He had heard that when beasts of burden were scarce,
cows, and especially bulls, were worked in ploughs and ridden by
the mountaineers, even by the women. But this had become a
tradition, the humor of which greater prosperity and contact with a
new civilization had taught even the mountain people to
appreciate. The necessities of this girl were evidently as great as
her fear of ridicule seemed small. When the brute stopped, she
began striking him in the flank with her bare heel, without looking
around, and as he paid no attention to such painless goading, she
turned with sudden impatience and lifted a switch above his
shoulders. The stick was arrested in mid-air when she saw
Clayton, and then dropped harmlessly. The quick fire in her eyes
died suddenly away, and for a moment the two looked at each
other with mutual curiosity, but only for a moment. There was
something in Clayton's gaze that displeased her. Her face clouded,
and she dropped her eyes.
"G'long," she said, in a low tone. But the bull had lowered his
head, and was standing with feet planted apart and tail waving
uneasily. The girl looked up in alarm.
"Watch out thar! " she called out, sharply. "Call that dog off-
quick!"
Clayton turned, but his dog sprang past him and began to bark.
The bull, a lean, active, vicious-looking brute, answered with a
snort.
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