White Bluffs spokesman. [volume] (White Bluffs, Wash.) 1907-1938, 1929-03-29
The Settling Of the Sage
by HAL 6. EVARTS
Copyright by H

daTrlS knew CDat MS own IRE WAS
forfeit any time he CHANGED TO ride
alone. He had not a doubt but that
Slade had put price on his head and
that perhaps dozen men were pa
tiently waiting for a chance at him.
Any man whose name appeared on
the black list which he was supposed
to have sponsored would overlook no
opportunity to retaliate In kind. In
addition to this there was always the
chance of swift raid on the men who
had filed their homestead rights In
the valley.
AS consequence Harris had taken
every possible precaution. The full
force of Three Bar hands had been
kept on the pay roll instead of being
let off Immediately after the beef was
shipped. These riders were stationed
In line camps out on the range, their
ostensible purpose being to hold all
Three Bar cows close to the home
ranch but In reality they served two
ends, acting as Gordon of guards
as we'll.
Three times In as many weeks stran.
gers drifting in from other localities
stopped in Coldriver and profanely re-
ported the fact that for no reason
whatever, while passing through the
Three Bar range, they had been held
up and forced to state their business
in that neighborhood.
Hostilities had ceased. The Three
Bar girl had anticipated a series Of
raids against the cows wearing her
brand, swift forays in isolated points
of her range, but no stock losses were
reported. On the surface 1t appeared
that Slade had given up all thought
of harassing the Three Bar. But the
girl had come to know Slade. He
would never recede from his former
stand. She noted that Harris vigi.
lance was never for din instant relaxed
and it was gradually impressed upon
her that the cessation of petty annoy.
ances held more of menace than of
assurance. Slade had seen that the
Three B r was not to be discouraged
In its course and he now waited for
an opportunity to launch blow that
would cripple, striking simultaneously
at every exposed point and delaying
only for a propitious time. In the
face OF continued immunity she was
filed with growing conviction Of I'M
pending trouble.
Christmas had found the range GOV.
cred with fresh tracking snow which
precluded possibility of raid and all
hands had been summoned to the home
ranch for two-day rest. The frolic
was over and the hands back on the
range. Harris sat with Billie before
her fire.
"They'n be satisfied for another two
months" he said. "Then we'll have to
call them in for another SPREE"
This evening conference before the
fire had come tt be nightly occurrence
Together they went over the details
of the work accomplished during the
day and mapped out those for the
next.
Another two months and the cab
ms will be rooted and Finished" Har.
ris said. "Then we'll be through till
the frost is out of the ground. Wen
start building fence as soon as you
can sink post hole; and we'll have
time to break out another two hun.
dred acres Of ground before time to
seed 1t down."
The girl nodded without comment
content to leave him to his thoughts
her mind pleasantly occupied with her
own. For long her evenings had beer
lonely but now she had come to look
forward to the conferences before the
blazing logs. She had made no at
tempt to analyze the reasons for the
new contentment which had trans
formed her evenings, formerly periods
of drab reflections. into the most
pleasant portion of each day.
The weekly letters still came from
Deane. The girl valued Harris as 8
friend and partner without apparent
trace of more intimate regard. he
wondered which would prevail, the
ties which bound her to the life she
had always known or the lure Of the
new life which beckoned.
] (TO BE CONTINUED.)