Page:Triangles of life, and other stories.djvu/220

208 he hid it about the place. She wanted to ride the filly to the races at Coborrah on New Year's Day, and she met James by appointment at the old branding yard down the creek that Sunday to see if she could manage the filly. James shifted the side-saddle from Maggie's horse to the filly, and Maggie persuaded him to put the skirt on and get on the filly. Women will get commonsensible, practical men to make fools of themselves all over the world.

They were in the old yard, but James hadn't put up the rails yet, and the filly bolted with him. Now, as I told you, James wasn't used to side-saddle, and the skirt handicapped him a lot, so all he could do was to hold on like grim death and swear.

Oh, but he was wild that Sunday. He sat inside and sulked, till he could stand the three-cornered conversation of the chaps no longer; then he jumped up and came out on the verandah.

"Look here, Dave Regan," he said, "I suppose you think it was all very funny?"

"Yes, James," drawled Dave, "I do—an' that's a fact."

"You're a ——— fool," said James, "and I wouldn't mind taking a fall out of you now!"

The other fellows shifted their grins inside of themselves quick, but Mary went for James red-hot and cooled him a bit. While he was getting it from her, some one sings out—

"Why, here comes Maggie Charlesworth!"

She was riding James' horse, on his saddle, but sideways, of course, and leading her own. As soon as