Show M k d X X X Z APPLETON CENTURY CO by H C ww 0 on FAR C C ranch in central 10 ea jo wise the walt gandy is on rl partner old range ato a j to ats help avalt I 1 n his hh JS topped stopped short b 0 a yr t ef rifle na in ring post positron o n I 1 tw bo holds 8 ut tells him how to get to I 1 jam him that they win will 35 and tells quarter of a mile within ii int walt wait la is stopped 11 81 it affy a grotesque rotes ue mis naj TW alma tells 11 W ll him to ge get out out a and arte to rte ho CC crew la Is in emi 93 allm ban he town for or an indu inquest est ot murdered ered hiding to ka bee emigrant walt leaves eu sury stable abie walt wait ism lama l ama ans tabe the livery owner ol of the C CC C yh ia cal Ca liebov won A A hard but hor honest est way ola trouble enemies at the 05 C h has 11 many ster mind and the girl will se jd es him chino drake tor for ped ranch has leen CC C C ok id the sheriff ed battle la Is trying od in cash cameron ma on ats blame 0 to o the stand she bhe Is 1 called I 1 Is daughter she cmeron ff OS gand rushes to prid a a it eints something in lif hand it lips arakes body walt post et eving office from box the and ay post leaves iy office th h I 1 IL dark k swarthy man by ha a dor analog lie draws draw the m man n job afi that bini a he ha wants to usurp r C cam am r land acx gandy y then LS si biting fashion the diw it down wall whips him after jmj kelso tile i tha no ra man a n la Is pete IT 77 ranch an outfit hostile II 11 et the randy gandy Is 11 called to the he meets hollister falc where office of lice COPTER VI 4 1 loancy leaned over end and stud boards between his k goor floor that this man it came to him intelligence after tur surprising a ilia he would uso use A cameron battle was say us to represented the power in here with the example of jenow enow like him holding the lid don and able to buy out any who wanted to quit there been much cause for trouble it t no need tor for the tha little fel el to 0 1 ump lump his hl range rang tights hta nr nor 0 ether aes but it if the CC C C crum ad its gross grass on public domain a the national forest Is open one to grab theres going W e ua battle roared suddenly it have 10 ei his bis heavy b brows rows dill bill hol hoi was no longer smiling ire to dead certain are arc you he that mat the CC C C Is going to ible ble tle tie leaned forward over the cp p of his desk yes i eyes narrowed and glittered nan an la in camerons Cam crons holo hole right dont dare take up a gun II 11 his bis range Is being crowded il I 1 buscc a CC dont own title to five iani ana acres of land its ita using to a hundred thousand all c c every man who rode in to quest today Is figuring on just get the ibe CC C C tangled with the get you people tied up in court rou ou might as 03 well start raising on your ove thousand acres use so your jour power on the open catnip Is gone and nobody will hid ald to crowd you haftl bat ived his cigar as hollister Hol llster MI to speak ie e power on this range has I 1 from camerons hands now into mine where it belongs belong sl I 1 im going to use it to the ad goof ot everybody big man and man inan alike you people cant thew chew what youve bit off out i let alone it I 1 guess er powell was beginning to see anleu self when he announced the rosment in th the e national forest ing 2 to be cut next sur summer rimer I 1 t clamped his cigar righteous brig around the end time for tile fellow to have a show here m seeing that he gets idill lue itle fellows bill hollister s voice asked like the lle ae stiffened his smoking d lister er uncrossed his knees and C foreman and the sheriff of wit county traded long meas looks locks lial at do you mean by that the sheriff evenly hollister Hol llster stated funny nt it 1 t that every man worn wom on the emigrant bench k aera ere north to salt flat and to othe the barricades came to the A today everyone except uta from the 1 sitting lilting willy stiffly upright battle i to no reply ure re right about what Is go carpen happen here hollister went rha g ra range rage Is over stocked ot has g got ot to move out there enough nigh land here of any sort e i public or national forest to e food ot of animals that has poured onto the bench lately too almighty truel but dont 11 to me about the little tel fel he egede eyed ed d battle took a eath and roc rocked ked his body for in a lightly balanced motion 1 ecameron wC I carnero ameron n has played square thern lie he fig figured ared when he 1 1 8 man mans brand abrand taking his 10 bought range rights too 3 custa ti but no these lit 11 aws ws have I 1 hung II 11 ng on getting gettin g a e cows and only waiting to i 9 grass ats at any chance lit to 81 lok it bill liolios hollister ter some time to armed up he was hot now kat om em 0 out t there on the street pack of weaves wc atves licking their eyeing each other to see going to lead in a rush onto give them a leader and mil I 1 follow till all right and e you know who bet bel tie seemed set against an lister tet barea ared everyone come came 11 ay to tani fall to ll see hw how the inquest 1 l was w to to bee it if Czari cmeron eron was got get properly Prop exly ly tied up only NY beres stoddard his 77 is the biggest contender for or range rights that wo we control dut but they arent troubled about how this inquest will