se sight of his peril, but he made the mistake of attempting
to climb to his feet and darting aside, when the time at command was
insufficient to take him beyond reach of the savage steer.

His rifle remained in place on the front of his saddle, so that it was
beyond his reach, while, as I have stated elsewhere, he carried no
pistol. He was, therefore, without firearms.

Captain Shirril was fully two hundred yards away, but he saw the
imminence of the danger, and, bringing his gun to a level, fired at the
steer, calling at the same moment to his nephew to shoot it. The
captain's bullet struck the beast, but without producing any effect,
unless to add to his rage.

It took Avon but a second or two to raise his Winchester to his shoulder
and aim at the animal, which was near at hand.

"If I was sure that was you last night," he thought, "I would let the
steer do his duty, but maybe you are innocent, so here goes!"

It was no special feat of marksmanship to send a rifle-ball through the
heart of the charging brute, but he was so close to the Comanche when he
received the shot that he would have tumbled over him, had not Shackaye
managed to roll aside in time to avoid the huge mass, which ploughed
along the ground, as if fired from an enormous gun.

The occurrence alarmed the other cattle, and they started off at such a
pace that the instant attention of the captain and his nephew was
required. Paying no further heed to the unhorsed Shackaye, Avon sent his
mustang after the flying animals, the captain doing the same from his
direction.

The hardest of riding was required to round them up and turn their faces
toward the main herd, and it was not long before Avon found himself
pitted against a steer fully as ugly as that which he had been obliged
to shoot a few minutes before. All the others were finally forced into
the right course, and this obstinate animal was disposed to join them,
but after trotting for a short distance, he seemed to tire of being
good, and, wheeling about, charged like a runaway engine at the youthful
horseman who was harrying him so hard.

In such crises a great deal depends on the intelligence of the horse.
Thunderbolt sprang aside with the nimbleness of a monkey, and Avon
received just enough warning to hold his place in the saddle. The steer
attempted to keep up his pursuit, turning with remarkable quickness for
such a large animal, but the dexterity of Thunderbolt was still greater,
and he