sure whether they strayed away or have been stolen. Jackson and the
fellows with him are going to ride along the river and see if they can
find out."

"Didn't you say something about other horses being stolen before we got
here?"

"Yes. But they didn't belong to my father. They belonged to the men who
formerly owned this ranch. They left them here, but at their own risk."

"Were the animals now missing the horses we rode?" questioned Fred.

"No. They were the mounts used by Jackson and his men. That is, three of
the horses were. The other was that beautiful black my father
occasionally rode."

"You mean Blackbird?" exclaimed Randy.

"Yes."

"Why, I think Blackbird is the finest horse on the ranch," declared Gif.

"He certainly is a splendid nag," answered Spouter. "And my dad thinks a
great deal of him."

The horse in question was a three-year-old, shining black in color, with
a peculiar diamond-shaped spot of white on his forehead and a similar
spot on his chest. Because of these spots some of the cowboys often
referred to him as Two-spot.

"I suppose those horses are worth some money," remarked Fred.

"Indeed they are!" declared Spouter. "I heard my father say he wouldn't
take four hundred dollars for Blackbird. And the other animals must be
worth at least a hundred and fifty dollars apiece. You know they always
had pretty good horses on this ranch."

"I certainly hope they get some trace of the horses," said Jack.

But this hope was not fulfilled. Jackson and those with him came back
disappointed, saying that they had found no trace of the animals.

About a week later came another surprise. The young folks, including the
girls, had gone off to the woods for the best part of the day, and when
they returned, much to their astonishment, they saw seated in rocking
chairs on the veranda Ruth and May.

"My goodness!" screamed Mary. "Ruth and May! Glory hallelujah! How in the
world did you get here?"

"And you never let us know!" wailed Martha, as she bounced up the steps
to embrace her school chums.

"We got started sooner than we expected," answered May.

"Did you come alone?" questioned Jack, as he, too, came forward, his
pleasure showing on his face.

"No, we didn't come alone," answered Ruth. "We came with Mr. and Mrs.
Rover. They are inside with the others."

"My mother and dad!" burst out Andy. "Where are they?" And he raced into
the house, followed by his twin.

There followed a joyous re