bout a hundred and
fifty in the shade. I went till I was fit to drop, then looked round and
saw Don Fatty right close. I hadn't invited him to my party, so I
cracked away at him with my gun."

"And you killed him," Jimmie breathed, his eyes popping out.

"Killed nothing," answered the Arizonian in disgust. "I missed him a
mile, but he was so plumb discouraged with the heat and with running his
laigs off that he up and laid down and handed in his checks. He's the
only Spaniard I've got to my credit and Mr. Blythe here always claimed
half of him because he ran faster."

"You're kidding me," announced Jimmie promptly.

"Well, I've always had a kind a suspicion myself that mebbe he had just
fainted. But I like to figure it out that I destroyed one of my
country's enemies that day, with a leetle help from my friend here."

While Yeager was joyously fabricating this yarn Blythe had been writing
on the back of an envelope. This he now shoved quietly across to me.

He's as well-plucked as they make them, Jack--and straight as a
string. Want to make him a proposition to join us?

Those were the lines he had penciled on the envelope. Beneath them I
wrote two words: "Suits me."

Jimmie's mother had consented to let him go on with us. Now I took him
away to get some necessary wearing apparel, leaving Blythe to make a
proposition to Yeager.

"Your mother says I'm in full charge of you. That means I'm to lick you
whenever you need it," I told Jimmie, for I had already discovered that
my young sleuth needed considerable repressing from time to time.

"Yes, sir. I'll do whatever you say," agreed Young America, who was long
since over his seasickness and was again eager for the voyage.

The Englishman nodded when I saw him an hour later.

"Tom's in with us."

"He understands this ain't a pleasure excursion, doesn't he?" I asked.

"Folks take their pleasure different, Mr. Sedgwick," drawled the cowman.
"I shouldn't wonder but I might enjoy this little cruise even if it gets
lively."

"My opinion is that it may get as lively as one of your own broncos," I
explained.

"I'll certainly hope for the worst," he commented.

I turned Jimmie over to my friends and spent the afternoon with a
college classmate who was doing newspaper work on the _Herald_. In
looking up a third man who also had belonged to our fraternity, time
slipped away faster than we had noticed. It was getting along toward
sunset when I separated