Upon a dark night they depended more upon their horses' sight than their own, for these would of their own accord leave the close-packed circle and strike out to turn back any animals that had wandered from it. At last, after an hour or two, the herd2 would all subside7, and the cow-boys would flatter themselves that their work was done. Then one of the cattle lying outside would leap to his feet with a snort, alarmed, perhaps, by the sudden scamper8 of an inquisitive9 jack10-rabbit, which, having come up to examine what was going on, had fled at the approach of one of the cow-boys. With a loud snort the whole [157] herd would then spring to their feet. Perhaps after a time the herd would lie down again, reassured11 by the song of the cow-boys, who from the time they came on duty always continued to sing, unless they played on a fife or some other musical instrument, which answered as well as the voice.
At other times a sort of general agitation12 communicated itself to the herd. Those on the outside finding themselves unable to leave the mass owing to the vigilance of their guard, would begin to move along its edge; the motion would spread, and in a short time the whole mass be circling, or, as the cow-boys call it, weaving. As this action, unless checked, always terminated in a general stampede, the duty of the cow-boys was at once to check it. This could only be done by wedging themselves into the mass, shouting and using their heavy whips to break it up and put a stop to the motion. This was dangerous work, not only from the pressure, but from the sea of horns and angry tossing heads.
Sometimes it would be successful, sometimes it would fail. Above the lowing and bellowing13 there would be a thunder of hoofs14 on the side opposite to that on which they were engaged. Then would rise a shout of "They are off!" and the cow-boys would edge their horses out of the mass, and, one on each flank, gallop15 at the top of their speed to head the animals back. As soon as they came near the head of the herd they would yell and shout at the top of their voices, sometimes discharging their pistols in the air, pressing the animals on the flank gradually inward, and so checking the speed of the whole until they at last met in front of the herd. Sometimes they would succeed before two or three miles of ground were passed over; sometimes the wild flight of the herd could not be checked before morning, when they would be thirty or forty miles away from their starting-place.
If unable to stop them, the great aim of the cow-boys was to keep them in one body: in that case no great trouble resulted from the stampede. The other men would be out in the morning and the herd would be driven back to its starting-place. [158] But if the herd broke up, as was sometimes the case, and scattered16 over the country, it might take many days of hard work before they could again be got together. If the night set in wild, so as to render it probable that the cattle would stampede, a third man was placed on the guard. He would aid in keeping them in as long as possible; but if they broke the circle and went off, his duty was to gallop back to camp. The cow-boys there would leap to their feet in an instant, run to the horses picketed17 near, saddled and bridled18 ready for instant use, throw themselves on their backs, and gallop off at the top of their speed in the direction in which the herd had gone.
Thunder-storms were of not infrequent occurrence, and when the clouds were seen banking20 up before sunset, and the lightning began to play, the cattle-guard knew that they were in for a troubled night. Long before the storm approached close enough to cause actual alarm among the cattle they would evince signs of uneasiness, the electrical condition of the air seeming to affect them. They might lie down, but it was only to rise again, and the distant roll of the thunder seemed to be answered by their restless bellowing. On such a night it needed no message to the camp to bring up help. As the storm approached, and it became evident by the brightness and rapidity of the flashes that it was going to be an unusually severe one, one by one the men would leave their fire or rise from their couches and go out to their horses, pull up and coil their ropes, leap into the saddle, wrap a blanket round them, and gallop off to the herd, beginning always to sing as they approached it, as otherwise their arrival might stampede the animals.
When the storm came overhead the terror of the cattle rose to the highest point, and the efforts of the whole of the cow-boys of the outfit21 scarcely sufficed to restrain them. The almost incessant22 flashes of lightning showed a sea of heads and horns, wild eyes, and distended23 nostrils24. The thunder was continuous, and so terrible were some of these storms that Hugh felt grateful to the animals that the trouble they gave, and the [159] incessant efforts and activity required to restrain them, diverted his attention from the terrible war of elements overhead. On such a night it was almost certain that sooner or later the herd would stampede, and once off, the efforts of their guard were directed to keep them together rather than to head them. So long as they remained in a bunch it mattered little whether they were one mile or thirty from the camp.
