e had possessed fingernails he would have bitten them
too.

I gave the reins to my wife with instructions how to act if the
horse started, and I jumped out to argue with him.

Just when I had picked out a good-sized rock, which was to be my
argument, Parsifal came out of his trance and started off, but
Peaches forgot her instructions and spoke above a whisper and he
stopped again.

Then I took the reins, cracked the whip, shouted a couple of
banzais from the Japanese national anthem, and away we rushed like
the wind--when it isn't blowing hard.

The hours flew by and we must have gone at least half a mile, when
another Kerosene Wagon came bouncing towards us from the opposite
direction.

In it was a happy party of ladies and gentlemen, who were laughing
and chatting about some people they had just run over.

Parsifal saw them coming and stopped still in the middle of the
road. Then he hung his head as low as he could, and I believe if
that horse had been supplied with hands he would have put them over
his ears.

The people in the Bubble began to shout at us, and I began to shout
at the horse, and my wife began to shout at me, while Parsifal
stood there and scratched his left ankle with his right heel.

Then the big machine made a sudden jump to the right and hiked by
us at the rate of about a $100 fine, while the lady passengers on
the hurricane deck stood up and began to hand out medals to each
other because they didn't run us down.

Ten minutes later Parsifal came to and looked over his shoulder at
us with a smile as serene as the morning and once more resumed his
mad career onward, ever onward.

We were now about two miles from home, and suddenly we came across
a big red Bubble which stood in front of a road-house, sneezing
inwardly and sobbing with all its corrugated heart.

Parsifal saw the machine before we did.

We knew there must be an automobile somewhere near, because he
stopped still and quietly passed away.

I jumped out and tried to lead him by the Coroner's Delight, but he
planted his four feet in the middle of the road and refused to be
coaxed.

I took that horse by the ear and whispered therein just what I
thought about him, but he wouldn't talk back.

I told him my wife's honor was at stake, but he looked my wife over
and his lips curled with an expression which seemed to say,
"Impossible."

It was all off with us.

Parsifal simply wouldn't move until that sobbing Choo Choo Wag