Communication with the division superintendent at
Tucson uncovered the fact that no message of the hold-up had yet
reached him. It was an easy guess for Collins to find the reason.
"We're in the infant class, major," he told Mackenzie, with a
sardonic laugh. "Leroy must have galloped down the line direct to
the station after the hold-up. Likely enough he went into the
depot just as we went out. That gives him the other hour or two
he needs to make his getaway with the loot. Well, it can't be
helped now. If I can only reach Bucky there's one chance in fifty
he can head them off from crossing into Sonora. Soon as I can get
together a posse I'll take up the trail from the point of the
hold-up. But they'll have a whole night's start on me. That's a
big handicap."
From Apache Collins sent three dispatches. One was to his deputy,
Dillon, at Tucson. It read:
"Get together at once posse of four and outfit same for four
days."
Another went to Sabin, the division superintendent:
"Order special to carry posse with horses from Tucson to Big Gap.
Must leave by midnight. Have track clear."
The third was a notification to Lieutenant O'Connor, of the
Arizona Rangers, of the hold-up, specifying time and place of the
occurrence.
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