Comrades of the Saddle by Frank V. Webster
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Frank V. Webster >> Comrades of the Saddle
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Horace was about to reply when Hop Joy poked his head through the
door, saying:
"Glub all leady, Ned."
"All right, Hop." And springing from his bunk, Ned went out to
harness his horses, accompanied by several of the cowboys.
For an hour or so the chums stayed in the bunkhouse, listening to
stories of marvelous feats of broncho-busting and whatever else the
men pleased to tell them, only leaving when Nails announced it was
time to go to the corral and saddle up.
"Aren't you going with them?" asked Tom.
"No," returned Horace. "We are liable to get hurt, it's so dark.
We couldn't see anything if we did go. Besides, father may have
some orders to give us."
The only instructions Mr. Wilder had to give, however, were to be
careful not to do anything that would cause his wife to worry about
them.
"Suppose the herd gets in trouble, what shall we do?" persisted
Horace, on whose excited mind the words of the Three Stars' cowboy
had made a lasting impression.
"Use your own judgment. But don't let your imagination play tricks
on you. The cattle will be all right--unless you get them
restless."
"Oh, we won't do that," quickly declared Larry. "We'll take such
good care of them, you will want to hire us as cowboys when you get
back."
The shouts from the corral told the ranchmen that the time for the
start had arrived, and quickly they made themselves ready, while
Hop Joy appeared to say he had sent saddle bags with food for Mr.
Wilder and Bill by Ned.
With a great clatter of hoofs, the cowboys rode up. The Wilders
and Mr. Snider bade a hurried good-by, mounted and galloped away
into the darkness of the night, with the wishes of Mrs. Wilder and
the boys for success and a speedy return ringing in their ears.
CHAPTER XIII
OUT ON THE PLAINS
Unlike the night when the hunting party had ridden over the plains,
black clouds covered the sky, making the darkness so intense that
the riders could not see fifty feet ahead of them. But Mr. Wilder
and Nails knew the route well, so that the absence of the moon made
no great difference.
That they need not tire their mounts by hard riding, Mr. Wilder had
purposely set the start early and, with Snider on one side and Bill
on the other, he led the cavalcade, setting the pace at a slow lope.
Now and then the cowboys talked or laughed, but for the most part
they were silent, the creak of the saddle leathers and the swish of
the horses' legs as they brushed through the grass being the only
sounds to tell that a body of men were riding through the darkness.
So lonesome was the ranch house after the departure of the party
that, though they made several attempts to talk, Horace and the two
Eastern lads finally decided to go to bed, to the evident relief of
Mrs. Wilder.
But sleep did not come to Larry and Tom, and as they lay tossing
and turning, the former asked:
"Do you think that fellow they call Skinny really meant there was
any danger threatening the herd at the Witches' Pool?"
"I don't believe so," replied Tom. "I suppose there is always the
chance that a lot of things may happen to a big herd like that.
Some of them might try to wander away or they might get frightened
and stampede. I read about a stampede once where the cattle ran
right over the edge of a cliff."
"Well, they couldn't do that at the pool, because there aren't any
cliffs near there," replied Tom.
Larry was not satisfied, however, and said:
"I wonder what cowboys do to stop a stampede? I wish we'd thought
to ask Mr. Wilder."
"Don't always be looking for trouble, Larry," protested his brother.
"Still, we ought to know. He said he'd hold us responsible for the
cattle."
"We can ask Ned when he gets back, if you really want to know. But
don't, for goodness sake let Horace hear you. His imagination is
so lively that he would think it was a stampede every time the
cattle moved. I think it was because Horace is so excitable that
Mr. Wilder had us stay home. He probably thought we were older and
could steady him down. Now don't try to think up any more things
that might happen. I'm tired and want to go to sleep." And
turning his back to his brother, Tom refused to talk any more.
Out on the prairie the body of horsemen were riding silently and
steadily.
"I hope we shall not be obliged to wait long for Pete," said Bill,
giving voice to his thoughts.
"He'll be on hand, barring accidents," returned his father.
This confidence of the owner of the Half-Moon in his foreman was
justified, when, at the end of another hour, the men caught the
flare of a camp fire in the direction of the pool.
"Must have hurried some," asserted Snider.
But this comment elicited no other response than a quickening of
the pace.
When they were within a mile of the fire Mr. Wilder drew rein.
"You boys wait here," he commanded. "I haven't any doubt but that
it's Pete's fire. Still, it won't pay to take any chances. Snider
and I will ride ahead to reconnoiter. If we are not back within
half an hour, you'll know it's all right and can follow."
