he remuda had bedded
down; and having at last reached a decision she fell asleep with the
crooning voice of the nighthawk drifting to her ears.

V

It seemed but a few fleeting moments before Waddles's voice roused her.

"Roll out!" he bawled. "Feet in the trough!"

There was instant activity, the jingle of belts and spurs and in five
minutes every man was fully clothed and splashing at the creek. It was
showing rose and gray in the east when the meal was finished and the
cook's voice was once more raised.

"All set! Ru-un-n 'em in!" he called, and there came the rumble of
hoofs as the nighthawk acted on this order and headed the remuda toward
the wagon. Two men mounted the horses that had been picketed close at
hand throughout the night and stationed themselves on either side of
the open end of the rope corral to guide the horse herd into it.

The horses could not be seen until almost upon them, looming suddenly
out of the dim gray of early morning and surging into the corral. The
nighthawk and the two men already mounted rode around it, driving back
any horse that showed a disposition to leave the corral by a downward
slash of a doubled rope across his face and ears. The men went in and
scattered through the milling herd, each one watching his chance to put
his noose on a circle horse of his own string.

When most of the men were mounted Billie urged Papoose over near
Harris's horse.

"Do you know how to throw a circle?" she asked.

"After a fashion," he said. "I've bossed one or two in the past."

"Then we'd better be off," she suggested. "Since you're the Three Bar
foreman it's for you to say when."

"I only preempted that job for ten minutes or so," he explained with
evident embarrassment. "You surely didn't think I was trying to boost
myself into the foreman's job for keeps?"

"No," she said. "But you're half-owner--and you can handle men. I'm
giving you free rein to show what you can do."

Harris straightened in his saddle and motioned to the men.

"Let's go!" he ordered, and headed his horse for the left-hand flank of
the valley. They ascended the first slopes, picked a long ridge and
followed it to the crest of the low divide between that valley and the
next.

Harris increased the pace and they swept up-country along the divide at
a steady lope. When traveling or making a long day's ride on a single
horse the cowhand saves his mount and travels always at a trail-trot,
but w