"Since when?"

"Since he blew up Murdock's piles."

"Oh, he did that, did he? I suppose he fired Darrell, too?"

"Sure. It was a peach of a scrap."

"Scrap?"

"Yep. That Orde boy is a wonder. He just _ruined_ Roaring Dick."

"He did, did he?" commented Welton. "Well, so long."

He followed Bob down the river trail. At the end of a half-mile he
overtook the young fellow kneeling on a point gazing at a peeled stake
planted at the edge of the river.

"Wish I knew how long this water was going to hold out," he murmured, as
he heard a man pause behind him. "She's dropped two inches by my patent
self-adjusting gauge."

"Young man," said Welton, "are you on the payrolls of this company?"

Bob turned around, then instantly came to his feet.

"Oh, you're here at last, Mr. Welton," he cried in tones of vast relief.

"Answer my question, please."

"What?" asked Bob with an expression of bewilderment.

"Are you on the payrolls of this company?"

"No, sir, of course not. You know that."

"Then what are you doing in charge of this river?"

"Why, don't you see--"

"I see you've destroyed property and let us in for a big damage suit. I
see you've discharged our employees without authority to do so. I see
you're bossing my men and running my drive without the shadow of a
right."

"But something had to be done," expostulated Bob.

"What do you know about river-driving?" broke in Welton. "Not a thing."

"Men who told me did--"

"A bunch of river-hogs," broke in Welton contemptuously. "It strikes me,
young man, that you have the most colossal cheek I've ever heard of."

But Bob faced him squarely.

"Look here," he said decidedly, "I'm technically wrong, and I know it.
But good men told me your measly old drive would hang if it stayed there
two days longer; and I believed them, and I believe them yet. I don't
claim to know anything about river-driving, but here your confounded
drive is well on its way. I kicked that drunk off the river because he
was no good. I took hold here to help you out of a hole, and you're
out."

"But," said Welton, carefully, "don't you see that you took chances on
losing me a lot of property?"

Bob looked up at him a moment wearily.

"From my point of view I have nothing to regret," said he stiffly, and
turned away.

The humorous lines about Welton's eyes had been deepening throughout
this interview.

"That tops it off," said he. "First you get me into trouble; then you
fir