use on a lively little pony. He made the animal race up and down and,
while doing this, the cowboy swung his coiled rope, or lasso, about his
head, and sent it in curling rings toward posts and benches, hauling the
latter after him by winding the rope around the horn of his saddle
after he had lassoed them.

"Say! that's fine!" cried Teddy with glistening eyes. "I'm going to
learn how to lasso."

"I'll show you after a while," the cowboy offered. "You can't learn too
young. But I must go now."

"Could I just have a little ride on your pony's back?" asked Teddy.

"To be sure you could," cried the cowboy. "Here you go!"

He leaped from the saddle and lifted Teddy up to it, while Janet and
Trouble looked on in wonder. Then holding Ted to his seat by putting an
arm around him, while he walked beside the pony and guided it, the
cowboy gave the little fellow a ride, much to Teddy's delight.

"Hurray!" he called to Janet "I'm learning to be a cowboy!"

"That's right--you are!" laughed Daddy Martin, coming out just then.
"How do you like it?"

"Dandy!" Teddy said. "Come on, Janet!"

"Yes, we ought to have let the ladies go first," said the cowboy. "But I
didn't know whether the leetle gal cared for horses," he went on to Mr.
Martin.

"I like horses," admitted Janet. "But maybe I'll fall off."

"I won't let you," the cowboy answered, as he lifted her to the saddle.
Then he led the pony around with her on his back, and Janet liked it
very much.

"I wants a wide, too!" cried Trouble.

"Hi! that's so! Mustn't forget you!" laughed the cowboy, and he held
Baby William in the saddle, much to the delight of that little fellow.

"Now you mustn't bother any more," said Daddy Martin. "You children have
had fun enough. You'll have more ponyback rides later."

"Yes, I'll have to go now," the cowboy said, and, leaping into the
saddle, he rode away in a cloud of dust.

The Curlytops and Trouble wandered around among the ranch buildings.
Daddy Martin, seeing that the children were all right, left them to
themselves.

"I'se hungry," said Trouble, after a bit.

"So'm I," added Teddy. "Do you s'pose that funny Chinaman would give us
a cookie, Jan?"

"Chinamen don't know how to make cookies."

"Well, maybe they know how to make something just as good. Let's go
around to the cook house--that's what Aunt Millie calls it."

The cook house was easy to find, for from it came a number of good
smells, and, as they neared it, th