“Oh, I guess he was about ten years old,” said Joe. “One day this old prospector comes along and he hears the most terrible racket anybody ever heard of--rocks a-rollin’ down the canyon, brush a-poppin’, and the awfullest howlin’ and squallin’ you could imagine; and he looks up the canyon and sees what he first thinks is a cloud comin’ up, but purty soon he discovers it’s fur a-flyin’. “Well, he decides to walk up the canyon a piece and investigate, and purty soon he comes on Pecos Bill, who has a big grizzly bear under each arm jest mortally squeezin’ the stuffin’ out of ’em. And while the old prospector stands there a-watchin’, Bill tears off a hind leg and begins eatin’ on it. “‘A game scrap, son,’ says the old prospector, ‘and who be ye?’ “‘Me?’ says Bill. ‘I’m a varmit.’ “‘Naw, ye ain’t a varmit,’ says the old prospector; ‘you’re a human.’ “‘Naw,’ says Bill, ‘I ain’t no human; I’m a varmit.’ “‘How come?’ says the prospector. “‘Don’t I go naked?’ says Bill. “‘Shore ye do,’ says the old Prospector. ‘Shore ye’re naked. So is the Indians, and them critters is part human, anyway. That don’t spell nothin’.’ “‘Don’t I have fleas?’ says Bill. “‘Shore ye do,’ says the old prospector, ‘but all Texians has fleas.’ “‘Don’t I howl?’ says Bill. “‘Yeah, ye howl all right,’ says the old prospector, ‘but nearly all Texians is howlin’ most of the time. That don’t spell nothin’ neither.’ “‘Well, jest the same I’m a coyote,’ says Bill. “‘Naw, ye ain’t a coyote,’ says the old prospector. ‘A coyote’s got a tail, ain’t he?’ “‘Yeah,’ says Bill, ‘a coyote’s got a tail.’ “‘But you ain’t got no tail,’ says the old prospector. ‘Jest feel and see if you have.’ “Bill felt and shore nuff, he didn’t have no tail. “‘Well, I’ll be danged,’ he says. ‘I never did notice that before. I guess I ain’t a coyote, after all. Show me them humans, and if I like their looks, maybe I’ll throw in with ’em.’ “Well, he showed Bill the way to an outfit, and it wasn’t long till he was the most famous and noted man in the whole cow country.” “It was him,” said Hank, “that invented ropin’. He had a rope that reached from the Río Grande to the Big Bow, and he shore did swing a mean loop. He used to amuse his self by throwin’ a little _Julian_[2] up in the sky and fetchin’ down the buzzards and eagles that flew over. He roped everything he ever seen: bears and wolves and panthers, elk and buffalo. The first time he seen a train, he thought it was some kind of varmit, and damn me if he didn’t sling a loop over it and dang near wreck the thing. “One time his ropin’ shore did come in handy, for he saved the life of a very dear friend.” “How was that?” asked Lanky.