Lucinda was of a different build, and
it behooved her to make for herself a perfect seat. "We must have the
wall," said Lord George, who was again at her side for a moment. She would
have "had" a castle wall, moat included, turrets and all, if he would only
have shown her the way. The huntsman and Frank had taken the wall. The
horsey man's bit of blood, knowing his own powers to an inch, had
declined--not roughly, with a sudden stop and a jerk, but with a swerve to
the left which the horsey man at once understood. What the brute lacked in
jumping he could make up in pace, and the horsey man was along the wall
and over a broken bank at the head of it, with the loss of not more than a
minute. Lucinda's horse, following the ill example, balked the jump. She
turned him round with a savage gleam in her eye which Lizzie was just near
enough to see, struck him rapidly over the shoulders with her whip, and
the animal flew with her into the next field. "Oh, if I could do it like
that," thought Lizzie. But in that very minute she was doing it, not only
as well but better. Not following Lord George, but close at his side, the
little animal changed his pace, trotted for a yard or two, hopped up as
though the wall were nothing, knocked off a top stone with his hind feet,
and dropped on the ground so softly that Lizzie hardly believed that she
had gone over the big obstruction that had cost Lucinda such an effort.
Pages:
572
573
574
575
576
577
578
579
580
581
582
583
584
585
586
587
588
589
590
591
592
593
594
595
596