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FREEDOM FOR A PRICE
Anne Moorman (Sophomore)

The stallion's beauty in itself was outstanding, and this beauty was made especially so by the fact that the animal was a mustang, a usually scrawny ugly horse.

But this particular stallion was different. At least Joe thought so. He was a born pacer, Joe knew, because Joe had chased him enough to know that he never got out of step, but just paced, paced, no matter how fast or where he went  The horse would bring a good price, Joe thought; a good price if only he could catch him.

Every time Joe set out to rope the wild, pacing stallion, his opinion of him rose until he no longer wanted the horse for sale but for himself. Each time he went after him, he noticed the stallion's gait. Not once did the superb animal alter his steps... not once!

The continual running away from Joe made him wilder than ever. Nevertheless, it didn't drive him from the water hole, the only drinking place with absolutely no cover in any direction to hide men, his enemies.

How could the stallion be captured? Joe pondered over this for days, and finally arrived at a solution. As the horse's harem had already been caught and sold by other men, Joe knew the horse was lonely; he planned to make use of this knowledge.

The following morning found him digging a shallow hole for himself to hide in, driving a stake firmly into the ground by the water hole, and tying his little brown mare to the stake. Then he waited. About noon the mare's gentle whinny was answered, and down from the east came the stallion. He stopped and looked around, having been made wary by much chasing. He heard the mare's whinny again, inviting, teasing. He came closer-and still closer until their noses touched. Immediately the pacer was thrown off guard, delighted with himself at having found such a mare. He danced all around her, showing off to her. He stood for just a second in the circle of the evil rope laid carefully by Joe, and then the rope was pulled taut. The great horse was caught!!

All at once the stallion became a snorting, terrified creature with flailing hoofs and dilated nostrils. When Joe finally clamed him down, the animal that had first seemed spirited now seemed broken and subdued. He had lost the fight to his greatest enemy, man. 

Joe tied the majestic stallion securely to a post. For less than five minutes the pacer was quiet, then he lunged futilely. The rope held. Again and again he reared up on his powerful hind legs, snorting heavily, not terrified but determined to escape. The ropes became looser.

His coat was covered with foam, his ears were bent back, his fetlocks were bleeding from tearing at the ropes that now only partially held him. At last, with one final, almost pitiful effort, the stallion broke away! He raced through the wind up on to the highest cliff and plunged. There he lay on the rocks below, a lifeless wreck, but free!