“Richard, where are you going?” asked his father.

“I’m going over here to see a man.”

“No.  It is my wish that you remain.  I forbid you to go,” said Mr. Gale, with a hand on his son’s shoulder.

Dick put Mr. Gale aside gently, respectfully, yet forcibly.  The old man gasped.

“Dad, I haven’t gotten over my bad habit of disobeying you.  I’m sorry.  Don’t interfere with me now.  And don’t follow me.  You might see something unpleasant.”

“But my son!  What are you going to do?”

“I’m going to beat a dog.”

Mr. Gale looked helplessly from this strangely calm and cold son to the restless Belding.  Then Dick strode off the porch.

“Hold on!” Ladd’s voice would have stopped almost any man.  “Dick, you wasn’t agoin’ without me?”

“Yes, I was.  But I’m thoughtless just now, Laddy.”

“Shore you was.  Wait a minute, Dick.  I’m a sick man, but at that nobody can pull any stunts round here without me.”

He hobbled along the porch and went into his room.  Jim Lash knocked the ashes out of his pipe, and, humming his dance tune, he followed Ladd.  In a moment the rangers appeared, and both were packing guns.

Not a little of Belding’s grim excitement came from observation of Mr. Gale.  At sight of the rangers with their guns the old man turned white and began to tremble.

“Better stay behind,” whispered Belding.  “Dick’s going to beat that two-legged dog, and the rangers get excited when they’re packing guns.”

“I will not stay behind,” replied Mr. Gale, stoutly.  “I’ll see this affair through.  Belding, I’ve guessed it.  Richard is going to fight the Chases, those robbers who have ruined you.”

“Well, I can’t guarantee any fight on their side,” returned Belding, dryly.  “But maybe there’ll be Greasers with a gun or two.”

Belding stalked off to catch up with Dick, and Mr. Gale came trudging behind with Thorne.

“Where will we find these Chases?” asked Dick of Belding.

“They’ve got a place down the road adjoining the inn.  They call it their club.  At this hour Radford will be there sure.  I don’t know about the old man.  But his office is now just across the way.”

They passed several houses, turned a corner into the main street, and stopped at a wide, low adobe structure.  A number of saddled horses stood haltered to posts.  Mexicans lolled around the wide doorway.

“There’s Ben Chase now over on the corner,” said Belding to Dick.  “See, the tall man with the white hair, and leather band on his hat.  He sees us.  He knows there’s something up.  He’s got men with him.  They’ll come over.  We’re after the young buck, and sure he’ll be in here.”

They entered.  The place was a hall, and needed only a bar to make it a saloon.  There were two rickety pool tables.  Evidently Chase had fitted up this amusement room for his laborers as well as for the use of his engineers and assistants, for the crowd contained both Mexicans and Americans.  A large table near a window was surrounded by a noisy, smoking, drinking circle of card-players.