The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1908-12-09
was disgraced in the eyes Of ell


with tears. l stood looking after my
pony and dreading to go back to the
rodeo. Then l was aroused by a
shrill, angry snort upon my left. l
turned to find Paintlegs, the wild
mustang, threatening me with
stamping hoofs and swapping jaws.
This beast had been continuously
dozen times in the day as he
trotted upon the mesa slopes calling
to his band. He feared the rope of
the range rider and kept at a safe
distance, but here was a man afoot,
strange, detached creature, and l
mustangs fear of me was not great
enough to save me from attack. The
vicious brute, beating the ground
with his hoofs, squealing with anger
and clacking his jaws like a mad
boar, was already advancing.
Back he came, swift as returning
boomerang. He wheeled so short, to
stop his downhill rush, that he
stood, for an instant, like an eques-
trian statue, erect upon his hind feet.
His charge was again quick and furi-
Gus. 1 leaped and again narrowly
escaped a crushing blow.
Then l made a rapid dash down
the mesa slope, wheeling as I again
heard the clatter of his hoofs behind.
This time he was going like the
| wind l struck at his head with my
moose and leaped aside at the same
moment. His speed was too great to
permit him to deliver the side stroke,
but l felt the coils of my RATA go
whirling out of my left hand. I
clung to the rope mechanically and
turned to see Paintlegs rearing with
my moose in his teeth.
Quite by accident he had caught
the poorly flung loop in his wide-open
| Jaws, and not feeling its light strain
in his mad excitement, he wheeled
upon his hind legs as before. Catch
ing the rope with both hands, gave
mighty backward pull at the cru
cial instant while he was rearing
high, and the valiant Paintlegs meas
ured his full length upon the mes
quit-grass.
Frantic with pain, Paintlegs struck
at the rope with both forefeet, and
became entangled as he thrashed
about. Enraged and frightened, he
pitched and plunged, drawing his
nose and forefeet into coils which l
could tighten at will. Then in a mad
leap, he threw himself with his head
twisted under his shoulders, in a way
that would have broken the neck of
an ordinary horse.
AS he lay painting and helpless, the
cheers of the cow-men came up to
me from the corrals. They had been
watching my fight.
l advanced boldly, for indeed /
was no longer afraid, and placed my
self astride the fallen mustang. l
leaned over, uncoiled the rope from
.one foreleg and loosened the coils
upon the other. Paintlegs, with me
on his back, struggled in dazed way
to his feet. With legs gripping his
thin flanks, while the half-stunned
pony stood quivering and snorting,
l leaned forward, grasped the RATA
behind his jaw and drew the re-
naming coils off his leg.
Still Paintlegs stood, painfully
musing, his nerve-centers shaken by
the wrench to his neck. And the
noise of cow-men came up to me in a
series of hilarious whoops which set
my nerves tingling with the joy Of
capture.
AS much in response to them as
with intent to start Paintlegs, sank
my spurs into the mustangs fianks,
lashed him with the end of the RATA,
and yelled like a Comanche. Then
| Paintlegs gave great leap and went
faster and faster toward Clam Creek.
Our fight was meteoric. l think we
must have gone a mile in less than
two minutes, and as we passed the
rodeo, I saw it's stone fences lined
with che men who had mounted and
were swinging their sombreros in
Juror of cowboy excitement.
l had gathered in my rope and
now, by hard, outward pull upon
the mustangs jaw and swelling
tongue, l not only kept firm seat,
but drew Paintlegs off a straight
course and, avoiding the creek,
swung him round in wide ellipse.
Again we passed the corrals and the
shouting cow-men.
All the mustangs energies were
concentrated in that burst of crazy
running. In an incredibly brief
space of time, we had swung round
the corrals in a two-mile circuit ac-
companied by cries of jubilant en-
couragement. On we sped, my arms
aching with fatigue from the steady
pull. Foam flew from the mustangs
jaws, and his white fanks dripped
rain down my legs. Three times we
raced round that wide course, and
then, when l was ready to drop from
my seat from sheer exhaustion, two
pony riders swung into line, one upon
either hand, in my front.
Each whirled a RATA. l under
stood their purpose and leaned far