Part 6 (1/2)

”Sh-h--be quiet,” warned Betty, peeping again through the slit in the curtain ”So Listen!”

Grace listened, and so, evidently, did every one else in the car No wonder that, scared though she undoubtedly was, Betty found humor in the situation Heads of every kind and description stuck through the curtains, women's, some in boudoir caps, sorotesquely ruffled by sleep, and on every face depicted every one of the varied ean And there they were, all frozen to immobility by the sound of two men's voices raised in heated discussion

Then the owners of the voices caed to bewildered amazement Instead of the masked bandit which they had half expected to see there was a very portly and very excited gentleman and with him was a conductor, not so portly but just as excited

”I tell you,” the conductor was saying, his face red rath, ”you are violating the rules of the co this train for a personal matter----”

”You have toldal for the rules of the co sca your neck!”

”I tell you there is no couple answering your description on this train,” rasped the conductor, as the two h the ts of amazed heads and so on into the next car

”Well, I'll be blowed,” co to one of the heads; and as if that were a signal, all the other heads prohter

In the darkness of the berth Betty chuckled

”Oh, they did look so funny, Gracie,” she said ”All those people with their heads stuck out into the aisle You should have taken a peek”

”Hurunted Grace, unsyain Then she said: ”I hope if that ain, she won't do it on our train, that's all!”

CHAPTER V

THE HANDSOME COWBOY

Next irls were hilarious over the ht before Betty and Mollie ”took off” the expressions on the faces of their fellow passengers till Alee

”Oh, stop it, you two,” gasped Grace, finally ”I'

I think you would make a hit as clowns in a circus”

”My, isn't she coales of merriment

”I wish,” said Grace, after a pause, ”that ere going to reach Gold Run this afternoon, instead of Chicago I'ht in the sleeper after the scare we got last night It ht be a _real_ bandit this time”

”Oh, ould we care?” said Betty carelessly ”I'd rather like to meet a train robber, myself”

”About all a bandit could do would be to take our nantly ”Yes, that's all And ould we do without any money, I'd like to know!”

”Goodness, we could always sell the ranch,” said Betty, so irls chuckled ”We have Peter Levine to fall back on, you know”

”'Peter Levine,'” repeated Amy, then added quickly: ”Oh yes, he was the man anted your mother to sell the ranch”