The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1900-04-25

oho"ereu upon MIN. He was not at all
the sort OF person that could enjoy n
joke when at his own expense.
The herd reached the river and tbe
yellow spray was flung high in the air
Then they slowed and stopped, heayipg
to and fro They were prevented from
breaking down stream again by the
cowboys, who stood ready to foil every
such attempt. and try as they might
they could not return-but not an inch
forward would they stir The river was
rising fast, and more short handed than
ever. now that Hollis was unborsed il
was all that we could do to hold them
where they were.
far In the van of the herd stood
Hollis pony. girth deep in the water.
Hollis caught sight of him Retarded
by his cowboy boot heels, three inches
high. Hollis walked laboriously through
the deep. soft sand toward the herd that
stood punched together. half in, half
out OF the stream. Going up to the
nearest cow. Hollis put his hands on
her shoulders and vaulted neatly aftride
or her lean back. and before the aston.
ished animal had time to remonstrate
In any way he had swung from her back
to that of another which was STANDING
next to her. From this one he swung to
third. until at last he reached a part
or the herd near the middle where the
ANIMALS were so packed together that
they were almost incapable of move
ment. Then he rose to his feet and
started to walk. stepping from one
backbone to the next
1t was crazy thing to do. Once be.
fore had seen man attempt to swing
from back to back, and it was a dan
gerous feat enough Such feat az
Hollis was now attempting was ten
times as dangerous. Should he fall be.
tween the cattle they would close over
his head and almost certainly drown
him.
For some distance Hollis succeeded
well enough. Each back WINGED as his
foot pressed it, and the head belonpinp
to the back would toss angrily. The
heads were all pointing in one direc.
uon' and in order to avoid them Hollis
passed diagonally across the herd in
much the same manner that a boat
beats to windward He completed his
irst tack. With one foot on the back of
COW, the other pressing the spinal
column OF vicious cream colored bull,
Hollis tried to turn The bull threw up
his head and attempted to plunge. He
was too closely confined to succeed in
this. but he unbalanced Hollis, who,
withdrawing his foot from the back Of
the bull, placed it on the creature that
stood directly behind him. tottered for
an instant. then regained his balance
and brought his foot forward once more,
replacing it on the bulls back Just at
this time Spider came galloping down
the bank. Pulling his horse almost on
to its launches. he stared in blank
amazement He would not have been
more astonished. he told me afterward,
If Hollis had appeared in the guise of an
angel flying over the herd and be
"couldn think er nothin more unlike
ly'n that"
Hollis saw Spider at the same mo.
ment. Once more he tried to turn, and
this time he succeeded. AS he did So his
foot slipped. He made couple of quick
steps to recover his balance He more
than recovered it. He threw it the other
way and fell backward at full length
between the cattle.
Hollis struggles to rise probably
frightened the cattle even more than his
fall had done. They heaved and surged
irantically to clear themselves Of their
burden, and in an instant had opened a
space between them through which
Hollis dropped with scream that
heard, distant as was. far above the
noise Of the cattle and the shouting
Then the space closed over his head
Not for moment did suppose that
l should again see Hollis alive-not once
in thousand such occurrences would
have had an opportunity. AS it was. by
a miracle Of good fortune. he came up
near the heads of the cattle between
which he had fallen. saw his hand
clutching at horn The head to which
the horn belonged beloved and tossed
in its efforts to free itself. Twice it
broke his hold. and twice Hollis reap
peared, grasping for his life at the
nearest support.
Spider instantly turned his horse and
spurred straight into the press of cattle.
striking and shouting and trying to
scatter it. Only on the edge of the herd
did he succeed The rest Of the cattle
were packed too closely. and the vas
not time for them to move. Still spur.
ring, Spider snatched his lariat from
where it hung on his saddle closing thu
loop in order TO increase its length. He
swung it and cast The rope fell fair
and true across the neck of the steer to
which Hollis was clinging Hollis grasp.
ed it instantly
The cattle heaved and pushed as they
felt the strain Of the frightened line over
their backs. Spider tried desperately to
bring the end of his lariat to the saddle