THE STUIKE AT SHANE'S, 55 



about horses to let Dick get away from him that way," 

 said Tom. "Come, Mike, let's go back to work." 



Shane still lay beside the road unconscious. He had 

 ti-ied to manage the horse by brute force, and here was 

 the result — the horse prancing over the field, exulting 

 in his freedom, and the man lying unconscious beside 

 the road. The horse had not expended a tithe of his 

 strength, and the man was as helpless as the dead. 



At the time of the accident Edith was visiting Cora 

 Tracy, and in the afternoon Mr. Tracy had occasion 

 to hitch up his wagon and drive down the road on an 

 errand to another farm, and as he was going by the 

 Shane farm he told Edith she could ride with him. ' She 

 gladly accepted his in\itation, for it would save her a 

 long walk. 



"I always like to ride behind your horses," said 

 Edith, as they drove along ; "they look so happy and 

 contented." 



"That's the way I want them to be," said Mr. 

 Tracy. "They deserve to be happy just as much as 

 I do, or any of my family." 



* ' Do you think animals know anything about happi- 

 ness or unhappiuess ? " said Edith ; "that is, I mean do 

 they know when we love them, and can they love us 

 in return ? " 



"That is a hard question to answer," said Tracy; 

 "but I think their actions indicate that they appre- 

 ciate love and kindness as much as a human being 

 does ; but whether they understand such things as we 

 do or not, I cannot tell. I have always made it a rule 



