The Flying U's Last Stand

by B. M. Bower

  CHAPTER 23. THE WATER QUESTION AND SOME GOSSIP

  Miss Rosemary Allen rode down into One Man Coulee and boldly up to thecabin of Andy Green, and shouted musically for him to come forth. Andymade a hasty pass at his hair with a brush, jerked his tie straightand came out eagerly. There was no hesitation in his manner. He wentstraight up to her and reached up to pull her from the saddle, that hemight hold her in his arms and kiss her--after the manner of bold youngmen who are very much in love. But Miss Rosemary Allen stopped him witha push that was not altogether playful, and scowled at him viciously.

  "I am in a most furious mood today," she said. "I want to scratchsomebody's eyes out! I want to say WORDS. Don't come close, or I mightpull your hair or something, James." She called him James because thatwas not his name, and because she had learned a good deal about hispast misdeeds and liked to take a sly whack at his notorious tendency toforget the truth, by calling him Truthful James.

  "All right; that suits me fine. It's worth a lot to have you closeenough to pull hair. Where have you been all this long while?" Beinga bold young man and very much in love, he kissed her in spite of herprofessed viciousness.

  "Oh, I've been to town--it hasn't been more than three days since wemet and had that terrible quarrel James. What was it about?" She frowneddown at him thoughtfully. "I'm still furious about it--whatever it is.Do you know, Mr. Man, that I am an outlaw amongst my neighbors, and thatour happy little household, up there on the hill, is a house dividedagainst itself? I've put up a green burlap curtain on my southwestcorner, and bought me a smelly oil stove and I pos-i-tively refuse tolook at my neighbors or speak to them. I'm going to get some lumber andboard up that side of my house.

  "Those three cats--they get together on the other side of my curtain andsay the meanest things!"

  Andy Green had the temerity to laugh. "That sounds good to me," he toldher unsympathetically. "Now maybe you'll come down and keep house for meand let that pinnacle go to thunder. It's no good anyway, and I told youso long ago. That whole eighty acres of yours wouldn't support a familyof jackrabbits month. What--"

  "And let those old hens say they drove me off? That Kate Price isthe limit. The things she said to me you wouldn't believe. And it allstarted over my going with little Buck a few times to ride along yourfence when you boys were busy. I consider that I had a perfect right toride where I pleased. Of course they're furious anyway, because I don'tside against you boys and--and all that. When--when they found outabout--you and me, James, they said some pretty sarcastic things, but Ididn't pay any attention to that. Poor old freaks, I expected them to bejealous, because nobody ever pays any attention to THEM. Kate Price isthe worst--she's an old maid. The others have had husbands and can actsuperior.

  "Well, I didn't mind the things they said then; I took that for granted.But a week or so ago Florence Hallman came, and she did stir things upin great style! Since then the girls have hardly spoken to me except tosay something insulting. And Florence Grace came right out and called mea traitor; that was before little Buck and I took to 'riding fence' asyou call it, for you boys. You imagine what they've been saying sincethen!"

  "Well, what do you care? You don't have to stay with them, and you knowit. I'm just waiting--"

  "Well, but I'm no quitter, James. I'm going to hold down that claimnow if I have to wear a sixshooter!" Her eyes twinkled at that idea."Besides, I can stir them up now and then and get them to say thingsthat are useful. For instance, Florence Hallman told Kate Price aboutthat last trainload of cattle coming, and that they were going to cutyour fence and drive them through in the night--and I stirred dearlittle Katie up so she couldn't keep still about that. And therefore--"She reached out and gave Andy Green's ear a small tweek--"somebody foundout about it, and a lot of somebodys happened around that way and justquietly managed to give folks a hint that there was fine grass somewhereelse. That saved a lot of horseflesh and words and work, didn't it?"

  "It sure did." Andy smiled up at her worshipfully. "Just the same--"

  "But listen here, nice, level-headed Katiegirl has lost her temper sincethen, and let out a little more that is useful knowledge to somebody.There's one great weak point in the character of Florence Hallman; maybeyou have noticed it. She's just simply GOT to have somebody to tellthings to, and she doesn't always show the best judgment in her choiceof a confessional--"

  "I've noticed that before," Andy Green admitted, and smiledreminiscently. "She sure does talk too much--for a lady that has so muchup her sleeve."

  "Yes--and she's been making a chum of Katie Price since she discoveredwhat an untrustworthy creature I am. I did a little favor for IrishMallory, James. I overheard Florence Grace talking to Kate about thatman who is supposed to be at death's door. So I made a trip toGreat Falls, if you please, and I scouted around and located thegentleman--well, anyway, I gave that nice, sleek little lawyer of yoursa few facts that will let Irish come back to his claim."

  "Irish has been coming back to his claim pretty regular as it is," Andyinformed her quietly. "Did you think he was hiding out, all this time?Why"--he laughed at her--"you talked to him yourself, one day, andthought it was Weary. Remember when you came over with the mail? Thatwas Irish helping me string wire. He's been wearing Weary's hat andclothes and cultivating a twinkle to his eyes--that's all."

  "Why, I--well, anyway, that man they've been making a fuss over is justas well as you are, James. They only wanted to get Irish in jail andmake a little trouble--pretty cheap warfare at that, if you want myopinion."

  "Oh, well--what's the odds? While they're wasting time and energy thatway, we're going right along doing what we've laid out to do. Say, doyou know I'm kinda getting stuck on this ranch proposition. If I justhad a housekeeper--"

  Miss Rosemary Allen seldom let him get beyond that point, and sheinterrupted him now by wrinkling her nose at him in a manner that madeAndy Green forget altogether that he had begun a sentence upon a subjectforbidden. Later she went back to her worries; she was a very persistentyoung woman.

