The S Bar Spread
: Kid Wolf Of TexasThe bartender of the La Plata Saloon put a bottle on the bar in front
of the stranger, placing, with an added flourish, a thick-bottomed
whisky glass beside it. This done, he examined the newcomer with an
attentive eye, pretending to polish the bar while doing so.
The man he observed was enough to attract any one's notice, even in the
cosmopolitan cow town of San Felipe. Kid Wolf was worth a second
glan
young man whose face was tanned so dark as to belie his rather long
light hair. He wore a beautiful shirt of fringed buckskin, and his
boots were embellished with the Lone Star of Texas, done in silver.
Two single-action Colts of the old pattern swung low from his beaded
belt.
"Excuse me, sir," said the bartender, "but yore drink?"
"Oh, yes," murmured The Kid, and placed a double eagle on the bar.
"No, yuh've already paid fer it." The bartender nodded at the whisky
glass, still level full of the amber liquor. "I was just wonderin' why
yuh didn't down it."
"Oh, yes," said Kid Wolf again. He picked up the glass between thumb
and forefinger and deliberately emptied it into a handy cuspidor. "I
leave that stuff to mah enemies," he said, smiling. "By the way, can
yo' tell me where I can find a Mistah Mullhall, a Mistah Anton, a
Mistah Lathum, a Mistah Wise, and a Mistah Steve Stacy?"
When the bartender could recover himself, he pointed out a table near
the door.
"Wise an' Lathum an' Anton is right there--playin' monte," he said.
"Stacy an' Mullhall was here this mornin', but I don't see 'em now."
Thanking him, Kid Wolf sauntered away from the bar and approached the
gambling table.
The La Plata Saloon was fairly well patronized, even though it lacked
several hours until nightfall. Kid Wolf had taken the measure of the
loiterers at a glance. Most of them were desperadoes. "Outlaw" was
written over their hard faces, and he wondered if Ma Thomas hadn't been
right about the county's general lawlessness. San Felipe seemed to be
well supplied with gunmen.
The three men at the table, although they were "heeled" with .45s, were
of a different type. They were cowmen first, gunmen afterward. Two
were in their twenties; the other was older.
"I beg yo' pahdon, caballeros," said The Kid softly, as he came up
behind them, "but I wish to talk with yo' in private. Wheah can we go?"
There was something in the Texan's voice and bearing that prevented
questions just then. The trio faced about in surprise. Plainly, they
did not know whether to take Kid Wolf for a friend or for a foe. Like
true Westerners, they were not averse to finding out.
"We can use the back room," said one. "Come on, you fellas."
One of them delayed to make a final bet in the came, then he followed.
At a signal to the bartender, the back room, vacant, save for a dozen
bottles, likewise empty, was thrown open to them.
"Have chairs, gentlemen," The Kid invited, as he carefully closed the
door.
The trio took chairs about the table, looking questioningly at the
stranger. The oldest of them picked up a deck of cards and began to
shuffle them absently. Kid Wolf quietly took his place among the trio.
"Boys," he asked slowly, "do yuh want jobs?"
There was a pause, during which the three punchers exchanged glances.
"Lay yore cards face up, stranger," invited one of them. "We'll
listen, anyway, but----"
"I want yo' to go to work fo' the S Bar," said The Kid crisply.
"That settles that," growled the oldest puncher, after sending a
searching glance at the Texan's face. The others looked amazed. "No.
We've quit the S Bar."
"Who suggested that yo' quit?" The Kid shot at them.
The man at the Texan's right flushed angrily. "I don't see that this
is any of yore business, stranger," he barked.
"Men," said The Kid, and his voice was as chill as steel, "I'm makin'
this my business! Yo're comin' back to work fo' the S Bar!"
"And yo're backin' thet statement up--how?" demanded the oldest cow
hand, suddenly ceasing to toy with the card deck.
"With these," returned Kid Wolf mildly.
