As I stood debating the question in my mind, I was almost upon the
point of making the attempt at the long throw. I had plenty of
rope, this Galu weapon being fully sixty feet long. How I wished
for the collies from the ranch! At a word they would have circled
this little bunch and driven it straight down to me; and then it
flashed into my mind that Nobs had run with those collies all one
summer, that he had gone down to the pasture with them after the
cows every evening and done his part in driving them back to the
milking-barn, and had done it intelligently; but Nobs had never
done the thing alone, and it had been a year since he had done it
at all. However, the chances were more in favor of my foozling
the long throw than that Nobs would fall down in his part if I gave
him the chance.
Having come to a decision, I had to creep back to Nobs and get him,
and then with him at my heels return to a large bush near the four
horses. Here we could see directly through the bush, and pointing
the animals out to Nobs I whispered: "Fetch 'em, boy!"
In an instant he was gone, circling wide toward the rear of the
quarry. They caught sight of him almost immediately and broke
into a trot away from him; but when they saw that he was apparently
giving them a wide berth they stopped again, though they stood
watching him, with high-held heads and quivering nostrils.
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