“Well, a jigger’s a mighty handy thing for haulin’ heavy loads,” explained Captain Ed.
“But it hain’t no pneumatic cushions for sore bones,” chuckled the neighbour.
“No sir-ee! nor no ”C“ spring buggy, neither,” laughed Captain Ed.
Before the boys reached the farm their breakfast was well jounced down so that the home-made cake and milk offered them by the Captain’s wife was most welcome.
“We came to ride your colt,” declared Paul, between bites.
“Oh, no! We came to visit you, Mrs. Blake, but the Captain told us we might ride the colt,” hurriedly corrected Dudley, with great diplomacy.
Paul stared and Mrs. Blake laughed understandingly but she immediately invited the boys to come with her to the pasture. She carried a bridle over her arm and when they reached the lot Brownie was coaxed to come over and nibble a lump of sugar from her mistress’ hand. While doing this, the colt kept her eyes on the two strange boys. But it is safe to say that Brownie would not have submitted to the bridle had it not been for the extra sugar the boys gave her.
While Mrs. Blake held the colt by the forelock and bridle, Paul, who had won the prized slip of paper, tried to mount. The boy had taken short rides at home on Billy Remington’s pony, but this was an entirely new proposition. After a number of trials and failures to mount, Dudley laughed and cried to him:
“Hey, there! Come over and mount from this stone wall!”
So Mrs. Blake led Brownie over to the wall while Paul scrambled on top and in that way managed to slide over on the colt’s silky bare back.