The trio stared. The Kid had drawn his twin .45s and laid them on the
table so quickly and so quietly that none of them had seen his arms
move.
"Now, I hope," murmured The Kid, "that yo' rather listen to me talk
than to those. I've only a few words to say. Boys, I was surprised.
I didn't think yo' would be the kind to leave a po' woman like Mrs.
Thomas in the lurch. Men who would do that, would do anything--would
even run cattle into Mexico," he added significantly.
All three men flushed to the roots of their hair.
"Don't think we had anything to do with thet!" exclaimed one.
"We got a right to quit if we want to," put in the oldest with a
defiant look.
"Boys, play square with me and yo' won't be sorry," Kid Wolf told them
earnestly. "I know that all these things happened after yo' left.
Since then, cattle have been rustled and Mr. Thomas has been
murdahed--yo' know that as well as I do. That woman might be yo'
mothah. She needs yo'. What's yo' verdict?"
There was a long silence. The three riders looked like small boys
whose hands had been caught in the cooky jar.
"How much did Majah Stovah pay yo' to quit?" added the Texan suddenly.
The former S Bar men jumped nervously. The man at The Kid's left
gulped.
"Well," he blurted, "we was only gettin' forty-five, and when Stover
offered to double it, and with nothin' to do but lie around, why,
we----"
"Things are changed now," said The Kid gently. "Ma Thomas is alone
now."
"That's right," said the oldest awkwardly. "I suppose we ought to----"
"Ought to!" repeated one of the others, jumping to his feet. "By
George, we will! I ain't the kind to go back on a woman like Mrs.
Thomas. I don't care what yuh others do!"
"That's what I say," chorused his two companions in the same breath.
"I'll show yo' I aim to play fair," Kid Wolf approved. He took a
handful of gold pieces from his pocket and placed them on the table in
a little pile. "This is all I have, but Mrs. Thomas isn't in a
position to pay right now, so heah is yo' first month's wages in
advance."
The three looked at him and gulped. If ever three men were ashamed,
they appeared to be. The old cow-puncher pushed the pile back to The
Kid.
"We ain't takin' it," he mumbled. "Don't get us wrong, partner. We
ain't thet kind. We never would've quit the S Bar if it hadn't been
for Steve Stacy--the foreman. And, of course, things was goin' all
right at the ranch then. Guess it's all our fault, and we're willin'
to right it. We don't know yuh, but yo're O.K., son."
They shook hands warmly. The Kid learned that the oldest of the three
was Anton. Wise was the bow-legged one, and Lathum was freckled and
tall.
"Stacy hadn't better know about this," Lathum decided.
"I was hopin' to get him back," said The Kid.
"No chance. He's in with the major now," spoke up Wise. "So's
Mullhall. Neither of 'em will listen--and they'll make trouble when
they find we're goin' back."
"If yo'-all feel the same way as I do," Kid Wolf drawled as they filed
out of the back room, "they won't have to make trouble. It'll be theah
fo' 'em."
As they approached the bar, Anton clutched The Kid's elbow.
"There's Steve Stacy and Mullhall now," he warned in a low voice.
Stacy and Mullhall were big men, heavily built. Upon seeing the party
emerge from the back room, they pushed away from the bar and came
directly toward Kid Wolf, who was walking in the lead.
"Steve Stacy's the hombre in front," Wise whispered. "Be on yore
guard."
The Kid knew the ex-foreman's type even before he spoke. He was the
loud-mouthed and overbearing kind of waddy--a gunman first and a cowman
afterward. His beefy face was flushed as red as his flannel shirt.
His eyes were fixed boldly on the Texan.
"The barkeeper tells me yuh were inquirin' fer me," he said heavily.
"What's on yore mind?"
Mullhall was directly behind him, insolent of face and bearing. The
two seemed to be paying no attention to the trio of men behind The Kid.
"I was just goin' to offah yo' a chance to come back to the S Bar,"
explained Kid Wolf. "These three caballeros have already signed the
pay roll again."
