We of the Never-Never Part 9

It is always so. These wondrous waterways have little part in that mystical holding power of the Never-Never. They are only pleasant places to ride through and leave behind; for their purring slumberous beauty is vaguely suggestive of the beauty of a sleeping tiger: a sleeping tiger with deadly fangs and talons hidden under a wonder of soft allurement; and when exiles in the towns sit and dream their dreams are all of stretches of scorched gra.s.s and quivering sun-flecked shade.

In the honest sunlight Dan's spirits rose, and as I investigated various byways he asked "where the sense came in tying-up a dog that was doing no harm running loose." "It weren't as though she'd taken to chivying cattle," he added, as, a mob of inquisitive steers trotting after us, I hurried Roper in among the riders; and then he wondered "how she'll shape at her first muster."

The rest of the morning he filled in with tales of cattle-musters tales of stampedes and of cattle rushing over camps and "mincing chaps into saw-dust" until I was secretly pleased that the coming muster was for horses.

But Jack's reprieve was to last a little longer. When all was ready for the muster, word came in that outside blacks were in all along the river, and the Maluka deciding that the risks were too great for the missus in long-gra.s.s country, the plans were altered, and I was left at the homestead in the Dandy's care.

"It's a ill wind that blows n.o.body any good," the Maluka said, drawing attention to Jack's sudden interest in the proceedings.

Apart from sterling worth of character, the Dandy was all contrast to the Quiet Stockman: quick, alert, and sociable, and br.i.m.m.i.n.g over with quiet tact and thoughtfulness, and the Maluka knew I was in good hands. But the Dandy had his work to attend to; and after watching till the bush had swallowed up the last of the pack-team, I went to the wood-heap for company and consolation. Had the Darwin ladies seen me then, they would have been justified in saying, "I told you so."

There was plenty of company at the wood-heap, but the consolation was doubtful in character. Goggle-Eye and three other old black fellows were gossiping there, and after a peculiar grin of welcome, they expressed great fear lest the homestead should be attacked by "outside" blacks during the Maluka's absence. "Might it," they said, and offered to sleep in the garden near me, as no doubt "missus would be frightened fellow" to sleep alone.

"Me big mob frightened fellow longa wild black fellow," Goggle-Eye said, rather overdoing the part; and the other old rascals giggled nervously, and said "My word!" But sly, watchful glances made me sure they were only probing to find if fear had kept the missus at the homestead. Of course, if it had, a little harmless bullying for tobacco could be safely indulged in when the Dandy was busy at the yards.

Fortunately, Dan's system of education provided for all emergencies; and remembering his counsel to "die rather than own to a black fellow that you were frightened of anything," I refused their offer of protection, and declared so emphatically that there was nothing in heaven or earth that I was afraid to tackle single-handed, that I almost believed it myself.

There was no doubt they believed it, for they murmured in admiration "My word! Missus big mob cheeky fellow all right." But in their admiration they forgot that they were supposed to be quaking with fear themselves, and took no precautions against the pretended attack. "Putting themselves away properly," the Dandy said when I told him about it.

"It was a try-on all right," he added. "Evidence was against you, but they struck an unexpected snag. You'll have to keep it up, though"; and deciding "there was nothing in the yarn," the Dandy slept in the Quarters, and I in the House, leaving the doors and windows open as usual.

When this was reported at dawn by Billy Muck, who had taken no part in the intimidation scheme, a wholesome awe crept into the old men's admiration; for a black fellow is fairly logical in these matters.

To him, the man who crouches behind barred doors is a coward, and may be attacked without much risk, while he who relies only on his own strength appears as a Goliath defying the armies of a nation, and is best left alone, lest he develop into a Samson annihilating Philistines.

Fortunately for my reputation, only the Dandy knew that we considered open doors easier to get out of than closed ones, and that my revolver was to be fired to call him from the Quarters if anything alarming occurred.

"You'll have to live up to your reputation now," the Dandy said, and, brave in the knowledge that he was within cooee, I ordered the old men about most unmercifully, leaving little doubt in their minds that "missus was big mob cheeky fellow."

