Baker Willard F.
The Boy Ranchers in Death Valley: or, Diamond X and the Poison Mystery

CHAPTER XV
THE SEARCH

Pleasant enough it was, riding over the sunlit, undulating broadstretches of the range, and Dick and Nort would have thoroughly enjoyedit had it not been for the nature of their errand. Had Bud been withthem they would probably have "whooped it up" with joyous, care-freeexuberance. But now they were rather solemn, not to say glum.

Dick, noticing that his brother rode along with his eyes bent on theground just ahead of the pony, inquired:

"What are you looking for – lost something?"

"No. But I was thinking about the possibility of poison weed and Ithought maybe I could spot it before anything happened."

"I don't take much stock in that poison weed theory," said Dick.

"No? What do you think caused the deaths?"

"Hanged if I know! I'm more concerned, right now, with finding outwhat's keeping Bud away."

"Well, that's why I was sort of looking for this weed – if there is sucha thing."

"You thought maybe he'd been overcome by it?"

"Somewhat – like Sam Tarbell was overcome, you know."

"There's a possibility of that," admitted Dick, with an anxious air.

"But we ought to meet him soon."

However they rode on for several miles, and though they strained theireyes for a sight of their returning cousin, they did not glimpse him.It was getting dusk when they came within view of the original herdwhich had been purchased with the ranch. The cattle were quietlyfeeding, chewing cuds or roaming about as suited each individual taste.But there was no sight of Bud.

"Something must have happened to him!" said Nort, voicing not only hisown fear but that of his brother. "He doesn't seem to be around here.Something sure has happened!"

"I'm beginning to fear so," admitted Dick. "He might have had atumble, or his pony might, and gotten a broken leg from it – I mean Budmight."

"He could manage to sit on his horse with a broken leg – that is somekinds of broken legs," Nort pointed out.

"He couldn't get back up in the saddle if he fell off and broke hisleg," objected Dick. "Gosh! I wish we'd find him."

They topped a little rise, which gave them a good view of thesurrounding territory, and eagerly scanned the vista. There seemed tobe nothing but cattle in sight, but a few moments after reaching thelittle hill summit Dick exclaimed:

"There's a pony!"

Excitedly he pointed to it, and a moment later Nort had taken his fieldglasses from their case and was focusing on the animal. After whatseemed like a long time, but which, really, was only a few seconds,Nort cried:

"That's Bud's horse all right!"

"Do you see Bud?" anxiously inquired Dick.

"No, he doesn't seem to be in sight. But let's ride over there."

They urged their ponies forward at top speed but as they drew nearBud's favorite mount, which he had brought with him from Diamond X, thesteed perversely kicked up his heels, wheeled about and was away on afast trot.

"He must have lost his bridle, or else the reins are caught up on thesaddle horn!" cried Dick as he and his brother took after the runaway.For a Western horse, in almost all cases, will stand still if the reinsare dropped over his head to the ground. Of course there areexceptions, but Bud's mount was well trained in this habit.Consequently when Nort and Dick saw the animal running from them theyrealized that one of two things must have happened. A horse cannot runfar with the bridle reins dangling in front of him. He is very likelyto step on them and trip himself up. But nothing like this happenedwith Star, which was the name of Bud's pony. He ran on easily.

"Have to rope him, I guess!" cried Nort, who was a little in advance ofhis brother.

"Go to it! We got to find out what's wrong!"

There was an exciting race for a few minutes but in the end Nort andhis trusty lariat won. The coils settled over the head of the runawayand he was gently brought to a halt. Once caught he was tractableenough. It was as though he had wanted to show off.

"Bridle's gone; eh?" remarked Dick as he cantered up alongside hisbrother and the captured horse. "That looks bad."

"Unless Bud took it off himself, to let his pony graze in more comfort."

"He wouldn't do that without hobbling him, and look – there's his rope."

Dick pointed to the coils on the saddle horn.

"Then what happened? Is there any – "

Nort did not like to use the word "blood," but that is what he implied.

And his brother knew the thought – that Bud might have been shot by some rustlers or roving desperados and so had been dropped from the saddle.

But there were no evidences of foul play, and no signs of a struggle.

No marks showed on the pony, either.

"Well, this sure is a mystery!" exclaimed Nort when the casualexamination, was over. "What has become of Bud?"