It was putting up the issue squarely, with no hedging. Both Stacy and
Mullhall darkened with fury.
"What's yore little game? I guess it's about time to put an extra
spoke in yore wheel!" snarled Mullhall, coming forward.
"Who in blazes are you?" sneered Stacy.
"Just call me The Wolf!" The Kid barked. "I'm managin' the S Bar right
now, and if yo' men don't want to be friends, I'll be right glad to
have yo' fo' enemies!"
Mullhall had pressed very close. It was as if the whole thing had been
prearranged. His hands suddenly shot out and seized Kid Wolf's
arms--pinning them tightly.
It was an old and deadly trick. While Mullhall pinioned the Texan,
Steve Stacy planned to draw and shoot him down. The pair had worked
together like the cogwheels of a machine, and all was perfectly timed.
Stacy drew like a flash, cocking his .45 as it left the holster.
The play, however, was not worked fast enough. Kid Wolf was not to be
victimized by such a threadbare ruse. He was too fast, too strong. He
whirled Mullhall about, his left boot went behind Mullhall's legs.
With all his force he threw his weight against him, tearing his arms
free.
Mullhall went backward like a catapult, directly at Stacy. The gun
exploded in the air, and as the slug buzzed into the roof, both
Mullhall and the exforeman went down like bags of meal--a tangled maze
of legs and arms.
"Get up," The Kid drawled. "And get out!"
Kid Wolf had not bothered to draw his guns, but Anton, Wise, and Lathum
had reached for theirs, and they had the angry pair covered. Stacy
changed his mind about whirling his gun on his forefinger as he
recovered it, and sullenly shoved it into its holster.
"We'll get yuh!" snarled Stacy, his furious eyes boring into The Kid's
cool gray ones. "San Felipe is too small to hold both of us!"
"Bueno," said The Kid calmly. "I wish yo' luck--yo'll need it. But
in the meantime--vamose pronto!"
Swearing angrily, the two men obeyed. It seemed the healthiest thing
to do just then. They slunk out like whipped curs, but The Kid knew
their breed.
He would see them again.
"Oh, the wintah's sun is shinin' on the Rio,
I'm ridin' in mah homeland and I find it mighty nice;
Life is big and fine and splendid on the Rio,
With just enough o' trouble fo' the spice!"
If Kid Wolf's improvised song was wanting from a poetical standpoint,
the swinging, lilting manner in which he crooned it made up for its
defects. His tenor rose to the canyon walls, rich and musical.
"Our cake's plumb liable to be overspiced with trouble," Frank Lathum
said with a laugh.
Kid Wolf, with his three newly hired riders, were well on their way to
the S Bar. His companions knew of a short route that would take them
directly to the Thomas hacienda, and they were following a steep-walled
canyon out of the mesa lands to the westward.
"Look!" cried Wise. "Somebody's coming after us!"
They turned and saw a lone horseman riding toward them from the
direction of San Felipe. The rider was astride a fast-pacing Indian
pony and overhauling them rapidly. Since leaving the town, Kid Wolf's
party had been in no hurry, and this had enabled the rider to overtake
them.
"It's Goliday," muttered Anton, shading his weather-beaten eyes with a
brown hand.
"Just who is he?" The Kid drawled.
"I think he's really the hombre behind Major Stover," Wise spoke up.
"He owns the ranch to the north o' the S Bar, and from what I hear,
Stover has been tryin' to buy it fer him."
"Oh," The Kid murmured, "let's wait fo' him then, and heah what he has
to say."
Accordingly, the four men drew up to a halt and wheeled about to face
the oncoming ranchman. They could see him raising his hand in a signal
for them to halt. He came up in a cloud of dust, checked his pony, and
surveyed the little party. His eyes at once sought out Kid Wolf.
Goliday was a man of forty, black-haired and sallow of face. He wore a
black coat and vest over a light-gray shirt. Beneath the former peeped
the ivory handle of a .45.
