The circle banner. [volume] (Circle, Mont.) 1914-1939, 1918-01-25

he studied the bunch.
"Hellr' he said when the inspectio
was over and dropped back into tn
saddle while he gazed unseeingly q
the canyon wall. 1t was very rea
hell that his mind saw-a hell mad
by men wherein other men must dwel
in torment because of their sins or tn
sins of their fellows.
Seabeck's brand was big V, bat
brand to own, since it favors revision
at the hands of the INSCRIPTIONS
These cattle We're Seabeck cattle, an(
their brand had been altered. For the
right slant of the V had been extended
a little and curled into 6, so that ii
time the brand would stand casual in
spection as Y6 monogram-Ward' s
own brand. The work was crude, pur
posefully crude. The V had not been
returned enough to make it look fresh
and the newly scared 6 had been add
ed with a malevolent pressure that
would make it stand out fresh brand
for long time in case of delay in
the proceedings, as Ward knew per-
| fectly well.
So he sat there and looked over the
fence and saw himself a convicted
'rustler." There was the evidence all
ready to damn him utterly before a
jury. They would be turned loose on
the range near his claim, and they
would be found before the scabs had
haired over. 1t was a good time for
rustling. Roundups were over for the
winter, and the weather would confine
range riding TO absolute necessity.
Of course the work was coarse-so
coarse as to reflect against his intelli-
gence-but when brands are worked
over and the culprit has been caught
the law is not too careful to give the
prisoner credit for brains.
Ward stared at the altered brands
and wondered what he had best do.
He bethought him that perhaps it
would be as well to put little scenery
between himself and that particular
locality, and he started back up the
hill. Once he pulled up as if he would
go back, but he thought better of it.
1t was out of the question to turn
those cattle loose. He could not kill |
them and dispose of the bodies, not |
when there were seven Of them. He |
might go down and blotch the brands
so that they would not read anything |
at all. He had thought of that before
and decided against it. That would
put those three on their guard and
would probably not benefit him in the
long run. They would work the brands
on other cattle.
He hunched forward in the saddle
and let Rather choose his own trail
up the hill. Though he did not know
1t, trouble had caught Billy Louise in
that same place and had sent her for
ward with dropping shoulders and a
mind so absorbed that she gave no at
ention to her horse. But that is mere
y trifiing coincidence. The thing he
lad to decide was far more cOmpn-
.ated than Lilly Louise's problem.
Should he go straight to Seabeck and
ell him what he had found out? He
lid not know Seabeck, except as he
lad met him once or twice on the trail
nd exchanged trivial greetings and a
ew words about the weather. Besides,
'eabeck would very soon find out
There it stood at his shoulder, grin
ing at him malevolently-his past. 1t !,
led his hands. Buck Olney he could
cal with single handed, for Olney had ,
he fear of him that is born of a
utility conscience. He could send Buck .
over the road whenever he chose to :.
ell some things he knew. He could do !,
without any compunctions too. Buck ,
)lney, the stock inspector, deserved no :,
lercy at Wards hands and would get =
one if ever they met where Ward :
yould have a chance at him.
Olney he could deal with alone, but :
nth the evidence of those rebranded :.
attic and the testimony of two men, l.
)gether with the damning testimony A
his past! Ward lifted his head and 9
AIRED heavily at the pine slope before o
i'm. He could not go to Seabeck and !,
ii him anything. In the black hour n
that ride he could not think of any, II
ling that he could do that would
we him. f,
And then quite suddenly in his des- a
,ration he decided upon something. u
e laughed hardly, turned Rather back N
ON the homeward trail and returned re
the corral in the canyon. "They
arted this game, and they've put it B
, to me-" he told himself grimIy, la
nd they needn't squea1 if they burn lie
cir own fingers M
He hurried, for he had some work Sc
cad of him, and the sun was sliding m
st the noon mark already. He reach th
the corral and went about what he ri
d to do as If he were working for qr
lges and wanted to give good meas W,
W
first he rebuilt the little fire lust he
tside the corral where the cattle hi
lid not trample it, but where one ed
ght thrust branding iron into its tn
DIST from between the rails. When co
was going properly he searched GER tire
q likely hiding places and found an ha
D still warm from previous service. ma
thrust it into heat, led Rather into ha
corral and closed the gate securely tbs
ind him. Then he mounted. took of
vn his roge and widened the loop. wa
lie his angry eyes singled out the ira