Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 18, 1928 — page 12: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

810 self to the business of raising beef cattle extensively. Any definite pursuit had seemed easy after those interminable years of tortuous, tiresome wandering which had been im- posed on him by his austere brother. Every time he thought of the latter, who had in- herited the family fortune and a title through the English law of entail, Lafe Dunstan had felt the stirring of hatred in his heart, and a fierce desire to acquire land and amass riches so that he could return to his native land like a nabob and snap his fingers in the face of his sanctimonious rela- tive. This desire for vengeance, perhaps, had spurred him on more than his considera- tion for his own welfare. He not only had Kept a close watch over the affairs of his own property, but he had made it his busi- ness to acquire all the information he could regarding the neighboring ranchers. His own ten thousand acres lay to the east of the forty-thousand-acre domain of Jeremiah Steele, who was best known as J. S. Then, beyond the Steele ranch, lay the fifty-thousand acre principality of Thomas Tolliver. As Lafe Dunstan had pondered over the magnitude of the neighboring estates, his own ranch had become shrunken in his es- timation. He had not been in possession of his property for a week before he had learned that Steele and Tolliver were bitter enemies, because of some feud which had originated in their families generations be- fore either of them were born. He had gone out of his way to be genial and friendly with both of the old ranchers. They had met his advances, however, with a certain reserve which had barred any real intimacies. Dunstan, however, out of the wisdom he had absorbed during his bitter years, had not made any display of resentment. He had quietly cultivated the acquaintance- ship of Blaine Tolliver, the son of the old rancher, and by posing as a sophisticated -man of the world had made a deep im- pression on the callow young fellow. He had shown a deferential courtesy to- ward Sally Tolliver, whenever he chanced to meet the girl, that he believed must have ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. been gratifying to her. In spite of this, however, the superb young beauty had failed to encourage his addresses, a circum- stance that rather irked him. He attributed her attitude to shyness or coyness, and on the whole felt that if de- velopments warranted such a step he could win her affection. Some day he would require a wife to grace the Bar X ranch house, or even possibly the ancestral Dun- stan estate in England. He thought of this as he sat by the fireplace, and he was con- scious of a glow of warmth that even the Scotch and soda could not induce. Thus far, he complimented himself, he had played the game with a finesse of a master diplomat. He would— A soft bell rang somewhere in the dis- tance, and a sleek-footed Japanese servant glided into the room where Lafayette Dun- stan was lounging. ‘““T expect Weston,” said Dunstan. it’s Weston, bring him right in.” The Jap padded away, and returned a moment later with a short, sight man who carried a sombrero in his hand and who walked so cautiously over the Oriental rugs on the hardwood floor that he looked like a cat trying to essay a passage over fly paper. He was a swarthy type, with black, lank hair; his eyes, too, were dark, and a cast in one of them gave him a sinister expres- sion. There was a flicker of amusement in the eyes of Dunstan as he watched the prog- ress of his visitor across the large room, but this changed to a genial smile of wel- come. “You look like Eliza crossing the ice,” he remarked with a laugh, as his guest, still paying due regard to the treacherous rugs, advanced toward a chair that was standing by the other side of the fire- place. “These dang rugs,” the other replied, “are worse than buckin’ broncs. I cain’t noways git used to ’em.” “Well,” Dunstan told him, “ just grab hold of that chair, Simeon, and then sit down quickly, and you'll be out of danger. There, now you're right-o. How seat a ce Tf _ little whisky and soda?” comicbooks (0)