Keith Robertson

“ He came down the lane at a full gallop swinging an exceptionally large noose. As he tore past the dummy, he swung wildly. Out of the corner of his eye he could see the loop encircle the dummy. Jim wrapped the end of his lariat around the saddle horn and braced himself as if he had just roped a huge steer. It was well he did, for unfortunately the noose caught the evergreen also. There was a terrific tug on the lariat and before the horse and rider could stop, half the branches on the little evergreen had been ripped off and were being dragged down the lane with the dummy. ”

“ Jim gained a new respect for Colonel Flesher at the auctions. He had always wondered secretly how a man could be as fat as the stock buyer unless he were lazy, but he changed his mind at the sales. The big man was going from three in the afternoon, when the sale opened, until it ended, usually about nine in the evening. It was a mystery to Jim how the colonel’s voice managed to keep up its steady flow, hour after hour. He never lost his enthusiasm either. He would shout as jovially and interestedly while selling a fifty-cent used ironing board as he would over a prize cow. ”

“ Jim’s little sister hadn’t decided whether to be scornful of the horse or to like him as she did all the other animals around the farm.
Under the circumstances it was not strange that the mustang welcomed Jim home from school each afternoon, particularly since the reunion usually meant an apple. The little pony had never had anyone really love him before and he was quick to respond. Like most horses, the mustang had always wanted to be close friends with some man. While the cow hands on the range had treated him well, no one had ever singled him out for any particular attention. ”

“ Ticktock followed his instructions remarkably well. He seemed to sense what was wanted and faithfully kept the remaining eight cows tightly bunched. Shouting and waving his arms, Jim chased the old cow from the garden before any damage was done except a few deep hoof prints in the soft earth. As he herded the straying animal back across the sidewalk toward the main herd, he looked for the stray on the opposite side of the street. Dismayed he saw the steer was already across the well-kept lawn and almost to an orderly flower garden which nestled at the side of a little white bungalow. ”

“ She pulled him, kicking and struggling, back to the center of the porch.
“Where do you think you’re going?” she demanded.
“Ticktock is in the yard,” pointed out Jim, almost beside himself with fear for his precious horse.
“The bull won’t bother a horse,” Jim’s mother reassured him.
“He will too!” cried Jim. “I saw a movie of a bull-fight and bulls sometimes kill horses.”
“Nevertheless, you are staying right here,” said Mrs. Meadows firmly. “If anybody gets hurt, it is not going to be you. Besides, Ticktock is a ranch pony. He can take care of himself.” ”

“ The ice cream was carefully packed so that it was still in good condition when Jim arrived at the hide-out.
“You certainly are the answer to a man’s prayer,” said Timothy, dividing the ice cream into two equal portions. “Ice cream and cigarettes! I really was craving a smoke. You put those ravens in the Bible to shame, Jim. Imagine a bird delivering a quart of ice cream! I prefer a boy with a horse. It’s not so fancy, but it’s a good deal more satisfying to the stomach.” ”

“ Ticktock was becoming sleek and fat by the end of June. Decked out in his handsome new saddle he was enough to fill Jim with a reasonable pride and all the other boys with envy. Mrs. Meadows made two sturdy saddlebags of canvas which Jim had fitted out with straps and buckles at the harness-maker. The completed outfit cost him a dollar and a half, which he hated to spend from his slowly accumulating hoard of feed money, but he felt the saddlebags were a necessary part of his business equipment. He also squandered three dollars on a poncho which he felt any self-respecting cowboy should own. ”

“ Jim threw his arms around his horse’s neck and hugged him in ecstasy. “You’re all right now, Ticktock. You’re all well again.”
“I’d just lead him around for a few minutes a day at first, Jim. Don’t let him run at all for six weeks and aside from when you’re exercising him, keep him in the stall. You should wait at least three months before you ride him.”
Jim led his horse out to the barn where he had his stall prepared. He wanted to be alone with the pony for a few minutes. Tears of happiness were welling up in his eyes—tears that he preferred no one see. ”

“ Jim returned to his stricken mustang. During the fire, excitement had replaced much of his grief, but now it returned with all its former force. Dejectedly he sat down beside Jean to stroke the horse’s quivering head. He was still dumbly patting Ticktock’s neck when Mr. Meadows came to stand beside him some minutes later. Jim looked up at his blackened, begrimed father.
“He broke his halter rope and kicked down the door,” said the older man. “Why he jumped the fence into the yard we’ll never know. I guess horses can do a lot more thinking than we realize. ”

“ Feeling that he had allayed suspicion for the moment, Jim rode off toward the hide-out. While the intrigue he was carrying on with Timothy was the most exciting adventure in which he had ever taken part, he had to face facts. Avoiding questions was bound to become increasingly more difficult. Also, the end of summer vacation was not too far distant. Going to school, doing his chores at home, and continuing the operation of the Pony Express was going to make a very stiff schedule without the added labor of having to administer to the wants of Timothy. ”

