Nan flushed slightly. ‘That question is a whole lot like saying, “If we had some ham we could have some ham and eggs, if we had some eggs.”’
‘I see,’ blankly. ‘Well, I shall get you the wood, Nan. I’m afraid I’ll never get this rug cleaned. It seems to be badly stained.’
‘Well, hang it on the fence.’
Dave Morgan decided to go to Cañonville that day instead of waiting until the next, and he was within a couple of miles of the town when he met the sheriff, Hashknife, and Sleepy. The sheriff had considered the dead horse worthy of further investigation, and they were on their way to the Lane ranch.
Dave greeted them in a friendly manner, and told them he had been at the Lane ranch.
‘Didja see old Briggs in Cañonville?’ he asked Lem.
‘He ain’t there, Dave. What do yuh want Briggs for?’
Dave told them of the empty safe at the 6X6. He did not directly accuse Briggs of theft, but he intimated that the guilt lay between Briggs and the other three cowboys, with most of the evidence against Briggs, because he had seemingly left the country.
‘How do yuh know there was anythin’ in the safe before Peter Morgan was killed?’ asked Hashknife.
‘I don’t know that there was, Hartley; but there should have been. Pete wasn’t very strong for banks, and it don’t seem reasonable that the safe would be empty, does it?’