nd honor of Senator Fairclothe's position would
be arrayed against him. He had seen and heard enough to appreciate
that the vast territory of Southern Florida was in the hands of a set
of powerful, fearless plunderers, with Garman the arch plunderer of
them all. And it was organized, protected plundering.

A county sheriff was a petty pawn in the great game. A county judge
would be only slightly larger, and so on, up through state
legislatures, the governor, congressman, state supreme court judges,
and even up and into the sacred precincts of the United States Senate
in the person of Senator Fairclothe. How vast was the power of
Garman's plunder organization might be estimated by the degree of
ignorance in which the land-buying public throughout the country was
kept concerning the true situation in the district. Full-page
advertisements in Sunday newspapers created a golden dream in the
public mind concerning the Western Everglades; not one single news item
crept into print revealing the truth. Roger realized that for such a
power to crush him in a court test would require merely that the
machine created for such purpose be set in motion. He realized also
that the vicious nature of the desperados whom Garman had placed upon
his drained land and the desperate measures which would be necessary to
regain possession of his own.

Yet he found, a little to his own amazement, that he could look upon
the theft with entire calmness. The fact was that it did not seem to
concern him deeply. His emotions were a throb from the memory of
Annette in his arms. He recalled little else of the meeting. She had
been in his arms. And now his arms ached for her again with a
poignance which made all other things insignificant.

"Well?" said Higgins. "Going to let 'em do it?"

"Do what, Hig?"

"Going to let them drag you into court and beat you because they've got
possession of your land?"

"It takes thinking over," mused Roger.

"It takes fighting, that's what it takes," retorted Higgins. "We've
got to roust those hard guys out of there before they take root and put
up buildings. Some one's got to chase out to Citrus Grove and burn the
wires up for about twenty tough fighting men to be delivered at Citrus
Grove as quick as the trains will bring 'em. Twenty fighting men, and
twenty riot pump-guns, and a dark night, and I'll kick that bunch off
the place and have the place back in your own hands by daylight."

Roger la