keep together, to keep in motion by day and to
keep stationary by night. Each night two of us slept by a smouldering fire
and the third circled about the herd as the steers lay sleeping or chewing
their cuds. The circling was done at the horse's slowest walk. Our horses
were good, our food good, and my two companions genial, though reticent.

Only once did any of our charges bolt. Then, when we missed three steers,
our senior asked me:

"Do you think you could find them and fetch them back?"

On my affirming confidence that I could he smiled doubtfully, and shook
his head, but drawled:

"I'll give you the chance, just to try you out."

I found the runaways with no trouble whatever, for their trail was nowhere
faint, turned them easily and brought them back, manifestly, much sooner
than he had hoped. He appeared pleased, but merely grunted.

Yet he must have spoken well of me to the superintendent, for after a
day's rest in the slave-quarters I was assigned the sole care of a small
bunch of young cows with their first calves. It seemed to be assumed that
I would make no attempt to escape. As I had been given a good horse and a
serviceable rain-cloak, I had thoroughly enjoyed my life from the start.

The landscape was charming, the climate agreeable, spring was approaching,
I was out in the open air, camping at night by a fire wherever my charges
lay down to sleep, eating what I chose of the ample supply of good food
which I carried in my saddle-bags. I was happy, thoroughly happy, and I
throve from my arrival. I still mourned for Agathemer, but I did not miss
him as acutely as I had in the _ergastulum_.

After about ten days in the woodland glades I brought my charges back to
the villa for inspection, according to orders. The inspector was pleased
with their condition and commended me. Some of the fellow-herdsmen, off
duty, stood or sat about and they seemed to approve.

One of them asked:

"Have much trouble, Greenhorn?"

"Not a bit," I answered.

"How'd you like to try to milk one of those cows?" another enquired.

"I can milk any one of them," I replied. "I have milked most of them. I've
been drinking all the milk I could hold all the while I was out with
them."

"That's the silliest lie I ever heard," they chorused. "Why, if you tried
to handle any one of those cows she'd gore you to death. You couldn't get
near enough to the udder of any one of them to get your hand on her teats.
Invent a lie we can