"Hello," panted the newcomer. "Are you the hombre that caused all the
stir back in San Felipe?"
"What can I do fo' yo'?" asked the Texan briefly.
"Well," said Goliday, "let's be friends. I'll be quite frank. I want
the S Bar. Is it true yo're goin' there to run the place for the old
woman?"
"It is," The Kid told him.
"I'll pay yuh well to let the place alone," offered Goliday after a
pause. "I'll give five thousand cash for the ranch, and if the deal
goes through, why I'm willin' to ante up another thousand to split
between you four.
"I'm a generous man, and it'll pay to have me for a friend. Savvy? As
an enemy I won't be so good. Now, Mr. Wolf, if that's yore name, just
advise Mrs. Thomas to sell right away. Is it a bargain?"
"It's mo' than that," murmured The Kid softly. "It's an insult."
Goliday did not seem to hear this remark. He reached into his vest and
drew out something that glittered in the sun.
"Here's a hundred and twenty to bind the bargain--six double eagles.
And there's more where these came from. Will yuh take 'em?"
"I'll take 'em," drawled Kid Wolf. He reached out for the gold, and
they clinked into his palm.
"I'll take 'em," he repeated, "and beah's what I'll do with 'em!"
With a sweeping movement, he tossed them high into the air. The sun
glittered on them as they went up. Then, with his other hand, The Kid
drew one of his guns.
Before the handful of coins began to drop, The Kid was firing at them.
He didn't waste a bullet. With each quick explosion a piece of gold
flew off on a tangent. Br-r-rang, cling! Br-r-rang, ting! There
were six coins, and The Kid fired six times. He never missed one! He
picked the last one out of the air, three feet from the ground.
Goliday watched this exhibition of uncanny target practice with bulging
eyes. As the echoes of the last shot died away, he turned on The Kid
with a bellow of wrath.
"No, yo' don't!" Kid Wolf sang out.
Goliday took his hand away from the butt of his ivory-handled gun. The
Texan had pulled his other revolver with the bewildering speed of a
magician. Goliday was covered, "plumb center."
"That's our answah, sah!" The Kid snapped.
Goliday's sallow face was red with rage.
"I have power here!" he rasped. "And yuh'll hear from me! There's
only one law in this country, and that's six-gun law--yuh'll feel it
within forty-eight hours!"
"Is that so?" said The Kid contemptuously. "I have a couple of lawyahs
heah that can talk as fast as any in San Felipe County. The S Bar
accepts yo' challenge. Come on, boys. Let's don't waste any mo' time
with this."
Grinning, the quartet struck out again westward, leaving the
disgruntled ranchman behind. The last they saw of him, he was kicking
about in the mesquite, looking for his gold.
More
-
The Pleasurers
The freight wreck in the Crosswater Hills, coming a fortnight after Rufford's arrest and deportation to Copah and the county jail, rudely marked the close of the short armistice in the conflict between law and order and the demoralization which se... The Poachers
One morning, as he topped the rise between the sawmill and his own station, Cavanagh heard two rifle-shots in quick succession snapping across the high peak on his left. Bringing his horse to a stand, he unslung his field-glasses, and slowly and m... The Postmistress Of Laurel Run
CHAPTER I. The mail stage had just passed Laurel Run,--so rapidly that the whirling cloud of dust dragged with it down the steep grade from the summit hung over the level long after the stage had vanished, and then, drifting away, slowly sift... The Price
MacQueen lost no time in announcing his new program. "Boys, the hanging's off. I've decided to accept West's offer for Flatray's life. It's too good to turn down." "That's what I told you all the time," growled Buck. "Well, I'm telling you ... The Priest From Monclova
That was a night of terror for the women. Although Longorio's discipline was in some ways strict, in others it was extremely lax. From some quarter his men had secured a supply of mescal, and, forgetful of Felipe's unhappy fate, they rendered the ... The Primeval Instinct
On the other side of the house Buck found the mistress of the ranch and her two guests standing in a little group beside one of the dusty, discouraged-looking flower-beds. As he appeared they all glanced toward him, and a troubled, almost frighten... The Private Car
