“Well, it was Brent’s reputation that got you off to-day, as much as your own.  Brent was foreman for The Spider, which put him in bad from the start, and he was a much older man than you.  He was the kind to do just what you said he did—­try to hold you up and get The Spider’s money.  It was a mighty lucky thing for you that you managed to get that money to the bank before they got you.  You were riding straight all right, only you were on the wrong side of the fence, and I guess you knew it.”

“I sure did.”

“Well, it ain’t for me to tell you which way to head in.  You know what you’re doing.  You’ve got what some folks call Character, and plenty of it.  But you’re wearin’ a reputation that don’t fit.”

“Same as clothes, eh?”—­and Pete grinned.

“Yes.  And you can change them—­if you want to change ’em.”

“But that there character part stays jest the same, eh?”

“Yes.  You can’t change that.”

“Don’t know as I want to.  But I’m sure goin’ to git into my other clothes, and take the trail over the hill that you was talkin’ about.”

“There are six ways to travel from here,”—­and the sheriff’s eyes twinkled.

“Six?  Now I figured about four.”

“Six.  When it comes to direction, the old Hopis had us beat by a couple of trails.  They figured east, west, north, and south, straight down and straight up.”

“I git you, Jim.  Well, minin’ never did interest me none—­and as for flyin’, I sure been popped as high as I want to go.  I reckon I’ll jest let my hoss have his head.  I reckon him and me has got about the same idee of what looks good.”

“That pony of yours has never been in El Paso, has he?” queried the sheriff.

“Nope.  Reckon it would be mighty interestin’ for him—­and the folks that always figured a sidewalk was jest for folks and not for hosses—­but I ain’t lookin’ for excitement, nohow.”

“Reckon that blue roan will give you all you want, any way you ride.  He hasn’t been ridden since you left him here.”

“Yes—­and it sure makes me sore.  Doc Andover said I was to keep off a hoss for a week yet.  Sanborn is all right—­but settin’ on that hotel porch lookin’ at it ain’t.”

“Well, I’d do what the Doc says, just the same.  He ought to know.”

“I see—­he ought to.  He sure prospected round inside me enough to know how things are.”

“You might come over to my office when you get tired of sitting around here.  There ain’t anything much to do—­but I’ve got a couple of old law books that might interest you—­and a few novels—­and if you want some real excitement I got an old dictionary—­”

“That El Paso lawyer was tellin’ me I ought to git a education.  Don’t know but what this is a good chanct.  But I reckon I’ll try one of them novels first.  Mebby when I git that broke to gentle I can kind o’ ride over and fork one of them law books without gittin’ throwed afore I git my spurs hooked in good.  But I sure don’t aim to take no quick chances, even if you are ridin’ herd for me.”