oliver drew had found a bee tree on the backbone of the ridge between the old ivison place and the american river. he stood contemplating it, watching the busy little workers winging their way to and from the hole in the hollow trunk, planning to change their quarters and put them to work for him.
far below him, down a precipitous pine-studded slope, the green american river raced toward the ocean. there had been a week of late rains, and good grass for the summer was assured.
away through the tall trees below him he saw red cows filtering along, cropping eagerly at the lush growth after a long dusty trip from the drying lowlands. now and then he saw a horseman galloping along a mile distant. he heard an occasional faint shout, borne upward on the soft spring wind. the seldens were ending the drive of their cattle to summer pastures.
he turned suddenly as he heard the tramp of hoofs. six horsemen were approaching, along the backbone of the ridge, winding in and out between clumps of the sparse chaparral.
in the lead, straight and sturdy as some ancient oak, rode a tall man with grey hair that hung below his ears and a flowing grey beard. he wore the conventional cowpuncher garb, from black-silk neckerchief, held in place by a poker chip with holes bored in it, to high-heeled boots and chaps. he rode a gaunt grey horse. his tapaderos flapped loosely against the undergrowth, and, so long were the man's legs, they seemed almost to scrape the ground. a holstered colt hung at the rider's side.
silent, stern of face, this old man rode like the wraith of some ancient chieftain at the head of his hard-riding warriors.
those who followed him were younger men, plainly vaqueros. they lolled in their saddles, and smoked and bantered. but oliver's eyes were alone for the stalwart figure in the lead, who neither spoke nor smiled nor paid any attention to his band, but rode on grimly as if heading an expedition into dangerous and unknown lands.
undoubtedly this was old man selden and his four sons, together with other members of the poison oakers gang. they had left the cows to themselves and were making their way homeward after the drive. oliver's first impulse was to hide behind a tree and watch, for he felt that he should forego no chance of a strategic advantage. then he decided that it was not for him to begin manœuvring, and stood boldly in full view, wondering whether the riders would pass without observing him.
they did not. he heard a sharp word or two from some follower of the old man, and for the first time the leader showed signs of knowing that he was not riding alone. he slued about in his saddle. a hand pointed in oliver's direction. the old man reined in his grey horse and looked toward oliver and the bee tree. the other horsemen drew up around him. there was a short consultation, then all of them leaned to the right in their saddles and galloped over the uneven land.
they reined in close to the lone man, and a dusty, sweaty, hard-looking clan they were. keen, curious eyes studied him, and there was no mistaking the insolent and bullying attitude of their owners.
a quick glance oliver gave the five, then his interest settled on their leader.
adam selden was a powerful man. his nose was of the bourbon type, large and deeply pitted. his eyes were blue and strong and dominating.
"howdy?" boomed a deep bass voice.
oliver smiled. "how do you do?" he replied.
then silence fell, while old adam selden sat rolling a quid of tobacco in his mouth and studying the stranger with inscrutable cold blue eyes.
"i've found a bee tree," said oliver when the tensity grew almost unbearable. "i was just figuring on the best way to hive the little rascals."
selden slowly nodded his great head up and down with exasperating exaggeration.
"stranger about here, ain't ye?" he asked.
"well, i've been here over a month," oliver answered. "i own the old tabor ivison place, down there in the valley. my name is oliver drew, and i guess you're mr. selden."
another long pause, then—
"yes, i'm selden. them's my cows ye see down there moseyin' up the river bottom and over the hills. i been runnin' cows in here summers for a good many years. just so!"
"i see," said oliver, not knowing what else to say.
"three o' these men are my boys," selden drawled on. "the rest are friends o' ours. has anybody told ye about the poison oak that grows 'round here?"
"i'm familiar with it," oliver told him.
"ain't scared o' poison oak, then?"
"not at all. i'm immune."
"it's a pesterin' plant. you'll chafe under it and chafe under it, and think it's gone; then here she comes back again, redder and lumpier and itchier than ever."
"i'm quite familiar with its persistence," oliver gravely stated.
"and still ye ain't afraid o' poison oak?"
"not in the least."
the gang was grinning, but the chief of the
poison oakers maintained a straight face.
