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THE STEEL HORSE.

movement he came within a hair's breadth of throwing Arthur Hastings heavily on his head; and by the second he slipped out of his grasp like an eel. Then he straightened up and faced him with clenched hands and flashing eyes.

"Don't touch me!" he began, fiercely. "If you or any of your hirelings lay an ugly finger on me again—"

When he had said this much he stopped and looked hard at Arthur and then at Joe, while an expression of great astonishment settled on his face. My master and his friend were equally amazed. That was Roy Sheldon's uniform, if they ever saw it, but it wasn't Roy who was in it, although he looked almost exactly like him. There were the same clear-cut features, hazel eyes and wavy brown hair, and the same faint suspicion of a mustache; but they did not belong to Roy Sheldon. A second look showed them that.

"Who are you?" demanded the young fellow, at length.

"I think that is a proper question for us to ask you," replied Arthur, who, having never