BINNEY GIBBS AND HIS MULE.
The effect on Binney Gibbs of General Lyle's reprimand was good,
inasmuch as it brought him to a realizing sense of his true position in
that party, and showed him that, if he wished to remain a member of it,
he must obey orders, even when they were issued in the form of polite
requests. So, after that, he made a virtue of necessity, and obeyed
every order with a scrupulous exactness, though generally with an
injured air, and a protesting expression of countenance as though he
were being imposed upon. It was a great mortification to him to be
obliged to send home his trunk, and more than half his supply of
clothing, together with a number of other cherished luxuries, such as a
rubber bathtub, a cork mattress, a rubber pillow, half a dozen linen
sheets, several china plates, cups, and saucers, besides some silver and
plated ware, all of which he relinquished with a heavy heart and many
lamentations.
The only thing in the shape of a valise, with which to replace his
trunk, that he could purchase in the railroad settlement, was one of
those cheap affairs made of glazed leather, such as are often seen in
the hands of newly landed immigrants. As Binney brought this into the
camp, it at once attracted universal attention. The boys crowded about
him, begging to be allowed to examine his new and elegant "grip-sack;"
and, from that day forth, he was known as "Grip" by the entire party.
For a week longer the expedition remained at Camp Lyle, waiting for
settled weather, and preparing for its great undertaking. It was divided
into four divisions, three of which were regularly equipped
surveying-parties who were to run transit and level lines from a point
near the Colorado border to the Pacific Ocean. The fourth, or
headquarter division, was composed of the commander and his immediate
staff, together with the scientific men and their assistants.
As Glen hoped and expected, he was assigned to the second division, of
which Mr. Hobart was engineer in charge, and Mr. Brackett was assistant.
He was a little disappointed that the only position found for him in the
division was the very lowest of all in rank and pay. It was that of
tapeman, and his duties were to assist the topographer of the party in
measuring distances to, or taking the bearings of, prominent objects
along the line. Neither could Glen help wishing that Binney Gibbs had
not been assigned to the same division as himself. On account of his
brilliant record for scholarship and skill with figures, Binney was made
rodman, a position that far outranked Glen's and commanded twice his
pay. Still, Glen strove hard not to feel envious of this other Brimfield
boy. He was altogether too proud of being a member of the expedition on
any terms to have room for any other feeling, and he was anxious to be
on a friendly footing with Binney, as he was with everybody else. So,
when the positions were announced, and the prize scholar was found to
hold such a fine one, Glen was the first to tender his congratulations.
Binney received them coldly, merely remarking that they could not very
well have given him any lower position, and that he should not have
accepted anything less if it had been offered.
Glen only smiled at this, and thought how fortunate it was that he did
not feel that way.
As a rodman Binney was allowed the use of a saddle-animal, and a very
small mule was assigned to him as his mount. When he went down to the
wagons to inspect his new acquisition, he thought he had never seen a
more dangerous-looking animal. It laid back its ears and bit at him when
he attempted to pat it on the nose, and manifested every other sign of
mulish antipathy towards its new master. In spite of all this, the
teamster having it in charge assured Binney that it was a perfect lamb,
and the rodman, anxious to prove his ability to ride a mule, which some
of the boys had doubted, ordered the animal to be saddled.
The man who held the beast while Binney climbed awkwardly into the
saddle winked at some of his fellows who were watching the operation,
and thrust his tongue derisively into his cheek.
For a few moments the mule did prove a veritable lamb, ambling along so
gently that Binney's spirits rose, and he began to imagine himself the
rider that he claimed to be. Elated by his success, he even dared to
give the bridle reins a shake, say "Get up!" and finally to touch the
side of his steed with the spur that, in his pride, he had fastened to
one of his boot-heels.
The effect was electrical. In an instant Binney found himself hatless,
with both feet out of the stirrups, clinging for dear life to the pommel
of the saddle, and wishing himself anywhere but on the back of a mule
dashing madly, at full speed, directly into camp.
