amiably
at his boss.

"I wish you would camp on his trail, Sam. He'll maybe ride somewhere
to-night."

"Yeah. Uh-huh. You bet," acquiesced Sam, and leaned forward a little,
meaning to gallop after Cheyenne.

"Hold on a minute! What did Scotty have to say, Sam?"

"Him? Talk a lot about spotty yearlin' he says is dead. Asking who
kills them calf. Search me, I dunno."

"Hear any talk among the boys about beef rustling?"

"Uh-huh. First I hear is them sour-face asking me who kills them
critter. Me, I dunno."

"If you hear anything about it, Sam, let me know. Scotty thinks we
done it."

"Yeah. Uh-huh. Anybody does something mean, everybody says, 'Damn
Lorrigans done it.' Too much talk in the Black Rim. Talking under
their hats all the time but no liking to fight them Lorrigans. Uh-huh.
They're scared, you bet."

"They'll have something to get scared at, if they ain't careful. I'm
getting tired of it," said Tom gloomily.

"Yeah, you bet!" agreed Sam, his voice all sympathy. Then seeing that
Tom had no immediate intention of saying more, he touched his horse
with his long-shanked spurs and hurried on to "camp on the trail of
Cheyenne."

Tom had nearly reached camp when Duke came pounding up behind him,
coming from the herd. Duke set his horse up, in two jumps slowing from
a gallop to a walk. Tom turned his head but he did not speak. Nor did
Duke wait for questions.

"Dad, we didn't find any hide over by Squaw Butte," he announced
abruptly. "Mel and I hunted every foot of the willows. I saw where a
critter had been killed, all right. There was some scuffed-out tracks
and blood on the ground. But there wasn't any hide. Scotty musta
cached it somewheres."

"Scotty claims he left it where he found it, for evidence," Tom said
gloomily.

"Darned if I'd take the blame for other folks' rustling," Duke
declared. "I wisht he'd of come to me with his tale of woe. I'd a
showed him where to head in, mighty darned sudden. I'd of asked where
was his proof; there's other cow outfits in the Black Rim besides the
Devil's Tooth, I'd tell him. And if he didn't have mighty darned good
evidence, I'd of--"

"Yes, I expect you would of tore the earth up all round him," Tom
interrupted drily. "You boys shore are fighty, all right--with your
faces. What I'm interested in, is whereabouts you and Mel hunted. That
hide wouldn't show up like the Devil's Tooth--understand. And Scotty
was bawling around like a man that's been hurt in t