ant
thunder. The cowboys sprang into their saddles; we heard a shot, and
then we knew the terrible truth,--the steers had stampeded. For me,
the next few minutes were an eternity of frightful confusion. Mrs.
O'Shaughnessy and I found ourselves with the children upon our largest
wagon; that was absolutely all the protection to be had. It would have
gone down like a house of cards if that heaving sea of destruction had
turned our way. I was scared witless. Mrs. O'Shaughnessy knelt among
the children praying with white lips. I stood up watching the terrible
scene. The men hastily set the horses free. There was no time to mount
them and ride to safety with so many little children, and as there was
nothing to tie them to but the wagons; we _had_ to let them go so as
to have the wagons left for shelter. _This_ is why cowboys are such
well-loved figures of romance and in mentioning them romance is fact.

"Greater love hath _no_ man than this: that he lay down his life
for his brother." They knew nothing about us only that we were
defenseless. They rode boldly on their stanch little horses flanking
the frenzied steers, shooting a leader here and there as they got a
chance. If an animal stumbled it went down to its death, for hundreds
of pounding hoofs would trample it to pulp. So it would have been with
the boys if their horses had stepped into a badger hole or anything of
the kind had happened. So the tide was turned, or the steers kept of
themselves, I don't know which, on up the valley instead of coming up
our draw. The danger was past.

Presently the cowboys came straggling back. Mrs. O'Shaughnessy ran to
meet them. So when two on one horse came with a third riding close
beside, helping to hold an injured man on, we knew some one was hurt.
Mrs. O'Shaughnessy was, as usual, ready and able to help.

But the freighter's daughter was as quick and had a mattress ready
beside the coaster by the time the cowboys came up with the wounded
man. Gently the men helped their comrade to the mattress and gently
Mrs. O'Shaughnessy and the girl began their work. I quieted the
children and put them to bed. The men were busy rounding up the
horses. The cowboys kept talking together in low tones and coming and
going in twos and threes. They acted so queerly that I wondered if
some one else was not hurt. I asked the boss if any more of his men
were hurt. He said no, none of _his_ men were. I knew none of our men
or the freighter were harmed,