If headed and held up they would probably start again, and it was less anxious work to gallop by the side of the frightened mass than to hold them in check when once their excitement reached its height. In some respects the ride in such a storm as this was less dangerous than upon a dark, still night, for the lightning flashes showed not only the exact position of the herd, but greatly diminished the chance of serious falls by lighting25 up the whole configuration26 of the country, and showing any obstacles in the way. Even a fall, heavy though it might be, would be a trifle in comparison to one occurring while endeavouring to head the herd, for in that case it would entail27 certain death, as life would be trampled28 out in an instant by the onward29 torrent30 of cattle.
Hugh had by this time come to understand that even twelve horses were by no means too much for the use of each man. Wiry and tough as were the ponies31, the men who rode them seemed to be iron. Hugh was frequently in his saddle eighteen hours a day, occasionally twenty, and four or even five horses would be thoroughly32 done up before his work was over. Had they been fed with grain a smaller number might have sufficed, for unless unusually pressed they could have been ridden again on the following day; but fed entirely33 upon the dry grasses of the plains they needed a day's rest before they were again fit for work.
The herd increased by another thousand before it reached the general rendezvous of the round-up, for each day six of the men scoured34 the country lying within ten or fifteen miles of the line of march, and drove in all the cattle met with on their way. At last they reached the stream near whose banks the [160] vast herds driven in from all quarters were gathered. There had been an occasional day's halt on the way to give a needed rest to cattle, horses, and men; but now that the outfit had arrived at the spot indicated before they had left the headquarters station, there was a rest for four days before operations commenced.
The time was employed by the men in washing, overhauling35, and mending their clothes, repairing their saddles, and in sleep. They knew nothing of the position of the other outfits36 of their own and of the other ranches37, but were sure that they all lay within a radius38 of some twenty or thirty miles—that is to say, all that had as yet arrived. Some had probably come up days before, perhaps weeks; others would not be there for some time; all depended upon the nature of the country to be worked and the distance traversed. There were several other outfits scattered along the banks of the stream above and below them at distances of about half a mile apart, and the overseers of the different ranches were busy making arrangements for the general campaign. Four days after their arrival a cow-boy rode in with a letter to the overseer of the outfit. A few minutes later Broncho Harry and four other hands, among whom were Hugh and Bill Royce, were ordered to saddle up and to go down to the central station.
The term order is scarcely a correct one, for cow-boys are not men to be ordered. A cow-boy is asked to do a thing, and asked in civil terms. The request has all the force of an order, but it is not so conveyed. It is put in the form, "I want you to do so and so;" or, "Will you saddle up and do so and so?" It is just as easy to put it in that form as in any other, and though the cow-boy knows that if he does not comply with the request he has got to ride back to the headquarters station and get his money, he does not feel his dignity injured as it would be by a direct order. There are no men more independent than cow-boys. They know their value; and a really good man knows, and this was more especially the case at that time, that he has but to ride to the next ranche to get employment. The [161] consequence is that although willing to work to the utmost of his powers in the interest of his employers he by no means regards that employer as a master, but treats even the chief manager on terms of absolute equality, and insists upon being so treated by him in return.
"Broncho Harry," the overseer said, "I want you, Jack Johnson, Bowie Bob, Chunky Royce, and Lightning Hugh to saddle up and ride down to the forks and help in the round-up. The waggon39 is going to stay here till our herd is called up. There are men from the other outfits there; the boss is there, and he will settle about things. Two of the waggons40 are there, so you will be all right as to grub. I expect you will be there about a fortnight, and then the others will come down and take your place."
"Are we to take down our other horses?" the cow-boy asked.
"No. No. 1 outfit will take charge of the cattle as they are cut out and branded. No. 3 will take the next mob. Anyhow, you won't want horses except to take you down there."
"All right!" Harry said, and proceeded to call the other four together.
In a few minutes the horses were brought in and saddled, the blankets rolled up and strapped41 to the saddles, and the five men chosen, after eating a hasty meal, started for the point named, which was some twenty-five miles distant.
"Now you are going to see some fun, Hugh," Bill Royce, who had got the nickname of Chunky from his short, square figure, remarked as they rode along.
"Yes," Broncho Harry put in, "you will have to look out sharp, Hugh. I tell you it is pretty lively work when you get hold of a six months' calf42, and the old savage43 of a mother is trying her best to hook you. Thar ain't a day that some fellow don't get hurt; but as long as you don't let a cow jam you against the posts it don't much matter. That is what you have got to look to special. A chuck in the air don't much matter, nor being knocked a dozen yards or so, but if you get jammed [162] by one of those brutes45 against a fence, there ain't nothing to do but to bury you."
