urance of her
safety.

"What you say sounds well, Dorothy, but my pride's working on me, too,
now. I can't help it. If my friends, who have been good enough to accept
my leadership so far, should lose their heads and go to it without me, I
might talk afterward until Kingdom come. I'd never convince anybody that
I hadn't funked the thing. You spoke a few minutes ago of helping me.
You can help me a great deal."

Her lovely face instantly blazed with eagerness.

"Can I? How?"

"By promising me that, if it comes to a fight, you and your mother will
come out to my ranch. You'd be safer there. That is, of course, unless
you'd prefer to leave Crawling Water altogether."

"Indeed, I shouldn't prefer to leave Crawling Water at this stage of the
game, and"--she smiled reassuringly--"I'm sure we should be safe enough
right here whatever happened. But, if you'd feel better about it, we
would go to the ranch."

"Thanks. I feel better about it already, more free to show my hand. You
are safe enough here now, of course, and might be clear through to the
finish; but cheap whiskey has led many a fairly good man astray."

"If only there were some peaceable way out of it all." Her eyes became
anxious as she thought of what he might have to face. "Can't you
telegraph to Washington, or something?"

"Washington doesn't know whether Crawling Water is in the United States
or in Timbuctoo," Wade laughed. "If we had some one in authority right
here on the ground we might make him understand, but Mahomet will never
come to these mountains, and they can't go to Mahomet. Why, what's the
matter?"

His question was prompted by the sudden elation with which she had
clapped her hands and sprung to her feet.

"How stupid of me, Gordon, to have forgotten." She stood over him with
shining eyes and eager countenance, as lovely as a Lorelei. "There is an
official of the United States Government here at this very moment."

"Here? In Crawling Water?" he exclaimed in amazement. "Who is he?"

"Senator Rexhill, Gordon." Wade stared almost vacuously at her as she
ran on with her news. "He came in with his daughter last night on the
Sheridan stage. Isn't that glorious? You must go up to see him at once."

"I will, of course," Wade said slowly, trying to catch his mental
balance. "And with pleasure, too. It's been a long time since I last saw
either of them."

"You know them--him?" Dorothy hesitated a little over which pronoun to
use, with the so