The chestnut7 stallion swung along behind the mares. At their head ran an old roan. She was trailwise and wary9. Her nose was leading her unerringly to a big water hole at the base of a cliff. The others pounded along behind her with the colts frisking beside their mothers. The chestnut halted every little while to whirl and sniff10 the morning air. He held his head high and his protruding11 eyes rolled as he stared back over the broken country they had left behind.
The roan trotted12 off the ridge and down through a jumble14 of rocks to the base of a cliff. The horses nickered softly as they smelled water. The roan’s muzzle15 was a scant16 foot from the yellow surface of the pool when wild yells shattered the morning calm. The band whirled and stood with heads up, staring toward a rocky slope.37 Above them the big chestnut screamed a warning and an order to charge away.
Down the slope toward the water hole galloped17 four riders. Their naked bodies gleamed copper-red in the new sunlight as they bent18 low over the necks of their lean ponies19. With squeals20 of fright the band whirled and charged down the canyon21. A cloud of yellow dust billowed at their heels. The chestnut stallion crashed down on their flanks with bared teeth and pounding hoofs. When a mare8 lagged he drove her squealing22 into the band. The mad charge carried the wild horses away from the four pursuing Navajos, but the trailers did not give up the chase.
Back of the dust cloud Yellow Man rode beside his three sons. Their faces were expressionless; only their black eyes showed the eager excitement that filled them. They did not try to make their gaunt ponies overtake the thundering band but were content to keep a steady pace. The trail left by the wild horses was broad and easy to follow.
Lady Ebony ran ahead of the band, keeping well out in front without effort. She was not badly frightened and the wild panic of the other horses had not gripped her. But she raced along just the same, enjoying the surging flight which gave full play to her powerful muscles. The big chestnut charged in and turned the band up the ridge. As they swept over the top of the rocky hill they saw the Indians galloping23 along the canyon bed below.
Yellow Man shifted his seat on the bare back of his pinto. His black eyes were following the flight of the black mare, and there was a fierce eagerness in them. The chestnut leader was doing just what he wanted him to do. The big fellow was swinging his band into a wide circle, a curve which would carry them back into the country they had just left.
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The band thundered down off the ridge and headed up a sand wash. The drag of the sand and the uphill going slowed them but they kept pounding along, the stallion saw to that. He stayed behind and used his teeth savagely24 on the rumps of the laggards26.
Yellow Man and his sons galloped up the ridge and dropped into the sand wash. A thin smile parted the lips of the tall hunter as he noticed how fagged his horse was. They were chasing no ordinary wild scrub ponies. The chestnut stallion had trained his band well and kept them in fine condition. They had run the legs right out from under the Navajo ponies. He urged his pinto up the sand wash as fast as the little beast could travel.
The chestnut saw the riders coming and noticed that they were working their way to the side as though aiming to come up alongside. He suspected a trick though he was disdainful of the slow-running ponies coming up from below. He changed his course a little to the north. Now the pursuers would have to travel much farther than his band to overtake them. The Navajo riders swung north too, and kept following close to the dust cloud.
The chase thus took a circular course with the chestnut keeping the mares moving as fast as the colts could follow. But now the horses’ sides were heaving, sweat was streaking27 their flanks and caking in lather-matted ridges28 above the hair. The big stallion snorted triumphantly29 as they topped a ridge. They had run away from their pursuers. The Indians were plodding30 along far behind. He allowed the mares to slow their pace to a lope while he galloped to right and then to left, looking down into washes and canyons31 for a hiding place.
Suddenly the mares heard yells from their right. They saw five red-bronze riders charging down on them from a cover of junipers. Mounted on fresh horses, these braves came swiftly from their ambush33. The chestnut stallion39 rushed on his band and sent them racing34 down into a canyon. The retreat led over a ledge35 and down a rocky hill. The slope was steep and covered with loose stones, but the sure-footed horses took the broken ground at a mad rush. One of the mares slipped and went down, rolling over and over, until she was stopped by a big boulder36. She struggled to her feet and staggered around the hill. Her colt bounded after her nickering wildly.
The charge of the hunters carried them close on the heels of the flying band. When the mare went down, two of the hunters swerved37 and followed her. The chestnut let her go and gave his attention to speeding the rest of the band. In a few seconds the speed of the wild horses carried them ahead of the Navajos’ lean ponies. But the three hunters following the mares kept yelling and galloping.
