ar of his saddle.

"See you're packing a black slicker," said Mannix, pointing to the
rough raincoat in which the pack was wrapped.

"That's in case of rain," was the ready answer.

"What's your name?" asked the deputy with a frown.

"Rathburn."

"Where was you heading?"

"I was aiming in a general eastern direction," Rathburn replied in a
drawl. "Is there any law against ridin' hosses in this here part of
the country?"

"Not at all," replied the deputy heartily. "An' there's no law against
drivin' automobiles or trucks. But there's a law against stoppin' 'em
with a gun."

"So," said Rathburn. "You stopped because you saw my gun? An' I'm to
blame, for it? If I'd known you were touchy about guns down here I'd
have worn mine in my shirt."

One of the other men from the car had joined the deputy. He was
looking at Rathburn keenly. Mannix turned to him.

"Look like him?" he asked.

The man nodded. "About the same size and height."

"This man was drivin' a truck up here that was stopped this morning,"
said the deputy sternly to Rathburn. "He says you size up to one of
the men that turned the trick--one of them that wore a black slicker
like yours."

Rathburn nodded pleasantly. "Exactly," he said with a smile. "I happen
to be in the country an' I've got a black slicker. There you are;
everything all proved up. An' yet there was somebody once told me it
took brains to be a sheriff!"

There was a glint in Rathburn's eyes as he uttered the last sentence.

Instead of flying into a rage, Mannix laughed.

"Don't kid yourself," he said grimly. "You're not the man who held up
this truck driver."

He gave Rathburn back his gun, to the latter's surprise. Then he waved
toward Rathburn's horse.

"Go ahead," he said, smiling. "General eastern direction, wasn't it?
This road will take you clean to the desert, if you want to go that
far. So long."

He led the others back to the car which started off with a roar. It
passed the truck and continued on up the road.

Rathburn sat his horse and watched the automobile out of sight. His
expression was one of deep perplexity.

"By all the rules of the game that fellow should have held me as a
suspect," he soliloquized. "Now he don't know me from a hoss thief--or
does he?"

He frowned and rode thoughtfully down the road in the direction from
which the automobile had come.

CHAPTER XV

THE WELCOME

The afternoon wore on as Rathburn followed the road at an ea