Little relishing the enforced halt, the cowboys, however, obeyed,
some of them dismounting and stretching out in the grass.
Riding a rod or so from the others, Bill, Nails and Sandy eagerly
peered through the darkness, listening intently for any sound that
should indicate danger.
The two ranch owners, being experienced in the art of scouting,
rode to the left into a roll of the plains, one crest of which shut
them off from the light. For they were aware that should they ride
in its glare they would be seen by whoever was about the fire, and
they wished to make sure it was Pete and his men at the pool before
disclosing themselves.
But their caution was unnecessary. When they had covered only a
little more than half the distance the lowing of cattle broke on
their ears.
"That's the Half-Moon outfit, sure enough," declared Snider. And
putting spurs to their ponies, the ranch owners galloped straight
for the fire.
"Queer we can't see any of the boys," muttered Mr. Wilder in a low
voice. "I know they are tired. But, all things considered, one of
them at least ought to be on watch if for nothing else than to keep
the cattle from breaking away. That they are restless, you can
tell from their lowing.
"It's no wonder the raiders were able to cut out my short-horned
Durhams if the boys didn't keep better watch."
His tone showed deep annoyance, and he was on the point of speaking
again when a sharp challenge rang out from their left:
"Who goes there?"
Instantly Mr. Wilder's anger vanished as he recognized the voice of
his foreman and replied:
"Don't get excited, Pete. It's only Jim Snider and me."
In response to his master's greeting the cowboy sprang to his feet
and a movement of his hand toward his belt showed both ranchmen
that he had been prepared to dispute their advance should they have
proven foes instead of friends.
"Where are the others? You two didn't come alone, did you? I told
Nails to have you get as many as you could," said the foreman.
"We left them back yonder," returned the owner of the Half-Moon.
"Nails said we were to meet you in the morning, and when we saw the
fire Jim and I thought we'd make sure it was you."
"Well, I'm glad you've come," responded Pete. "Now we can get on
the trail so much the sooner. How many did you bring?"
"Nine from the Three Stars, including Jim, Bill, Nails and myself.
With your boys that will make twenty, just the number of the
raiders."
As he uttered the last words Mr. Wilder expected his foreman to
evince surprise, but instead he and Snider were the ones to be
taken aback as Pete remarked:
"So Nails found out, did he? What else did he? What else did he
learn?"
Briefly the owner of the Half-Moon reported the information Nails
had gleaned at Tolopah and then told him of the opinions he and the
proprietor of the Three Stars had formed.
"You got the lay of the land down to the last sage brush," declared
the foreman. "But we will put a crimp in Megget's plans that he
will not forget. My men are asleep by the fire, so there is no use
waking them till we've decided what to do."
"Then we must get down to business," returned his master. "I told
the boys to ride up unless we returned in half an hour."
A moment there was silence, as though each were waiting for the
other to make some suggestion as to the best course to pursue, and
then Mr. Wilder said:
"So long as we know the headquarters are in the Lost Lode Mine, it
seems to me we had better strike for it direct. Nails told me you
knew some trail." And he looked at Pete.
"I know trails enough, but which is the one that leads to the Lost
Lode, I can't say. That's just the trouble. It would take a month
of Sundays to ride them all down. While we were driving the cattle
up here, I was trying to figure out which trail to take in case
Nails found the mine was the place."
"You have tried some of the trails, haven't you, Pete?" inquired
the owner of the Three Stars.
"Sure. There are six I know that don't lead to the mine. That
leaves three between the pool and the Long Creek bottoms, and it
may be any one of them."
"Why do you think so?" asked his master.
"Because I know the right trail is between the pool and the
bottoms."
Again the men lapsed into silence, which Mr. Snider broke by
inquiring:
"What was it that young Alden mentioned about men crossing the
dirt?"
"That's so. I'd forgotten it again," and quickly Mr. Wilder
narrated the incident to his foreman.
"Probably that was Megget," asserted Pete. "But that doesn't help
us much. We don't know where that trail breaks on the plains.
Besides, while we practically know the headquarters are near the
old mine, we don't know they are driving the cattle there. They
may be heading straight for Don Vasquez's ranch.
"The plan that I kind of made up was to follow the trail from the
bottoms till we were sure which way the raiders were headed. If
it's for the mine, we can ride back along the plains and try out my
three trails."
"But why not follow the cattle?" interrupted Mr. Wilder.
