"I—I had one foot in the stirrup. The beast started and I slipped. Then I got hung up."
"He got hung up. Hooray!" cried Ned.
Chunky tried to punch him, but Rector laughingly thrust the fat boy away from him.
"If you will stand still it will be ended in a moment, Stacy," soothed Tad. "My, what a drubbing you did get! So you got hung up?"
"Ye—yes. Then the fool horse ran away. I—I never walked so fast in my life. It—it was like sailing in the air. My feet were straight out behind me most of the time. You ought to try it, fellows. It's great. I'll bet I should have made a hit in a circus with that."
"I hope you didn't destroy any of the cypress trees," observed the guide.
Stacy gave him a resentful look.
"Walter, get another pair of trousers from Chunky's kit. This pair isn't fit to be worn again," directed Butler.
Walter Perkins hastened to obey Tad's order, and in a few minutes they had fixed the boy up so that he was reasonably comfortable, though his body was sore and it hurt him even to laugh.
"I don't know what we are going to do with you, young man," reflected the Professor, chin in hand, eyes fixed coldly upon the face of the fat boy.