They taught them a series of signals, which must be given and answered before firing at any one.
"Now, boys," said Fred, "be careful. We don't want any innocent man hurt, but if you find any one tampering with the fence give him a chance to cut just one wire to establish his guilt and then call a halt. If he doesn't hold up open fire on him, and keep firing until he comes down. Both Olcott and I will be moving about the greater part of the night. We want all cattle thieves to understand that they can't steal any of our cattle with impunity."
That night, after singing and playing at the house with the girls, the boys mounted their horses and started for the lower end of the ranch.
When they reached there they dismounted, hitched their horses in the timber and started down the line on foot. They found the cowboys that they had stationed along the line in their respective places. They were very prompt in exchanging signals, and they spoke in whispers so that their voices might not be overheard.
By and by in the starlight they saw about a score of cattle going through the grass as though they were being driven by somebody.
Fred and Terry crouched down in the grass and watched them.
They both became fully satisfied that some one was driving them, and they ran along with the cattle in order to ascertain where they were going, and why. They were very near the corner of the fence, for, as the reader doubtless remembers, they had enclosed only twenty of the forty thousand acres, as they thought that was about as much as they would have need for inside of the next two years.
Suddenly Terry tapped Fred on the shoulder and whispered:
"Down, Fred," and Fred dropped down on his knees.
Terry motioned with his hand and pointed out on his right where they could both see the figures of two men moving cautiously and closely behind the cattle, and they both wondered if another panel of the wire had not been cut just ahead of them.