But there was no rain; only wind and a depressed -atmosphere which presaged the coming storm. The engine clanked in past -the depot and stopped with a jerk that shortened every draw-bar in the -long line of cars.</p> - -<p>In the caboose of the cattle-train sat a cowboy, humped over on a bench, -holding his face in his hands. His broad shoulders twisted painfully and -he gave vent to a withering curse when the caboose almost jerked him off -the bench.</p> - -<p>On the opposite side of the car sat a tall, lean-faced cowboy, his sad -gray eyes contemplating the sufferer, who lifted his head, disclosing a -swollen jaw. Two other cowboys were seated on the floor of the car, -resting their backs against the side-seats, while they industriously -shot craps for dimes.</p> - -<p>“Hurt yuh pretty bad, Sleepy?” asked the tall cowboy.</p> - -<p>The sufferer lifted his head, nodded slowly and inserted a big -forefinger inside his mouth.</p> - -<p>“Wursh a glew har glog daged dantist libed.”</p> - -<p>He removed the finger, spat painfully and took his face in both hands -again.</p> - -<p>“Sleepy” Stevens was suffering the pangs of an aching molar. “Hashknife” -Hartley, the tall, lean cowboy, nodded understandingly.</p> - -<p>“It’s worse than I thought, Sleepy,” he said, his voice full of -sympathy. “You’ve got what they call a Eskimo abscess.”</p> - -<p>“Huh? How do yuh know?”</p> - -<p>“I can tell by yore talk—pure Eskimo.”</p> - -<p>“A-a-a-aw, —-! If you had this ⸺ tooth—”</p> - -<p>“We’re goin’ to water these animals at Pinnacle City,” offered one of -the crap-shooters. “You’ll have time to have that tooth pulled.”</p> - -<p>“Hadn’t ought to be far now,” observed Hashknife.</p> - -<p>He bent his long nose against the dirty window glass and peered out. The -wind whistled past, and the sand sifted through the window. A lightning -flash illuminated things and a rumble of thunder came to their ears.</p> - -<p>A few minutes later a brakeman, carrying a lighted lantern, swung -aboard.</p> - -<p>“Wires down,” he said shortly.</p> - -<p>“What’ll that do to us?” queried Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Not much. We’re late and we ought to lay out here and let Number 4 pass -us, goin’ north; but we can’t get any orders, and the sidin’ is blocked -with a freight that broke an axle. We’ll go on to Pinnacle City, and the -passenger will have to foller us on a slow order.”</p> - -<p>“Quite a storm, eh?” remarked a crapshooter.</p> - -<p>“⸺ of a storm ahead of us,” declared the brakeman, going out again.</p> - -<p>Finally the engine sent out its shrill blasts, calling in the flagman, -and in a few moments the draw-bars jerked shudderingly. The cattle-train -was on its way again, picking up the conductor at the station.</p> - -<p>Sleepy groaned and hunched down in his chair. The tooth had been -thumping for eight hours. And there was a question in Sleepy’s mind -about finding a dentist in Pinnacle City. Few of the old cow-towns -boasted a dentist, and the local doctor was usually more or less of a -failure with forceps.</p> - -<p>The long cattle-train moved slowly. There was considerable of a grade -between Kelo and Pinnacle City, and the terrific head wind held them -back. The conductor and brakeman got into the crap game, trying to kill -time over the dreary eighteen-mile stretch.</p> - -<p>The train rumbled and clanked along, unable to make much headway.</p> - -<p>“Likely blow all the hair off them cow critters,” observed one of the -cowboys.</p> - -<p>The caboose was foggy with dust, and the oil lamps hardly made light -enough for them to see the spots on the worn dice.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the draw-bars clanked together and the caboose began stopping -by jerks. Sleepy swore painfully, when it jerked him upright. The engine -whistled shrilly, and the train ground to a stop. The conductor peered -out, swore softly and picked up his lantern.</p> - -<p>“Must be just about to the Tumbling River bridge,” he said.</p> - -<p>“How far is it from town?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Couple of miles,” said the brakeman.</p> - -<p>He too had picked up his lantern, and they went outside. A moment later -the brakeman sprang back onto the steps.</p> - -<p>“Bridge on fire,” he said. “Lightnin’ must have struck it.”</p> - -<p>He lifted the top off a seat and took out several fuses which he tucked -under his arm, picked up a red lantern and hurried out to flag down the -track. Hashknife put on his sombrero and climbed off the caboose. It was -a long way to the front end of the train, and the wind threatened to -blow him off the side of the fill at any time.</p> - -<p>The Tumbling River bridge was about a hundred and fifty feet across, -built high above the stream. It was mostly of timber construction and -one span of it was burning merrily.</p> - -<p>Hashknife found the conductor and engineer looking over, both decided -that it would be folly to try to run it. It had evidently been burning -for quite a while.</p> - -<p>“That shore hangs us high and dry, don’t it?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>The conductor nodded grimly.</p> - -<p>“We’re here for a while,” he said. “Can’t take a chance on that thing, -and we’ve got a passenger coming in behind us. They’ll be running slow, -and won’t be hard to flag. The best thing for you boys to do is to go to -bed. That span is sure to burn out in this wind.”</p> - -<p>The wind was so strong that they had to yell in order to converse.</p> - -<p>“Might as well be comfortable!” yelled the engineer.</p> - -<p>The conductor nodded and followed Hashknife back to the caboose, where -he broke the news to the rest of the boys.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t that ⸺?” wailed Sleepy. “Two miles from a dentist, and the -road on fire!”</p> - -<p>“Better go to bed, Sleepy,” said Hashknife. “Mebbe yuh can sleep it -off.”</p> - -<p>But Sleepy told them in no uncertain terms that sleep was out of the -question. One of the cowboys produced a pint of liquor, and this served -to put Sleepy in better spirits. No one denied him any of it. Hashknife -was curious about the passenger train which was following them, and went -on to the rear platform.</p> - -<p>Possibly they had been stopped for thirty minutes when Hashknife saw the -beams of the passenger engine. The road was fairly crooked for several -miles, and he could see the beams of the headlight, as it swung around -the curves, throwing streamers of light off across the hills. It was not -traveling fast. It came closer and closer, and Hashknife wondered why it -did not seem to pay any attention to the rear flagman. Of course he was -out of sight around a curve, but the speed of the passenger had not -diminished.</p> - -<p>It swung to the straight track, the beams of the headlight illuminating -the rear of the stalled train. It was then that the whistle shrieked and -the train quickly ground to a stop about a hundred yards short of the -caboose.</p> - -<p>A man dropped from the engine and came up to the caboose. It was a -uniformed brakeman.</p> - -<p>“What’s that ahead—a fire?” he asked, swinging up on the steps.</p> - -<p>“Bridge on fire,” said Hashknife. “Looks like we’re here for a while.”</p> - -<p>“Pshaw! Some wind, eh? Say, I wonder why nobody was flaggin’ the rear of -this train?”</p> - -<p>“They did,” declared Hashknife. “I saw the brakeman start back with his -fuses and lantern.”</p> - -<p>“You did? That’s funny, we never seen him.”</p> - -<p>The conductor came out and corroborated Hashknife. In a few minutes the -conductor of the passenger came along. He was a fussy little fat man, -very important. He wheezed his profanity.</p> - -<p>“Can’t get across, eh? ⸺! Wires down behind us. Nothing to do but -wait. How did it happen you didn’t send out a flag? We might have rammed -you.”</p> - -<p>“Flag went out!” snapped the freight conductor.</p> - -<p>“We didn’t see it,” said the brakeman. “I was in the cab.”</p> - -<p>“Anyway, he went back,” declared the freight conductor. “It’s no fault -of mine if you fellows can’t see.”</p> - -<p>“Any chance of putting the fire out?” asked the passenger conductor.</p> - -<p>“Not a chance. One whole span on fire and this wind is like a -blow-torch. Looks like a complete tie-up for this division. There’s a -section crew at Pinnacle City, but this will be a job for bridge -builders.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife went back in the caboose where Sleepy was lying on a seat, -still caressing a sore jaw.</p> - -<p>“Stuck completely,” said Hashknife. “No dentist for you tonight, -cowboy.”</p> - -<p>The brakeman came in to light a cigaret, and Hashknife questioned him -about Pinnacle City.</p> - -<p>“South of here is the wagon-bridge,” said the brakeman. “I ain’t -familiar with this country, so I can’t tell yuh how far it is, but it -can’t be a mile—not over that, anyway.”</p> - -<p>He went out, and Hashknife turned to Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“How about yuh, cowboy? It ain’t over three miles to town. Suppose we -walk over and find a dentist?”</p> - -<p>“⸺, I’d do anythin’ to stop this ache, Hashknife!”</p> - -<p>“All right.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife went down the car, where he picked up their war-bags and -brought them back.</p> - -<p>“You ain’t pullin’ out for keeps, are yuh?” asked one of the -crap-shooting cowboys.</p> - -<p>“Nope,” grinned Hashknife. “We’ll meet yuh in Pinnacle City. Only a fool -walks away and leaves his war-bag. Yuh never know what’s ahead of yuh.”</p> - -<p>He dug down in his bag and drew out a well-worn cartridge belt to which -was attached a scarred holster containing a heavy Colt revolver. He -looped the belt around his lean hips, yanked the buckle together and -proceeded to fill the cylinder with .45 cartridges.</p> - -<p>Sleepy released his jaw long enough to buckle on his own armament, and -swung the bag over his shoulder and they went out into the night. The -train crew had left the caboose steps as the two cowboys swung down off -the fill and stumbled their way to the barb-wire fence of the -right-of-way.</p> - -<p>“Blacker ’n the inside of a cat,” declared Sleepy, after they were away -from the lights of the train. “Look out yuh don’t fall off the river -bank.”</p> - -<p>“It shore is kinda vague,” said Hashknife. “Jist take it easy.”</p> - -<p>“Ain’t nobody breakin’ into a gallop,” retorted Sleepy.</p> - -<p>They were traveling through a thicket of jack-pines, which whipped them -across the face and tangled their feet. The wind was still blowing -furiously, and there was a spit of rain in the air.</p> - -<p>Hashknife was surging ahead, one hand flung up to protect his face from -the whipping branches, when he almost ran into some object. It flashed -into his mind that it was a range animal, perhaps a horse. Sleepy bumped -into Hashknife and stopped with a grunt.</p> - -<p>Then came the flash of a gun, a streak of flame that licked out into the -wind not over fifteen feet from them. The wind seemed fairly to blow the -report away from them. It was little more than a sharp pop.</p> - -<p>Hashknife stumbled over a little jack-pine and went to his knees while -Sleepy unceremoniously sat down. And then the animal was gone. Evidently -it had borne a rider. The wind prevented them from hearing which way it -went.</p> - -<p>Hashknife crawled back and found one of Sleepy’s boots.</p> - -<p>“Didn’t hit yuh, did it?” yelled Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“No! What do yuh make of it?”</p> - -<p>“Queer thing to do, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>They got back to their feet.</p> - -<p>“How’s the tooth?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Tooth? Oh, yeah. Say, I forgot it. Let’s go.”</p> - -<p>They went ahead again, stumbling along, while the rain increased, and -they began to be very uncomfortable. Added to their discomfort was the -knowledge that they had lost all sense of direction. Hashknife knew they -were traveling parallel to the river until they were shot at, and from -that time on he wasn’t sure of anything.</p> - -<p>He felt they had traveled more than a mile, but they found no -wagon-road. There were no stars to guide them, and the wind had shifted -several times.</p> - -<p>“‘We’re lost, the captain shouted,’” declared Sleepy, as they halted -against the bank of a washout, where the wind and rain did not strike -them so heavily.</p> - -<p>“That wind was blowin’ from the north when we started, and we tried to -foller the wind,” laughed Hashknife. “Is yore tobacco wet?”</p> - -<p>They rolled a smoke and considered things.</p> - -<p>“I wish we was back in that nice warm caboose,” said Sleepy. “Gosh, that -shore was a comfortable place. But this is jist my luck. It makes five -times we’ve started East with a train of cows—and never got out of the -sagebrush.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, we’ll pick ’em up in Pinnacle City, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, that’s great. But where’s Pinnacle City?”</p> - -<p>“Two miles from the railroad bridge.”</p> - -<p>“Good guesser.”</p> - -<p>“It can’t be more than nine o’clock, Sleepy. By golly, there ought to be -somebody livin’ in this place-where-the-wind-comes-from.”</p> - -<p>“If they’re all like that jigger we ran into back there, I don’t care -about meetin’ ’em,” declared Sleepy. “Anyway, the tooth has quit -hurtin’. I think the swellin’ busted when we stopped at the bridge. That -engineer shore knows how to spike his mount’s tail to the earth!”</p> - -<p>“There’s only three things that are botherin’ me,” said Hashknife. “One -is: Why did that party take a shot at us? And the other two are my boots -full of water.”</p> - -<p>“And there’s another small matter,” said Sleepy flapping his arms -dismally. “We ain’t taken any nourishment since this mornin’, -Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, there’s that small matter,” agreed Hashknife. “Oh, if yuh ever -stop to check up on things, Sleepy, the world is all wrong. But never -stop grinnin’ and look back. The only place yuh ever see ghosts is -behind yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that wasn’t no ghost that snapped his gun at us.”</p> - -<p>“He shore wasn’t, cowboy. That jigger was plumb alive. Well, I dunno but -what we might as well keep circlin’. Eventually we’ll wear a trail, if -we keep goin’ long enough. I wish I knew which was south.”</p> - -<p>They sloshed away from the brush and headed down a slope.</p> - -<p>“There’s a light!” exclaimed Sleepy. “Straight ahead.”</p> - -<p>A flurry of rain obliterated the light, but it flickered again.</p> - -<p>“Light in a winder,” said Sleepy. “Must be a house.”</p> - -<p>“Must be,” agreed Hashknife dryly. “Windows don’t usually occur without -a house in connection.”</p> - -<p>They struck a corral fence, followed it around to the stable and then -headed for the house. It was the HJ ranch. But these two cowboys were -far too wise to walk right up to a strange house in the dark, especially -after having been shot at so recently; so they sidled up to the house -and took a look through the window.</p> - -<p>It was a side window of the living-room, and in the room were Peggy -Wheeler, Laura Hatton and Honey Bee. It was evident to Hashknife and -Sleepy that the living-room roof had sprung a leak and the three people -were making an earnest endeavor to catch the water in a wash-tub, -dishpan and numerous other receptacles.</p> - -<p>A long dry period had warped the old shingles of the ranch-house to such -an extent that they leaked like a sieve.</p> - -<p>“Looks like a harmless place,” observed Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“And not a ⸺ of a lot of advantage over bein’ outside,” said Sleepy. -“Anyway, they look awful human.”</p> - -<p>They walked around to the front door, clumped up the steps and knocked -on the door. Honey Bee answered the knock by opening the door about six -inches and peering out.</p> - -<p>“We just wondered if yuh didn’t need a couple of good men to fix yore -roof,” said Hashknife seriously.</p> - -<p>Honey opened the door a little and peered out at them. He had never seen -either of them before, but the lamplight illuminated their faces enough -to show their grins.</p> - -<p>“Fix the roof?” he said slowly. “Oh, yeah. Well, I’ll bet we do need -help.”</p> - -<p>He opened the door.</p> - -<p>“C’mon in out of the wet.”</p> - -<p>They shuffled the mud off their boots and came in. The two girls stood -near the dining-room doorway, each of them holding a receptacle, looking -curiously at Hashknife, who removed his dripping hat and grinned widely -at them. Hashknife’s grin was irresistible. Honey grinned foolishly and -shuffled his feet.</p> - -<p>“My name’s Hartley,” said Hashknife. “This soakin’ wet object with me is -named Stevens. He was sufferin’ from a bad tooth, and we went huntin’ a -dentist in the rain.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh went huntin’ a dentist?” queried Honey foolishly. “Wh-where didja -expect to find one?”</p> - -<p>“Sounds kinda queer,” grinned Hashknife. “Yuh see, we was actin’ as a -couple of chambermaids to a train of cows, but the bridge caught on fire -and we got stalled. Sleepy’s tooth shore needed help; so we started out -to find the wagon-bridge, figurin’ to find this Pinnacle City. But we -didn’t find the bridge.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah,” Honey scratched his head. “The railroad bridge caught fire. -Uh-huh. Ho-o-o-old on!”</p> - -<p>He ran across the room, grabbed up a wash-basin and placed it under a -fresh leak. Then he came back and introduced the girls to Hashknife and -Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“My name’s Bee,” he said. “B-e-e.”</p> - -<p>“Last or first?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Last. Say, I better rustle some wood for that fireplace. Kinda take the -chill off the air. Gosh, you fellers shore are wet.”</p> - -<p>Honey hurried away for some wood, while Hashknife moved some of the -containers to more advantageous spots. There seemed to be no end to the -leaks in the HJ ranch-house.</p> - -<p>“Terrible, isn’t it?” smiled Peggy.</p> - -<p>It seemed to her that these two strange cowboys, even with their wet -garments and muddy boots, had brought a warmth and cheer to the ranch -that was sorely needed.</p> - -<p>“Oh, not so bad,” said Hashknife, squinting at a leak. “Didja ever stop -to think how much worse it would be if them few little spots were the -only place where it didn’t leak?”</p> - -<p>“That would be terrible,” declared Laura.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, it would. But suppose it leaked everywhere. That would be worse, -eh?”</p> - -<p>“Do you always look at things that way?” asked Peggy.</p> - -<p>“Mostly,” said Hashknife seriously. “Why not, Miss Wheeler? Sunlight is -brighter than shadows; and it’s a lot easier to find, if yuh look for -it. Bright things are easier to see than dark ones.”</p> - -<p>“You listen to him a while and he’ll prove to yuh that a leaky roof is a -godsend,” laughed Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Well, ain’t it?” asked Hashknife. “If this roof hadn’t leaked, you -folks would probably have been in bed—and we wouldn’t have seen their -light, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>“That is true,” said Laura. “Oh, it was way past bedtime at the HJ -ranch!”</p> - -<p>Honey came in with an armful of wood, which he threw in the big -fireplace.</p> - -<p>“I’m makin’ a bet you fellers are hungry,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Never mind that,” grinned Hashknife. “Point us the way to Pinnacle -City, and we’ll be on our way.”</p> - -<p>“Not in that rain,” declared Peggy quickly.</p> - -<p>She went into the kitchen, where she called Wong Lee.</p> - -<p>“Aw, don’t bother the cook,” begged Hashknife. “Pshaw, it ain’t worth -it.”</p> - -<p>“It’s no bother to Wong Lee,” said Peggy. “You boys get over by that -fire and dry out a little. Wong Lee will get you a meal, and Honey will -show you where to sleep. Laura and I will go to bed. Good night, -everybody.”</p> - -<p>“Good night, and thank yuh a thousand times.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife and Sleepy crossed the room and shook hands with the two -girls. Peggy smiled at Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Thank you for coming,” she said.</p> - -<p>The two cowboys went back to the fire and removed some of their wet -garments, after which Hashknife went back to the porch and got their -water-proof war-bags, which contained some dry clothing. They could hear -Wong Lee shuffling about the kitchen, preparing them a meal.</p> - -<p>He came to the door and looked in on them. He was a little, wizen-faced -Celestial.</p> - -<p>“Yo’ like some ham-egg?” he asked.</p> - -<p>Hashknife grinned at him, but did not reply. A smile slowly stole across -the Chinaman’s face and he bobbed his head.</p> - -<p>“Yessa, velly good,” he said. “No tlouble.”</p> - -<p>“You kinda got the Injun sign on Wong Lee,” grunted Honey. “Darned old -rascal almost laughed. I tell yuh, he ain’t even smiled since Jim -Wheeler was killed.”</p> - -<p>“Thasso?” Hashknife borrowed Sleepy’s tobacco and rolled a cigaret. -“What happened to Jim Wheeler?”</p> - -<p>“Horse dragged him to death the other day.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife shuddered. The thought of a man’s hanging by one foot to a -stirrup never failed to rasp his nerves. He had seen men die that way, -and once when he was but a youngster he had been thrown from a wild -horse and had hung from a stirrup. Luckily the horse had whirled into a -fence corner, where another cowboy was able to hold the animal and -extricate Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Tough way to die,” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Y’betcha,” nodded Honey. “Head all busted up on the rocks, and his leg -twisted. Golly, it shore was awful! He owned this HJ outfit. I work for -the Flyin’ H, but I’m down here kinda helpin’ out. Hozie, Jim’s brother, -owns the Flyin’ H.”