THE RED COW 



meditated fondly on a blacksnake whip we used to 

 own when I was a boy. It had a weighted handle, 

 and a long, snaky lash, and it was said that a man 

 could draw blood with it. If I had that whip and 



had Dolly where I could get at her But it 



was no use thinking what I would do. Dolly had 

 seen the gap opening out of the far side of the field 

 on to another road and she led the way to it in high 

 fettle. I believe they would have been going yet 

 had not a kind-hearted farmer who saw the ap- 

 proaching cavalcade stepped out on the road and 

 headed them off. This enabled the boy to get ahead 

 of them with the buggy whip. He started them to- 

 wards home and I managed to get them past my 

 corner. Then they went into a pasture field through 

 an open gate they had missed on their outbound trip. 

 Noticing that they were hemmed in by a sheet of 

 slippery ice I took an ear of corn that we had 

 brought along, and by cornering her and tempting 

 her at the same time I managed to catch her. But 

 I didn't give her that ear of corn, even though I 

 know one should never fool a horse in that way. I 

 was afraid she might take it as a reward for her 

 exploit. 



When I led her back to the buggy I found that 



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