Show MV AV kf MARY A ry OHARA I 1 THE TORY TORT so 80 FARI ten year tu ken mclaughlin given an otty opportunity to lo choose any aby yearl lar oa ui tio I 1 wy omlei ranch th etuy ol 01 f a loco mar gamed raud rocket rockel ills HI choice inerny addi to his matheri tat heri anger which to 1 already ra sr rou a lis bythe by the iset act that ken has bai failed ui his school work and has hai town RD BO sense leai of 0 responsibility blicka the filly li Is badly hart baa trying to jump jaap the th corral leant leace but bot even captain mclaughlin has ha to admit that she ib may not be loco after all while ken li Is with blicka la in the pal ture he hear bears effes of 1 pain and ends a neighbors cow caa s lit la in a wire fence lie hurries horrid feack back to the house home to get fet till his wire cutters cut teri now continue with the story CHAI charter aielt XIII ken could hear the sound of 0 the transcontinental trans continental traffic A horn tooting a car changing gears the light changed the shadows fell ell lengthwise on the th grass egrass he had the feeling of going off into a daydream and his eyes wandered but he pulled himself back folcka and the cow 1 he was caught into the mesh of things he leave them way off on the road there was a little black speck busl plodding along his bis arms swinging from his wide bowed shoulders walking as it his shoes hurt him ken leaped off his rock and shot down the road to meet him he stand the lonely waiting another minute ken wanted gus to examine folcka immediately but nothing could deter the swede from getting back to the bunk house and extricating himself from his city clothes without a moments delay As they walked up the road together ken told of his day the terrible things that had happened folcka blicka down and hurt somehow and cros bys cow with her udder torn to pieces and how he thought at first the wildcat had attacked her As he talked he kept looking up at the face of the big foreman gus pale blue eyes with pupils aa as small as pin points were always full of light ken got supper in the bunk house and when gus returned they ate it together up there cold beefsteak boiled potatoes apple sauce with thick yellow cream gus washed the dishes and ken wiped them and put them away then gus took out his pipe and lit it put his old torn felt hat on his tead head and they walked down through the pasture to see folcka ken carried a can of oats with him and halfway down the path began aegan to call the he fillys name and to whistle to her suddenly he clutched gu gus S 2 arm rm and stopped walking he called again there was an answering nicker nicked oh gus ashes calling to mel me I 1 yee whiz said the swede his lips turning up in a smile she sure is kennie ken ran ahead loping down the path and calling blicka blicka flicks and an eager whinny came again from the little mare when gus reached the nursery the filly was sitting up eating the oats which ken had poured into her teed feed box dots funny ting said the man slowly standi standing Ag over her ashes got good appetite dont seem sick or hurt he sat down on the bank comfortable again and glad to be home and drew peace into his soul with long quiet puffs of his pipe what do you think it is gus asked ken anxiously should we try to make her stand up gus shook his head bead better wait till your ladder fadder come home it might be her back but up like dot batin her oats I 1 dont know ken brought a bucket of water and blicka put her nose in and drank ay link tank dot smart little filly said the swede the family did not get home until after ten gus had bad gone to bed long since but ken was waiting for the car on the hill behind the house he and the two dogs watching the empty road the sky was crowded with stars and the milky way so brilliant that it shed a soft light over woods and fields and stream when ken saw the headlights of the car a happy glow went through him chaps began to bark and both dogs got up and moved around restlessly wagging their tails and nipping at each other the car roared up i the hill circled around came to a stop and ken lumped jumped on the running board and stuck his bead in the front window his mothers face was right there smiling at him from under her green urban turban and everyone spoke at once she said hello darling here we are were you lonesome while toward howard yelled from the back seat gee you missed itt ill you aughta seen the wild horse race three indians tell fell off and his father was looking over the seat handing tim the keys of the car and telling him to open up the back and unload the sacks racks of potatoes and onions howard you help tim unload and put away the provisions he added then turned to ken ken I 1 want to see you dad flicks Fl icka it was the third time ken had said it come on his lathers fathers hand tell fell on an his big shoulder and pushed him down around the end ot of the house bouie dad folcka ken im proud of you they were ere standing landing on the terrace and r up with ills his mouth open in surprise saw law nil his fathers father face tired but showing his bl big white teeth in a smile of pride ken stared crosby a cow said bald mccaugh lin alln we topped at tie siding on the way home for the mall mail crosby was there getting his mall he told me how you had bad cut his cow loose from the wire when her udder was caught and that gus rode over and told him ken was wag getting ready to say ay Fl folcka Icka again when his father lifted one of the boys hands and held the small helpless softness in his own hard list fist 1 I used to think these hands of yours would never be good for anything they had as much strength to them as wet spaghetti but today they manipulated a pair of wire cutters on a cow that was crazy with pain you never did anything like that before in your life iffe what made you do it ken wondering himself said welt well she belleree bell ered so you could hear something was the matter I 1 thought it might be the wildcat after her and I 1 remembered you said it AVII 40 J k gus was hed the dishes and ken wiped them was all mine and I 1 thought if it had been frcka blicka Fl icka eh mclaughlin ln turned away and walked toward the door still holding kens hand in his well now what was it you were going to tell me about Fl folcka icka ken rapidly poured out the tale ot of Flick as injury and helplessness and