tools on a wildcat test for Crawford two years ago when
he first begun to plunge in oil. Built derricks for a while. Ran a drill.
Dug sump holes. Shot a coupla wells. Went in with a fellow on a star rig
as pardner. Went busted and took Crawford's offer to be handy man for
him. Tha's about all, except that I own stock in two-three dead ones and
some that ain't come to life yet."

The road was full of chuck holes and very dusty, both faults due to the
heavy travel that went over it day and night. They were in the oil field
now and gaunt derricks tapered to the sky to right and left of them.
Occasionally Dave could hear the kick of an engine or could see a big
beam pumping.

"I suppose most of the D Bar Lazy R boys have got into oil some,"
suggested Sanders.

"Every man, woman, and kid around is in oil neck deep," Bob answered.
"Malapi's gone oil crazy. Folks are tradin' and speculatin' in stock
and royalty rights that never could amount to a hill o' beans. Slick
promoters are gettin' rich. I've known photographers to fake gushers in
their dark-rooms. The country's full of abandoned wells of busted
companies. Oil is a big man's game. It takes capital to operate. I'll
bet it ain't onct in a dozen times an investor gets a square run for
his white alley, at that."

"There are crooks in every game."

"Sure, but oil's so darned temptin' to a crook. All the suckers are
shovin' money at a promoter. They don't ask his capitalization or
investigate his field. Lots o' promoters would hate like Sam Hill to
strike oil. If they did they'd have to take care of it. That's a lot
of trouble. They can make more organizin' a new company and rakin' in
money from new investors."

Bob swung the team from the main road and put it at a long rise.

"There ain't nothin' easier than to drop money into a hole in the
ground and call it an oil well," he went on. "Even if the proposition
is absolutely on the level, the chances are all against the investor.
It's a fifty-to-one shot. Tools are lost, the casin' collapses, the cable
breaks, money gives out, shootin' is badly done, water filters in, or oil
ain't there in payin' quantities. In a coupla years you can buy a deskful
of no-good stock for a dollar Mex."

"Then why is everybody in it?"

"We've all been bit by this get-rich-quick bug. If you hit it right in
oil you can wear all the diamonds you've a mind to. That's part of it,
but it ain't all. The West always did like to take a chance, I