and then they'll
get their punishment for the way they treated you."

Tuttle looked disapproving. "Nick, what do you think would be
Emerson's judgment?"

"Emerson ain't here, and I'm acting on my own judgment, which is to go
after this outfit and pepper 'em full of holes if they're sassy."

Tuttle shook his head. "I don't like the scheme."

"Well, it ain't your scheme, and you don't have to like it. I think we
ought to go after these men right now. They've done something they
ought to be arrested for. And, anyway, they ought to be punished for
holdin' you up."

"Nick, I'd go with you in a minute, you know I would, if we had a
warrant for 'em, or if I had any reason to think that the Mexican is
the man you want. You don't think so yourself. They might have blowed
my brains out any minute, and nobody would ever have known a thing
about it. But they didn't and I reckon they treated me as white as
they could and look after their own interests. It's my judgment, and I
think it would be Emerson's, too, that it would be a mean trick for me
to come up behind 'em and begin shootin', just for holdin' me up, when
they might have treated me a whole heap worse. I won't go with you,
Nick."

"Sure, then, and I'll go alone," Ellhorn responded cheerfully.

"They'll be two to one."

"Not very long, I reckon."

"Better wait a few days, Nick, till you can go after 'em legally."

"They'll be out of the country by that time. I'm under no obligations
to be kind to 'em, and I don't mean to be. I'm goin' to camp on their
trail right now." He dismounted and cinched up his saddle and
inspected his revolver.

Tuttle regarded him dubiously and in silence until he remounted. Then
he said, slowly: "Well, my judgment's against it, Nick, but I won't
see you go off alone into any such scrape as this is bound to be.
I'll go with you, but I won't do any shootin'--unless you need me
mighty bad."

They galloped back to the scene of Tuttle's captivity the night
before. They found the trail of the wagon, and followed it rapidly
toward the north. Soon they saw a glaring white line against the
horizon. "There's the White Sands," said Ellhorn. "We ought to catch
'em before they get there." A few moments later they came within sight
of the wagon. Tuttle and Ellhorn spurred their horses to a quicker
pace and when they were within hailing distance Ellhorn shouted to its
two occupants to surrender. Their only response was to put whip to
their horses