“ Meadows had shown no signs of relenting toward the pony. He ignored the mustang as much as possible and when he did have to notice the pony, his eyes contained as much dislike as ever.
Something had to be done, decided Jim. Perhaps he could think of some way to earn money. If he could get enough money to pay for Ticktock’s feed for the winter, his father’s chief objection would be overcome. Then with his mother on his side, Jim felt he might win a reprieve for his horse. He thought over the possible ways of earning money. There weren’t many jobs a boy could do on a farm that brought in cash. ”

“ The bull turned around and was pawing again. After his experience in the orchard, Jim was well acquainted with the ugly animal’s tactics.
“Look out, Ticktock!” he shouted.
The mustang needed no warning. He was watching the bull with a quizzical look. He seemed amazed, as if he couldn’t quite believe that a “cow critter” could possibly be stupid enough to try any tricks on a smart ranch pony like himself. He cocked his head and stood waiting as if he were saying, “I’ll just wait and see if this is really true. Maybe I just imagined that bull was rushing at me.”
[46]
The bull rushed all right. ”

“ Ticktock was a horse of considerable independence. He wanted people to like him, but if they didn’t, he wasted little time in trying to win their favor. Affection was a two-way affair with him. Mrs. Meadows and Jean were neutral and puzzled respectively, so Ticktock reserved judgment on them. But the mustang definitely did not like the tall man. When Mr. Meadows reached out confidently to open his jaws, Ticktock promptly took a nip at one of the outstretched hands. It wasn’t a savage bite—just a moderate bite, as the mustang didn’t hate the strange man. ”

“ Mr. Meadows said nothing, but the grin vanished. Very slowly and grimly he got out of the car and walked toward the horse. Mrs. Meadows and Jean followed, all gathering in front of the mustang. Ticktock stopped grazing and looked up inquiringly at his suddenly large audience.
“You traded your grandfather’s gold watch for that,” Mr. Meadows asked finally, with a contemptuous wave of his hand toward the horse.
“Uh-uh.” Jim sensed that matters were rapidly becoming difficult, so he tried to ease the situation as much as he could. “He’s the smartest horse you ever saw.” ”

“ On the other hand, you can’t keep them quiet by keeping them under dope because their nervous system just won’t stand it for any length of time. That’s why a race horse seldom recovers from a broken leg—he’s such a nervous animal he won’t keep still.”
“Ticktock’s not nervous,” said Jim promptly.
“No, he’s a rather calm little pony, but on the other hand, he’s no placid cow. I’ve seen times when he acted pretty spirited; so it won’t be beer and skittles keeping him quiet. And you’ve got to do it. Now you notice how sloping a horse’s leg is. ”

“ The following morning Jim bridled his mustang and departed eagerly for Springdale. Arriving at the Gazette building he sought out the editor. Arnold was seated in his office relaxing; his feet up on the desk, his swivel chair tipped back and a pipe between his teeth. To Jim he was the picture of editorial genius at work. Being an editor must be a fine occupation. ”

“ Hernstadt,” said Jim when they arrived. “This is Timothy Dinwiddie, a friend of mine. He’s a very good horse trainer. I remembered that you asked me to find you a good man to handle horses; so I brought him over to see you. The Pony Express always gets its man.”
“Glad to meet you,” said Mr. Hernstadt, shaking hands with Timothy. “What experience have you had?”
In a few minutes the two men were deep in horse talk, much of it far too technical for Jim. It was apparent to the horse breeder, after a short conversation, that Timothy definitely knew horses. ”

“ Jean came out to drop beside Ticktock in sorrow almost as great as Jim’s. While the girl comforted the pony, Jim and his mother rushed off to help Mr. Meadows. With misgivings, Jim’s father permitted him to go into the smoke-filled barn, for help was needed desperately. The terrorized animals were threshing about in their stalls so violently that it was dangerous work to get near them in the smoky interior to untie them. Choking and blinded, Jim led out one cow, only to plunge back in again after another. ”

“ Kind of a jolt to be sweet on a gal and have her turn around two weeks after you’re gone and marry your worst enemy. Well, they can have each other for my money. I wish them all the unhappiness in the world. ’Spose I’m lucky to find out about Alvina in time. Just doesn’t seem possible though that a woman who can bake an apple pie like Alvina does would turn out to be so fickle.”
“Well, it sure makes things simpler,” said Jim happily. He could not be bothered by such trivial matters as a broken heart. “Now I suppose you’ll go get your old job back as trainer?” ”