The two hunters who had swerved to follow the crippled mare and her colt soon overtook them. They paid no attention to the mare but charged down on the colt. One of them swung a rope. The loop sailed out and dropped over the straining neck of the little fellow. The colt fought and kicked, but the Navajo boy knew how to handle a fighter. He kept his rope tight, almost to the choking point, and let the little horse wear himself out. In a short time he had mastered the colt and was heading toward camp with him. His companion galloped away to overtake the band.
The chestnut stallion could not understand the attack of the Navajos. They did not start shooting when they got in close and they did not try to rope any of the mares. They just kept riding on the heels of his fast-tiring band, yelling and waving their arms. They were not like the wolf or the cougar38, they did not strike when they got close, but they never left the heels of the herd39. The big40 stallion shifted his course and again they began moving in a wide circle.
This time the chestnut widened the circle, cutting back into the steep hill country, turning up crooked40 washes, crossing ridges, and doubling back occasionally. The Navajos stayed on the trail, keeping as close to the band as they could, cutting across when they sighted the mares doubling on their course. And now they were hanging close on the heels of the wild ones. Twice the chestnut stallion whirled and faced the hunters as though about to challenge them to a fight. The braves slid their hands down to where their guns hung about their naked waists. They did not wish to kill the big stallion unless he charged their ponies, nor did they care to try taming him. They wanted the black mare and the colts.
The chestnut did not charge his tormentors. Fear of man and man’s far-killing gun sent him back to biting and shoving the mares into faster flight. He could not use the tactics which always succeeded against the wolf or the bear.
Topping another ridge, he headed his band into a deep canyon. He knew they were almost winded from running uphill. The steep slope would help them to recover. One of the Navajos shouted:
“He is doubling back! Head him!”
The Indians sent their ponies charging recklessly down the dangerous slope, leaping over boulders41 and water-gutted ditches. But the band would not be headed. Going downhill had eased them and given them new life. They plunged42 along with sides heaving and nostrils43 flaring44. Lady Ebony led them, keeping her pace down to their speed.
One of the hunters headed his pony45 up out of the canyon. He halted on a jutting46 rock and sat looking down over the desert. His black eyes watched the fine spirals of41 yellow dust rising from the canyon and he nodded his head. The scattered47 groups of hunters would be able to locate the new direction the band had taken.
The sharp eyes of three hunters hiding in a juniper grove48 on the rim49 of the canyon saw the spirals of dust rising from the dry watercourse above. They slipped across and waited.
The chestnut began to breathe easier. Once again the band had outdistanced their pursuers and no raiders could be seen. But he was nervous and determined50 to keep the mares moving until they were deep in the rough, canyon-slotted country to the south. The weary horses slowed their pace to a trot13. They were suffering for water and their hard muscles were crying for rest. They were used to sudden, wild charges when they would race at top speed for a while, but they were not used to a steady grind, hour after hour.
Several of the mares began weaving away from the herd, sniffing51 for water, looking for a spot where they could halt and rest. Suddenly the yells they had come to dread52 broke the silence and echoed along the canyon walls. Three riders came charging toward them from below. The chestnut screamed a warning. For a moment he hesitated. There was an enemy pack behind them, and now one faced them. With a snort and a toss of his head he sent the band up the far slope out of the canyon. The hunters raced whooping53 and yelling after the mares.
Escape from the canyon did not bring freedom from the worrying red riders. The desert seemed full of them. After every run, when the big stallion thought he had slipped away from his pursuers, a new and fresh band would charge from cover on the jaded54 mares. In desperation the big horse headed down a deep canyon. The mares could not travel uphill any more. They could not move fast but the hunters did not seem anxious to close42 in and strike. They kept on the heels of the wild ones. Now there were a dozen of them and they kept up a savage25 yelling as they stayed close to the band.
Up ahead Lady Ebony began to tire. She was not driven by frantic55 fear and she was eager to stop and rest. At first she had enjoyed the flight, but now she was thirsty and her sides were heaving. She galloped ahead, leaving the band behind. As she raced along she saw a side canyon. Its floor was solid rock, worn smooth by wind and water. She slipped into the narrow opening and halted behind a shoulder of rock. She lowered her head and stood blowing hard. She had left no tracks on the rocky floor.
