Tex""

et toward Carney's. As he passed Williams' stable he heard hammering, and

g them he nodded at the door. "Tryin' to fasten that lock so it'll do some good. It must 'a' been forced off more'n onc

t of the plank and the in-letting of a new piece in its pl

do right next to th' door." He examined the wood. "Huh; them splits were made when th' wood was tough--it wouldn't split as dead as it is now: th' nails would just pull out. So you see it was done

man, glancing curiously at his companio

odded. "Reckon I'll have to go around a

so drunk he'll give you strychnine instead. Why don't you go up to Williams' store? He

hat you talkin' about? He ain't runnin' no drug-

did sell strychnine to th' ranchers, for coyotes an' wolves--though I ain't never heard it said that any wolves was ever poisoned. Sometimes they do get a coyote--but not no wolves. They've been hunted so hard they just about know as much as th' hunters." He stepped forward and

hat the pressure from being pushed inward would not work against it very much; but the receptacle, the keystone of the door'

gh," he said. "Ha

moment they were smiling across Carne

asked Tex when the

table boys went to Europe last night an' won't be back t

o it myself,"

?" queried Car

," retorted Tex, a sli

rejoined. "That goes for every kind, too. Nice gal, s

ight into the eyes of the proprietor; "th

yin', you'll find both hosses ready for sad

oys later," he said, going out. In a few minutes they saw him ride past on a nettle

re glistens,"

ved. "They sit a saddle like they'd growed there. An'," he cogitated, "beats all how touchy some of 'em are. I c

trail which he knew led to the C Bar, and after he had put a few miles behind him he took a package from his

me in a moment," she invited, stepping aside. "This coffee is hardly cool enough to be put into the bottl

he replied. "Gaited as

s glance. "Then you've ridd

elessly. "She hasn't been out of the stable for two weeks. We had a nice

own a blackened tin pail from a hook over the stove and, picking up the bottles and the lunch, went out

noying, bobbing up and down at every step," he observed. "Why no

accustomed to it

o wear it

y that," s

rprise is a great factor, because what is known can be guarded ag

carry it: you have too much without taking it. Frankly, I'm amused by your suggestion that I learn to use it, by Jerry's earnestn

some of them, even if less than its proportionate share; and this town of Windsor was not overlooked in their distribution. I know of no particular reason why you should learn the use of a revolver; but we are dealing with generalities. They suffice. With the odds a hundred to one that you never will have need to call upon knowledge of firearms, why refuse that knowledge when it is so easily acquired; and when the acquirement not only will be a pleasure but will lead to further pleasures? Shooting

successfully, Mr. Jones," she said smiling. "

n inside her waist and hung the belt

wn. She was about to speak of the direction when she decided to keep silent, and, glancing sidewise at him, smiled to herself at his easy assurance and rather liked his open defianc

ve a day's freedom," she e

d around does get tiresome, I suspect. Well," he laughed, "the fences

an enigma? I'm curious to know what's going on in your head," she

s. "Why allow yourself to be disappointed?" he asked. "Illusions have their worth; and a mystery solved loses its interest. As a matter of fact, t

es

little mouse," he explained. "And except

s country; but I fear it is a very great illusion. Like the

d for the soul, an

miners stopped their words to stare open-mouthed at the two riders nonchalantly jogging their way. The door of the hotel b

her companion and felt a quick admiration for him. She could imagine Tommy under these conditions. For all she could detect, her companion might have been riding across the uninhabited plains with no observing eyes w

ght, despite the scarcity of even the skins of the nobler beasts. The dual combination does not end there, however; there are jackals in lobos' hides, and vultures posing as eagles. Even the lowly skunk has found a braver skin and bids for a reputation sweeter to bear than the one earned by his own

h, gasped that she never had enjoyed such an opportu

ed," he explained; "but the skunk fools no one for one instant, not even himse

Jane, her face r

rrett, when that person awakened from a stupor acquired by po

nt off into another fit of laughter. "Omar Khayyam! I

tavern door agape," a

uddenly Tex touched his companion's arm, both reining in abruptly. Squarely in the middle of the trail was

vulsion sweeping over her. "What a

e found one of his chief enemies. There he lies, for all to see, his gauntlet thrown, whirring his determination to defend himself, and to depart if given a chance. Look at those coils, their grace and power, not an ungainly movement the whole length of him. Look at his markings--from the freshness of his skin and its vivid coloration I'd say he has very recently parted

pointed to a track alon

hough, and if a wolf he's a lobo, the gray buffalo wolf, cunning as Satan and brave as Hector. And what a killer! No carrion for him, no meat killed by anyone but himself, and usually he's shy about returning to that. He creates havo

e," said Jane. "You make him out

arp angle, but the lobo's is held straight out. A single wolf is more expensive to ranchers now than he once was, because he has been hunted so hard with traps and poison that he now has learned not to eat dead animals, and in some cases even to ignore his own kill after once he has left it. I've heard of severa

mpanion had to tell her. When the pistol was emptied the can was still untouched. Laughing, Tex

e the four lines, would have hit a man at that distance. I'd say you hit his stomach with the third shot, and his right shoulder with the other. The can is of no moment, for cans are not dangerous; but when I show you how to reload, I want you to aim at the can, as if it were the buckle of a belt. You

port. When she had made four out of five in the marked-off space she was greatly elated

e main thing is not the shooting, but the freedom from fear of weapons and knowing how to use them. There is nothing mysterious about a Colt--it won't blow up, or shoot behind. Whatever timidity you may have had about handling one has been overcome, and in a few minutes you have learned to hold it rig

tt to his hip and sent six shots at the crimson target. Stepping from the smoke cloud he advanced and examined the can. One bullet had clipped its u

d the target I had in mind. Had I shot as quickly as I could, I might have missed the target altogether, but cl

mean to tell me that anyone can do better than that, from t

pend their time and cartridges painting the lily. Either Johnny or Hopalong would feel quite chagrined if at least five hadn't cut into the can. You should see them shooting against each other, breaking matches to get the exact measurements and arguing

man could defeat

e crowd to make a play would die. To some people martyrdom has a morbidly pleasant appeal as an abstract proposition; but in a concrete state, where the suffering is not vicarious, it really has few devotees. And here is a psychological fact: every man in the front rank of such a crowd is fully convinced that he has been s

other hand at a can? Somehow I felt that the snake was killed by ac

stake causes; but, on the other hand, there is not the high-tension signals to the muscles. Watch closely," and the jarring crashes sounded like a loud ripping. O

rful! Oh, if I ever could shoot like that! I don't believe those friends can even equal it, and I d

