Ifoundtheagentwilling，ofcourse，tosleepontheflooroftheoffice。Thetoystationwasalsohishome。Thefrontcompartmentheldtheticketandtelegraphandmailandexpresschattels，andtherailing，androomforthepublictostand；throughadooryouthenpassedtothesitting，dining，andsleepingbox；andthroughanothertoacooking-stoveinapigeon-hole。Hereflourishedtheagentandhislungs，andherethecompany’sstrictordersbadehimsleepincharge；soIhelpedhimputhisroomtorights。Butweneednothavehurriedourselves。Mr。McLeanwassolonginbringingtheladythatIwentoutandfoundhimwalkingandtalkingwithher，whilefiftyyardsawayskulkedpoorTexas，alone。Thisboy’snamewas，likehimself，ofthesomewhatunexpectedorder，beingManassasDonohoe。
AsIcametowardsthenewfriendstheydidnotappeartobejoking，andonseeingmeMissBucknersaidtoLin，“Didheknow？“
Linhesitated。
“Youdidknow!“sheexclaimed，butlostherresentmentatonce，andcontinued，veryquietlyandwithafriendlytone，“Ireckonyoudon’tliketohavetotellfolksbadnews。“
ItwasIthatnowhesitated。
“Nottoastrangegirl，anyway!“saidshe。“Well，nowIhavegoodnewstotellyou。YouwouldnothavegivenmeanyshockifyouhadsaidyouknewaboutpoorNate，forthat’sthereason——Ofcoursethosethingscan’tbesecrets!Why，he’sonlytwenty，sir!Howshouldheknowaboutthisworld？
Hehadn’tlearnedthefirstlittlethingwhenhelefthomefiveyearsago。AndIamtwenty-three——oldenoughtobeNate’sgrandmother，he’sthatyoungandthoughtless。Hecouldn’teverrealizebadcompanionswhentheycamearound。Seethat!“Sheshowedmeapaper，takingitoutlikeapreciousthing，asindeeditwas；foritwasapardonsignedbyGovernorBarker。“AndtheGovernorhasletmecarryittoNatemyself。Hewon’tknowathingaboutittillItellhim。TheGovernorwasrealkind，andwewillneverforgethim。IreckonNatemusthaveamustachebynow？“saidshetoLin。
“Yes，“Linanswered，gruffly，lookingawayfromher，“hehasgotamustacheallright。“
“He’llbegladtoseeyou，“saidI，forsomethingtosay。
“Ofcoursehewill!Howmanyhoursdidyousaywewillbe？“sheaskedLin，turningfrommeagain，forMr。McLeanhadnotbeenlosingtime。ItwasplainthatbetweenthesetwohadarisenafreemasonryfromwhichI
wasalreadyshutout。Herwoman’shearthadansweredhisrightimpulsetotellheraboutherbrother，andIhadbeenfoundwanting!
Sonowshelistenedoveragaintothehoursofstagejoltingthat“we“
hadbeforeus，andthatlaybetweenherandNate。“Wewouldbefour——
herself，Lin，myself，andtheboyBilly。WasBillytheoneatsupper？Ohno；justBillyLusk，ofLaramie。“He’sakidI’mtakingupthecountry，“
Linexplained。“Ain’tyoumosttuckeredout？“
“Oh，me!“sheconfessed，withalaughandasigh。
Thereagain!Shehadputasidemysolicitudelightly，butwaswillingLinshouldknowherfatigue。Yet，fatigueandall，shewouldnotsleepintheagent’sroom。Atsightofitandtheclosequartersshedrewbackintotheouteroffice，sopromptedbythatinner，unsuspectedstrictnessshehadshownmebefore。
“Comeout!“shecried，laughing。“Indeed，Ithankyou。ButIcan’thaveyousleeponthishardfloorouthere。Nopoliteness，now!Thankyoueversomuch。I’musedtoroughingitprettynearaswellasifIwas——acowboy!“AndsheglancedatLin。“They’recallingforty-seven，“sheaddedtotheagent。
“That’sme，“hesaid，comingouttothetelegraphinstrument。“Soyou’reoneofus？“
“Ididn’tknowforty-sevenmeantSepar，“saidI。“Howintheworlddoyouknowthat？“
“Ididn’t。Iheardforty-seven，forty-seven，forty-seven，startandgorightalong，soIguessedtheywantedhim，andhecouldn’thearthemfromhisroom。“
“Canyu’doastronomyandSpanishtoo？“inquiredtheproudandsmilingMcLean。
