After breakfast next morning Mary decided to spend the day in the
company of the children, who were having holidays.
"Just as well for you to learn the house firsts" said Hugh, "before
you tackle the property. The youngsters know where everything
is--within four miles, anyhow."
Two little girls were impressed, and were told to take Miss Grant
round and show her the way about the place; and they set off together
in the bright morning sunlight, on a trip of exploration.
Now, no true Australian, young or old, ever takes any trouble or
undergoes any exertion or goes anywhere without an object in view.
So the children considered it the height of stupidity to walk simply
for the sake of walking, and kept asking where they were to walk
to.
"What shall we see if we go along this road?" asked Miss Grant,
pointing with her dainty parasol along the wheel-track that meandered
across the open flat and lost itself in the timber.
"Nothing," said both children together.
"Then, what is there up that way?" she asked, waving her hand up
towards the foothills and the blue mountains. "There must be some
pretty flowers to look at up there?"
"No, there isn't," said the children.
"Well, let us go into the woods and see if we can't find something,"
she said determinedly; and with her reluctant guides she set off,
trudging across the open forest through an interminable vista of
gum trees.
After a while one of the girls said, "Hello, there's Poss!"
Miss Grant looked up, and saw through the trees a large and very
frightened bay horse, with a white face. On further inspection, a
youth of about eighteen or twenty was noticed on the horse's back,
but he seemed so much a part of the animal that one might easily
overlook him at a first glance. The horse had stopped at the sight
of them, and was visibly affected with terror.
They advanced slowly, and the animal began snorting and sidling
away among the timber, its rider meanwhile urging it forward. Then
Emily cried, "Hello, Poss!" and the horse gave a snort, wheeled round, jumped
a huge fallen tree, and fled through the timber like a wild thing,
with its rider still apparently glued to its back. In half a second
they were out of sight.
"Who is it? and why does he go away?" asked Miss Grant.
"That's Poss," said Emily carelessly. "He and Binjie live over at
Dunderalligo. He often comes here. They and their father live over
there That's a colt he's breaking in. He's very nice. So is Binjie."
"Well, here he comes again," said Miss Grant, as the horseman
reappeared, riding slowly round them in ever-lessening circles;
the colt meanwhile eyeing them with every aspect of intense dislike
and hatred, and snorting between whiles like a locomotive.