asture than a rope's
length would permit him to find. Therefore he went free, and in the
morning gave us but little trouble in catching him.

We crossed a river in the forenoon, and far to the north of us we saw
the Bow Leg Mountains, pale in the bright sun. Sunk Creek flowed from
their western side, and our two hundred and sixty-three miles began to
grow a small thing in my eyes. Buck and Muggins, I think, knew perfectly
that to-morrow would see them home. They recognized this region; and
once they turned off at a fork in the road. The Virginian pulled them
back rather sharply.

"Want to go back to Balaam's?" he inquired of them. "I thought you had
more sense."

I asked, "Who was Balaam?"

"A maltreater of hawsses," replied the cowpuncher. "His ranch is on
Butte Creek oveh yondeh." And he pointed to where the diverging road
melted into space. "The Judge bought Buck and Muggins from him in the
spring."

"So he maltreats horses?" I repeated.

"That's the word all through this country. A man that will do what
they claim Balaam does to a hawss when he's mad, ain't fit to be called
human." The Virginian told me some particulars.

"Oh!" I almost screamed at the horror of it, and again, "Oh!"

"He'd have prob'ly done that to Buck as soon as he stopped runnin' away.
If I caught a man doin' that--"

We were interrupted by a sedate-looking traveller riding upon an equally
sober horse.

"Mawnin', Taylor," said the Virginian, pulling up for gossip. "Ain't you
strayed off your range pretty far?"

"You're a nice one!" replied Mr. Taylor, stopping his horse and smiling
amiably.

"Tell me something I don't know," retorted the Virginian.

"Hold up a man at cards and rob him," pursued Mr. Taylor. "Oh, the news
has got ahead of you!"

"Trampas has been hyeh explainin', has he?" said the Virginian with a
grin.

"Was that your victim's name?" said Mr. Taylor, facetiously. "No, it
wasn't him that brought the news. Say, what did you do, anyway?"

"So that thing has got around," murmured the Virginian. "Well, it wasn't
worth such wide repawtin'." And he gave the simple facts to Taylor,
while I sat wondering at the contagious powers of Rumor. Here, through
this voiceless land, this desert, this vacuum, it had spread like a
change of weather. "Any news up your way?" the Virginian concluded.

Importance came into Mr. Taylor's countenance. "Bear Creek is going to
build a schoolhouse," said he.

"Goodness gracious!" drawle