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Show MY r FRIEND iZT THE STORY SO FAR: Ten-year-old Kea McLaughlin can ride any horse on his family's Wyoming ranch, but he wants a colt of his own. His father, ft retired army officer, refuses to give him one until his school grades improve and he learns to take responsibility. Ken's mother tries to protect him from the stern discipline of his father and the yonthfnl bullying of his older brother, Howard, who always manages to do things right. When Captain McLaughlin learns that Ken has not been promoted be orders him to study instead of Joining the roundup. But when Ken is through he dashes out to watch the horses come In and accidentally stampedes them. Now continue with the story. CHAPTER III Even before he opened his eyes next morning Ken knew that something some-thing was wrong, and he pushed away the moment of complete awakening. awak-ening. He lay facing the window and saw that the pines on the hill were quiet. No wind today. Then he remembered. He had stampeded the mares. He had a feeling that it was late. For some time he had been half hearing all the early morning noises. He slipped out of bed and went to the window, hitching up his pa-Jamas. pa-Jamas. Howard was on the terrace right underneath, and Ken could see the top of his head, black and smooth, with the part exactly in the center. He had on blue jeans, and S clean chambray shirt and a red andana. Howard looked up. "Hi." Ken faded back into the room and hastily began to dress. The smell of coffee filled the house. Howard watched his sprinkler, moving it, little by little, down the terrace, and planned his day. Ken would be all right now, he thought, he was never hard to manage they might have fun in the swimming pool or go shooting "Breakfast!" sang out Nell's voice. She ran out onto the terrace. She had on a green dress with a zipper zip-per all the way down the front and a sash across the back. She clapped her hands and yelled for them to come, and Rob dropped his shovel and ran at her, and Ken stopped tying his necktie to watch. They'd gone in. Ken hurried to finish but he hated to go down, he felt so out of things. On the way downstairs he stopped before the picture pic-ture of the duck. It was a big black duck with white breast and legs and white bars on his wings. He was fierce and handsome standing stand-ing on his rock. At the breakfast table his father was waiting to hear Ken clatter the rest of the way downstairs. "I bet he's looking at the duck," said Howard. "What duck?" "On the landing. He looks at It for an hour sometimes." "Howard," reproved Nell, "he never looks at it for an hour." "Well, a long time seems like an hour." McLaughlin's voice was rising. "What duck on the landing?" "My Audubon print," explained Nell quickly. "The one that hangs under the clock. Ken likes to look at it" "Ken!" roared his father; and hastily Ken's sturdy shoes clattered the rest of the way down the stairs, and he came into the kitchen, his hair meticulously parted and slicked down, and his face sullen. "What did you stop on the landing for?" . Ken opened his napkin and looked down, embarrassed. "I was looking at the duck." "The duck! Out the window?" "The duck in the picture there." There was a little amused glint in Nell's eyes as she helped Ken to oatmeal. "Didn't you know we were at breakfast?" "I I" "Didn't think," finished his father for him. Ken didn't look up or make any reply. He had known it would be like this. He poured cream on his oatmeal and reached for the brown sugar. "Ken," said his father, "I'm going go-ing to take back an order I gave ! you yesterday. I'm going to remit your hour of study." Ken looked at his father in astonishmenthis aston-ishmenthis mouth opening in re-' re-' lief and pleasure. "I've got other plans for you this ' summer," McLaughlin continued pompously, and Nell tucked her face down to hide her smile. "And," continued Rob blandly, "I'm going to give you a colt." Ken shot out of his chair. Spoon and dishes went clattering. "A a spring colt. Dad? Or a yearling?" McLaughlin was taken aback, but Nell dropped her eyes again. If Ken got a yearling colt, he'd be even up with Howard. "A yearling colt, your father means, Kennie," she said smoothly. Ken gathered up the china and silver he had scattered, replaced them and sat down again. Color had rushed to his face. 'Til give it to you a week from today," said his father. "Between now and then you can look them over and make your choice." "I can have any yearling colt on toe ranch that I want?" asked Ken. His father nodded calmly, pushed his chair back and took out his pipe. Speechless, Ken turned to look at Howard and the two boys eyed each other. Even up, at last "Doe3 it have to be a yearling colt, Dad?" asked Howard. "Could it be a spring colt if he'd rather have a spring colt?" "It could be anything foaled on the ranch since a year ago," said McLaughlin. "There are eighteen yearlings. So far, thirteen or fourteen four-teen new colts; a few to come yet" "Will you take a yearling or a spring colt Ken?" asked Howard. In answer, Ken turned upon Howard How-ard an exaggerated pitying sneer, copied from the movies, and mastered mas-tered only after much practice. But his father asked the same thing. "Yearling or spring colt Ken?" Ken answered, "A yearling." "Horse or filly?" This stopped him. His eyes lost focus as mental images crowded. Rocket was a mare. But there was Banner. And the Albino, mustang hero. There emerged from the confusion con-fusion a definite sense of the superiority su-periority of the male. "I'll take a horse colt." His voice was final and authoritative. An imperceptible im-perceptible glance passed between Nell and her husband. McLaughlin said, "That narrows It down. Let's see how many horse colts were foaled last year?" "Ten fillies and eight horse colts," said Howard. "You've got eight horse colts to choose from, Ken." Things were moving very fast for Ken, horses crowding him "Which were they?" said Nell. "I've got them all down in the Stud "A a spring colt, Dad?" Book. I left it up at the stables the other day, in the tack room. Ken, run up and get it and we'll look over the list." "I'll go too," said Howard, sliding out