The wild horses galloped past the mouth of the side canyon. A great cloud of dust rolled up after them. Lady Ebony heard the Navajos go whooping past. She stood listening until the pounding of hoofs and the yelling died away. Shaking her head, she trotted up the narrow canyon. She craved56 water and she wanted to be alone, to lie down and rest. She headed north because to the north lay the tall-grass meadows with clear streams bubbling across them. She moved along steadily57, keeping to the bottom of the canyon where she was hidden from sight of any black-eyed hunter who might be sitting on a rim high above.
A black rain cloud billowed up above the rims58 to the north. It rolled down across the desert on the wings of a driving wind which raised clouds of dust and sand. At dusk it swept over the canyon where Lady Ebony was marching along steadily north. It drenched59 her and gave her needed drinking water, then it moved on down to where the chestnut was making his last stand.
In the canyon the big stallion had settled down to the grim job of lashing60 his mares into movement. They were not able to go fast but he kept them pounding along, just43 ahead of the yelling hunters. Their gaunt bellies61 were drawn62 and their dry nostrils flared63 red inside their dust-caked rims. The Navajos were shouting to one another, their spirits high. They were sure of their catch now and eager to close in as soon as the mares quit.
Then the dusk of evening came and with it the downpour of rain. Nowhere in the world outside the tropics can so much water fall in so short a time as in the desert. The storm was bad luck for the hunters, but it spelled escape for the wild horses. It blotted64 out everything, bringing sudden, inky night. Its rushing, swirling65 waters wiped out the tracks of the horses. The chestnut stallion played wise. He took a side canyon, forcing his charges out on a rocky ridge. From that canyon they crossed another ridge and turned north. The big stallion was headed out of the desert.
The hunters spread out and worked up and down the canyon but the darkness and rain defeated them. They finally gave up and turned their ponies toward their camp.
All that night Lady Ebony kept moving. The storm passed and the moon came out with stars beyond it, stars that hung low over the barren country, brilliant with red and blue lights winking66 outside white centers.
A pair of gray wolves flashed past like shadows. They leaped along, side by side, shoulder to shoulder. One was a big, broad-chested fellow with a wide muzzle and frost-cropped ears. The other was a slim gray one with slender legs and body. They paid no attention to Lady Ebony. They were not hunting, they were running, answering the call of spring, heading for a trysting place on a barren ridge.
Lady Ebony heard them holding their spring concert on a high knoll67. They howled and snarled68 and yelped69. There was much yearning70, much that sounded like deep44 laughter in their song, and there was tenderness in the notes of the slim gray one. In their mating time they had lost the savagery71 of winter. There was no specter of famine in the springtime, no blasting blizzards72, no deep snow. There was food and there was an urge to find a snug73 den32.
Something of the feelings expressed by the gray wolves filled Lady Ebony. Just before dawn she halted and began feeding. She fed on through the morning. She saw no other horses and heard no savage yells. At midday she lay down and rested until late afternoon.
When she moved on she headed north, toward the snowy ramparts of the Crazy Kill Range, and she went at a long, ground-devouring lope. That night she halted at a spring in the lower foothills. Berrybushes and willow74 grew around the spring and there was tall grass. Lady Ebony pulled the juicy grass contentedly75. She was glad to be away from the teeth and smashing hoofs of the chestnut stallion. She did not miss the herd at all.
The spring was so much of a change after the parched76 desert that she bedded down close beside it and rested until morning. With the gray dawn she was up and feeding on the lush grass. For several hours she fed, then she drank deeply and faced northward77. Again she set her pace at a fast lope.
