"Why, I think so," he returned, thoughtfully. "I think I'd be worth more to this county as sheriff than I would be as--as governor, let us say." "Yes, but they go shooting sheriffs," she protested. "They'll not be doing so much careless and easy shooting around here since Colonel--Brigadier-General Landcraft--and that sounds more like his size, too--gave them a rubdown with the iron hand. The cattle barons' day is over; their sun went down when Mark Thorn brought the holy scare to Saul Chadron's door." "Father is of the same opinion. Do you know, Alan, the whole story about that horrible old man Thorn is in the eastern papers?" "Is it possible?" "With a Cheyenne date-line," she nodded, "the whole story--who hired him to skulk and kill, and a list of his known crimes. Father says if there was anything lacking in the fight you made on the cattlemen, this would finish them. It's a terrible story--poor Nola read it, and learned for the first time her father's connection with Thorn. She's humiliated and heartbroken over it all." "With sufficient reason," he nodded. "She's afraid her mother will hear of it in some way." "She'll find it out in time, Frances; a thing like that walks on a man's grave." "It will not matter so much after a while, after her first grief settles." "Did Nola come back with you?" "No, she went on to take some things to poor old Mrs. Lassiter. She never has recovered from the loss of her son--it's killing her by inches, Tom says. And you considering that office of sheriff!" She turned to him with censorious eyes as she spoke, as if struck with a pain of which he was the cause. "I tell you, you men don't know, you don't know! It's the women that suffer in all this shooting and killing--we are the ones that have to bear the sorrows in the night and watch through the uncertain days!" "Yes," said he gently, "the poor women must bear most of this world's pain. That is why God made them strong above all his created things." They sat in silence, thinking it over between them. Outside there was sunshine over the brown rangeland; within there dwelt the lifting confidence that their feet had passed the days of trouble and were entering the bounds of an enlarging peace. "And Major King?" said he. "Father has relented, as I knew he would, out of regard for their friendship of the past, and will not bring charges based on Major King's plottings with Chadron." "It's better that way," he nodded. "Do you suppose there's nothing between him and Nola?" "I think she'll have him after her grief passes, Alan." "Better than he deserves," said he. "There's a lump of gold in that little lady's heart, Frances." "There is, Alan; I'm glad to hear you say that." There was moisture in her tender eyes.