as got nigh onto two thousand
head, but they's about twenty of us poor devils livin' up here in the
rocks that has got enough irons and ear marks to fill a brand book,
and not a thousand head among us.

"Well, I started out to show you the country, didn't I? You see that
bluff back of the house down there? That runs from here clean to the
Four Peaks without a break, and then it swings west in a kind of an ox
bow and makes that long ridge up there to the north that we called the
Juate. All that high country between our house here and the
Peaks--everythin' east of that long bluff--is Bronco Mesa. That's the
upper range the judge asked me to point out to you. Everythin' west of
Bronco Mesa is The Rolls--all them rollin' hills out there--and they's
feed enough out there to keep all the sheep in the country, twice
over--but no water. Now what makes us cowmen hot is, after we've give
'em that country and welcome, the sheepmen're all the time tryin' to
sneak in on our upper range. Our cows can't hardly make a livin'
walkin' ten or fifteen miles out on The Rolls every day, and then back
again to water; but them dam' sheep can go a week without drinkin',
and as much as a month in the winter-time.

"Why can't they give us a chanst, then? We _give_ 'em all the good
level land and simply ask 'em as a favor to please keep off of the
bench up there and leave our cows what little cactus and browse they
is. But no--seems like as soon as you give one of them Chihuahua
Mexicans a gun he wants to git a fight out of somebody, and so they
come crowdin' in across our dead line, just to see if they can't git
some of us goin'."

Once more his eyes were burning, his breath came hard, and his voice
became high and sustained. "Well, I give one of 'em all he wanted," he
said, "and more. I took his dam' pistol away and beat him over the
head with it--and I _moved_ him, too. He was Jasper Swope's pet, and I
reckon he had his orders, but I noticed the rest went round."

He stopped abruptly and sat silent, twisting his horse's mane
uneasily. Then he looked up, smiling curiously.

"If you hadn't come up this year I would've killed some of them
fellers," he said quietly. "I'm gittin' as crazy as old Bill
Johnson--and he hears voices. But now lookee here, Rufe, you don't
want to believe a word I say about this trouble. Don't you pay any
attention to me; I'm bughouse, and I know it. Jest don't mention sheep
to me and I'll be as happy as an Injun on