“Look there, Frank,” Andy was saying a little later, “you can see the ranch house as plain as anything from here, and why, if that ain’t the boys coming on the tear over yonder!”
Frank, looking, saw that his chum spoke the truth. There could be seen a confused medley of boys and horses. They were whipping their mounts madly, and using both hats and quirts to try and increase their speed.
“That must be Charley Woo among the front ones,” Frank remarked, after he had taken a second good look.
“Yes, you can tell him miles off by his white clothes,” Andy went on to say, “and he’s done himself proud, has Charley, this day. Uncle must be there alongside, and asking more questions, as he tried to get a little more speed out of his mount. And I reckon they’ve glimpsed us, Frank, by the way they act. Are we going to land and let them see that Little Sunbeam is safe with us?”
“It would be cruelty to animals not to,” replied the pilot, as he started to head gradually toward the earth.
Ten minutes later, and they were surrounded by an eager, excited throng, and when Buckskin, Shorty, and all that lot learned that little Becky had not suffered to any serious extent as a result of her terribly long and wearisome ride, bound on a pony as she had been, they “awoke all creation,” as Andy declared, with their exultant whoops.
Nothing would do but that the boys must tell the whole story; and those wild riders fairly held their breath as they listened to the modest account of that most remarkable dash through space, to arrive just in the nick of time—Frank called it the psychological moment, and then had to stop and explain just what he meant by that, before they would let him proceed.
It was the greatest story they had ever heard. They would never have believed such a thing possible, only that they knew Frank and Andy never told yarns, or even stretched a fish story. Besides, there was little Becky ready to corroborate all that had been said. Mr. Witherspoon insisted upon taking the child on his horse, and thus heading for the ranch, while the boys continued their flight; of course they would arrive at their destination an hour before the ponies could make it, and thus relieve the minds of those who were there.
The round-up was all off for the present. Later on they could make another start, and this time the boys would be along, to witness all that was done, with Andy taking pictures of the various phases of the operation, as long as his roll of films lasted.
But Mr. Witherspoon had learned a lesson, and never again would he leave home without a sufficient guard remaining there at the ranch house to handle any situation that might arise.