The Rules of the Game

  IV

  The Stone Creek fire indeed proved not to amount to much, whereby sheerchance upheld Henry Plant. The following morning the fire fightersreturned; leaving, however, two of their number to "guard the line"until the danger should be over. Welton explained to Bob that only thefact that Stone Creek bottom was at a low elevation, filled with brushand tarweed, and grown thick with young trees rendered the forest eveninflammable at this time of year.

  "Anywhere else in this country at this time of year it wouldn't do anyharm," he told Bob, "and Plant knew it couldn't get out of the basin. Hedidn't give a cuss how much it did there. But we've got some young stuffthat would easy carry a top fire. Later in the season you may see sometall rustling on the fire lines."

  But before noon of that day a new complication arose. Up the road came ashort, hairy man on a mule. His beard grew to his high cheek bones, hiseyebrows bristled and jutted out over his black eyes, and a thick shockof hair pushed beneath the rim of his hat to meet the eyebrows. The hatwas an old black slouch, misshapen, stained and dusty. His faded shirtopened to display a hairy throat and chest. As for the rest he wasshort-limbed, thick and powerful.

  This nondescript individual rode up to the verandah on which sat Weltonand Bob, awaiting the lunch bell. He bowed gravely, and dismounted.

  "Dis ees Meestair Welton?" he inquired with a courtesy at strangevariance with his uncouth appearance.

  Welton nodded.

  "I am Peter Lejeune," said the newcomer, announcing one of those hybridnames so common among the transplanted French and Basques of California."I have de ship."

  "Oh, yes," said Welton rising and going forward to offer his hand. "Comeup and sit down, Mr. Leejune."

  The hairy man "tied his mule to the ground" by dropping the end of thereins, and mounted the two steps to the verandah.

  "This is my assistant, Mr. Orde," said Welton. "How are the sheep comingon? Mr. Leejune," he told Bob, "rents the grazing in our timber."

  "Et is not coming," stated Lejeune with a studied calm. "Plant heriffuse permit to cross."

  "Permit to what?" asked Welton.

  "To cross hees fores', gov'ment fores'. I can' get in here widout crossgov'ment land. I got to get permit from Plant. Plant he riffuse."

  Welton rose, staring at his visitor.

  "Do you mean to tell me," he cried at last, "that a man hasn't got aright to get into his own land? That they can keep a man out of his own_land_?"

  "Da's right," nodded the Frenchman.

  "But you've been in here for ten years or so to my knowledge."

  Abruptly the sheepman's calm fell from him. He became wildly excited.His black eyes snapped, his hair bristled, he arose from his chair andgesticulated.

  "Every year I geev heem three ship! Three ship!" he repeated, thrustingthree stubby fingers at Welton's face. "Three little ship! I stay allsummer! He never say permit. Thees year he kip me out."

  "Give any reason?" asked Welton.

  "He say my ship feed over the line in gov'ment land."

  "Did they?"

  "Mebbe so, little bit. Mebbe not. Nobody show me line. Nobody pay no'tention. I feed thees range ten year."

  "Did you give him three sheep this year?"

  "Sure."

  Welton sighed.

  "I can't go down and tend to this," said he. "My foremen are here to beconsulted, and the crews will begin to come in to-morrow. You'll have togo and see what's eating this tender Plant, Bob. Saddle up and ride downwith Mr. Leejune."

  Bob took his first lesson in Western riding behind Lejeune and hisstolid mule. He had ridden casually in the East, as had most young menof his way of life, but only enough to make a fair showing on a gentleand easy horse. His present mount was gentle and easy enough, but Bobwas called upon to admire feats of which a Harlem goat might have beenproud. Lejeune soon turned off the wagon road to make his way directlydown the side of the mountain. Bob possessed his full share of personalcourage, but in this unaccustomed skirting of precipices, hopping downledges, and sliding down inclines too steep to afford a foothold hefound himself leaning inward, sitting very light in the saddle, orholding his breath until a passage perilous was safely passed. In thenext few years he had occasion to drop down the mountainside a greatmany times. After the first few trips he became so thoroughly accustomedthat he often wondered how he had ever thought this scary riding. Now,however, he was so busily occupied that he was caught by surprise whenLejeune's mule turned off through a patch of breast-high manzanita andhe found himself traversing the gentler slope at the foot of themountain. Ten minutes later they entered Sycamore Flats.

  Then Bob had leisure to notice an astonishing change of temperature. Atthe mill the air had been almost cold--entirely so out of the directrays of the sun. Here it was as hot as though from a furnace. Passingthe store, Bob saw that the tall thermometer there stood at 96 degrees.The day was unseasonable, but later, in the August heats, Bob had often,to his sorrow, to test the difference between six thousand and twothousand feet of elevation. From a clear, crisp late-spring climate hewould descend in two hours to a temperature of 105 degrees.

  Henry Plant was discovered sprawled out in an armchair beneath aspreading tree in the front yard. His coat was off and his vestunbuttoned to display a vast and billowing expanse of soiled whiteshirt. In his hand was a palm-leaf fan, at his elbow swung an _olla_,newspapers littered the ground or lay across his fat knees. When Bob andLejeune entered, he merely nodded surlily, and went on with his reading.

  "Can I speak to you a moment on business?" asked Bob.

  By way of answer the fat man dropped his paper, and mopped his brow.

  "We've rented our sheep grazing to Mr. Lejeune, here, as I understandwe've been doing for some years. He tells me you have refused himpermission to cross the Forest Reserve with his flocks."

  "That's right," grunted Plant.

  "What for?"

  "I believe, young man, granting permits is discretionary with theSupervisor," stated that individual.

  "I suppose so," agreed Bob. "But Mr. Lejeune has always had permissionbefore. What reason do you assign for refusing it?"

  "Wilful trespass," wheezed Plant. "That's what, young man. His sheepgrazed over our line. He's lucky that I don't have him up before theUnited States courts for damages as well."

  Lejeune started to speak, but Bob motioned him to silence.

  "I'm sure we could arrange for past damages, and guarantee against anyfuture trespass," said he.

  "Well, I'm sure you can't," stated Plant positively. "Good day."

  But Bob was not willing to give up thus easily. He gave his best effortseither to arguing Plant into a better frame of mind, or to discoveringsome tangible reason for his sudden change of front in regard to thesheep.

  "It's no use," he told Lejeune, later, as they walked down the streettogether. "He's undoubtedly the right to refuse permits for cause; andtechnically he has cause if your sheep got over the line."

  "But what shall I do!" cried Lejeune. "My ship mus' have feed!"

  "You pasture them or feed them somewhere for a week or so, and I'll letyou know," said Bob. "We'll get you on the land or see you throughsomewhere else."

  He mounted his horse stiffly and rode back up the street. Plant stillsat in his armchair like a bloated spider. On catching sight of Bob,however, he heaved himself to his feet and waddled to the gate.

  "Here!" he called. Bob drew rein. "It has been reported to me that yourfirm has constructed a flume across 36, and a wagon road across 14, 22,28, and 32. Those are government sections. I suppose, of course, yourfirm has permits from Washington to build said improvements?"

  "Naturally," said Bob, who, however, knew nothing whatever of thosedetails.

  "Well, I'll send a man up to examine them to-morrow," said Plant, andturned his back.