"Ned Higgins, eh? Trying another of his jokes, I suppose. Probably thought the dog would chew you up."
Then for a moment that seemed hours to the anxious boy, the ranchman pondered, finally exclaiming:
"Well, we'll fool Higgins this time. I'll take you on for a try. You're sure game or you wouldn't have stood before that fool dog, the way you did. Come in and we'll talk about wages."
And, as Bob entered the cabin, Ford turned to look at the dog, muttering to himself:
"Strange, mighty strange. I never knew him to make friends with any one before."
CHAPTER XX
BOB BECOMES OWNER OF A DOG
Interestedly Bob gazed about him as he entered, for the first time in his life, the home of a ranchman. At the left of the door, a bunk, covered with brilliant-colored blankets—which, had the boy known they were the handiwork of Indians, would have interested him greatly—extended from the wall. Above this crude bed was a rack holding three rifles and several revolvers. On the opposite side of the room were a cupboard and table, while in the rear was another cupboard, and a stove. A rocking and two straight-backed chairs completed the furnishings.
Just what Bob had expected to find in the cabin he could not have told, but its severity and barrenness disappointed him.