The Mesa Trail

p, Gilbert, and Lewis. In the ordinary course of events, Thady Shea would have encountered them in th

ed the store and post office at No Agua to stop Thady Shea. No Agua was the jumping-off place at the edge of the

ed for a Sunday holiday. Shea needed no information upon the subject of his reception. He had previously observed the telephone wires and had drawn his own conc

found his path barred by mounted men, he opened up the throttle wide, shut his eyes, and gripped hard to the wheel. General opinion was that the fir

n to bore its way, things happened. The steam seared into a big mule, and the mule instantly began to plunge and kick. Two horses went down and the flivver climbed over them and their rider

lunging in all directions. With a sigh of relief Thady Shea found that he was still going forward; so, in order to avoid the bullets that

, Shea went plunging off through the sand, winding his way past huge, eroded masses and amid weird pinnacles of wind-bl

oing. Shea climbed rocky masses, shoved through sand, rolled over jutty fields of volcanic rock, and when the afternoon was half gone, came upon automobile tr

n, it was deserted. Upon the door of the shack which Mr

We are pinched but not for long. My

. CR

k and began to wash the dried blood from

ought grimly, as a forlorn hope, a desperate chance that Thady Shea might yet save the day. Mrs. Crump had not

nced quickly around. The sound of his

had he mantled himself in the braggadocio rhetoric and rounded phrases of The Profession, that he could not rid himself of the bluff which had bolstered up his years of

his face and head were much cut about by hard knuckles. Also, he had not eaten since the previous night, and hun

re puncheon stools; in the lean-to adjoining was the kitchen, consisting of a small sheet-iron stove, frying pan, and a kettle. And yet, about this primitive bareness Mrs. Crump had contrived to throw a fragrance of femininity-a rag of curtain to the unglazed window, a faded photograph of the late departed Crump,

Crump, doomed to live in such a place, destitute of all things her woman's heart

s brown and hard as wood. Trying to get the beans warmed throughout, he forgot to stir them until unpleasantly reminded of his remissness. H

upon the empurpled masses of the mountains that were piled int

. He could not remember having fired a revolver in all his life, except with stag

rest him. He did not intend to leave Number Sixteen until it was safe to do so; until he was certain the place was secure. Therefore, if any officers appeared, a fight m

eck upon the shoals of self. Once let my reparation be established, and I shall go forth into

ff, smiling at h

joy that frightened him, so primitive and sweeping was it. He had fought with men-had conquered them! In a measure he was done with all self-re

et. al. were not desirous of getting into court unless they had an ironclad hold upon the other fellow; this was proven by Mrs. Crump's having "shot up" Dorales with impu

d try to get him-how? No matter. Here was another reason why he must leave Number Sixteen.

ed out his pipe and sought his bunk. He was not so ill pleased with

had no idea of how the vein or veins of strontianite should be worked. There was little to do about the cabin. So he climbed the long ho

t; that he was not to be arrested. So convinced of this was he, that when, toward sunset, he discerned

o think that she would kick him out; still, he felt that he had been false to her trust, and as a part of his penance he must go away, until he might be able to com

Crump aboard. He saw only three men in the car, and he knew none of them. Two in the rear seat were evidently natives; from the dirty and heavil

previously made out the motionless figure of Thady Shea on the hillside above, waved

an was powerfully built, roughly dressed, and posses

nk smile. "My name's Logan, Tom Logan. We got lost over in the lava beds and struck y

nd gravely

beyond the halted car. "You see that big rock down the valley?

look. That word "valley"

r? You're n

not become me," returned Shea, hi

all free coun

welcome to water and food if your needs be such, and I am fain of

something in the patois, to which the two natives waved assent. They turned their car and took it to the rock

I presume?" he inquired.

f warming to the

, sir, i

. They say you cleaned up Aimes and his crowd for giving you a drink, and that you threatened to do worse to any man who offered you one again

teely eyes and coarse black hair, but he did like applause. He took the stranger down

ons about Number Sixteen, but he formed the private opinion that Thady Shea was earnest, upright, and a simp

heir third pipe

'you know, Shea, the old prospecting business is changed? Yes, it is. Nowadays two thirds of the prosp

er strontium. It comes in two forms, celestite and strontianite. Celestite brings about twenty dollars a ton at seaboard; but strontianite, w

stars, holds in its deep heart veins of mineral; and in those veins, my

ver this for a

ean that you've got

added with frankness, that while he held a third

nd set them forth, telling what he knew of the veins. The interest of the visitor grew and waxed e

he veins and so forth run as you describe them, accept ten

er came like a thunder

not a large offer, but it would be a year or more before you'd begin to pull money out of the property. Say yes, and I'll examine the location to-

rom the influence of this man's personality. H

r," he said, unste

out the papers, eh? We're not the kind of m

g stars. What a sum to turn over to Mrs. Crump upon leaving! With that sum, Mrs. Crump could at once begin development work, independe

tion with Number Sixteen; he had not mentally placed his partnership with Mrs. Crump upon any financial basis. It was because of this very simplicity of thought that Mrs. Crump had felt drawn to him. It was becaus

rd at the stars, lost in his dream. The rocky mass shut off from him the flickering fire, built by Logan's native com

ad Thady Shea visioned so much money all in

Back in the shack, under the oil lamp, Logan was already chuckling over the cleverly drawn papers which would make him the sole owner of Number Sixte