yesterday, too, because it rained the night before."

For some hours they could see occasionally the tracks of the two
horses, but eventually lost them where two trails forked.

"Taking the Sweetwater cutout to the Butte, I reckon," Howard
surmised.

They traveled all day, except for a stop about ten o'clock for
breakfast, and another late in the afternoon, to rest the horses. At
night, they put up at a ranch house, and were in the saddle again
early in the morning. Before noon, they struck a telephone line, and
Fraser called up Brandt at a ranch.

"Hello! This Sheriff Brandt? Lieutenant Fraser, of the Texas Rangers,
is talking. I'm on my way to town with a prisoner. We're at Christy's,
now. There will, perhaps, be an attempt to take him from us. I'll
explain the circumstances later. ... Yes.... Yes.... We can hold him,
I think, but there may be trouble.... Yes, that's it. We have no legal
right to detain him, I suppose.... That's what I was going to suggest.
Better send about four men to meet us. We'll come in on the Blasted
Pine road. About nine to-night, I should think."

As they rode easily along the dusty road, the Texan explained his plan
to his friends.

"We don't want any trouble with Yorky's crowd. We ain't any of us
deputies, and my commission doesn't run in Wyoming, of course. My
notion is to lie low in the hills two or three hours this afternoon,
and give Brandt a chance to send his men out to meet us. The