Part 17 (1/2)

”All ready--come on with the carriage!” called Mr. Pertell to Ruth and Alice, who were waiting out of range of the camera. They had rehea.r.s.ed the direction they were to take. ”Go on!” called the director to Russ.

”Camera!”

The grinding of the film began, and Ruth and Alice acted their parts as they drove along in the old-fas.h.i.+oned equipage. Suddenly, in front of them the bushes crackled.

”There they come!” cried Ruth, pulling back the horses as called for in the play. ”The soldiers!”

But instead of a band of men in blue breaking out on the road, there came a herd of cows, that rushed at the carriage, while the horses reared up and began to back.

”Stop the camera! Stop that! Cut that out!” frantically cried Mr.

Pertell through his megaphone. ”Hold back those men!” he added to his a.s.sistant who had signaled for the Confederates to rush up.

CHAPTER XIII

FORGETFULNESS

Ruth and Alice for the moment were not quite certain whether or not this was a part of the scene. Very often the director would spring some unexpected effect for the sake of causing a natural surprise that would register in the camera better than any simulated one.

But these were real cows, and they did not seem to have rehea.r.s.ed their parts very well, for they rushed here and there and surrounded the carriage, to the no small terror of the horses, which Ruth had all she could do to hold in.

”Oh, what shall we do?” cried Alice. ”I'm going to jump out!”

”You'll do nothing of the sort!” exclaimed her sister. ”Sit where you are! Do you want to be trampled on or pierced with those sharp horns, Alice?”

”I certainly do not!”

”Then sit still! This must be a mistake.”

It did not take much effort on Ruth's part to make Alice remain in the carriage with all those cows about. For she had learned on Rocky Ranch that while a crowd of steers will pay no attention to a person on a horse, once let the same person dismount, and he may be trampled down.

These, of course, were not wild steers--Alice could see that. But she thought the same rule, in a measure, might hold good.

More cows crashed through the bushes until the road was fairly blocked, and then came another rush of many feet and the Union skirmish party came galloping along. They had received no orders to hold back, and so dashed up.

At the same moment a ragged boy with a long whip came rus.h.i.+ng up.

Evidently, he was in charge of the cows, but when he saw the soldiers in their uniforms, a look of fear spread over his face.

”I didn't do nothin', Mister Captain! Honest I didn't!” he yelled.

”These is pap's cows, an' I'm drivin' 'em over to the man he sold 'em to. I didn't do nothin'.”

”n.o.body said you did!” laughed Lieutenant Varley with a bow to Ruth and Alice in the carriage. ”But why did you drive them in here to spoil the picture?”

”I didn't know nothin' about no picture--honest I didn't! I took this road because it was shorter. Don't shoot pap's cow-critters. I'll take 'em away.”

”Well, that's all we want you to do,” said Mr. Pertell, coming up with a grim smile. ”You nearly got yourself and your cow-critters in trouble, my boy. Drive 'em back now, and we'll go on with the film. Did any of 'em get in, Russ?” he asked.

”Just a few, on the last inch or so of the reel. I can cut that out and go on from there. Hold the carriage where it is, Ruth,” he called.

”All right,” she answered, for she had now quieted the restive horses.