ain, and it was evident that Larry
Grant had hitherto been esteemed by them.

"If it had been any one else, we could have put our thumb on him right
now," said one. "Still, I don't quite figure it would work with Larry.
There are too many folks who would stand in with him."

There was a little murmur of approbation, and Clavering laughed. "Buy him
off," he said tentatively. "We have laid out a few thousand dollars in
that way before."

Some of the men made gestures of decided negation, and Torrance looked at
the speaker a trifle sternly.

"No, sir," he said. "Larry may be foolish, but he's one of us."

"Then," said somebody, "we've got to give him time. Let it pass. You have
something to tell us, Torrance?"

Torrance signed to one of them. "You had better tell them, Allonby."

A grey-haired man stood up, and his fingers shook a little on the table.
"My lease has fallen in, and the Bureau will not renew it," he said. "I'm
not going to moan about my wrongs, but some of you know what it cost me to
break in that place of mine. You have lived on the bitter water and the
saleratus bread, but none of you has seen his wife die for the want of the
few things he couldn't give her, as I did. I gave the nation my two boys
when the good times came, and they're dead--buried in their uniform both
of them--and now, when I'd laid out my last dollar on the ranch, that the
one girl I've left me might have something when I'd gone, the Government
will take it away from me. Gentlemen, is it my duty to sit down quietly?"

There was a murmur, and the men looked at one another with an ominous
question in their eyes, until Torrance raised his hand.

"The land's not open to location. I guess they're afraid of us, and
Allonby's there on toleration yet," he said. "Gentlemen, we mean to keep
him just where he is, because when he pulls out we will have to go too.
But this thing has to be done quietly. When the official machinery moves
down here it's because we pull the strings, and we have got to have the
law upon our side as far as we can. Well, that's going to cost us money,
and we want a campaign fund. I'll give Allonby a cheque for five hundred
dollars in the meanwhile, if he'll be treasurer; but as we may all be
fixed as he is presently, we'll want a good deal more before we're
through. Who will follow me?"

Each of them promised five hundred, and then looked at Clavering, who had
not spoken. One of them also fancied that there was for