mclaughlin mclaughli listened gravely how do you know she cant get u upa he asked because she tries she gets her head up and makes a sort ot of scramble and then falls back again she acts like ashes hurt her back he added his eyes devouring his fathers face hows she lying asked mclaughlin Lau ghUn right on her side in her place down there said ken and added gus and I 1 try to move her or get her up we thought know how to do it and I 1 suppose she cant eat said ln wearily oh ye yes s sh she e ate her oats how 1 I put the box right by her nose and she lifted her head up and ate them all of 0 them yes cleaned them all up and then I 1 gave her a bucket ol of water and she drank some cant be very sick then ill wait till morning ken kell oh dad please P shut cupl roared mclaughlin going toward the door cant a man ever have any peace time you were in bed too come on after breakfast next morning rob went down to the nursery to see folcka nell left her dishes and went too with the cat on her shoulder howard and ken were already there flicks had eaten her breakfast oats and licked the box clean she lifted her bead with ease she whinnied now and then but she would not get up robs bobs observations were always made rapidly he said stand back oil all of you im going to roll her over to the other side folcka was lying on her left side he went behind her leaned over got hold of her left legs one in his bis left hand one in his right then backing off he gently hauled her over until she was wa lying on her right side the filly immediately made a scramble using her two forelegs fore legs and the left hind leg to push with and got up everyone laughed blicka stood calmly in the center of the group and when ken went to her bir bead and put his hands bands on either fide aide of her face she remained quiet IN nothing wrong with her back na laid id mclaughlin ln its if her leg that right hind bind leg she use it to push with and lying on the left it side she be get up without 1 it 1 but ashes the been bee n using it dad da 8 said aid ken acx anxiously I 1 bously yes it was all healed up but look at it now its swollen tw ollen that means infection and it hurts her worse then than it did at first look ashes not bearing any weight on it kens face was distraught when he noticed the swelling above the joint everyone knew that the wor worst I 1 t danger of wire cuts was the infection that piat to so often followed what wha do you do for an infection when its a horse he faltered nell answered cheerfully just what do if it was a person wet dressings poultices so that it will open and drain showed no sign of tear fear or nervousness when ken petted her and smoothed her neck she looked at him with trust and gratitude de now that shell let u us get close to her continued nell automatically stroking her cat there wont be any trouble about it why does she let us dad asked ken well said mclaughlin ln grimly ashes only got three legs she cant run away can she he walked off howard after him ken knew that his father bear to look at a sick animal but his mother said well get that cleared up in no time kennie ill help you A load fell from kennies Kenn les shoulders at least folcka going to die at least her back was not broken he went back to the house with his mother and she boiled some meat meal and put it in a linen bag and mixed a disinfectant wash and put it in a bucket tor for ken to carry down when folcka saw them coming though ken carried a bucket and nell a basin with the poultices and bandages enough to frighten even a well broken horse she showed no fear she has got sense she mother muttered ken as they prepared the poultice she knows were helping her she looks like it said nell preoccupied with the bandages now you ou stand S nd at her head ken ashes more used to you while I 1 do this blicka raised her leg off the ground while nell bathed it and bandaged on the poultice it made a comical looking white knob above the hock kens nights were no longer dreamless there was no peace for the boy by day his new responsibility his passionate hope his meticulous ti care of blicka and by night a procession of dream adventures sometimes terrible ones often his mutterings rings and cries brought his mother or father to his bedside something was ever and ferociously at his heels it was an agony and his appearance changed in a way that was noticeable both boys usually grew taller during the summer vacations and put on weight too but ken had gained no weight this summer on only I 1 y height and his face far was ga strained r ined and anxious but through the agony ran a thread of something so exciting that he was strung like a taut bow there was the first thrilling whiff of real achievement it was not only his hands that had changed all the listlessness of the daydreamer day dreamer the sliding away from reality had gone lie he looked stood moved eagerly and with determination he was in love he was in the very core ot of life and he wrestled with it as jacob wrestled with the angel the achievement was folcka and the winning of her friendship he had a horse now he had bad her in the same intimate sense that howard had highboy he ride her yet but she was his because she had given herself to him while she stood eating her oats his hands smoothed the satin soft skin under her mane it had a nap as deep as plush he played with her long cream colored tresses arranged her forelock neatly between her eyes she was a bit dish faced like an arab with eyes set tar far apart ken kea kept a currycomb curry comb and brush in the crotch of the cottonwood tree and lightly groomed and brushed her flicki enjoyed this As he moved about her first on one side then the other kneeling down I 1 to brush her legs and polish her small hoots hoofs which had the color and sheen of cream colored marble she turned her head bead to him and always if 11 she could rested her muzzle on him ken grew used to the feel of the warm moist lips against his shoulder or back and his mother i complained of all the polo shirts he dirtied tending to blicka lie he spoiled her soon she would not step to the stream to drink but he be must hold a bucket tor for her and she would drink then lift ifft her d dripping rip muzzle rest it on his bis shoulder her golden eyes dreaming off I 1 nto into the distance then daintily dip her mouth auth and drink again TO BE CONTINUED |