d deal of
a bully, six feet tall, a good rider--though, not so good a rider as
his dad--a good shot, willing to help gather that million together on
the chance that he might have a share in the spending.

Al was a youth who hunted trouble for the thrill of meeting it more
than half-way, but since Tom Lorrigan happened to be his father, Al
rode off the Devil's Tooth ranch before he became the rampant young
trouble-hunter. Belle had some anxious hours during the time Al was
gone, but she never once betrayed her anxiety; which is doing pretty
well for a mother.

The second was Marmaduke LeRoy, and the third and last she recklessly
christened Lancelot Montgomery. Marmaduke never learned to spell his
name correctly, and sometimes complained that Belle had gone and named
him after a mess of preserves,--meaning marmalade, I suppose. But as
he grew older he forgot his grievance. Belle was the only person who
could remember offhand his full name, and she never called him by it
except when she was very angry; when she usually attached so many
adjectives that Marmaduke LeRoy was quite submerged. Commonly he was
called Duke, which did well enough.

Tom used to study Duke through half-closed lids and the smoke of a
cigarette, and wonder which side of the family had a yellow streak;
not the Lorrigan side, so far as Tom could judge. Nor the Delavan
side either, if Belle lived true to type. To be sure, Belle refused to
ride a horse; but then Belle was a woman and women had whims. There
was no yellow about Belle, except her hair which was pure golden.

Duke would invariably lie to dodge punishment. According to his own
theory, Duke was always blameless, always the injured party, the boy
who does right and never is given credit for his virtues. Even Belle,
who would fight for her boys as a tigress fights for its young, looked
askance at Duke while she tried, motherlike, to cover his faults from
the keen eyes of Tom.

"I'd just like to know how you come by it," she once exclaimed
exasperatedly, when Duke was ten and Lance eight. "I'd sure chop one
limb off the family tree, if I knew which one gave you the gall to lie
to me and Tom. Duke, for heaven's sake take a licking just once
without trying to lay the blame on Al or Lance--and see how proud
you'll feel afterwards!"

"Aw--lickins hur-rt!" Duke had protested, rubbing the arm Belle had
gripped none too gently, and sidled away from her.

With her hands to her hips--gracefully pos