"ain't scared of it, then," he drawled on. "well, now, that's handy. i like to meet a man that ain't scared o' poison oak. got yer place fenced, i reckon?"
"yes, i've repaired the fence."
"that's right. that's always the best way. o' course the law says we got to see that our stock don't get on your prop'ty. whether that there's a good and just law or not i ain't prepared to say right now. but we got to obey it, and we always try to keep our cows offen other folks' pasture. but it's best to fence, whether ye got stock o' yer own or not. pays in the long run, and keeps a fella outa trouble with his neighbours. but the best o' fencin' won't keep out the poison oak. o' course, though, you know that. now what're ye gonta do down there on the old ivison place?—if i ain't too bold in askin'."
"have a little garden, and maybe get a cow later on. put a few stands of bees to work for me, if i can find enough swarms in the woods. i have a saddle horse and a burro to keep the grass down now. i don't intend to do a great deal in the way of farming."
"i'd think not," selden drawled. "land about here's good fer nothin' but grazin' a few months outa the year. man would be a fool to try and farm down where you're at. how ye gonta make a livin'?—if i'm not too bold in askin'."
"i intend to write for agricultural papers for my living," said oliver.
silence greeted this. so far as their experience was concerned, oliver might as well have stated that he was contemplating the manufacture of tortoise-shell side combs to keep soul and body to their accustomed partnership.
"how long ye owned this forty?" old man selden asked.
"only since my father's death, this year."
"yer father, eh? who was yer father?"
"peter drew, of the southern part of the state."
"how long'd he own that prop'ty before he died?"
"he owned it for some time, i understand," said oliver patiently.
the grey head shook slowly from side to side. "i can show ye, down to the county seat, that nancy fleet—who was an ivison and sister o' the woman i married here about four year ago—owned that land up until the first o' the year, anyway. it was left to her by old tabor ivison when he died. that was fifteen year ago, and i've paid the taxes on it ever since for nancy fleet, for the privilege o' runnin' stock on it. i paid the taxes last year. what 'a' ye got to say to that?"
oliver drew had absolutely nothing to say to it. he could only stare at the gaunt old man.
"but i have the deed!" he burst out at last.
"and i've got last year's tax receipts," drawled adam selden. "ye better go down to the county seat and have a look at the records," he added, swinging his horse about. "then when ye've done that, i'd like a talk with ye. just so! just so!"
he rode off without another word, the gang following.
early next morning oliver was in the saddle. as poche picked his way out of the cañon oliver espied jessamy selden on her white mare, standing still in the county road.
"good morning," said the girl. "you're late. i've been waiting for you ten minutes."
oliver's lips parted in surprise, and she laughed good-naturedly.
"i thought you'd be riding out early this morning," she explained, "so i rode down to meet you. i feel as if a long ride in the saddle would benefit me today. do you mind if i travel with you to the county seat?"
he had ridden close to her by this time, and offered his hand.
"you like to surprise people, don't you?" he accused. "the answer to your question is, i do not mind if you travel with me to the county seat. but let me tell you—you'll have to travel. this is a horse that i'm riding."
she turned up her nose at him. "i like to have a man talk that way to me," she said. "don't ever dare to hold my stirrup for me, or slow down when you think the pace is getting pretty brisk, or anything like that."
"i wouldn't think of such discourtesy," he told her seriously. "you noticed that i let you mount unaided the other day. i might have walked ahead, though, and opened the gate for you if you hadn't loped off."
"that's why i did it," she demurely confessed. "i'm rather proud of being able to take care of myself. and as for that wonderful horse of yours, he does look leggy and capable. but, then, white ann has a point or two herself. let's go!"
their ponies took up the walking-trot of the cattle country side by side toward halfmoon flat.
"well," oliver began, "of course my meeting you means that you know i've had an encounter with adam selden, and that he has told you he doubts if i am the rightful owner of the tabor ivison place."
"yes, i overheard his conversation with hurlock last night," she told him. "so i thought i'd ride down with you, sensing that you would be worried and would hit the trail this morning."
"i am worried," he said. "i can't imagine why your step-father made that statement."
