"Why, Mason said that he would lend me a horse out of his string for the day, as both of mine traveled all night, and I thought I would ride along either with the cattle herd or the horse bunch, and use my eyes as much as I could."
"That's a good idea," said Jack. "Now Joe and I are going out with the cattle herd to-day, and if you want to come with us, you can see something, and I think you can learn something too."
"Ripping," was Donald's answer.
"Well, I'll go over and see Mason and find out what horse he wants you to ride and then we'll get started; but, hold on, here's Mason now;" and a moment later Mason rode up to the fire and handed to Donald the rope that was about the neck of a small but beautiful bay horse.
"Have you fixed on what you're going to do, Donald?" he asked; and Donald told him what they had decided on.
"That's bully," said Mason. "I'm riding with the herd to-day, so we'll be together again."
As they rode off toward the herd, Donald turned to Jack.
"It seems to me that Mason is a great man," he said.
"How do you mean?"
"Why, all last night as we rode along he was singing and whistling and making jokes, and telling funny stories. Three or four times I nearly fell off my horse from laughing at him; and yet the day before that, according to the story, he beat up a man in town so that he will have to be in bed for six weeks."