He taught her to use a rifle and she brought down her first deer, a yearling buck, at long range.
"I told you to hold just behind his shoulder; see where you hit," he said, indicating the wound, a hand's breadth too far back.
She shot with his revolver and he told her that she would never learn to use the weapon. She bade him teach her the rudiments of roping and he decried the woman movements of arms and body.
In all this he was quick to criticise, niggardly of praise; ready to teach, reluctant to grant progress.
She was resentful but her resentment was no match for her determination. Now and then his rebukes whipped flushes to her cheeks and more than once she left him with tears standing in her eyes, only to tell herself aloud that she would make him acknowledge her accomplishments....
Once, riding on alone after Jane had turned back toward the ranch Beck encountered Sam McKee. The man had dismounted and was recinching when Tom passed him. He looked up with that baleful expression, as though he was impelled to do the HC rider great harm and held back only by his cowardice. When Tom had passed McKee mounted and before he started on his way he turned to shout over his shoulder:
"Chaperone!"
In it he put all that contempt which small, timid boys put into their shouted taunts.
Beck was not angered but that gave him something to think about.
Another time as, on his roan, he led the sorrel toward the gate to the houseyard he saw Hepburn smiling at him with scornful humour and when the foreman saw that Beck had seen he said: