Miss Deringham now appeared quite serene again.
"Has he ridden off wet through as he was ?" she said.
"I expect so," said Seaforth dryly.

"Harry does not usually let trifles of that kind worry him, nor do I think there are many men who would have ridden at that fence." Alice Deringham said nothing, but though she smiled Seaforth fancied that she was not pleased.

Her thoughts were, however, of small importance to him, and he hastened fuming with impatience towards the stables.
It was some time later when Nellie Townshead stood by a window of her father's ranch.

Jean-clad stock breeders and axemen hung about the clearing, and a little knot of men from the cities stood apart from them.

A wagon, implements out of repair, old sets of harness, axes, saws, and shovels were littered about the front of the house, and there were two or three horses and a few poor cattle in the corral.