After he went away Berrie turned to her mother with a look in which humor and awe were blent. "Am I dreaming, mother, or am I actually sitting here in the city? My head is dizzy with it all." Then, without waiting for an answer, she fervently adde... The Prodigal Son
They found the prodigal son with his sister and Laura London at the Del Mar. Repentance was writ large all over his face and manner. From Davis and from the girls he had heard the story of how Soapy Stone had intended to destroy him. His scheme of... The Promised Land
Perhaps there were ten of them--these galloping dots were hard to count--down in the distant bottom across the river. Their swiftly moving dust hung with them close, thinning to a yellow veil when they halted short. They clustered a moment, then p... The Quarry
"An Elephant of Rock, I have lain here in the desert for countless ages, watching, waiting. I wonder for what!" MUSINGS OF THE ELEPHANT. Little Jim sat at the quarry edge and dangled his legs... The Queen Wins
She arrived breathless, distraught, instantly to drag me down beside her, from where I stood stupidly defiant. "Keep out of sight," she panted. And--"Oh, why did you do it? Why did you? I think you killed him--they'll never forgive. They'll call... The Race For Number One
I. "Huh! Get on to the glad rags!" Shorty surveyed his partner with simulated disapproval, and Smoke, vainly attempting to rub the wrinkles out of the pair of trousers he had just put on, was irritated. "They sure fit you close for a ... The Rage Of The Old Lion
"TAKE Holderness away--quick!" ordered Hare. A thin curl of blue smoke floated from the muzzle of his raised weapon. The rustlers started out of their statue-like immobility, and lifting their dead leader dragged him down the garden path with hi... The Range
After a much-needed rest at Emmett's, we bade good-by to him and his hospitable family, and under the guidance of his man once more took to the wind-swept trail. We pursued a southwesterly course now, following the lead of the craggy red wall that s... The Rashness Of Shorty
Buckskin was very hot; in fact it was never anything else. Few people were on the streets and the town was quiet. Over in the Houston hotel a crowd of cowboys was lounging in the barroom. They were very quiet-a condition as rare as it was ominous... The Rawhide
First of all he unhitched the horses from the buckboard and turned them loose. Then, since he was early trained in Indian warfare, he dragged Palmer to the wagon wheel, and tied him so closely to it that he could not roll over. For, though the bro... The Real And The Make-believe
On his way down-town Phillips stopped at a Subway news-stand and bought all the morning papers. He acknowledged that he was vastly excited. As he turned in at the stage door he thrilled at sight of the big electric sign over the theater, pallid no... The Real Bucky And The False
Number seven was churning its way furiously through brown Arizona. The day had been hot, with a palpitating heat which shimmered over the desert waste. Defiantly the sun had gone down beyond the horizon, a great ball of fire, leaving behind a bril... The Rebound
A man moaned and stirred restlessly in a bunk, muttering incoherently. A stampeded herd was thundering over him, the grinding hoofs beating him slowly to death. He saw one mad steer stop and lower its head to gore him and just as the sharp horns tou... The Red Desert
In the beginning the Red Desert, figuring unpronounceably under its Navajo name of Tse-nastci--Circle-of-Red-Stones--was shunned alike by man and beast, and the bravest of the gold-hunters, seeking to penetrate to the placer ground in the hill gul... The Rell Ole Cowpuncher Goes Home
I don't suppose anything can equal the aplomb of a child that has always had his own way and has developed normally. The Kid, for instance, had been wandering in the wild places--this was the morning of the sixth day. The whole of Northern Montana w... The Remittance Man
After Windy Bill had finished his story we began to think it time to turn in. Uncle Jim and Charley slid and slipped down the chute-like passage leading from the cave and disappeared in the direction of the overhang beneath which they had spread th... The Rescue
The stranger's crisp words had their effect, since "Kid Wolf" was a name well known west of the Chisholm Trail. His reputation had been passed by word of mouth along the border until there were few who had not heard of his deeds. His very name see... The Result
