The morning call., 1894-07-16

scented little note written OF white
paper.
Mr.. Bryan tore open the envelope has
tily and devoured the contents. To be
sure the young lady would be just de-
lighted to go, and i'll half an hour she
would be ready to start if Mr.. Bryan
would drive around by her home.
Mr. Bryan is sometimes a trif1e slow
about paying the amount Of a policy on a
powder factory. but he lost no time In 60
ing to the trysting-place agreed upon.
True to her pro mise, the young lady f1ut-
tered out to meet him moment later, n
DIR cam Of loneliness in her new spring
gown and iaunty hat.
For the first few miles down the San
Mateo side nothing out OF the ordinary
took place. Then sight met the gaze Of
Mr.. Bryan that CEASED his temperature to
drop to 50 and his eyes to bulge out. A
large steer had broken away from herd
of cattle being driven along the road and
was coming straight at the carriage with
brakes off and all steam on.
Now, on all ordinary occasions Mr..
| Bryan is very brave man. but the pros
pect before him was not pleasant never
| theless. However, there was no time to
| be spent considering the case, and he
|
as the steer came dashing toward him.
The steer evidently expected a little side
play like that, however, for it changed its
course just in time to strike the carriage
almost broadside. MIR. Bryan and the
young lady were sent flying through the
| air and landed several feet away near a
| fence. When the dust cleared away Mr..
Bryan found that the steers horn had
pierced his arm and torn out muscle.
| The young lady was terribly frightened,
| but uninjured.
AS soon as Mr.. Bryan could collect his
| thoughts and his r-buttOns he looked
| for his horse and some fragments of the
buggy that were scattered around the
road near him; but the horse was missing.
He looked down the road. nd. 10 his
surprise, saw the horse coming toward
him drawing part of the buggy with the
| Infatuated steer in hot pursuit. The steer
| had chased the horse up the road. and
now they were coming back down the
| homestretch as If there were an American
| Derby prize 10 be won.
Mr.. Bryan and the young lady held their
| breath and their hats and prepared to see
| the finish. The two animals came dashing
down the road like fire engines and the
| horse seemed to be getting the worst of
the race. Suddenly the horse turned at a
| bend in the road. and the steer, with its
| head down and Its eyes closed, kept on in
straight line and went down four-foot
| EN- bankment into marsh.
The bovine f1Oundered about in its rage
| for half minute and by that time had
| sunkep to its shoulders in the mire. When
Mr.. Bryan and his friend realized that the
steer was safely anchored they veptured to
| emerge from behind a tree, where they
| had taken shelter to view the scene of the
| combat. The struggle had attracted half a
| dozen vaqueros who were in charge of the
drove of cattle from which the belligerent
steer had broken away, and they were
preparing TO throw rope around its neck
and drag it out Of the mire.
At this point breaIhess young man
attred in knickerbockers and a sweater
rode up on bicycle and insisted on see
! ing the fun. He was warned to keep
away, but he was brave young man, in
whose bosom there was no snch thing as
fear. So he rode up almost opposite to
where the steer was stuck in the mud in
! order that he might get better view of
| the situation.
! When the steer saw the glitter of the
bright spokes in the wheel of that bicycle
| all the enthusiasm OF the animals youth
was aroused again. With gigantic effort
| it jumped out OF the mud, and in an in
slant was close second TO the bold youth
on the wheel. Before the quarter post
was reached the steer pierced the nice
new knickerbockers of the bicycis with its
| horns and threw him over its head. The
| young man landed on his back forty feet
from where he started with his pride and
his back injured. He was also suffering
| from handful Of mud in the mouth and a
| strip of skin off each OF his legs. With
| these few exceptions he was not seriously
| injured.
| After knocking out the wheelman the
| steer turned its attention 10 the wheel
itself. The animal caught the machine
| with its horns. threw it over its head and