trot!" shouted Albert, in ungrammatical enthusiasm.

"See that old sorrel shake himself!" yelled the loafers.

The doctor came tearing down with a spirited bay, a magnificent stepper.
As he drew along so that Bert could catch a glimpse of the mare's neck,
he thrilled with delight. There was the thoroughbred's lacing of veins;
the proud fling of her knees and the swell of her neck showed that she
was far from doing her best. There was a wild light in her eyes.

These were the fast teams of the town. All interest was centred in them.

"Clear the track!" yelled the loafers.

"The doc's good f'r 'em."

"If she don't break."

Albert was pulling at the sorrel heavily, absorbed in seeing, as well as
he could for the flung snowballs, the doctor's mare draw slowly, foot by
foot, past the blacks. Suddenly Brann gave a shrill yell and stood up in
his sleigh. The gallant little bay broke and fell behind; Brann laughed,
the blacks trotted on, their splendid pace unchanged.

"Let the sorrel out!" yelled somebody.

"Let him loose!" yelled Troutt on the corner, quivering with excitement.
"Let him go!"

Albert, remembering what the fellow had said, let the reins loose. The
old sorrel's teeth came together with a snap; his head lowered and his
tail rose; he shot abreast of the blacks. Maud, frightened into silence,
covered her head with the robe to escape the flying snow. The sorrel
drew steadily ahead and was passing the blacks when Brann turned.

"Durn y'r old horse!" he yelled through his shut teeth, and laid the
whip across the sorrel's hips. The blacks broke wildly, but, strange to
say, the old sorrel increased his speed. Again Brann struck, but the
lash fell on Bert's outstretched wrists. He did not see that the blacks
were crowding him to the gutter, but he heard a warning cry.

"Look _out_, there!"

Before he could turn to look, the cutter seemed to be blown up by a
bomb. He rose in the air like a vaulter, and when he fell the light went
out.

The next that he heard was a curious soft murmur of voices, out of which
a sweet, agonized girl-voice broke:

"Oh, where's the doctor? He's dead--oh, he's dead! _Can't_ you hurry?"

Next came a quick, authoritative voice, still far away, and a hush
followed it; then an imperative order:

"Stand out o' the way! What do you think you can do by crowding on top
of him?"

"Stand back! stand back!" other voices called.

Then he felt something cold on his scalp: they were ta