Captain Vancouver said he would, so Docas went to the stable and saddled some of the Mission horses for them, and one for himself also. They all rode together a few miles out from the Mission, where the cattle were feeding. The soldiers rode along with them.
The cattle were very large and would not let anybody come near them. Each of the soldiers had a long rope made of horsehair, with a noose at the end. He twisted one end of the line around the pommel of his saddle. The other end with the noose he swung round and round his head. This they called a lasso.
The soldiers decided which one of the cattle they would catch first, and then several of them galloped toward the animal. When they got close enough, they all threw their lassos at the same time. One of the men caught his line around the horns of the animal, another caught its hind leg, and another its fore leg.
The horses on which the soldiers were riding stopped short, and the animal was thrown to the ground, for the ropes held him tight so that he could not move. Then another man went up to him and killed him. Twenty-two of the cattle were caught and killed in this way before Docas said it was time to go home.
“We shall have a great feast to-day,” said Docas.
After the feast was over, the Indians danced and played games. The visitors again came out to watch them have a play fight.
They made Massea their chief and pretended that a large bundle of straw was the enemy. Oshda and the other boys and men got their bows and arrows. They jumped and danced around the bundle of straw, swinging their arms and yelling. Massea at last gave them a sign, and the Indians all shot their arrows at the straw bundle. Then they yelled louder than ever, for they were pretending that they had beaten the enemy.
Some of them put Massea on their shoulders, and others danced around him. They carried him up in front of the Fathers and the visitors who were watching; then they carried him back to the Indian village.
When it was time for evening service they stopped their games until after service and supper were over. In the evening they had a dance. After the visitors had stayed a day or two longer, they rode back to San Francisco.