CHAPTER IV
WHEN THE RUSTLERS CAME
Bob Archer always believed that he made record time in getting dressedthat night. Just how long it took him he never knew; but Frank seemed tovie with him in speed, for they rushed out together.
One glance overhead told Frank that it was not far from morning. Theposition of the moon in the sky gave the prairie boy that information.Possibly Bob would never had thought of looking aloft, had he wished toknow how the night was passing. All his life he had depended on watchesand clocks, which might go wrong; whereas Frank’s celestial timepiecewas always trustworthy.
There certainly was much excitement about the ranch buildings just then.
Cow punchers, half dressed, were pouring out of the bunk-house,shouting, everyone according to his taste. Like Bob, most of thembelieved that the alarm must mean that a fire had broken out, and quickwork would be needed to get the flames under control.
Their astonishment at not discovering a red glare would have beenamusing, only that the two saddle boys realized the occasion must beserious.
Above all the other sounds the voice of Colonel Haywood could be heard.He was on the piazza of the ranch house, and calling to the men to cometo him.
Immediately there seemed to be half a score of cowboys gathering aroundjust below where the stockman stood. Evidently the Colonel, too, hadbeen suddenly aroused from sleep, for he was only partly dressed.
Frank could not remember ever having seen his father so alarmed. Perhapsby this time Frank was able to give half a guess as to the cause for thecommotion. In this he was aided by the fact that his father was notalone. Seated in one of the easy chairs was a figure. It was that of aman, and Frank felt sure he could recognize Andy Lane, one of the cowpunchers who had been left out on the range as a night wrangler, towatch the herds that were quartered miles away from the big corral.
Something, then, must evidently have happened to bring Andy home. Heundoubtedly brought serious news that had inflamed the mind of theusually cool rancher, and would account for his excited manner.
Frank looked further. He was accustomed to seeing things that mightescape many another, less observing. To his mind Andy was breathing veryhard, and he looked as though he might have passed through a recentdisturbance of some sort.
Immediately the boy remembered the conversation he had had with hisfather concerning a possible descent of the rustlers on one of theirchoice herds. Had such a catastrophe really happened? Would that accountfor the disturbed appearance of the cowboy who had been left out on therange to watch the cattle?
“What is it, Colonel?” demanded one of the assembled punchers.
“We’re all here, and we want to know!” called another eagerly.
“That’s Andy, boys, a-settin’ thar; an’ he looks mighty bad used up!”shouted a third; at which deep murmurs arose, as a suspicion of thetruth began to break in upon the minds of the wild riders of the range.
“They’ve come down on us at last, boys,” said Colonel Haywood, trying tomaster his emotion, though Frank could detect an unaccustomed tremor inhis voice, and saw that his face was white with suppressed passion.
“The rustlers!”
Those two words seemed to start at one end of the semi-circle, and passalong from mouth to mouth. There was a bitterness in the way they werespoken, which told better than anything else how deep was thedetestation the Circle cowboys entertained for the stealers of horsesand cattle.
“Mendoza and his crowd have been on the watch,” continued the stockman;“and saw that we were in the prize class this fall, with the best herds.They waited for the right time to strike. Another night, and our herdswould have been safe in the big corral up to the time of the round-up.Mendoza knew all about it. He must have had word from some spy whovisits around the ranches. And he got what he came after, boys!”
A chorus of angry exclamations interrupted the stockman.
He held up his hand to signal for silence again, and then went on:
“You know that Andy was left in charge of the pick of our stock thisnight, out on the best grass, with Clem Stiles to help. He rapped on thewindow of my room, and woke me up. He was covered with dust and blood.Before he said a single word I just knew what had happened. Before Andyhad half told me I was dressed, and ringing the alarm bell. Andy, speakup and let the boys know what dropped down on you!”
The dilapidated figure that had been lying back in the chair managed tostruggle to his feet. Although he had been badly used, Andy was stillfull of grit. It takes a good deal to put a genuine cowboy down forgood.
