Pulp Fiction, 1955 · page 48 of 101
15 Western Short Stories — page 48: what you’re looking at
What you’re looking at
# Page Analysis This is story prose from a Western pulp magazine. The page depicts a confrontation at a ranch where a man named Larribee, suspected of horse theft, is disarmed by rancher Underwood and his daughter Audrey. Underwood provides Larribee water and money for his saddle, then confiscates his gun and belt "just in case" he's a thief. After Larribee departs on foot, Audrey pursues him on horseback and returns his weapon—minus the bullets—acknowledging their suspicion may have been unfair. The narrative emphasizes the Western frontier setting and explores themes of trust and frontier justice.
📄 Transcribed text from this page (OCR, searchable)
Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.
48 WESTERN SHORT STORIES he became tough and wary again. “But you can’t prove youre not a horse thief, even if we can’t exactly prove you are. Unbuckle your gunbelt easy- like and drop it on the ground. Audrey, get your horse.” “IT get the pleasure of walkin’ after all, do I?” Larribee murmured. “You can ride as far as the house. From there you hoof it. I’d take you in to the sheriff—but it’s forty-two miles and I’ve got other things to do. Besides, stealin’ that cayuse ain’t the worst crime in the world. I feel kind of sympathetic to any man stuck aboard that critter. Aimed to saw him up for coyote bait. Just haven’t got around to it.” Larribee dropped the belt, with at- tached holster and .45, to the road. Underwood strode over and picked them up. PRAUGHTER Audrey came out of : the woods astride a little pinto as spunky and pert as herself, and the split skirt revealed legs enchanting enough to sidetrack any philosophical system, including the Wyoming vari- ety. She cocked her pretty head to one side, squinted meanly and kept Larri- bee covered while her father went into the woods and swung onto his gray and came out. “Vamoose-—and no tricks.”” Audrey gestured south. The ranchhouse was neat and white- painted, in a pleasant grove of cotton- woods a half mile down the road. The three dismounted and Underwood pat- ted a telescope which was slung to his belt. “We saw you comin’. Have to keep an eye on things these times. Blamed nesters around. Man can’t trust one as far as he can sling a mule by the tail.” Larribee looked at them silently and thought: Patience Is... Underwood brusquely jerked Larri- bee’s canvas waterbag off the horn, took the bag over to a pump at a near- by horse-trough and filled the bag. Larribee meanwhile removed the sad- dle and detached the saddlebags and sleeping blankets. The rancher came back with the waterbag. “Couldn't rightly turn even a horse thief loose in this climate clean dry. Here.” He thrust the bag into Larrivee’s hands. Then Under- wood frowned and reached into his pocket. He leafed through a roll of currency and handed some to Larri- bee. “Here’s fifty for the saddle and bridle—just in case you’re not a horse thief.” “Where’s the water from?” “Artesian well.” Underwood point- ed toa U dip between two much high- er mesa-type hills to the east and slightly south. “Gambled everything I had I'd strike water with plenty pressure. I won. Irrigates my valley right nice.” “Light out now!” Audrey gestured southward, squinting one bright blue eye at him tougnhly. “Y’m keepin’ your gun and belt for free—just in case you are a horse thief,” Underwood said eruffly. “Nice to’ve met you,” Larribee stat- ed with grave sarcasm. He slung his blankets on his back, shouldered his saddlebags and headed down the road on his high-heeled boots. Texas! Aenea he was heading south, the trail inclined gradually up- ward. Larribee was out of sight of the ranchhouse shortly. He was little more than a quarter of a mile from the house when he heard the patter of pinto feet loping up behind him. He turned and looked. It was Audrey, rifle in right hand, gun and belt in the other. She nar- rowed her eyes at him dangerously and tossed him the .45 with belt. “Here. Just in case the facts are dif- ferent from the face of appearances. Made us feel a little like horse thieves, just in case you’re not one. But we are keeping the bullets.” “Takes more courage to admit a mistake, sometimes, than it does to do a thing right in the first place.” He strapped the belt around his midriff. “Here. Can’t let even a_ polecat starve.” From her saddlebag she pro- duced a paper-wrapped parcel and tossed it to him. “Sandwiches. It’s a long walk to town...unless you de- cide to steal a horse from those no- good nesters over the hill.” She ges- tured contemptuously to the south- east. “Put that rifle down for a couple minutes and [Pll turn you over my oO cComiclboOoks.€O