</p> - -<p>“Miss Wheeler is Jim’s daughter, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. It’s shore been a hard time for her, Hartley,” Honey lowered -his voice. “She was engaged to marry Joe Rich, and he got drunk on his -weddin’ night. Didn’t show up. Then Peggy aims to go East with Laura -Hatton. Yuh see, Jim wasn’t awful well heeled with money. He owes the -Pinnacle bank quite a lot; so he borrows five thousand from Ed Merrick, -who owns the Circle M, and gives Ed his note.</p> - -<p>“Ed gives him the money, and Jim starts home with it. And that’s the -last anybody ever seen of the money. Joe Rich was aimin’ to pull out of -the country; so he comes out to tell Peggy good-by. And Joe was the one -who found Jim Wheeler. Hozie Wheeler and Lonnie Myers comes ridin’ along -just a little later, and found Joe with Jim.</p> - -<p>“And when the sheriff finds out about the missin’ money, he tries to -make Joe wait for an investigation, and Joe pops him through the -gun-arm. That’s the last we saw of Joe. There’s a reward for him, and -the sheriff has been ridin’ the hocks off his horse, but ain’t found -nothin’. So yuh can see it’s been awful tough for Peggy.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife had been standing on one foot like a stork, holding the other -foot out to the blazing fire, while Honey sketched his story. Sleepy -hunched down, his back to the fire, his damp hair straggling down over -his forehead.</p> - -<p>“I wonder,” he said, “if it ain’t stopped rainin’ enough for us to go on -to town? We don’t want to miss that train, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich was the sheriff,” said Honey, as an afterthought. “But he -resigned the mornin’ after he got drunk. They made a sheriff out of his -deputy. Jim Wheeler knocked Joe down that mornin’, but Joe didn’t do -anythin’, they say.”</p> - -<p>“And it hadn’t ought to take long to fix that bridge,” said Sleepy. -“This rain would put the fire out.”</p> - -<p>“What kind of a jigger was this Joe Rich?” asked Hashknife curiously.</p> - -<p>“Jist salt of the earth, Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh,” thoughtfully. “And got so drunk he forgot to get married, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, that’s true,” sighed Honey. “I dunno why he did; and he never -said.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t have no quarrel with the girl?”</p> - -<p>“⸺, no! Aw, it was to be a big marriage. I was to be best man. My -⸺, I almost crippled myself for life, tryin’ to wear number six -shoes.”</p> - -<p>“You come eat now?” asked Wong Lee.</p> - -<p>Honey sat down with them. Sleepy looked gloomily at Hashknife and -reminded him gently that sugar was for the coffee, and not for the eggs.</p> - -<p>Hashknife chuckled, but sobered quickly. The rain still pattered on the -old roof and dripped off the eaves. It was warm in the kitchen.</p> - -<p>“Five thousand dollars is a lot of money,” mused Hashknife, stirring his -coffee with a fork. He had used the same fork to dip sugar from the bowl -and did not seem to realize that it had all leaked out.</p> - -<p>Sleepy knew the symptoms and groaned inwardly. Years of association with -Hashknife had taught Sleepy to recognize the sudden moods of the tall -cowboy. Trouble and mystery affected Hashknife as the scent of upland -fowl affects a pointer.</p> - -<p>Hashknife, in the days of his callow youth, had been known as George. -His father, an itinerant minister in the Milk River country and head of -a big family, had had little time or money to do more than just let this -boy grow up. As soon as he was able to sit in a saddle he lived with the -cowboys and became one of them.</p> - -<p>Blessed with a balanced mind, possibly inherited from his father, who -surely needed a balanced mind to make both ends meet, the boy struck out -for himself, absorbing all kinds of knowledge, studying human nature. -Eventually he drifted to the ranch, which gave him his nickname, and -here he met the grinning Sleepy Stevens, whose baptismal name was David.</p> - -<p>From the Hashknife ranch their trail led to many places. Soldiers of -fortune they became, although Hashknife referred to themselves as -cowpunchers of disaster. From the wide lands of Alberta to the Mexican -Border they had left their mark. They did not stay long in any place, -unless fate decreed that a certain time must elapse before their work -was finished. And then they would go on, possibly poorer in pocket. -Their life had made them fatalists, had made them very human. To salve -their own consciences they declared that they were looking for the right -spot to settle down; a place to live out the rest of their life in -peaceable pursuits.</p> - -<p>But down in their hearts they knew that this place did not exist. They -wanted to see the other side of the hill. Hashknife’s brain rebelled -against a mystery. It seemed to challenge him to combat. Where range -detectives had failed utterly because they were unable to see beyond -actual facts, Hashknife’s analytical mind had enabled him to build up -chains of evidence that had cleared up mystery after mystery.</p> - -<p>But solving mysteries was not a business with them. They did not pose as -detectives. It merely happened that fate threw them into contact with -these things. Sleepy’s mind did not function with any more rapidity than -that of any average man, but he was blessed with a vast sense of humor, -bulldog tenacity and a faculty for using a gun when a gun was most -needed.</p> - -<p>Whether it was merely a pose or not, Sleepy always tried to prevent -Hashknife from getting interested in these mysteries of the range -country. He argued often and loud, but to no avail. But once started, -Sleepy worked as diligently as Hashknife. Neither of them were wizards -with their guns. No amount of persuasion would induce them to compete -with others in marksmanship, nor did they ever practise drawing a gun.</p> - -<p>“Leave that to the gun-men,” Hashknife had said. “We’re not gun-men.”</p> - -<p>Which was something that many men would take great pains to disprove, -along the back-trail of Hashknife and Sleepy.</p> - -<p>And right now, while he ate heavily of the HJ food, Sleepy Stevens knew -he was being dragged into the whirlpool of the Tumbling River range. He -could tell by the twitch of Hashknife’s nose, by the calculating squint -of his gray eyes; and if that was not enough—Hashknife was cutting a -biscuit with a knife and fork.</p> - -<p>“Five thousand is a lot of money for the HJ to lose,” agreed Honey. -“Take that along with the seven thousand owin’ to the Pinnacle City bank -and it jist about nails the HJ hide to the floor and leaves it there to -starve.”</p> - -<p>“Was Jim Wheeler a sickly man?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Sickly? Not a bit; he was built like a bull.”</p> - -<p>“Drink much?”</p> - -<p>“Hardly ever took a drink.”</p> - -<p>“Ride a bad horse?”</p> - -<p>“Been ridin’ the same one three years, and it never made a bobble. Jim’s -broncscratchin’ days was over, Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh,” Hashknife rubbed his chin with the fork. “Was it goin’ to take -five thousand dollars for to ship that girl back East?”</p> - -<p>“Probably not.”</p> - -<p>“What kind of a feller is Ed Merrick?”</p> - -<p>“Good cow-man. He’s one of the county commissioners. Owned the Circle M -about five years, and is kind of a big man in the county. Mostly horse -outfit.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh say they made a sheriff out of the deputy?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah; Len Kelsey.”</p> - -<p>Honey described the trouble on the street between Kelsey and Rich, in -which Kelsey was wounded. He also told them how the cowboys hid out to -keep from being sworn in to follow the fugitive. This interested Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Sounds like there was some reg’lar boys around here,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Oh, the boys like Joe,” grinned Honey. “You’d like him.”</p> - -<p>“I dunno. Any man that ain’t got no more sense than to get drunk and -miss a chance of a wife like that dark-haired girl ain’t very much of a -feller. Or the blonde one.”</p> - -<p>“The blonde one is my girl,” said Honey softly.</p> - -<p>Sleepy reached impulsively across the table and shook hands with Honey, -who looked foolish.</p> - -<p>“I’m glad yuh told me,” said Sleepy seriously. “Prob’ly save me a lot of -heartaches. She’s a dinger.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife shoved back from the table, thanking Wong Lee for his -hospitality.</p> - -<p>“Velly good,” Wong Lee bobbed his head. “No tlouble. You come some mo’.”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe we will, Wong.”</p> - -<p>“All lite; I cook plenty.”</p> - -<p>The rain had increased again, and Honey advised them against attempting -to go to Pinnacle City. It was not difficult to convince them. Sleepy’s -tooth did not ache any more, and their clothes were beginning to dry; so -they followed Honey down to the dry bunk-house and went to bed.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>It did not take the rain long to extinguish the fire at the bridge, and -after an examination the train crews decided that it was still safe. -Many of the timbers were badly charred, and but for the heavy rain which -followed the wind, the whole bridge would have been doomed.</p> - -<p>The cattle-train, minus two of the cowhands, proceeded slowly to -Pinnacle City, where it took the siding. It would spend several hours -there, watering stock, and the man in charge expected Hashknife and -Sleepy to put in an appearance before leaving time.</p> - -<p>The passenger train drew in at the station, possibly an hour late. The -wires being down, it was impossible for them to get orders. The heavy -rain swept the wooden platform, but the depot agent trundled out some -express packages. The express car door was partly open, but there was no -messenger.</p> - -<p>The agent climbed into the car, and the first thing that greeted his eye -was the through safe, almost in the center of the car, its door torn -open. A single car light burned in the upper end of the car, and it was -there that the agent found the messenger, bound hand and foot.</p> - -<p>Running back to the depot, the agent told what he had found, and the -train crew hurried to the car, while another man went to get an officer. -In the waiting room of the depot the express messenger told what he knew -of the robbery. A man had struck him over the head, and he was a trifle -hazy about what had happened.</p> - -<p>The man had boarded the car at Kelo. The messenger said he had received -several packages from the agent at Kelo, and had gone to place them -before closing the door. The wind was blowing a gale, and he did not -hear the man come in. In fact he merely surmised that the man got on at -Kelo, because as far as he knew there was no other man than himself on -the car when they stopped at Kelo.</p> - -<p>At any rate, the man had forced him at the point of a revolver to close -and lock the door, and had made him sit down and wait for the train to -pull out. There was quite a long delay, and the bandit seemed rather -nervous.</p> - -<p>In fact he grew so nervous that he knocked the messenger unconscious -with his gun, and the messenger didn’t know that the safe had been blown -open. He dimly remembered a loud noise, but was in no shape to find out -what it was. Anyway, the robber had bound and placed him behind some -trunks out of the way of the explosion.</p> - -<p>He was just a little sick all over, yet he gave Len Kelsey a fairly good -description of the robber—as good as usually is given. A masked man of -medium height. Might have been tall, or possibly short. Wore black -sombrero, striped shirt, overalls and boots. No vest. The shirt might -have been blue and white—or red and green. The messenger wasn’t sure. -He noted particularly that the robber had a six-shooter in his right -hand, and that he wore leather cuffs—black leather, with silver stars -in a circle around the upper edge of the cuffs.</p> - -<p>“Was there any money in the safe?” asked Len.</p> - -<p>“A lot of it,” declared the messenger. “I don’t know how much. I’d like -to see a doctor about my head.”</p> - -<p>Slim Coleman, of the Lazy B, happened to be there at the depot, and he -walked back with Len Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“What do yuh think about it, Len?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“I dunno,” lied Len.</p> - -<p>Slim had noted the expression of Len’s face when the messenger told -about the leather cuffs.</p> - -<p>When Joe Rich had left Pinnacle City he was wearing a blue and white -striped shirt, black sombrero, overalls and a pair of black leather -cuffs, on which were riveted a lot of small, silver stars. Joe had done -the decorating himself, and Slim knew that no other cowboy in the -Tumbling River country wore a cuff like Joe’s.</p> - -<p>Len did not seem inclined to talk about it, so Slim went back to the -depot, where old Doctor Curzon was bandaging up the messenger’s head. A -drink of raw liquor had helped to make the messenger more sociable and -willing to talk.</p> - -<p>“You got a good look at his gun, didn’t yuh?” asked Slim.</p> - -<p>“I felt it,” smiled the messenger, wincing slightly from Doctor Curzon’s -ministrations.</p> - -<p>“What did it look like?”</p> - -<p>“Very large caliber—about six inches in diameter.” The man laughed at -his description. “Weighed a ton. Seriously, I can’t describe it, but it -seems to me that it had a white handle. Perhaps it was yellow, like -bone. You know what I mean—not pearl. It was a Colt, I am sure.”</p> - -<p>Slim sighed deeply.</p> - -<p>“Man wear any rings on his fingers?”</p> - -<p>“I didn’t see any.”</p> - -<p>Slim went back uptown. Joe Rich carried a Colt .45 with a yellow bone -handle. Slim remembered when Joe had carved out those pieces of bone, -working for days, at odd times, shaping the grip to fit his hand. Slim -didn’t know of another cowpuncher in the country that carried a -bone-handled gun.</p> - -<p>The news spread quickly around the town that the safe of the passenger -train had been blown by a lone bandit who wore silver stars on his cuffs -and carried a bone-handled gun. Joe Rich’s name did not need to be -mentioned. Len Kelsey did nothing, because there was nothing to be done. -The telegraph wires were down and there was no use in his riding out -into the storm. Even if the robber did get out at the river bridge, the -storm would wipe out any tracks he might make, and even if there were no -storm, how could he track one man?</p> - -<p>Len Kelsey was very wise. He stayed at home where it was warm and dry, -and went to bed. He had sufficient description to prove who had pulled -the job, and he had already worn out two perfectly good horses trying to -find this elusive young man.</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER VI: HASHKNIFE SMELLS A RAT</h2> - -<p>Sometime during that night the trouble shooters for the telegraph -company had repaired the break, and this enabled the despatchers to -straighten out the trains. The cattle-train headed out of Pinnacle City -the following morning, minus two cowboys.</p> - -<p>The depot agent knew about this, and told Len Kelsey that there were two -lost cowpunchers somewhere on the east side of the river. The agent knew -from what he had heard the crew of the cattle-train say that these men -had left the train, intending to walk down to the wagon-bridge. But he -also knew they had taken their war-bags with them and had buckled on -their belts and guns before leaving the train.</p> - -<p>“Kinda looks as though they intended missin’ the train,” said Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Might be worth investigating, Sheriff. The passenger was close behind -the cattle-train for a long time out there by the bridge. And that -express messenger had been hit so hard on the head that he wasn’t sure -of anything.”</p> - -<p>“Sure—I’ll look into it,” agreed Len. “I won’t leave any stone -unturned.”</p> - -<p>He had read this in a book, and it sounded like the proper thing for a -sheriff to say.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>Hashknife and Sleepy did not mention to Peggy that Honey Bee had told -them about her troubles. She was in good spirits that morning, and even -Wong Lee sang at his work. Laura told Honey that Peggy had talked quite -a while about the tall cowboy and his wonderful grin—and Honey told -Hashknife about it.</p> - -<p>“Didn’t either of ’em mention me?” asked Sleepy. “No? That’s tough. But -how could I grin, with my jaw all swelled? But that’s jist my luck!”</p> - -<p>Honey offered to take them to Pinnacle City in the buggy. They were -hitching up the horses when Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston rode in.</p> - -<p>“Now, what do them ⸺ whippoorwills want?” growled Honey. “That’s the -sheriff and deputy.”</p> - -<p>“What had we ought to do—put up our hands?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>The two officers dismounted and spoke to Honey.</p> - -<p>“Howdy,” growled Honey.</p> - -<p>Hashknife could plainly see that Honey Bee did not care for these two -officers of the law.</p> - -<p>Len Kelsey studied Hashknife and Sleepy for a moment.</p> - -<p>“I reckon you boys are the two missin’ members of the cattle-train -outfit, eh?”</p> - -<p>“If there’s two missin’—we’re both of ’em,” said Hashknife gravely. -“Has the train left Pinnacle City?”</p> - -<p>“Before daylight.”</p> - -<p>“Stranded again,” groaned Sleepy. “I’ll never see the East, that’s a -cinch.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife hitched up his belt and leaned against the buggy.</p> - -<p>“Yuh wasn’t exactly lookin’ for us, was yuh?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“I don’t hardly think so,” replied Kelsey. “The safe on the express car -of the passenger train that stopped back of yuh at the bridge last night -was dynamited somewhere between Kelo and Pinnacle City.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife and Sleepy exchanged a quick glance. That might explain why a -shot had been fired at them in the dark. They had blundered into the -bandit who was making his getaway.</p> - -<p>“For gosh sake!” snorted Honey. “Did they get much, Len?”</p> - -<p>“Dunno how much. One man pulled the job, Honey—a man who wore black -leather cuffs with silver stars, and a bone handled six-shooter.”</p> - -<p>“Leather cuffs with silver stars and bone—” Honey stopped and came in -closer to the sheriff.</p> - -<p>“Are yuh sure of that, Len?”</p> - -<p>“That’s the messenger’s description.”</p> - -<p>“Well, for gosh sake!”</p> - -<p>Honey looked toward the house, shaking his head sadly.</p> - -<p>“You recognize the description?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich,” said Honey. “He made the stars and put ’em on a pair of -black cuffs and he made the bone handles for his gun. Yuh say yuh don’t -know how much he got, Len?”</p> - -<p>“No, I don’t, Honey. But it was enough, I reckon.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Excuse me, I forgot to introduce you gents.”</p> - -<p>After the introduction they all sat down on the steps of the bunk-house -and rolled smokes. Hashknife did not tell the sheriff about the shot -that was fired at them in the dark.</p> - -<p>“I dunno just where to start,” admitted Kelsey. “I’ve been huntin’ Joe -Rich all over these hills, and now he comes back and robs a train right -under my nose.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey, who was still wearing his arm in a sling, noticed Hashknife -looking at it.</p> - -<p>“A little souvenir of makin’ a fool move,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I heard about it,” nodded Hashknife. “Joe Rich must be pretty -fast with a gun, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Fast enough,” growled Kelsey. “Funny, ain’t it? Here I was his deputy -all this time, and now I’m huntin’ him. Don’t seem right.”</p> - -<p>“Are yuh dead sure it is?” asked Hashknife seriously.</p> - -<p>Kelsey looked quickly at him.</p> - -<p>“Dead sure?” Kelsey laughed shortly. “Well, about as sure as anythin’ -could be, Hartley. I dunno what got into Joe. He was sure strong on -enforcin’ the law, and now he seems just as strong on breakin’ it.”</p> - -<p>“Them’s the kind that go wrong—when they do go,” said Ralston.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, you know a ⸺ of a lot about it,” snorted Honey.</p> - -<p>“Well, it allus works out that way.”</p> - -<p>“It does, eh? I suppose yuh knowed two months ago that Joe Rich would -turn out bad. What do yuh use—palmistry or one of them glass balls?”</p> - -<p>“Aw, yuh don’t need to get sore, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“Thasso? Every time I think about Joe, I get sore. I wish I knowed where -he was hidin’ out.”</p> - -<p>“Me, too,” grinned Kelsey. “I’d be a thousand better off.”</p> - -<p>“Yea-a-a-ah? Well, when you find out where he is, yuh better take plenty -of help along to get him, Len; two of yuh ain’t enough.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey could see that the argument might wax rather hot; so he got to -his feet, stretched wearily and told Ralston they better be going. -Nobody asked them to stay. Honey looked after them morosely.</p> - -<p>“Don’t like ’em, eh?” queried Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“No! You boys go ahead and hitch up the team. I’ve got to tell the girls -about that robbery. I sure as ⸺ hate to tell Peggy that they think -Joe pulled that job, but I’d rather tell her than to have her get it -from somebody else.”</p> - -<p>The team was hitched when Honey came back, and he drove out to the main -road.</p> - -<p>“How did she take it?” asked Hashknife. Honey looked at Hashknife, a -pained expression on his face.</p> - -<p>“A-a-a-aw, ⸺!” he said explosively.</p> - -<p>“Does she believe it?”</p> - -<p>“Huh! I dunno what she believes. Yuh can’t tell nothin’ about a woman, -Hartley. She didn’t say anythin’. I was wonderin’ if she heard what I -told her, but I reckon she did. Anyway she didn’t say anythin’—jist -walked away.”