s coming
to! It was not so awful as she had thought.

But he again fell asleep, cleaner and more comfortable than before. The
buckskin whinnied her thanks, and put her nose against Vivian's arm as she
went to the spring for more water. For the first time in her life Vivian
felt the comradeship, the dumb understanding of a horse. Then Siwash
became glorified. He was something more than a ragged, decrepit old pony.
He was a companion, and Vivian stopped to pat him before she hurried back
to her patient.

Upon her return from her third journey after water, she found the cow
boy's eyes again open. This time he had raised himself on his elbow and
was looking at her. He had come to, and it was not horrible at all. Her
only feeling was one of alarm lest his sitting up should cause his wound
to bleed again, and she hurried to him.

"You're feeling better, aren't you?" she faltered. "But you'd better lie
down. You've got a pretty bad cut on your head."

The boy smiled in a puzzled way.

"I don't seem to remember much," he said, "except the header. My horse
fell when I wa'n't expectin' it, and I went on a rock. 'Twas the only one
on the prairie, I guess, but it got me for sure. What are you doin' here,
miss? I don't seem to remember you."

Vivian explained as simply as possible. She and her friend had been
resting when his horse brought him to the quaking-asps. One of them had
gone for help, and the other had stayed. She was the other.

"You're not from these parts, I take it," said the boy, still puzzled.
"You don't speak like us folks."

"No," Vivian told him, "I'm from the East. I came out here six weeks ago
to visit my friend."

Her patient looked surprised and raised himself again on his elbow in
spite of Vivian's restraining hand.

"So much of a tenderfoot as that?" he said, gazing at her. "They ain't
usually such good sports as you are, miss. Yes, thank you, I'll have some
more water. It's right good, I tell you!"

Then he fell asleep again, and left Vivian to the companionship of Siwash
and the buckskin. Her patient comfortable, she fed them the remaining
cookies, wondering as she did so where the awful sense of loneliness had
gone. She should welcome Virginia--already it was time for her--but the
knowledge that she must stay another hour would not present such terrors
to her.

It was Siwash who first caught the sound of returning hoofs--Siwash and
the relieved buckskin. They neighed and told Vivian, who ra