第432页 / 共439页

"Now you're shouting, lieutenant. That's all we ask."

"It depends on what you mean by fair and square," another one

spoke up.

The ranger nodded amiably at him. "That you, Harris? Well, let's

look at the facts right. Here's Lost Valley, that's had a bad

name ever since it was inhabited. Far as I can make out its

settlers are honest men, regarded outside as miscreants. Just as

folks were beginning to forget it, comes the Squaw Creek raid.

Now, I'm not going into that, and I'm not going to say a word

against the man that lies dead up in the hills. But I'll say

this: His death solves a problem for a good many of the boys up

there. I'm going to make it my business to see that the facts are

known right down in Gimlet Butte. I'm going to lift the blame

from the boys that were present, and couldn't help what

happened."

Yorky was impressed, but suspicion was not yet banished from his

mind. "You seem to know a lot about it, lieutenant."