reaking his
halter. This had been done to keep them from biting each other, and as
nobody but the Dappled Gray ever thought of doing such a thing, it was
rather hard on the rest. It made it difficult for the mothers to bring
up their children properly, for after a Colt was old enough to have a
stall to himself, his mother had to call out her advice and warnings so
loudly that everybody could hear, and you know it is not well to reprove
a child before company if it can be helped. Indeed, it was this very
question that was troubling the span of Bays now. Each of them had a
two-year-old Colt, and they knew that it was nearly time for the farmer
to put these Colts to work. The span of Bays were sisters, so of course
their children were cousins, and they were all very fond of each other
and of the Blind Horse, who was the uncle of the Bays and the
great-uncle of the Bay Colt and the Gray Colt.

"I am worried about the Bay Colt," said his mother. "Since he was
brought into the barn last fall and had a stall away from me, he has
gotten into bad ways. I have told him again and again that he must not
nibble the edge of the manger, yet the first thing I heard this morning
was the grating of his teeth on the wood."

"Well," said his aunt, "you know he is teething, and that may be the
reason."

"That is no excuse," said his mother sternly. "He has been teething ever
since he was five days old, and he will not cut his last tooth for three
years yet. I don't call it goodness to keep from cribbing when you don't
want to crib, and the time to stop is now. Besides, if he waits until he
has all his teeth, he won't be able to break himself of the habit when
he does try."

"That is so," said his aunt, "and he will ruin his teeth, too."

"Pooh!" exclaimed the Bay Colt, who had heard what they were saying. "I
can stop whenever I want to, and they're my own teeth, anyway. It isn't
anybody else's business if I do ruin them."

"There!" said his mother to his aunt, "you see what I mean. That is just
the way he talks all the time. Now what would you do?"

"Let him alone," snorted the Dappled Gray. "Let him alone, and he will
get some Horse sense after he has been broken. He'll have a hard time of
it, but he'll come out all right."

The Bay Colt kicked against the side of the stall, he was so vexed.
"I'll thank you to let me alone," said he. "I don't see why everybody
tells me what I ought to do. Guess I know a thing or two."

"I'll tel