CHAPTER II--BASHFUL IKE
The situation in the big automobile was quite as serious as Tom and Bobbelieved, and there was very good reason for the girls to express theirfright in a chorus of screams. But Ruth Fielding, and her chum, Helen,on the front seat, controlled themselves better than the other Easterngirls; Jane Ann Hicks never said a word, but her uncle looked quite asstartled as his guests.
"I am sartainly graveled!" muttered the ranchman, staring all around forsome means of saving the party from disaster. "Hi gollies! if I only hada leetle old rope now----"
But he had no lariat, and roping a mad steer from an automobile wouldcertainly have been a new experience for Bill Hicks. He had brought theparty of young folk out to Montana just to give his niece pleasure, andhaving got Ruth Fielding and her friends here, he did not want to spoiltheir visit by any bad accident. These young folk had been what BillHicks called "mighty clever" to his Jane Ann when she had been castawayin the East, and he had promised their friends to look out for them alland send them home in time for school in the Fall with the propercomplement of legs and arms, and otherwise whole as to their physicalbeing.
Ruth Fielding, after the death of her parents when she was quite a younggirl, had left Darrowtown and all her old friends and home associations,to live with her mother's uncle, at the Red Mill, on the Lumano River,near Cheslow in York State. Her coming to Uncle Jabez Potter's, and herearly adventures about the mill, were related in the first volume ofthis series, entitled "Ruth Fielding of the Red Mill; Or, JasperParloe's Secret."
Ruth had found Uncle Jabez very hard to get along with, for he was amiser and his kinder nature had been crusted over by years of hoardingand selfishness; but through a happy turn of circumstances Ruth wasenabled to get at the heart of her crotchety old uncle, and when Ruth'sdearest friend, Helen Cameron, planned to go to boarding school, UncleJabez was won over to the scheme of sending the girl with her. The funand work of that first term at school is related in the second volume ofthe series, entitled "Ruth Fielding at Briarwood Hall; Or, Solving theCampus Mystery."
For the mid-winter vacation Ruth accompanied Helen and other schoolfriends to Mr. Cameron's hunting camp, up toward the Canadian line. In"Ruth Fielding at Snow Camp; Or, Lost in the Backwoods," the girls andsome of their boy friends experience many adventures and endure somehardship and peril while lost in the snow-shrouded forest.
One of Ruth's chums, Jennie Stone, otherwise known as "Heavy," invitedher to Lighthouse Point, with a party of young people, for part of thesummer vacation; and although Uncle Jabez was in much trouble over hisinvestment in the Tintacker Mine, which appeared to be a swindle, theold miller had allowed Ruth to accompany her friends to the seashorebecause he had already promised her the outing. In "Ruth Fielding atLighthouse Point; Or, Nita, the Girl Castaway," is narrated all the funand delightful experiences the girl of the Red Mill and her friends hadat the seaside; including the saving of a girl from the wreck of alumber schooner, a miss who afterward proved to be Jane Ann Hicks, theniece of a very wealthy Montana ranch owner. The girl had run away fromthe ranch and from her guardian and calls herself Nita, "because thegirl in the paper-covered novel was called Nita."
That was just the sort of a romantic, foolish girl Jane Ann Hicks was;but she learned a few things and was glad to see her old uncle, rough ashe was, when he came hunting for her. And Mr. Bill Hicks had learned afew things, too. He had never seen people spend money before he cameEast, and he had not understood Jane Ann's longing for the delicate andbeautiful things in life. He saw, too, that a girl could not be properlybrought up on a cattle ranch, with nothing but cow punchers and Indiansand Mexican women about, and Mr. Hicks had determined to give his niece"a right-down good time," as he expressed it.
It was to give Jane Ann pleasure, and because of the kindness of Ruthand her friends to his niece, that Mr. Bill Hicks had arranged this tripWest for the entire party, on a visit to Silver Ranch. But the oldgentleman did not want their introduction to the ranch to be a tragedy.And with the herd of half-wild cattle ahead, and Old Trouble-Makerthundering along the trail behind the motor car, it did look as thoughthe introduction of the visitors to the ranch was bound to be astrenuous one.
"Do go ahead, Helen!" cried Madge Steele, Bob's elder sister, from theback seat of the tonneau. "Why, that beast may climb right in here!"
Helen started the car again; but at that her brother and Ruth cried outin chorus:
"Don't run us into the herd, Helen!"
"What under the sun shall I _do_?" cried Miss Cameron. "I can't pleaseyou all, that's sure."
"Oh, see that beast!" shrieked The Fox, who was likewise on the backseat. "I want to get out!"
"Then the brute will catch you, sure," said Bob Steele.
"Sit still!" commanded Mr. Hicks. "And stop the car, Miss! Better to bebunted by Old Trouble-Maker than set that whole bunch off on astampede."
"Mercy me!" cried Mary Cox. "I should think it would be better tofrighten those cows in front than to be horned to death by this bigbeast from the rear."
"Sit still," said Jane Ann, grimly. "We won't likely be hurt by either."
Old Trouble-Maker did look awfully savage. Bellowing with rage, hethundered along after the car. Helen had again brought the automobile toa stop, this time at Bill Hicks' command. The next moment the girlsscreamed in chorus, for the car jarred all over.
Crash went a rear lamp. About half a yard of paint and varnish wasscraped off, and the car itself was actually driven forward, despite thebrake being set, by the sheer weight of the steer.
"If we could git the old cart turned around and headed the other way!"groaned the ranchman.
"I believe I can turn it, Mr. Hicks," cried Helen, excitedly.
But just then the steer, that had fallen back a few yards, chargedagain. "Bang!" It sounded like the exploding of a small cannon. OldTrouble-Maker had punctured a rear tire, and the car slumped down onthat side. Helen couldn't start it now, for the trail was too rough totravel with a flattened tire.
The black and white steer, with another furious bellow, wheeled aroundthe back of the car and then came full tilt for the side. Heavy screamedat the top of her voice:
"Oh, take me home! I never did want to go to a dairy farm. _I justabominate cows!_"
But the crowd could not laugh. Huddled together in the tonneau, itlooked as though Old Trouble-Maker would certainly muss them up a wholelot! Jane Ann and her uncle hopped out on the other side and called theothers to follow. At that moment, with a whoop and a drumming of hoofs,a calico cow pony came racing along the trail toward the stalled car. Onthe back of this flying pony was a lanky, dust-covered cowboy, swinginga lariat in approved fashion.
"Hold steady, boss!" yelled this apparition, and then let the coils ofthe rope whistle through the air. The hair line uncoiled like a writhingserpent and dropped over the wide-spread horns of Old Trouble-Maker.Then the calico pony came to an abrupt halt, sliding along the groundwith all four feet braced.
"Zip!" the noose tightened and the steer brought up with a suddennessthat threatened to dislocate his neck. Down the beast fell, roaring adifferent tune. Old Trouble-Maker almost turned a somersault, while JaneAnn, dancing in delight, caught off her very modern and high-priced hatand swung it in the air.
"Hurrah for Bashful Ike!" she shouted. "He's the best little old boywith the rope that ever worked for the Silver outfit. Hurrah!"