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It -faithful riders, and the people of the range, and as the spirit of the West e to face his single foe

But Beasley did not go Instead he paced to and fro the length of Helen Rayner's long sitting-rooy of a man who could not rest Many times he hesitated, and at others heafter ht he went to bed, but not to sleep He tossed and rolled all night, and at dawn arose, gloo-women who showed their displeasure at his authority And to his ae not one of his men came to the house He waited and waited Then he stalked off to the corrals and stables carrying a rifle with hiroup that dispersed soht

Beasley ordered the horses to be saddled and all hands to go down into the village with hied His riders sat or lounged, with lowered faces An unspoken hostility seeest with hie, but still they did not obey At length Beasley roared for his Mexicans

"Boss, we gotta tell you thet every greaser on the ranch hes sloped--gone these two hours--on the way to Magdalena," said Buck Weaver

Of all these sudden-uprising perplexities this latest was thewonder

"Boss, they was sure scared of thet gun-slingin' cowboy from Texas," replied Weaver, ied its hue What of the subtle reflection in Weaver's slow speech! One of theBeasley's saddled and bridled horse This fellow dropped the bridle and sat down a his comrades without a word No one spoke The presence of the horse was significant With a snarling, muttered curse, Beasley took up his rifle and strode back to the ranch-house

In his rage and passion he did not realize what his men had known for hours--that if he had stood any chance at all for their respect as well as for his life the hour was long past

Beasley avoided the open paths to the house, and when he got there he nervously poured out a drink Evidently sohtened him, for he threw the bottle aside It was as if that bottle contained a courage which was false