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forget the art of managing the "buckers" of the American plains. To use
his own words, he felt as much at home on the hurricane deck of a
Spanish pony, as on the fo'c'sl of a man-of-war, so that the scout's
doubt of his capacity as a rider was not well founded.

Tremendous was the bound of exultation which our seaman felt, then, when
he found himself on the magnificent black mare, with the fresh morning
air fanning his temples, and the bright morning sun glinting through a
cut in the eastern range.

Soon he reached the lower end of the valley, which, being steep, he had
descended with tightened rein. On reaching the open prairie he gave the
mare her head and went off with a wild whoop like an arrow from a bow.

Black Polly required neither spur nor whip. She possessed that
charmingly sensitive spirit which seems to receive an electric shock
from its rider's lightest chirp. She was what you may call an anxiously
willing steed, yet possessed such a tender mouth that she could be
pulled up as easily as she could be made to go. A mere child could have
ridden her, and Dick found in a few minutes that a slight check was
necessary to prevent her scouring over the plains at racing speed. He
restrained her, therefore, to a grand canter, with many a stride and
bound interspersed, when such a thing as a rut or a little bush came in
her way.

With arched neck, glistening eyes, voluminous mane, and flowing tail she
flew onward, hour after hour, with many a playful shake of the head, and
an occasional snort, as though to say, "This is mere child's play; _do_
let me put on a spurt!"

It may not be fair to credit such a noble creature with talking, or even
thinking, slang, but Dick Darvall clearly understood her to say
something of the sort, for after a while he reduced speed to a kind of
india-rubber walk and patted her neck, saying--

"No, no, lass, you mustn't use up your strength at the beginning. We've
got a longish trip before us, Polly, an' it won't do to clap on all sail
at the beginnin' of the voyage."

At David's store Dick stopped for a short time to obtain a little
refreshment for himself and Polly. There he found a group of cow-boys
discussing the affairs of their neighbours, and enlarging noisily on
things in general under the brain-clearing and reason-inspiring
influence of strong drink! To these he recounted briefly the incidents
of the recent raid of the troops into Traitor's Trap, and learned that