CUSTOM OF DEFERRED PAYMENT 19 



" Will you buy my bull at thirty-five dollars ? " 

 he asked. 



" Not if you gave him," I answered. " And 

 please take him away as soon as you can. You 

 could make a fortune putting him over fences in 

 an English show-ring. He would beat an Irish 

 hunter." 



" You are doing wrong not to take him," he said. 

 " I'll be coming up for my things in a day or so, and 

 maybe you'll change your mind." 



" Never ! " said Hilaria from the rear. " At least, 

 if the bull remains, I depart. Lai and the son of 

 Anak took fully an hour to drive him back into the 

 pasture from the wheat field this morning. And 

 whilst they were in the heat of argument over the 

 height of an effectual barricade he slipped down on 

 his knees, and most carefully conveyed his huge 

 body beneath the bottom strand of wire, and stalked 

 back into the wheat. It's distinctly weak of you to 

 have allowed him to remain even for a day ! . . . 

 Lai met Mrs. Creegan as he was bringing back the 

 horses," she added, " and she wants you to go to 

 the Fort this morning and drive with her to Lipton 

 this afternoon. Some of her people have a furniture 

 store there, and she thinks you may care to look 

 round. We shall certainly have to buy some chairs 

 when these people remove their household gods ; 

 but I shouldn't buy much more at present in case 

 a chance should come to get out of it altogether." 



It is fully ten miles from Fort Qu'Appelle to 

 Lipton, and we didn't leave until after two o'clock. 

 Mrs. Creegan was the gentlest of whips, and on 

 each of the many occasions she halted to give fat 

 swift Pussy a rest I refrained with difficulty from 



