oring long holes in the dark, Merry and Clancy seemed fairly to fly over the trail. It seemed to them as though they had har

r getting out of the saddle, ex

to Clancy. "The Loco famil

news. While you're doing that I'll skirmish around and see if there

drummed on the front door with his knuckles. After two or three attempt

with Pete Loco.

, revealing a swarthy-visaged man in

the man with the candle in no ve

with you to-night, Mr.

Think this he

ed Porter. The last we saw of him

r to the mine. Seen hi

. He left the mine

t seen him, an'

hear him shoot the bolt. Turning away, Frank met

w anything about our man,

live stock around, and it's hardly possible, anyhow, that Porter would stop such

s in a q

o the mine and Ophir, and the other leads to Gold Hill. It's just possi

d wanted to go to Gold Hill he would have turned north

ass through Ophir. Porter might have thought that we would use

McGurvin's; then, if we don't overhaul Porter on the road, or pick up any clews at McGurvin's, we can come back and take the Gold Hill fork from here. We c

long it will take us to get to McGurv

red-headed chap; "you won't fi

od, and Merry got his machine going at a pace that might have been reckless had not th

?" called Clancy, whirrin

nswered. "We're not on

or the thrill of that wild dash through the

im, Chip," he called, the wind of their flight ca

had ridden hard, he would already have had time to

come that way, he would stop at the ranch. He had left the mine too hurriedly to equip himself with water canteens and rations for a prolonge

lowed as the destination hove duskily into sight. A yellow gleam showed at one of the win

mself in person to McGurvin. There was no curtain at the window through which shone the lamp-light, and the lad crept up t

see any one but McGurvin through the window, and he's spelling out the news i

e corral for a tired horse. If we find one, then surely it's

nd the horse showed no evidence of recen

be nothing else for it but for him to stop here. He wou

t what he wanted, and we

of us-it couldn't have been more than that-then he had only an hour and a half to ride here, and no time to pick up fo

that we're here, we'd better find

e'll have a word or two with th

me was derived from the sale of water, brought up from his well by burro power, to prospectors and othe

staring hard at the boys. "Say," and his face cleared, "wasn't you along this wa

chums had run against Blunt and his cowboy friends, to

Frank, "we'r

ffawed McGurvin. "Sot down

n," Frank went on, "and can't stop long

nk, and he dug his finge

way?" he asked. "Squints with hi

man is a big fellow, whisk

n me," sai

ven't seen an

What's he done?

ve a talk with him. Can you spare us a couple of canteens, full

fer the water in the canteens, an' two dollars fer the canteens;

robber. Having a monopoly of the water in that locali

all right, McGu

s," remarked McGurvin, unaware of the bomb was exploding. "The

not to show it. Clancy jumped, but

supplies for us, please," urg

eried the rancher, st

ses, Mc

hings git too thick in the desert they'll be the ruina

door, Clancy leaped ex

, Chip?" he whispered. "

f a sudden, to extend thi

ght we'd get all twisted up, and end by losing ourselves in the foothills. If we're going to Happenchance, Ch

ght," Merry answered, "even before Mc

ell! What do you suppose Bl

e old camp of Happenchance, where the professor's claim is located? Before McGurvin told us Blunt had gone in that direction, I had made up

t about

is cowboy friends offer a more promising clew to the prof's whereabouts. W

t back suddenly in their chairs as McGurvin came into the ro

ies, and then the rancher followed the boys out a

' a man that sells water out o' his rights. If ye didn't have them contraptions, ye'd be shac

arlight, heading into the desert. As soon as they were well away. McG

red jubilantly. "Go it, you crazy galoots-but I

ouse and pounded on a stovepipe that ran t

urvin?" came a muffl

her; "they went pippity-poppin' away, each o

'd the

stways, they headed inter th

grunt echoed

mplacently. "I'll bet a-plenty them kids was nosin' around afore t

alled down the man upst

n caught up the sound with some heartiness as he locked the door, b