"That's what I'd like to know," echoed Dick. "What's the next move?"

"Better go back and tell some of the boys. We'll have to organize asearch."

"Guess that's the only thing to do," admitted Dick. "Gosh! The jinxwas only on a vacation. Now it's back in full force."

"Oh, I wouldn't go thinking the worst – not yet a while," urged Nort asthey started back for the ranch, leading Bud's mount by a rope aroundhis neck. "Something might have given Bud a fall and his pony mighthave run away. Then Bud may have met some cowboys who loaned him amount to get back on. He may be back at the ranch when we get there."

But Dick shook his head over this theory.

"If Bud had ridden back on a borrowed horse we'd have seen him, sure!"he declared. "We came the same trail he'd have used."

Truth to tell Nort did not think much of his own reasoning, but he putit forward as the best under the circumstances. There was clearly onlyone thing to do, and that was to acquaint the cowboys with the mysteryof Bud's disappearance as soon as possible, and get a search under way.

There was plenty of excitement at Dot and Dash when, in the shadows ofthe coming night, Nort and Dick galloped into the yard and shouted thenews. They knew, without asking, that Bud had not returned in theirabsence, so Yellin' Kid did not have to shout:

"He isn't here!"

"Then we've got to find him!" was Billee's conclusion after hearing thebrothers' story. "Come on, boys! We've got to search for Bud!"

CHAPTER XVI
BUD'S STRANGE TALE

Darkness, which shrouded Death Valley shortly after the search started, was a severe handicap. Even the most skillful followers of a trail, and there were several such among the cow punchers, could do little inthe night. Still they rode out in various directions from the Dot andDash ranch house – big, stern-faced men, with lariat and gun ready anddetermined looks in their eyes.

Though some of the cowboys had only been associated with Bud Merkelduring the short time of their hire, they had come to admire the boyrancher who treated them as his father would have done, with fairnessand kindness.

"If any doggoned rustlers have been playing tricks with Bud," voicedYellin' Kid as he rode off with Nort, Dick and Billee, "they had bettermake their wills. I'm after 'em, boy, I'm tellin' you!" and he shoutedthis information to the silent night.

So they rode forth into the blackness. The Shannon brothers, withYellin' Kid and Old Billee Dobb, made up one party. Snake Purdee withSam Tarbell headed another, and the various new cow punchers, includingone or two who had recently been sent by Mr. Merkel from Diamond X,took up such trail as there was.

At best it was only a series of faint clews that led toward Bud. Itwas known in what direction he had started that morning, and thefinding of his horse near the original herd, and not far from theSmugglers' Glen, gave color to the theory that he had carried out hisintention of getting information about the cattle he wanted to shipaway. That was as far as clews went.

What had happened to the young man, how he came off his horse, how thepony's bridle was missing – all these were points to be cleared up bythe searchers. And it was not easy in the night.

"We can't do much till morning," said Billee Dobb when he and hiscompanions had circled around the wondering cattle of the originalherd, without getting any nearer to the solution of the mystery."Something's happened to Bud to put him out of business."

"Out of business!" exclaimed Nort. "Do you mean – "

"I mean only temporary!" Billee made haste to add. "Bud's in some sortof condition where he can't come back to us or send word. I don'treally think anything could have happened to him – I mean anythingserious."

"I hope not," murmured Dick, while Nort echoed the wish.

However, as the hours of the night passed, and searching as best theycould by the glimmer of flashlights, stopping to shout Bud's name nowand then, they did not find the missing young rancher.

"It's getting daylight," remarked Yellin' Kid in lower tones than hewas wont to use. Perhaps the strange hush which always precedes thedawn, or perhaps the sorrow that pervaded all hearts on account ofBud's absence had an influence on Kid and he was more solemn.

"Yes, soon be time to eat," agreed Old Billee. "We'll have to go back, though. Didn't bring no grub with us."

This was true enough. When the search started no one thought it wouldlast very long. There was no idea that the searchers would be out allnight. Yet such was the case.

"Yes, we'll have to go back and then start out again after we eat,"assented Nort.

They rode along for a time in silence. Slowly the light in the eastgrew. More and more rosy it appeared, now with golden streaks.Morning was about to break forth in all its glory.

"I wonder if he could have had anything to do with it?" spoke Nortsuddenly, and apparently asking himself the question.

"Who?" inquired Dick a bit sharply. "What do you mean?"

