“A tie,” he finally announced.
“Put up fresh targets, Jim, and I will shoot off the tie,” Ricker ordered briskly, “and put up another one; we’ll have our friend MacNutt here try his skill with us.”
Ricker and Jim shot their tie off, the former winning this time by a large margin.
Ricker smiled sarcastically at MacNutt as the latter stepped up in his awkward way to take a position. A titter ran through the group of cowboys as they watched his odd movements. He was likely to prove a source of amusement for them after all.
Ricker suddenly stepped forward.
“Come on, Jim, you and I will set a high record for him. We’ll show him some shooting that will make him go some,” he boasted.
Jim Haley led off, scoring almost the same hits as before.
“You must have your shooting eye with you today, Jim,” Ricker remarked as he took his position.
Then he put six bullets in the bull’s-eye, firing with a precision that was perfect.
“I’ll bet none of the Bar X outfit can equal that,” he boasted to MacNutt with a cynical smile.