dings of his daughter, and he had no
intention of letting this young scalawag change his mind.

"Are you sure this Mexican is guilty--sure he's the man who killed yore
son, Mr. Wadley?"

"He's as guilty as hell."

"I don't think it. Hasn't it ever struck you as strange that yore son
was killed an' yore messenger Ridley held up the same night, an' that
the two things happened not many miles from each other?"

"Of course it has. I'm no fool. What of it?"

"I've always thought the same men did both."

"Young fellow, have you ever thought that Ridley never was held up, that
it was a fake robbery pulled off to deceive me? Where is Ridley? He lit
out mighty sudden when he saw how I took it. He couldn't even tell me
where the hold-up happened. I never did hit the trail of the robbers."

"It wasn't a fake. I can prove that."

"I'm here to be shown," said the cattleman skeptically.

"But first about Tony. It looks bad for him on the surface. I'll admit
that. But--"

"Don't talk to me about my boy's murderer, Roberts!" cried Wadley,
flushing angrily. "I'll not do a thing for him. I'll help those that aim
to do justice on him."

"He didn't kill yore son."

"What! Didn't you arrest him yoreself for it?"

"When I arrested him, I didn't believe he had done it. I know it now.
He's my star witness, an' I knew he would skip across the border if I
let him out."

"You can't convince me, but let's hear yore fairy tale. I got to listen,
I reckon."

Jack told his story in few words. He explained what he had found at the
scene of the murder and how he had picked up the trail of the three
horsemen who had followed Rutherford to the place of his death. He had
back-tracked to the camp of the rendezvous at the rim-rock, and he had
found there corroborative evidence of the statement Tony Alviro had made
to him.

"What was it he told you, and what did you find?"

The big cattleman looked at him with a suspicion that was akin to
hostility. His son had been a ne'er-do-well. In his heart Wadley was
not sure he had not been worse. But he was ready to fight at the drop of
the hat any man who dared suggest it. He did not want to listen to any
evidence that would lead him to believe ill of the son who had gone
wrong.

"Tony admits all the evidence against him. He did follow Rutherford
intendin' to kill him. But when he saw yore son strike straight across
country to the cap-rock, he trailed him to see where he was goin'.
Alviro had