It was sent collect, which accounts perhaps for the facetious remarks which it contained.

It was morning when that train arrived, because it was behind time for some reason, but Chip, Weary, Pink and Big Medicine were at the depot to meet it. The new cook having been reported drunk, they wanted to make sure of getting him off the train in case he proved unruly. They were wise in the ways of intoxicated cooks. They ran to the steps of the only Pullman on the train and were met by the grinning porter.

"Yas sah, he's in dah—but Ah cyan't git 'im off, sah, to save mah soul," he explained toothily. "Ah put 'im next de front end, sah, but he's went to sleep and Ah cyan't wake 'em up, an' Ah cyan't tote 'em out nohow. Seems lak he weighs a ton!"

"By cripes, we'll tote him out," declared Big Medicine, pushing ahead of Chip in his enthusiasm. "You hold the train, and we'll git 'im. Show us the bunk."

The porter pointed out the number and retreated to the steps that he might signal the conductor. The four pushed up through the vestibule and laid hold upon the berth curtains.

"Mamma!" ejaculated Weary in a stunned tone. "Look what's in here, boys!"

They thrust forward their heads and peered in at the recumbent form.

"Honest to grandma—it's old Patsy!" The voice of Big Medicine brought heads out all along down the car.

"Come out uh that!" Four voices made up the chorus, and Patsy opened his eyes reluctantly.

"Py cosh, I not cook chuck for you fellers ven I'm sick," he mumbled dazedly.

"Come out uh that, you damned Dutch belly-robber!" bawled Big Medicine joyously, and somewhere behind a curtain a feminine shriek was heard at the shocking sentence.

Four pairs of welcoming hands laid hold upon Patsy; four pairs of strong arms dragged him out of the berth and through the narrow aisle to the platform. The conductor, the head brakeman and the porter were chafing there, and they pulled while the others pushed. So Patsy was deposited upon the platform, grumbling and only half sober.

"Anyway, we've got him back," Weary remarked with much satisfaction the next day when they were once more started toward the range land. "When Irish blows in again, we'll be all right."

"By cripes, yuh just give me a sight uh that Irish once, and he'll come, if I have to rope and drag 'im!" Big Medicine took his own way of intimating that he held no grudge. "Did yuh hear what Patsy said, by cripes, when he was loading up the chuck-wagon at the store? He turned in all that oil and them olives and anchovies, yuh know, and he told Tom t' throw in about six cases uh blueberries. I was standin' right handy by, and he turns around and scowls at me and says: 'Py cosh, der vay dese fellers eats pie mit derselves, I have to fill oop der wagon mit pie fruit alreatty!' And then the old devil turns around with his back to me, but yuh can skin me for a coyote if I didn't ketch a grin on 'is face!"

They turned and looked back to where Patsy, seated high upon the mess-wagon, was cracking his long whip like pistol shots and swearing in Dutch at his four horses as he came bouncing along behind them.

"Well, there's worse fellers than old Patsy," Slim admitted ponderously. "I don't want no more Jakie in mine, by golly."

"I betche Jakie cashes in, with all that lemon in him," prophesied Happy Jack with relish. "Dirty little Dago—it'd serve him right. Patsy wouldn't uh acted like that in a thousand years."

They glanced once more behind them, as if they would make sure that the presence of Patsy was a reality. Then, with content in their hearts, they galloped blithely out of the lane and into the grassy hills.

THE END.

* * * * *



WHAT THE CRITICS SAY OF

CHIP OF THE FLYING U.

BY M. BOWER.

* * * * *

"'Chip' is all right. Better than 'The Virginian.'"

—Brooklyn Eagle.

"The name of B.M. Bower will stand for something readable in the estimation of every man, and most every woman, who reads this fine new story of Montana ranch and its dwellers."—Publisher & Retailer.

"Its qualities and merit can be summed up in the brief but sufficient statement that it is thoroughly delightful."