</p> - -<p>They jolted along over the rough road. Honey turned to Hashknife, a grin -on his lips.</p> - -<p>“I ain’t no gentleman,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t yuh?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Nossir,” Honey shook his head violently. “Can’t lie good enough. Laura -said I ought to be crowned with an ax-handle for comin’ in and tellin’ -Peggy that Joe Rich robbed the train. She said I should have lied about -it.”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe yuh should.”</p> - -<p>“Cinch! Giddap! I always think of a lie too late. Some day I’m goin’ to -be hung for tellin’ the truth.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll be the first puncher that ever had that honor,” said Sleepy. -“There’s that bridge we was huntin’ for, Hashknife. If we’d ’a’ found it -last night, we’d be on our way East right now.”</p> - -<p>“Glad yuh didn’t,” grinned Honey, as they rattled over the loose -floor-planks of the bridge. “It’s only a little ways out here to where -Jim Wheeler was killed. I’ll show yuh the place.”</p> - -<p>He drove off the bridge and around to the spot where Joe had found Jim -Wheeler. Honey knew the exact spot and drew just off the road. Hashknife -walked up and down the road while Honey explained things to him. The -rain of the night before had laid the dust, and the road was almost as -smooth as asphalt.</p> - -<p>After looking the place over they rode on to Pinnacle City, where they -met Uncle Hozie Wheeler and Aunt Emma. Honey introduced them to -Hashknife and Sleepy, and told how they happened to be in the Tumbling -River country.</p> - -<p>They had heard about the train robbery. It seemed to be the general -opinion that Joe Rich had done it.</p> - -<p>“I knowed him a long time,” said Uncle Hozie. “He never struck me as -bein’ a bad boy in any way. I don’t sabe him. Why he jist went all to -⸺ in a week!”</p> - -<p>“Does Peggy know about it?” asked Aunt Emma.</p> - -<p>“Yeah,” Honey nodded solemnly. “Yeah, she knows. But I’ve told her the -last bad news I’ll ever tell.”</p> - -<p>“Took it hard, did she, Honey?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno. She never said anythin’. Laura give me ⸺. Sometimes I think -that girl don’t care for the truth. Oh, if she wants lies, I reckon I -can supply her.”</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma were going to ride out to the HJ to see the -girls. Curt Bellew and Ed Merrick were at the Pinnacle. They shook hands -with Honey, who introduced Hashknife and Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“What do yuh think of Joe Rich now?” asked Curt, after he had invited -them to share his hospitality.</p> - -<p>“Jist the same as I always did,” declared Honey. “Somethin’ has gone -wrong with the boy. How’s the Circle M, Merrick?”</p> - -<p>“All right, Honey. I’ll bet yore old ranch-house leaked last night.”</p> - -<p>“Did it? My gosh, I’ll betcha it did. Ask Hartley and Stevens; they -showed up in the rain. Yuh see, they was on that stalled cow-train, and -Stevens had a toothache; so they tried to find their way to the -wagon-bridge in order to get to town. But I reckon they got kinda lost, -and ended up at the HJ.”</p> - -<p>Merrick laughed.</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe I could have found my way either—as well as I know the -country. Whew! It sure was dark and wet. My place didn’t leak, but it -got damp. Are you boys goin’ to be with us a while?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno,” Hashknife leaned an elbow on the bar and began rolling a -cigaret. “It looks as though Fate kinda dropped us off here for some -reason or other.”</p> - -<p>“Too bad it’s the slack season. I’m short two men of my regular crew, -but there ain’t enough work for me and Ben Collins and ‘Dutch’ Seibert. -Later on I might use yuh.”</p> - -<p>“I loaned Honey to the HJ,” laughed Bellew. “I’ve still got Eph Harper -and Slim Coleman on my hands. Ma says that’s two men too many. She allus -says I’m tryin’ to make a mountain out of a molehill—meanin’ that I -can’t ever hire enough men to make the Lazy B a big cow-outfit.”</p> - -<p>While they were drinking a man came in whom the bartender seemed to -know. It was the telegraph operator at the depot. He bought a drink and -a cigar.</p> - -<p>“I suppose the sheriff is hunting bandits,” he said.</p> - -<p>“We seen him out at the HJ this morn-in’,” offered Honey.</p> - -<p>The man nodded.</p> - -<p>“I was just over to his office, but there wasn’t anybody home. Had a -telegram for him from Ransome. They found a little gold penknife in the -express car. It didn’t belong to the messenger, he said. The wire said -there were the initials J. R. on the handle.”</p> - -<p>“J. R.?” said Honey. “Little gold knife! My gosh, that’s the knife Peggy -gave Joe for his birthday!”</p> - -<p>“I dunno,” said the man vacantly. “All I know is what the wire said. I -reckon it will keep until the sheriff gets back.”</p> - -<p>He went out, and Merrick laughed softly.</p> - -<p>“He guesses it will keep. Ha, ha, ha, ha!”</p> - -<p>Honey leaned on the bar and looked dismally at himself in the mirror.</p> - -<p>“I’ll not tell Peggy,” he declared, but amended it with, “I might come -right out and tell her that if anybody says they found Joe Rich’s gold -knife on that car—they lie.”</p> - -<p>“Why even mention it?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Mebbe that’s the best thing to do. Oh, they’ve got Joe cinched!”</p> - -<p>“But he overlooked one bet,” said Hashknife thoughtfully.</p> - -<p>“What was that?” asked Merrick.</p> - -<p>“He forgot to carve his name on the safe.”</p> - -<p>“Is that meant to be serious?” asked Merrick.</p> - -<p>“No-o-o-o,” drawled Hashknife. “I suppose I’m jokin’.”</p> - -<p>“Aw, he wouldn’t write his name on the safe,” said Honey.</p> - -<p>“Might as well,” grinned Hashknife. “It sure shows that Joe is a -beginner at the game. A regular hold-up man don’t tag his work -thataway.”</p> - -<p>Merrick looked seriously at Hashknife. “You talk as though you were -familiar with hold-up men, Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“No; I just use common sense, Merrick.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Well, it’s a good thing to use. A lot of us don’t do it.”</p> - -<p>“No, that’s true,” admitted Hashknife seriously.</p> - -<p>Merrick scratched his chin and turned back to the bar. He wasn’t exactly -sure whether this tall, level-eyed cowboy was making fun of him or not. -He had the feeling that he was, but there was nothing to justify this -feeling. Both of the strange cowboys were very serious of face, and -Sleepy’s blue eyes looked entirely innocent. But Merrick did not know -that Sleepy’s innocent blue eyes were his greatest asset.</p> - -<p>“I wonder if the sheriff’s office had anythin’ to go on this mornin’,” -said Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Couple of horses,” replied Sleepy. “Now let me buy a drink, will yuh?”</p> - -<p>“I’ve got to go kinda easy,” said Curt Bellew. “I git down here and lap -up liquor, and have to eat cloves all the way back to the ranch.”</p> - -<p>“And then prove why yuh ate cloves,” grinned Honey.</p> - -<p>“Sure. Honey, if yo’re a wise boy, you’ll stay sober and single.”</p> - -<p>“A-a-aw, I don’t drink much, Curt.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh don’t get married much either, do yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” laughed Honey, “I won’t get drunk and forget to get married.”</p> - -<p>Bellew and Merrick left the saloon and a few minutes later Honey, -Hashknife and Sleepy stocked up on tobacco and rode back to the HJ.</p> - -<p>“I feel foolish goin’ back there,” said Hashknife. “Kinda looks as -though we were imposin’ on yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh throw that in a can,” said Honey. “Yo’re welcome to stay as long as -yuh can. I can’t quite sabe you two boys.”</p> - -<p>“Jist in what way?”</p> - -<p>“Well, I never seen yuh before until last night. Yuh come in and I -forget that I don’t know yuh. I tell yuh all about the trouble, -and—well, yuh know what I mean don’tcha? It jist seemed the natural -thing, to do. And Wong Lee took to yuh. Wong’s kinda funny thataway.</p> - -<p>“Why, sometimes the boys from the Circle M stop here. Yuh see they go -past here to their ranch from town. Wong ain’t never spoken to one of -’em. Other fellers show up here at meal-time, and Wong says nothin’. But -he shore talked to yuh, and promised yuh more meals. Do dogs ever foller -yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Sometimes,” laughed Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“I’ll betcha. Never bite yuh, do they?”</p> - -<p>“Haven’t yet.”</p> - -<p>“Never will. Huh!” Honey jerked up on the lines. “I know what the word -is. I read somethin’ about it in a magazine. It’s called personality. -Know what it means, Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I think I do.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s what you’ve got. Giddap, broncs! Joe Rich had it. His must -’a’ back-fired on him.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife laughed. Honey Bee was so sincere in his statements.</p> - -<p>“Was Rich a good sheriff?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Y’betcha. Joe was a man that wouldn’t stop at anythin’ to enforce the -law. Some men kinda play fav’rites, yuh know. But Joe wasn’t that kind. -At least I don’t reckon he was, and I knew him awful well.”</p> - -<p>“How did it happen that you wasn’t his deputy?”</p> - -<p>“Politics,” explained Honey. “Merrick controls a lot of votes in this -county, and he told Joe he’d support him if he’d appoint Len Kelsey -deputy. Joe agreed, and it was the Merrick vote that won for Joe.”</p> - -<p>“Who was the other candidate?”</p> - -<p>“John Leeds, of Ransome. He’s a hard old customer, Hartley. He was -sheriff before Joe was elected, and he made a lot of enemies. Pretty -smart, too. I’ll betcha, if old John was sheriff he’d ’a’ been on the -trail of that robber before daylight. He was a sticker, old John was, -and nobody ever told him what to do. Mebbe that’s why he got beat.”</p> - -<p>They drove along to where Jim Wheeler had been killed, and Hashknife -leaned out of the buggy. But he did not say anything. They drove across -the bridge and to the HJ, where they saw the Flying H buggy team tied to -the front porch.</p> - -<p>“Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma,” said Honey. “They’re salt of the earth, -gents. Always tryin’ to do somethin’ for yuh. Aunt Emma hops all over -yuh for doin’ somethin’, but all the time she’s laughin’ inside at yuh. -They don’t make ’em any better. Hozie and Jim was pretty thick, and it -hurt Hozie to see old Jim pass out. He didn’t say much—but that’s his -way. Tears don’t show much—except moisture.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife and Sleepy went to the bunk-house, and did not see Uncle Hozie -and his wife until they were ready to drive away. Honey had told them -about the gold-handled knife, but did not tell Peggy. A little later Ed -Merrick stopped on his way out to the Circle M and talked with the three -cowboys about the robbery of the night before. He was expecting a horse -buyer from Kelo, so did not linger long.</p> - -<p>“How are prices in this range?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Depends on the buyer,” replied Merrick. “Some of ’em play square with -yuh. The horse market ain’t very strong, and we have to almost take -what’s offered. This buyer wants quite a lot of horses, so he says.”</p> - -<p>“For Eastern market?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I think so. Anyway, the buyer is from the East.”</p> - -<p>Merrick rode away and a few minutes later Wong Lee rang the dinner bell. -Peggy and Laura did not eat with the boys, but a little later Hashknife -wandered around the rear of the house and found Peggy sitting on an old -bench in the shade of the cottonwoods, a picture of abject lonesomeness.</p> - -<p>Hashknife squatted down on his heels against the tree and rolled a -cigaret. Neither of them had spoken. Peggy sighed and leaned back -against the bole of the tree, watching Hashknife’s long, lean fingers -fashion a cigaret.</p> - -<p>“My, it’s shore peaceful out here!” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Peggy nodded slowly.</p> - -<p>“Yes, it is peaceful.”</p> - -<p>“It kinda looks as though we were imposin’ on yuh.”</p> - -<p>“You are not,” declared Peggy quickly. “I’m glad you came. And I don’t -know why I’m glad. Queer, isn’t it?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, it’s queer. Life’s a queer thing. Yesterday we were on our way -East in that caboose, when the bridge caught fire and changed -everythin’. Yuh never know what will come tomorrow.”</p> - -<p>“I realize that, Mr. Hartley. I suppose Honey has told you of the things -that have happened lately.”</p> - -<p>“Well, yeah, I reckon we’ve heard quite a lot about it, ma’am. It shore -was tough luck. Are yuh goin’ away with Miss Hatton?”</p> - -<p>“No; I can’t.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, it doesn’t matter,” she said wearily. “You see, I’ve got to stay -and see that things are straightened up. Dad owed the bank seven -thousand. Oh, I wish he had let things go as they were! I didn’t need -that trip. He was so thoughtful of me, and he thought I’d like to get -away for a while. Now he’s gone, and the ranch—we’ll have to sell -everything in order to pay the debts.”</p> - -<p>“That’s shore tough. Miss Wheeler, I’d like to know more about Joe Rich. -I don’t like to be personal, but I’d like to get yore opinion of him.”</p> - -<p>“My opinion?” Peggy laughed bitterly. “I don’t think it is worth much, -Mr. Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Yore honest opinion, I mean.”</p> - -<p>“My honest opinion?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah. Yuh see we all have two opinions on things like that—the one we -express and the one we hide.”</p> - -<p>“I—I think I know what you mean, Mr. Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Fine. I wish you’d leave the mister off my name. All my friends call me -Hashknife. When anybody says ‘Mr. Hartley’ I look around to see who -they’re speakin’ to. Now, yuh jist go ahead and tell me about Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>Peggy looked earnestly at Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Why should I? Why do you wish to know about Joe Rich—my opinion of -him? Who are you, anyway?”</p> - -<p>Hashknife studied his boot-toes for several moments, but finally looked -up at her with a grin in his eyes.</p> - -<p>“It’s kinda queer,” he admitted. “But I’m one of them funny folks who -always asks questions. All my life I’ve asked a lot of questions, Miss -Wheeler. Sometimes I find out things. I’m like the feller who said he -made up his mind to kiss every pretty woman he met. Somebody said—</p> - -<p>“‘I’ll bet you got whipped a lot of times,’ and he said—</p> - -<p>“‘Well, yeah, I did, but I shore got a lot of kisses.’</p> - -<p>“And that’s the way with me—except that I was after answers instead of -kisses.”</p> - -<p>Peggy laughed with him.</p> - -<p>“But I don’t see yet,” she said. “What good will my opinion do you? What -do you want to know about Joe Rich?”</p> - -<p>“Well, it’s like this, Miss Wheeler: Yore opinion of him will go quite a -ways with me. If I was to come right out and ask yuh if yuh loved Joe -Rich in spite of everythin’ he’s done to yuh—what would yuh say?”</p> - -<p>Peggy turned her head away and rested her chin on her hand. After a -space of time she shook her head.</p> - -<p>“That isn’t a fair question,” she said softly.</p> - -<p>“No, but yuh gave me a fair answer,” said Hashknife. “I’d like to shake -hands with yuh, Miss Wheeler.”</p> - -<p>Wonderingly she shook hands with him, and he smiled down at her, his -gray eyes twinkling.</p> - -<p>“But I—I didn’t answer you,” she said, choking slightly.</p> - -<p>“Oh, yes yuh did, Peggy. I’m goin’ to call yuh Peggy. If yuh can love -him in spite of everythin’ he’s done, by golly, he’s worth savin’ for -yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Worth saving?” Peggy got to her feet. “I don’t understand. How can you -save him?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno exactly,” Hashknife scratched his head, tilting his sombrero -over one eye. “But there ain’t nothin’ that can’t be done.”</p> - -<p>“But what could save him? Why, they’re hunting for him now—offering a -big reward.”</p> - -<p>The tears came into her eyes and she turned away. Hashknife patted her -on the shoulder.</p> - -<p>“Keep smilin’,” he said softly. “Remember how it was here last night? -All wind and rain, wasn’t it? And today the sun is shinin’ and the sky -is blue. Life’s like that, Peggy. The old sky gets pretty black and all -clouded up, but the old sun is always on the job, and it breaks through -eventually.”</p> - -<p>“It is wonderful to look at things in that way, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“I think so, Peggy. My old man was that way. He preached the gospel in -bunk-houses and out on the range. But he didn’t wear a long face and say -long prayers. He said he wasn’t trying to make folks fit to die—he was -makin’ ’em fit to live. And after all, that’s the gospel. If yo’re fit -to live, yuh’ll be fit to die. And when yo’re fit to live yuh’ll always -see the sun behind the clouds.”</p> - -<p>Peggy smiled at him through her tears. “I’m glad you came here,” she -said simply, and went back to the house.</p> - -<p>Hashknife sat down on the bench and rolled a fresh cigaret. Sleepy had -been sitting on the bunk-house steps, but now he came up to Hashknife -and sat down beside him.</p> - -<p>“Well, what do yuh know, cowboy?” queried Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“What do I know?” Hashknife grinned wistfully at his smoke. “I know I’ve -bit off a ⸺ of a big chew for one man to masticate.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah,” nodded Sleepy, “yuh mostly always do, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Where’s Honey?”</p> - -<p>“Settin’ on the front porch with Laura. By golly, if this keeps up I’m -goin’ to get me a squaw! You at one end of the place and Honey at the -other. While Mister Stevens sets on the bunk-house steps all alone. And -he’s the best-lookin’ man on the ranch, too.”</p> - -<p>“Who is—Honey?”</p> - -<p>“Na-a-aw—Stevens! Honey’s second.”</p> - -<p>“And I’m third,” grinned Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Sure,” said Sleepy. “Wong Lee don’t count, because he’s a Chinaman.”</p> - -<p>“I’m glad one entry is scratched. There goes the sheriff and his hired -hand.”</p> - -<p>Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston rode past, heading for the old bridge.</p> - -<p>“Reckon they didn’t have very good luck,” observed Sleepy. “That must -’a’ been Joe Rich we almost ran into in the rain. He was just makin’ his -getaway, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Looks thataway, Sleepy. Mebbe we should ’a’ told the sheriff about it.”</p> - -<p>“That wouldn’t help him any; yuh can’t foller horse tracks.”</p> - -<p>“No, yuh can’t,” agreed Hashknife getting up. “I reckon we better go -down and see how many ridin’ rigs there are on this place, and pick out -a horse.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh mean to stay here a while, Hashknife?”</p> - -<p>“It ain’t an unpleasant place, is it?”</p> - -<p>“No-o-o, but—”</p> - -<p>“Yuh didn’t hope to catch that train, didja?”</p> - -<p>“The cattle-train? Certainly not.”</p> - -<p>“Have yuh got any other place you’d like to go to?”</p> - -<p>“No-o-o-o, I reckon not, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Fine! Then yuh don’t mind stayin’ a day or so, eh?”</p> - -<p>They looked seriously at each other for a moment and both grinned widely -as they headed for the stable.</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER VII: CITY VS. RANGE</h2> - -<p>The following day William H. Cates, a special investigator of the -Wells-Fargo, came to Pinnacle City, and went into a lengthy session with -Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston. Cates was a big, burly man with a square -jaw and blue eyes. In fifteen minutes he knew as much as Kelsey did -about the robbery and the life of Joe Rich.</p> - -<p>Cates’ questions were snappy and to the point. But what he learned was -of little value to him. Cates was a city man, an ex-detective of San -Francisco. He knew much more about pavements than he did about ranges, -and he was not egotistical enough to expect much success in this case.</p> - -<p>“The idea seems to be—get Joe Rich,” he said.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, that’s the idea,” agreed Kelsey, resting his heels on the desk. -“But how are yuh goin’ to get him, pardner?”</p> - -<p>“We’ve been after him for days,” grumbled Ralston.</p> - -<p>“He got over twenty thousand that last haul,” said the detective.</p> - -<p>“My gosh, was there that much in the safe?” exploded Kelsey. “Whew!”</p> - -<p>“That much, at least, Sheriff. The company are offering a reward of -twenty-five hundred.”</p> - -<p>“I didn’t know they carried that much,” said Ralston.</p> - -<p>“Well, they do. Sometimes more, sometimes less.”</p> - -<p>“Well, what do yuh propose doin’?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Keep looking for Joe Rich, I suppose. You say he’s got a lot of friends -around here?”</p> - -<p>Kelsey nodded glumly, remembering how the cowboys had avoided riding -after Joe.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, yuh can’t expect much help, Cates. They’ll all spot yuh—and -these cowpunchers can shore be clams.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I’m not going out to hunt him,” smiled Cates. “I’d be a fool to do -that. When you boys can’t find him—what could I do? I don’t know this -country. Why, I haven’t been on a horse for fifteen years!