"How many did you say, Craven, of those Glengarry men of yours?" Professor Gray was catechizing his nephew. "Ten of them, sir, besides the minister's son, who is going to take the full university course." "And all of them bound for the mini... The Return Of A Private
On the road leading "back to God's country" and wile and babies. I The nearer the train drew toward La Crosse, the soberer the little group of "vets" became. On the long way from New Orleans they had beguiled tedium with jokes and friendly ch... The Return Of The Excelsior
Amazed and disconcerted, Hurlstone, nevertheless, retained his presence of mind. "There must be some mistake," he said coolly; "I am certainly not the person you seem to be expecting." "Were you not sent here by Winslow?" demanded Perkins. ... The Returned Hero
It is said that no two persons see another in exactly the same light. Be that as it may, it is extremely doubtful if Uncle Bill Griswold would have immediately recognized in the debonair raconteur who held a circle breathless in the Bartlesville C... The Ride
"Stillwell!" Madeline's cry was more than the utterance of a breaking heart. It was full of agony. But also it uttered the shattering of a structure built of false pride, of old beliefs, of bloodless standards, of ignorance of self. It betrayed t... The Rider Of The Black Horse
The trail from the Diamond K broke around the base of a low hill dotted thickly with scraggly oak and fir, then stretched away, straight and almost level (except for a deep cut where the railroad gang and a steam shovel were eating into a hundred-... The Riding Of Felipe
I. FELIPE As young Felipe Arillaga guided his pony out of the last intricacies of Pacheco Pass, he was thinking of Rubia Ytuerate and of the scene he had had with her a few days before. He reconstructed it now very vividly. Rubia had been royal... The Rifle
Dawn found him over the first crest; at noon he was struggling up the slope of the second range, whose rise was not half so sharp as the upward plunge out of the Asper, but in spite of that easier ground Grey Molly could not gain. She went with shor... The Right Eye Of The Commander
The year of grace 1797 passed away on the coast of California in a southwesterly gale. The little bay of San Carlos, albeit sheltered by the headlands of the blessed Trinity, was rough and turbulent; its foam clung quivering to the seaward wall of... The Rio Blanco Puts In A Claim
Preparations for the drive occupied several days. The cattle were rounded up and carefully worked. Many of those that had roughed through the hard winter were still weak. Some of these would yet succumb and would increase the thirty per cent of lo... The Rodeo
It was with a feeling of some reluctance that Dave drove up to Las Palmas shortly after the lunch hour, for he had no desire to meet "Young Ed." However, to his relief, Austin did not appear, and inasmuch as Alaire did not refer to her husband in ... The Round-up
It was a crackling and roaring of fire that awakened Madeline next morning, and the first thing she saw was a huge stone fireplace in which lay a bundle of blazing sticks. Some one had kindled a fire while she slept. For a moment the curious sensati... The Round-up
This, as you well may gather, was in the summer routine. Now the time of the great fall round-up drew near. The home ranch began to bustle in preparation. All through Cochise County were short mountain ranges set down, apparently at random, lik... The S Bar Spread
The bartender of the La Plata Saloon put a bottle on the bar in front of the stranger, placing, with an added flourish, a thick-bottomed whisky glass beside it. This done, he examined the newcomer with an attentive eye, pretending to polish the bar... The Sailor With One Hand
At this moment the heavy beat of the storm on the roof ceased with miraculous suddenness, leaving the outside world empty of sound save for the DRIP, DRIP, DRIP of eaves. Nobody ventured to fill in the pause that followed the stranger's last words,... The Sawmill
In my surprise I almost forgot the Mexican. Then I thought that if Dick were there the Mexican would be likely to have troubles of his own. I remembered Dick's reputation as a fighter. But suppose I did not find Dick at the sawmill? This part of the... The Scalp At Big Buffalo's Belt
