"Some of your cowboys disporting themselves?" asked Mr. Ogden of the owner of Diamond X. Mr. Merkel shook his head. "Nothing like that," he remarked. Some one yelled--there were more shots and then the voice of Slim Degnan, foreman of the ranch, was heard shouting: "Get after 'em, boys! Head 'em off!" "It's a stampede!" yelled Bud. "Come on, fellows!" CHAPTER II MISSING PAPERS Nort and Dick lost no time following their cowboy cousin, Bud, outside the ranch house, and each of the three lads, as well as Mr. Merkel and his associates, had caught up one of the heavy revolvers that were never far from their hands. For, as has been said of the West, a man doesn't always need a gun out there, but when he does need it, he needs it "mighty bad and mighty sudden." The boy ranchers were taking no chances. "What's the matter, Slim?" asked Bud as he rushed outside and saw a group of cowboys near the foreman. They were vaulting to the saddles of their horses which had hurriedly been turned out of the home corral. "Rustlers!" cried Nort. "Is it rustlers, Slim?" "Might be, for all I can tell," was the answer. "I saw some men riding along out there, and when I called to know who they were they didn't answer, which was suspicious in itself. Then I told 'em to stop until I could get a look at 'em, but they turned and made off, and that was worse, so I fired a couple of times after 'em." "Where are they now?" asked Dick. "That's what we're going to find out; son," was the foreman's grim answer. "You there, Babe?" he called to his fat assistant, who rejoiced in the diminutive nickname. "All there is of me," was the sighing answer. "Stand still there, you slab-sided chunk of salt pork!" he called to his horse, which was nervously swerving about. And Babe Milton was too heavy to be a quick mounter. He needed special attention on the part of his steed. "Let's go, fellows!" cried Bud to his cousins, and, not waiting for the permission of Mr. Merkel, the lads saddled their horses and started after the foreman and his cowboys who had gotten a flying start. "What do you imagine it is?" asked Nort as he rode between his brother and cousin, while they urged their steeds on to catch up to those ahead of them. "Haven't any idea," answered Bud, glancing back to note that his father and the visiting ranchmen had gone into the house. Probably Mr. Merkel and the others knew the matter could safely be left to the cowboys. Bud and his cousins rode fleet ponies, and they were more than at home in their saddles, so it did not take them long to reach the bunch of cowboys riding across the plains ahead of them, on the trail of the mysterious night visitors. "Any idea who they were, Slim?" asked Bud, guiding his horse alongside that of the foreman. "Not the least in the world. But they're up to no good or they wouldn't have veered off at the first hail. There's something suspicious in that." "I should say so," agreed Nort.