“I speak in this manner,” went on Professor Borrodaile, “because, shortly before the supposed accident happened, I was among the rocks to the south of that particular part of the cañon. I heard high words from beyond a bit of chaparral, as of two men quarreling. I had no interest in the quarrel, if such it was, so I sought to avoid the men and proceed with my examination of the rocks adjacent to the cañon’s brink. And yet, I had a glimpse of the disputatious pair. One of them, I am sure, was Jode Lenning; the other was the young man called Bleeker.”
Clancy cast a startled look at Merriwell.
“Later,” went on the professor, “much later, Lenning and Bleeker appeared in this camp and spoke to Handy. Where were Lenning and Bleeker during the interim? I confess, Merriwell, that the thought annoys me. It certainly could not have taken the two Gold Hill young men an hour or more to come from the place where I saw them to Tinaja Wells. What do you think?”
Just then Fritz came forth and announced “grub pile” in his usual hearty manner, and Merry did not find it necessary to tell Professor Borrodaile what he thought.
[CHAPTER XX.]
A FRIEND FROM CAMP HAWTREY.
Darrel passed a restless night at Dolliver’s ranch. His arm, stiffly wrapped with splints and bandages, was swollen and feverish. The pain of it must have been intense.
Ballard did what he could to cheer Darrel up. The boy with the broken arm, however, had mental worries apart from his physical pains, and it was hard for Ballard to do anything with him. As the forenoon wore on, Darrel began to talk, and to reveal the troubles that lay at the back of his head.
“Pink,” said he, with an air of desperation, “I’ve got to do something to clear up that forgery matter. The colonel won’t have a thing to do with me until I prove that I didn’t sign his name to that check.”
“Chip’s going to look after that, old man,” returned Ballard. “Leave it to him. You’ve got enough to fret about, seems to me, without going into any of your family affairs.”