t more of his money than
most men do of their wives. It was about all he lived for, and he
wasn't any coward. That old man never would get it off him without a
big ruction, and if he did, Dan would be right after him bigger'n a
wolf. There's something wrong, you take my word."

"What do yuh want us to do about it?" It was Chip who asked the
question, and his tone was quite calm and impersonal.

Andy looked at him reproachfully. "Do? What is there to do, except go
down there and see? If we can find that out, we can put the sheriff
wise and let him do the rest. It sure does seem kinda tough, if a man
can do a murder and robbery and get off with it, just because nobody
cares enough about it to head him off."

The Happy Family stirred uneasily. Of course, it was all just a josh
of Andy's--but he was such a convincing liar! Almost they felt guilty
of criminal negligence that they did not at once saddle up and give
chase to the murderer, who had tried to kill Andy for following him,
and who was headed for Chinook after unnecessarily proclaiming himself
bound for Dry Lake.

"Do you want the whole outfit to turn out?" asked Chip calmly at last.

"No-o--"

"Say, is it anywheres near that prehistoric castle you found once?"
Ping asked maliciously, unbelief getting strong hold of him again.

Andy turned toward him, scowling. "No, Angel-child, it ain't," he
snapped. "And you fellows can back up and snort all yuh darn please,
and make idiots of yourselves. But yuh can't do any business making me
out a hot-air peddler on _this_ deal. I stand pat, just where I stood
at first, and it'll take a lot uh cackling to make me back down. That
old devil _did_ lie about Dan, and he did take a shot at me--"

"He took yuh for a horse-thief, most likely," explained Jack Bates.

"He didn't need no field glass to see you was a suspicious character,
by golly," chortled Slim.

"He thought yuh was after what little your friend Dan had overlooked,
chances is," added Cal Emmett.

"Did the fog roll down and hide the horrible sight?" asked Jack Bates.

That, and much more, brought about a distinct coldness between the
Happy Family and one Andy Green, so that the sun went down upon Andy's
wrath, and rose to find it still bubbling hotly in the outraged heart
of him.

It was Jack Bates who precipitated an open war by singing an adapted
version of "Massa's In the Cold, Cold Ground," just when they were
eating breakfast. As an alleged musical ef