Adventure, December 3, 1920 — page 36: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

26 and set his hat as he spurred his mount across the bridge and halted in the center of the trail. - “Howdy, Alice,” he called as the girl drew near. “Good afternoon, Mr. Bransom,” she said without smiling. “Going far, Alice?” “Just over to the Millers’ place—the little girl is sick.” “Care if I ride over with yot, Alice?” “Really, I don’t want to take up your time, ~ Mr. Bransom.” “But I like to have my time taken up by you,” he persisted. “Tt isn’t far—and I’m in a hurry,” said the girl as she urged her horse past Bransom. He drove in his spurs and closed up the gap between them. “Why is it you won’t let me ride with you any more?” he asked. “Really, Mr. Bransom!” The girl seemed surprized. ee never did ride very much with me, did uw?’ “tN, but lately I haven’t rode with you at all,” he complained. ‘You ain’t mad because of what I said to you last—last week, are your” “T don’t think you have any right to ask me such a question. And I’m certainly not going to answer it. Good-by.” Bransom whirled his horse about in swift anger as the girl rode down the valley on her errand. He did not go into the store but continued up the valley. When he had gone about three miles he turned sharply to the right and made his way to a little ranch-house which nestled under the brow of a high cliff beside a small stream at the edge of the timber on the western slope of the divide. A large man, gray-haired, with his face and neck seamed and lined from exposure to the weather, was repairing a branding-iron at a crude forge near some corrals. “Good day, John,” greeted Bransom, who did not dismount. “Hello, Bransom,” man. “Hear you’ve got a neighbor a mile or so above,” remarked Bransom in a casual tone. : John Thornton straightened and puckered his row. “So old man Nixon was telling me. pector, ain’t he?” “That’s what he says,” answered Bransom dryly. ‘Says he’s a prospector. Got a fellow with him who made a stall down to Kane’s this moxning that he was lookin’ for work an’ the other—Langworth he calls himself—made the play good by hiring him.” “Figurin’ on doing some work in there, eh?” “That seems to be the way he wants it to answered the gray-haired Pros- ? Adventure pear. But this pair is wearing ridin’-boots an their talk goes back to the flat country, John.’ “Vehr” Thornton’s brow clouded. “Came in in the night an’ announced they didn’t want no visitors. Langworth’s got a dead-line drawed across the front of the gulch for a bullet-mark. Guess they came in. pretty light, for he was buying supplies down at _Kane’s this morning. Wears his gun low an’ handy.” “Ah. Well, it ain’t the first time strangers has drifted i in here in the night an’ left the same way.’ “But I reckon this pair expects to stay a while,” said Bransom as he built a cigaret. “Where they from?” asked Thornton seriously. Bransom laughed. ‘“‘Ask me something easy; they ain’t revealin’ their last address.” “Well, what d’ye make of it, Bransom?”’ ‘“‘Nothin’—only you know this ain’t a min- eral country, John.” “T dunno. Nixon’s got some mighty li ely- lookin’ samples.” “Yes, but Nixon’s a miner pure an’ simple— been at it all his life. An’ he ain’t young, an’ he don’t wear ridin’-boots and spurs, an’ he don’t say ‘file’ on a claim instead of ‘locate,’ an’ he don’t roll cigarets with one hand like he was used to doin’ it in the saddle.” John Thornton frowned and shook his head. “You got some mighty fine-breeded cattte up here, John; an’ I’ve got some myself,” said Bransom pointedly. “By ——! If any man ever rustled a fad of my stock I’d ae “Same here, John. I just thought maybe we might as well keep our eyes open; that’s all. An’—yes, there’s something else.” Bransom hesitated, watching the closely. . “What’s that, Bransom?” “T think this fellow Langworth thinks he’s something of a ladies’ man.” Thornton clenched his fists and took a step forward. “Understand, I’m just of that opinion, John. Well, I'll be trailing.” Bransom rode away, leaving Thornton stand- ing gripping a rail of the corral with a fearsome gleam in his eyes. Bransom crossed Singing River and entered the timber on the west slope of the valley. He continued on to the summit of the first ridge and followed this to a point directly opposite the draw wherein Lang had taken refuge. He saw smoke rising from beneath the jagged crags at the upper end of the draw; and for the remain- der of the afternoon and until after the sun had set he remained upon the ridge watching the draw opposite. Just as the first deep shades of the mountain other Gomichbooks (C@)