-nine men out of a hundred in firing the first shot. That is what counts with a gun-fighter. His target is almost any place between the belt and the shoulders. If he strikes there and does not kill his man he will have time for a second shot if it is needed. My left hand is as deadly as my right against a living target so far as accuracy is concerned; but pit it against my right and it would

lly. "I did not fully appreciate his words; but the graphic exposition lacks nothi

West for twenty years, seeing it at its best and at its worst--and you simply cannot conceive what that worst is. I have met many Gus Williamses and Jakes and Bud Haineses and Henry Williamses. They are almost a distinct variation of the human species; they are a recognized and classified type. I knew them all as soon as I saw them. Bud Haines is a natural killer. He'd kill a man at a nod from the man who hired him. Gus Williams hires him, knowin

w to me?" demanded Jane, her chee

with the others, while giving examples of a detestable type and to explain why

and to no avail. He cannot pick and choose; and I must stand by him, no matter where he goes, or what he does. Is there mercy in heaven, is there justice in God, that we should be so circumscribed, fo

ave been taught to believe in a Divine Power, then don't you turn away from it. To say there is no God is to be as dogmatic as to say there is; for every reasoning being must admit a First Cause. It is only when we characterize it, and attempt to give It attributes that differences o

ou read

pencer tear

amiliar wi

s is the greatest mind humanity ever produced--but,

she said. "You admire

housands of others, we will say, were struck from one die. You and I would say that they are identical, especially after the most thorough and minute examination failed to disclose any differences. I

is any difference?" she ch

k off from it, for to say otherwise is to claim that effects are not produced by causes, and that a changed die will not make changed coins. Therefore, there are no two coins absolutely alike, never have been, and never can be, even at the moment they leave the die. Put them into circulation and the hypothetical differences rapidly increase, since no two of the coins can possibly receive the same treatment in their travelings. There you have it, in pure logic: but does it get you any place? On the strength of it, would you persist in denyi

s I want to watch you in camp, and to listen to you. It seems to me that

l not spoil its effect by saying it. Anyhow, a fair vocabulary and a veneer of knowledge are not the measures of wisdom, but rather a disguising coat. To come right down to elementals, I heartil

g in the memory of Tex Ewalt. The food, better cooked and far more daintily prepared than any he could recall, tasted doubly good in the presence of his intelligent, good-looking companion. The subjects of their interested discussions were wide in range and neither very long maintained a certain restraint which had characterized their earlier conver

" called Tommy Watkins, gazing a

himself in hand and crushed the feeling of jealousy which tingled in him and threatened to show itself in words, looks, and actions. He looked inquiringly at his companion and at her slight nod, he beckon

you hadn't been around so far as they knew, so I had my hasty ride f

le there was more to eat, although I'll confess that I am not apologizing for my share of the havoc. It has been a long

ex. "It's like the men who work hard and save all their lives, so that some

nd embarrassed, as he dropped onto the spo

cuse enough for any man to drink out of the pail, and I envy you there, Tommy Watkins. Cattle gettin' along all right in sp

h fluent ease on any subject mentioned. Jane Saunders learned more about cows, cattle, steers, calves, cows, cattle, riding, roping, round-ups, branding, cows, calves, horses, cattle, and other ranch subjects than she thought existed t

sence of cynicism, and an unbounding faith in the future. He hid his smile at how Tommy was led to talk of himself and of his ambitions. They looked to be about the same

had such a thing been an impelling motive in the life of Tex Ewalt. Instead he had planned shrewdly and consistently how to avoid working for a living, and when it was solved, then how to live higher and higher with the least additional effort. And he now admitted that if he had the chance to live that period over again, under the same circumstances, he would repeat his course in the major things. He felt neither regret nor remorse at the contrast--he had lived as it ple

ast enough to keep his nasty little eyes on th' other, that's racin' around him like a flash. That's th' end of th' rattler. Th' ki

anxious Tommy. He gravely nodded. "Yes that's th' end. That's the enemy with

face and a nebulous smile transfo

nto an everlasting passion by the alchemy of his avowal, or the touch of his lips. The lulled storm within him broke out anew and blazed fiercely. He arose, kicked an inoffensive tin can over the bed of the creek and spun it

tin', Tex!"

d. "She is learning to use a gun, Tommy--I've been telling her how much fun it is. I'll call th' shots whil

y. "Who's goin' to do th

rs," answere

p my hat," offered Tommy; "But no

r. Jones!" triumphantly excl

his head. "I'd say he is not paying you any compl

and placed the hat against the opposite bank. Stepping off twenty paces he drew a li

to get it, or it'll get you. Don't be careless, and don'

t," she protested. "Surely

you can," chuckled Tommy. "D

for a new hat!" Slowly, deliberately, holding her arm as she had been instructed, she aimed and fired unti

for a new target! Why that's plumb fine

r another round of cartridges. "Here!" he exclai

ed the puncher over his should

it belongs," rejoined Tex. "I didn't s