"He's saved hisself by blindin' ther bull. He throwed dust inter its eyes. I'm dinged if I see how thet feller kin think o' things like thet when he's down an' out. Look at him!"
As the bull rubbed its face in the grass Ted rolled over twice, then leaped to his feet and ran to where Sultan was awaiting him.
A mighty cheer went up from the boys, and the color came back into Stella's face with a rush, but she could not have uttered a sound to save her life.
In the meantime, the bull had recovered, having rubbed the dust from its eyes in the short grass, and looked about for its enemy.
It caught sight of Ted in the act of mounting, and sprang toward him with the swiftness of a deer.
Then Stella recovered her voice.
"Run, Ted! Run!" she cried.
But Ted had seen the necessity of that himself, and, wheeled Sultan and dashed off, looking over his shoulder at the enraged monster that was following him, while he rapidly uncoiled his lariat.
Having run several hundred yards and outdistanced the bull, he turned and stopped with his rope in his hand, closely calculating the animal's distance and speed.
Bud and Stella were following the bull closely, both of them preparing their lariats for the throw.