Three hours' riding brought them to the forks. Two or three large herds of cattle could be made out far on the plains: another mob could be seen not far from the wooded hollow that marked the course of the stream. Horsemen were hovering46 round them, and there was a confused mass of animals in what looked to Hugh like a strong stockade47 near it. A short distance away twelve waggons were drawn48 up in regular order some fifty yards apart. Columns of light smoke rising near them showed that cooking was going on at each waggon. Quickening the speed of their horses the cow-boys rode on until they drew up at the waggon of the ranche.
"Howdy, Pete," Broncho Harry said as he leapt from his horse, to a negro who, with a Mexican assistant, was engaged in cooking.
"Howdy, Broncho Harry."
"Where are the boys, and what's new?"
"Dey is out dar," the negro said, waving his hand in the direction of the corral. "Some of dem is working in de herd; some of dem is inside. Irish is in de waggon: him leg broken. New York John got killed three days back."
"That's bad, Pete. How did he manage that?"
"Old cow hooked him—ran horn right through him body. Irish got tossed against posts."
"I suppose there are boys down from the other outfits here, Pete?"
"Yes. Five No. 3, five No. 4. No. 4 came in dis mornin'. Now you come dat make fifteen, and all our own outfit; dat too much for Pete to cook for."
Pete made a grimace50 as much as to signify that he did not consider the assistance of the Mexican to be of much account. Between the men of these two races there was a general feud51, while the cow-boys looked down upon both, and as a rule [163] refused to allow them to work with them except in the capacity of cook.
"Where are our horses, Pete?"
"No. 1 horses over dere," the negro said, pointing to a group of horses out on the plain. "Young Nat looking arter dem."
"Well, we may as well take our horses out there, boys," Broncho Harry said, turning to the others. "It is no use picketing52 them here; we ain't likely to want them."
"I will ride them out," Hugh volunteered. The others removed their saddles and bridles53, and Hugh drove them out to the group on the plain.
"Well, Nat, how are you getting on?" he asked a boy of about fifteen years old who was lying on the ground with his horse's rein54 over his arm near them.
"Oh, I'm all right," the boy replied; "been here a week, and getting pretty tired of this job, you bet, with nothing to do but just to lie here. Blast all camps, I say!"
"You ought to be at school, you young imp," Hugh laughed.
"I would just as soon be doing that as lying here," the boy said. "It will be all right when I get to be a cow-boy, but there ain't much fun about this. Just come in?"
"Yes."
"Who is with you?"
Hugh gave the names.
"Broncho Harry ain't a bad sort," the boy said. "The others ain't of much account."
"You had better tell them so," Hugh said with a smile.
"I would tell them if I thought fit," the boy said angrily. "You don't suppose that I'm afraid of any of that mob?"
"I know you are a very bad man, Nat," Hugh said with assumed gravity, "a very dangerous character in a camp; but I hope you won't do any of them any harm."
"I sha'n't do them no harm if they don't do me any," the boy said, "but I don't take no sauce from no one."
By this time Hugh had unsaddled Prince, and placing the saddle over his head and carrying the bridle19 in his hand, nodded [164] to the boy, and started back to the camp, while Prince joined the four horses, which began to graze at a little distance from the rest. Presently two or three of the other horses came over to the new-comers, and after a little snorting apparently55 recognized them as friends with whom they had been acquainted at the head-station, and this fact being established Prince and his companions were allowed to join them.
There were many boys like Nat out on the plains, for the most part lads who had run away from home, and who were now training up to be cow-boys, being engaged in day-herding the horses—work that demanded but little skill or attention. They were generally regarded with favour by the outfits to which they were attached, for the cow-boys as a rule are silent men, and the liveliness of the boys amused them. These boys generally grew up into the most reckless and dare-devil of cow-boys, speedily picking up the worst language and imitating the wildest follies56 of their companions, and they would have been an unmitigated nuisance in the camps had they not been frequently sternly called to order by men with whom they knew there was no trifling57.
It was not until nightfall that the work ceased and the cow-boys returned to their waggons. They had been working without a break since daylight, contenting themselves with eating a piece of bread and cold meat standing58 at their work in the middle of the day.
"Well, boys, come in for a spell?" one of them asked as they came up to the fire where the new arrivals were seated. "We have had a week of it, and it has been a pretty tough job. The cattle are wonderful wild. I suppose the thunder has scared them, and we are pretty sure the Injuns have been chasing them lately by the foot-hills. Did you see anything of the Reds?"
