too
bad." He paused, letting the smoke curl over his head again. "Ah! I see her
now! You are ze nephew of Uncle Henry which owns zis rancho which are to be
foreclosed by moggidge." Gilbert nodded. "H'm! Zat shall make her all
different some more! Axplain for me, so I shall know."

Gilbert replied: "There's not much to tell. I borrowed ten thousand from
my uncle; ten more from Hardy--the tall man, and our neighbor. He's a loan
shark--you know, in a mortgage. I go to the war. When I come home, cattle
all gone. No money. That's all." He made a gesture as though the world were
tumbling about him.

"I see," said Lopez. "And wiz ze strange ideas of your country, it makes
you feel bad."

"Well, it seems like a pretty good chunk of trouble to hand an average
citizen," young Jones said.

"Trouble?" Lopez let out the word in wrath. "You are no trouble. You only
sink you are."

"You don't call this trouble? If it isn't then I don't know what trouble
is!"

"Not really trouble." He came over and put his hand on Gilbert's shoulder.
"Only trouble you are made for yourself because you go by law what are
foolish instead of sense what are wise." He gave him an affectionate pat.
Just then Uncle Henry wheeled himself in, neither inquiring nor caring if
he was wanted or not.

"Well, I sure told 'em their right names for once, gol darn 'em!" he
chuckled. Lopez glared at him. "Pardon me! My mistake!" the invalid
apologized; and rolled into the alcove. "So, you sink you have much
trouble," Lopez continued, as though the invalid had not come in to
interrupt them. The clock struck five. He listened to it, and then said, "I
have time to spare--" He went to the window and looked out.

"But if you've been raiding around here," Uncle Henry said from his
seclusion, "won't the rangers be after you?"

"I have ze scouts who watch," the bandit said. He turned to Gilbert again.
"Suppose I stop here and prove to you who sink you have trouble, zat really
you have no trouble at all?"

The young man looked at him incredulously. "You mean you can get me out of
this mess?" he asked.

"Sure! In one half hour," the bandit was convinced.

"Really?"

"In one half hour your trouble go poof!" He made a ring of smoke and
watched it fade away. "And you shall be 'appy man. If I do zat, what zen?"

"If you do that," said the other, "they'll have to tie me down to keep me
from kissing you!"

"Good!" laughed Lopez. "She is did."

There was a moment's