—Albany Times-Union.

"For strength of interest, vivid description, clever and convincing character, drawing and literary merit it is the surprise of the year."

—Walden's Stationer and Printer.

"It is an appealing story told in an active style which fairly sparkles in reproducing the atmosphere of the wild and woolly West. It is consistently forceful and contains a quantity of refreshing comedy."

—Philadelphia Press.

"Bound to stand among the famous novels of the year."

—Baltimore American.

"'The Virginian' has found many imitators, but few authors have come as near duplicating Owen Wister's magnetic hero as has B.M. Bower, 'Chip of the Flying U.'"—Philadelphia Item.

"B.M. Bower has portrayed but few characters, but these he has pictured with the strong and yet delicate stroke of a true master. The atmosphere of the West is perfect; one sees and feels the vibrant, vital life of the ranch activities all through the telling of the story."

—Cincinnati Times-Star.

"It brims over with humor showing the bright and laughing side of ranch life. It is a story which will delightfully entertain the reader."

—Portland Journal.

"The story contains strength of interest, vivid descriptions, clever and convincing character drawing and literary merits, and the author lays on the colors with a master's touch."—Albany Evening Journal.

12MO, CLOTH BOUND, COLOR ILLUSTRATIONS, $.25

G.W. DILLINGHAM CO., PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK

* * * * *



WHAT THE CRITICS SAY OF

THE RANGE DWELLERS.

BY B.M. BOWER.

"A clever and humorous story, delightfully clean and wholesome, and possessing enough of the dramatic and dangerous element to keep the imagination excited to the end."—The Nashville American.

"A bright, jolly, entertaining yarn without a dull page."—The Chicago Inter-Ocean.

"One of the most charming and appealing of all Western novels. There is action and vivacity at all times, and the reader's interest never sways for an instant. The story is admirably written and runs along smoothly at all times."—Philadelphia Press.

"Here are every day, genuine cowboys, just as they really exist, spirited action, a range feud between two families, and a Romeo and Juliet courtship in the Far West which make easy reading. Mr. Bower knows his wild west intimately and writes of it entertainingly."—Des Moines Register and Leader.

"Told with a good deal of humor and a lot of unusual spirit. A very clever book—one that has more atmosphere than usual, and which can be picked up at any time to fill a long felt want for excitement." —Philadelphia Inquirer.

"A tale to set the blood tingling. It is a story of the West, with the scene laid on a Montana cattle ranch. A story well told and a story worth reading."—St. Louis Republic.

"Mr. Bower has portrayed but few characters, but these he has pictured with the strong and yet delicate stroke of a true master. The atmosphere of the West is perfect; one sees and feels the vibrant vital life of the ranch activities all through the telling of the story."—Pittsburgh Dispatch.

"Has many stirring situations and exciting incidents illustrative of existence in the open."—Boston Budget-Beacon.

"The book is vigorous, with the bracing open air of the Far West."—Rochester Herald.

12mo, Cloth Bound

Beautiful Color Illustrations by Charles M. Russell, $1.25

G.W. DILLINGHAM CO., Publishers, NEW YORK

* * * * *



RAW GOLD

BY BERTRAND W. SINCLAIR

* * * * *

"This is a stirring story of the Canadian Northwest and the Northwest Mounted Police. The unwritten history of this wonderful and intrepid body of men must be a long way from the dry-as-dust histories on the shelves. It is an open question if people do not get more real history in a clear, clean-cut tale of this kind, with its strong character portrayal and its vivid local coloring, than could be obtained in any other way."

—St. Louis Times.

"Action enough to thrill the dullest sort of reader."

—Albany Times-Union.

"The delineation of characters in this tale of the Northwest Mounted Police is splendidly portrayed. They are flesh-and-blood personalities. There is something of mystery, bits of sharp action, color, description, life. A well-told story."

—Pittsburg Dispatch.

