noon
We three shall ride the fences , and if we encounter a cut wire -- diablo ! -- we shall have a story to tell , eh ? '' The sky was leaden , the rain still fell in the morning when Dave and his two companions set out . Until noon they rode , their slickers dripping , their horses steaming ; then they ate an uncomfortable lunch under the thickest hackberry-tree they could find , after which they resumed their patrol . Ricardo 's tongue at length ran down under this discomfort , and the three riders sat their saddles silently , swaying to the tireless fox-trot of their horses , their eyes engaged in a watchful scrutiny . At last Pedro , who was ahead , reined in and pointed ; the others saw where the barbed-wire strands of the fence they had been following were clipped . A number of horse and calf tracks led through the opening , and after an examination Ricardo announced : `` There are two men .