"I had a horse," said the stranger. "He can't have gone very far. I left him beside the trail while I came in here to look about. He must have wandered off a way."
"A horse!" cried Dave, eagerly. "That's good, if I can find him. We'll not have any trouble getting you to the ranch in that case, Mr.—er—"
Dave paused significantly, adding, after a moment's thought:
"My names is Dave—Dave Carson." He had hesitated, and then quickly reflected that this was no time to enter into explanations about his lack of parentage. "My father, Randolph Carson, owns Bar U ranch."
"Yes, I have heard of him," the man said. "In fact I was going to call on him within a few days in regard to a certain matter. I am afraid I can't reach my card case, but my name is Bellmore—Benjamin Bellmore. I'm from Chicago, but I'm out here representing the Rolling Valley Water Company."
"Never heard of them," Dave said. "They don't deal in cattle; do they?"
"No, they hope to deal in water; that is later on. But I'll go into details after a bit."
"Pardon me, Mr. Bellmore!" burst out Dave. "Here I am keeping you talking, when I ought to be looking for your animal, and helping you to our ranch. I don't know what's got into me. But I just had some trouble with a bunch of our cattle, and I guess I'm thinking of that yet.
"I was on my way to the ranch to get help, when I took this short cut and heard you call. I'll go and see if I can find your horse. If I can't we'll use mine, and I can walk. It won't be the first time, though we cowpunchers are more used to a saddle than we are to our own legs."
He gave Mr. Bellmore another drink from the canteen, and then seeing that the man was as comfortable as possible under the circumstances, went back to the trail to look for the missing horse. Dave saw his own steed contentedly munching some of the scanty herbage, &and, speaking to him, passed on.