John Fitzgerald GB 06 Return of Read Online Free Page B

you ride Chalky.”
    There were no volunteers.
    “Are you all scared of a little burro?” Parley asked.
    That was enough to make Tom. Basil Kokovinis, Danny Forester, and Seth Smith try to ride the wild jackass. He bucked them all off his back quicker than he had Parley. And he gave each one of them a loud, “Hee haw,” after doing it, as if to let them know a dumb old jackass was smarter than a bunch of kids. We all sat on the corral fence staring at Chalky, who looked as if he were going to sleep. Finally Parley spoke.
    “Pa says you have to ride them to break their spirit be-fore you can break them to pack saddle and harness,” he said. “Nobody can gentle that wild jackass. When Pa gets back I’m going to tell him to take Chalky back to Wild Horse Canyon and turn him loose.”
    “Don’t give up so easy,” Tom said.
    “Who wouldn’t give up?” Parley answered.
    “I wouldn’t,” Tom said.
    “Is that so?” Parley said. “Tell you what I’ll do. I’ll give that jackass to anybody who can ride him before Pa gets back.”
    Tom stared at Parley. “Do you really mean that?” he asked.
    “Pa sure as heck ain’t going to let me keep a jackass that I can’t gentle and sell.” Parley answered. “And I know if I can’t ride him no kid in this town can ride him.”
    Parley wasn’t boasting. Maybe he wasn’t a broncobuster, but he could ride a horse better than any of the fellows. And
     
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    with his pony. Blaze, he had won the trick-riding contest for kids his age at the county fair three years in a row.
    That evening after supper as the family sat in the parlor Tom was quiet. Finally he spoke.
    “Papa,” he said, “how much is a male burro worth?” “Not much,” I said before Papa could answer. “Who
    would want a dumb old jackass?”
    Papa dropped the magazine he was reading. “The question was addressed to me.” he reprimanded me. “However, for your information, J.D., a burro is a lot smarter than a horse, as any prospector or trapper will tell you. If his load is too heavy, a burro will refuse to move until you lighten it. But a pack horse or mule will carry a load that he knows is too heavy for him. When a burro feels he has put in a day’s work he will stop working and there isn’t anything you can do to make him continue. But a horse will go on working until he drops from exhaustion if you make him. When the weather is hot a burro will slow down his pace and nothing can make him move any faster. But a horse will keep going at any pace you want him to go regardless of how hot it is.”
    Papa then looked at Tom. “To get back to your question,” he said, “years ago during the gold and silver mining boom a burro was worth more than a horse because so many prospectors used them. But prospectors are few and far between today. I have noticed, however, that some trappers at the campgrounds prefer a burro to a pack mule or pack horse. But I doubt if you could get more than five dollars
    for one. Why do you ask?”
    “Parley Benson has a wild jackass his father brought home,” Tom said. “Parley said he would give the jackass to anybody who can ride him.”
     
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    “I’m sure,” Papa said, “that if Parley Benson can’t ride that jackass you can’t.”
    “Maybe my great brain can figure out a way to gentle that wild jackass,” Tom said.
    “Well just make certain you do it honestly,” Papa said. “I don’t want any backsliding out of you.”
    The next morning after chores Tom said he was going to talk to Mr. Blake who worked in Jerry Stout’s saddle and harness shop. Mr. Blake had been a wild horse wrangler until a horse he was breaking fell on him leaving him too crippled to ride horses again. Mamma wanted me to run an errand to the store so I didn’t go with Tom.
    I was sitting on the back porch steps watching Frankie and Eddie Huddle play marbles when Tom returned.
    “Why did you want to see Mr. Blake?” I asked as Tom sat down beside me.
    “To find out if