“What did I do?”
“You didn’t do anything—it was something you said. You won’t mind, will you, as long as you are learning to ride a horse, if I teach you the correct terminology at the same time?”
“Why, of course not! What did I say? Was it very awful?”
“Oh, no; but it always amuses me when I hear it. It’s about getting on and off. You get on or off a street car, but you mount or dismount if you’re riding a horse.”
“But I don’t!” she exclaimed, laughing. “Falling on and off would suit my method better.”
“No, you mount very nicely. Now watch, and I’ll show you how to dismount. Put your left hand on the horn; throw your right leg over the cantle, immediately grasping the cantle with the right hand; stand erect in the left stirrup, legs straight and heels together—you see, I’m facing right across the horse. Now support the weight of the body with your arms, like this; remove the left foot from the stirrup and drop to the ground, alighting evenly on both feet. That’s the correct form and a good plan to follow while you’re learning to ride. Afterward one gets to swing off almost any old way.”
“I thought one always dismounted,” she suggested, “from a horse!”
Her eyes twinkled. He laughed.
“I’ll have to be careful, won’t I? You scored that time!”
“Now watch me,” she said.