"I mean the old Elixer peddler."

"Tosh?"

"Yes."

"How could he have anything to do with Bud staying away all night?"

"That's it. I don't know. I'm just wondering. Tosh is a queer oldcrank, you know, and he may have met Bud and tried to sell him somemore of the stuff that Fah Moo got sick on."

"Well, there'd be no harm in that," remarked Billee. "Old Toshprobably tries to sell everybody he meets some of his dope, on the pleathat it'll save them from the fate that overtakes so many in DeathValley. No harm in that. Poor, old crank!"

"No harm in trying to sell – no," assented Nort. "But if Bud didn't buyany bottles of the stuff – and he wouldn't be likely to – Tosh might havegot mad and kicked up a row. There might have been a fight and – "

"Oh, I don't think so!" interrupted Dick. "That's a little too farfetched."

"Well, almost anything might have happened," argued Nort. "But I wishwe'd find him!"

The others heartily echoed the thought. They were nearing, now, theentrance to the defile, or Smugglers' Glen. The sun was just peepingup above the line of round hills which represented the horizon. A newday was being born, but to those from Dot and Dash ranch it was not ajoyful day – or it would not be if the mystery over Bud remainedunsolved.

"I wonder if, by any chance, he could be up in there," mused Nort.

"Where?" asked Dick, who was gazing off across the range, his eyesintently focused on a small, moving object that did not seem to beeither a cow or a horse.

"Up there where we found old Tosh making the witches' broth," and Nort looked closely at his brother to see what was attracting his attention.

"I mean in Smugglers' Glen," went on Nort, for Dick had not turned.

"What you looking at?" suddenly demanded Nort.

"Why, I thought – I saw – " Dick was speaking in a preoccupied manner, his gaze still fixed on that small, dark object.

Then, so suddenly that it startled all of them, as they sat on theirmounts, with back turned toward the defile, there came from the glen anoise. It was a noise of stones rattling one against the other.

Like a flash all turned from observing the object that had caught

Dick's eyes, and the reason for the stone-rattling noise was explained.

It was caused by some one walking unsteadily out of the defile, and the person who was walking was – Bud Merkel!

For a moment the searchers could scarcely believe that they really sawthe missing youth. But as he came nearer it was only too evident.

"Bud!" cried Nort and Dick in a duet as they spurred their horsesforward. "Bud!"

"By gosh! 'Tis him!" roared Yellin' Kid.

"But he's 'bout done up!" commented Billee Dobb as he, with Kid, urgedhis pony forward. "What happened?"

It was obvious that something serious had taken place. Bud was hardlyable to walk, and was supporting himself by leaning on a tree branch asa sort of cane or crutch. But his face brightened in the rising sun ashe beheld his friends coming toward him.

"What happened?" called Dick, as he dismounted beside his cousin.

"It's a strange story," said Bud in a weak voice. "I've beenpractically kidnaped and put under the spell of some sort of poisongas."

"Kidnaped!" cried Snake.

"Poison gas!" echoed Billee.

"Who did it?" demanded Nort.

"Rustlers, I reckon," said Bud as he sank down on a bowlder and drankgreedily from the canteen Dick offered. "I was surprised by a crowd ofmen back there," and he nodded back up the gulch. "They shot some sortof vapor at me that knocked me out, and I've been a prisoner eversince. I just managed to get away."

"Tell us about it!" cried Nort.

"And we'll go back there and clean those fellows out!" shouted Yellin'

Kid, reaching for his gun.

He would have put his threat into execution, too, but Bud restrainedhim with a gesture as he said:

"It's no use!"

"Why not? Did you shoot 'em up?" asked Snake, with the beginning of adelighted grin.

"No," Bud replied. "But they aren't there now. They lit out. That'show I could get away."

"Say, there's more to this than you're telling us!" said Nort.

"Go ahead. Spill the whole yarn – that is if you're able," begged Dick.

"Oh, yes, I feel better now. Give me a little more water and I'll tellyou what happened to me."

CHAPTER XVII
THE AVENGERS

Bud Merkel took a long drink, shook his head several times as though toclear his brain of some benumbing influence and began his story.

"I guess you all know," he said, "how I started over here yesterday tosize up our stock to get ready for the first shipment to go from Dotand Dash under the new ownership." His hearers nodded. By this timeseveral other cowboys from the other searching parties had arrived tohear the good news of the finding of Bud.

