The Bluffton news. [volume] (Bluffton, Ohio) 1875-current, 1939-03-16


she answered.
that he had just become awake.
Louise must have ridden miles out
Of her trail if she had come this
way. She might have waited hours
at the station to give him a chance
with JG.
She cared enough to do thatl She
believed he could prove himself one
of the men.
"Idiot" he fared, "you didn't
even say thanks!" Impulsively he
wanted to wheel Kit and follow her.
He looked up through the pine tops
at the stars, seeing strange new
beauty in them. Moonlight and shad-
ows lay in soft lace patterns under
foot. Swiftly yearning possessed
| him. More-there was a great deal
more he could say to her tonight
He turned upon himself. "You
roughneck, you'll do well to keep
your head on one job at timel"
About midnight he rode onto the
table-land of Bear Trap and was
guided to Jackson's camp by soli-
tary point of light. He approached
the cabin, then even before he could
dismount, the door opened a crack
and a voice demanded: "Who' S
| there?"
Ranger" Breck answered. He
swung to the ground, secured Kit to
tree and moved toward the chink
where JG peered out. "Howdy,
|, Jackson" he said casually, "how's
everything?"
Breck felt a steady scrutiny, then
the door opened. He entered and at
once a dozen faces confronted him,
some questioning, others openly
glaring. None were faces he could
recognize, though no doubt they had
all been at the count and were for
the most part cowhands employed
by Jackson.
They sat about the room, all oc-
cupied in singular way. That was
what Breck saw first. Guns were
out, being cleaned, assembled, load
ed; six-shooters mostly, though
some were rifles. Unopened boxes
of cartridges lay on the table;
enough, Breck observed, to equip
this band of dozen men for long
battle. Rags Uttered the floor. An
odor of oil and grease mingled with
cigarette smoke. The room, after
he had entered, turned uncomforta-
bly, silent.
jackson spoke first. "Grub in the
box yonder, if you're hungry. We've
had ours"
Thanks" said Breck. "I've had
mine too" He crossed to the stove,
held out his hands to warm them,
then turned abruptly to face the
gathering.
whats up, Jackson?"
About the room men put down
their guns, and sitting motionless,
waited for their range-boss to speak.
The old man moved nearer the
stove. Its business" he began,
plumb serious, maybe, and you
oughtn't to have come riding into
it." He paused. Behind him, the
men took up their jobs of gun-clean-
ing "You oughtn't TO have come"
JG repeated, because you can't
stop u.s."
Breck remained silent. There was
a grim tenseness in the room, some
thing that went we'll with the odor
of fresh ammunition and the click
of hammers being drawn and let
again into place. He knew the an
tagonism against him and weighed
his next words carefully.
Cant we get on the same level,
Jackson? You placed me wrong at
the count understand. From your
angle of things | looked bad. Take
my word when I say all that is 60
ing to be explained, and right now
meet me wide open. viii you?"
Slowly Jackson's expression
changed. You seem wanting to be
on the square, sure enough" he ad-
mitted. land for the time being I'm
takin' your word. But what | said,
goes. You can't stop usi Tonight
we're goin' out to do a little fence
Dustin. Up behind Black Mountain
where the forest boundary ends and
the Middle Fork range country be-
gins. Anything been said to you
about that fence?"
NO" Breck answered.
well, it amt within q mile of
the forest line. True boundary takes
In the whole of Black Mountain, but