It did not take our hero long to see that these two were Doc Clancy and the villain who had joined his forces with him.
He knew then that the scoundrels were bent on wiping them out. In some manner they must have come across the horsemen and made friends with them, and then got them to assist in their vile purpose.
"What do you propose to do?" our hero asked, turning to his friends.
"I'll tell yer what I'm a-goin' ter do," said Lank Edwards. "I'm a-goin' ter wait till they git near enough, an' then I'm a-goin' ter shoot Doc Clancy, an' ther other feller, too, if I kin. If them fellers on ther horses behind 'em can't fight any better than they kin ride, I think we kin clean out ther whole business easy enough."
Nearer and nearer approached the horsemen, and our friends could see that the mate was right when he said they were not good riders.
For the most part, they appeared more like drunken men than anything else, by the manner in which they wabbled about.
When the approaching band was within five hundred yards of our friends, Lank Edwards' rifle suddenly flew to his shoulder and two reports rang out in rapid succession.
Both Doc Clancy and his companion threw up their hands and fell to the ground.