stood tossing their manes and
staring at Martin with their wild, startled eyes.

In another moment the wild rider came bounding out from among them,
and moving now erect, now on all fours, came sideling up to Martin,
flinging his arms and legs about, wagging his head, grimacing and
uttering whinnying and other curious noises. Never had Martin looked
upon so strange a man! He was long and lean so that you could have
counted his ribs, and he was stark naked, except for the hair of his
head and face, which half covered him. His skin was of a yellowish
brown colour, and the hair the colour of old dead grass; and it was
coarse and tangled, falling over his shoulders and back and covering
his forehead like a thatch, his big brown nose standing out beneath
it like a beak. The face was covered with the beard which was
tangled too, and grew down to his waist, After staring at Martin for
some time with his big, yellow, goat-like eyes, he pranced up to him
and began to sniff round him, then touched him with his nose on his
face, arms, and shoulders.

[Illustration: ]

"Who are you?" said Martin in astonishment.

For only answer the other squealed and whinnied, grimacing and
kicking his legs up at the same time. Then the horses advanced to
them, and gathering round in a close crowd began touching Martin with
their noses. He liked it--the softness of their sensitive skins,
which were like velvet, and putting up his hands he began to stroke
their noses. Then one by one, after smelling him, and being touched
by his hand, they turned away, and going down into the valley were
soon scattered about, most of them grazing, some rolling, others
lying stretched out on the grass as if to sleep; while the young
foals in the troop, leaving their dams, began playing about and
challenging one another to run a race.

Martin, following and watching them, almost wished that he too could
go on four legs to join them in their games. He trusted those wild
horses, but he was still puzzled by that strange man, who had also
left him now and was going quietly round on all fours, smelling at
the grass. By-and-by he found something to his liking in a small
patch of tender green clover, which he began nosing and tearing it
up with his teeth, then turning his head round he stared back at
Martin, his jaws working vigorously all the time, the stems and
leaves of the clover he was eating sticking out from his mouth and
hanging about his beard. All at once