"The story is sensational, but is full of animation. Scenes shift rapidly and the actors play the game of life fearlessly and like men. The love theme runs through it all and pleasantly."

—Chicago Tribune.

"It is strong, virile, captivating and well told."

—Denver Republican.

"A rattling good story. There is sentiment of the kind that fits with the open sky and life in the saddle, and the whole story moves with a swing and reality that are refreshing in the extreme."—New York Times.

"Wild, indeed, is the West pictured by Mr. Sinclair."

—Boston Transcript.

"The tale, rapid in action and clearly told, is one of the best written on the Canadian West."—Louisville Courier-Journal.

12mo, Cloth bound, Illustrated, $1.50.

* * * * *

G.W. DILLINGHAM CO., PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK

* * * * *



WYOMING

A STORY OF THE OUTDOOR WEST

BY

WILLIAM MACLEOD RAINE

Author of "Ridgeway of Montana," "A Daughter of Raasay," Etc.

* * * * *

In this vivid story the author has captured the breezy charm of "Cattleland," and brings to us the turbid life of the frontier with all its engaging dash and vigor. It is the kind of book one reads at a sitting far into the night.

A young woman, fresh from the conventional East, drives her motor car into an absorbing adventure which is the first of a series of dramatic events that tread upon each other's heels and grow more intense and thrilling from page to page.

The gallant vagabond, Ned Bannister, who enthralls the heroine's fancy, against her will, is reputed to be a lawless desperado of the worst type. Yet the reader joins with the wholly delightful young heroine in yielding him full sympathy. How the mystery is solved to the satisfaction of all is one of the pleasures that must be reserved for a reading.

The characters each and all are drawn with masterly vigor and help forward the swift movement of the plot.

12mo. Illustrated. Cloth bound, $1.50.

* * * * *

G.W. DILLINGHAM COMPANY

PUBLISHERS NEW YORK

* * * * *



WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT

RIDGWAY OF MONTANA

BY WILLIAM MACLEOD RAINE

* * * * *

"To-day I had it out with 'Ridgway.' I opened the book and I did not lay it down till I had raced eagerly through it. I find it a story with many elements of power in its treatment of plot and personality. The men are all well-marked types. The women are all possible and pleasant beings. The story gives dramatically the inner life of a mining camp. The atmosphere of wild nature and primeval human passion is well sustained. The exuberance of detail and suggestion, the easy drawing of character, the fine massing of effects, all show a strength and fire in the author which ought to give us a line of good books from his pen in the coming days."

—EDWIN MARKHAM, in The New York American.

"Whatever else the reader of this novel may say, he certainly will be forced to admit that it is highly interesting. Mr. Raine is not only skillful in devising incidents which compel unwearied attention; he also has the rarer and finer craftsmanship which enables him to create characters that have a high degree of personal charm."—Boston Transcript.

"A story engrossing all the way through."—New York World.

"It is a real pleasure to pick up a book like this one. To use an old phrase, the story is one which can hardly be put down."

—Minneapolis Tribune.

"The action starts with the first line, and there is no suspension until the last word is written. It is a story of thrilling situations, busy people and stirring times. Once started to read it there is no quitting the book."—Denver Republican.

"Full of action and written with remarkable vigor."

—Charleston News and Courier.

"Mr. Raine's experience as a newspaper man has stood him in good stead. He knows the corrupt workings of politicians, the venality of biased courts, the weakness of the human heart when tempted by gold. More, he knows the details by which all these are made manifest in unjust laws, unfair verdicts and treachery to one's best friends."

—Denver Post.

"The political contest, the love scenes, and the character drawing give this story of life in the mining country great strength and charm."—Pittsburg Dispatch.

"Western stories are always in demand, and of these William MacLeod Raine is the most popular and successful writer. This is an exceptionally entertaining book."—Albany Times-Union.

12mo. Cloth bound. Illustrated, $1.50

* * * * *

G.W. DILLINGHAM CO., PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK

THE END