answered:

"They took the papers that prove my right to lands along Spur Creek!"

"Spur Creek!" fairly shouted Bud. "That's where they're going to open
the Indian holdings--where the sheep men will first head for, and if we
can't control that opening our range won't be worth a hill of beans!
Are you sure the papers are gone, Dad?"

"I'm only too sure, son," was the grim answer.

CHAPTER III

ON THE TRAIL

Leaving Zeb Tauth to look after his own steed and that of Professor
Wright, Bud and his cousins ushered the scientist into the living-room
of the ranch house, whither Mr. Merkel and his fellow ranchmen
returned, followed by his wife and daughter. Slim Degnan also entered,
having turned his horse over to Babe, who, with the other cowboys, went
to the corral.

"Now let's get the straight of this," suggested the owner of Diamond X
ranch, when the party was again sitting down, and Professor Wright had
been made welcome. "Slim, you saw what happened outside. Suppose you
tell us about that."

"Seems to me that something more important happened in here," spoke
Bud. "If your papers were stolen, Dad, why----"

"They sure were, _son_," interrupted Mr. Merkel, "but I have an idea
that what went on outside had a very important bearing on what took
place in here. That's why I wanted to hear Slim's account first."

"Well, there isn't an awful lot to tell," said the ranch foreman. "I
was sitting outside the corral with the boys, sort of planning up the
work for to-morrow. We were talking about this new move of the
government, opening the Indian lands, and we were sort of guessing how
soon the onery sheep men would bust in on us, when one of the
boys--Snake Purdee I reckon it was--said somebody was coming up the
trail that leads to Happy Valley.

"First we didn't pay much attention to them, thinking they was some of
Bud's boys, but they acted so funny that I hailed 'em, and instead of
answering like they should, they fired. Course I fired back--up in the
air--and then we boys got busy and took after 'em."

"Yes, I can understand it from there on," said Mr. Merkel. "But you
didn't get the ones you went after; did you?"

"Apparently not," admitted the foreman with a grim smile. "It was
pretty dark and we must have missed 'em. But finally we did see two
horses streaking it over the plains, and we took after 'em, only to
find they were the professor here, and his friend."

"Then the other parties, whoe