ALONG FOUR-FOOTED TRAILS 



with its quivering and bleeding lip, and looked 

 long and steadily into the liquid eyes of the captive. 

 Whether there was anything in this I know not, 

 but their souls seemed to meet, the dumb and the 

 ruler. The teacher tenderly bathed the torn lip 

 and made the mare as comfortable as she could. 

 In the days that followed the animal regained her 

 spirit, but grew more nervous and vicious. The 

 firm, persistent patience of the teacher won the 

 confidence and love of the mare at length and 

 with comparatively little difficulty she was broken 

 to ride and drive. She lost none of her fleetness 

 in her captive state and was known as one of 

 the best trotters in that country. There were 

 few who saw her that could resist the temptation 

 of endeavoring to persuade the teacher to part 

 with her possession. The horse seemed never 

 to forget that it was a man who had captured 

 her and would bite and paw at any man who 

 attempted to enter her stall or to catch her when 

 in the corral. No man was ever able to touch 

 her back as a rider. The men who tried came 

 near paying for the effort to do so with their 

 lives. One unfortunate cowboy was thrown 

 and seriously injured. He would have been 

 [106] 