“Why，it’snothing!I’vebeendayoperatorbackhome。Whyisadeputycomingthroughonaspecialengine？“
“Pleasedon’tsayitoutloud!“quaveredtheagent，asthemachineclickeditsnews。
“Yu’needn’tbescaredofagirl，“saidLin。“Anothersheriff!Sothey’renotquitbotheringusyet。“
However，thismeddlingwasnotthecompany’s，butthecounty’s；asheriffsenttoarrest，onachargeofmurder，amannamedTrampas，saidtobeattheSandHillRanch。ThatwasnearRawhide，twostationsbeyond，andtheenginemightnotstopatSepar，eventowater。SoherewasnomolestingofSepar’sliberties。
“Allthesame，“Linsaid，forpistolsnowandthenstillsoundedatthecorrals，“theboys’llnotunderstandthattillit’sexplained，andtheymayactwaywardfirst。I’dfeeleasierifyouslepthere，“heurgedtothegirl。Butshewouldnot。“Well，then，wemustrustlesomeotherprivateplaceforyou。How’sthesection-house？“
“Rank，“saidtheagent，“sincethoseItaliansusedit。Thepumpengineerhasbeenscouring，buthe’sscaredtobunkthereyethimself。“
“Toobadyoucouldn’ttrymyplanofafreight-car!“saidI。
“Anempty？“shecried。“Isthereacleanone？“
“You’vesureneverdonethat？“Linburstout。
“Soyou’rescandalized，“saidshe，punishinghiminstantly。“Ireckonitdoestakeadecentgirltoshockyou。“Andwhileshestoodlaughingathimwithrobustirony，poorLinbegantostammerthathemeantnooffence。“Why，tobesureyoudidn’t!“saidshe。“ButIdoenjoyyourealthoroughly。“
“Well，m’m，“protestedthewincingcow-puncher，drivenbacktoaddressingheras“ma’am，““weain’tused——“
“Don’ttangleyourselfupworse，Mr。McLean。NomoreamI’used。’Ihaveneversleptinanemptyinmylife。Andwhyisthat？JustbecauseI’veneverhadto。Andthere’sthedifferencebetweenyouboysandus。Youdolotsofthingsyoudon’tlike，andtellus。Andweputupwithlotsofthingswedon’tlike，butweneverletyoufindout。Iknowyoumeantnooffense，“shecontinued，heartily，softeningtowardshercrushedprotector，“becauseyou’reagentleman。Andlands!I’mnotcomplainingaboutanempty。Thatwillberich——ifIcanhavethedoorshut。“
Uponthisshewentouttoviewthecars，Mr。McLeanhoveringbehindherwithadevoted，uneasycountenance，andfrequentlymuttering“Shucks!“
whiletheagentandIfollowedwithalamp，forthedarkwascome。Withourhelpshemountedintothefirstcar，andthenintothenext，takingthelamp。Andwhileshescannedthefloorandcorners，andslidthedoorbackandforth，Linwhisperedinmyear：“Hername’sJessamine。Shetoldme。Don’tyu’likethatname？“SoIansweredhim，“Yes，verymuch，“
thinkingthatsomelargerflower——butstillaflower——mighthavebeenmoreapt。
“Nobodyseemstohavesleptinthese，“saidshe，steppingdown；andonlearningthateventhetrampavoidedSeparwhenhecould，sheexclaimed，“Whatlodgingcouldbehandierthanthis!OnlyitwouldbesocuteifyouhadaLouavullan’Nashvullcar，“saidshe。“TwouldseemlikemyoldKentuckyhome!“Andlaughingrathersweetlyatherjoke，sheheldthelampuptoreadthecar’slettering。“’D。andR。G。’Oh，that’saway-offstranger!Ireckonthey’reallstrange。“Shewentalongthetrainwithherlamp。“Yes，’B。andM。’and’S。C。andP。’Oh，thisisrich!Natewilllaughwhenhehears。I’llchoose’C。，B。andQ。’That’salittlenearermycountry。Whattimedoesthestagestart？Porter，pleasewake’C。，B。andQ。’atsix，sharp，“saidshetoLin。
Fromthispointoftheeveningon，Ithinkofourdoings——theirdoings——
withasortofunchanginghomesickness。Nothinglikethemcaneverhappenagain，Iknow；forit’sallgone——settled，sobered，andgone。Andwhateverwholesomerproseofgoodfortunewaitsinourcup，howIthankmyluckforthisswallowoffrontierpoetrywhichIcameintimefor!
