hideous creature
were struggling fiercely, Fraser came to his assistance, and emptied
the five chambers of his heavy Colt's pistol into its body, and Gerrard,
whose face was cut open by a stroke of one of the reptile's fore-paws,
remembered nothing more till he found himself lying upon the bank with
Fraser and the stockmen attending to him.

"Is Miss Fraser safe?" was his first question.

"Yes, thanks to God and to your bravery," answered Fraser with deep
emotion; "but don't speak any more just now, there's a good fellow. The
brute has ripped the left side of your face open from the top of your
head to the chin, and we are trying to put in some stitches."

"All right," was the cheerful, but faint response; "but tell me--is my
eye gone?"

"No, boss," said Trouton quickly, "your eye is all right, but the
eyebrow is mauled pretty badly, and was hanging over it, but we've got
it back again now, and tied it up in place. Here, boss, take a sup o'
this," and he placed a brandy flask to Gerrard's lips. The liquor stung
his lacerated lips like fire, but it revived him.

"Where is Miss Fraser?" he then asked.

"Here, beside you, dear Mr Gerrard," said the girl brokenly, as she
pressed his hand, and turned her face away in blinding tears.

"Narrow squeak for both of us, wasn't it?"

"Yes, but please do not try to talk, dear Mr Gerrard."

"Oh, I'm all right, and must gabble a bit, now I know that I haven't
lost an eye. You see, Fraser, the beast, although he was only a little
fellow----"

"Eight feet he were, boss," interrupted Trouton, "but a young 'un, as
you say."

"Well, just after I collared him, he swung his head about and hit me
such a tremendous smack on the side of my brain-box that it stunned me.
But I didn't let go, did I?"

"No," replied Fraser, "you held on like grim death. I settled the brute
by putting five bullets into it."

"There was two 'o 'em, boss," said Trouton, "the one as collared Miss
Kate's horse, and the one as you tackled."

"Did Cato get away?" Gerrard asked quickly.

"Yes, yes, he got away," said Kate hurriedly, trying to speak calmly,
though the poor colt, which had managed to struggle to the bank with a
lacerated and broken leg, was then lying dead with a bullet through its
head. Trouton had put it out of its misery.

There was no more mustering that day, for Gerrard's condition was so
serious, though he tried to make light of it, that Fraser, leaving
the cattle to the care of th