ar, and while one covered the clerk with a revolver the
other had tied and "sacked" him. Two more had gone forward and
done the same to the express agent. Another had climbed over the
tender and ordered the runner to hold up. All this was regular
programme, as I had explained to Miss Cullen, but here had been a
variation which I had never heard of being done, and of which I
couldn't fathom the object. When the train had been stopped, the
man on the tender had ordered the fireman to dump his fire, and
now it was lying in the road-bed and threatening to burn through
the ties; so my first order was to extinguish it, and my second
was to start a new fire and get up steam as quickly as possible.
From all I could learn, there were eight men concerned in the
attempt; and I confess I shook my head in puzzlement why that
number should have allowed themselves to be scared off so easily.

My wonderment grew when I called on the conductor for his
tickets. These showed nothing but two from Albuquerque, one from
Laguna, and four from Coolidge. This latter would have looked
hopeful but for the fact that it was a party of three women and
a man. Going back beyond Lamy didn't give anything, for the
conductor was able to account for every fare as either still in
the train or as having got off at some point. My only conclusion
was that the robbers had sneaked onto the platforms at Sanders;
and I gave the crew a good dressing down for their carelessness.
Of course they insisted it was impossible; but they were bound to
do that.

Going back to 97, I got my telegraph instrument, though I thought
it a waste of time, the road agents being always careful to break
the lines. I told a brakeman to climb the pole and cut a wire.
While he was struggling up, Miss Cullen joined me.

"Do you really expect to catch them?" she asked.

"I shouldn't like to be one of them," I replied.

"But how can you do it?"

"You could understand better, Miss Cullen, if you knew this
country. You see every bit of water is in use by ranches, and
those fellows can't go more than fifty miles without watering. So
we shall have word of them, wherever they go."

"Line cut, Mr. Gordon," came from overhead at this point, making
Miss Cullen jump with surprise.

"What was that?" she asked.

I explained to her, and, after making connections, I called
Sanders. Much to my surprise, the agent responded. I was so
astonished that for a moment I could not believe the fact.