of his chair; and both boys rushed out the door. Ken tore ahead. A colt a colt! His own! His mind was full of images. A little foal just born, almost knocked down by its mother's tongue licking it . . Banner rearing, his great forefeet beating the air, his big light belly, his fierce face and arching neck a little yearling running . . . a black ... a chestnut ... his colt was all of them . . . He dropped his head back and yelled; he pranced and galloped. Howard caught up with him and said, "You crazy!" "My colt my colt," sang Ken. He ran in a circle, pacing, racking. He stuck his elbows out, said, "Whoa, there! Hi!" He tossed his head and shook his mane. "You goofy!" exclaimed Howard, watching him. Ken rushed at him with fists up. Howard fell into position and they sparred. Ken didn't care what happened hap-pened to him. His arms went like flails. Howard blocked his blows easily. eas-ily. Ken broke out of it and went flying fly-ing up to the stable. He had a sharp consciousness of change and new importance. im-portance. Things had begun at last Things couid be real now. They found the Stud Book and ran back with it As Nell read out the list of yearlings year-lings and the names of their dams Ken began to feel queer. These were definite flesh and blood animals; ani-mals; named, described, tagged, in a book; not the colts that had kicked their heels and played and tossed their manes in his dreams. He felt the sense of loss which every dreamer feels when the dream moves up, comes close, and at last is concrete. "I haven't named them all" Nell was saying. "There were some I never saw. They had run o!T somewhere some-where when I went up on Twenty to look them over and put them in the book. "The bronc bunch," grunted McLaughlin, Mc-Laughlin, referring to the progeny of the Albino. "They're always missing miss-ing when they're wanted." "Ken and I trained four of these yearlings ourselves," said Howard. Every summer the two boys had the job of handling and halter-breaking four of the spring colts. "The colts the boys trained last summer were Doughboy and College Col-lege Boy and Lassie and Firefly," said Nell, studying the book. "Two horse colts and two fillies." "Say, Ken," said Howard eagerly, "why don't you take Doughboy? He was one of yours. And when he grows up he'll be sort of twins with mine, in bis name anyway. Doughboy, Dough-boy, Highboy, see?" But Ken looked scornful. Doughboy Dough-boy would never have half Highboy's High-boy's speed. Last summer McLaughlin, Mc-Laughlin, looking over the colts, had said, "He's a chunk. We'll name him Doughboy. He might turn out a heavy hunter. Look at the big legs on him!" "Lassie then," suggested Howard again. "If you want speed. She's fast as anything, and she's black as ink. Like Highboy." "I said I was going to take a horse," said Ken. "Besides, Dad said Lassie'll never go over fifteen hands." "Remember one thing, Ken," said McLaughlin. "You can't tell much about a colt when it's new-born, and not always much more when it's a yearling. Blood's the thing. The prepotency of blood " They had heard this term often, for whenever McLaughlin got talking talk-ing about horses he used it "That'i the trouble with this stuff I've got from the Albino. He had prepotency. That devil passed on his traits. They don't wear out. Must have had some magnificent blood strains somewhere in his ancestry. an-cestry. Arab probably. Put enough Arab blood into a line and it gives prepotency to the traits you don't want as well as to those you do. Lots of Arab blood in these western mustangs. Comes from the Arab and Barb horses the Spaniards brought over " McLaughlin got up, went to the shelf beside the spice closet and took down one of his favorite books on the genealogy of the American horse. He turned the pages, looking for a passage. Howard suddenly jerked his head back, listening. "Car coming." They all became motionless and heard the car rattle over the cattle guard at the Home Pasture Fence, come up the low hill behind the house in second sec-ond gear, then whizz past The boys darted to the window at the back of the house and saw the rear of the car as it vanished over the crest of the hill on its way to the stables. "A dusty black car," announced Howard, returning. McLaughlin closed his book. "Might be Doc," he said. "To geld the two-year-olds?" asked Nell. "Yes. Howard, run up to the stables sta-bles and see if that was Dr. Hicks." As Howard left the room, Ken asked, "Can I watch. Dad?" Nell caught her husband's eye and he did not answer. "Run up to my room and get me a handkerchief, will you Ken?" she said. "Right hand corner, top bureau bu-reau drawer " When Ken had gone she said, "Rob, don't let them see the gelding." geld-ing." "They might as well," said Rob. "They have to know, sooner or later." lat-er." "They know already. But so far, they've never actually seen it You've always had it done before they got home from school." "Won't hurt 'em." Ken returned and handed his mother moth-er the handkerchief. Howard arrived ar-rived almost at the same moment at the back door. "It's Doc Hicks, Dad, and hi assistant" as-sistant" "I thought so. Run and tell Gus to light a fire up there, and get some water boiling." "He's already up there. He's got the fire lit." He was about to dash away again, but Nell called him back. "Sit down and finish your breakfast," break-fast," said she. "You too, Ken. You've hardly eaten a thing." The boys finished hastily. Gus appeared at the door. "If we cude have an old sheet for clean rags. Missus." Nell brought an old sheet clean and folded, from the linen closet Ken finished eating, wiped his mouth, said "Excuse me, please," and darted after Gus as he left the room. "Dad's given me a colt Gus any colt on the ranch up to a year old " Howard finished and ran after them. Nell sighed as she rose to clear the table. "A bloody day. I hope they get through all right" Rob did not answer. He wasn't looking at her. Suddenly he laughed. "I'll take a horse colt Did you hear the voice on him when he said that? He's never talked or looked like that In his life before." He pushed his chair back and got up. "Now, K be Just picks a good one " He went to the door and hurried out (TO BE costistkd) |