Now
and then the children saw little prairie dogs scurrying in and out of
their burrows. And once they saw a rattlesnake. But the serpent
crawled quickly out of the way, and Bert and Nan did not stop to see
where it went. They hurried on.
They reached the little hollow in the hills where the red flowers
grew, and, getting out of their saddles, began to pick some.
"They'll make a lovely bouquet for the living room," said Nan.
"Yes, but I guess we have enough," said Bert, "I don't want to stay
here too long. Mr. Dayton promised to show me how to throw a lasso to-
day, and I've got to learn; that is, if I'm going to be a cowboy."
"All right," agreed Nan. "We'll get in a minute. I want to get just a
few more flowers." She was gathering another handful of the red
blossoms when suddenly she looked up, and something she saw on top of
a little hill caused her to cry:
"Oh, Bert, look! Look! What's that?"
Bert glanced up. He saw a wild steer looking at him and his sister.
The big animal was lashing his tail from side to side and pawing the
earth with one hoof.
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