"No; there were no signs of them in the part we searched."
"There were signs further south," the other went on. "We came on two places where they had slaughtered59 a lot of cattle, and we hear they have been making raids down into Mexico, [165] and the troops have been out after them down by the frontier line. Anyhow, the cattle are wilder than usual. You have heard, I suppose, that New York John has been rubbed out?"
"Yes, we heard that, and I have been talking to Irish. He seems getting on all right."
"Irish is a blamed fool. I told him over and over again he would get into trouble if he didn't mind; but nothing could persuade him that there was any difference between the ways of a Kerry cow and a Texas steer60, and of course he came to grief. I should have thought that New York John would have known better than to get himself hooked like that; but it were not altogether his fault. He wur holding a calf, and he had his eye on the old cow, who had got her dander up pretty considerable. One of the men had roped her, and New York John naturally thought that she was safe. So he downed the calf, and the brand was clapped to it, and the young un bawls61 out, and of course the cow made a fresh rush to get at it, and the rope breaks, and she was on New York John afore he could look round."
"But how came the rope to break? A man must be a fool and worse to come down to round-up with a rotten old rope."
"Well, the rope was a new un. You may guess there was a lot of talk over it, and it put our backs up a bit that New York John should get killed that way. The rope wur a new one, there warn't no doubt about that, but it had been cut half through. Who had done it, in course, no one knew. The men were mad over it, and ef they could have found out who had done it he would have swung from the limb of a tree in a squirrel's jump. There were two or three men who had had musses with the chap as the rope belonged to, but no one could say as any of them had cut his rope. Of course it might have been an accident, but no one thought that very likely. However, there it wur. Somebody cut the fellow's rope to spite him, and it cost New York John his life, which was pretty rough on him."
"What is the work for to-morrow?"
"Well, your lot and the men of the other two outfits are to be [166] in the yard. We have got a spell off, except, of course, that we have got to look after our own bunch of cattle."
"How many are there of them?"
"About 6000 I should say. I expect some of us will start driving them up north day after to-morrow."
The next morning Hugh went down to the cattle-yard as soon as they had finished breakfast. Day had just broken, and while they were waiting for the herd to be brought up he looked round at the yard. The paling was composed of very strong posts six feet high, placed at intervals62 of two or three inches apart. It had been built three or four years before, as this place was the most convenient and central upon the plains. A few waggon loads of timber had been taken out there a fortnight before the arrival of the teams, with a gang of men, who took up any posts that showed signs of rottenness and replaced them by others, the various ranches in the round-up performing this duty by turns. The fence inclosed a space of upwards63 of an acre.
Beside the contingent64 from the ranche some forty or fifty cow-boys from the other ranches were gathered within it. Several fires were lighted for heating the brands, and the overseer who was in charge of the work for the day divided the men into parties, each group consisting of representatives of four or five different ranches. In a short time a great herd was seen approaching, driven in by a number of mounted cow-boys. The cross-bars were removed from the opening that served as a gate at the upper end of the yard, and the reluctant animals, unable to withstand the pressure of those behind, poured in. Several hundreds entered; the bars were dropped again, and the animals inclosed stood in a dense65 group, stamping the ground, and threatening an attack as the cow-boys approached them.
These all carried their ropes, some holding them in their hands ready for throwing, while others had them coiled over their left shoulder, while in their right hands they held their heavy whips. Those who were to fetch out the calves first [167] approached. Half a dozen ropes were thrown, and the calves were dragged out, struggling and calling, or, as the cow-boys called it, bawling67, to their mothers for assistance. The call was not in vain. The cows rushed out furiously to the assistance of their calves. As each did so the cow-boy whose comrade was dragging the calf towards one of the fires shouted out the brand on the cow, and then, cracking their whips, and if necessary using them, they drove the animal back into the mass and kept her there, while the calf was thrown down and branded with the same mark as its mother.
Hugh was among those told off to fetch out the calves. He had had some practice, as many of the mavericks69 found had calves by their side, and these as well as the cows had been branded with the . Another cow-boy assisted him to haul the calf by main force towards the fire, and held the rope while Hugh ran up to it. Placing himself beside it he leaned over it, grasped it by the flank with both hands, and then lifted it and flung it down on its side. His comrade then ran up and pinned its head to the ground, while Hugh knelt on its haunches, and the brander came up with a hot iron and marked it. The iron was held on long enough only to burn off the hair and slightly singe70 the hide, and the mark so made was almost indelible.
