Part 28 (1/2)

Dr Taylor was coreed to supply from his somewhat limited laboratory sufficient fumes to make a sure test of the masks

He came out to the ranch, a small room was set aside for the experiment and into this vile cha the ht

With the exception of one or two of the affairs, each one was gas proof and the defective ones were quickly replaced with good ones So that in a coers were once more ready to make the attack

Much the same tactics were observed as on the former occasion The horses were left well out of reach of any clouds of vapor that uards were instructed to deploy their reserve cavalry to east or west, according to the direction of the wind, in case gas was noted co out of the defile

”Well, I reckon we're all ready,” observed Old Billee on a certaina few days after the first failure ”How about it, Bud?”

”All set,” answered the ranch owner's son, for he had recovered froo!” he cried

The cavalcade moved forward, and ithin about the same distance as before frouard posted and the e

”Don't make any more noise than you can help,” warned Bud, as one of the men rattled some of the loose stones

”Oh, I think they knoe're co,” said dick

”You do? How?”

”Well, naturally they have scouts posted We'd do the sa, all right”

”Perhaps so,” Bud admitted ”Well, everybody have his as is smelled”

”What if they use a kind we can't smell until it's too late?” asked dick

”Well, that's a chance we have to take,” said Bud with a shrug of his shoulders

”I think I shall sood at that sort of thing in the war The officers said I had aI mean,” he made haste to add for fear his pals would accuse him of personal vanity ”In soive warning of gas But I was the official sood at it if I do say it uard,” decided Bud, and so it was arranged

Up the gulch they as masks ready, and once ht of the cave when Snake cried:

”Gas! Gas!”

At once eachlike prehistoric monsters the crowd, led by Bud, Nort, dick and Old Billee rushed to the attack The same white wisps of vapor floated down into the faces of the avengers, but there was no turning back now There was no choking or gasping The gas masks were a perfect protection

dick's sur spied on seemed to be correct, since before they reached the cave shots ca of bullets One or two of the cowboys were hit, one seriously, and then the avengers began shooting on their own account

Bud gave the signal for a rush attack and eagerly he and his co forward They passed a little trench near the mouth of the cave In this shallow ditch were several iron cylinders froas, how deadly could only be surmised for the masks kept all fumes and effects of it from the attackers

There was a current of air fro down the defile and this carried the fumes away from the hidden men and into the ranks of the attackers This direction of the wind explained why no gas masks were needed by the foe The as their protection And the fact that they wore no masks was soon demonstrated

For as the attackers swept on and up to the cave they dislodged several of the first line fighters of their foes--rough, ugly-lookingtheir last shots, turned and ran into the cavern Not one wore a mask