"Because I'd rather head them off than creep up on them. The
raiders will be expecting us from behind. By riding on the prairie
we can cover ten miles to their one, which will give us time to try
out the three trails, and, when we find the right one, we can get
in ahead and block the trail."
CHAPTER XIV
ANOTHER DISCOVERY
For several minutes the ranch owners discussed the suggestion and
finally decided to act on it unless circumstances should make a
change advisable.
Having settled the matter, they rode to the fire and aroused the
sleeping cowboys, being joined a few minutes later by Bill, Sandy
and the others. Soon the men of the Half-Moon were saddling their
ponies.
"Queer we don't meet Ned anywhere," Bill exclaimed. "I see from
the bags he's been here, Pete."
"He got here all right, but he didn't like to go back very well.
Had a bad case of nerves, so he took down the white awning."
"It's just as well," returned Mr. Wilder. Then, finding that the
men were impatient to be on the move, he gave the command to start
and they rode toward the Long Creek bottoms.
When Tom and Larry awoke it was bright daylight.
"Why it's nine o'clock," exclaimed Larry in amazement as he looked
at his watch.
Hastily the brothers dressed and then went to see if Horace was in
his room or had played some joke on them in letting them sleep. To
their relief, they found him in bed.
"Hey, you, get up!" cried Tom. "You're a fine one to be in charge
of the Half-Moon Ranch. If you stay in bed much longer, it will be
dark."
Deeply chagrined to think he had overslept, Horace leaped to the
floor, and soon the three boys were ready for breakfast.
At the sound of their voices Mrs. Wilder had ordered Hop Joy to
bring in their food, and as the lads entered the dining-room she
was awaiting them.
"Why didn't you call us?" protested Horace.
"Because I thought you were all tired and that sleep would do you
good."
"And I suppose if Larry or Tom hadn't happened to wake up, you
would have let us sleep all day?"
"I suppose I should," said his mother, smiling. "When you are in
bed I know that you are safe."
"You must not worry about us, Mrs. Wilder," interposed Larry. "I
always tell mother that we are old enough to take care of
ourselves. So I wish you would feel the same. I think it would
save you no end of anxiety."
"Undoubtedly. But I never can think of my Horace except as my
baby."
"Huh! I'm a pretty husky baby," grunted the boy. "See here,
mother, I'm fifteen now, so I wish you'd stop calling me your baby.
When a fellow has been put in charge of the Half-Moon herd he
doesn't like to be called a baby."
"I'll try to remember," returned Mrs. Wilder gently. Yet there was
a wistfulness in her voice that caused Horace to look up, and, at
the sight of her face, he left his chair, ran and put his arm
around her neck, exclaiming:
"If you want to call me baby, you can, Momsy! I don't care. Tom
and Larry are the right stuff and they won't laugh."
Ere either of the brothers could reply Hop Joy appeared.
"Ned he goee pool," he announced. "Say if you boys wantee go, you
hully."
"Tell him to bring up Blackhawk, Lightning and Lady Belle. Then
put up some food for us, Hop Joy. Plenty of it, mind."
As the Chinaman glided from the room Mrs. Wilder asked:
"Why do you take anything except for lunch, son?"
"Because I think we will spend the night at the pool. Larry and
Tom want to see the will-o'-the-wisps, and we maybe able to catch
some fish early to-morrow morning. You know father always says
early morning is the only time to fish in the pool."
"Well, I don't suppose it will do any harm for you to be gone over
night. Only be careful. I shall worry if you are not back before
dusk tomorrow night."
Permission to pass the night obtained, the comrades quickly
collected their rifles and some fishing tackle, mounted the ponies
Ned had brought up and rode away.
After learning from their companion that he had found Pete and the
herd at the pool when he arrived, the lads indulged in speculation
as to when and where the pursuers would come across the raiders and
the chances of recovering the cattle.
Of a sudden, remembering his discussion, with his brother the night
before, Larry asked:
"How do you stop a stampede, Ned?"
"You generally don't," replied the man with a grin.
"But you try, don't you? I'm sure I've read of cowboys stopping
stampedes."
"I guess they do it easier in story books then than on the plains.
The best way to stop a stampede is not to let it start. Still, if
there's enough boys on hand, I suppose it could be done. The only
way, though, would be to ride down the leaders and turn them round.
"As I said, if there are enough boys on hand when the trouble
breaks, they can get them to milling, which is going round and
round in a circle until the cattle get tired out. But it takes a
mighty lively bunch of cow-punchers to do it."
