upward, the fingers
hooked, prehensile, trembled with anger. The sense of wrongs, the
injustices, the oppression, extortion, and pillage of twenty years
suddenly culminated and found voice in a raucous howl of execration.
For a second there was nothing articulate in that cry of savage
exasperation, nothing even intelligent. It was the human animal hounded
to its corner, exploited, harried to its last stand, at bay, ferocious,
terrible, turning at last with bared teeth and upraised claws to meet
the death grapple. It was the hideous squealing of the tormented brute,
its back to the wall, defending its lair, its mate and its whelps, ready
to bite, to rend, to trample, to batter out the life of The Enemy in a
primeval, bestial welter of blood and fury.

The roar subsided to intermittent clamour, in the pauses of which the
sounds of music and dancing made themselves audible once more.

"S. Behrman again," vociferated Harran Derrick.

"Chose his moment well," muttered Annixter. "Hits his hardest when we're
all rounded up having a good time."

"Gentlemen, this is ruin."

"What's to be done now?"

"FIGHT! My God! do you think we are going to stand this? Do you think we
CAN?"

The uproar swelled again. The clearer the assembly of ranchers
understood the significance of this move on the part of the Railroad,
the more terrible it appeared, the more flagrant, the more intolerable.
Was it possible, was it within the bounds of imagination that this
tyranny should be contemplated? But they knew--past years had driven
home the lesson--the implacable, iron monster with whom they had to
deal, and again and again the sense of outrage and oppression lashed
them to their feet, their mouths wide with curses, their fists clenched
tight, their throats hoarse with shouting.

"Fight! How fight? What ARE you going to do?"

"If there's a law in this land"

"If there is, it is in Shelgrim's pocket. Who owns the courts in
California? Ain't it Shelgrim?"

"God damn him."

"Well, how long are you going to stand it? How long before you'll settle
up accounts with six inches of plugged gas-pipe?"

"And our contracts, the solemn pledges of the corporation to sell to us
first of all----"

"And now the land is for sale to anybody."

"Why, it is a question of my home. Am I to be turned out? Why, I have
put eight thousand dollars into improving this land."

"And I six thousand, and now that I have, the Railroad grabs it."

"And the sy