Therefore he walked slowly along, counting the ties as he went.
"They certainly do lay 'em thick," he mused after some minutes. "Three hundred and one, three hundred and two, three hundred and three, three hundred and four, three hun——"
He stopped short and looked behind him.
"I sure thought I heard some one," he muttered. "It must have been a bird."
He turned and started forward.
"Let's see, where was I? Oh, yes, three hundred and five, three hundred and six, three hundred and——"
Again he stopped, but did not turn around. Instead he stooped down as though to pick up a stone, which enabled him to look backward between his knees.
He caught a movement in the grass at the edge of the right of way.
"I thought so," he muttered. "Now to find out who it is, and what he wants."
He picked up a small stone and threw it at a tall cactus which grew near the track some distance ahead.