“They sneaked in on us all right, boys,” he said; “never would ’athought it could ’a been played on me thataways; but they sure caught us’a nappin’. First thing we knowed we was pounced on by a bunch offellers that had ther handkerchiefs tied ’round the lower part of theirfaces. We kicked good and hard, me an’ Clem, but what was the use? Theywas four to one agin us, and it wa’n’t long before we was both done up.”
“Did ye know any of ’em, Andy?” called out Ted Conway.
“Nary a one,” replied the other; “’cause you see it was only moonlight,and them rags over their faces did the business. Besides, we was hurteda heap by the time the racket was over. They tied us like a couple ofroped steers, and left us lie there, not carin’ whether we bleeded todeath or not.”
“Then they ran the stock away, did they, Andy?” asked one of thelisteners.
“We heard ’em get busy, while we wrestled with the ropes,” continued theother. “They’d taken our guns along, and our hosses, too. As we laidthar we could hear the herd get under way. And the style them rustlersdid things, it was clean easy to see every one of ’em had been a honestcow puncher in his time. Reckon that in less’n half an hour arter we waskeeled over, I heard the last of the hoofs of the herd pass away.”
“How long ago was that, Andy?” asked the Colonel.
“Must a been ’bout midnight when they kim down on us, sir,” replied theother.
“And then what did you and Clem do?” pursued the stockman, who was bydegrees becoming more collected, as he realized that if ever he needed acool head the time was now.
“I was workin’ like a house afire to git my hands loose, Colonel,” Andycontinued. “Clem, I knowed, was hurted worse nor me, for he said hebelieved his ankle must a been broke. Once I couldn’t get him to answer,an’ then I reckoned as how poor Clem had fainted from the pain.”
“You got loose in the end, Andy?”
“I sure did, after workin, it seemed, for hours. Clem was able to talkagain; but after I managed to get his rope off, an’ stood him up, weseen it was no go. He couldn’t walk a step. So I says as how I’d have tomake the run in alone. I reckon I must a lost some blood myself. Don’tknow what else made me feel so weak every little while. Must a took me acoon’s age to git here. Sorry I couldn’t ’a done it better, but——”
Colonel Haywood was just in time to catch the falling figure of Andy.The poor fellow was indeed so weakened from all he had gone through,besides the loss of blood from his several wounds, that he had fainted.
No shouts arose from the gathered cowboys. Their feelings were too deepjust then for utterance. As the late vidette was carried into the ranchhouse, the employees of Circle Ranch clustered there, talking in low butsignificant tones.
“Get in and finish dressing,” said Bart Heminway, the energetic foreman.“Then come back here again to take orders. And be sure you carry plentyof ammunition. It may be needed before we’re through with this business.For, take it from me, boys, the Circle Ranch is a-goin’ to get back thatherd, if Pedro Mendoza has to be chased away down across the border intoMexico.”
Frank and Bob followed suit. When they came out again, bearing theirrepeating rifles, and dressed for a long ride, they found every fellowonce more on the spot, only waiting for the Colonel to say the word.
“No need of any hurry, boys,” said the stockman, who had evidently beenmaking his plans while completing his own dr
essing. “They can’t get thatherd away as fast as we can follow. First it’s our duty to bring in theother two herds, and make sure of ’em.”
“That’s right, Colonel,” called one cowboy; “nice joke it’d be on us tohave ’em drop down and get the rest of the stock while we was ridin’’round lookin’ for signs.”
“Then get away, and see that every animal is safe in the big corral bymorning. Afterward we’ll settle on our plan. And rest easy, boys, thistime nothing is going to keep us from running down Mendoza’s rustlers!They believe they’ll be able to hoodwink us again; but wait and see.Perhaps they can; but the pitcher may go to the well once too often. Socan Mendoza. Success has made him bold. We must clips his wings, boys!”
At that sort of talk a cheer burst forth from the Circle riders. Theyalready knew their part in the drive, and while about half of themgalloped after the foreman, the others followed Ted Conway in anopposite direction.