at home and at ease. He lifted up his coat behind,
and his face was a study in bucolic unconsciousness. The settler passed
through to the boys' room (which was harness room, feed room, tool
house, and several other things), and as he passed out with a shovel the
sergeant said, "So you haven't seen anyone along here for three days?"

"No," said the settler.

"Except Jimmy Marshfield that took over Barker's selection in Long
Gully," put in Aunt Annie. "He was here yesterday. Do you want him?"

"An' them three fellers on horseback as rode past the corner of the
lower paddock the day afore yesterday," mumbled Uncle Abe, "but one of
'em was one of the Coxes' boys, I think."

At the sound of Uncle Abe's voice both women started and paled, and
looked as if they'd like to gag him, but he was safe.

"What were they like?" asked the constable.

The women paled again, but Uncle Abe described them. He had imagination,
and was only slow where the truth was concerned.

"Which way were they going?" asked the constable. "Towards Mudgee" (the
police-station township), said Uncle Abe.

The constable gave his arm an impatient jerk and dropped Uncle Abe.

Uncle Abe looked as if he wanted badly to wink hard at someone, but
there was no friendly eye in the line of wink that would be safe.

"Well, it's strange," said the sergeant, "that the men we're after
didn't look up an out-of-the-way place like this for tucker, or
horse-feed, or news, or something."

"Now, look here," said Aunt Annie, "we're neither cattle duffers nor
sympathizers; we're honest, hard-working people, and God knows we're
glad enough to see a strange face when it comes to this lonely hole; and
if you only want to insult us, you'd better stop it at once. I tell you
there's nobody been here but old Jimmy Marshfield for three days, and
we haven't seen a stranger for over a fortnight, and that's enough. My
sister's delicate and worried enough without you." She had a masculine
habit of putting her hand up on something when holding forth, and as
it happened it rested on the work-box on the shelf that contained the
cattle-stealer's mother's Bible; but if put to it, Aunt Annie would have
sworn on the Bible itself.

"Oh well, no offence, no offence," said the constable. "Come on, men, if
you've finished, it's no use wasting time round here."

The two young troopers thanked the mother for their breakfast, and
strange to say, the one who had spoken to her went up to Aun