The Arizona copper camp., 1918-01-05

w hV Ill JIG WOIlu u1uA you SUCK yOdE
brand on at the same timer" Billy
Louise was losing patience with his
greenness
81 didn't have my branding iron with
me-" Charlie answered humbly. 81
have done that before, when 1 bought
those other cows and calves. II
you'd better pack your iron next
time," she retorted. eff you can't get
a little bunch of calves ten miles with
out losing them"
"But you must understand did. I
took them home and turned them into
the Cove. I know-Im an awful chump
at this"
''The calves may not be absolutely
lost, you know. Why, / lost big
steer last spring and never found him
till was going to sell a few head.
Then he turned up, the biggest and fat
test one in the bunch. You can't tell.
They get themselves in queer places
sometimes. I'll come over tomorrow
if can and take look at that pasture
and all around. And I'll keep a good
lookout for the calves"
Many men would have objected to
the unconscious patronage of her tone.
That Charlie Fox did not, but accept
ed the spirit Of helpfulness in her
words, lifted him out of the small ma
tured class.
''It's awfully good of you," he said.
"You know lot more about the bovine
nature than I do, for all put in every
spare minute studying the subject. I'm
taking four different stock journals
now, Miss Louise. I'll bet l know a lot
more about the different strains of va
rious breeds than you do, Miss Cattle
Queen. But I'm beginning to see that
we only know what we learn by ex-
perience. I've new book on the sub
ject of heredity Of the cattle. I'm 60
ing home and see if Seabeck hasn't
stumbled upon a strain that can be
traced back to your native mountain
sheep"
Billy Louise laughed and said good
by and stood leaning over the gate
watching him as he zigzagged up the
hill, stopping his horse often to breathe.
She began to wonder, then, about those
calves. Vented and not rebranded,
they would be easy game for any man
who first got his own brand on them.
She meant to get a description of them
when she saw Charlie again-it was
like his innocence to forget the most
essential details-and she meant to
keep her eyes open. If Charlieewere
right about the calves not being any,
where in the cove, then they had been
driven out of it, stolen. Billy Louise
turned deJectedly away from the fence
and went down to shady nook by the
creek, where she had always liked to
do her worrying and hard thinking.
The next day she rode early to the
Cove and learned some things from
Marthy which she had not cleaned
from Charlie. She learned that two of
the calves were deep red except for
wide, white strip on the nose of one
and white hind feet on the other; that
another was spotted on the hindquar-
ters and that the fourth was white,
with large, red blotches. She had
known cattle all her life. She would
know these If she saw them anywhere.
She also discovered for herself that
they could not have broken out Of that
pasture and that the river bank was
impossible because of high, thick BUSH
es and miry mud in the open spaces.
She had fight with Blue over these
latter places and demonstrated beyond
doubt that they were miry by getting
him in to the knees in spite of his vio-
lent objections. They left deep tracks
behind them when they got out The
calves had not gone Investigating the
bank, for there was not a trace any
where, and the bluff was absolutely
unscalable. Billy Louise herself would
have felt doubtful of climbing out that
way. The gray rim rock stood straight
and high at the top, with never crew
Ice, so far as she could see, and the
gorge was barred so that it was i'm
possible to go that way without lifting
heavy poles out Of deep sockets and
sliding them to one side.
"I've got an idea about gate here"
Charlie confided suddenly. "There
won't be any more mysteries like this.
I'm going to fix a swinging gate in
place of these bars, Miss Louise.
shall have it swing uphill like this,
and I'll have weight arranged so that
it will always close itself If one is care
less enough to ride on and leave it
open. 1 have it all worked out in my