fall all the 77 knowal meaning that ive been bought huh dattle battle asked suddenly meaning said ster that someone who keeps his name of ot the records is part owner of 0 the 77 brand visibly the tension went out of 0 sheriff ed battle ile he relaxed shaking his head nope you guessed wrong that time I 1 own nary a cow in any size shape or form not on paper nor on the 77 it if jeff dard and his bunch come in today they had their own reasons ile ho gave hollister a placating grin but were sort of wrangling ourselves oft off the track arent we I 1 called you in hero here to make a proposition for tho the good ot of everybody want to listen with an abruptness of action not usual in him bill hollister rose and his lank form towered dattle battle he said evenly youre a plain white ribbed skunk I 1 your baits good all right but it stinks ot of next elections color flooded hotly into the fleshy face of sheriff battle ile he gripped his desk edge control over some quick and revealing retort came only after a minute of struggle when at last he got up onto his feet the red flood ot of anger had drained away ile he looked out with cold hard eyes 1 I said I 1 had another piece of evidence hollister Hol llster something I 1 bring up at the inquest ills his ponderous figure came e around to the open floor watching walt gandy wondered battles gaze went down come came back hollister Hol llster he asked why did you have paul champion run water into that corn row where chino drake was lying dead at ed battles questioning thrust Hol hollisters listers jaw had sprung shut muscles bulged ile he stood as if to take a blow a fighting man yet to walt gandy it seemed the dogged courage of someone plodding on grimly to on an end without fire nor vital care for what crould come after that end was reached whatever had happened to bill hollister Hol llster had struck him at the roots battle had the knife in and he gouged with it well want me to say why you had that corn row flooded to cover some boot some almighty big oneal again the sheriffs eyes went downward and following them walt I 1 candys rested upon the black stitched boots that bill hollister ollister II wore they were big number elevens these that he had on today were brand new the trouble with that trick said battle was that you slipped up one track get flooded my deputy ran cement into it and ive got the cast never mind about the pair of boots that left the track weve probably got those too CHAPTER VII was wrong at the S SOMETHING CC riding abreast but strangely silent for a pair who had not seen each other for two years walt gandy and dill bill hollister topped the last bench and looked ahead to the home buildings out upon the open flat they had bad ridden in waning daylight here under the mountain wall night had come darkening the ranch basin and spreading a gray mist close to the ground hollisters Hol listers long legged black caught up beside the palomino they loped through a lane between post corrals passed the saddle sheds and reached an open yard and then almost before seeing them they were upon three men standing motionless ti in front of a bunk house door the door was open no light showed inside hollister Hol llster swung 0 on ed then walked in clo close se behind him cash cameron turned tits his white head the boy paul champion was on his left the short figure fi gure on his right was one walt could not recall having seen before place has been searched bill said cameron all the buildings someone while we were gone until that moment walt did not which had remained see a fourth figure crouched back on the dark doorstep it rose as the ranch owner spoke came out w with ith a scuffling limp and the twisted body of the deformed man seemed at night more mor e than ever he gruesome past within touching distance slanted his sunken eyes up in a direct beare into gandys candys Gan dys yet showed no recognition walt had thought this afternoon th that at the man was more than a little off he changed the 01 pinion opinion now something with a wo worse arse twist than insanity looked out from those he caught the feeling pits deep eye adye the of a mind as warped as body bent hollister Hol llster what about asked indicating the retreating figure with a jerk of his chin iles hes he been around all day anything to te tell 1171 about it says he knows nothing ig cameron answered bent C and he wa was is have h heard card anyone mending the south pasture fence this aate afternoon moon so he have who seen either if it was somebody come in from at any ly other direction cowham cowhand id paul only the youngest champion appeared tree free of what ever it was that gripped grippe d these others lie ile swung the k knotted end of his halter rope a and nd kept running one hand back to the throat of his horse A grin of repressed excitement looked almost foolish on his boyishly eager face id say we better 11 ho he began never mind paul cameron stopped him gently walt gandy had begun tho the making of a cigarette now he flung the unfinished tube away ile he faced cameron saying theres one thing I 1 guess ought to bo be made known right now before anybody starts to check up cash camerons white head pivoted 1 I was on your place this afternoon said gandy it was Hol hollisters listers voice snapped out in the dark why you tell