134 OBSERVATIONS OF A RANCHWOMAN 



At last I came to a puzzled halt. Three 

 tracks strayed away in various directions, 

 one tumbling headlong into a deep arroyo, 

 another lunging sideways around a gully, 

 and a third pursuing a calm and meander- 

 ing course around a corner, and so into a 

 leafy retreat of mesquite bushes. It was 

 very quiet under the high gray clouds ; not 

 a bird stirred or sang stupefied, we may 

 suppose, by the absence of light and radiance. 

 A horned toad scooted into the middle of my 

 road, took solemn note of me, and then pro- 

 ceeded hurriedly on his business. I, too, 

 had business, and was, like himself, in a 

 hurry. Then it was that a dusky but bene- 

 volent old gentleman on a burro came around 

 the corner, his donkey's long ears parting 

 the emerald feathers of the mesquite bushes. 

 He was properly interested in my dilemma ; 

 and after he had described my errant course 

 to the best of his ability, he continued to 

 wave his arms and legs to all points of the 

 compass, and shout 'in scollops.' In truth, 

 he presented so agitated an appearance that 

 I pulled up once more, and, pointing with 

 my whip ahead, repeated with emphasis : 



