“Put me on his back, Bunker!”

“All right, Sue!  Come along.  Whoa, there, Major!”

Major stood still, for he was very gentle.  Bunker lifted Sue up on the animal’s broad back, and held her there while he led the horse to the drinking trough.

“Do you want a ride, too?” asked Ben Hall of Bunny.

“Yes,” answered the little boy.

“Here you go then.  We’ll both ride this horse to water.”

Ben Hall did a strange thing.  All at once he jumped up in the air, and before Bunny or Sue knew what he was doing the strange boy was sitting on the back of Prince, the other horse.  He had jumped up as easily as a bouncing, rubber ball.

“Now then, come over here, and I’ll lift you up in front of me!” called Ben to Bunny, and soon the little fellow was sitting on the back of Prince, while Ben guided him to the drinking trough.

“Say, that’s a good way to get up on a horse’s back, Ben!” called Bunker Blue, who had seen what Ben had done.  “Where did you learn that trick of jumping up?”

“Oh, I—­I just sort of learned it—­that’s all.  It’s easy when you practise it.”

“Well, I’m going to practise then,” said Bunker.  “I’d like to learn to jump on a horse’s back the way you did.”

When the horses had had their water Bunker lifted Sue down from the back of Major.

“But I want to ride back to the barn,” the little girl said.

“And in a minute so you shall,” promised Bunker.  “Only, just now, I want to see if I can jump up the way Ben did.”

Bunker tried it, but he nearly fell.

“I can’t do it,” he said.  “It looks easy, but it’s hard.  You must have had to practise a good while, Ben.”

“Yes, I did.”

“How long?”

“Oh, about five years!”

Bunker Blue whistled in surprise.

“Five years!” he cried.  “I’ll never be able to do that.  Let me see once more how you do it.”

Ben lifted Bunny down, and once more the strange boy leaped with one jump upon the back of the horse.

“Why, he does it just like the men in the circus!” exclaimed Sue.  “Oh, Bunny, Ben will make a good jumper in our circus.”

“Yes,” agreed the little boy.  “Do you think, Ben, you could show me how to get on a horse’s back that way?” Bunny asked.

“Well, I’m afraid not—­not such a little boy as you,” answered Ben, as he lifted Bunny up on Prince’s back once more for the ride to the barn.

The horses were tied in their stalls again, after Bunny and Sue had been lifted from the backs of the animals.  Then Bunny said: 

“You are going to stay here and help work on the farm, Ben.  My grandmother said so.  And, if you are, will you come out and look at the barn where we are going to have our circus?  Maybe you and Bunker can help us put up the trapeze.”

“Not now, Bunny boy,” said Bunker.  “We have to go and pull weeds out of the garden.  We’ll look at the barn right after dinner.”