me tharl only cash camerons Cam crona features were visible from where walt stood the 0 others were blotted in the night dut but he could feel the tha quick stab of eyes toward him lie he did not know yet who the cowpuncher was mak 7 I 1 ive gone all through the house bouse again dad ing a squat shapeless form at the ranch owners right side camerons mouth opened closed A hand came up and smoothed down the coarse hair of his gray mustache say look herel here I 1 gandy blazed but he felt that he was only throwing words against a stone wall the silence of these men was that thick battling a rise of impatient anger ho he timed from them pulling the tobacco sack from his shirt pocket no ligh lights till I 1 cameron warned Li listeria steril then almost at once its all right go ahead ills his daughter came abruptly around the bunk shack end she reached cash and standing close up to his rawboned raw boned size seemed to walt gandy once again as she had this afternoon a small and fragile girl in spite of the rough garb in which she clothed herself and far too rare a person to bo be caught in the black war that was gathering around her ive gone all through the house again dad she said her voice low and controlled whoever did it trying to rob us no said cameron no of course not lie he asked no further and it was bill hollister Hol llster who spoke up then theres nothing missing helen slowly she turned and lifted her face to him though in the dark she could not possibly read his features A rifle she said and a of boots yours all others stood fixed but the effect fact of her words upon DIU bill hollister Hol llster was sudden action almost as if from relief paul ho he ordered rapidly put up the horses walt throw your war bag down here youcan you can turn sunspot in the end corral by himself tonight and give him something extra bent lavic will show you the lanterns and where the tha grain bins are lie he turned away into the dark alone ills his voice came back over departing shoulders ill rustle firewood tor for who evers going to cook As walt kicked str straw aw across the stable floor for sunspots Sun spots bedding he looked at B bent ent havics feet they were big au all out of proportion on that shrunken body the boots he about size eleven w wore ore would be cash cameron was in the kitchen trying unfamiliarly to get together a meal in his own house and as walt gandy entered he aski asked d you know anything ab about out pot bust ing young fellow behind gandy bill hollister Hol llster came in just then with an armful of wood sure he does bill said 1 I suffered his cooking for a couple of years and lived through guess we can stand it for or a few days walt swung around from hanging his hat on a peg near the door hollister were short on rooks but I 1 dont want to bring a new man out here no now w ive lot t ot an idea that well talk about later go ahead walt you take the job As A gandy peeled out of his coat and rolled up his shirt sleeves the SERVICE other cowpuncher cr who had stood at cash camerons right hand out there in tho the dark emerged from a leanto storage room with a gunny sack full of potatoes balanced on his loft left shoulder ile ho walked on short logs legs bandy enough to fit U the roundest horse ever born A calf could jump between them and not scrape his boots ills face was homely good natured and now solemnly intent upon the lob job of carrying potatoes ile he put tho the sack down on the floor cash cameron said shako shake hands with our new cook gandy this Is fisher and that names no jokel but ho he has sort of weaned himself away the last ten fifteen years A humorous twinkle ot of some past experience lighted camerons Cam crona blue eyes banishing momentarily tho the strain that this day had put there and walt gandy had a glimpse of a hugely likeable old man fisher grinned and put out a knobby paw glad to meet you gondy gandy walt shook here he know knew now at once was a tough and loyal henchman of the C C took oft off his hat to hang it on a nail next the door showing a head as bald as a hens brown egg hired hands on oil the CC C C ate in a dining room that opened through an archway directly off the kitchen cash cameron took his accustomed chair at tho the tables end opposite the kitchen arch dill hollister Hol llster ranged around on his right walt gandy next on camerons Cam crons left was an empty place then paul champion fisher and dent bent lavic no one spoke of the sent scat that remained unoccupied but all through the tha meal bill hollister kept staring there as if 11 he could not keep his eyes from picturing the girl in it and again that somber studious look was set upon his far face e in the end he seemed to have thought something out ile ho pushed back his chair saying im going to move down to tho the bunk house cash it if gandy is going to cook he ought to have my room here so he can roll out and get the fires built early it sounded reasonable comer cameron on nodded but somehow the ease and ana forgetfulness that had been upon the room for or a little while was gone gandy stood up when hollister Hol llster did there before the men he said only ill go down with you bill and bring up my war bag but outside when they had passed beyond ear car shot of the house he stopped short in his tracks 1 Hol hollisters listers |