ed long enough to get Ernest's rifle out of
his trunk. By the time he had loaded it, after searching frantically
several minutes for the box of cartridges, Von Minden and his little
burro were far beyond rifle shot.

Roger started after them, hot foot, swearing viciously as he ran. As he
saw the little German turn into the ranch trail a sudden fear for the
two girls mingled with his anger. But Von Minden did not stop at the
ranch house. As Roger reached the alfalfa field, burro and man veered to
the right, around the adobe and rapidly on up the mountain trail, where
they were quickly lost to view.

Roger saw Charley come hastily out of the house, followed by Felicia and
when, panting and shaken with rage, he reached the house, they were
still looking curiously toward the mountain trail.

"What's the trouble, Roger?" called Charley.

"He shot at me, the damned hound! Tried to kill me!"

He would have passed on up the mountain trail, but Charley had hurried
down the trail and interrupted him quietly, with a steady hand on his
arm.

"It's only Crazy Dutch!" she said. "You mustn't mind him!"

"Mind him!" shouted Roger. "I tell you he tried to kill me."

"You should have kept his gun for him until he was ready to go. That's
what we always do. And as for his taking a pot shot at you, why, that's
all in the day's work in this part of the country."

She smiled as she spoke, looking levelly into his eyes from her splendid
height. Felicia caught his sleeve.

"We were coming down to call on you, Roger, and now you've spoiled it,"
she said.

"Sit down on the steps and cool off a little," suggested Charley. "You
know you can always kill Crazy Dutch if you want to. He's always around.
He's really a dear old man when you come to know him. He's helped me out
here many a time when Dick's been sick or away." She was smiling still
more broadly as she led Roger to the steps. He felt as if he were being
hypnotized.

"But he tried to kill me," he repeated feebly, as Charley stood his
rifle in a corner of the porch and sent Felicia for a cup of water.

"Poor child! Did he try to kill you?" Charley patted his arm as if he
were a small boy. "Sit down in the shade here. I know you think we're
all crazy down here and I guess we are. But you'll get fond of poor
Crazy Dutch yourself. Dick loves him and he tried to shoot Dicky, when
they first knew each other."

The red mist cleared suddenly from Roger's vision. He drank deeply of