things that he could do
little more than stick to the saddle.

"Drop that junk that you're carrying!" Farmer Green shouted.

"Why doesn't he tell Johnnie to drop that long whip?" Twinkleheels
muttered to himself.

What Farmer Green said was of no account, anyhow, for Johnnie was so
busy that he didn't hear a word of his father's advice.

Twinkleheels had reached the orchard and already was tearing in and out
among the trees. The tin pail containing Johnnie's bait slipped from his
grasp and clattered upon the ground, causing Twinkleheels to run all the
faster. The fish pole struck the tree trunks right and left. One end of
it lodged for an instant in a branch, while the other end nearly swept
Johnnie off Twinkleheels' back. Still Johnnie Green clung to it and to
his lunch basket as well.

"Wh-wh-whoa! Wh-wh-whoa!" Jolted as he was, he couldn't get a whole word
out of his mouth at a time. He could only jerk a word out piecemeal.

If the fish pole hadn't at last snapped off short, leaving only the butt
of it in Johnnie's hand, there's no telling when Twinkleheels would have
stopped.

Finding himself with only a bit of the pole left in his hand, Johnnie
gave it a fling, slipped an arm through the handle of his lunch basket,
and set to pulling mightily on the bridle reins.

"There!" said Twinkleheels. "There goes that whip. I'm glad I broke it.
Now I'll let Johnnie pull me down to a walk--but not too quickly."

With Johnnie Green tugging steadily, Twinkleheels changed from a run to
a canter, from a canter to a trot, from a trot to a walk; and finally
stood still.

Then Johnnie turned him around and rode slowly back to the barn. He
jumped down, unbuckled the girth, and drew off Twinkleheels' saddle.

"What's the matter?" his father asked him. "You haven't given up going
fishing--have you?"

"No!" Johnnie answered. "I'm going to harness Twinkleheels to the buggy.
And I'll cut a pole at the creek."

His father said nothing more. But he smiled a little to himself when
Johnnie wasn't looking his way.

"Boys will be boys," Farmer Green remarked after Johnnie had gone.

"Yes!" the hired man agreed. "And ponies will be ponies."

They may have been talking in riddles.

Anyhow, they seemed to understand each other.

THE END

* * * * * * *

Transcriber's notes

1. Punctuation has been brought into conformity with
contemporary standards.

2. Frontispiece illus