"Wonder what Red'll say when Jimmy tells him--bet he'll plow dust like a cyclone," and Hopalong laughed, picturing to himself the satiation of Red's anger.

"Old red-headed son-of-a-gun," murmured the cowboy affectionately, "he shore can fight." As he squinted over the sights of his rifle his eye caught sight of a moving body of men as they cantered over the flats about two miles away.
In his eagerness he forgot to shoot and carefully counted them.

"Nine," he grumbled.

"Wonder what's th' matter ?" Fearing that they were not his friends.

Then a second body numbering eight cantered into sight and followed the first.
"Whoop! There's th' Red-head!" he shouted, dancing in his joy.