A great lump came in Ree's throat as he looked upon the body of honest old Jerry, and stood for a few seconds watching in a dazed, helpless way the big blue flies which buzzed about the lifeless animal in the morning sunlight. Then he saw for the ... The Scent Of Desert-water
SOON the shepherds were left to a quiet unbroken by the whistle of wild mustangs, the whoop of hunters, the ring of iron-shod hoofs on the stones. The scream of an eagle, the bleating of sheep, the bark of a coyote were once more the only familiar... The Scourge
Coming down coast from the Kotzebue country they stumbled onto the little camp in the early winter, and as there was food a plenty, of its kind, whereas they had subsisted for some days on puree of seal oil and short ribs of dog, Captain and Big Geo... The Search Begins
As the sun arose it revealed three punchers riding away from civilization. On all sides, stretching to the evil-appearing horizon, lay vast blotches of dirty-white and faded yellow alkali and sand. Occasionally a dwarfed mesquite raised its prick... The Search For Dorman
"Oh, I say," began Sir Redmond, an hour after, when he happened to stand close to Beatrice for a few minutes, "where is Dorman? I fancied you brought him along." "We didn't," Beatrice told him. "He only rode as far as the gate, where Dick left ... The Second Attack
Lee was waiting on the porch of the hotel, tense with excitement, straining her ears and eyes to see what was taking place. The night had started with a small sickle of moon, but this had dropped below the range, leaving the street dark, save wh... The Second Man
The sheriff was on his feet, whining with eagerness and with the rest of his men he sent a shower of lead splashing vainly into the deeper night beside the mountain, where the path wound down. "It's done! Hold up, lads!" called Pete Glass. "He's b... The Secret Of North Pasture
Jessup swallowed hard. "But--but--" he faltered, "there ain't never been any found around here. The nearest fields are hundreds of miles away, ain't they?" Stratton dropped the lump of sand. A number of particles still clung to his palm, and ov... The Secret Told
In the shaded seclusion of her room, buried face down deep among the soft cushions on her couch, Madeline Hammond lay prostrate and quivering under the outrage she had suffered. The afternoon wore away; twilight fell; night came; and then Madeline... The Senator Gets Busy
It was daylight when the routed posse, with Race Moran in the lead, his left arm tied up in a blood-stained handkerchief, rode into Crawling Water. A bullet had pierced the fleshy part of the agent's wrist, a trifling wound, but one which gave him... The Shadowgraph
Forty-two miles south-west of Angels, at a point where all further progress seems definitely barred by the huge barrier of the great mountain range, the Red Butte Western, having picked its devious way to an apparent cul-de-sac among the foot-hill... The Shapes Of Illusion
Every day, as always, Senor Johnson rode abroad over the land. His surroundings had before been accepted casually as a more or less pertinent setting of action and condition. Now he sensed some of the fascination of the Arizona desert. He notic... The Sheep Herder's Cabin
When, in the delirium of fever, Jim Barlow strayed from his room at San Leon, the one idea in his mind was that the mountains called him. One distant peak, in especial, seemed imbued with life, using human speech and gesture--warning him to come, ... The Sheriff Introduces Himself
Bear-trap Collins, presuming on the new intimacy born of an exciting experience shared in common, stepped across the aisle, flung aside Miss Wainwright's impedimenta, and calmly seated himself beside her. She was a young woman capable of a hauteur c... The Sheriff Of El Cajon
About the middle of the forenoon of that day Madeline reached the ranch. Her guests had all arrived there late the night before, and wanted only her presence and the assurance of her well-being to consider the last of the camping trip a rare adventu... The Ship That Saw A Ghost
Very much of this story must remain untold, for the reason that if it were definitely known what business I had aboard the tramp steam-freighter Glarus, three hundred miles off the South American coast on a certain summer's day, some few years ago... The Showdown