</p> - -<p>“Nope,” Cates sighed deeply. “This is no job for a man like me. What -this needs is a man like Hashknife Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Hashknife Hartley?”</p> - -<p>Kelsey pricked up his ears and took his feet off the desk. Jack Ralston -showed proper interest.</p> - -<p>Cates nodded slowly as he bit the end off a cigar.</p> - -<p>“Yes, he might do something with it. Ever hear of him?”</p> - -<p>“What about him?” asked Kelsey quickly.</p> - -<p>Cates smiled as he puffed his cigar.</p> - -<p>“I never met him,” he said slowly. “One of those sagebrush Sherlocks, I -suppose. Maybe I hadn’t ought to make fun of him—he did some good work -for my company. Oh, I’ve heard a lot about what he has done. It’s our -business to keep track of all those things, you see. But some of it -sounds rather mythical.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s shore funny,” said Kelsey. “There’s a Hartley and Stevens -out at the HJ ranch right now.”</p> - -<p>“Eh? Cates stared at Kelsey. “Hashknife Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno; name’s Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Stevens? Huh! Say, I believe he has a partner by that name. Wouldn’t -that be funny if it was Hashknife Hartley. How do you get out to that HJ -ranch?”</p> - -<p>“We can take yuh out, Cates.”</p> - -<p>“Fine. But how do they happen to be here?”</p> - -<p>Kelsey told him about the burning bridge and the stalled cattle-train.</p> - -<p>“But do yuh reckon they’ll work on the case?” asked Jack Ralston.</p> - -<p>“We can soon find out. I’m curious to see him. It may not be the same -man, but we can soon find that out, too.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey obtained a buggy at the livery-stable, in which he and Cates rode -out to the HJ, while Ralston followed them on horseback. But they did -not find Hashknife and Sleepy at the ranch. Kelsey introduced Cates to -the two girls, and Cates found out that Hartley’s name was Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“They rode away this morning with Honey Bee,” said Peggy. “No, I don’t -know where they were going, Mr. Kelsey, nor when they’ll come back.”</p> - -<p>“I see,” nodded Cates. “Well, would you mind telling Hartley that -William Cates, of the Wells-Fargo, is in Pinnacle City and is anxious to -see him?”</p> - -<p>“Why, certainly I’ll tell him,” replied Peggy. “Do you know him?”</p> - -<p>Cates smiled and shook his head.</p> - -<p>“Only by reputation. I happened to mention his name to the sheriff and -found that he was here at your ranch. He will find me at the Pinnacle -Hotel.”</p> - -<p>They rode back to the gate, where Ralston told Kelsey he was going out -to the Circle M.</p> - -<p>“I’ve got a pair of boots out there,” explained Ralston. “And if I don’t -get ’em pretty soon, somebody’ll be wearin’ ’em.”</p> - -<p>Ralston spurred away, while Kelsey and Cates rode back to Pinnacle City.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>In the meantime Hashknife, Sleepy and Honey were riding through the -hills south of the HJ. Hashknife rode a tall roan horse and Jim -Wheeler’s saddle and Sleepy bestrode a Roman-nosed buckskin and a saddle -which had been purchased for Peggy.</p> - -<p>Honey led them out on a high pinnacle where they could look over a great -part of the Tumbling River range. To the southwest, about a mile away, -was the Circle M ranch, half-hidden in a clump of green trees. To the -northwest was the Lazy B, three miles away, which Honey was able to -locate definitely by a gash in the hills. They could follow the windings -of Tumbling River for miles in each direction. To the east of them was -the railroad, winding around through the hills.</p> - -<p>They could see the ribbon of smoke from a passing train heading for -Kelo. Far down on the wagon-road they could see a lone rider heading for -the Circle M. It was Jack Ralston, going after his boots, though they -didn’t know it.</p> - -<p>“Is it possible to ford the river near the HJ?” asked Hashknife, as they -turned to ride back.</p> - -<p>“The old ford is about two hundred yards below the bridge,” said Honey. -“There’s an old sand-bar. Some of the old road may be washed out by this -time, but I reckon yuh could get across all right.”</p> - -<p>“Don’tcha like to cross on bridges?” grinned Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Oh, sure. But sometimes I get finicky.”</p> - -<p>They swung down off the hills and struck the road, which they followed -back to the HJ. Peggy came down to the corral and delivered Cates’ -message to Hashknife. The tall cowboy did not change expression, but -leaned one elbow against the corral fence, as she told him about the -coming of Kelsey, Ralston and Cates to see him.</p> - -<p>“He didn’t know you were here,” she explained. “But he mentioned your -name, and Mr. Kelsey told him where he could find you.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t reckon I know Mr. Cates, Peggy.”</p> - -<p>“He said you didn’t, but he wants to see you.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah. Thank yuh very much, Peggy. How are yuh feelin’?”</p> - -<p>“Better.”</p> - -<p>“That’s great. I hope Wong Lee won’t throw me out for the appetite I’ve -got tonight.”</p> - -<p>Peggy laughed and assured him that Wong Lee loved people who had big -appetites. Honey was a trifle curious about what Cates wanted.</p> - -<p>“Said he was a Wells-Fargo man, eh? Prob’ly a detective.”</p> - -<p>“Prob’ly,” said Hashknife dryly, hanging up his saddle.</p> - -<p>“Just about how in ⸺ did he happen to mention you?” wondered Sleepy.</p> - -<p>Hashknife did not reply, but Sleepy knew that he was just a trifle -curious himself. But both of them realized that they had figured in -deals which affected the Wells-Fargo, and it would not be at all strange -if an express company investigator had heard of them.</p> - -<p>But they did not go to Pinnacle City that night. Hashknife did not seem -at all interested in finding Mr. Cates, and Sleepy knew Hashknife too -well to insist that they go to town. But Cates was not to be denied a -chance to talk with Hashknife. He and Kelsey drove out to the HJ early -the following morning and found everybody at breakfast.</p> - -<p>Hashknife left the table and met them at the porch. Kelsey introduced -them, and Cates lost no time in telling Hashknife who he was and why he -was in the Tumbling River country.</p> - -<p>“But I can’t do any good here, Hartley. I was talking with the sheriff -about the case, and I told him it was a deal that required a man like -you. I hadn’t the slightest idea that you were here in the country. Yes, -we’ve heard a lot about you and your ability. I am sure the company will -pay you well for your services, and all I have to do is to send a wire.”</p> - -<p>“But there ain’t nothin’ to it, except catchin’ Joe Rich,” said -Hashknife. “I don’t know this country, Cates. When the sheriff’s office, -bein’ familiar with the country, can’t get him, what chance would a -stranger have? Anyway, I’m not a man-hunter, Cates.”</p> - -<p>“No?” Cates lifted his eyebrows slightly. “Perhaps some of the stories -I’ve heard were not true.”</p> - -<p>“They hardly ever are,” seriously. “No, you’ve got me wrong, Cates. -Never in my life did I go out and get a man who was wanted by the -law—never took a man with a price on his head. That’s a job for a -sheriff or a policeman.”</p> - -<p>“Well, maybe that’s true, Hartley. There’s a nice reward for Joe Rich. -Means about thirty-five hundred dollars.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t want it,” said Hashknife flatly.</p> - -<p>“Don’t want it?” Cates laughed huskily. “You’re a queer bird, Hartley. -Ain’t you interested in putting criminals behind the bars?”</p> - -<p>“Not a ⸺ bit. Don’t believe in the ‘eye for an eye’ theory. Never put -a man behind the bars that I didn’t wish it hadn’t happened.”</p> - -<p>“Do yuh mean to say that you never collected a reward?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Never.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey laughed shortly.</p> - -<p>“You must be pretty ⸺ rich to turn down good money. Cates has told me -that you and yore pardner have cleaned up a lot of bad-man outfits, and -there’s usually a reward for a bad man.”</p> - -<p>“Unless he hides his light under a bushel, Kelsey.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Well, Joe Rich don’t hide his, that’s a cinch.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife grinned widely.</p> - -<p>“You’ve got to admire him, just the same. He’s operatin’ in his own -country, and he ain’t tryin’ to disguise himself a whole lot. And it -looks to me as though he’s makin’ a monkey out of yore office.”</p> - -<p>“What do yuh mean, Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“By stayin’ around here. It don’t look to me as though he was scared of -yuh, Kelsey.”</p> - -<p>“I see what yuh mean.”</p> - -<p>“Well, can’t I induce you to work with us, Hartley?” asked Cates. “I can -put you on the pay-roll in thirty minutes after I get back to town. I -tell you, I’m helpless; and the sheriff admits that he can’t do -anything.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife shook his head slowly.</p> - -<p>“No-o-o, I’m not interested, Cates. As I said before, it’s just a case -of goin’ out and gettin’ a man who knows every blade of grass in this -country by its first name. What the sheriff ought to do is to make up a -posse and comb this whole country. He must be hidin’ in the valley.”</p> - -<p>“Fine chance!” snorted Kelsey. “In the first place I’d have a hard time -gettin’ any men. Joe is too popular. And in the second place, with all -the friends Joe’s got—well, figure it out for yourself.”</p> - -<p>“Do yuh think somebody is hidin’ him, Kelsey?”</p> - -<p>“I won’t say that, but it could happen.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I think so,” nodded Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Well, then you don’t care to come in on the deal, eh?” queried Cates.</p> - -<p>“Nope. Oh, I’m much obliged to yuh and all that, but it’s out of my -line, Cates. I wish yuh luck.”</p> - -<p>Cates laughed sourly.</p> - -<p>“I’ll need it, Hartley.”</p> - -<p>They shook hands with Hashknife and went back to their buggy. Hashknife -watched them ride away and turned to see Sleepy and Honey standing in -the doorway.</p> - -<p>“We snuck out and listened,” said Honey truthfully.</p> - -<p>Hashknife smiled at them and rolled a cigaret.</p> - -<p>“It kinda looks to me as though the law is stuck,” observed Honey.</p> - -<p>“It is,” smiled Hashknife.</p> - -<p>He scratched a match on the steps, lighted his cigaret and turned to -Honey.</p> - -<p>“Honey, who is there in this country that likes Joe Rich and didn’t like -Jim Wheeler?”</p> - -<p>Honey scratched his elbow on his hip and blinked.</p> - -<p>“Never heard of anythin’ like that,” he said. “Everybody liked Jim, and -everybody liked Joe. What’sa idea, Hashknife?”</p> - -<p>“Just curiosity. Everybody knows that Joe Rich stole that five thousand -from Jim Wheeler, and the sheriff thinks somebody is hidin’ Joe.”</p> - -<p>“I see yore idea. He thinks Joe is bein’ taken care of by somebody, eh?”</p> - -<p>“That’s the only solution, Honey. He’s got to eat and have a place to -hide out. It must be somebody that likes Joe too well to turn him in for -the reward—somebody that don’t care about the loss of the HJ.”</p> - -<p>“By golly, that’s right! But who could it be?”</p> - -<p>“That’s it,” grumbled Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Well, he could ’a’ made out long enough to have robbed the train,” said -Honey. “He’s prob’ly high-tailin’ it out of the country right now. It -looks to me as though he’s about twenty-five thousand dollars ahead of -the game, and a man’s a ⸺ fool who never knows when he’s got enough.”</p> - -<p>“Easy money,” said Hashknife thoughtfully. “No man ever quits takin’ -easy money.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh don’t think he’ll try it again, do yuh?” asked Honey.</p> - -<p>“From my point of view—yeah, I think he will, Honey.”</p> - -<p>Honey snorted and threw away his cigaret.</p> - -<p>“I’ll betcha he’s pullin’ away from here awful fast. Joe ain’t no fool. -I’ll bet he knows when he’s had enough.”</p> - -<p>“Might be,” said Hashknife. “But I doubt it. Suppose we ride over to -town and have a look around.”</p> - -<p>Sleepy and Honey were more than willing. They told the girls they would -be back for supper. Peggy drew Hashknife aside and wanted to know what -the sheriff had in mind. Hashknife told her frankly that Cates was a -detective, and wanted him to help find Joe Rich.</p> - -<p>“Just why did he want you to help?” she asked.</p> - -<p>“Well, yuh see, it’s like this,” lied Hashknife. “Kelsey’s got the idea -that folks around here are too friendly with Joe to hunt him. Me and -Sleepy, bein’ strangers to Joe, might not be so particular.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I see. And are you going to help him?”</p> - -<p>“No-o-o-o—I’m goin’ to help us find him, Peggy.”</p> - -<p>“But what good will that do?”</p> - -<p>“Any ‘good’ is better than we’ve got, Peggy.”</p> - -<p>“I suppose it is,” she sighed. “But I can’t see where it will help -anybody. If the law gets him—”</p> - -<p>“Mebbe—and mebbe not.”</p> - -<p>“What do you mean, Hashknife?”</p> - -<p>“I was just thinkin’ out loud, Peggy. Yuh quit worryin’ about things.” -He patted her on the arm. “We’ll be back for supper, and I’ll want to -see yuh grinnin’.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife went out to his horse, which was the one Jim Wheeler had -ridden the day he was killed. Hashknife noticed that the animal was a -trifle sore-footed; so he examined its hoofs and found that it wore no -shoes.</p> - -<p>He pulled the saddle off and put it on a chunky bay, turning the -sore-footed one back in the corral. The bay was shod in front.</p> - -<p>“Jim said somethin’ about’ goin’ to have that bronc shod,” said Honey. -“I remember him speakin’ about it a week before he was killed.”</p> - -<p>“I hate to see a horse limp,” said Hashknife. “I’d a lot rather walk.”</p> - -<p>They rode to Pinnacle City and Hashknife left Sleepy and Honey at the -Pinnacle Saloon, where several more cowboys were arguing at the bar. -After inquiring at the store, Hashknife found old Doctor Curzon’s -office.</p> - -<p>The old doctor was not busy. He considered Hashknife gravely when -Hashknife asked him about the death of Jim Wheeler.</p> - -<p>“Well, just what did you wish to know?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“All about it,” smiled Hashknife. “They tell me Jim Wheeler died from -concussion of the brain.”</p> - -<p>“You might call it that. His skull was crushed. Wonder he lived at all.”</p> - -<p>“And they tell me that his skull was crushed by the rocks.”</p> - -<p>“No doubt of it. I don’t believe you told me your name.”</p> - -<p>“Hartley. I’m out at the HJ ranch—Jim Wheeler’s place.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yes. No, I don’t think there is any doubt of Wheeler’s head having -been crushed by the rocks. You know how a body would bound, fastened by -one foot to a stirrup.”</p> - -<p>“The rocks cut kinda deep, didn’t they, Doc?”</p> - -<p>“Mm-m-m-m—well, yes.”</p> - -<p>“Do yuh know—it’s a funny thing, Doc?”</p> - -<p>“What is?”</p> - -<p>“The fact that there ain’t a ⸺ rock as big as a pea on that whole -stretch of road where Wheeler was dragged.”</p> - -<p>“You say there isn’t?”</p> - -<p>“Well,” smiled Hashknife, “I said ‘there ain’t’. It amounts to the same -thing, I suppose. Your English is better than mine.”</p> - -<p>“But there must be rocks along there,” insisted the doctor. “Every one -seemed to take it for granted that—”</p> - -<p>“That’s the trouble, Doc—takin’ it for granted. I looked it over the -day after the rain, when the dust was settled; and it’s as smooth as a -billiard-table; not even a humpy spot on the road or along it. Go out -and see for yourself.”</p> - -<p>“Well, well! No, I’ll take your word for it. You don’t look like a -person who would lie about it. You have very good eyes, my friend.”</p> - -<p>“Thanks,” smiled Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“But to get back to Jim Wheeler. I believe it was Joe Rich who -discovered him first after the accident. They tell queer tales about Joe -Rich. I knew him.”</p> - -<p>“Like him?”</p> - -<p>“Very much. He—I believe he said that the foot was still in the -stirrup.”</p> - -<p>“This wound on the head,” said Hashknife. “Just where was it the worst, -Doc?”</p> - -<p>“Nearly on the crown. In fact it extended from just above the left ear -to the top of the head. Of course, it is easily possible for the horse -to have struck him with a sharp-shod hoof.”</p> - -<p>“On top of the head, Doc?”</p> - -<p>“Well, barely possible. Come to think of it, the wound did have that -appearance; as though a horseshoe might have crushed the skull.”</p> - -<p>“His horse wasn’t shod, Doc.”</p> - -<p>“It wasn’t shod?”</p> - -<p>The old doctor ran his hand through his white hair and squinted gravely.</p> - -<p>“Hadn’t been for weeks,” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“You are a detective?” asked the doctor quickly.</p> - -<p>Hashknife smiled and shook his head.</p> - -<p>“No, Doc; just curious.”</p> - -<p>“Mm-m-m-m-m,” the doctor studied the ceiling of his office. “No rocks, -no shoes. But the man had been dragged, Hartley. The skin showed -evidence of that, and his shirt was rubbed through. More than that, his -leg had been broken from a twist, and the pull of the stirrup.”</p> - -<p>“Look at it this way,” suggested Hashknife. “Suppose Jim Wheeler met a -man, who stopped him. This man strikes Wheeler over the head with a gun, -knocking him off the saddle. Then this man robs him. Perhaps this man -hooked one of Wheeler’s feet in the stirrup, struck the horse and let it -run away. Or, again, the foot might have hung in the stirrup when the -man fell from the horse. Wouldn’t it look as though it had been an -accident?”</p> - -<p>“No doubt of it, my friend. And in that case, it would appear that Joe -Rich had not only robbed Jim Wheeler, but had murdered him as well.”</p> - -<p>“There’s a lot of ways to look at it, Doc,” smiled Hashknife, as he -shook hands with the doctor. “I’m sure much obliged to yuh for yore help -in this matter. Yuh would be doin’ me another favor, if yuh don’t tell -anybody what we talked about.”</p> - -<p>“The ethics of my profession preclude such a thing.”</p> - -<p>“Well, thanks just the same, Doc. So long.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife went back to the Pinnacle, where he found Honey and Sleepy -buying drinks for the Heavenly Triplets, the three boys from the Flying -H. They tried to get Hashknife to join them, but he was in no mood to -join their festivities. After telling Sleepy he was going back to the -ranch, he mounted and rode out of town.</p> - -<p>Hashknife was satisfied after his talk with the doctor, that Jim Wheeler -had not died through an accident. That Joe Rich should have found -Wheeler dragged to unconsciousness and have robbed him was too much for -Hashknife to believe. Rich had been knocked down by Wheeler, and -Hashknife, not knowing Rich, would not have any idea of Rich’s nature.</p> - -<p>As Hashknife neared the spot where Wheeler had been found he saw two -saddled horses standing near the road. He drew rein and rode slowly -along, wondering where the riders might be. Then he saw them about fifty -feet off the road, looking around in some weeds and low brush.</p> - -<p>They were Len Kelsey and Jack Ralston. They did not see Hashknife until -he was almost up to their horses. Then they left off their search and -came over to him.</p> - -<p>“Howdy, gents,” grinned Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Kelsey showed a slight embarrassment but nodded pleasantly.</p> - -<p>“Just lookin’ around,” he said, as if his actions demanded an -explanation. “This is where they found Jim Wheeler, yuh know.”</p> - -<p>“That’s what they tell me. I reckon the rain wiped out any tracks yuh -might expect to find.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, it did,” said Ralston quickly. “We found that out.”</p> - -<p>“No sign of Joe Rich, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Not a ⸺ sign!” snapped Kelsey, swinging into his saddle.</p> - -<p>“I reckon he’s a pretty smart lad,” said Hashknife. “What became of the -detective?”</p> - -<p>“He’s in town,” said Kelsey. “You should have taken him up on that deal, -Hartley. Made good wages out of it, even if yuh couldn’t find Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>“No-o-o-o, I didn’t want the job. Joe’s got too many good friends around -here, Kelsey; and I might stop a bullet, if I knew too much.”</p> - -<p>“There’s a ⸺ of a lot of truth in that, Hartley.”</p> - -<p>“Sure,” grinned Hashknife. “I’m no fool.”</p> - -<p>“Playin’ safe, eh?” said Ralston. “Well, I don’t blame yuh. When a -feller’s a stranger, he can’t be too careful.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll watch my own hide,” declared Hashknife. “I dunno where that -feller, Cates, heard all that stuff about me. He must ’a’ got me mixed -with somebody else. Anyway, he’s all wrong if he thinks I’m huntin’ -rewards.”</p> - -<p>“Well,” laughed Kelsey, “he told me he didn’t believe half he had heard -about yuh.”</p> - -<p>“I’m shore glad about that,” said Hashknife simply. “Well, I’ve got to -be movin’ along, gents. Good huntin’ to yuh.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife rode on toward the ranch, while Kelsey and his deputy went on -to Pinnacle City. Kelsey swore softly at sight of the Heavenly Triplets’ -horses at the Pinnacle rack.</p> - -<p>“There’s two HJ broncs there, too,” observed Ralston. “That means Honey -Bee and Stevens. I don’t reckon we’ll have much to do with the Pinnacle -as long as they’re holdin’ forth.”</p> - -<p>And they were surely holding forth. Sleepy and Honey still had a little -money, and the boys from the Flying H were spending their next month’s -wages. William H. Cates, the detective, had fallen into their toils and -was enjoying it.