"It's back to the ranch
or nothing!"
Dave steered the best course he could for the corral, but with nothing
to guide him he did not know if he was moving exactly in the right
direction or not. He kept on, with his eyes trying to look beyond the
wide-stretching prairies.
Presently he saw in the distance what looked to be a row of low
buildings. He headed in that direction, and then saw that the objects
were moving towards him.
"They can't be buildings, for buildings don't move like that," he mused.
"Must be cattle, or horses. Cattle, most likely."
To avoid the cattle, he turned slightly southward. But the animals kept
coming closer, and now he saw that they were running in something of a
semicircle.
"Can anything be wrong with them?" he asked himself, and watched the
approaching herd with interest. The bronco, too, pricked up his ears,
and gave a sudden snort of alarm.
Then to Dave's ears came the thunder of the herd's hoofs, and he saw
that the cattle were on a mad run. He drew rein and stood up in his
stirrups.
The sight that met his gaze was truly alarming. At least a thousand head
of steers were coming toward him, running swiftly, and with their horns
bent low.
"They have stampeded!" he gasped. "And they are coming straight this
way! What shall I do to escape them?"
CHAPTER XXIV
THE CATTLE STAMPEDE
Dave had often heard of cattle stampedes, and he knew how truly
dangerous such a mad rush can become.
Pages:
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213