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"We'll wait for you," added Captain Roy.
Mr. Bunker hurried back with his wife to the ranch house.
"Russ and Laddie are there," said Mother Bunker, and she told about the little lads having seen the cowboy, just as Russ and Laddie had told her. They had ridden home from the bridge, and reached the house just after Daddy Bunker and Rose had gone away.
"Well, boys, what's this I hear?" asked Daddy Bunker. "Did you really find a cowboy? Or was it an Indian?"
"Oh, it's a cowboy all right, and I got him a drink of water in my cap," replied Russ. "He wanted me to ride over the bridge to get his horse, but Mother said I wasn't to, and I didn't."
"That's a good boy," said his father.
"And the cowboy, I guess, is hurt bad," said Laddie. "He couldn't walk on one leg, and he shut his eyes and sounded like he was sick."
"Maybe he is, poor fellow," said Mr. Bunker. "We must see about him at once. I'll go for Uncle Fred," and he hurried back where he had left the ranchman and Captain Roy.
"A cowboy hurt!" exclaimed Uncle Fred. "Well, I don't believe it can be any of mine, or I'd have heard about it. However, we'll ride over to the bridge and see about it. We'll see later about the noise of running water under the well that Laddie and Russ dug."
Rose wanted to ride with her father to the bridge, but he said as they might have to carry back the cowboy with his injured leg, she had better go to the house with her mother and the boys. So Rose did.
Together Uncle Fred, Daddy Bunker and Captain Roy rode to the bridge where Russ and Laddie had ended their race. They easily found the cowboy, who had fainted away when he tried to stand on his leg, which was broken. His eyes were open when the three men rode up, and he smiled, and seemed glad to see them.
"I guess I'm going to be laid up for a while," he said. "My pony threw me, and my leg doubled under me. I saw some boys, and tried to get them to go across the bridge for my horse, but they wouldn't -- said their mother didn't allow them."
"That's right -- they were my boys," said Daddy Bunker. "But now we'll take care of you."
"Where are you from -- what ranch?" asked Uncle Fred, looking closely at the cowboy. "I never saw you around here before."
"No, I'm a stranger. I'm looking for work. But I guess I'll have to stay in bed a while now."
"We'll take care of you at Three Star Ranch," said Uncle Fred kindly. "We've got plenty of room."
It was no easy work to move a man with a broken leg from the field near the bridge to the bunk-house of Three Star Ranch, but at last it was done, and then the doctor was sent for. He said the cowboy, who gave his name as Sam Thurston, would have to stay in bed for a while, until his leg got well.
Getting the cowboy to the bunk-house, and going for the doctor, who lived some miles away, took up so much time that it was dark before Uncle Fred, Daddy Bunker and Captain Roy had time to think about looking at the well Laddie and Russ had dug. And then it was too late.
"We'll look at it the first thing in the morning," said the ranchman.
"Didn't you want us to dig the well?" asked Russ.
"Oh, I don't mind," his uncle answered. "And maybe, by means of that well, we may find out the secret of the spring."
The six little Bunkers sat in the living-room, listening to Uncle Fred tell a story, just before they were sent to bed. This was one of their delights since coming to Three Star Ranch. Uncle Fred knew a lot of stories of the West -- stories of Indians, cowboys, of wild animals, big storms, of fires, and of cattle runni...
Mun Bun and Margy fell asleep, one in their mother's lap and the other in Daddy Bunker's; but Rose and Vi, and Laddie and Russ stayed awake, listening to the stories told by Uncle Fred.
"I know a riddle about a bear," said Laddie, when his uncle had finished a story about one.
"A riddle about a bear?" exclaimed Mr. Bell. "Well, let's hear it, Laddie."
"This is it. Why does a bear climb a tree? Why does he?"
"Lots of reasons," answered Russ.
"Well, you have to give one to answer my riddle," said Laddie. "Why does a bear climb a tree?"
"To get the hunter that climbed the tree first," said Daddy Bunker.
"Nope!" laughed Laddie.
"To get out of the way of the hunter," said Russ.
"Nope!" and Laddie laughed again.
"Does he climb it to go to sleep?" asked Rose.
"How could a bear go to sleep in a tree?" Laddie wanted to know. "I'll tell you the answer, 'cause you can't guess. A bear climbs a tree when the dogs bark at him, so he can throw bark at the dogs. Isn't that a good riddle? You know trees have bark."
"But you didn't say anything about dogs and bark at first!" objected Vi. "If you had said about the dogs I could have guessed."
"Well, I wanted to make it hard," said Laddie. "Maybe to-morrow I'll think of another riddle without any dogs in it."
"Well, you four little Bunkers that are still awake had better go to bed so you'll be able to eat breakfast as well as guess riddles to-morrow," laughed Mother Bunker. "Come on! To bed with you! Mun Bun and Margy fell asleep long ago."
So off to bed they went, not even dreaming about the strange things that were to happen the next day.
About an hour after the six little Bunkers were in Slumberland, Captain Roy, who had been over to the bunk-house to talk with some of the cowboys, came hurrying in where Uncle Fred was.
"Anything the matter?" asked the ranchman.
"Yes," answered the captain. "More of our cattle have been taken!"
Chapter XXV
The Secret Of The Spring
"More cattle taken?" cried Uncle Fred. "When did that happen?"
"Just a little while ago," answered Captain Roy. "One of the cowboys just rode in with the news."
"Well, this is too bad!" cried Uncle Fred.
"I'll tell you what let's do," said Daddy Bunker. "It isn't very late yet. Let's go out and look at the spring."
"What for?" asked his wife.