Toarrangesomesortofbedforherwasthenextthing，andwemadeagoodshake-down——cleanstrawandblanketsandapillow，andtheagentwouldhavebroughtsheets；butthoughshewouldnothavethese，shedidnotresist——whatdoyousuppose？——alooking-glassfornextmorning!Andwegotabucketofwaterandhervalise。Itwasallonetoher，shesaid，inwhatcarLinandIputup；andletitbenextdoor，byallmeans，ifitpleasedhimtothinkhecouldwatchoverhersafetybetterso；andsheshutherselfin，biddingusgood-night。Webeganspreadingstrawandblanketsforourselves，whenawhistlesoundedfarandlong，anditstoneroseinpitchasitcame。
“I’llgethimtorunrighttothecorrals，“saidtheagent，“sothesheriffcantelltheboyshe’snotafterthem。“
“That’llconvince’emheis，“saidLin。“Stophimhere，orlethimgothrough。“
Butwewerenottosteerthecoursethateventstooknow。Therailsofthemainlinebesideusbrightenedinwaveringparallelsastheheadlightgrewdownuponus，andinthissamemomenttheshootingsatthecorralschorusedinawild，hilariousthreat。Theburdenofthecomingengineheavilythrobbedintheairandalongthesteel，andmetandmixedwiththehard，lightbeatingofhoofs。Thesoundsapproachedtogetherlikeasortofcharge，andIsteppedbetweenthefreight-cars，whereIheardLinorderingthegirlinsidetoliedownflat，andcouldseetheagentrunningaboutinthedust，flappinghisarmstosignalwithasmuchcoherenceasachickenwithitsheadoff。Ihadveryshortspaceforwonderoralarm。Theedgeofoneofmyfreight-carsglowedsuddenlywiththeimminentheadlight，andgallopingshotsinvadedtheplace。Thehorsemenflewby，overreaching，andleaningbackandluggingagainsttheirimpetus。Theypassedinatangledswirl，andtheirdustcoiledupthickfromthedarkgroundandluminouslyunfoldedacrosstheglareofthesharp-haltedlocomotive。Thentheywheeled，andclusteredarounditwhereitstoodbyourcars，itsair-brakepumpingdeepbreaths，andtheinternalsteamhummingthroughitsbowels；andIcameoutintimetoseeBillyLuskclimbitsfrontwithcallow，enterprisingshouts。Thatwaschild’splay；andtheuniversalyellnowraisedbythehorsemenwastheirchild’splaytoo；butthewholethingcouldsoprecipitatelyreelintothefatalthatmythoughtsstopped。IcouldonlylookwhenIsawthattheyhadsomehowrecognizedthemanontheengineforasheriff。Twohadsprungfromtheirhorsesandweremakingboisterouslytowardthecab，whileLinMcLean，neitherboisterousnorjoking，wasgoingtothecabfrommyside，withhispistoldrawn，tokeepthepeace。Theengineersatwithaneutralhandonthelever，thefiremanhadrunalongthetopofthecoalinthetenderanddescendedandcrouchedsomewhere，andthesheriff，cool，andwithagood-naturedeyeuponallparties，wasjustbeginningtoexplainhiserrand，whensomeriderfromthecrowdcuthimshortwithaninvitationtogetdownandhaveadrink。Atthewordofribaldendearmentbywhichhenamedthesheriff，apassingfiercenesshardenedtheofficer’sface，andthenewyelltheygavewaslessplayful。
Waitingnomoreexplanations，theyswarmedagainstthelocomotive，andMcLeanpulledhimselfuponthestep。Theloudtalkingfellatastroketoletbusinessgoon，andinthissilencecamethenoiseofasliding-door。AtthatIlooked，andtheyalllooked，andstoodharmless，likechildrensurprised。Forthereonthethresholdofthefreight-car，withtheinteriordarknessbehindher，andtouchedbytheheadlight’sdivergingrays，stoodJessamineBuckner。
“Willyougentlemendomeafavor？“saidshe。“Strangers，maybe，havenorighttoaskfavors，butIreckonyou’llletthatpassthistime。ForI’mrealsleepy!“Shesmiledasshebroughtthisout。“I’vebeenfourdaysandnightsonthecars，andto-morrowI’vegottostagetoBuffalo。YouseeI’llnotbeheretospoilyourfunto-morrownight，andIwantboystobeboysjustasmuchasevertheycan。Won’tyouputitofftillto-morrownight？“
Intheiramazementtheyfoundnospokesman；butIsawLinbusyamongthem，andthatsomewordwaspassingthroughtheirgroups。Afterthebriefintervalofstand-stilltheybegansilentlytogetontheirhorses，whiletheloomingengineglowedandpumpeditsbreath，andthesheriffandengineerremainedastheywere。
“Good-night，lady，“saidavoiceamongthemovinghorsemen，buttheotherskepttheirabashednativesilence；andthustheyslowlyfiledawaytothecorrals。Thefigures，intheirlooseshirtsandleathernchaps，passedfromthedimnessforamomentthroughtheconeoflightinfrontofthelocomotive，sothatthemetalaboutthemmadehereandthereafaint，vanishingglint；andhereandthereinthedepartingcolumnabold，half-laughingfaceturnedforalookatthegirlinthedoorway，andthenwasgoneagainintothedimness。
ThesheriffinthecabtookoffhishattoMissBuckner，remarkingthatsheshouldbelongtotheforce；andasthebellrangandtheenginemoved，offpoppedyoungBillyLuskfromhiscow-catcher。Withanexclamationofhorrorshesprangdown，andMr。McLeanappeared，and，withallaparent’sfrightandrage，heldtheboybythearmgrotesquelyasthesheriffsteamedby。
“Iain’ta-goingtochaseit，“saidyoungBilly，struggling。
“I’veamindtocowhideyou，“saidLin。