Page:Edward Ellis--Alden the Pony Express Rider.djvu/279

 since, though parties now and then appeared in the distance as if reconnoitering. It was not to be expected that they would remain tranquil much longer.

“What kind of a route is it to the next station?” asked Alden, when the party had gone outside and he had mounted.

“Pretty much like what you’ve ridden over. Some stretches of good ground, with plenty of ravines and gullies and two or three streams to cross, but you couldn’t have a better season.”

“The pony seems to be a good one; I shall be satisfied if he is the equal of Dick.”

“He’s tough and fast; I think he once belonged to a circus, for he knows a good many tricks.”

“If he knows the trick of getting me through, neither I nor any one else could ask anything more of him.”

Alden was about to start when he recalled the matter of the cartridges. He gave his belt to Jenkins and accepted one from him. It might seem a trifling thing that he should leave the heavier one behind for the sake of the saving in weight, but such was the fact, though the difference was slight. He could secure