They were most deferential all day, and at sundown I completed my revenge by offering these rulers of a nation the insult of a woman's protection.

"If you are still afraid of the wild blacks, you may sleep near me to-night," I said, and apologised for not having made the offer for the night before.

"You've got 'em on toast," the Dandy chuckled as the offer was refused with a certain amount of dignity.

The lubras secretly enjoyed the discomfiture of their lords and masters, and taking me into their confidence, made it very plain that a lubra's life at times is anything but a happy one; particularly if "me boy all day krowl (growl)." As for the lords and masters themselves, the insult rankled so that they spent the next few days telling great and valiant tales of marvellous personal daring, hoping to wipe the stain of cowardice from their characters. Fortunately for themselves, Billy Muck and Jimmy had been absent from the wood-heap, and, therefore, not having committed themselves on the subject of wild blacks, bragged excessively.

Had they been present, knowing the old fellows well, I venture to think there would have been no intimidation scheme floated.

As the Dandy put it, "altogether the time pa.s.sed pleasantly," and when the Maluka returned we were all on the best of terms, having reached the phase of friendship when pet names are permissible. The missus had become "Gadgerrie" to the old men and certain privileged lubras. What it means I do not know, excepting that it seemed to imply fellowship. Perhaps it meant "old pal" or "mate," or, judging from the tone of voice that accompanied it, "old girl," but more probably, like "Maluka,"

untranslatable. The Maluka was always "Maluka" to the old men, and to some of us who imitated them.

Dan came in the day after the Maluka, and, hearing of our "affairs," took all the credit of it to himself.

"Just shows what a bit of educating'll do," he said. "The Dandy would have had a gay old time of it if I hadn't put you up to their capers"; and I had humbly to acknowledge the truth of all he said.

"I don't say you're not promising well," he added, satisfied with my humility. "If Johnny'll only stay away long enough, we'll have you educated up to doing without a house."

Within a week it seemed as though Johnny was aiding and abetting Dan in his scheme of education; for he sent in word that his "cross-cut saw," or something equally important, had doubled up on him, and he was going back to Katherine to "see about it straight off."

CHAPTER IX

Before the mustered horses were drafted out, every one at the homestead, blacks, whites, and Chinese, went up to the stockyard to "have a look at them."

Dan was in one of his superior moods. "Let's see if she knows anything about horses," he said condescendingly, as the Quiet Stockman opened the mob up a little to show the animals to better advantage. "Show us your fancy in this lot, missus." "Certainly," I said, affecting particular knowledge of the subject, and Jack wheeled with a quick, questioning look, suddenly aware that, after all, a woman MIGHT be only a fellow-man; and as I glanced from one beautiful animal to another he watched keenly, half expectant and half incredulous.

It did not take long to choose. In the foreground stood a magnificent brown colt, that caught and held the attention, as it watched every movement with ears shot forward, and nostrils quivering; and as I pointed it out Jack's boyish face lit up with surprise and pleasure.

"Talk of luck!" Dan cried, as usual withholding the benefit of the doubt.

"You've picked Jack's fancy."

But it was Jack himself who surprised every one, for, forgetting his monosyllables, he said with an indescribable ring of fellowship in his voice, "She's picked out the best in the whole mob," and turned back to his world among the horses with his usual self-possession.

Dan's eyes opened wide. "Whatever's come to Jack?" he said; but seemed puzzled at the Maluka's answer that he was "only getting educated." The truth is, that every man has his vulnerable point, and Jack's was horses.

When the mob had been put through the yards, all the unbroken horses were given into the Quiet Stockmas's care, and for the next week or two the stockyard became the only place of real interest; for the homestead, waiting for the Wet to lift, had settled down to store lists, fencing, and stud books.

It was not the horses alone that were of interest at the yards; the calm, fearless, self-reliant man who was handling them was infinitely more so.

Nothing daunted or disheartened him; and in those hours spent on the stockyard fence, in the shade of a spreading tree, I learnt to know the Quiet Stockman for the man he was.

