be able to appreciate a change like that--he would be square as a
brick with her and attentive and loyal--and with him she wouldn't run
much chance of being left a widow. Why, I'll bet he'll worship the ground
she walks on--she could wind him all around her little finger and he'd
never peep. And she would have the best protection that walks around these
parts. But, pshaw, all this is too far ahead of the game. How about that
herd of cattle you spoke of?"

"I can get you the whole herd dirt cheap," replied the foreman. "And they
are as hungry and healthy a lot as you could wish."

"Well," responded the sheriff, "I've made up my mind to go ranching
again. I can't stand this loafing, for it don't amount to much more than
that now that The Orphan has graduated out of the outlaw class. I can run
a ranch and have plenty of time to attend to the sheriff part of it,
too. Ever since I sold the Three-S I have been like a fish out of water.
When I got rid of it I put the money away in Kansas City, thinking that I
might want to go back at it again. Then I got rid of that mine and bunked
the money with the ranch money. The interest has been accumulating for
a long time now and I have got something over thirty thousand lying idle.
Now, I'm going to put it to work.

"I ran across Crawford last week, and he is dead anxious to sell out and
go back East--he don't like the West. I've determined to take the A-Y off
his hands, for it's a good ranch, has good buildings on it, two fine
windmills over driven wells, good grass and shelters. Why, he has put
up shelters in Long Valley that can't be duplicated under a thousand
dollars. His terms are good--five thousand down and the balance in
installments of two thousand a year at three per cent., and I can get
_over_ three per cent, while it is lying waiting to be paid to him. He
is too blamed sick of his white elephant to haggle over terms. He was
foolish to try to run it himself and to sink so much money in driven
wells, windmills and buildings--it would astonish you to know how much
money he spent in paint alone. What did he know about ranching, anyhow?
He can't hardly tell a cow from a heifer. He said that he knew how to
make money earn money in the East, but that he couldn't make a cent
raising cows.

"If The Orphan attends to his new deal I'll put him in charge and the
rest lies with him. I'll provide him with a good outfit, everything he
needs and, if he makes good and the ranch pays, I