None of the Dale men could cross the fissure.
Cautiously Sanderson raised his head above the rocky edge of the fissure.

He kept his head concealed behind the two small boulders and he had an uninterrupted view of the entire side of the defile.
He saw a number of men crouching behind rocks and boulders that were scattered over the steep slope, and he counted them deliberately--sixteen.

He could see their faces plainly, and he recognized many of them as Dale's men.

They were of the vicious type that are to be found in all lawless communities.
Sanderson's grin as he sighted along the barrel of his rifle was full of sardonic satisfaction, tempered with a slight disappointment.

For he did not see Dale among the others.