TOO MUCH REALISM
The shouting of the cowboys, the rushing of their intelligent ponies
here--there--everywhere, seemingly--the fusillade of pistol shots, the
thunder and bellowings of the steers and the thud of the ponies
hoofs--all combined to make the scene a lively one.
The imitation stampede seemed to be a great success, and no one, not in
the secret, could have told that it was not a real one.
"Over this way, Paul!" cried Baldy, who was taking part with the young
actor. "I'm supposed to rescue you, and I can't do it if you keep so far
away."
"But isn't it dangerous to ride so close to the steers?" asked Paul,
who, while willing to do almost anything in the line of moving picture
work, did not want to take needless chances.
"There's no danger as long as you're mounted," replied the cowboy, "and
you've got a good horse under you. Come on!"
Accordingly Paul rode closer in, and the camera showed him in imminent
danger of being trampled under the feet of the rushing steers.
But Baldy, who had done the same thing so often that he did not need to
rehearse it, rode swiftly in and managed to "cut out" Paul, so that the
actor was in no real danger. The cattle nearest to him were forced to
one side.
Then, as called for in the action of the little drama, Mr. Switzer, who
was a good horseman, having been in the German cavalry, rushed up to
attack Paul. Of course it was but a pretended attack; but it looked real
enough in the pictures.
Ruth and Alice, with the other spectators on the little mound, looked on
with intense interest.
"Oh, I just wish I was on my pony!" cried Alice, as she looked at the
scene of action.
"Alice, you do not!" protested Ruth.
"Yes, I do! Oh, it must be great to drive those cattle around that way!"
"You have a queer idea of fun," remarked Miss Pennington in a
supercilious tone, as she looked in the small mirror of her vanity box
to see what effect the sun and dust were having on her brilliant
complexion. For it was dusty, with the thousands of hoofs tearing up the
earth.
The main part of the action over, the cattle were now being "milled" by
the cowboys. That is, the onward rush was being checked, and the steers
were being made to go around in a circle.
Thus are stampedes, when real, gradually brought to an end.
"Well, it's all over," said Mr. Norton, as he stood beside the manager.
"Is that about what you wanted?"
"Indeed it is. This film will sure make a hit. Those rivals of ours, who
started out to take advantage of my plans and work, will be sadly left."
"You haven't seen any more of them?"
"Not since that fellow disappeared from here. He took himself and his
camera off. I guess he weakened at the last moment."
"I had no idea he was a moving picture operator," said the ranch owner,
"or I would never have hired him."
"Well, I guess no harm was done," Mr. Pertell rejoined.
The rush of the steers was gradually coming to a close when Mr. Norton,
looking over to the far edge of the bunch of cattle, uttered a sudden
cry of alarm.
"What's the matter?" asked Mr. Pertell, anxiously.
"Why, they seem to have started up all over again," was the reply. "You
didn't tell them to put in a second scene of the stampede; did you?"
"No, indeed. We don't need it. Besides, Russ can't have any film left
for this reel. He used up the thousand-foot, I'm sure, and he hasn't an
extra one with him. What does it mean?"
"That's what I'd like to know. Those steers are certainly on the rush
again, though. Hi, Baldy!" he called to the cowboy. "What are you
starting 'em up again for?"
"Startin' who up?"
"The steers! Look at 'em!"
"Say, they _are_ on the run again," agreed the bald-headed cowboy, who
had ridden up to where Mr. Pertell and Mr. Norton stood. "Something must
be wrong," and he set off on the gallop once more.
Meanwhile the steers, which had almost come to a rest, were again in
motion. But they were not safely going about in a circle. Instead, they
had started off in a long line and now were swinging around in a big
circle and heading directly for the mound on which the young ladies were
still standing.
Ruth and Alice had started down as they saw the cattle growing quiet,
but now several of the cowboys shouted to them:
"Go back! Go back! This is a stampede in earnest."
"A stampede in earnest!" repeated Mr. Norton. "I wonder what started
that?"
With a sudden rush the whole bunch of cattle were in motion, and headed
in a solid mass for the mound.
"If they rush over that----" said Mr. Pertell in fear.
"This is too much realism!" cried Mr. Norton, putting spurs to his steed
and racing off to help the cowboys. The latter had seen the danger of
the girls, and were hastening to once more stop the stampede that had
unexpectedly become a real one.
"Look at those fellows over there!" shouted Pete Batso as he rode up,
his horse in a lather. "They're none of our crowd!" and he pointed to a
group of horsemen who were riding away from the stampeded cattle instead
of toward them.
"Who are they?" asked Mr. Pertell.
"I don't know, but they're a lot of cowards to run away, when we'll need
all the help we can get to stem this rush!"