"Why, didn't I see him riding away as fast as his horse could gallop just
a little while ago?"

"Well, s'posin' you did. That's no evidence in a court of law. You didn't
see him saw the posts; did you?"

"No, of course not. But look! Here's some fresh sawdust on the ground! The
posts have been sawed within a few hours--perhaps even inside an hour.
Maybe just before I came." Dave pointed to the moist earth under some of
the splintered posts and boards. There was the fine sawdust where it had
been preserved from the trampling hoofs of the steers.

"Yes, th' job's been done recent," admitted Pocus Pete, "but that doesn't
prove anythin'. Now if we could find a saw with Len's name on it, that
might be some law-evidence. But I don't see any; do you?"

There was no saw in sight. The cattle had retreated to the far side of the
corral, leaving the part next the broken fence free for examination. But
as Pete had said, there was no saw lying about.

"He could easily have carried it away with him when he rode off," Dave
said, following up his suspicion.

"Yes, he could, an' he'd be foolish if he didn't--provided it was him as
did this," agreed Pete.

"Well, I'm sure he did," Dave insisted. "And I'll take it out of him for
trying to spoil dad's best bunch of cattle."

The word slipped from Dave almost before he knew it. But he did not care.