ting Mun Bun was just as sleepy as he could be. But he was
getting old enough now to think that he should be ashamed of taking a
nap in the afternoon.

"Only babies take naps, don't they, Muvver?" he said to Mother Bunker.
"And I aren't a baby any more."

"You say you are not," agreed his mother quietly. "But of course you
must prove it if we are all to believe that you are quite grown up."

"I'm growed too big to take naps, anyway," declared Mun Bun, quite
convinced.

"What are you going to do if you grow sleepy?" asked his mother, before
he started out after the other children.

"I'll pinch myself awake," declared Mun Bun. "Oh, I'll show I'm not a
baby any longer."

He was some way behind the other children; but as he started in their
wake Mother Bunker did not worry about him. She was confident that Russ
and Rose would look out for the little boy, even if he was finally
overcome with sleep.

But as it happened, the other little Bunkers had run off to see a lot of
mule colts in a special paddock some distance from the big ranch house.
Mun Bun saw them in the distance and he sturdily started out to follow
them. He was no cry-baby ordinarily, and the fact that the others were a
long way ahead did not at first disturb Mun Bun's cheerfulness.

But something else began to bother him almost at once. The wind had
begun to blow. It was not a cold wind, although it was autumn. But it
was a strong wind, and as it continued to come in gusts Mun Bun was
sometimes almost toppled off his feet.

"Wind b'ow!" gasped Mun Bun, staggering against the heavy gusts. "Oh,
my!"

That last exclamation was jounced out of him by something that blew
against the little boy--a scratchy ball of gray weed that rolled along
the ground just as though it were alive! It frightened Mun Bun at first.
Then he saw it was just dead weeds, and did not bother about the
tumble-weed any more.

But when he got to a certain wire fence, through which he was going to
crawl to follow the other little Bunkers, the wind had buffeted him so
that he lay right down to rest! Mun Bun had never tried to walk in such
a strong wind before.

The wind blew over him, and the great balls of tumble-weed rioted across
the big field. In some places, against stumps or clumps of brush, the
gray mats of weed piled up in considerable heaps. Mun Bun watched the
wind-rows of weed roll along toward his side of the field with
interested gaze. He had never seen anything like t