Produced by Roberta Staehlin, David Garcia, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) The SHERIFF OF BADGER _A TALE OF THE SOUTHWEST BORDERLAND_ BY GEORGE PATTULLO ILLUSTRATED D. APPLETON AND COMPANY NEW YORK AND LONDON: MCMXII COPYRIGHT, 1912, BY D. APPLETON AND COMPANY Copyright, 1909, 1911, by The Curtis Publishing Company Copyright, 1911, 1912, by Street and Smith Copyright, 1910, by the Pearson Publishing Company _Published June, 1912_ Printed in the United States of America Acknowledgments are due to _The Saturday Evening Post_, _Pearson's Magazine_ and _The Popular Magazine_ for permission to use some of the material in this book. TO A. W. BALLANTYNE [Illustration: The Sheriff of Badger] CONTENTS I LAFE JOHNSON ARRIVES AT LAZY L RANCH II CERTAIN COMPLICATIONS RESULT III CONCERNING A BABY'S WAIL IV OUT OF A JOB V AN INCIPIENT LOVE AFFAIR VI DISCOMFITURE OF A GUNFIGHTER VII JOHNSON IS ELECTED SHERIFF OF BADGER VIII A FEUD AND WHAT CAME OF IT IX AN INQUEST AND A SURPRISE X A JOURNEY TO SATAN'S KINGDOM XI A WAITRESS TO THE RESCUE XII THE SHERIFF SETTLES A CONJUGAL DISPUTE XIII AND HETTY COMES TO BADGER TO LIVE XIV THE SHERIFF ENSNARED XV HOW HE WON A WIFE XVI THE GUNFIGHTER RETURNS AND DELAYS WEDDING XVII JOHNSON MEETS A FRIEND OF HETTY'S XVIII A SACRIFICE AND ITS PUNISHMENT XIX BUFFALO JIM GIVES WISE COUNSEL XX THE SHERIFF PURGES TOWN OF BADGER XXI A FIGHT IN THE DARK XXII CAPTURE OF MOFFATT, THE GUNMAN XXIII THE WEDDING XXIV THE BRIDE IS LOST XXV JOHNSON BECOMES BOSS OF THE ANVIL XXVI ENTERS TROUBLE XXVII A CLEVER WOMAN AND A MISUNDERSTANDING XXVIII RECONCILIATION--MRS. VINING EXPERIENCES A CHANGE OF HEART XXIX LAFE HELPS A DESERTER XXX AND DISCOVERS HETTY'S BROTHER XXXI GREAT EXPECTATIONS IN JOHNSON FAMILY XXXII BIRTH OF LAFE JOHNSON, JR. XXXIII JOHNSON ONCE MORE IN ROLE OF SHERIFF XXXIV HE ARRESTS A SUSPECT XXXV THE DEATH DICE XXXVI RESPONSIBILITY SITS HEAVILY ON LAFE XXXVII BUT THE BOSS AGAIN PROVES HIS METTLE XXXVIII HOW A MOFFATT HENCHMAN WAS OUSTED XXXIX NEWS FROM BUFFALO JIM XL HE ARRIVES TO VISIT THE JOHNSONS XLI A NIGHT RIDE AND DEATH OF BUFFALO JIM XLII MIDDLE LIFE XLIII MOFFATT ONCE MORE XLIV THE DUEL IN THE MALPAIS XLV THE END LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS The Sheriff of Badger "She and Johnson rode together every day" "As Lafe was coming from dinner ... a Mexican handed him a letter" "So now Lafe, Jr., flattened out in his fissure in equal danger with his father" THE SHERIFF OF BADGER CHAPTER I LAFE JOHNSON ARRIVES AT THE LAZY L RANCH