ll, Gentle Stranger," sang out the power man, "what jungle have you
been lurking in? I laboured in about three and went all over the works
looking for you."

"I've been over watching the ranger examinations at their headquarters,"
said Bob. "It's pretty good fun."

Baker leaned forward.

"Have you heard the latest dope?" he demanded.

"What sort?"

"They're trying to soak us, now. Want to charge us so much per horse
power! Now _what_ do you think of that!"

"Can't you pay it?" asked Bob.

"Great guns! Why _should_ we pay it?" demanded Baker. "It's the public
domain, isn't it? First they take away the settler's right to take up
public land in his own state, and now they want to _charge_, actually
_charge_ the public for what's its own."

But Bob, a new light shining in his eyes, refused to become heated.

"Well," he asked deliberately, "who _is_ the public, anyhow?"

Baker stared at him, one chubby hand on each fat knee.

"Why, everybody," said he; "the people who can make use of it. You and I
and the other fellow."

"Especially the other fellow," put in Bob drily.

Baker chuckled.

"It's like any business," said he. "First-come collect at the ticket
office for his business foresight. But we'll try out this hold-up before
we lie down and roll over."

"Why shouldn't you pay?" demanded Bob again. "You get your value, don't
you? The Forest Service protects your watershed, and that's where you
get your water. Why shouldn't you pay for that service, just the same as
you pay for a night watchman at your works?"

"Watershed!" snorted Baker. "Rot! If every stick of timber was cleaned
off these mountains, I'd get the water just the same."[A]

"Baker," said Bob to this. "You go and take a long, long look at your
bathroom sponge in action, and then come back and I'll talk to you."

Baker contemplated his friend for a full ten seconds. Then his fat,
pugnacious face wrinkled into a grin.

"Stung on the ear by a wasp!" he cried, with a great shout of
appreciation. "You merry, merry little josher! You had me going for
about five minutes."

Bob let it go at that.

"I suppose you won't be able to pay over twenty per cent. this next
year, then?" he inquired, with an amused expression.

"Twenty per cent.!" cried Baker rolling his eyes up. "It's as much as I
can do to dig up for improvements and bond interest and the preferred."

"Not to mention the president's salary," amended Bob.

"But I've got 'em where th