A fire burned briskly in front of Mr. Trendley's cabin that night and several punchers sat around it occupied in various ways. Two men leaned against the wall and sang softly of the joys of the trail and the range. One of them, Lefty Allen, of t... The Shyness Of Shorty
Bailey smoked morosely as he scanned the dusty trail leading down across the "bottom" and away over the dry grey prairie toward the hazy mountains in the west. From his back-tilted chair on the veranda, the road was visible for miles, as well as ... The Sign And Seal
"The river forever flows yet she sees no farther than I who am forever silent, forever still." MUSINGS OF THE ELEPHANT. "Jim Manning, you've no right to speak to me that way," said Penelope. ... The Sign Of The Bar Shoe
Many a time has it happened in the old days of the old army that the post adjutant has begged to be allowed to go with some detachment sent after Indians. Rarely has it happened, however, that, without any request from the detachment commander or ... The Sign Of The Sunset
"BUT the man's almost dead." The words stung John Hare's fainting spirit into life. He opened his eyes. The desert still stretched before him, the appalling thing that had overpowered him with its deceiving purple distance. Near by stood a somb... The Signal Lights
In a little hill-rift about a mile back of the Lazy D Ranch was a deserted miner's cabin. The hut sat on the edge of a bluff that commanded a view of the buildings below, while at the same time the pines that surrounded it screened the shack from... The Silent Campaign
"I have seen that those humans who seek strength from Nature never fail to find it." MUSINGS OF THE ELEPHANT. Suma-theek waited eagerly. "I'll send for Uncle Benny," said Pen. "He'll leave a... The Sin-buster
In the fall, when the whole country had turned to a great cup of gold, purple-rimmed under the sky, Pierre went out into the hills after his winter meat. Joan was left alone. She spent her time cleaning and arranging the two-room cabin, and tidyin... The Sincere Spinster
I do not know with which of the two estimates--Mr. Taylor's or the Virginian's--you agreed. Did you think that Miss Mary Stark Wood of Bennington, Vermont, was forty years of age? That would have been an error. At the time she wrote the letter to ... The Sinks
"We can go through the pasture and cut off a couple of miles," said Honey when they were mounted. "I hope you don't think I'm crazy, wanting a ride at this time of day, after all the excitement we've had. But every Sunday is taken up with horse-raci... The Sioux Surrounded
In the hush of the wintry night, under a leaden sky, with snowflakes falling thick and fast and mantling the hills in fleecy white, Webb's column had halted among the sturdy pines, the men exchanging muttered, low-toned query and comment, the hors... The Sixth Man
It caused a quick turning of heads. "I don't want to put you out none," said the applicant gently. His voice was extremely gentle, and there was about him all the shrinking aloofness of the naturally timid. The deputy looked him over with quiet am... The Smoke Of The Burning
The reader will observe that the forest ranger's job is that of a man and a patriot, and such a ranger was Cavanagh, notwithstanding his foreign birth. He could ride all day in the saddle and fight fire all night. While not a trained forester, he ... The Snow-slide
The rain, which continued pretty steadily all day, Sunday, had ceased before the following morning, when, looking through the rifts in the clouds to the west we could see that a quantity of new snow had fallen on the mountains. "There'll be no ... The Soldier Finds An Untrodden Valley
During the weeks that followed Meade Burrell saw much of Necia. At first he had leaned on the excuse that he wanted to study the curious freak of heredity she presented; but that wore out quickly, and he let himself drift, content with the pleasur... The Sombre Line
AUGUST NAAB hoped that Mescal might have returned in his absence; but to Hare such hope was vain. The women of the oasis met them with gloomy faces presaging bad news, and they were reluctant to tell it. Mescal's flight had been forgotten in the s... The Song Of The Omaha
"Me, I theenk yoh not lov' me so moch as a pin," Ramon complained in soft reproach, down in the dry wash where Applehead had looked in vain for baling wire. "Sometimes I show yoh what is like the Spanish lov'. Like stars, like fire--sometimes I seen...