“ Jim inquired.
“Those back teeth are called grinders,” explained Timothy. “They grind up the grain and after a while they get sharp edges and points. Ticktock’s aren’t so bad, as apparently he hasn’t had too much grain. Anyhow, unless you file away those sharp edges, the horse can’t chew the way he should. When the teeth get really bad a horse gets out of condition and sometimes has colic. Filing down the teeth is called floating.”
“You weren’t wrong when you said he knew horses,” said Mr. Hernstadt to Jim. ”

“ Of course, the bull was often there but Jim and Ticktock ignored that animal as being beneath their notice.
The pony trotted over to the feed shed for his bridle. As Jim put his paper lunch bag inside the burlap sack, he thought longingly how handy a saddle would be. You could tie things such as your lunch to the saddle horn or, even better, get your mother to make some canvas bags to fasten behind the cantle. The way it was now, you had to have equal weights in both ends of the burlap bag to make it lie across the mustang’s back. ”

“ He led the mare back to the hideaway and tied her to a tree. He took off Ticktock’s saddle and the pony rolled gratefully in the tall grass. Jim sat down to eat his lunch, feeling very satisfied and happy. Ticktock was certainly a smart horse; he knew how to do everything. Now they could go back home in triumph. That seemed even more important than the reward. There was no question about it; his horse had saved the day.
[144]
As he thought about how creditable Ticktock’s part had been, Jim began to grow dissatisfied with his own performance. ”

“ The trader reached inside the wagon and pulled out a bridle.
“Here’s the bridle I got with the horse,” he said, climbing down from the wagon. “You’ll need a bridle, so I’ll throw that in. Now the horse has on a rope halter. It doesn’t look like much but it’s sturdy. You can have that too if you want.”
“Thanks, Mister,” said Jim, beginning to be overwhelmed by all his new property.
[23]
“Now I’ll tell you something,” said the old man. “There is such a thing as an honest horse trader even if people don’t think so. ”

“ He isn’t. That horse isn’t a bit mean; he’s been mistreated and he’s a little worried about whom to trust. You be good to him and he’ll be as gentle as can be.”
“He’ll like me,” said Jim confidently.
[24]
“I think he will. One other thing—that mustang is a smart critter. Horses are like people; some are just naturally dumb and others are smart. I’ve been handling the animals so long I’ve kinda got a sixth sense about ’em. Now this little feller is one of the smartest I’ve ever run across.”
Evarts untied the mustang from the end of the string and handed the rope to Jim. ”

“ The more Jim thought about the matter, the more puzzled he became. But no matter what the solution, he was very angry with whoever had stolen his horse. According to all the books he had read and movies he had seen, a horse thief was considered three degrees lower than a murderer. Jim agreed with the Western idea. Turning over such thoughts in his mind, he finally came to a decision. He saddled Ticktock, put on the bridle and then went into the house. He opened the closet to his father’s room and carefully got out a twenty-two rifle. ”

“ It seemed of particular importance on expensive items, such as large farm machinery, that the bidders maintain secrecy.
[94]
“They don’t want the other bidders to know who their competition is,” explained the colonel to Jim. “Everybody knows everybody else and about how much money he has. If a man knows who’s bucking him at an auction, he knows just about how high the other fellow is willing to go. That’s bad at a sale. For example, if a good milk cow was being sold and everybody knew old man Wilkins was bidding, they might get discouraged because they know he’s wealthy and stubborn. ”

“ He wished there was someone to whom he could tell his exciting tale, but such a course was out of the question. Others might not realize, as he did, that Timothy was the victim of a bad break. Anyone who would try to dope a horse deserved to be hit on the head, he decided. He had to guard the secret of Timothy very closely, because if the police found him they might hang him. He guessed that’s what they did with murderers.
The family had not returned when Jim arrived. He destroyed his note and then began grooming Ticktock. He was busily at work when the Meadows’ car drove in the lane. ”

“ Meadows was somewhat opposed to the idea, as he thought his daughter was too young to be riding Ticktock. Although small for a mustang and called a ranch pony, Ticktock was far from being any Shetland pony. Any fall from his back would be a long distance for such a small girl. Although he no longer had any worries about Jim and Ticktock, Mr. Meadows still considered the mustang to be rather high-spirited and apt to be vicious with anyone who didn’t know him too well. In spite of the parental disapproval, Jean spent more time each day learning to ride on the little horse. ”

“ Before it had been merely a matter of personal pride that kept Jim from telling Jean. Now it was a serious matter—a man’s life was involved.
To cover up his nervousness and unrest, Jim began teaching Ticktock a few new tricks. He had long since taught the mustang to stand quietly in one spot when his reins were dangling, not to crop grass while a rider was in the saddle, and various other accomplishments of a good riding horse. ”