ent down the line
for assault with intent to kill."

All this talk increased Kauffman's uneasiness, and on the way over to
the jail he again apologized for the trouble they had brought upon him.

"Don't say a word of last night's row to Helen," warned Hanscom. "Throop
promised to keep it from her, and don't consider Kitsong; he can't touch
me till after Carmody is through with me."

The deputy who let them in said that the sheriff was at breakfast--a
fact which was made evident by the savory smell of sausages which
pervaded the entire hall, and a moment later, Throop, hearing their
voices, came to the dining-room door, napkin in hand. "Come in," he
called. "Come in an have a hot cake."

"Thank you, we've had our breakfast," Hanscom replied.

"Oh, well, you can stand a cup of coffee, anyway, and Miss Helen wants
to see you."

The wish to see Helen brought instant change to the ranger's plan.
Putting down his hat, he followed Kauffman into the pleasant sunlit
breakfast-room with a swiftly pounding heart.

Helen, smiling cheerily, rose to meet her stepfather with a lovely air
of concern. "Dear old daddy, how do you feel this morning?"

"Very well indeed," he bravely falsified.

She turned to Hanscom with outstretched hand. "Isn't it glorious this
morning!" she exclaimed, rather than asked.

The sheriff, like the good boomer that he was, interrupted the ranger's
reply. "Oh, we have plenty of mornings like this."

She protested. "Please don't say that! I want to consider this morning
especially fine. I want it to bring us all good luck."

Evidently Throop had kept his promise to Hanscom, for Helen said nothing
of the battle of the night before, and with sudden flare of confidence
the ranger said:

"You're right. This is a wonderful morning, and I believe this trial is
coming out right, but just to be prepared for anything that comes, I
think I'd better get a lawyer to represent you. I don't feel able
properly to defend your interests."

"But you must be there," she quickly answered. "You are the one sure
friend in all this land."

His sensitive face flushed with pleasure, for beneath the frank
expression of her friendship he perceived a deeper note than she had
hitherto expressed, and yet he was less sure of her than ever, for in
ways not easily defined by one as simple as he she had contrived to
accent overnight the alien urban character of her training. She no
longer even remotely suggested the hermit he