"Help! help!" he shouted, breathlessly. "Head him off! stop him
somebody!"
Once inside that square of tents, the mule did not seem to realize the
possibility of again passing beyond them, but tore frantically round and
round the inner side of the square, as though it were a circus-ring.
Everybody dropped his work and rushed out to witness the comical
spectacle.
"Freeze to him, Grip!" cried one.
"Give him his head!"
"What made you leave Barnum's?"
"Stand up on his back!"
"Don't abuse the poor mule! It's a shame to make him run so!"
These, and a hundred similar cries, mingled with shouts of uproarious
laughter, greeted poor Binney from all sides; while not the slightest
attention was paid to his piteous entreaties that somebody would stop
the mule.
At length these cries seemed to attract the attention of the animal
himself; for he suddenly planted his fore-feet and stopped so abruptly
that Binney was flung over his head as from a catapult. Then the mule
lifted high his head and uttered a prolonged ear-splitting bray of
defiance.
Glen had sprung forward and caught the animal's bridle almost the
instant he stopped. Now leading him to where Binney sat, dazed but
unhurt, he asked, soberly, "Do you want to try him again, Binney?"
"Try him again!" shouted the rodman, angrily. "No, I never want to see
him again; but if you think he's easy to ride, why don't you try him
yourself?"
"Yes, try him, young 'un! Give him another turn around the ring, Glen!"
shouted the spectators, anxious to have their fun prolonged, but having
no idea that this boy from Brimfield could ride, any more than the
other.
Glen borrowed a pair of spurs, soothed the mule for a moment, sinched
the girth a trifle tighter, and, with a sudden leap, vaulted into the
saddle. For an instant the animal remained motionless with astonishment;
then he bounded into the air, and came down with all four legs as stiff
as posts. The shock would have been terrible to the boy, had he not
lifted himself from the saddle and supported his whole weight in the
stirrups. The mule repeated this movement several times, and then began
to plunge and kick. But the saddle in which Glen sat was a deeply
hollowed, high-pommelled, Mexican affair, built for just such occasions
as this, and so the plunging might have been kept up all day without
disturbing the rider in the least.
The mule laid down and tried to roll, while the boy, who had jumped from
his back, stood quietly by, and allowed him to discover the folly of the
attempt. The high pommel of the saddle again interfered; and as the
disgusted animal scrambled to his feet, he again found his burr-like
rider as firmly seated on his back as ever.
For a moment the mule hung his head in a dejected manner, as though
thinking out some new plan. Suddenly his meditations were interrupted by
a yell directly in one of his long ears, and a sharp pain felt in both
sides at once. He sprang forward to escape these annoyances; but they
clung to him as close as did his new rider. Faster and faster he flew,
while harder and harder spurred Glen, and louder grew his yells. All at
once the animal stopped, as short as on the former occasion; but this
time the rider did not fly over his head. The fact is, the mule was now
so thoroughly frightened and bewildered that he had no idea of stopping
until his lower jaw was jerked back so sharply that had it belonged to
any other kind of an animal it must have been dislocated. Even Glen had
no idea of the power of that cruel Mexican bit, and was almost as
greatly surprised as the mule at its sudden effect.
Then came more yelling, more spurring, and more frantic dashing around
that tiresome square. At length the mule spied the opening through which
he had entered, and, rushing through it, he sped away over the open
prairie, thankful to be rid of those bewildering tents and shouting
spectators, even though his rider still clung as close as ever to that
Mexican saddle.
When the two returned to camp, half an hour later, it was evident that
the most perfect understanding existed between them; but the mule was so
crest-fallen by his humiliation that for a long time even Binney Gibbs
could ride and abuse him with impunity.
As for Glen, his reputation as a horseman was firmly established, and
from that day until he got a horse of his own there was always somebody
willing and anxious to place a mount at his disposal.