In addition to this the calf's ears were cut, each ranche having its particular mark, such as two long slits71 and a short one, a square piece cut out and a notch72 on either side of it, a semicircular piece and two notches73, a semicircle and a square, &c. These marks were very durable74, but even these often became confused owing to the ears getting torn by a rush through thorns, or by the action of a neighbour's horn in a close press or during a stampede. It required but small exercise of strength to throw a calf of three months old; but many of them were eight or nine months and nearly full grown, and it needed a great exertion75 of strength and a good deal of knack76 to throw down animals of this size. Once or twice Hugh had narrow escapes, for some of the cows, in spite of the cow-boys' [168] whips, burst through them and rushed to the assistance of their calves; but each time the ropes descended77 over their heads or caught them by their legs, and threw them to the ground before they reached him.
After an hour of this work he was relieved by one of the other men, and took his turn of the lighter78 work of keeping back the cows. When every calf in the yard had been branded the gate at the lower end was opened and the animals driven out, while a fresh mob was admitted from the herd. So the work went on until the herd had all passed through the yard, and the calves been branded. Then there was a quarter of an hour's rest while another herd was driven up, and the work recommenced. By nightfall some nine thousand animals had passed through the yard, and nearly four thousand calves had been branded. Begrimed with sweat and dust, the cow-boys went down to the stream, where most of them bathed and all had a thorough wash, and then went up to their waggons to supper.
"How do you feel now?" Broncho Harry asked Hugh when he threw himself down by the fire.
"I feel broken up altogether, Harry. My back and loins feel as if I had been beaten to a pulp79. I believe I have strained every muscle of my arms, and my hands and wrists are so stiff that I can't close my fingers."
"Yes; calf-chucking is pretty hard work until you get accustomed to it," the cow-boy said. "It is knack more than strength, though it needs a lot of strength too when you have got a rampagious ten-months calf in your hands."
"I have not got the knack yet," Hugh said; "and anything over six months I had to have roped by the legs and thrown, but I suppose I shall be able to tackle them in time."
In the case of the cows that had been branded only a year or two before there was no difficulty in recognizing the brand, and so to decide upon the ownership of the calf; but in the case of older cows the brand and ear-marks had in some instances both become so far obliterated80 that it was difficult to [169] decide what they had originally been. Over these brands there were sharp and sometimes angry disputes among the cow-boys belonging to the different ranches. The case was generally settled by the overseer in charge of the day's operations calling upon three cow-boys belonging to ranches unconnected with the dispute to give their opinion as to what the marks had originally been. Their decision was accepted by all parties as final, and the cow rebranded as well as the calf.
"What do you do when the brand is so far gone as to make it altogether impossible to say what it was?" Hugh asked.
"It would not get here at all in that state," the cow-boy replied. "It would have been rebranded at once by the outfit that first found it just as if it had been a maverick68. But in that case, of course, any cow-boy could claim the cow as belonging to his ranche if he could convince the others that the old brand was the one used by it. They never brand over the old mark; that must be left as an evidence."
The next day happened to be Sunday, and Hugh felt glad indeed that he had a day on which to recover from his stiffness. Sundays were always kept, except in cases of great emergency, as a day of rest, cow-boys taking the opportunity to wash and mend their clothes, to practise shooting with their revolvers, or to run races with their horses. At rounds-up these races afford one of the chief interests to the cow-boy, for rivalry81 between the various ranches runs high, and the men are ready to bet their "bottom dollar" upon the representative of their own ranche.
"Have you ever tried that horse of yours against anything fast, Hugh?" one of his comrades asked.
"No. I am sure he is very fast, but I have never really tried him."
"We were fools not to think of that before," Broncho Harry put in. "We ought to have raced him against some of the others, and have found out what he can do, and then we might have made a soft thing of it. I suppose you wouldn't mind trying him, Hugh?" [170]
"Not at all. But if he is to race you had better ride him instead of me. I shouldn't say you were much above nine stone and a half."
"I don't know what you mean by your stone," Harry said. "We don't reckon that way out here. I was a hundred and thirty-five pounds last time I weighed at the head-station."
"That is two pounds more than I said. Well, I am certainly twenty pounds heavier—I should say twenty-five, and that makes a lot of difference."
"I should think so. Still we had best have a trial, Hugh, before we try to make a match. That is a good horse of yours. I mean the one you first mounted and who played such tricks with you. I should like some day to try him against my best, and see how they go. I daresay you will get him again before the round-up is over."