"Well," went on the young rancher, "I got to the range all right, looked the herd over and found there were more steers ready to shipthan we had counted on," and he looked toward his cousins. "Then Ithought I'd spend the rest of the morning in exploring Smugglers' Glen.I wanted to see if I could find out where the old Elixer mandisappeared to that time he ran away from us," and again he looked atNort and Dick. The story of the herb doctor was known to most of thecowboys.

"I rode on up into the gulch," continued Bud, "and when I got close tothe cave I slid off my horse, for his feet made so much noise on therocks that I thought if the old man was in the cavern he'd take warningand skip out before I could catch him at work. That's what I wanted todo – see old Tosh at work brewing his stuff. And I wanted to find ifthere was another entrance or exit from the cavern. I didn't know butwhat, in case of a big blizzard, we might not shelter some of our stockin the cave if we could open it up more."

"That wouldn't be a bad idea," commented Nort.

"Well, anyhow," resumed Bud, "I got off my pony, tied him to a tree andwent on up the glen afoot. I was almost at the cave when, all of asudden, two or three men came out. They seemed quite surprised to seeme, and I certainly was to see them. They weren't any of our men, andthey hadn't any right on our range, any more than Old Tosh has, but Iguess no one minds him.

"I thought, of course, that these fellows were rustlers – they wererough and tough enough looking to be almost anything. But before Icould say or do anything, one of them set down what looked like a tankcontaining carbonic acid gas, like they use at drug store soda waterfountains. I wondered whether these fellows were going into the gameof putting pop in the Tosh Elixer, when, all at once I felt sort ofqueer. I tried to fight off the sensation, but I kept getting weakeruntil I just crumpled up in a heap.

"I thought of all sorts of things – the stories Billee had told aboutthe sudden deaths here, how Sam Tarbell was overcome and his horsekilled and then, just as if I was in a dream, I felt some of those menpick me up and carry me into the cave."

"The darned hijackers!" cried Yellin' Kid.

"Can't we do something to 'em?" demanded Snake angrily.

"Wait," cautioned Bud. "I haven't finished. The men picked me up. Iwas so weak and knocked out by that peculiar smell, whatever it was, that I couldn't do anything. It was, as I said, just like being in adream. They laid me down on a pile of bags, or something. It wasdark, but they had some lanterns. My eyes were half open so I couldsee a little. Then they tied me up and after that I don't remembermuch. I have a hazy recollection, just as you'd have from trying toremember a half-forgotten dream, a recollection of seeing the menmoving about the cave, digging out rocks, hammering and crushing them.For a time I thought they might be going to wall up the entrance andbury me there alive.

"Then I must have gone to sleep, or lost consciousness, for everythingfaded away and the next thing I knew I woke up. It was dark and quietaround me and I began to move my arms and legs. I had been tied uppretty tight, but the knots seemed to be looser now and I managed towork some of them off so I could free myself.

"Then I got up, found a flashlight in my pocket – luckily the men hadn'tsearched me – and I managed to make my way out of the cave. So here Iam – that's all there is to it."

"Well, that's good and plenty!" cried Nort.

"Didn't you stop to see if those men were still there, and what theywere doing?" asked Dick.

"No, I didn't feel able," Bud answered wearily. "All I wanted to dowas get out, find my horse and ride back to the ranch. But where isStar?" the young rancher suddenly asked, looking around.

"He's safe in the corral," Dick answered. "We found him wanderingaround without his bridle on when we went to look for you lateyesterday afternoon."

"He must have pulled away from the tree where I had him tied and yankedthe bridle off that way," Bud said.

"Horses an' bridles ain't much account now!" declared Billee. "Themain thing is about these darn varmints that treated Bud so. Who doyou think they were – I mean what sort of scamps?" asked the old ranchhand, and he fingered his gun, which several other cowboys were doing.

"I think they were cattle rustlers," answered Bud, who seemed to befeeling better each moment. "They must have been hiding in the cavewaiting for a chance to drive off some of our stock, when their planswere spoiled by my happening along."

"That's probably it," agreed Nort. "But what about that soda watercylinder you say they shot at you?"

"I wouldn't call it soda water," stated Bud with a grim smile. "But itcontained some sort of gas and they must have shot it at me for itknocked me out."