</p> - -<p>Also, Mr. Cates was marveling at the amount of raw liquor they could -consume without showing it. Mr. Cates was rather proud of his own -ability, but he was beginning to have a hunch that before long he was -going to see a lot more men than were actually in the room.</p> - -<p>“Thish is lots of fun,” he announced.</p> - -<p>“Par’ner, you ain’t started,” declared Lonnie. “You stay with us and -we’ll show yuh bush’ls ’f di’monds. Oh, yessir, you’ll shee lots of ’m. -We’ll show yuh levity, y’ betcha.”</p> - -<p>Supper time came but none of them was hungry. Darkness came down upon -Pinnacle City, and still those six men leaned on the bar, their toasts -becoming more and more elaborate. Then Lonnie leaned his forehead -against the bar and wept bitterly.</p> - -<p>“Thish is all there ish,” he announced. “Nothin’ t’ do. Spen’ all day -gettin’ drunk, and there’s nothin’ t’ do but go home.”</p> - -<p>“O-o-o-oh, my!” wailed Nebrasky. “Tha’s a fac’. The jigger that wrote -‘Home, Sweet Home’ must ’a’ never got out. Wha’s to be done, I’d crave -to get an answer? No entertainment? Can’t you think of anythin’, Misser -Detective?”</p> - -<p>Not so Cates. He clung to the bar with both hands.</p> - -<p>“Let’s all go out to the ranch,” suggested Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Wha’ for?” queried Honey. “Uncle Hozie’d hop our necks.”</p> - -<p>“Le’s go for ride,” choked Cates. “Need —uk—air.”</p> - -<p>“That,” said Sleepy owlishly, “is a shuggestion.”</p> - -<p>“I know!” exploded Lonnie. “C’mere.”</p> - -<p>They followed him outside, much to the relief of the bartender, and -Lonnie unfolded his scheme. There were many drawbacks, but each and -every one was overcome.</p> - -<p>With great difficulty Lonnie Myers and Dan Leach secured their horses at -the hitch-rack, and they all weaved their erratic way down to the -Pinnacle livery-stable, where they circled to the rear. A shed with a -long sloping roof had been added to the stable at some remote time, and -within this stable was the hearse.</p> - -<p>The door was merely fastened with a hasp. They rolled the old hearse out -into the yard and tied two lariat ropes to the end of the tongue. The -ancient equipage of the dead was resplendent in a fresh coat of varnish -and the four horsetail plumes waved boldly from the corners of the top.</p> - -<p>They put Cates inside, because he was unable to climb to the top, while -Honey Bee, Sleepy and Nebrasky crowded together on the narrow seat. It -was quite a task to get both horses pulling at the same time, but once -they got the old hearse rolling it was no trick to keep it rolling.</p> - -<p>Around they went into the main street, gaining momentum each moment; so -much momentum, in fact, that the horses took notice of things and seemed -to desire more distance between themselves and this creaking equipage -with the yelping cowboys and flowing plumes.</p> - -<p>Lonnie’s mount was traveling one side of the street, while Dan’s mount -seemed to prefer the opposite sidewalk, while the hearse took a fairly -straight route up the middle of the street, until almost opposite the -Pinnacle City bank. Then Lonnie’s horse got tangled up in a hitch-rack -and Dan’s whirled and started the opposite direction.</p> - -<p>Crash! The front wheels of the hearse jack-knifed and struck the -sidewalk.</p> - -<p>Crash! The end of the swinging tongue took out one of the front windows -of the bank, while the hearse lurched to a standstill with the front -wheels against the front of the bank building.</p> - -<p>Sleepy was thrown off the seat when the wheels struck the sidewalk and -he landed on his hands and knees in the street. The sound of the wreck -was audible for quite a distance, and in a few minutes the hearse was -surrounded by a curious crowd. There was hardly enough light to see what -had happened.</p> - -<p>Sleepy staggered across the street and sat down on the sidewalk, feeling -very foolish over the whole thing. A horseman rode past him and stopped -at the hitch-rack. It was Lonnie Myers. Sleepy went over to him.</p> - -<p>“That ⸺ thing headed into the bank,” he told Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“My ⸺! It did? Whatcha know about that? Where’s the rest of the -gang?”</p> - -<p>“Let’s go over and have a look.”</p> - -<p>No one in the crowd seemed to know who had done it. Kelsey was there, as -was Jack Ralston.</p> - -<p>“Somebody got pretty ⸺ smart, it seems to me,” growled Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Hey, Kelsey!” yelled a voice, “there’s a body inside the hearse.”</p> - -<p>“My ⸺, it’s Cates!” whispered Lonnie. “Let’s get away from here -before we all get arrested.”</p> - -<p>They hurried back to the Pinnacle bar where they found Dan Leach and -Nebrasky. Nebrasky had a lot of skin off his long nose and Dan limped in -one leg. None of them mentioned what had just taken place. They had a -drink, after which Lonnie leaned on the bar and wondered where Honey -might be.</p> - -<p>“The last time I seen him he was goin’ toward the bank,” said Sleepy -dryly. “Prob’ly wanted to borrow some money.”</p> - -<p>Jack Ralston came in and looked the boys over, but did not say anything. -Perhaps he had a fair idea as to who had taken the hearse, but he had no -evidence. Apparently these boys were merely having a friendly drink.</p> - -<p>“Have any of you gents seen that feller Cates?” he asked.</p> - -<p>“Cates?” Lonnie screwed up his eyes. “Oh, yeah—the detective! Why, I -think he died, didn’t he?” Lonnie turned to Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah—Cates. Believe he did, Lonnie.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh,” Lonnie turned to Ralston. “Yeah, he died. Have a drink, Jack?”</p> - -<p>“Nope.”</p> - -<p>Ralston turned on his heel and went out.</p> - -<p>“Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!” laughed Nebrasky. “Wait’ll they find him.”</p> - -<p>“They found him,” said Sleepy. “We’ll probably have to pay for that -busted window.”</p> - -<p>“But wasn’t it worth it?” chuckled Nebrasky. “My ⸺, I never went -higher in my life. There goes the hearse.”</p> - -<p>They walked to the door and saw several men pulling the hearse back to -its shed. They could see a crowd in front of the bank, and apparently -there was a man on a ladder, nailing boards over the broken window.</p> - -<p>“Where in ⸺ is Honey?” asked Sleepy. “By golly, we’re shy one man!”</p> - -<p>“That’s right. Let’s go find him.”</p> - -<p>They wended their way to the Arapaho saloon, but did not find him there, -and then they made a systematic search of every place they could think -of.</p> - -<p>They finally came back past the bank, where they found the object of -their search sitting on the sidewalk, holding his head in his hands. -Lonnie almost fell over him in the dark.</p> - -<p>“Now, where in ⸺ have you been keepin’ youself?” demanded Lonnie. -“We’ve been lookin’ for yuh for about a week.”</p> - -<p>This was hardly true, because the accident had not happened more than -twenty minutes previous.</p> - -<p>Honey lifted his head and wiggled his arms.</p> - -<p>“I’m all right, I reckon,” he said huskily. “Didn’t any of you ord’nary -drunks see me go into the bank?”</p> - -<p>“See yuh go into the bank?” grunted Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Abs’lutely! Right through the window! I landed on my chin right in -front of the deposit window with one of them horsetail plumes in my -right hand.”</p> - -<p>“And didn’t get killed?” wondered Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“Oh, ⸺, I got killed all right, as far as that’s concerned. Oh, my! I -heard a lot of folks talkin’ about the busted window, while I’m crawlin’ -around on my hands and knees, tryin’ to find a way out.</p> - -<p>“And then I got the scare of my life,” Honey laughed foolishly. “I found -a man in there.”</p> - -<p>“Yuh found a man in there?” queried Sleepy quickly.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Honest Injun, cross m’ heart. He’s there yet, too, By golly, it -scared me so much that I got right up and walked out the back door. -Funniest feelin’ yuh—”</p> - -<p>“Hold on a minute!” snorted Sleepy. “You walked out the back door, -Honey?”</p> - -<p>“Shore did, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>“Was it unlocked?”</p> - -<p>“Must ’a’ been—I jist turned the knob. I was on my hands and knees, -kinda crawlin’ and feelin’ along, when I got hold of somethin’ that -feels a lot like a man’s legs. I keeps on feelin’, and I keeps on -a-risin’, until my hands touch his face, and then I hightailed it -outside. I fell down over a box and bumped my head against the building, -but kept on goin’. I reckon I plumb circled this side of the street, and -just came back here a little while ago.”</p> - -<p>“Yo’re drunk,” declared Nebrasky.</p> - -<p>“I was drunk,” corrected Honey. “But by golly, I was sober a-plenty when -I felt that jigger.”</p> - -<p>“Is he there yet?” asked Lonnie.</p> - -<p>“⸺, I tell yuh he’s roped to the chair!”</p> - -<p>“Wait a minute,” said Sleepy. “You boys go over to the Pinnacle and let -me handle this, will yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Go to it,” said Lonnie. “C’mon, you fellers.”</p> - -<p>Sleepy went down the street to the sheriff’s office. He was perfectly -sober and none the worse for their escapade, except for a slightly -skinned knee. Both Kelsey and Ralston were at the office when Sleepy -came in.</p> - -<p>“Yuh better investigate the bank,” said Sleepy. “I just came past there, -and I thought I heard a man groanin’.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah?” Kelsey grinned knowingly. “Yuh did, eh? Just what kind of a game -are you punchers tryin’ to pull off now?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well, go ahead and be a ⸺ fool,” sighed Sleepy, turning back to -the door. “I’m tellin’ yuh what I heard, tha’sall.”</p> - -<p>But Kelsey stopped him at the door.</p> - -<p>“Yuh think yuh heard a man groanin’, eh?”</p> - -<p>“It don’t make any difference,” said Sleepy. “Go on to bed. I’ll find -the man that owns the bank, and he’ll probably be interested.”</p> - -<p>“If this is a joke—” warned Kelsey picking up his hat.</p> - -<p>“I better go and get Warner, the cashier,” said Ralston. “He rooms at -MacRae’s place.”</p> - -<p>Ralston trotted down the street while Kelsey followed Sleepy back to the -front of the bank. They listened at the broken window, which had been -barred with some planks, but could hear nothing.</p> - -<p>“Yuh probably heard the wind blowing,” said Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“What wind?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>Kelsey didn’t explain just which wind he had meant, as there was not a -breath of air stirring. In a few minutes Ralston joined them, panting -from his run.</p> - -<p>“Warner ain’t been there since supper, Len. He was workin’ tonight, they -said.”</p> - -<p>“And Old Man Ludlow, the president, is on a trip to the coast,” said -Len. “How in ⸺ are we goin’ to find out anythin’?”</p> - -<p>“Smash out another window,” suggested Ralston.</p> - -<p>“How about the back door?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>They went around to the back and found the door sagging open. Kelsey -swore softly and led the way inside, where they lighted matches to guide -them. And they found just what Honey Bee had found—a man roped to a -chair and gagged. It was Warner, the cashier, his eyes blinking -foolishly at the light of Kelsey’s match, while Ralston took a -pocket-knife and severed the lariat rope which bound him.</p> - -<p>Warner was apparently unhurt. After they untied the gag he worked his -jaw painfully, rubbed his lips and managed to get back a measure of his -speech.</p> - -<p>Sleepy found a lamp, which he lighted, and the three men watched the -cashier stretch his arms and legs, grimacing as the returning -circulation pained him.</p> - -<p>“You better send a wire to Old Man Ludlow,” he said huskily. “Palace -Hotel, San Francisco. The bank has been cleaned out.”</p> - -<p>“Cleaned out, Warner?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Look at the vault door.”</p> - -<p>It was wide open. The sheriff did not investigate. Sleepy stepped over -and peered inside. It was an old-fashioned vault with the ordinary -combination. Time locks had not come to Pinnacle City yet.</p> - -<p>“How many in the gang?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“One,” Warner spat painfully and rubbed his lips. “One man, Sheriff. I -was working tonight. I used the back door. When I unlocked it and -stepped outside, this man confronted me with a gun and forced me back -inside.</p> - -<p>“I refused to open the vault—at first. But he produced some dynamite -and told me was going to blow it open. He said he would tie me close -enough to see it bust. There wasn’t anything for me to do except to open -it. Then he roped me to a chair, put a gag in my mouth and helped -himself. There was enough light through that side window for me to see -that he put everything in a sack.”</p> - -<p>“Masked?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Yes. I wish one of you would wire Ludlow. What was that crash that -broke the front window?”</p> - -<p>“Some drunken cowboys,” growled Kelsey. “How long before that did the -robbery take place?”</p> - -<p>“Possibly fifteen minutes. Might have been longer. But there was another -man in here after that crash. I couldn’t see what he looked like, but he -felt all over me and then I heard him go out through the back door.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey squinted closely at Sleepy, but Sleepy looked very innocent. His -blue eyes did not waver for an instant.</p> - -<p>“Pretty ⸺ queer!” snorted Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t it?” agreed Sleepy. “Queerest thing I ever heard.”</p> - -<p>“It might have been the man who tied me up,” said Warner.</p> - -<p>Warner was a small, thin-faced man, slightly stooped, wearing -steel-bowed glasses. He took them from his pocket and hooked the bows -over his ears, his hands trembling.</p> - -<p>“Might have been,” agreed Sleepy. “Prob’ly took him quite a while to -clean out the place. How much did he get?”</p> - -<p>“I can’t tell you that, sir. I think Mr. Ludlow would like to hear about -it as soon as possible.”</p> - -<p>“No hurry; he can’t help any,” said Kelsey. “Warner, did you get a good -look at this robber?”</p> - -<p>“It was dark in here. He held a match in his left hand while I worked -the combination.”</p> - -<p>“Did, eh?” Kelsey seemed interested. “Well, how much of him didja see, -Warner?”</p> - -<p>“Not much, I’m afraid; only that arm in the light. You see, he stood -rather behind me.”</p> - -<p>“All right; and didja see that arm well enough to tell what it looked -like?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I saw it well enough, I think. It—it looked like a—a—well, just -like an arm,” he finished weakly.</p> - -<p>“That’s fine,” sneered Kelsey. “All we’ve got to do is to find a man who -has a left arm that looks like an arm. Didn’t yuh see his clothes, his -hands, his gun?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, I—I saw his gun. Certainly I saw his gun.”</p> - -<p>“Was it like this one?” Kelsey jerked out his Colt and held it in front -of Warner.</p> - -<p>“No, not exactly. I think it had a white handle.”</p> - -<p>“Ah-hah! Now, about his sleeve, Warner. Did he wear leather cuffs?”</p> - -<p>“Yes, yes! I forgot them. Black, I think. Perhaps they merely looked -black. But the matchlight—there were silver ornaments, Sheriff. I -remember now—silver stars. It’s funny I didn’t remember before.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. We’ll go and send that wire to Ludlow, Warner. Lock that back -door, will yuh, Warner. Not much use, at that; nothin’ left to steal. -Mebbe yuh better shut that vault door and spin the combination.”</p> - -<p>Warner went with the sheriff and deputy, while Sleepy cut across the -street and found the rest of the boys in front of the Pinnacle. From -there they could see the light in the bank, and they were burning with -curiosity.</p> - -<p>“Forget what you know, Honey,” warned Sleepy. “The rest of yuh don’t -know a thing; sabe? The bank was cleaned out by a lone bandit fifteen -minutes ahead of our smash. The man Honey found was Warner, the cashier. -He was roped and gagged, but he wasn’t knocked out.”</p> - -<p>“F’r ⸺’s sake!” snorted Honey. “That was it, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, and we better all head for home,” advised Sleepy. “We don’t know -a thing. The bank is as clean as a hound’s tooth and the man who cleaned -it out wore silver stars on his cuffs and used a white-handled gun. -Let’s mosey.”</p> - -<p>They all got their horses and headed out of town, the Heavenly Triplets -going to the Flying H, while Honey and Sleepy rode swiftly out to the HJ -where they woke Hashknife in the bunk-house and told him their story. He -sat up in bed and smoked a cigaret, his lean fingers scratching at his -unruly hair.</p> - -<p>“It looks to me as though Joe Rich missed his callin’ when he got -himself elected sheriff,” he said slowly. “That boy shore is featherin’ -his nest. And yuh had Mr. Cates laid out in the hearse, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Fit to be buried,” nodded Sleepy. “I reckon he was the only one that -didn’t do a high dive. That little cashier shore was scared. The robber -told him he’d either open the safe or get a front seat at the explosion. -And he held a match while the cashier worked the combination. By golly, -it’s so easy to do a thing like that, that I wonder why men work for a -dollar a day! It’s shore easy money.”</p> - -<p>“Easy to get, uneasy to keep, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>“Yea-a-a-ah! Who in ⸺ is goin’ to get it away from him? You can -preach honesty to me all yuh want to, cowboy, but when I see a job done -as easy as that one—”</p> - -<p>“Aw, c’mon to bed, and stop yappin’. I want to think.”</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER VIII: CLUES</h2> - -<p>Nothing had ever happened in Pinnacle City that caused as much -excitement as the robbery of the bank. It was something that affected -nearly everybody in the Tumbling River country. As Uncle Hozie expressed -it—</p> - -<p>“There’s a lot of ⸺ flat pocketbooks right now.”</p> - -<p>The news spread swiftly, and by noon of the following day the town was -filled with range-folk. The sheriff came in for the usual amount of -criticism, and a number of the cattlemen sat in his office, trying to -help him devise ways and means of putting a stop to Joe Rich’s -activities. A wire had been received from Old Man Ludlow, the president -of the bank, who was on his way back to Pinnacle.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie mourned the loss of eight thousand dollars, while Ed Merrick -swore himself red in the face over half that amount. He had drawn out -five thousand to lend to Jim Wheeler, thus cutting down his bank -deposit.</p> - -<p>But they were all losers; some of them more so than others, and Joe -Rich’s latest robbery bid fair to make times rather hard in Tumbling -River. It was a privately owned bank, and they knew that Ludlow could -not make good their losses.</p> - -<p>William H. Cates took the first train out of town. The sheriff had -hauled him out of the hearse and put him to bed. The following morning -he was filled with remorse over it all, but strangely enough he was -unable to tell just whom he had been with. He told the sheriff to do his -little best and boarded a train for the north.</p> - -<p>An examination of the vault disclosed the fact that the robber had taken -every cent of money, but had not bothered with any papers. Warner -refused even to make a guess at how much money was in the vault, but -admitted that it was more than was usually carried. The bank remained -closed.</p> - -<p>Hashknife, Sleepy and Honey came back to town that forenoon, but the -Heavenly Triplets did not show up. Merrick talked with Hashknife about -the robbery. Hashknife was not interested to any great extent.</p> - -<p>A little later on Hashknife was talking with Kelsey, when the depot -agent came to Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Here’s a funny thing,” said the agent. “Remember the night the bridge -caught fire?”</p> - -<p>“Sure,” nodded Kelsey. “What about it?”</p> - -<p>“That night,” resumed the agent, “the rear brakeman of the cattle-train -went back to flag the passenger, and he’s never been seen since.”</p> - -<p>“What do yuh mean?” Kelsey was evidently puzzled.</p> - -<p>“Just what I said. I don’t know how he was passed up. The train was held -here quite a while, but the storm was bad, and nobody needed him, I -suppose. Down at the bridge both trains were stalled quite a while, and -there was no need of whistling in the flag from the cattle-train.</p> - -<p>“Oh, the company missed him the next day. But he was what is known as a -boomer brakeman, and they just thought he had stepped out without -drawing his pay. They do that once in a while—those boomers. But later -on they got to checking up on things, and the conductor remembered that -he hadn’t seen this man since the night at the bridge. Ransome is the -division point, you see; so he didn’t have much farther to go. The -reason they watered that stock here was because there were better -facilities than at Ransome.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s kinda queer,” said Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“I saw him go out to flag,” said Hashknife. “I remember that freight -conductor blamed the passenger crew for runnin’ past the flag. They said -they never seen it.”</p> - -<p>“Well, what do you suppose happened to him?” queried Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Search me,” said the depot agent. “All I know is what I heard over the -wire.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife left the sheriff and found Sleepy and Honey. He told them what -the depot agent had said. A few minutes later they were heading for the -railroad bridge, going through the country where Hashknife and Sleepy -had walked the night of the bridge-fire. They tied their horses to the -right-of-way fence, crawled through and climbed up to the track level.