"I'll tell yer what," said a large Scotch boy, "ye wait a bit, Miss Bright, an' I'll bring ye y'r chair, an' then 'twill be easy enough."
So the chair was brought, and the teacher seated herself on the horse's back, sideways.
"Oh, ye must ride straddles," insisted Donald, "or ye'll sure fall off."
"Yes, straddles," echoed another; but Esther shook her head dubiously, and pointed to her full blue flannel walking skirt.
"Oh, that's all right," said the tallest boy, "everybody rides straddles here."
"Try it," urged Brigham.
So she tried it. But she was not the only passenger who rode astride. Michael and Patrick, the little Murphy twins, were helped to a place behind her. Wathemah then climbed up in front of her.
"Is this all?" she asked, laughingly.
"I should think it was enough," said Kenneth Hastings, who at that moment joined the company.
As he caught Esther's eye, both laughed, and the children joined from pure sympathy.