tepped into the saddle and rose with
him, the hackamore rope trailing loose under the horse's feet. A
chorus of approving yelps broke out.

"Rake him from ears to tail roots!" "Ri-ide 'im, rider!" "Hang 'em up
into that horse!" "Claw him!" "Scra-a-atch him!"

This wave of questionable advice ceased as Blue, after three short
jumps, somersaulted forward and his rider made a headlong side-dive for
safety.

Evans had flanked the roan's course and he now leaned from the saddle
and seized the hackamore rope; as Blue scrambled to his feet he took
two quick turns of the rope and snubbed his head short to the saddle
horn. The roan struggled and threw himself, his head still suspended
by the rope, rose and reared to strike savagely at the man who held
him, but Evans left his saddle and leaned far out, his right foot on
the ground, left still in the stirrup, and eased himself back into the
saddle as the fighting horse slid down. He had never once lost his
hold which snubbed Blue to the horn, a pretty bit of wrangling.

"He's on the fight now," Evans said. "I'll hold him solid till he
cools down--which won't be long, for Cal didn't cut him any; he was
swinging his feet free and never hooked him once." He jerked his thumb
at the roan's shoulder and flanks where not a drop of blood appeared;
his hide would have been tattered indeed if Harris had driven home his
rowels each time he swung his feet. "Nice ride."

Harris walked back to a small group that had not yet mounted, Morrow
among them. His left side was quartering toward Morrow and apparently
he was addressing the group as a whole instead of any one man.

"The next time some one frames me to put on a show like that," he said,
"why, he'd better make certain beforehand about what part he's willing
to play in the performance himself--for next time I won't take it out
of the horse."

IV

It is said that there comes a day in the life of every handler of bad
horses when he will mount one and ride him out, master him and
dismount,--and forever after decline to ride another. Riley Foster was
evidence of this. For three years Rile and Bangs had been inseparable,
riding together on every job, and the shaggy youth topped off the
animals in Foster's string before the older man would mount them. As
Bangs went about his work his faded blue eyes were ever turned toward
the Three Bar boss who stood in the door of the blacksmith shop.

The girl was vaguely troubled