</p> - -<p>The railroad had been graded along the side of the hill, so that the -opposite side dropped off about twenty or thirty feet, where the brush -grew thick along the fence. Hashknife estimated where the rear end of -the cattle-train would have been, and they walked back along the track -to the first curve.</p> - -<p>Just beyond that there was considerable seepage of water on the lower -side, where grew a profusion of tules and cattails, mingled with -wild-roses and willows. The bank was rather abrupt along here and heavy -brush grew between the track and the upper fence.</p> - -<p>Hashknife slid cautiously down this bank, hooking his heels into the -broken rock. There was more water, covered with a greenish slime.</p> - -<p>“Hook yore heels, cowboy,” laughed Sleepy. “One little mistake, and you -take a green-water bath.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife worked down to the water edge and went slowly along about -fifty feet. Then he stopped and sat back against the bank. For several -moments he studied the tangle of brush and green water. Then he turned -his head and looked up at the two men above him.</p> - -<p>“I’ve found him,” he said.</p> - -<p>“You’ve found him?” gasped Honey.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. One foot still on dry land. I thought it was just an old shoe. -He must ’a’ went in head first. There’s his lantern in the muck—just -the bottom of it stickin’ out.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife turned around and climbed up the bank. From the track level he -could not see the shoe nor the lantern. He heaped up a pile of stones -beside the track to mark the spot.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t we goin’ to take him out?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Not me,” replied Hashknife. “That’s the sheriff’s job.”</p> - -<p>They rode back to the ranch and were just debating what to do, when Ben -Collins came along on his way to town from the Circle M. Honey called to -him and he stopped at the HJ gate.</p> - -<p>“You’ll probably see Kelsey in town,” said Honey. “Tell him we found the -brakeman of that cattle-train. He’s in the ditch on the west side of the -railroad track, about three hundred yards south of the bridge. We heaped -up a pile of rocks along the track, and the body is straight down from -that. Tell Kelsey he’ll need help to get the body.”</p> - -<p>Collins stared at Honey, his mouth agape. It was all Greek to him, it -seemed.</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be ⸺!” he snorted. “Let me get this straight.”</p> - -<p>He repeated what Honey had told him, making a few mistakes, which Honey -rectified.</p> - -<p>“But who killed him?” he demanded.</p> - -<p>“We don’t know, Ben.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be ⸺! All right, I’ll tell him.”</p> - -<p>Ben spurred his horse to a gallop and was soon out of sight.</p> - -<p>“They’ll have to come through this way to get him, won’t they?” asked -Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Unless they want to carry the body across the railroad bridge. Good -gosh, things look worse for Joe Rich every day! I suppose he ran into -the brakeman, eh?”</p> - -<p>“Probably,” nodded Hashknife. “Of course he might have fell off the -track that night. The wind was awful. If he struck his head on the rocks -and slid into the water he’d die pretty quick. We’ll have to wait until -they take him out.”</p> - -<p>But they didn’t have to wait long. Inside an hour Kelsey, Ralston, Ben -Collins and Abe Liston, of the 3W3, rode in at the HJ. No one had told -Peggy and Laura about the dead man, and their curiosity was aroused by -the advent of the sheriff and his men.</p> - -<p>“Man got hit by a train out by the bridge,” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Was he killed?” asked Laura.</p> - -<p>“I reckon he was.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife went out and talked with Kelsey, who seemed a trifle sore -about their finding the body.</p> - -<p>“I suppose yuh fooled around and wiped out all the clues,” he said -complainingly.</p> - -<p>“Well, I dunno,” smiled Hashknife. “We didn’t go near the body, -Sheriff.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t, eh? Seems to me you was in a ⸺ of a sweat to get out there -ahead of the law.”</p> - -<p>“Did look thataway.” Hashknife did not cease smiling, with his mouth, -although his eyes were serious.</p> - -<p>“Just how do yuh figure this yore affair, Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“You do the figurin’,” suggested Hashknife.</p> - -<p>The sheriff glanced keenly at Hashknife’s eyes and decided to drop the -subject.</p> - -<p>“Oh, all right,” he said. “Yuh might come along and help us take the -body out.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I might,” said Hashknife. “But I don’t think I will. You’ve got -plenty men with yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh.” Kelsey did not press the invitation, but rode away, followed -by his three men.</p> - -<p>Honey Bee grinned widely and did a shuffle in the dirt.</p> - -<p>“That’s tellin’ ’em, cowboy. You’ve got Kelsey’s goat. I could see it in -his face.”</p> - -<p>“Let’s go down to the bunk-house,” suggested Hashknife. “Them darned -girls ask too many questions. I reckon they suspect that this man was -killed at that hold-up, and I don’t want to worry Peggy any more. She -takes it too serious. By golly, she acts as though folks blamed her for -what Joe Rich has done.”</p> - -<p>“That’s Peggy,” sighed Honey. “Whitest little girl that ever lived. -Suppose we have a three-handed game of seven-up for a million dollars a -corner.”</p> - -<p>“You two go ahead,” said Hashknife. “I’ve got to think a while.”</p> - -<p>“Don’t yore head ever hurt yuh?” asked Honey. “You’ve done an awful lot -of thinkin since I knew yuh, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“He has to think an awful lot to get a little ways,” grinned Sleepy.</p> - -<p>Sleepy and Honey went into the bunk-house, and Laura wig-wagged to -Hashknife from the veranda of the ranch-house.</p> - -<p>“What about this dead man?” she demanded.</p> - -<p>“Dunno yet, Laura. He’s dead, but we don’t know what killed him.”</p> - -<p>He told her about the missing brakeman. Laura had been doing a little -thinking, and she confided to Hashknife that she was afraid that Jim -Wheeler had been killed by the man who stole the money.</p> - -<p>“Aunt Emma thinks so, too,” she said. “We had a talk about it the other -day. Joe was out here that day, you know. He came to tell Peggy good-by. -His lips were cut badly and he looked awful bad. But Peggy didn’t tell -him good-by. She was crying and didn’t hear him go away. She thought he -was still there. We found out later that Uncle Jim had knocked Joe down -on the street in Pinnacle City.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife nodded over this. He had heard it before.</p> - -<p>“But she still loves Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>“I honestly think she does,” agreed Laura.</p> - -<p>“Did yuh hear about them findin’ Joe’s pocket-knife in the express car?”</p> - -<p>Laura hadn’t heard about it.</p> - -<p>“The knife that Peggy gave him for his birthday? Oh, what an awful thing -to do! Criminals always make mistakes, don’t they?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, they shore do, Laura—bad ones, too.”</p> - -<p>Peggy came out on the veranda and sat down with them.</p> - -<p>“Tell me about that bank robbery,” she said to Hashknife.</p> - -<p>The tall cowboy sighed and reshaped the crown of his hat.</p> - -<p>“There ain’t much to tell, Peggy. A lone man met the cashier at the rear -door of the bank, forced him back, made him open the vault and then -roped and gagged the cashier. They say he got away with a lot of money. -Wasn’t anybody hurt.”</p> - -<p>“What was the description of that man, Hashknife?”</p> - -<p>“Wasn’t any—much. Yuh see, it was dark in there.”</p> - -<p>“Much?” sighed Peggy. “Oh, I know!” she suddenly blurted. “You try to -cover it. Please don’t do that, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife shook his head sadly.</p> - -<p>“That cashier was probably scared stiff, Peggy. Power of suggestion made -him see what the express messenger saw—the black leather cuffs with the -silver stars. Discount all that stuff. Keep smilin’, I tell yuh. A-a-aw, -shucks!”</p> - -<p>Hashknife jumped to his feet and walked away. Peggy was crying, and -Hashknife couldn’t stand tears. He went down and sat against the stable, -his hat pulled down over his eyes. And he was still there when the -sheriff and his men came back, bringing the body of the brakeman, -strapped across the saddle of Jack Ralston’s horse, while Jack rode -behind Kelsey. The body was covered with a dirty tarpaulin.</p> - -<p>Hashknife went out to meet them, and Kelsey thanked him for the marker.</p> - -<p>“It shore was well hidden,” he said, “and them rocks helped a lot. I -reckon this will kinda swell the reward for Joe Rich, Hartley. This man -was shot. Yuh can even see the powder marks on his coat, so it must ’a’ -been close work. We’ll shore ask for Joe Rich dead or alive now.”</p> - -<p>They rode on, and Hashknife leaned against the stable, his mind working -swiftly. Dead or alive!</p> - -<p>“Oh, I was afraid of that,” he told himself.</p> - -<p>He saddled his horse and went to the bunk-house, where he called to the -boys.</p> - -<p>“I’m goin’ to town,” he told them. “They just went past with that body. -The man was shot at close range, and they’ll offer a reward for Joe -Rich, dead or alive. I want to get a look at that body. Be back for -supper, and for gosh sake, don’t let Peggy know what they said!”</p> - -<p>Hashknife galloped away from the ranch, but did not try to overtake the -sheriff and his party. They took the body straight to the doctor’s -office. It happened that Doctor Curzon was the county coroner, and the -case would require an inquest.</p> - -<p>But the sheriff and his party did not stay more than fifteen minutes; so -Hashknife waited until they were out of sight before he rode up to the -doctor’s little home.</p> - -<p>The old doctor greeted him gravely and started to tell him about the -latest tragedy, but Hashknife stopped him.</p> - -<p>“I know all about it, Doc. What about that bullet? Did it go all the way -through?”</p> - -<p>The doctor nodded.</p> - -<p>“Yes, it did.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife sighed. He had hopes that the caliber of the bullet might give -him a clue. The doctor showed him the body. There was no mistaking the -corpse. It was that of the brakeman, but little changed from immersion. -The bullet had gone straight through his heart, and he had probably -plunged straight off the high bank into the slough.</p> - -<p>“Poor devil,” sighed Hashknife. “Anyway, he died quick, Doc. The wind -was blowin’ away from us, so we had no chance to hear the sound of the -shot. Anyway, I’m much obliged.”</p> - -<p>“You’re certainly welcome, sir. We will probably hold an inquest -tomorrow, and perhaps the sheriff will ask you to attend as a witness.”</p> - -<p>“All right, Doc.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife led his horse up to the main street and over to the Pinnacle -hitch-rack. Just beyond the hitch-rack was the end of the board sidewalk -which led down past the saloon. This end of the sidewalk was about two -feet higher than the ground level. It had been intended to continue the -walk, but this had never been done. Pedestrians usually ignored the -sidewalk at this point and went farther along, where the contour of the -ground permitted a lower step.</p> - -<p>Hashknife sat down on the end of this sidewalk, bracing his shoulders -against the corner of the building, and rolled a smoke. The sheriff was -at his office, talking with the depot agent, who was writing a telegram -to send to the railroad company at Ransome.</p> - -<p>Ben Collins’ and Abe Liston’s horses were at the Pinnacle hitch-rack; so -Hashknife surmised that they were retailing the story in the saloon. Two -youngsters came from the rear of the building, barefooted, -overalls-clad. One of them had a ball made of rags sewed through with -heavy thread; rather a lop-sided affair, but a ball, for all that.</p> - -<p>Hashknife smiled at them and they grinned back at him.</p> - -<p>“Throw me a catch,” he said, holding out his hands.</p> - -<p>The boy with the ball flipped it toward Hashknife, but his aim was -faulty and the ball struck the ground several feet in front of -Hashknife. It failed to bounce, but rolled heavily under the sidewalk.</p> - -<p>“Bum throwin’!” shrilled the other youngster.</p> - -<p>Hashknife laughed and dropped to his knees, crawling beneath the -sidewalk trying to reach the ball.</p> - -<p>“Lemme help yuh, mister,” said the boy who owned the ball.</p> - -<p>“I can get it,” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>He picked it up and handed it absently back to the boy. In the -accumulated litter of old playing-cards, miscellaneous pieces of paper -and the general débris, his eyes caught sight of a certain piece of -paper.</p> - -<p>“Can’tcha git out?” asked the boy who had the ball.</p> - -<p>Hashknife backed out. He had forgotten the boys. In his hand was a -folded piece of paper, which he unfolded and read carefully. It was Jim -Wheeler’s copy of the note on which he had borrowed the money from Ed -Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Now, how in ⸺ did that get under there?” wondered Hashknife. He -studied the situation. Close to this spot was the hitch-rack.</p> - -<p>“He got on his horse at that rack,” said Hashknife to himself. “He -thought he put the note in his pocket, but didn’t; and the wind blew it -under the sidewalk. No wonder he didn’t have the note when they found -him.”</p> - -<p>He folded the note and put it carefully in his pocket. The two -youngsters were watching him closely, possibly wondering what he had -found. Hashknife stared at them for a moment, and a grin came to his -lips as he dug down in his pocket and drew out two quarters.</p> - -<p>“You boys buy yoreselves some candy,” he said, giving them the money.</p> - -<p>“Thank yuh, mister!” exploded one of them, and they raced across the -street to a store, all out of breath. Hashknife went to his horse, -mounted and rode out of town.</p> - -<p>The two boys lined up at the fly-specked candy counter and took plenty -of time in picking out what they wanted. Angus McLaren and Len Kelsey -came into the store, talking earnestly about the latest developments, -and stopped near the two boys.</p> - -<p>The old man behind the counter peered over his glasses at the boys.</p> - -<p>“Yuh want two-bits’ worth apiece?” he asked, rather awed at their -enormous purchases. “By golly, yuh must have struck a soap mine!”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t strike no mine,” said one of them. “How much are them chaklits, -Mr. Becker?”</p> - -<p>“Aw, you don’t want no chaklits!” snorted the other. “They don’t give -yuh hardly any for a dime. Gimme some mixed.”</p> - -<p>“I want some mixed, too, Mr. Becker, but I don’t want all of it mixed.”</p> - -<p>One of the boys turned and saw the sheriff and McLaren, who were smiling -at them.</p> - -<p>“Got two-bits apiece,” grinned the boy. “A tall cowpuncher gave it to -us.”</p> - -<p>“He’s that new puncher at the HJ,” explained the other.</p> - -<p>“Gave yuh each two-bits, eh?” smiled McLaren. “That was generous of him, -eh?”</p> - -<p>“Y’betcha. Over by the Pinnacle’ Saloon rack. I throwed my ball to him -an’ it went under the end of the sidewalk. He got under after it, an’ he -found somethin’, I think. Anyway, he was lookin’ at a paper when he got -out, an’ he gave us each two-bits.”</p> - -<p>“What kind of a piece of paper?” asked McLaren.</p> - -<p>“I seen it,” said the other boy, watching the merchant weigh the candy. -“It was kinda folded up—had printin’ on it. Say, Mr. Becker, are yuh -sure them scales don’t weight under?”</p> - -<p>They paid for their candy and went outside, looking into their sacks.</p> - -<p>“That must have been Hartley,” said Kelsey. “He didn’t lose any time in -followin’ us to town. He was at the HJ, when we brought the body past -there. I wonder what he found?”</p> - -<p>McLaren shook his head. He hadn’t any idea, nor was he interested in -knowing.</p> - -<p>Kelsey went back to the court-house, where he found Fred Coburn, the -county attorney, at his office. He laid the facts of the case before -Coburn, who listened to Kelsey’s story of finding the body of the -brakeman.</p> - -<p>“All right,” said Coburn briskly. “Make out a new reward notice, Len. -Offer the reward, dead or alive. I’ll file a charge of first degree -murder against Rich. Personally, I think he killed Jim Wheeler, although -that would be hard to make stick. This is a cinch. Better see if the -commissioners don’t want to boost that reward. When Ludlow comes, I’m -sure the bank will boost it. Rich is going to make one break too -many—and we’ll get him.”</p> - -<p>“That’s a cinch, Coburn. See yuh later.”</p> - -<p>As he came from the attorney’s office he met Ed Merrick, Angus McLaren -and Ross Layton, the three commissioners.</p> - -<p>“I was just going to look for you fellers,” he said. “Just had a talk -with Coburn about the reward. He’s goin’ to file first degree murder -against Joe Rich and wants me to make up a new reward notice, offering -it for him, dead or alive. How about boostin’ the ante, eh?”</p> - -<p>McLaren shook his head quickly.</p> - -<p>“I’m not in favor of it. There’s already thirty-five hundred offered, -and I’ve no doubt the railroad company will add to that for the death of -the brakeman.”</p> - -<p>“It would be worth a lot to have him behind the bars,” said Merrick -seriously.</p> - -<p>“Or under the sod,” added Layton.</p> - -<p>“Let’s boost it another thousand,” suggested Merrick. “It won’t hurt to -make it worth while.”</p> - -<p>McLaren turned to Layton.</p> - -<p>“What do ye say, Ross?”</p> - -<p>“Oh, it’s all right with me,” said the little man, hooking his thumbs -inside the armholes of his fancy vest. “Seems to me it’s like making -conversational bets—they’re never won or lost. Personally, I’d like to -see more action and less interest in what the man’s scalp is worth.”</p> - -<p>“Ye hit it, Ross,” laughed McLaren.</p> - -<p>“Well,” said Kelsey savagely, “in this country you’ve just about got to -buy a man like Joe Rich.”</p> - -<p>“Ye mean to make it worth while for somebody to forget friendship, -Kelsey?”</p> - -<p>“That’s just what I mean, McLaren!”</p> - -<p>“Oh, well, have it yer own way, lad. Friendship is a great thing, and -it’s har-rd to overcome with silver. As much of a law-abidin’ citizen as -I am, I’d vote to hang the man that would even betray Joe Rich for -money.”</p> - -<p>“You wouldn’t stretch friendship to cover a man who was wanted for -murder, would yuh, Mac?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“Friendship,” said McLaren heavily, “is ver-ry elastic. If it wasn’t -there’s few of us that would have any.”</p> - -<p>“By ⸺, that’s true!” snorted Layton. “I guess we’ll just leave that -reward as it is, Mac.”</p> - -<p>“All right, yo’re the doctors,” said Kelsey. “I merely wanted to speed -things up a little.”</p> - -<p>Merrick smiled thinly.</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich still has friends,” he said meaningly.</p> - -<p>McLaren’s eyes darkened, but he turned and walked away, with the -flowery-vested member from Ransome following in his wake, his black -coat-tails flapping, looking very much as Honey Bee had said—“a bouquet -of flowers wrapped up in crêpe.”</p> - -<p>Merrick and Ben Collins rode past the HJ a few hours later and stopped -to tell Hashknife that Kelsey wanted him and the other two boys at the -inquest on the following day.</p> - -<p>“Just a matter of form,” said Merrick. “You boys found the body, and I -think you were the last persons to see him alive; so the coroner will -require your testimony.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah; all right,” agreed Hashknife. “What time?”</p> - -<p>“About two o’clock in the afternoon.”</p> - -<p>Merrick’s white teeth flashed in a smile beneath his pointed black -mustache as he glanced toward the house, where Laura was standing, -looking out toward them.</p> - -<p>“Rather a pleasant place to stay, Hartley,” he said meaningly.</p> - -<p>Hashknife did not reply to this, but his gray eyes suddenly seemed to -change color and became very hard. Merrick shifted his gaze and lifted -his reins.</p> - -<p>“Well, we’ll be amblin’ on,” he said. “See yuh tomorrow.”</p> - -<p>Neither Merrick nor Collins said anything until they were well out of -earshot, when Collins glanced back and said:</p> - -<p>“Don’t fool with that jigger, Ed. Holee ⸺, didja see his eyes? Didja? -My ⸺, it went to forty below right then!”</p> - -<p>Merrick nodded grimly.</p> - -<p>“I guess that detective wasn’t far off when he said that Hartley wasn’t -all smiles.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife leaned against the gate-post and watched them fade away in the -dust. His eyes were normal now—lazy gray eyes which looked out across -the hills, but did not see them; and there was a smile on his wide -mouth. Laura was calling him from the veranda and he turned slowly to go -back.</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>It was supper time when Honey and Sleepy came back to the HJ and they -brought Slim Coleman with them. They had met Slim near the west end of -the bridge, and he rode over with them to have some supper before going -back to the Lazy B.</p> - -<p>Slim was almost the counterpart of Hashknife physically, being rather a -high-pocket sort of individual. The girls welcomed Slim, for he was as -one of the family—an old-timer in the Tumbling River and a bunkie of -Honey Bee’s when Honey was at the Lazy B.</p> - -<p>“It’s shore tough, this here offerin’ of a reward, dead or alive, for -Joe Rich,” said Slim, who did not have a particle of diplomacy in his -system.