More than once during the next ten minutes Buck¹ cursed himself inwardly for not having brought along the small but powerful pair of field-glasses that were tucked away in his bag. He had picked them up at the Divisional Headquarters only a week or two before the Belleau Woods business, and how they had stuck to him until his arrival in America remained one of the minor² mysteries of that vanished year. He would have given anything for them now, for though he could make out fairly well the movements of the two men, he was too far away to distinguish their faces.

 

Watching closely, he saw that the first fellow was taking down a short section of the fence, either by cutting or by pulling out the staples³. When this lay flat he remounted and, joining his companion, the two proceeded to drive through the gap nothing more significant than a solitary⁴ steer⁵.

 

It was a yearling, Buck could easily see even at that distance, and he almost laughed aloud at the sudden let-down of suspense⁶. By this time a little individual trick of carriage made him suspect that the foremost puncher was Butch Siegrist, and when the men came into clearer view, he recognized scarcely without question the big sorrel with white trimmings on which Kreeger had ridden off that morning. The two men had found a Shoe-Bar stray; that was all. And yet, on second thought, how did they come to be here when they were supposed to be working at the very opposite extremity⁷ of the ranch⁸?

 

It was this query⁹ which made Stratton refrain from showing himself. With considerable annoyance¹⁰, for time was passing, he waited where he was until the two men had gone back through the gap in the fence and restored the wires. He watched them turn northward¹¹ and ride rapidly across the sandy waste until at length their diminishing figures disappeared into the distance. Even then it was ten or fifteen minutes before he emerged from his seclusion¹², and when he finally did he headed straight for the young steer, who had been the cause of so much exertion¹³ on the part of the two men who ordinarily shirked work whenever they could.

 

Under the lash¹⁴ of a rope, the animal had lumbered¹⁵ across the pasture for several hundred yards, where he paused languidly to crunch¹⁶ some bunch-grass. There was an air of lassitude and weakness about the creature which made Buck, as he approached, eye it with anxious intentness. A dozen feet or so away he jerked his horse to a standstill and caught his breath with an odd whistling sound.

 

"Great Godfrey!" he breathed.

 

Bending slightly forward in the saddle, he stared at the creature's badly-swollen off hind¹⁷ leg, but there was no need whatever for a prolonged inspection¹⁸. Having been through one blackleg epidemic¹⁹ back in Texas, he knew the signs only too well.

 

"That's it, sure enough," he muttered, straightening up.

 

His gaze swept across the prairie to where, half a mile away, a bunch of Shoe-Bar cattle grazed peacefully. If this sick beast should get amongst them, the yearlings at least, to whom the disease is fatal, would be dying like flies in twenty-four hours. Buck glanced back at the steer again, and as he noted²⁰ the T-T brand, his face hardened and he began taking down his rope.

 

"The hellions!" he grated, an angry flush darkening his tan. "They ought to be strung up."

 

The animal started to move away, and Buck lost no time in roping him. Then he turned his horse and urged him toward the fence, dragging the reluctant brute²¹ behind. Fortunately he had his pliers in the saddle-pocket, and, taking down the wires, he forced the creature through and headed for a deep gully the mouth of which lay a few hundred yards to the left. Penetrating²² into this as far as he was able, he took out his Colt and deliberately²³ shot the steer through the head. And if Kreeger or Siegrist had been present at that moment, he was furious enough to treat either of them in the same way without a particle of compunction.

 

"Hanging would be too good for them, the dirty beasts!" he grated.

 

The thing had been so fiendishly cold-blooded and calculating that it made his blood boil, for it was perfectly²⁴ evident now to Buck that he had thwarted²⁵ a deliberate plot to introduce the blackleg scourge²⁶ among the Shoe-Bar cattle. Instead of riding fence, the two punchers must have made their roundabout way immediately to the stricken T-T ranch, secured in some manner an infected yearling and brought it back through the twisting mountain trail Bud had spoken of a few days before.

 

Lynch's was the directing spirit, of course; for none of the others would dare act save under his orders. But what was his object? What could he possibly hope to gain by such a thing? Buck could understand a man allowing rustlers to loot a ranch, if the same individual were in with them secretly and shared the plunder²⁷. But there was no profit in this for anyone--only an infinite amount of trouble and worry and extra work for them all, to say nothing of great financial loss to--Mary Thorne.