After riding for two hours they came in sight of the cattle, and
the two brothers quickened their pace, eager to see them at close
range.
"Steady now. Don't go riding at them like a pack of Indians or you
will have all the stampede you want to see," exclaimed Ned. "My,
but they surely are restless!"
This last remark was caused by some of the steers which raised
their heads at the approach of the riders, then turned and dashed
back to the body of the herd.
"Oh, dear! I'm afraid we've started them," said Horace.
"Pull in your horses!" commanded Ned. "The main bunch is all
right. If we come up to them slow, there won't be any trouble."
Obeying instantly, the boys reined their horses to a walk and
reached the pool without causing further alarm among the cattle.
"So this is where the ghosts live, is it?" asked Tom, gazing from a
little knoll at a placid body of water about one hundred feet long
by twice as many wide, surrounded by reeds.
"Maybe you won't laugh so much to-night," declared their friend and
then, because he did not like to be joked about his belief that the
place was haunted, he added: "Come on, let's see if we can find
which direction father and the boys took."
The chance to try if they could track any one on the prairie
appealed to the others, and they started to ride around the pool.
"I can see where they had a camp fire!" cried Tom, pointing toward
a pile of white ashes.
"Here's where the grass is all tramped down. Look, there's a
regular path right for the mountains."
"No, this is the way they went, to the south, here," returned Larry.
Each boy was firm in his declaration that he had found the trail
and to prove it they dismounted and began to examine the ground.
"I'm right. I can see horse tracks!" cried Larry. "This is the
way they took, isn't it, Ned?" Thus appealed to, both Horace and
the man rode up.
"Larry's right," announced Ned, after a few moments observation,
"Then what caused my tracks?" demanded Tom. "Here are horse
tracks, too, only most of the hoofprints are made by cattle."
"Oh, you can't tell a cow from a pony print," taunted Horace.
"Come over and see for yourself," retorted Tom.
Examination proving that he was right, his friend exclaimed:
"That was made by the boys coming up."
"But the tracks are all going toward the mountains. They certainly
wouldn't drive any cattle away with them. You don't--you don't
suppose it's another raid, do you?" and Tom glanced at Ned.
"Yes."
CHAPTER XV
THE CONTESTED TRAIL
The thought that the cattle thieves should have dared to make still
another raid on the very night when the outfits of the Half-Moon
and Three Stars ranches had set out to run them to cover was so
startling that for several minutes after Tom had suggested it no
one spoke.
Larry was the first one to recover from the shock of surprise.
"There's no use in trying to guess," he declared. "We must find
out. The only way to do that, so far as I can see, is to follow
the trail and discover where it leads."
This proposition received the excited endorsement of the other two
boys, and Horace added:
"Wouldn't it be dandy if we could round up Megget and his men
before father and the others? Come on!"
"Don't be in too much of a hurry," urged Tom.
"Oh, if you are afraid to go, you needn't. I'll go alone," sneered
Horace.
Flushing at the taunt of cowardice, Tom bit his lips that he might
not say anything he should regret.
"You ought to know, Horace, that neither Larry nor I are afraid,"
he responded. "I was only thinking about your mother. We promised
her we would be back by to-morrow night. The idea of our going in
pursuit of Megget by ourselves is foolish. The thing to do is to
make sure this trail leads into the mountains and then go and try
to find your father and his men."
"Now you're talking sense," interrupted Ned.
"To find them will certainly take us longer than until to-morrow
night. In order that Mrs. Wilder need not worry, we must let her
know of the change in our plans."
"That's so," agreed Larry. "Still there is no reason for our all
going back; one is enough. Let's draw lots to see who it shall be."
"Not much," returned Horace. "So long as father and Bill are away,
I am in charge of the Half-Moon. The rest of you must do as I say.
Ned is the one to go back!"
"But you boys don't know anything about the trails," protested the
man. "You will get lost."
"We certainly can follow this one," retorted Horace hotly. "And we
can always find our way back. Just tell mother we shall join
father."
In vain the driver of the grub wagon endeavored to dissuade the
lads, but the thought of taking part in the pursuit of the raiders,
after all, made them deaf to all his arguments, and at last Horace
exclaimed impatiently:
"You are only delaying us, Ned. I say you are to return to the
ranch. That settles it. Larry and Tom and I are going to take the
trail." And, without further ado, he shook out his pony and headed
for the mountains, the two brothers at his side.
