"This is the queerest hold-up of which I ever heard," I remarked
to Miss Cullen.

"Aw, in what respect?" asked Albert Cullen's voice, and, looking
up, I found that he and quite a number of the passengers had
joined us.

"The road agents make us dump our fire," I said, "and yet they
haven't cut the wires in either direction. I can't see how they
can escape us."

"What fun!" cried Miss Cullen.

"I don't see what difference either makes in their chance of
escaping," said Lord Ralles.

While he was speaking, I ticked off the news of our being held
up, and asked the agent if there had been any men about Sanders,
or if he had seen any one board the train there. His answer was
positive that no one could have done so, and that settled it as
to Sanders. I asked the same questions of Allantown and Wingate,
which were the only places we had stopped at after leaving
Coolidge, getting the same answers. That eight men could have
remained concealed on any of the platforms from that point was
impossible, and I began to suspect magic. Then I called Coolidge,
and told of the holding up, after which I telegraphed the agent
at Navajo Springs to notify the commander at Fort Defiance, for I
suspected the road agents would make for the Navajo reservation.
Finally I called Flagstaff as I had Coolidge, directed that the
authorities be notified of the facts, and ordered an extra to
bring out the sheriff and posse.

"I don't think," said Miss Cullen, "that I am a bit more curious
than most people, but it has nearly made me frantic to have you
tick away on that little machine and hear it tick back, and not
understand a word."

After that I had to tell her what I had said and learned.

"How clever of you to think of counting the tickets and finding
out where people got on and off! I never should have thought of
either," she said.

"It hasn't helped me much," I laughed, rather grimly, "except to
eliminate every possible clue."

"They probably did steal on at one of the stops," suggested a
passenger.

I shook my head. "There isn't a stick of timber nor a place of
concealment on these alkali plains," I replied, "and it was
bright moonlight till an hour ago. It would be hard enough for
one man to get within a mile of the station without being seen,
and it would be impossible for seven or eight."

"How do you know the number?" asked a passenger.

"I don't," I said. "That's the number the crew think there were;
but I myself don't b