RECREATION. 



we taught him many amusing tricks. 

 He was one of the most interesting 

 pets and apt pupils I ever undertook 

 to train, and I have owned and trained 

 many. 



Occasionally Ben and his brother 

 would fall out and have a scrap. They 

 would stand up and spar like trained 

 pugilists, until one would seem to 



horses in the outfit, and in the morn- 

 ing, when we were ready to pack, 

 one of us would bring them in from 

 the feeding ground. Ben's was a little 

 white pony, named Pard. As soon as 

 Ben saw him coming, he would begin 

 to squall and start for his mount. He 

 would take his place beside the horse, 

 and was all impatience while we were 



A FAMILY SCRAP. 



get a temporary advantage of the 

 other. Then they would clinch, claw, 

 bite and scratch like cats, and we 

 would have to separate them, even 

 though the trouble came at dead of 

 night. 



We built Ben a cage of willow 

 boughs, woven together, in which he 

 was to ride during the day. We were 

 on the march most of the time, and 

 within a week from the day we 

 caught Ben, and named him, he learn- 

 ed to know his horse. We had 8 



packing. He knew when the load was 

 being put on his horse as well as we 

 did, and would dance around him, 

 pawing his legs, jumping at his nose 

 and otherwise expressing his delight, 

 just as a dog would. When the 

 lash rope, was finally made fast, and 

 the cage tied on top of the pack, we 

 would boost Ben up and put him in. 

 He would express his delight by 

 whimpering and cooing to us and 

 to the horse, and dancing about in 

 the cage. He soon got tired of this 