"just call him adam or old man selden when you're speaking of him to me," she prompted. "even the 'step' in front of 'father' does not take away the bad taste. and you might at least think of me as jessamy lomax. i will lie in the bed i made when i espoused the name of selden, for it would be stupid to go about now notifying people that i have gone back to lomax again. my case is not altogether hopeless, however. you are witness that i have a fair chance of some day acquiring the name of foss, at any rate. so you are worried about the land tangle?"
"what can it mean?" he puzzled.
"this probably is not the first instance in which a deed has not been recorded promptly," she ventured. "that won't affect your ownership. personally i know that aunt nancy fleet's name appears in the records down at the county seat as the owner of the property. she sold it to your father, doubtless, and the transfer never was recorded. where is your deed?"
he slapped his breast.
"see that you keep it there," she said significantly.
"you say you know that your aunt nancy fleet is named as owner of the property in the county records?"
she nodded.
"then she has allowed adam selden to believe that she still owns it!" he cried. "and this is proved by reason of her having allowed him to pay the taxes for the right to run stock on the land."
she nodded again.
he wrinkled his brows. "it would seem to be a sort of conspiracy against adam selden by your aunt nancy and—" he paused.
"and who?"
"well, it's not like my father's business methods to allow a deed to go unrecorded for fifteen years," he told her. "not at all like dad. so i must name him as a party to this conspiracy against old adam. but what is the meaning of it, miss selden?"
"i'm sure i am not in a position to say," she replied lightly. "some day, when you've got things to running smoothly down there, i'll take you to see aunt nancy. she lives up in calamity gap—about ten miles to the north of halfmoon flat. maybe she can and will explain."
he regarded her steadily; but for once her eyes did not meet his, though he could not say that this was intentional on her part.
"by george, i believe you can explain it!" he accused.
"i?"
"you heard me the first time."
"did you learn that expression at the university of california or in france?"
"i stick to my statement," he grumbled.
"do so, by all means. just the same, i am not in a position to enlighten you. but i promise to take you to aunt nancy whenever you're ready to go. there's an indian reservation up near where she lives. you'll want to visit that. we can make quite a vacation of the trip. you'll see a riding outfit or two that will run close seconds to yours for decoration and elaborate workmanship. my! what a saddle and bridle you have! i've been unable to keep my eyes off them from the first; but you were so busy with your land puzzle that i couldn't mention them. i've seen some pretty elaborate rigs in my day, but nothing to compare with yours. it's old, too. where did you get it?"
"they were dad's," he told her. "he left them and poche to me at his death. i must tell you of something that happened when i first showed up in halfmoon flat in all my grandeur. do you know old dad sloan, the 'forty-niner?"
she nodded, her glance still on the heavy, chased silver of his saddle.
then oliver told her of the queer old man's mysterious words when he saw the saddle and bridle and martingales, and the stones that were set in the silver conchas.
she was strangely silent when he had finished. then she said musingly:
"the lost mine of bolivio. certainly that sounds interesting. and dan smeed, squawman, highwayman, and outlaw. the days of old, the days of gold—the days of 'forty-nine! thought of them always thrills me. tell me more, mr. drew. i know there is much more to be told."
"i'll do it," he said; and out came the strange story of peter drew and his last message to his son.
her wide eyes gazed at him throughout the recital and while he read the message aloud. they were sparkling as he concluded and looked across at her.
"oh, that dear, delightful, romantic old father of yours!" she cried. "you're a man of mystery—a knight on a secret quest! oh, if i could only help you! will you let me try?"
"i'd be only too glad to shift half the burden of finding the question and its correct answer to your strong shoulders," he said.
"then we'll begin just as soon as you're ready," she declared. "i have a plan for the first step. wait! i'll help you!"
shortly before noon they dropped rein before the court house and sought the county recorder's office. oliver gave the legal description of his land, and soon the two were pouring over a cumbersome book, heads close together.
to his vast surprise, oliver found that his deed had been recorded the second day after his father's death, and that, up until that recent date, the land had appeared in the records as the property of nancy fleet.
"dad's lawyers did this directly after his death," he said to jessamy. "they sent the deed up here and had it recorded just before turning it over to me. adam selden hasn't seen it yet. say, this is growing mighty mysterious, miss selden."
"delightfully so," she agreed. "now as you weren't expecting me to come along, have you enough money for lunch for two? if not, i have. we'd better eat and be starting back."
