“Boys, the day you leave White Slides will be a sad one for me,” sighed Columbine.

“Miss Collie, we ’ain’t gone yet,” put in Lem, with awkward softness.  “Jim has long hankered fer Wyomin’ an’ he jest talks thet way.”

Then the cowboys turned to the business in hand.  Jim removed the saddle, but left the bridle on.  This move, of course, deceived Whang.  He had been broken to stand while his bridle hung, and, like a horse that would have been good if given a chance, he obeyed as best he could, shaking in every limb.  Jim, apparently to hobble Whang, roped his forelegs together, low down, but suddenly slipped the rope over the knees.  Then Whang knew he had been deceived.  He snorted fire, let out a scream, and, rearing on his hind legs, he pawed the air savagely.  Jim hauled on the rope while Whang screamed and fought with his forefeet high in the air.  Then Jim, with a powerful jerk, pulled Whang down and threw him, while Lem, seizing the bridle, hauled him over on his side and sat upon his head.  Whereupon Jim slipped the loop off one front hoof and pulled the other leg back across one of the hind ones, where both were secured by a quick hitch.  Then the lasso was wound and looped around front and back hoofs together.  When this had been done the mustang was rolled over on his other side, his free front hoof lassoed and pulled back to the hind one, where both were secured, as had been the others.  This rendered the mustang powerless, and the shoeing proceeded.

Columbine hated to sit by and watch it, but she always stuck to her post, when opportunity afforded, because she knew the cowboys would not be brutal while she was there.

“Wal, he’ll step high to-morrer,” said Lem, as he got up from his seat on the head of Whang.

“Ahuh!  An’, like a mule, he’ll be my friend fer twenty years jest to get a chance to kick me.” replied Jim.

For Columbine, the most interesting moment of this incident was when the mustang raised his head to look at his legs, in order to see what had been done to them.  There was something almost human in that look.  It expressed intelligence and fear and fury.

The cowboys released his legs and let him get up.  Whang stamped his iron-shod hoofs.

“It was a mean trick, Whang,” said Columbine.  “If I owned you that’d never be done to you.”

“I reckon you can have him fer the askin’,” said Jim, as he threw on the saddle.  “Nobody but me can ride him.  Do you want to try?”

“Not in these clothes,” replied Columbine, laughing.

“Wal, Miss Collie, you’re shore dressed up fine to-day, fer some reason or other,” said Lem, shaking his head, while he gathered up the tools from the ground.

“Ahuh!  An’ here comes the reason,” exclaimed Jim, in low, hoarse whisper.