y.
He thought the other was Andy Green. He was too tired to kick Silver
in the ribs and race toward them. He waited until they came up, their
horses pounding over the uneven sod urged by the jubilance of their
riders.

Chip rode up and lifted the Kid bodily from the saddle and held him so
tight in his arms that the Kid kicked half-heartedly with both feet, to
free himself. But he had a message for his Daddy Chip, and as soon as he
could get his breath he delivered it.

"Daddy Chip, I just want you to kill that damn' pilgrim!" he commanded.
"There wasn't any baby bear cubs at all. He was just a-stringin' me. And
he was going to cut off my ears. He said it wasn't a far ways to where
the baby bear cubs lived with the old mother bear, and it was. I wish
you'd lick the stuffin' outa him. I'm awful hungry, Daddy Chip."

"We'll be home pretty quick," Chip said in a queer, choked voice. "Who
was the man, Buck? Where is he now?"

The Kid lifted his head sleepily from his Daddy Chip's shoulder and
pointed vaguely toward the moon. "He's the man that jumped Andy's ranch
right on the edge of One Man," he explained. "He's back there ridin' the
rim-rocks a lookin' for me. I'd a come home before, only he wouldn't
let me come. He said he'd cut my ears off. I runned away from him, Daddy
Chip. And I cussed him a plenty for lying to me--but you needn't tell
Doctor Dell."

"I won't, Buck." Chip lifted him into a more comfortable position and
held him so. While the Kid slept he talked with Andy about getting the
Happy Family on the trail of H. J. Owens. Then he rode thankfully home
with the Kid in his arms and Silver following docilely after.

CHAPTER 28. AS IT TURNED OUT

They found H. J. Owens the next forenoon wandering hopelessly lost in
the hills. Since killing him was barred, they tied his arms behind him
and turned him toward the Flying U. He was sullen, like an animal that
is trapped and will do nothing but lie flattened to the ground and glare
red-eyed at its captors. For that matter, the Happy Family themselves
were pretty sullen. They had fought fire for hours--and that is killing
work; and they had been in the saddle ever since, looking for the Kid
and for this man who rode bound in their midst.

Weary and Irish and Pink, who had run across him in a narrow canyon,
fired pistol-shot signals to bring the others to the spot. But when the
others emerged from various points upon the scene, there was very little
said abou