 

When Stratton had secured his rope and rode back to the Shoe-Bar pasture, his face was thoughtful. He was thinking of those excellent offers for the outfit²⁸ Miss Thorne had lately spoken of, which Lynch was so anxious for her to accept. Could the foreman's plotting be for the purpose of forcing her to sell? From something she had let fall, Buck guessed that she was more or less dependent on the income from the ranch, and if this failed she might no longer be able to hold the property.

 

But even supposing this was true, it all still failed to make sense. The land itself was good enough, as Stratton knew from his former careful inspections²⁹, but it would be of little use for any purpose save ranching³⁰; and since the value of a cattle-ranch consists largely in the cattle themselves, it followed logically that by reducing the number, by theft, by disease, or any other means, the value would be very much less to a prospective³¹ purchaser.

 

Unable to make head or tail of the problem, Buck finally gave it up for the time being. He put back the fence with care and then headed straight for the ranch. There was no time left for the desired inspection of the north pasture. To undertake it now would mean a much longer delay than he could plausibly³² explain, and he was particularly anxious to avoid the need of any explanation which might arouse suspicion that the criminal action of the two men had been overseen³³.

 

"If they guessed, they'd be likely to try it again," he thought, "and another time they might succeed."

 

Stratton managed his route so that for the last two miles it took exactly the course he would have followed in returning directly from Las Vegas camp. His plan was further favored by the discovery that none of the men save Bud were anywhere about the ranch-house.

 

"Gone off to ride fence along with Flint an' Butch," Jessup informed him, when Buck located him in the wagon³⁴-shed. "Wonder why he's so awful interested in fences all of a sudden," he went on thoughtfully. "They've been let go all over the ranch till they're plumb³⁵ fallin' to pieces."

 

"You've got me," shrugged³⁶ Stratton. He had been cogitating³⁷ whether or not to confide³⁸ in Bud, and finally decided³⁹ in the negative. It would do no particular good, and the youngster might impulsively⁴⁰ let out something to the others. "Why didn't they take you along, too?"

 

"I sure wish they had," Bud answered shortly. "Then I wouldn't of had to be lookin' at that all afternoon."

 

He straightened from the wagon-body he was tinkering and waved a wrench⁴¹ toward the window behind Stratton. Turning quickly, the latter saw that it looked out on the rear of the ranch-house, where there were a few stunted⁴² trees and a not altogether successful attempt at a small flower-garden. On a rough, rustic⁴³ bench under one of the trees sat young Manning and Mary Thorne, in earnest conversation.

 

"Sickening, ain't it?" commented Bud, taking encouragement from Stratton's involuntary frown. "I been expectin' 'em to hold hands any minute."

 

Buck laughed, mainly because he was annoyed with himself for feeling any emotion whatever. "You don't seem to like Mr. Alfred Manning," he remarked.

 

"Who would?" snorted Jessup. "He sure gets my goat, with them dude clothes, an' that misplaced piece of eyebrow⁴⁴ on his lip, an' his superior airs. I wouldn't of thought Miss Mary was the kind to--"

 

"Where's--er--Miss Manning?" broke in Buck, reluctant to continue the discussion.

 

"Gone in with Mrs. Archer," Bud explained, "They was both out there a while ago, but I reckon they got tired hangin' around."

 

Stratton turned his back on the dingy⁴⁵ window and fell to work on the wagon with Bud.

 

"Seen Bemis lately?" he asked presently, realizing of a sudden that he had not visited the invalid⁴⁶ for several days.

 

Bud sniffed⁴⁷. "Sure. I was in there this mornin'. He's outa bed now moochin' around the room an' countin' the hours till he can back a horse."

 

"Still got that notion the outfit isn't safe?"

 

"I'll tell the world! He says life's too short to take any more chances of bein' bumped off. Tried to make me believe my turn'll come next."

 

Stratton shrugged his shoulders. "I reckon there isn't much chance of that. They're not keen to get the sheriff down on their trail. Well, if he feels like that he wouldn't be much use here even if we could persuade him to stick."

 

About half-past five they decided to call it a day and went down to the bunk-house, through the open door of which Buck presently observed the arrival of the remainder of the outfit. They came from the east, and Kreeger and Siegrist were with them. As Buck expected, the former rode the sorrel with distinctive⁴⁸ white markings, while the latter bestrode a nondescript bay. The second of the two riders he had watched that afternoon had been mounted on just such a bay, and if there had been a lingering touch of doubt in Stratton's mind as to the identity of the two criminals, it remained no longer.

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