aused while he came up.

"Jerry," said Agnes gently, turning upon him eyes full of sadness and
lost hope, "get on your horse and go away. Don't force me to think worse
of you than I have thought. Go away, Jerry; go away!"

Boyle's face was flushed, and his naturally pop-eyed expression was
greatly aggravated by his anger. It seemed that his eyes were straining
to leap out, and had forced themselves forward until the whites showed
beyond the lids.

"Yes, that Slavens is one of these men that'd eat hot rocks for the
woman he loves," he sneered. "Well, it's up to him to show how far he'll
go for you."

"It's unworthy of even you, Jerry, to talk like that," she reproved. "As
far as I know, I am nothing more to Dr. Slavens than any other friend.
If you want his claim, why don't you go down there and buy it, as you
were ready to buy it from Peterson if you could have filed him on it?"

"Because I can get it cheaper," said Boyle. "I'll not give him ten cents
for it. It's your job to go and tell him that I want him to go over to
Meander and pay up on that land, and I'll furnish the money for it, but
before he pays he must sign a relinquishment to me."

"I'll not do it!" she declared.

"If you won't lead, I'll have to try spurs, and I don't like to do that,
Agnes, for the sake of old days."

"Forget the old days."

"I'll go you," said he.

"There's nothing that you can tell these people about me that will lower
me much in their estimation. None of them, except Smith, knows me very
well, anyhow. I don't care so much for their opinion, for I'm not here
to please them."

Boyle placed his hand on her shoulder and looked gravely into her face.

"But if I was to show proof to the land commissioner that you'd got
possession of a homestead here through fraud and perjury, then where
would you land?" he asked.

"It isn't true!" she cried, fear rising within her and driving away the
color of courage which to that moment had flown in her face.

"It is true, Agnes," he protested. "You registered under the name of
Agnes Horton and made affidavit that it was your lawful name; you
entered this land under the same name, and took title to it in the
preliminaries, and that's fraud and perjury, if I know anything about
the definition of either term."

"Do you mean to tell me, Jerry," she faltered, "that I'd have to go to
prison if Dr. Slavens wouldn't consent to save me by giving up his claim
to you?"

"Well, the disgrace of it