"What length do you run your races here, Broncho?"
"In general they are short dashes, not above half a mile at the outside, but sometimes a match is made for some distance. Well, when we have had dinner we will trot82 out into the plain. We must go off a goodish bit, and make sure that none of the boys of the other ranches are within sight."
Accordingly, when dinner was over, Broncho Harry and Hugh went out to the horses. Prince come trotting83 out as soon as he heard Hugh's whistle, and Broncho Harry soon dropped his noose84 over the neck of his own horse. They then put on the saddles and bridles which they had brought with them, and went off at a canter across the plains. They ran three or four trials. The result showed that Broncho's horse was quicker in getting off, and that in a quarter of a mile dash there was little to choose between them, but at longer distances than this Prince was, in spite of the greater weight he carried, much the faster.
"That horse can go," the cow-boy said admiringly. "I shouldn't mind if there were a pack of Redskins coming behind me if I was on his back. The worst of him is he is so good-looking. If he was ugly to look at we might clean out [171] all the camps, but he looks so good that I am afraid we sha'n't be able to get much money out of him. Well, now, we won't race him this evening. There are sure to be some matches on, and I will ride my horse. That way I shall find what there is in the camp, and whether there is anything that can beat him as much as your horse can do. Don't you go cavorting85 about on him; just let him run with the rest of the mob. Then he won't be noticed. There is too much to be got through in this camp for men to take stock of the horses. Then if we keep him dark we can get someone to set up his horse against the best of ours. We will put the boys up to it when we get back, or someone may be blowing about your horse."
There were, as the cow-boy anticipated, a number of races run that evening. Broncho Harry beat two other horses, but lost his winnings and more in the third race, when he was beaten somewhat easily by an animal which in point of looks was greatly the inferior of his own.
"That is just what I told you, Hugh," he said, when, after unsaddling his horse and sending it off to join its companions on the plains, he returned to the waggon. "I am a blessed fool, for I ought to have known that when that cross T's man offered to back that ugly-looking brute44 against mine, he wur a sight better than he looked. He just shot off like an arrow at starting. I didn't loose anything afterwards, but I couldn't pick up them three lengths he got in the first forty yards. If we make a match against him we must see that it ain't less than half a mile."
The next morning the work in the stock-yards was resumed and continued throughout the week.
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1
herds
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| 兽群( herd的名词复数 )； 牧群； 人群； 群众 | |
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herd
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| n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起 | |
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3
swelled
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| 增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情） | |
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4
rendezvous
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| n.约会，约会地点，汇合点；vi.汇合，集合；vt.使汇合，使在汇合地点相遇 | |
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harry
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| vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼 | |
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6
arduous
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| adj.艰苦的，费力的，陡峭的 | |
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7
subside
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| vi.平静，平息；下沉，塌陷，沉降 | |
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scamper
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| v.奔跑，快跑 | |
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inquisitive
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| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
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10
jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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11
reassured
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| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
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12
agitation
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| n.搅动；搅拌；鼓动，煽动 | |
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bellowing
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| v.发出吼叫声，咆哮（尤指因痛苦）( bellow的现在分词 )；（愤怒地）说出（某事），大叫 | |
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hoofs
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| n.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的名词复数 )v.（兽的）蹄，马蹄( hoof的第三人称单数 ) | |
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15
gallop
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| v./n.(马或骑马等)飞奔；飞速发展 | |
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scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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picketed
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| 用尖桩围住（picket的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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bridled
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| 给…套龙头( bridle的过去式和过去分词 )； 控制； 昂首表示轻蔑（或怨忿等）； 动怒，生气 | |
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19
bridle
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| n.笼头，束缚；vt.抑制，约束；动怒 | |
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20
banking
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| n.银行业，银行学，金融业 | |
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21
outfit
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| n.（为特殊用途的）全套装备，全套服装 | |
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22
incessant
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| adj.不停的，连续的 | |
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distended
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| v.（使）膨胀，肿胀( distend的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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24
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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25
lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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26
configuration
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| n.结构，布局，形态，(计算机)配置 | |
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entail
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| vt.使承担，使成为必要，需要 | |
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28
trampled
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| 踩( trample的过去式和过去分词 )； 践踏； 无视； 侵犯 | |
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onward
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| adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先 | |
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torrent
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| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
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ponies
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| 矮种马，小型马( pony的名词复数 )； ￡25 25 英镑 | |
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thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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scoured
