d and rocked. Then, the Texan
landed heavily upon the point of his opponent's chin and the latter
sank limp to the floor of the coulee. For a full minute Tex stood
looking down at his victim.

"Curt can scrap like the devil. I'm sure glad he didn't force no gun
play, I'd have hated to hurt him." He recovered the flask from the
ground where the other had dropped it, and forced some whiskey between
his lips. Presently the man opened his eyes.

"Feelin' better?" asked the Texan as Curt blinked up at him.

"Um-hum. My head aches some."

"Mine, too."

"You got a couple of black eyes, an' your lip is swol up."

"One of yours is turnin' black."

Curt regained his feet and walked slowly toward his horse. "Well, I'll
be goin'. So long."

"So long," answered the Texan. He, too, swung into the saddle and each
rode upon his way.

CHAPTER XVI

BACK IN CAMP

From their place of concealment high upon the edge of Antelope Butte,
Alice Marcum and Endicott watched the movements of the three horsemen
with absorbing interest. They saw the Texan circle to the
south-eastward and swing north to intercept the trail of the unknown
rider. They watched Bat, with Indian cunning, creep to his place of
concealment at the edge of the coulee. They saw the riders disperse,
the unknown to head toward the mountains at a gallop, and the Texan to
turn his horse southward and ride slowly into the bad lands. And they
watched Bat recover his own horse from behind a rock pinnacle and
follow the Texan, always keeping out of sight in parallel coulees until
both were swallowed up in the amethyst haze of the bad lands.

For an hour they remained in their lookout, pointing out to each other
some new wonder of the landscape--a wind-carved pinnacle, the
heliographic flashing of the mica, or some new combination in the
ever-changing splendour of colours.

"Whew! But it's hot, and I'm thirsty. And besides it's lunch time."
Alice rose, and with Endicott following, made her way to the camp.

"Isn't it wonderful?" she breathed, as they ate their luncheon. "This
life in the open--the pure clean air--the magnificent world all spread
out before you, beckoning you on, and on, and on. It makes a person
strong with just the feel of living--the joy of it. Just think,
Winthrop, of being able to eat left-over biscuits and cold bacon and
enjoy it!"

Endicott smiled: "Haven't I improved enough, yet, for 'Win'?--Tex
thinks so."

The girl