</p> - -<p>Peggy gasped and fled from the room, while Honey proceeded to upbraid -Slim for making such a foolish remark before Peggy.</p> - -<p>“Well, how’d I know?” wailed Slim. “Nobody told me she was still feelin’ -right toward Joe.”</p> - -<p>“Didn’t I tell yuh to not talk much about it?” demanded Honey angrily. -“I told yuh that when we was crossin’ the bridge.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I know yuh did. But I didn’t talk much. My ⸺, I only said it -was too bad!”</p> - -<p>“Well, that’s a lot, Slim. Peggy didn’t know they wanted Joe for -murder.”</p> - -<p>“Well, she knows it now. I s’pose I might as well be the one to break -the news to her.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, it don’t matter so much,” said Hashknife. “She’d find it out -tomorrow, anyway. We’re all to be called on that inquest—me and Sleepy -and Honey. It won’t amount to anythin’. They’ll just bring in a verdict -chargin’ Joe with the murder.”</p> - -<p>“I was talkin’ to Ross Layton before we left town,” said Honey. “Kelsey -is gettin’ out new reward notices. He wanted the commissioners to vote -more money on that reward, but Ross and Angus McLaren were against it.”</p> - -<p>“Kelsey’s got the idea that some of Joe’s friends are hidin’ him, and -that a bigger reward would make ’em trade him in.” Hashknife laughed -heartily.</p> - -<p>“That’s a new one, Honey. I’ve heard of lots of reasons for offerin’ -rewards, but that’s the first time I ever heard of tryin’ to buy off a -friendship.”</p> - -<p>“Well, that was Kelsey’s idea. He’s shore a bright sheriff. He thinks -that an added reward would cause Joe’s friends to pop him on the head -and bring him in.”</p> - -<p>“It might, at that,” said Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Wong Lee called them to supper, but the two girls did not come to the -table.</p> - -<p>“Slim, you raised ⸺ with yore remarks,” whispered Honey.</p> - -<p>“What do yuh mean?”</p> - -<p>“Ruined the girls’ appetites.”</p> - -<p>“Pshaw, I’m sorry about that.”</p> - -<p>They ate silently for several minutes, and then Slim laid down his knife -and fork.</p> - -<p>“I found somethin’ funny today,” he said. “I was ridin’ down a coulee, -kinda southeast of the Lazy B, and I finds a dead horse. Plenty buzzards -feedin’. But the funny part of it is this: That horse has been skinned. -Yessir, it shore had. I looked it all over and there ain’t a sign of -skin on it anywhere. And it kinda looked to me as though somebody had -pulled the shoes off it, too. Anyway, it never traveled far after the -shoes was taken off.”</p> - -<p>“Somebody needed horse-hide,” observed Honey, helping himself to more -food.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I s’pose they did,” agreed Slim, resuming his meal. “It ain’t a -common thing for to skin a dead horse. It ain’t been dead a ⸺ of a -long time. I didn’t smell—”</p> - -<p>“Hey!” snorted Honey. “What the ⸺ do yuh think this is? We’re eatin’ -a meal, Slim.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I beg yore pardon.”</p> - -<p>“Could yuh find it again?” asked Hashknife grinning.</p> - -<p>“Shore. If the wind’s blowin’ jist—”</p> - -<p>“Wait a minute!” snorted Honey. “You let up on that departed critter, or -I’ll—I’ll—”</p> - -<p>“All right, Honey.”</p> - -<p>“About how long had the animal been dead, Slim?” asked Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll tell yuh, Hartley. Judgin’ from the—”</p> - -<p>“Oh, ⸺!” exploded Honey.</p> - -<p>He kicked back his chair and tramped out through the kitchen to the rear -of the house, where he sat down on the well-curb and rolled a smoke.</p> - -<p>Slim reached across the table, removed an egg from Honey’s plate and -placed it on his own.</p> - -<p>“I can allus git extra food thataway,” he grinned. “Honey ain’t very -strong. Too ⸺ much ’magination, I’d say.”</p> - -<p>They finished their supper and went down to the bunk-house. Slim wanted -to play pitch. Hashknife declined to be a party to any card arguments; -so he stayed out of the game and went back to the ranch-house, where he -found Wong Lee serving supper to Peggy and Laura.</p> - -<p>No reference was made to Slim’s statement about the reward, but it was -rather difficult to find any conversation that did not connect with the -troubles of Tumbling River. Laura essayed a few pieces of music on the -old upright organ, while Peggy curled up in an old rocker, her chin on -one hand. Hashknife sprawled on the sofa, his long legs crossed, while -the blue smoke curled up from his cigaret.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you sing, Hashknife?” Laura turned on the stool and looked at -Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I sing—sometimes.”</p> - -<p>“Come and sing us a song.”</p> - -<p>“No-o-o-o, I don’t think so, Laura. I’m what you’d call an absent-minded -singer. I never sing when I know just what I’m doin’.”</p> - -<p>“Joe used to sing,” said Peggy simply.</p> - -<p>“And he had a good voice, too,” added Laura.</p> - -<p>There was a long period of silence. Finally Hashknife got to his feet -and stood there for a long time, deep in thought. The two girls watched -him curiously. Suddenly he looked at them, and a smile spread across his -face.</p> - -<p>“I just got some good news,” he said.</p> - -<p>“You got some good news?” Laura got up from the stool and stared at him. -“How could you get some good news?”</p> - -<p>Hashknife laughed softly and sat down again.</p> - -<p>“I just got to thinkin’,” he said. “Sometimes I get news thataway. Go -ahead and play somethin’, Laura.”</p> - -<p>For possibly an hour Laura played snatches of old songs, playing -entirely by ear. Hashknife still sprawled on the sofa, his eyes closed. -Several times Laura and Peggy exchanged amused glances, thinking he was -asleep, but he was far from it. Finally Laura left the organ, and -Hashknife opened his eyes.</p> - -<p>“Play another one, Laura,” he asked.</p> - -<p>“Another one?” The little blond-headed girl laughed. “Why, I’ve been -playing for over an hour, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Thasso?” He smiled at her. “That shows how much I enjoyed yore music.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe you were listening at all.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah, I was.”</p> - -<p>The two girls decided to go to bed and left Hashknife to his -cigaret-rolling. For another hour he smoked, only moving to throw a -cigaret butt into the fireplace and to roll a fresh one. He had turned -the lamp down low when the girls left the room and now he blew out the -light, yawned heavily and went to the front door.</p> - -<p>It was dark outside and the wind was blowing. He could see the dull glow -of a light in the bunk-house window as he stepped off the porch. To the -left and to the rear of the bunk-house was the main stable, behind which -was part of the corral, which extended out from a front corner of the -stable.</p> - -<p>Hashknife was half-way to the bunk-house when something attracted his -attention. It was down near the stable and sounded very much like a -smothered cry. The wind was blowing from that direction. He stopped -short, peering through the darkness. There was something moving down -near the stable.</p> - -<p>Hashknife hurried toward the stable, wondering whether it had been a cry -or merely the sound of the stable door in the wind. Then he saw the bulk -of a moving horse swinging around as if frightened, and he could hear -the bang of the stable door swinging in the wind.</p> - -<p>But before he could determine just what was going on, the flame of a -revolver shot licked out toward him and he heard the bullet strike the -ranch-house. Again and again the gun flashed; but Hashknife had dropped -flat and was shooting back at the flashes.</p> - -<p>He heard the bunk-house door slam open. Sleepy was running toward him, -calling his name. The last flash came from the further corner of the -stable front as the shooter darted behind cover. Honey was behind -Sleepy, yelling for somebody to tell him what it was all about.</p> - -<p>“Stop yellin’!” snapped Hashknife. “One of yuh circle this side of the -corral. He’s behind the stable. C’mon!”</p> - -<p>Sleepy went galloping around the corral, while Hashknife and Honey swung -wide of the stable. But the willows and other brush grew down within -fifty feet of that side, affording plenty of cover for any one to make a -getaway.</p> - -<p>After a fifteen-minute search they gave up. It was so dark that a man -could merely lie down on the ground and be invisible. They met at the -front of the stable, and there they almost stumbled over Slim Coleman, -who was sitting up. They heard him swear long and earnestly.</p> - -<p>“What in ⸺ happened to you, Slim?” asked Honey.</p> - -<p>But Slim merely continued to swear, although he was able to walk back to -the bunk-house without assistance. He had a lump over his left ear, a -bruised nose, and some skin off his right knuckles.</p> - -<p>He blinked in the lamplight and tried to grin.</p> - -<p>“Talk about it,” urged Honey.</p> - -<p>“Talk about it, eh? Well, I dunno what to talk about. After I left the -bunk-house I went to git my bronc. Didn’t see a danged soul around -there, but when I led my horse out I runs slap-dab into somebody. I -thought it was one of you boys, comin’ out to see if I was gettin’ -started.</p> - -<p>“I started to say somethin’, when I got the flash of a six-gun barrel, -which almost knocked my nose off. It did jist scrape my nose. I couldn’t -see the feller very good, but I took a smash at him with my right fist, -and I think I hit that ⸺ gun. And then I got a wallop on the head and -I seen all kinds of fireworks. It jist keeled me over, and I ’member -tryin’ to yell for help. The rest of it is kinda hazy. Wheee-e! I’ve -shore got me an awful headache.”</p> - -<p>“But who in ⸺ was it?” wondered Honey. “Is there somebody tryin’ to -lay yuh out, Slim?”</p> - -<p>“Must be. Feel of that bump.”</p> - -<p>“Honey,” said Hashknife, “you better go up to the house and tell the -girls what that shootin’ was all about. Some of them bullets hit the -house. And bring back a pan of hot water, so we can fix Slim’s head.”</p> - -<p>Honey raced for the house and Slim sat down on a bunk. He was still a -little dazed.</p> - -<p>“Yore bronc is still there by the corral fence,” said Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. I still had the lead-rope when I fell. Gee, I shore don’t sabe -it, boys. I dunno anybody that hates me enough to pop me in the dark. -It’s lucky he didn’t hit any of yuh.”</p> - -<p>“Missed me a mile,” grinned Hashknife.</p> - -<p>In a few minutes Honey came back carrying a pan of water.</p> - -<p>“The girls were scared stiff,” he said. “One of them bullets busted the -window on this side, and some of the others hit the house. They want me -to sleep in the ranch-house.”</p> - -<p>“I’ll bet that makes yuh sore,” grinned Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Aw, jist put some horse-liniment on it and I’ll head for home,” said -Slim. “It don’t hurt much.”</p> - -<p>“Yo’re not goin’ home tonight,” declared Hashknife. “This is no night -for a tall jigger like you to be ridin’. Shuck off yore raiment and pile -into Honey’s bunk while me and Sleepy unsaddle yore bronc.”</p> - -<p>Slim’s protests were very feeble.</p> - -<p>“Curt Bellew will swear I got drunk and forgot to come home.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll be yore alibi, Slim,” assured Hashknife. “And more than that, I’m -goin’ to need yuh tomorrow.”</p> - -<p>“Well, all right. Go kinda tender on that pinnacle, cowboy. She’s shore -a blood-brother to a boil.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife fixed up Slim’s head and then went up to the ranch-house, -where he called Honey outside.</p> - -<p>“We won’t be here for breakfast,” he told Honey. “Me and Sleepy and Slim -are goin’ to take a ride early in the mornin’; sabe? They’re holdin’ -that inquest at two o’clock in the afternoon. You hitch up the buggy -team in the mornin’ and take the girls to town. Tell ’em I said for ’em -to go, Honey. Be there for the inquest.”</p> - -<p>“But what for, Hashknife?”</p> - -<p>“Just for fun, Honey. Good night.”</p> - -<p>“You’ll be at the inquest, won’t yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Sure, I’m the main witness.”</p> - -<div style='height:1em;'></div> -<p>It was an hour before daylight when Hashknife, Sleepy and Slim Coleman -rode away from the HJ. Slim’s head was a little sore, but the swelling -was reduced. Sleepy protested against such an early start; which was the -natural thing for him to do, especially since he didn’t know where they -were going.</p> - -<p>They forded the river below the bridge—much to Sleepy’s disgust. He got -one boot full of water.</p> - -<p>“Bridge is too narrow,” said Hashknife, “and there’s too much brush on -the other side of it.”</p> - -<p>“You must be scared,” laughed Sleepy.</p> - -<p>The bootful of water made him feel particularly sarcastic. Anyway, he -didn’t like to ride with an empty stomach.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, I’m scared,” admitted Hashknife as they reached the other bank -and climbed to the top.</p> - -<p>“You take the lead, Slim,” he said. “Take us to that dead horse.”</p> - -<p>“All right. It’ll be kinda slow goin’ in the dark, but it’ll be daylight -by the time we get there. Got to swing wide of the river on account of -the breaks. We can eat breakfast at the Lazy B, if yuh want to.”</p> - -<p>“We’ll look at the horse first, Slim. We may not get any breakfast.”</p> - -<p>“That’s the ⸺ of bein’ pardner to a man who is so ⸺ curious he’ll -get up in the middle of the night to hunt for a dead horse,” said -Sleepy.</p> - -<p>They were obliged to travel slowly, and the cold morning wind caused -Sleepy to swear at his wet feet. He was uncomfortable, and didn’t care -who knew it. The stars faded, and a rosy glow in the east proclaimed the -coming of daylight.</p> - -<p>Slim knew the country well, and had little difficulty in locating the -correct coulee. A coyote streaked out through the brush and went loping -off across the hills. He wasn’t a bit curious about these cowboys. They -often carried rifles, and were not a bit particular which coyote they -shot at.</p> - -<p>They found the carcass, and Hashknife did not take long in his -examination. The other two men sat on their horses some distance away, -holding Hashknife’s horse. He came back and climbed into his saddle.</p> - -<p>“Shall we go to the Lazy B and eat?” asked Slim.</p> - -<p>Hashknife shook his head.</p> - -<p>“No time to eat, Slim. Is there a place where we can cross the river -down here?”</p> - -<p>“Yeah, there’s the old Circle M crossin’. They herd cattle across once -in a while.”</p> - -<p>“That’s fine. Lead us to it.”</p> - -<p>“My ⸺ , you’d think he was a sailor!” wailed Sleepy. “He must be -crazy about water. Oh, well, there’s no use arguin’ with him, Slim.”</p> - -<p>“You won’t miss yore breakfast,” assured Hashknife. “If I was as fat as -you are I’d welcome a fast.”</p> - -<p>“I don’t mind the breakfast but I’d like to know what it’s all about,” -said Slim.</p> - -<p>“Well, yuh won’t know,” declared Sleepy. “This jigger never tells. He’s -a single-handed secret society, he is, Slim.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife merely laughed and swung in beside them.</p> - -<p>“Are yuh pretty good with a six-gun, Slim?”</p> - -<p>“Pretty good? Meanin’ what, Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“Did yuh ever kill a man?”</p> - -<p>“Nope,” Slim shook his head violently. “Never had to.”</p> - -<p>“Would, if yuh had to, wouldn’t yuh?”</p> - -<p>“Sure—why not?”</p> - -<p>“Yuh may have to.”</p> - -<p>Sleepy straightened up in his saddle. Slim looked quickly at Sleepy who -was grinning widely. Sleepy always grinned when there was action in the -wind.</p> - -<p>“I don’t quite sabe the drift of this, Hartley,” said Slim. “Why should -I have to kill a man?”</p> - -<p>“To make him quit shootin’.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, yeah. Well—all right.”</p> - -<p>Slim drew his six-shooter, examined the cylinder critically and put it -back.</p> - -<p>“I wish I’d ’a’ practised more,” he said dryly.</p> - -<p>Hashknife grinned in appreciation. He felt that Slim was a dependable -man. They reached the west bank of the river and rode south for about a -quarter of a mile to the Circle M crossing. The water was not deep here.</p> - -<p>Old cottonwoods grew close to the water edge and there were many cattle -standing among the trees. The cowboys rode out to the open country, -almost within sight of the Circle M. Hashknife studied the country. -Farther on and to their left was a rather high butte, fairly well -covered with brush.</p> - -<p>“On the other side of that is the Circle M road, ain’t it?” asked -Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Slim nodded.</p> - -<p>“Circles the bottom of it on that side. It’s only a little ways to the -Circle M. There’s a little stream comes down on this side of the butte, -and the road crosses it.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife took the lead now. He rode to the south of the butte, -dismounted at the foot and tied his horse in the thick brush. The other -boys followed him, and they walked up through the brush to the top of -the butte.</p> - -<p>Below, and not over four hundred yards to the south, were the ranch -buildings of the Circle M. Hashknife squatted down on a rocky projection -and told the others to keep out of sight. There was enough high brush to -make an effectual screen.</p> - -<p>The ranch-house of the Circle M was a rambling affair consisting of but -one floor. The exterior was rough boards, weathered, unpainted. There -were two stables and a number of low sheds, branding corral, bucking -corral and general utility corrals. A number of loose horses were in the -larger corral.</p> - -<p>Smoke was pouring from the kitchen stovepipe, and in a few minutes a man -came from the stable and went to the house.</p> - -<p>“That’s Ben Collins,” said Slim. “I know his walk.”</p> - -<p>“Have they got a Chink cook?” asked Sleepy.</p> - -<p>“Nope. Dutch Siebert does most of the cookin’. He’s a puncher. Ed never -could keep a cook, it seems, so he uses Dutch. He’s an awful flat-head.”</p> - -<p>“Merrick?”</p> - -<p>“No—Siebert. Danged flat-faced, obstinate sort of a cuss.”</p> - -<p>Sleepy stretched out on the ground and pillowed his head on his arms.</p> - -<p>“Wake me up early, mother; I’m to be queen of the May,” he grinned. “If -yuh won’t tell me what we’re doin’ here, I’m goin’ to take a nap. Yuh -might as well sleep, Slim.”</p> - -<p>“Go ahead,” said Hashknife. “I’ll wake yuh up in time.”</p> - -<p>Slim needed no second invitation, but slid out full length.</p> - -<p>Hashknife made himself comfortable, but not to sleep. He kept an eye on -the ranch buildings, and several times he saw Merrick and Collins -together. He knew Merrick well enough to distinguish him at that -distance.</p> - -<p>Time dragged on and the sun grew hot up there on the top of that knoll, -but Hashknife had the patience of an Indian. It was nearly eleven -o’clock when he saw Merrick and Collins saddle their horses at the -corral. A third man came out from the house and talked with them, and -Hashknife was sure this man was Dutch Siebert. He was bigger than either -of the other two, who were fairly big men.</p> - -<p>In a little while Merrick and Collins mounted their horses and moved -away from the ranch on the road which led to Pinnacle City. They were -going to attend the inquest. Hashknife paid no more attention to them, -but noted the time of their leaving and estimated about how long it -would take them to reach the town. Dutch Siebert played with a dog in -the yard for a few minutes, then went into the house.</p> - -<p>Hashknife settled back and rolled a cigaret. Sleepy woke up, swore a few -lines, shifted to more shade and went back to sleep. But Hashknife did -not become impatient. He knew what he was going to do, and it was -something that required fairly accurate timing. He knew that Merrick and -Collins would ride fairly fast and would cover that eight miles in less -than an hour.</p> - -<p>It was thirty minutes past the noon hour when Hashknife woke Sleepy and -Slim. Both required some stretching to get the kinks out of their -muscles. Hashknife led the way back to the horses, where they mounted, -and circled around to the road near the place where the little stream -crossed it. Hashknife dismounted at the stream. They were almost in view -of the ranch, the main gate being just around a brushy turn in the road.</p> - -<p>Sleepy was curious as to what Hashknife intended doing, and his -curiosity was even greater when he saw Hashknife take a chunk of yellow -soap from his pocket.</p> - -<p>“What’sa big idea, cowboy?” he asked. “Goin’ to take a bath?”</p> - -<p>“Git off and help me,” grinned Hashknife.</p> - -<p>They dismounted and Sleepy held the horse while Hashknife filled his hat -with water, poured it over the shoulders of the animal and began rubbing -in the soap.</p> - -<p>“The idea is,” grunted Hashknife, “to make us look like we’ve come to -beat ⸺!”</p> - -<p>“Lather, eh?” grunted Slim. “Gimme half that soap, and I’ll fix up this -side. You hold the rollin’ stock, Sleepy.”</p> - -<p>It did not take long for them to make that horse look as if it had run -many miles. They splashed and rubbed until Hashknife stepped back and -grinned his appreciation. Then he scooped up a double handful of dust, -threw it in the air and let it settle on him, like white ash.</p> - -<p>“All right, boys,” he said, swinging into the saddle. “Stay where yuh -are until I go past. Then leave yore broncs here and sneak in, keepin’ -under cover. If I need yuh, you’ll get a signal. Now, get back, ’cause -I’m goin’ to throw dust.”</p> - -<p>He rode back about two hundred yards, swung the horse around and came -past them as fast as the horse could run. The pounding hoofs threw dust -all over them, but they tied their horses and ran along the road, -keeping against the brush.