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| 走遍（某地）搜寻（人或物）( scour的过去式和过去分词 )； （用力）刷； 擦净； 擦亮 | |
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overhauling
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| n.大修；拆修；卸修；翻修v.彻底检查( overhaul的现在分词 )；大修；赶上；超越 | |
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outfits
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| n.全套装备( outfit的名词复数 )；一套服装；集体；组织v.装备，配置设备，供给服装( outfit的第三人称单数 ) | |
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ranches
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| 大农场， （兼种果树，养鸡等的）大牧场( ranch的名词复数 ) | |
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radius
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| n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限 | |
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waggon
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| n.运货马车，运货车；敞篷车箱 | |
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waggons
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| 四轮的运货马车( waggon的名词复数 )； 铁路货车； 小手推车 | |
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strapped
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| adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带 | |
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calf
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| n.小牛，犊，幼仔，小牛皮 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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brute
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| n.野兽，兽性 | |
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brutes
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| 兽( brute的名词复数 )； 畜生； 残酷无情的人； 兽性 | |
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46
hovering
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| 鸟( hover的现在分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫 | |
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47
stockade
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| n.栅栏，围栏；v.用栅栏防护 | |
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drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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grumble
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| vi.抱怨；咕哝；n.抱怨，牢骚；咕哝，隆隆声 | |
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grimace
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| v.做鬼脸，面部歪扭 | |
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feud
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| n.长期不和；世仇；v.长期争斗；世代结仇 | |
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52
picketing
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| [经] 罢工工人劝阻工人上班，工人纠察线 | |
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53
bridles
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| 约束( bridle的名词复数 )； 限动器； 马笼头； 系带 | |
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rein
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| n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治 | |
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apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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follies
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| 罪恶，时事讽刺剧； 愚蠢，蠢笨，愚蠢的行为、思想或做法( folly的名词复数 ) | |
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trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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slaughtered
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| v.屠杀，杀戮，屠宰( slaughter的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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steer
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| vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶 | |
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bawls
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| v.大叫，大喊( bawl的第三人称单数 )；放声大哭；大声叫出；叫卖（货物） | |
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intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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contingent
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| adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队 | |
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dense
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| a.密集的，稠密的，浓密的；密度大的 | |
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66
calves
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| n.(calf的复数)笨拙的男子，腓；腿肚子( calf的名词复数 )；牛犊；腓；小腿肚v.生小牛( calve的第三人称单数 )；（冰川）崩解；生（小牛等），产（犊）；使（冰川）崩解 | |
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67
bawling
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| v.大叫，大喊( bawl的现在分词 )；放声大哭；大声叫出；叫卖（货物） | |
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68
maverick
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| adj.特立独行的；不遵守传统的；n.持异议者，自行其是者 | |
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69
mavericks
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| 未烙印的牲畜( maverick的名词复数 )； 标新立异的人，不合常规的人 | |
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singe
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| v.(轻微地)烧焦；烫焦；烤焦 | |
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71
slits
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| n.狭长的口子，裂缝( slit的名词复数 )v.切开，撕开( slit的第三人称单数 )；在…上开狭长口子 | |
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72
notch
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| n.(V字形)槽口，缺口，等级 | |
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73
notches
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| n.（边缘或表面上的）V型痕迹( notch的名词复数 )；刻痕；水平；等级 | |
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74
durable
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| adj.持久的，耐久的 | |
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75
exertion
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| n.尽力，努力 | |
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76
knack
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| n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法 | |
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77
descended
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| a.为...后裔的，出身于...的 | |
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78
lighter
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| n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级 | |
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79
pulp
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| n.果肉，纸浆；v.化成纸浆，除去...果肉，制成纸浆 | |
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obliterated
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| v.除去( obliterate的过去式和过去分词 )；涂去；擦掉；彻底破坏或毁灭 | |
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81
rivalry
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| n.竞争，竞赛，对抗 | |
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82
trot
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| n.疾走，慢跑；n.老太婆；现成译本；(复数）trots:腹泻（与the 连用）；v.小跑，快步走，赶紧 | |
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83
trotting
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| 小跑，急走( trot的现在分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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84
noose
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| n.绳套，绞索（刑）；v.用套索捉；使落入圈套；处以绞刑 | |
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85
cavorting
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| v.跳跃( cavort的现在分词 ) | |
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