74 The King of the Thundering Herd 



family now realized that some great danger 

 was swooping down upon them. 



Mr. Anderson made his plan of escape as 

 he ran. To think of fleeing was out of 

 the question. Their slow-moving schooner 

 would be overtaken in almost no time. 

 There was no canyon, no coulee in which to 

 take refuge ; no butte to which they might 

 flee ; not even a tree or a rock behind which 

 they might crouch, and thus be partly 

 shielded. Out in the open the danger must 

 be met, with nothing but the shelter of the 

 wagon to keep off the grinding hoofs, and 

 only the muzzles of their three guns to stand 

 between them and annihilation when the 

 crash came. 



Hastily they turned the wagon about, 

 with its hind end toward the herd. The 

 mules were unhitched from the pole and 

 each hitched to the front wheel. A rope 

 was also passed through the side strap of 

 the harness of each mule, and he was fast- 



