The Coming of the Law
Page 27
CHAPTER XXVII
THE SEAR AND YELLOW DAYS
"This here town,"--read a letter that Hollis received from Weary late inSeptember--"aint fit for no man to live in which thinks anythink ofhisself, in the first place theres two many folks here which dont seemto know what to do with themselves they just keep millin around an actinlike they was ready to stampead any time. In the 2nd place im runnin shyof dust an id admire for to receave about a months pay which i wontcharge two you bein as ive already spent more then i ought two its agood thing i got a return ticket or id be in a hell of a fix when i gotready to come back last nite the doctor at the hospittle said hedoperate on ed today which hes already done this mornin an eds restineasy though the doc dont know whether hes goin to git well or not buthes hopin an ile let you know by telegraph if he gits any worse which isall for this time.
P. S. say boss dont forgit to hustel that coin ile shure make it rightwith you i forgot to tell you that i got cleaned out by a card sharperhere i would have tore him apart but about a million sheriffs piled ontome an i dident have no chancst what in hell does any town need with somany sheriffs. "Weary.
"P. S. id like to be home for the round-up but reckon i wont make it.
"Weary."
Nellie Hazelton did not see this letter, though Hollis told her that Edhad been operated on and that he was doing as well as could be expected.And the telegraph that night flashed Weary's "coin" to him.
The days passed all too quickly now, for the time for the fall round-upwas at hand and Hollis realized with regret that his daily rides--withNellie Hazelton as a companion--must soon be discontinued.
The nights had already grown cool; snow had appeared on the mountainpeaks; the basin was no longer a great green bowl, but resembled amammoth, concave palette upon which nature had mixed her colors--yellowand gold and brown, with here and there a blotch of red and purple, adash of green,--lingering over the season--and great, wide stretches ofgray. The barren spots seemed to grow more barren--mocked by the scarletblossoms of the cactus that seemed to be everlasting, and the fringing,yellow soap weed, hardy, defying the advancing winter. Razor-Back ridgewas a desolate place. Never attractive, it reared aloft barren andsomber, frowning down upon its fringe of shrubbery the latter strippedof its leaves, its scant beauty gone and bending its bare branchesstubbornly to the early winds.
With the last day of the month came a rain--a cold, bitter, drivingstorm that raged for three days and started a drift that the cattlemencould not stop. Arrayed in tarpaulins the cowboys went forth, suffering,cursing, laboring heroically to stem the tide. The cattle retreatedsteadily before the storm--no human agency could halt them. On thesecond day Norton came into the Circle Bar ranchhouse, wet, disgusted,but fighting mad.
"If this damn rain don't stop pretty soon," he told Hollis as he driedhimself before the open fireplace, "we'll have cattle down here fromover the Colorado line. An' then there'll be hell to pay!"
But on the third day the rain ceased and the sun came out. The countrylay smiling in the sunshine, mellow, glistening, inviting. But thedamage had been wrought. From Lemuel Train of the Pig Pen outfit, cameword that fifty per cent of his cattle were missing. Truxton of theDiamond Dot, Henningson of the Three Bar, and nearly all of the othersmall owners, reported losses. Of course the cattle would be recoveredduring the fall round up, but they were now scattered and fair prey forcattle thieves, and with the round up still two weeks away it seemedthat many must be stolen.
Yet there was nothing that could be done; it is folly to attempt to "cutout" cattle on the open range.
From the editorial columns of the _Kicker_ might be gleaned thefact that the Law had come into Union County. Many men of Dry Bottomentered the _Kicker_ office to thank Hollis; others boldly drapedtheir houses with flags and bunting.
Dunlavey had visited Dry Bottom twice since the incident of the primary.He had said nothing concerning the incident to anyone save possibly hisintimates, but from the sneer that appeared on his face when approachedby those whom he considered friendly to Hollis it was plain that heintended continuing the fight.
Hollis had been compelled to record in the _Kicker_ the unpleasantnews that Dunlavey had refused to comply with the new law regulatingbrands and the submitting of lists for taxation, and also that he hadthreatened to shoot the first officer trespassed on his land. Dunlaveyhad not complied with the law, but he had failed to carry out his threatto "shoot the first officer that trespassed on his land," for Allen hadtrespassed several times, openly and boldly. Moreover, Dunlavey had seenhim, had even spoken to him, but had offered no violence.
Perhaps in a calmer mood Dunlavey had decided not to use his weapon;perhaps there was something about the quiet, cool, and deliberate Allenwhich convinced Dunlavey that the former might be able to give a goodaccount of himself in the event of trouble. At any rate several timesAllen had ridden the Circle Cross range unmolested by either Dunlavey orhis men. He explored the farthest limits of the Circle Cross property,tallying the cattle, nosing around the corrals, examining brands, anddoing sundry other things not calculated to allay Dunlavey's anger overthis new and odd condition of affairs.
Then one day he failed to visit the Circle Cross. Instead, he appearedto Potter in the office of the _Kicker_ with copy for a posterannouncing the sale by auction of a thousand of Dunlavey's best cattle.He ordered Potter to print it so that he might post copies throughoutthe county within a week. The night following the issue of the_Kicker_ containing the announcement concerning the coming of thelaw Potter had informed Hollis that he had that day delivered thenotices to Allen.