The pace at which Horace rode was terrific, and because of the hot
sun, the horses were soon covered with lather.
"Look here, we've got to go at a slower gait," announced Larry.
"If we keep up this clip, our ponies will give out. They can't
stand it and the heat, too. And if they do give out, it will be
sure to be just at the very time we need them most."
"But we'll soon be in the mountains, and then it will be cooler,"
asserted Horace. "I want to overhaul the raiders before night.
Won't father and the others feel small when they learn that we
three, whom they left behind because we were too young, have
rounded up Megget?"
"You don't mean to say that you intend for us three to tackle the
raiders alone?" exclaimed Tom.
"Why not?"
"Because we wouldn't stand one chance in a thousand--no, nor in ten
thousand--of being able to capture them. We don't know the trail
at all, and they probably are familiar with every rock and turn in
it. If they should discover that we were pursuing them, all they
would need do would be to lie in wait for us and capture us when we
came along."
The truth of what the younger of the chums said was so evident that
even the impetuous Horace was forced to admit it.
"Then what shall we do?" he asked. "If you have any better plan to
suggest, out with it."
Tom, however, could think of nothing feasible and was silent.
The boys had pulled their ponies down to a walk and for several
minutes none of them spoke.
Of a sudden Blackhawk raised his head, sniffed the air and then
uttered a low whinny.
The sound, coming so unexpectedly, scared the lads, and they looked
at one another in alarm.
"He smells something," exclaimed Horace in a whisper, as though
fearing to speak out loud.
The boys were in the lowland between two crests of the rolling
plains.
"Perhaps it's the cattle. They may be on the other side of that
rise in the plains," returned Larry.
Anxiously the three boys gazed toward the crest. The thought that
they might be close upon the very men they were chasing startled
them, and they were at a loss as to the best thing to do.
"If it is the raiders and the cattle Blackhawk scented, then
they'll be on the lookout for us," murmured Tom. "They could hear
that whinny for----"
"By jove! it is they," cried Larry excitedly. "See those horses'
ears bobbing?" And he pointed to the south.
Following his finger, his companions beheld two sharp points
steadily advancing from the farther side of the crest.
"Be ready to give it to 'em," breathed Horace, at the same time
unslinging his rifle.
But before he could get it to his shoulder the head of the horse
came into view and the next instant the head and shoulders of a man.
In a flash the chums seized their rifles.
The horseman was only about one hundred yards away, and as he
caught sight of the rifles pointed toward him he pulled his pony to
its haunches.
"Throw up your hands!" yelled Horace. "If you make a move, we'll
drop you. You are a prisoner of the Half-Moon Ranch!"
As the horseman heard the name he shouted:
"Steady, there! I'm Jim Jeffreys. What are you up to, anyhow?"
"Who's Jim Jeffreys?" demanded Larry of Horace.
"He's one of our neighbors, if it's him."
"Well, don't you know? Can't you recognize him?"
Having recovered from his fright, the boy stared at the man who had
caused it and then announced:
"Yes, it is Jim."
"It's a pity you couldn't have recognized him before!" snapped Tom
as he and his brother lowered their rifles.
CHAPTER XVI
WHAT JEFFREYS KNEW
Jeffreys, as soon as he understood his identity had been
established, leaped his pony toward the boys and was soon beside
them.
"You are a fine lot to be packing rifles!" he snorted, his anger
rising as the danger passed. "You may think it's a good joke to
cover anybody you meet on the plains, but some one may turn the
joke on you by firing before you get your aim. You aren't what you
call 'quick on the trigger.'"
"Which is fortunate for you--in this case," declared Larry,
resenting the manner and tone of the stranger.
The sight of the two serious-faced boys, whose eyes showed them to
be keen and alert, brought Jeffreys to his senses.
"I reckon you're right," he exclaimed. "But what's up, Horace? If
you and your friends are out for a little excitement, just take my
tip and turn your attention to jumping a coyote or you may----"
"We are not after excitement," retorted the boy from the Half-Moon
Ranch. "We don't have to go looking for it. We've got all we
want. Some of Megget's gang have raided our herd."
"No? It must have been them I saw over near the hills early this
morning."
"Where were they?" "Which way were they going?" "How many were
there of them?" demanded the lads, each one asking a question.
"It was just after sun-up. I was too far away to recognize the
cattle, but I counted four men. As they only had about fifty head
with 'em, I sort of suspected something was wrong, so I got out of
sight before they could see me. Leastways, if they did, they
didn't make any move to get me."
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