If any one would know the inner character of a fellow man, let him put him to horse-breaking, and he will soon know the best or the worst of him. Let him watch him handling a wild, unbroken colt, and if he is steadfast of purpose, just, brave, and true-hearted, it will all be revealed; but if he lacks self-restraint, or is cowardly, shifty, or mean-spirited, he will do well to avoid the test, for the horse will betray him.

Jack's horse-breaking was a battle for supremacy of mind over mind, not mind over matter a long course of careful training and schooling, in which nothing was broken, but all bent to the control of a master. To him no two horses were alike; carefully he studied their temperaments, treating each horse according to its nature using the whip freely with some, and with others not at all; coercing, coaxing, or humouring, as his judgment directed. Working always for intelligent obedience, not cowed stupidity, he appeared at times to be almost reasoning with the brute mind, as he helped it to solve the problems of its schooling; penetrating dull stupidity with patient reiteration, or wearing down stubborn opposition with steady, unwavering persistence, and always rewarding ultimate obedience with gentle kindness and freedom.

Step by step, the training proceeded. Submission first, then an establishment of perfect trust and confidence between horse and man, without which nothing worth having could be attained.

After that, in orderly succession the rest followed: toleration of handling, reining, mouthing, leading on foot, and on horseback and in due time saddling and mounting. One thing at a time and nothing new until the old was so perfected that when all was ready for the mounting from a spectacular point of view the mounting was generally disappointing. Just a little rearing and curvetting, then a quiet, trusting acceptance of this new order of things.

Half a dozen horses were in hand at once, and, as with children at school, some quickly got ahead of the others, and every day the interest grew keener and keener in the individual character of the horses. At the end of a week Jack announced that he was "going to catch the brown colt,"

next day. "It'll be worth seeing," he said; and from the Quiet Stockman that was looked upon as a very pressing invitation.

From the day of the draughting he had ceased altogether to avoid me, and in the days that followed had gradually realised that a horse could be more to a woman than a means of locomotion; and now no longer drew the line at conversations.

When we went up to the yards in the morning, the brown colt was in a small yard by itself, and Jack was waiting at the gate, ready for its "catching."

With a laugh at the wild rush with which the colt avoided him, he shut himself into the yard with it, and moved quietly about, sometimes towards it and sometimes from it; at times standing still and looking it over, and at other times throwing a rope or sack carelessly down, waiting until his presence had become familiar, and the colt had learned that there was nothing to fear from it.

There was a curious calmness in the man's movements, a fearless repose that utterly ignored the wild rushes, and as a natural result they soon ceased; and within just a minute or two the beautiful creature was standing still, watching in quivering wonder.

Gradually a double rope began to play in the air with ever-increasing circles, awakening anew the colt's fears; and as these in turn subsided, without any apparent effort a long running noose flickered out from the circling rope, and, falling over the strong young head, lay still on the arching neck.

The leap forward was terrific; but the rope brought the colt up with a jerk; and in the instant's pause that followed the Quiet Stockman braced himself for the mad rearing plunges that were coming. There was literally only an instant's pause, and then with a clatter of hoofs the plungings began, and were met with muscles of iron, and jaw set like a vice, as the man, with heels dug into the ground dragged back on the rope, yielding as much as his judgment allowed--enough to ease the shocks, but not an inch by compulsion.

Twice the rearing, terrified creature circled round him and then the rope began to shorten to a more workable length. There was no haste, no flurry. Surely and steadily the rope shortened (but the horse went to the man not the man to the horse; that was to come later). With the shortening of the rope the compelling power of the man's will forced itself into the brute mind, and, bending to that will, the wild leaps and plungings took on a vague suggestion of obedience--a going WITH the rope, not against it; that was all. An erratic going, perhaps, but enough to tell that the horse had acknowledged a master. That was all Jack asked for at first, and, satisfied, he relaxed his muscles, and as the rope slackened the horse turned and faced him; and the marvel was how quickly it was all over.

But something was to follow, that once seen could never be forgotten the advance of the man to the horse.