les, coolly looked
at his watch.

"An hour an' a quarter, Miss Hammond," he said. "It's sixty-three miles
by the valley road, an' you know there's a couple of bad hills. I reckon
we made fair time, considerin' you wanted me to drive slow an' safe."

From the mass of dusty-veiled humanity in the car came low exclamations
and plaintive feminine wails.

Madeline stepped to the front of the porch. Then the deep voices of
men and softer voices of women united in one glad outburst, as much a
thanksgiving as a greeting, "MAJESTY!"

*****

Helen Hammond was three years younger than Madeline, and a slender,
pretty girl. She did not resemble her sister, except in whiteness and
fineness of skin, being more of a brown-eyed, brown-haired type. Having
recovered her breath soon after Madeline took her to her room, she began
to talk.

"Majesty, old girl, I'm here; but you can bet I would never have gotten
here if I had known about that ride from the railroad. You never wrote
that you had a car. I thought this was out West--stage-coach, and
all that sort of thing. Such a tremendous car! And the road! And that
terrible little man with the leather trousers! What kind of a chauffeur
is he?"

"He's a cowboy. He was crippled by falling under his horse, so I had him
instructed to run the car. He can drive, don't you think?"

"Drive? Good gracious! He scared us to death, except Castleton. Nothing
could scare that cold-blooded little Englishman. I am dizzy yet. Do
you know, Majesty, I was delighted when I saw the car. Then your cowboy
driver met us at the platform. What a queer-looking individual! He had
a big pistol strapped to those leather trousers. That made me nervous.
When he piled us all in with our grips, he put me in the seat beside
him, whether I liked it or not. I was fool enough to tell him I loved
to travel fast. What do you think he said? Well, he eyed me in a
rather cool and speculative way and said, with a smile, 'Miss, I reckon
anything you love an' want bad will be coming to you out here!' I didn't
know whether it was delightful candor or impudence. Then he said to all
of us: 'Shore you had better wrap up in the veils an' dusters. It's a
long, slow, hot, dusty ride to the ranch, an' Miss Hammond's order was
to drive safe.' He got our baggage checks and gave them to a man with
a huge wagon and a four-horse team. Then he cranked the car, jumped in,
wrapped his arms round the wheel, and sank down low in his se