Dave Porter's Great Search

on

en he arose to his feet, to hurry up and down the trail in the vicinity where the encounter with Jasniff had occur

f one of the pockets had likewise been rent. But whether this damage had been caus

the fight, and the fall down the rocks f

Jasniff. Whether the rascal had picked up the article

f they fell out of my pockets when I rolled down the rocks and over the cliff, they

ould be better to try to find Jasniff or to make a

ent off on my horse," the young civil engineer reasoned. "I might as well take

he same course he had followed in the fall, and he kept his eyes wide open for the things he had lost. But five minutes of slipping and sliding brought hi

h, rats! Why did I have to fall in with Jasniff on this trip? I wish that fellow was at

to give up in despair when his eye caught sight of a white-looking object some distance below. Ea

s documents!" he exclaimed.

envelope and its contents were intact. Having inspected

e told himself. "Somebody will have to rip

e letter from Jessie, as well as the communication from Uncle Dunston, and the pocketbook with

t with the one from Jessie," he reasoned. "But I'd like to set my eyes

and although he searched around for a quarter of an hour longer, nothing of any value came to sight. T

didn't go after Sport," Dave argued to himself. "Anyhow, I

wn on the rocks had done the lame ankle no good. He had had

he it it wouldn't be

ntity he carried in a flask for drinking purposes

lame ankle gave him such a twinge that

to do if I can't find that

the landscape in the valley below him, 81when something on

n't look like a bird's nest. It looks more like

the painful ankle, walked over to the edge of the trail. Here he could see the objec

en and empty. Even the few cards and slip

cked that pocketbook up where we had the fight, and he cam

wo letters had been in the same pocket, and he felt certain t

e get Sport?" Dave mused. "If he did, then it's

le. He counted the 82loose change in his trousers' pocket and found he had ei

to an end and there was a fairly good bit of pasture-land, and here st

run any farther, and doubly glad Nick Jasniff didn't get you. Now, old boy, we'll be on our way and try to make

me time, the rascal had rifled the pocketbook and then thrown it in the bushes. Then, thinking the horse had gone a mu

eep away," thought our hero. "It must be that he is headed either

niff was employed, and accuse him of the theft. The fellow would probably deny everything-even the meeti

now what sort of fellow Jasniff is," Dave said to himself. "Maybe that crowd over there

over the edge of the cliff below the trail, Nick Jasniff had looked around to find his hat, which ha

s he tried to stop the flow of blood from his bruised nose. "And I guess I'm entitled to

could find and mount our hero's horse. He quickly transferred the forty-three dollars he 84found in

ailing to locate the horse. "Gee! I'm glad I struck this forty-three dollars! T

then along the trail to where there was a fork-one branch leading down to the constructio

r the Double Eight Ranch had the night before fallen in with several of the men employed by the Mentor Const

ouble Eight, and Dackley, who was naturally a hot-headed man, had

ch a straight story that 85I swallowed it, hook, line, and sinker. I don't want such a fellow around here any more tha

ng on the Double Eight Ranch and been closely questioned by James Dackley. He h

kley, "and if the story is true, the soon

ld become on occasion, he had lost no time in packing his few belongings and asking for his pay. This had been given to him, an

o quit the neighborhood. He had thirty dollars in his pocket, and this

more 86chances in the East for a fellow like me. Maybe I'll find some of the

ve, Nick Jasniff sat down to rest and at the same time look over the letters he had picked

" he murmured to himself. "Wouldn't I like to put a spoke in that fellow's wheel! I wonder if I couldn't do so

this did not interest him greatly, but he read with interest what Dave's uncle ha

ning me in some kind of a game against the Wadsworths. Maybe we could put one over and 87make a lot of money out of it. Anyway, it's somethi