! And what's mine is yours, Pratt. They tell me you are
a mighty good boy. Captain Dan speaks well of you----"

"And I ought to," growled the old ranchman from the background. "I owe
something to him, too, for what he did for Frances."

"Heh?" exclaimed Lonergan. He turned short around and stared at the
blushing Frances. "She's a mighty fine girl, I reckon?"

"The best in the Panhandle," declared the old ranchman, nodding
understandingly.

"And this boy of my sister's is a pretty good fellow, Dan?" asked
Lonergan.

"Mighty fine--mighty fine," admitted Captain Dan Rugley.

"I tell you what," whispered Jonas, in the Captain's ear, "this dividin'
up the contents of that old treasure chest will only be temporary after
all--just temporary, eh?"

"We'll see--we'll see, Lon," said Captain Dan, carefully. "They're young
yet, they're over-young. But 'twould certain sure be a romantic outcome
of all our adventures together years ago, eh?"

"Right you are, Captain, right you are!" agreed Lonergan.

Frances and Pratt heard none of this. Pratt had entered the car and the
two young people were talking to the Reverend Mr. Tooley, who was a
demure little man in clerical black, who seemed quite happy over the
reunion of the two old friends, Captain Dan Rugley and Jonas P.
Lonergan.

Lonergan was a lean old man who walked with a crutch. Although he had a
very vigorous voice, he showed his age and his state of ill health when
he began to move about.

"But we'll fix all that, Lon," the Captain assured him. "Once we get you
out to the Bar-T we'll build you up in a jiffy. We'll get you out of
doors. Humph! soldiers' home, indeed! Why, you've got a long stretch of
life ahead of you yet. I've beat out old Mr. Rheumatism myself these
last few weeks.

"We'll fight our bodily ills and old age together, Lon--just as we used
to fight other enemies. Back to back and never give up or ask for
quarter, eh?"

"That's the talk, Dan!" cried the other old fellow.

But Mr. Lonergan was glad to ride out to the Bar-T in the
comfortably-cushioned carriage that Mack Hinkman had driven to town. The
party arrived at the ranch-house--Mr. Tooley and all--after daybreak.
The Captain had insisted upon Pratt's going, too.

"What?" Lonergan demanded. "_You_ a bank clerk, looking out through
the wires of a cage like a monkey in the Zoo we saw years ago at Kansas
City?"

"That _is_ a nice job for your nephew, hey Lon?" put in the
Captain.

"Drop i