ng! Here was a pretty mess,
he thought savagely; and then his expression of anger and perplexity
gave way to a flickering grin as the probable solution came to his mind.

"By the Lord, I never saw such a bunch to play jokes," he laughed.
"Won't they never grow up? They was watching me when I went inside an'
sneaked up and rustled my cayuse. Well, I'll get back again without much
trouble, all right. They ought to know me better by this time."

"Hey, stranger!" he called to a man who was riding past, "have you seen
anything of a skinny roan cayuse fifteen han's high, white stocking on
the near foreleg, an' a bandage on the off fetlock, Bar-20 being the
brand?"

The stranger, knowing the grinning inquisitor by sight, suspected that
a joke was being played: he also knew Dave Wilkes and that gentleman's
friends. He chuckled and determined to help it along a little. "Shore
did, pardner; saw a man leading him real cautious. Was he yourn?"

"Oh, no; not at all. He belonged to my great-great-grandfather, who left
him to my second cousin. You see, I borrowed it," he grinned, making his
way leisurely towards the general store, kept by his friend Dave, the
joker. "Funny how everybody likes a joke," he muttered, opening the door
of the store. "Hey, Dave," he called.

Mr. Wilkes wheeled suddenly and stared. "Why, I thought you was half-way
to Wallace's by now!" he exclaimed. "Did you come back to lose that lone
dollar?"

"Oh, I lost that too. But yo're a real smart cuss, now ain't you?"
queried Hopalong, his eyes twinkling and his face wreathed with good
humor. "An' how innocent you act, too. Thought you could scare me,
didn't you? Thought I'd go tearing 'round this fool town like a house
afire, hey? Well, I reckon you can guess again. Now, I'm owning up that
the joke's on me, so you hand over my cayuse, an' I'll make up for lost
time."

Dave Wilkes' face expressed several things, but surprise was dominant.
"Why, I ain't even seen yore ol' cayuse, you chump! Last time I saw it
you was on him, going like the devil. Did somebody pull you off it an'
take it away from you?" he demanded with great sarcasm. "Is somebody
abusing you?"

Hopalong bit into a generous handful of dried apricots, chewed
complacently for a moment, and replied: "'At's aw right; I want my
cayuse." Swallowing hastily, he continued: "I want it, an' I've come to
the right place for it, too. Hand it over, David."

"Dod blast it, I tell you I ain't got it!" re