y his attitude, and eager to
wipe out the sting of the lecture, the bully grinned nastily and took a
step forward.

"Reg'lar pit-cock, ain't ye?" he sneered. "High an' mighty with yer
mouth, ain't ye? Goin' ter boss things right up ter th' hilt, _you_ air!
Wall, ye--I'm wettin' yer primin', hyar an'----"

Tom stopped the words with a left on the mouth, and while the fight
lasted it was fast and furious; but clumsy brute strength, misdirected
by a blind rage, could not cope with a greater strength, trained, agile,
and cool; neither could a liquor soaked carcass for long take the heavy
punishment that Tom methodically was giving it and come back for more.
As the bullwhacker went down in the mud for the fifth time, there was a
finality about the fall that caused his conqueror to wheel abruptly
from him and face the ring of eager and disappointed faces.

"I warn't too busy ter hear some o' th' remarks," he snarled. "Now's th'
time ter back 'em up! If ye don't it makes a double liar out o' ye! Come
on--step out, an' git it over quick!" He glanced at the two pugnacious
tenderfeet. "You two make about one man, th' way we rate 'em out hyar;
come on, both o' ye!"

While they hesitated, Captain Woodson pushed through the crowd into the
ring, closely followed by Tom's grim and silent friends, and a slender
Mexican, the latter obviously solicitous about Tom's welfare. In a few
moments the excitement died down and the crowd dispersed to its various
wagons and pack animals. As Tom went toward his mules he saw Franklin,
the tough officer of the third division, facing a small group of his own
friends, and suddenly placing his hand against the face of one of them,
pushed the man off his balance.

"I'll cut yer spurs," Franklin declared. "Fust man sneaks off guard in
_my_ gang will wish ter G-d he didn't!" He turned away and met Tom face
to face. "We'll larn 'em, Boyd," he growled. "I'm aimin' ter bust th'
back o' th' first kiyote of _my_ gang that leaves his post unwatched. If
one o' them gits laid up fer th' rest o' th' trip th' others'll stand
ter it, rain or no rain. Ye should 'a' kicked in his ribs while ye had
'im down!"

After a confused and dilatory start the two trains strung out over the
prairie and went on again; but the rebellious wagon-owners on the east
side of the creek were not with the caravan. They were learning their
lesson.

The heavy rain had swollen the waters of the stream, stirred up its soft
bed and turn