that his horns pointed straight at Old Man Coyote. He grinned as he did
it, for he saw that with that great rock behind him, Old Man Coyote
would have no chance to run away as he always had done in the past.
Everybody else saw the same thing, and wondered what could have happened
to make Old Man Coyote so stupid as to do such a thing as that, he who
always had been accounted so clever. But they had hardly time to think
of this, for with a snort Big-Horn bounded forward. All the others held
their breath as they saw those great horns driving straight at Old Man
Coyote, who was crouched with his back to the great rock. Then everybody
closed their eyes for a second, for nobody wanted to see Old Man Coyote
killed, and everybody _knew_ that that was what was going to happen.
"Then there was a crash, and everybody's eyes flew open. There lay
Big-Horn on the ground, looking mighty puzzled, as if he wasn't quite
sure what had happened. And there sat Old Man Coyote, grinning at him!
They were still staring at Old Man Coyote as if they couldn't believe
their own eyes when some one cried, 'Look at the horns of Big-Horn!'
"Instead of being long and straight, those great horns were curved over
and round into almost a circle, and there was no longer danger from
their sharp points. What had happened? Why, at just the right instant
Old Man Coyote had leaped over Big-Horn, and Big-Horn had butted into
that great rock with all his might. He had hit so hard, biff! bang! that
he had bent his horns, just as crafty, clever Old Man Coyote had hoped
he would.
"When Old Mother Nature heard of the affair and saw those bent horns,
she chuckled at the cleverness of Old Man Coyote and decided to leave
those horns just as they were for the safety of Big-Horn's neighbors.
And so they remained as long as Big-Horn lived, and just so have been
the horns in his family from that day to this," concluded Digger, and
once more began to watch his shadow grow longer.