</p> - -<p>Hashknife did not slacken speed, until almost at the door of the -ranch-house. Big Dutch Siebert stepped to the doorway and the sliding -hoofs slithered gravel against the half-open door.</p> - -<p>Hashknife’s coming was so sudden that the Dutchman did not seem to know -just what to do. And Hashknife was out of the saddle and around to Dutch -almost before the horse came to a stop. Hashknife took one keen look -back up the road, whirled on Dutch and stepped to the threshold.</p> - -<p>“Get inside—quick!” snapped Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Siebert stepped back quickly. He was a huge man, flat of face, -narrow-eyed, one side of his mouth sagging from a big chew of tobacco. -Once his big right hand swayed back past his holstered gun, but came -away. He was being rushed so fast he didn’t have time to think. And -Dutch Siebert was not a fast thinker.</p> - -<p>“Ed sent me!” snapped Hashknife. “He didn’t dare to come, because -they’re watchin’ him. There’s been a leak, Dutch. Ed says to get Joe out -of here as fast as yuh can, because they’re comin’ to search the place. -You know what that means? Hurry up, you ⸺ fool; they’re comin’!”</p> - -<p>Siebert gasped foolishly, whirled on his heel and almost ran into the -kitchen. He grasped the heavy kitchen table, whirled it aside and -started to drop to one knee. Then he swung around. Dutch Siebert was -beginning to think. His hand jerked back to his gun, but he moved too -late.</p> - -<p>Hashknife was on top of him, driving him against the wall, while -Hashknife’s right hand, gripping a heavy gun, described a short downward -arc, and Dutch Siebert ceased to think for a while.</p> - -<p>Hashknife picked up Dutch’s gun, ran to the doorway and wig-wagged -wildly with both arms. Sleepy and Slim broke from the fringe of brush -and came running across the yard.</p> - -<p>“One of yuh go to the stable and get a rope!” yelled Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Sleepy veered off and headed for the stable.</p> - -<p>“Did the soap and water work?” asked Slim, panting from his run.</p> - -<p>“It always works,” grinned Hashknife. “C’mon in.”</p> - -<h2>CHAPTER IX: THE INQUEST</h2> - -<p>“Have you seen anythin’ of Slim Coleman, Len?” Curt Bellew leaned in -through the doorway of the sheriff’s office and spoke to Kelsey, who was -oiling a gun.</p> - -<p>“Ain’t seen him,” said Kelsey shortly.</p> - -<p>“That’s funny. He started for town yesterday. I’ve been all over this -darned place and I can’t find him and nobody has seen him.”</p> - -<p>Kelsey did not show much interest, so Curt snorted and walked away. He -was a little worried about Slim. Honey Bee and the two girls drove into -town and left their rig at the livery-stable. Uncle Hozie and Aunt Emma -were in town, and the old lady immediately took charge of the girls, -much to Honey’s relief, because he didn’t know what to do with them.</p> - -<p>The Heavenly Triplets were in town but were keeping strictly sober. One -reason was that they were not only broke but badly in debt. The morning -train had brought the conductor, brakeman and fireman of the -cattle-train to identify the dead brakeman, and to testify at the -inquest.</p> - -<p>Curt Bellew, still looking for the missing Slim, ran into Honey Bee. It -seemed that everybody in town knew by this time that Slim was missing.</p> - -<p>“Aw, he was at the HJ all night,” said Honey. “He was goin’ home, all -right, Curt, but somebody bent a gun over his head. By golly, we had -quite a shootin’ scrape out there! Somebody emptied a gun at Hashknife -Hartley, but didn’t touch him.”</p> - -<p>“Honey, you ain’t lyin’, are yuh?” asked Curt. There were several -interested listeners.</p> - -<p>“I shore ain’t, Curt,” declared Honey. “Slim needed a little patchin’ -up, but he’s all right.”</p> - -<p>“Where is he now?”</p> - -<p>“I can’t tell yuh, Curt—because I don’t know m’self.”</p> - -<p>Several questions were fired at Honey, but he had the same answer for -each. In the meantime Curt went back to Kelsey’s office and asked him -whether he had heard about the shooting at the HJ.</p> - -<p>“What shootin’, Curt?”</p> - -<p>Curt told him what Honey had said about it.</p> - -<p>“Why would anybody hit Slim Coleman?” asked Kelsey.</p> - -<p>“That’s the question without any answer.”</p> - -<p>“Where are Hartley and Stevens?”</p> - -<p>“I dunno. Mebbe they’re with Slim.”</p> - -<p>Ed Merrick and Ben Collins rode in from the Circle M, and heard about -Slim’s experience before they had their horses tied. Abe Liston of the -3W3 gave them the news.</p> - -<p>“By ⸺, they can’t lay that on to Joe Rich,” declared Abe. “Slim and -Joe were darned good friends.”</p> - -<p>“Where’s Slim now?” asked Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Nobody knows, except that he’s with them other punchers at the HJ. -Honey Bee and the two girls just came in a while ago, and Honey says he -don’t know where they are.”</p> - -<p>Merrick found Honey a little later and asked him about the incident. He -told Merrick about the same story Abe had told, except that he -elaborated on the shooting in the dark between Hashknife and the unknown -gunman.</p> - -<p>“Well, what do yuh make of it?” asked Merrick.</p> - -<p>“I don’t know,” laughed Honey. “Looks like somebody had gone plumb -crazy.”</p> - -<p>“Does look like it, Honey. What did Hartley think?”</p> - -<p>“That feller never says what he thinks, Ed. He bandaged Slim’s head and -made him stay all night. Slim wanted to go home, but Hashknife told him -it was a bad night for a tall cowpuncher to be ridin’ around.</p> - -<p>“Him and Sleepy and Slim pulled out before daylight, but didn’t tell me -where they were goin’. Yuh never can find out anythin’ from Hashknife. -He just grins at yore questions. It’s a wonder they didn’t accuse me of -bustin’ Slim.”</p> - -<p>Honey laughed and grimaced at the thought.</p> - -<p>“Accuse you?” queried Merrick.</p> - -<p>“Yeah. Yuh see, Slim ruined my supper. He told about findin’ a horse -that had been skinned. Why in ⸺ anybody would skin a horse is a -mystery to me. But anyway, they got to talkin’ about that dead horse. -Hashknife was interested, it seemed, and when Slim saw it was botherin -me, they went strong.”</p> - -<p>Merrick laughed shortly.</p> - -<p>“Yeah, it’s a wonder they didn’t accuse yuh of hittin’ him. Mebbe they -went to look at the dead horse.”</p> - -<p>“I wouldn’t put it past ’em,” laughed Honey. “But they’ll be here for -the inquest, Ed.”</p> - -<p>Even with the range well represented in Pinnacle City there was not a -great deal of interest in the inquest over the body of the brakeman. He -was a stranger, and there was but one verdict to be brought in. It would -be merely a matter of form. In fact, the rewards were already printed, -charging Joe Rich with the murder and offering thirty-five hundred -dollars for him dead or alive, or for information that would lead to his -arrest. It did not mention conviction. As far as that goes, he was -already convicted.</p> - -<p>Old Doctor Curzon decided to hold the inquest in a court-room. The crowd -was too large for his little home and the county would not pay him for -trampled flowerbeds. The body had already been identified by the -trainmen. Aunt Emma, Peggy and Laura had taken seats in the Flying H -wagon. They were not going up to the court-room. Aunt Emma wanted to -find Honey and make him take the girls back home.</p> - -<p>“Why did he bring you?” demanded the old lady. “With all this talk goin’ -on! I’ll sure tell him where to head in!”</p> - -<p>“I think it was Hashknife’s idea, Auntie,” said Peggy wearily.</p> - -<p>“It was, eh? And who’s he to tell you what to do? The sooner you quit -cryin’ over Joe Rich the better you’ll be off. After all he’s done to -you! Peggy, you ought to have sense.”</p> - -<p>“There comes Hashknife now!” exclaimed Peggy.</p> - -<p>It seemed like a cry of hope. Something seemed to tell her that this -tall cowboy riding up the middle of the street, sitting very straight in -his saddle, was bringing a ray of sunshine.</p> - -<p>He did not seem interested in the crowd. Straight to the hitch-rack he -came, dismounted slowly and tied the horse.</p> - -<p>As he stepped away from the animal he saw the three women in the wagon -and smiled at them as he touched the brim of his hat with his right -hand. They watched him angle across the street, going toward the -sheriff’s office. Kelsey and Angus McLaren were coming from the office -and stopped to speak with Hashknife. After a few moments of conversation -they saw Kelsey turn and go back to the office with Hashknife.</p> - -<p>Peggy kept her eyes glued to the office door, disregarding the advice of -Aunt Emma, who was telling her what she should do. In a few minutes -Hashknife came slowly outside and back up the street. It was two -o’clock.</p> - -<p>Near the entrance of the court-house Hashknife met the Heavenly -Triplets, who were anxious to get a front seat. He said something to -Lonnie Myers, and after a few moments the three men followed him farther -up the street, where they held a short, earnest conversation. Following -the conversation the three men went back to the court-house and went -inside.</p> - -<p>Hashknife leaned against the front of the general store and rolled a -smoke. Jack Ralston and Buck West crossed the street from the Pinnacle -saloon, and Hashknife called to Jack. The deputy came over to him and -they held a short conversation, after which they headed for the -sheriff’s office and went inside.</p> - -<p>“There’s something goin on,” declared Peggy. “But where are Sleepy and -Slim, do you suppose?”</p> - -<p>“I can’t even suppose,” replied Aunt Emma. “I hope that inquest won’t -take long. Hozie will stay until the last dog is hung, you may be sure -of that. And us out here in this hot sun. But that’s a man for yuh!”</p> - -<p>“You came in for the inquest, didn’t you, Aunt Emma?” asked Laura.</p> - -<p>“I did not—Hozie did. I have no interest in things of that kind.”</p> - -<p>“There is Hashknife now!” exclaimed Peggy.</p> - -<p>The tall cowboy was standing at the door of the court-house, and none of -them had seen him leave the sheriff’s office. After a few moments of -deliberation, he went in and climbed the stairs.</p> - -<p>The rather spacious court-room was not filled. There were possibly fifty -people in the room. Lonnie Myers stood near the doorway at the top of -the stairs; Dan Leach was at the opposite corner, at the rear; while -Nebrasky Jones sat in a front seat, very erect and very dignified.</p> - -<p>Doctor Curzon had already selected a jury when Hashknife came in; and -the six men, Curt Bellew, Eph Harper, Jimmy Black of the 3W3, Buck West, -Fred Thornton, a feed-store keeper, and Jud Albertson, a blacksmith, -were occupying the jury-box.</p> - -<p>Fred Coburn, the prosecuting attorney, was the only lawyer in the room. -Hashknife moved down to the front and took the only available seat. -Across the aisle from him sat Ben Collins. Farther back and across the -aisle sat Merrick and Angus McLaren, the Circle M owner on the outside -seat.</p> - -<p>Old Doctor Curzon conferred with the attorney for several moments before -calling the inquest to order.</p> - -<p>“I believe we will have the testimony of the sheriff first,” he said, -looking around the room.</p> - -<p>But neither the sheriff nor deputy were in evidence.</p> - -<p>“Will some one call the sheriff?” asked Coburn.</p> - -<p>Hashknife got slowly to his feet and half turned in the narrow aisle, -while his glance swept the audience. His face seemed a little pale and -his lips were shut tightly. Then—</p> - -<p>“The sheriff won’t be here,” he said distinctly. “Neither will the -deputy. Their evidence is locked up, and I’ve got the key in my pocket.”</p> - -<p>For several moments the room was hushed.</p> - -<p>“I don’t believe we quite understand you,” said Coburn.</p> - -<p>“It was plain English,” replied Hashknife.</p> - -<p>“But—but—” spluttered the attorney. No one else spoke; all were too -interested for words.</p> - -<p>“So we’ll jist have to do without ’em,” said Hashknife. “Yuh see, I’m -playin’ safe, folks.”</p> - -<p>His lips twisted to a grin, but his eyes were cold, mirthless.</p> - -<p>“This is an inquest over the body of a murdered man, a man who was shot -down in the performance of his duty, and he was killed at a time when -the lives of a lot of folks might have been at stake.</p> - -<p>“You’ve merely met here as a matter of form to make it legal to hunt -down and destroy Joe Rich. Ain’t I right?”</p> - -<p>“Perfectly!” snapped the attorney.</p> - -<p>“Uh-huh. Well, how would it be to git a little of that testimony from a -real interested party?” Hashknife glanced toward the doorway.</p> - -<p>“C’mon in,” he said loudly.</p> - -<p>The crowd surged around in their seats, gasping in amazement. Joe Rich -was limping down the aisle. He was clad in an old gray shirt and a pair -of bib-overalls, old misfitting shoes; his unshaven face, dirty; hair -matted. A gasp went up from the crowd as Joe halted beside Hashknife and -turned to look at them. He appeared years older, weak. His eyes were -bloodshot, and the wrists below the shirt-sleeves were scored from rope -burns.</p> - -<p>“The main witness,” said Hashknife. “Look him over, folks. Does he look -like a man who had killed and robbed?”</p> - -<p>Still the crowd did not move. They seemed content to sit still and gaze -at the man. Then a man strangled, a chair rattled. It was Ed Merrick, -the owner of the Circle M. He had whirled in his chair and started for -the door, running like a drunken man, but his way was blocked by Sleepy, -Slim Coleman and Lonnie Myers and three guns were shoved in his face.</p> - -<p>He stopped, staggered sidewise and whirled around, his gun in his hand. -But before he could use it, Sleepy and Lonnie landed on him with a rush -and he went down, struggling wildly.</p> - -<p>Ben Collins had not moved. He merely flinched when Hashknife leaned -across him and took away his gun. He seemed in a daze.</p> - -<p>“Got him!” panted Sleepy.</p> - -<p>Hashknife looked toward the doorway. Peggy was coming in, her eyes wide, -staring down at Joe who had not seen her. Slim touched her on the arm, -but she did not stop.</p> - -<p>Hashknife beckoned her and she ran down the aisle. Joe turned and saw -her coming toward him and the next moment he had her in his arms, while -Hashknife hastily sidestepped and took Ben Collins by the arm.</p> - -<p>“C’mon, Collins,” he said. “You need exercise.”</p> - -<p>“Lemme have him,” said Nebrasky. “Me and Dan can handle him real good. -I’ve got a rope handy.”</p> - -<p>“All right, Nebrasky.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife turned to face the prosecuting attorney.</p> - -<p>“What is this all about?” he demanded. “Don’t you realize what—”</p> - -<p>“Better than anybody else,” smiled Hashknife. “Here,” he handed a key to -Dan Leach. “There’s two more cells empty. Put Collins in one and Merrick -in the other.”</p> - -<p>“Well, I’ll be darned!” That was about as near as Fred Coburn ever came -to using profanity.</p> - -<p>Uncle Hozie was pawing at Hashknife, masticating violently and staring -at Joe Rich and Peggy.</p> - -<p>“Wh-what about him?” demanded Uncle Hozie, pointing at Joe.</p> - -<p>“Oh, don’t bother ’em,” grinned Hashknife. “Listen, you folks. I’ve got -the whole story. Dutch Siebert is hog-tied at the Circle M and we found -Joe Rich in a cellar under the house, where he’s been since the day he -rode out of town.</p> - -<p>“Joe Rich didn’t get drunk on his weddin’ night. He took two drinks of -liquor with Len Kelsey in the Arapaho saloon, and Len slipped him some -knockout drops. Joe knew he hadn’t been drunk, but there wasn’t any way -to prove it. Merrick practically forced Joe to appoint Kelsey, and it -was Merrick’s idea to discredit Joe in order to make Kelsey sheriff. -Merrick wanted to own the law.</p> - -<p>“Well, he done a ⸺ good job of it.</p> - -<p>In fact, he overdone his job. That bridge wasn’t hit by lightning; it -was set on fire to let Merrick get off that express car after he had -robbed the safe. Collins and Dutch Siebert were there with the horses, -and they set the fire. The brakeman ran into ’em and they killed him. -Anybody with any sense would have known it couldn’t be a one-man job. -The man who robbed that safe couldn’t have killed the brakeman, because -he was put out of the way before the train stopped.</p> - -<p>“And Joe Rich did not rob Jim Wheeler. That was done by Siebert and -Collins, after Merrick had given Wheeler just one thousand dollars. -Merrick made out two notes, and Jim Wheeler thought one was a duplicate. -He read his own—and signed Merrick’s which read ‘five thousand.’ But -Jim Wheeler lost his note, and I found it under the sidewalk, over there -by the Pinnacle Saloon. I don’t know how they found it out, but I reckon -they did, because last night they mistook Slim Coleman for me and batted -him over the head.</p> - -<p>“But they overdone the evidence part at both the train and at the bank. -I didn’t know Joe Rich, but from what I could learn he was -intelligent—too danged intelligent to wear those leather cuffs, lose a -knife with his initials on it and all that. Merrick and Jack Ralston -caught Joe that first day. That is, they downed his horse, and took him -to the Circle M. They had to skin that animal to keep anybody from -seein’ it was Joe’s horse.</p> - -<p>“And here’s the particularly devilish part of it all: They were tryin’ -to pile up a big reward, soak Joe with a murder charge and make it dead -or alive. Know what that means? It means that they were going to kill -Joe and get that money, make heroes out of themselves and live happy for -a long time on the money they’ve got in that cellar. That’s the story, -folks.”</p> - -<p>The room was in an uproar following the finish of the story. They wanted -to get outside where there was more room to talk. But Hashknife knew -they were going to do more than talk. They were clattering down the -stairs when Hashknife touched Joe on the arm.</p> - -<p>“Get down there,” he said softly. “Yo’re the sheriff yet, Joe—Kelsey’s -disqualified. Stop ’em at the door. They’ll listen to yuh, kid.”</p> - -<p>Joe ran from the room and they heard him going down the steps. Peggy was -looking at Hashknife, her eyes filled with tears, as she held out her -hands to him.</p> - -<p>“Oh, it was wonderful,” she said. “But I knew you would do something -wonderful; I knew it, Hashknife.”</p> - -<p>“Yeah,” he said bashfully. “It worked out pretty good.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I don’t know how you did it, Hashknife. Everybody was against Joe. -Why did you think he was innocent? What made you think it was a plot -against him?”</p> - -<p>“I looked at you,” said Hashknife simply. “And I figured that a man -you’d love—well, I figured right, Peggy.”</p> - -<p>They went down the stairs. A crowd had gathered in front of the -sheriff’s office, and Joe was talking to them, backed against the door. -He was flanked on one side by Slim Coleman, and on the other by Honey -Bee. And then the crowd began to disperse. Aunt Emma and Peggy met them -at the bottom of the stairs, and Laura kissed Hashknife before he was -aware of her intentions.</p> - -<p>Angus McLaren came up to Hashknife and held out his hand.</p> - -<p>“Har-rtley, I’ve nothin’ to say. Ye take my breath away. If I’ve -anythin’ to say about it—Joe’s still sheriff. He talked ’em out of -usin’ ropes, and he’s suffered enough to entitle him to somethin’. And -there’s a reward for ye, man—the money that was offered for Joe Rich. -We’ve got him back, and he’s worth every cent we’re payin’ for him.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife smiled and shook his head.</p> - -<p>“We don’t want money, McLaren—only enough for two fares East. The rest -will help Peggy start housekeepin’ with the man she kept on lovin’, in -spite of ⸺ and high water.”</p> - -<p>“Two fares East?” queried McLaren.</p> - -<p>“Yeah. Yuh see, we missed our train the night we came.”</p> - -<p>“Oh, I see.”</p> - -<p>“And Sleepy will like it, yuh know. I have to kinda humor him once in a -while.”</p> - -<p>“But you’re not going away for years and years,” declared Peggy. “Not -after what you’ve done, Hashknife. Stay here in the Tumbling River with -all of us.”</p> - -<p>“Ye fit well in here,” said McLaren.</p> - -<p>“And here comes Joe,” said Laura. “We’ll see what he has to say about -you going away, Mister Man.”</p> - -<p>“And you tell me some time,” smiled Hashknife. “It’ll keep.”</p> - -<p>He hurried away to find Sleepy, who was regaling a crowd with a story of -the lathered horse.</p> - -<p>“It’s shore funny how things work out,” he said. “Here we were headin’ -East for a little trip, and all this happens.”</p> - -<p>“Are yuh goin’ to keep on headin’ East?” asked one of the crowd.</p> - -<p>“Not us,” said Sleepy. “I’m all out of the notion.”</p> - -<p>Hashknife turned and went across the street, where he intercepted -McLaren.</p> - -<p>“We’ve changed our minds about goin’ East,” he said. “We’ll take a -couple of horses and saddles instead of them tickets, McLaren.”</p> - -<p>“All right,” laughed McLaren. “Where are you goin’, lad?”</p> - -<p>“Somewhere on the other side of the hill.”</p> - -<p>“What hill, Hartley?”</p> - -<p>“The next one,” smiled Hashknife.</p> - -<blockquote> -<p style='text-indent:0'><span style='font-size:0.9em'>Copyright, 1926, by the Butterick Publishing Company in the United -States and Great Britain. All Rights reserved.</span></p> - -</blockquote> -<div class="tn"> -<p>Transcriber’s Note: This story appeared in the December 31, 1926 issue -of <i>Adventure</i> magazine.</p> -</div> -<p style='all:initial; font-family:serif; display:block; font-size:1.2em; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:2em; text-align:center;'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TWO FARES EAST ***</p> -<div style='text-align:left; font-family:serif;'> - -<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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