horse thief in the dark.

"I know the lad, and I also know this Saul Mangle and his crowd,"
returned Jack Blowfen. "I owe Mangle one for the way he treated me in
Deadwood one day."

He ran so swiftly that Paul had hard work to keep up with him. Dottery
had already disappeared in the darkness of the night.

Bang! Bang! The shots came from behind the barn, while Paul was some
distance away. It was Dottery firing at the thieves. Jack Blowfen was
chasing them down by the wire fence.

"Paul! Paul! Hold on!"

It was Chet's voice. As he cried out the lad arose from the grass and
caught his brother by the sleeve. Paul had passed so close that he had
almost trodden on Chet.

"Come on, Chet."

"I'm coming. But hadn't we better look to our horses?"

"In a minute. Let us find out what that firing means."

Paul led the way in the direction of the barn. There, in the gloom, they
saw two men struggling violently. They were Dottery and the negro, Jeff
Jones. The other horse thieves and Jack Blowfen were nowhere in sight.

Two horses were running about wildly, alarmed by the shots in the dark.
Both were bridled but had no saddles.

"Catch the hosses!" yelled Dottery, as he made out the forms of the
boys. "Don't let 'em get out of that break in the fence!"

"Have you that man?" cried Paul.

"I will have in a second."

The brothers ran for the animals as directed. It was no light work to
secure them. When it was accomplished they ran the horses into the barn
and closed the doors. As they came out panting from their exertions,
they heard a gunshot from the brush on the opposite side of the road,
and then the voice of Jack Blowfen calling out:

"Let them hosses go, you rascals! Take that, Saul Mangle, fer the trick
yer played me in Deadwood!"

"Rush and Lilly!" gasped Chet. He said no more, but started in the
direction of the encounter. He was determined his horse should not be
taken again. Paul came on his heels. Both boys were now sufficiently
aroused to fight even with their firearms. The wire fence was cleared at
a single bound and into the brush they dove pell-mell.

That Jack Blowfen was having a fierce hand-to-hand contest with his
antagonist was plain. The boys could hear both men thrashing around at a
lively rate.

"You've hit me in the leg, and I'll never forgive you for it!" they
heard Saul Mangle exclaim. "How do you like that, you milk-and-water cow
puncher?"

"I don't like it, and ain't going ter stan