"Not this time, Sonny," answered his father.
So Uncle Fred and Daddy Bunker, with some of the cowboys, saddled their horses and started off to look for the lost cattle.
"I wish I could go!" sighed Russ, as he watched the horsemen riding off.
"So do I," echoed Laddie. "We could maybe help catch 'em. Mother, couldn't we go?"
"They'd be more likely to catch you, just as the calf did," said Mother Bunker. "Wouldn't they, Captain Roy?"
"Yes, indeed," answered the old soldier, smiling at the children. "Men who take cattle that do not belong to them are very likely to be bad men, and they would not be nice to the six little Bunkers. You stay with me, and you may come out and see the ponies again, though I won't promise you can ride on them."
"Are you going to feed them?" asked Mun Bun.
"No, they feed themselves on the grass in their field," said the captain.
"I don't like to eat grass," said Mun Bun, shaking his head.
"Neither do I," added Margy.