"How was it they could turn a stream of poison gas, or at leastknock-out gas, on you, Bud, and not suffer from it themselves?" askedDick.

"The wind was blowing straight from them to me, down the glen," was thereply. "The breeze carried the stuff to me and it didn't bother themat all for it floated right from them."

"Just like gas in the war," stated Snake, who had fought in France, ashad several of the other husky cowboys. "That's probably what it was, too, some kind of gas they used in the war. It comes in tanks, and theGermans used to lay a shallow trench full of these cylinders, with theopenings in 'em pointed our way. Then they'd open a faucet, let thegas out and the wind would blow it right in our faces. If we didn'tput on gas masks it was bye-bye for us."

"But," exclaimed Nort, "Bud wasn't killed."

"No," agreed Snake with a grim smile, "and we're darn glad he wasn't.Like as not they didn't use strong gas on him. There's lots of kindsof gas, you know. I took some once to have a tooth yanked out and Ilaughed to beat the band. Even in war all the gas wasn't sure death.There was a kind that made you cry like you'd lost your best girl."

"That's the explanation then," decided Nort. "These fellows – call 'emrustlers for the time being – have got hold of some kind of knock-outgas and they used it on Bud."

"I sure was knocked out," murmured the young rancher.

"But what's their game?" asked Yellin' Kid in no gentle tones. "Ifthey're rustlers why did they just hold Bud a prisoner a while and thenlight out and not take any stock?"

"They probably figgered the game was up," suggested Snake, "and wantedto make their get-away. Anyhow they didn't get no stock."

"Are you sure of that?" asked Bud.

By this time nearly all the other members of the searching parties hadbeen gathered near Smugglers' Glen, the more distant ones having beensignaled to by shots previously agreed upon. And from the leaders ofthese squads it was learned that no raid had been made during thenight. The whole range had been pretty well covered.

"Well, that's good," said Bud when the welcome news had been conveyedto him.

"Do you think these rustlers were responsible for the deaths here inthis valley?" asked Nort. "Have they been setting off this gas – orsome even worse – and killing cattle, men and horses?"

Billee Dobb shook his head.

"Death Valley got its name a long while back," he said. "Long beforethese fellers could have been operating. This is some new dodge, takemy word for it."

"It's a queer way to rustle cattle – kill 'em with gas," said Yellin'

Kid.

"Oh, they keep the gas for humans that might try to catch 'em, Iguess," Billee went on. "That's just something to cover theiroperations. And it doesn't solve the other deaths that took placehere."

"You say you saw those men digging away in the cave, cracking rocks andthe like of that?" asked Snake.

"That's what I think I saw," spoke Bud. "Of course I don't know what

I really saw and what I may have dreamed, half unconscious as I was.

But it's easy to find out if any digging has been done in the cave. We can take another trip back there and – "

"That's just what we'll do!" cried Nort

"And we'll catch these fellows an' string 'em up!" cried Sam Tarbell."They killed my best horse and I'm going to have revenge on 'em. Areyou with me, boys?"

"Sure!" cried half a score of cowboys, their hands going to their guns.

"We'll revenge Bud, too!" exclaimed Dick.

"That's the talk!" shouted Yellin' Kid. "Let's get at these hombresan' chase 'em out of the country!"

Eager and excited, angry, and justly so, the crowd was ready foranything. They would have rushed at once into the defile but thatBillee Dobb held up a restraining hand.

"We want to go at this thing calm and cautious like," he said. "Wewant either to catch these scamps or drive 'em out. At the same timewe want to find out what their game is."

"That's right," agreed Bud. "The more I think of it the more I'm sureI didn't dream I saw 'em digging something out of the sides of thecave. They really did it."

"Diamonds, maybe!" exclaimed Snake, eagerly.

"Be yourself, boy!" chuckled Yellin' Kid. "Diamonds don't grow outhere."

"All right – have it your way," mildly assented Snake.

"So it would be a good thing to see what these birds were up to," wenton Bud. "I'm still so sort of knocked out that I can't do much. I'vegot to get back and rest up. But if you boys want to go back up thereand see what you can find, and do, I'm willing."

"We sure will!" cried the crowd as one man.

"Let Billee be the leader," suggested Bud.

And in a few minutes the avengers had formed a sort of plan of battleor attack which, they hoped, would solve some of the mystery of Death Valley.