  "I hope you boys are going to attend to that contest business rightaway," she said, with a pucker between her eyes and not much twinkle inthem. "There's something about that which I don't quite understand.I heard Florence Hallman and Kate talking yesterday about it going bydefault. Are you sure it's wise to put off filing your answers so long?When are you supposed to appear, James?"

  "Me? On or before the twenty-oneth day of July, my dear girl. Theylumped us up and served us all on the same day--I reckon to saveshoe-leather; therefore, inasmuch as said adverse parties have got overa week left--"

  "You'd better not take a chance, waiting till the last day in theafternoon," she warned him vaguely. "Maybe they think you've forgottenthe date or something--but whatever they think, I believe they'recounting on your not answering in time. I think Florence Hallman knowsthey haven't any real proof against you. I know she knows it. She'sperfectly wild over the way you boys have stuck here and worked. Andfrom what I can gather, she hasn't been able to scrape up the weentiestbit of evidence that the Flying U is backing you--and of course thatis the only ground they could contest your claims on. So if it comes totrial, you'll all win; you're bound to. I told Kate Price so--and thoseother old hens, yesterday, and that's what we had the row over."

  "My money's on you, girl," Andy told her, grinning. "How are thewounded?"

  "The wounded? Oh, they've clubbed together this morning and are washinghankies and collars and things, and talking about me. And they havesnouged every speck of water from the barrel--I paid my share for thehauling, too--and the man won't come again till day after tomorrow withmore. Fifty cents a barrel, straight, he's charging now, James. And you,boys with a great, big, long creekful of it that you can get rightin and swim in! I've come over to borrow two water-bags of it, if youplease, James I never dreamed water was so precious. Florence Hallmanought to be made to lie on one of these dry claims she's fooled us intotaking. I really don't know, James, what's going to become of some ofthese poor farmers.
You knew, didn't you, that Mr. Murphy spent nearlytwo hundred dollars boring a well--and now it's so strong of alkali theydaren't use a drop of it? Mr. Murphy is living right up to his name andnationality, since then. He's away back there beyond the Sands place,you know. He has to haul water about six miles. Believe me, James,Florence Hallman had better keep away from Murphy! I met him as I wascoming out from town, and he called her a Jezebel!"

  "That's mild!" Andy commented dryly. "Get down, why don't you? I wantyou to take a look at the inside of my shack and see how bad I need ahousekeeper--since you won't take my word for it. I hope every drop ofwater leaks outa these bags before you get home. I hope old Mister fallsdown and spills it. I've a good mind not to let you have any, anyway.Maybe you could be starved and tortured into coming down here where youbelong."

  "Maybe I couldn't. I'll get me a barrel of my own, and hire Simpsonto fill it four times a week, if you please! And I'll put a lid with apadlock on it, so Katie dear can't rob me in the night--and I'll use awhole quart at a time to wash dishes, and two quarts when I take a bath!I shall," she asserted with much emphasis, "lie in luxury, James!"

  Andy laughed and waved his hand toward One Man Creek. "That's allright--but how would you like to have that running past your house, soyou could wake up in the night and hear it go gurgle-gurgle? Wouldn'tthat be all right?"

  Rosemary Allen clasped her two gloved hands together and drew a longbreath. "I should want to run out and stop it," she declared. "To thinkof water actually running around loose in this world!! And think of usup on that dry prairie, paying fifty cents a barrel for it--and a lotslopped out of the barrel on the road!" She glanced down into Andy'slove-lighted eyes, and her own softened. She placed her hand on hisshoulder and shook her head at him with a tender remonstrance.

  "I know, boy--but it isn't in me to give up anything I set out to do,any more than it is in you. You wouldn't like me half so well if I couldjust drop that claim and think no more about it. I've got enough moneyto commute, when the time comes, and I'll feel a lot better if Igo through with it now I've started. And--James!" She smiled at himwistfully. "Even if it is only eighty acres, it will make good pasture,and--it will help some, won't it?"

  After that you could not expect Andy Green to do any more badgering orto discourage the girl. He did like her better for having grit and amental backbone--and he found a way of telling her so and of making theassurance convincing enough.

  He filled her canvas water-bags and went with her to carry them, and hecheered her much with his air-castles. Afterwards he took the team andrustled a water-barrel and hauled her a barrel of water and gaveKate Price a stony-eyed stare when she was caught watching himsuperciliously; and in divers ways managed to make Miss Rosemary Allenfeel that she was fighting a good fight and that the odds were all inher favor and in the favor of the Happy Family--and of Andy Green inparticular. She felt that the spite of her three very near neighborswas really a matter to laugh over, and the spleen of Florence Hallman ajoke.

  But for all that she gave Andy Green one last warning when he climbedup to the spring seat of the wagon and unwound the lines from thebrake-handle, ready to drive back to his own work. She went close to thefront wheel, so that eavesdroppers could not hear, and held her fronthair from blowing across her earnest, wind-tanned face while she lookedup at him.

  "Now remember, boy, do go and file your answer to those contests--allof you!" she urged. "I don't know why--but I've a feeling some kind ofa scheme is being hatched to make you trouble on that one point. And ifyou see Buck, tell him I'll ride fence with him tomorrow again. If yourealized how much I like that old cowpuncher, you'd be horribly jealous,James."

  "I'm jealous right now, without realizing a thing except that I've gotto go off and leave you here with a bunch of lemons," he retorted--andhe spoke loud enough so that any eavesdroppers might hear.