Browning chief., 1945-10-19
CHAPTER XIV

CHAPTER XIV
Ken brought his horse over the
line as he had done before-the
same, hard gallop, with the colt
fighting his head and unwilling to
obey. It made Ken mad that just
now when he wanted performance
Thunderhead would do nothing but
fight.
All right then-let it be war. This
battling with the stallion was bring
ing out something in the boy that
had never been there before. He
raised the light crop he held and
brought it down on the colts
launches as hard as he could. Thun-
derhead leaped in the air and tried
to shake Ken off. Ken could feel
the power and anger surge into his
own body. He raised his arm and
brought the crop down again. When
the horse lit this time he was going.
It was the long floating effortless
pace that had been Rockets. Ken
sat motionless on the tiny saddle.
Down to the turn, around the posts,
up the other side
Nell glanced at Charley. "See
that?" she said. "That's what
mean"
"And he's not even trying" said
Charley in a daze.
Hes coming! He's comingl"
screamed Howard. Look at the
watch
Sargent gave a start. He hadn't
had his eyes off the colt, he hadn't
timed him. He waved his arm and
yelled at Ken, Keep going! Go
around again!"
Ken's eyes flickered up to him as
he passed, but he didn't turn his
head. There was a rapt look on his
face.
"Gosh! He runs in the air!"
howled Sargent. "He doesn't touch
the ground!"
Howard was jumping up and
down. keep it up! Keep it up!
Thunderhead! Thunderhead!"
Nell felt hysterical. She sudden
ly put her face into her hands. The
beauty of it. The super-perform-
ance-and Ken sitting so still-the
victory at last-the two-year-long
battle-the faith-the exhaustion
the cuts and bruises and strains she
had to bind up-and now, Victory
She raised her head and looked
again. Coming back up the home
stretch!- Coming! One long sus-
tanned yell from Sargent the
horse over the line, Ken trying to
pull him up-swinging around in
circles-Howard's voice squawking
-"What did he make, Mr.. Sargent?
What did he make?"-while Sar-
gent was trying to scramble down
the rock.
Thunderhead had made the half
mile in forty-seven seconds.
"Oh, Kennie-Kennie-'
"Gee, Ken-he did it-Gee!"
"That horse! He's one of the sew
en- wonders of the world!"
Thunderhead was fighting. He
wanted to keep going. Ken had
hardly come back yet from the &C.
stasy in which he had ridden. His
glowing face with the slightly part
ed lips was half unconscious.
"Could he do it again? Has he
ever done it before? Well let him
rest little, then give him another
spin."
"Rest?" said Howard. "He's not
tired. He never gets tired. He
hates to be stopped when he gets
going. That's why he's mad now"
They decided to try the colt again;
and again they climbed to the ledge
and timed his start, and again Ken
fought with him to control him,
forced him over the line, and was
shaken by the angry, rough gallop-
by his breaking through the posts.
The struggle went on-the lashing
of the crop-the scarlet face of the
boy, while Charley grew grave and
the little group on the ledge no
longer chartered with excitement,
but stood silent.
At last Sargent was hopeless. 1T
was fiuke," he said. "He's un-
controllable."
'Look, look, Mr. Sargent! He's do
ing it again!"
The colt had broken through his
temperamental impediments. He
burst into his swift, floating pace,
and went streaming around the
track. AS he crossed the line Sar-
gent punched the watch. They held
their breath. Sargent's mouth was
wide open in a crazy grin. His
eyes popped.
The gelding.
For days and nights Ken had been
thinking of it. The better the colt
behaved, the more speed he showed,
the more despair Ken felt. They
told him and they argued with him,
and they proved it to him. The
colt would lose no iota of his speed
might even have more, because his
energies would not be wasted in
fighting, in running after mares, in