I Conquered""

pt

ake one more stride. Gravity does the work. The horse jerks his fore legs from under his bod

jerky, stiff-legged plunges, hindquarters scrooged far under his body; ale

in the split second which intervened between the beginning and ending of that floundering jump, eyes met eyes. The eyes of a man met the eyes of a beast, and heart read heart. The eyes of a man who had frittered his life, who had flaunted his heritage of strength in body and bone until he had become a weakling, a cringing

he purposeless life of Danny Lenox, flamed Young VB's soul. All the emulation, all the lust this beast before him had roused in his heart, became amalgamated with

error. For the beast caught the significance of that splendid determination which made for conquest with a power equal to his own strength, which was making for escape. The t

second leap. It writhed; it stretched out waveringly, seekingly, feelingly as though uncertain, almost blindly, but swiftly-so swiftly! The loop flattened and spread and undulated, drawing the long stretch of hemp after it teasingly. It stopped, as though suddenly tired. It poised w

ath from the man's tight teeth, the rattle of stone on stone; then the squeal

raised to strike from him the snaring strand. The pawing hoof did not reach its mark, did not find the thi

before he could bring about a full stop that shock arrived. It seemed as though it would tear the horn from the saddle. The pon

k. For ten long seconds the Captain stood braced against the rope, moving his head slowly from side to side for all the world as a refractory, gentled colt might do

ed upward, drawing closer, shutting down and down. The depression in the flesh grew deeper. One hind foot lost its hold in

thunderstorm the Captain turned loose his giant forces. The thing had jerked him back

he bracing pony through the shale, the great, black horse-regal screamed and coughed his ra

ith his long teeth and clamped them on it, but the thing would not yield. He settled to all fours again, threw his head f

strained. And all the time that man sat there on his horse, tense, watching silently, moving his free hand slightly to and fro, as t

the stallion charged his man enemy just as he had charged the powerful Percheron who had come to challenge him a month ago. The saddle horse, s

in and making the gray face bronze, then deeper than bronze. His eyes puffed under the stress of that emotion, and he felt a primitive desire to growl as the Captain whirled and came again. It was man to beast, and somewhere d

is chest, fell short, and the hair of VB's chap leg went ripping f

e lash of his loaded quirt. He felt the breath again, hot, wet, and a splatter of froth from the flapping lips struck hi

h did not sink into his flesh, for the quirt-butt, a leaden

he Captain dropped to all fours and hung his head, staggere

hoof met its mark and racked the flesh of VB's leg, but that did not matter. He could stand that punishment, for he was winning! He was countering the stallion's efforts, which made the contest an even break; and his rope was on and he had dealt on

abbed VB to his tenderest depths. But he knew it must be so, and his shout was a shout of

nted and strained, but was jerked sharply about by the rushes of the heavier stallion, heavier and built of things above mere fles

o part the strands. VB's heart leaped as his faith in the rope faltered-but it held, and the stallion, pulle

melessly with spurs and babbling witlessly as he strove to make slack in the rope. The slack came. Then the quick jer

im, and the loop in the rope dissolved. Again

Young VB. "Scotched

rope from neck to limb was so short that it kept the foot clear of the ground, crippling the Captain, and as the great horse floundered to h

the rope came tight he was upen

s voice crackling in excitement.

nd legs and make assault, but the effort only sent him falling backw

He got up and tried to run, but every series of awkward moves only sent his black body down into the du

e sensations-the abrupt drop of spirits, the swel

? Only you had to be mine! I had to get bigger than you were, Captain

ime, his eyes without the lig

ns, a new faith in self welled up from his innermost depths, making his pu

s first big figh

drip from the s

e possessing him. "It's where I struck you, Captain. Oh, it hurts me, too-but it must be so, bec

gritted on

d roused VB, and

le land was in shadow. He was a long way from the ranch with thi

B recognized him as one of the trio of f

VB, and turned to

ied: "You've go

y, as though too much breath were in

oked at him i