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收听单词发音
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1
spurted
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| （液体，火焰等）喷出，（使）涌出( spurt的过去式和过去分词 )； （短暂地）加速前进，冲刺 | |
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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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ridge
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| n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭 | |
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lighting
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| n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光 | |
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spires
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| n.（教堂的） 塔尖，尖顶( spire的名词复数 ) | |
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pinnacles
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| 顶峰( pinnacle的名词复数 )； 顶点； 尖顶； 小尖塔 | |
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chestnut
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| n.栗树，栗子 | |
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mare
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| n.母马，母驴 | |
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wary
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| adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的 | |
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sniff
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| vi.嗅…味道；抽鼻涕；对嗤之以鼻，蔑视 | |
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protruding
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| v.（使某物）伸出，（使某物）突出( protrude的现在分词 )；凸 | |
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12
trotted
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| 小跑，急走( trot的过去分词 )； 匆匆忙忙地走 | |
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13
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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14
jumble
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| vt.使混乱，混杂；n.混乱；杂乱的一堆 | |
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muzzle
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| n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默 | |
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scant
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| adj.不充分的，不足的；v.减缩，限制，忽略 | |
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galloped
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| （使马）飞奔，奔驰( gallop的过去式和过去分词 )； 快速做[说]某事 | |
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bent
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| n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的 | |
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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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squeals
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| n.长而尖锐的叫声( squeal的名词复数 )v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的第三人称单数 ) | |
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canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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squealing
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| v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的现在分词 ) | |
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23
galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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24
savagely
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| adv. 野蛮地，残酷地 | |
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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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laggards
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| n.落后者( laggard的名词复数 ) | |
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streaking
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| n.裸奔（指在公共场所裸体飞跑）v.快速移动( streak的现在分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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28
ridges
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| n.脊( ridge的名词复数 )；山脊；脊状突起；大气层的)高压脊 | |
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triumphantly
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| ad.得意洋洋地；得胜地；成功地 | |
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plodding
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| a.proceeding in a slow or dull way | |
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canyons
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| n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 ) | |
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32
den
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| n.兽穴；秘密地方；安静的小房间，私室 | |
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ambush
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| n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击 | |
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racing
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| n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的 | |
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ledge
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| n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁 | |
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boulder
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| n.巨砾；卵石，圆石 | |
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37
swerved
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| v.（使）改变方向，改变目的( swerve的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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cougar
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| n.美洲狮；美洲豹 | |
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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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40
crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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41
boulders
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| n.卵石( boulder的名词复数 )；巨砾；（受水或天气侵蚀而成的）巨石；漂砾 | |
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42
plunged
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| v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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43
nostrils
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| 鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 ) | |
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44
flaring
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| a.火焰摇曳的，过份艳丽的 | |
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45
pony
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| adj.小型的；n.小马 | |
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46
jutting
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| v.（使）突出( jut的现在分词 )；伸出；（从…）突出；高出 | |
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47
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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48
grove
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| n.林子，小树林，园林 | |
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49
rim
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| n.(圆物的)边，轮缘；边界 | |
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50
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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51
sniffing
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| n.探查法v.以鼻吸气，嗅，闻( sniff的现在分词 )；抽鼻子（尤指哭泣、患感冒等时出声地用鼻子吸气）；抱怨，不以为然地说 | |
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52
dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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53
whooping
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| 发嗬嗬声的，发咳声的 | |
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54
jaded
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| adj.精疲力竭的；厌倦的；（因过饱或过多而）腻烦的；迟钝的 | |
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frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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56
craved
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| 渴望，热望( crave的过去式 )； 恳求，请求 | |
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steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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rims
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| n.（圆形物体的）边( rim的名词复数 )；缘；轮辋；轮圈 | |
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59
drenched
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| adj.湿透的；充满的v.使湿透( drench的过去式和过去分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体） | |
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60
lashing
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| n.鞭打；痛斥；大量；许多v.鞭打( lash的现在分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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bellies
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| n.肚子( belly的名词复数 )；腹部；（物体的）圆形或凸起部份；腹部…形的 | |
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62
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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63
Flared
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| adj. 端部张开的, 爆发的, 加宽的, 漏斗式的 动词flare的过去式和过去分词 | |
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64
blotted
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| 涂污( blot的过去式和过去分词 )； （用吸墨纸）吸干 | |
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swirling
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| v.旋转，打旋( swirl的现在分词 ) | |
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66
winking
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| n.瞬眼，目语v.使眼色( wink的现在分词 )；递眼色（表示友好或高兴等）；（指光）闪烁；闪亮 | |
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knoll
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| n.小山，小丘 | |
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snarled
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| v.（指狗）吠，嗥叫， （人）咆哮( snarl的过去式和过去分词 )；咆哮着说，厉声地说 | |
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69
yelped
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| v.发出短而尖的叫声( yelp的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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yearning
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| a.渴望的；向往的；怀念的 | |
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savagery
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| n.野性 | |
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72
blizzards
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| 暴风雪( blizzard的名词复数 )； 暴风雪似的一阵，大量（或大批） | |
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73
snug
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| adj.温暖舒适的，合身的，安全的；v.使整洁干净，舒适地依靠，紧贴；n.（英）酒吧里的私房 | |
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willow
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| n.柳树 | |
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75
contentedly
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| adv.心满意足地 | |
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76
parched
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| adj.焦干的；极渴的；v.（使）焦干 | |
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northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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