In this fashion then Lanky passed over the fence, and was safe. The baffled bull seemed to know that his intended prey had escaped him. Perhaps he felt that the boy on the fence must be laughing at him. At any rate he made a sudden, wicked lunge in the direction of Bones, and that worthy, being taken by surprise, might have suffered if he had not allowed himself to simply fall in a heap on the ground outside of the rails. Bang! came the rushing bull against the fence, which quivered before the onset, and might even have given way, only that it had been stoutly built to withstand such rushes. “Bah! don’t you wish you could?” jeered Bones, struggling to his feet, his fright a thing of the past; and he made a face at the bull, that was just two feet away, although separated by that barrier of stout rails. “How are you, Lanky; all right?” asked Frank, as the long figure of the rescued chum appeared in sight, dropping down out of the second tree. “Well, I seem to be all here,” replied the other, with a broad smile; “but when that old beast was trying to reach me, I began to think he’d have my shins scraped, more or less. That was a bully good thought of yours, Frank. Queerest ride I ever took in all my life. Talk to me about toboggan slides--why, they’re not in it with a rope run, and a jumpin’ bull underneath.” “Who’ll get the rope, Frank?” asked Bones. “You can, if you feel like it,” replied the other, with a smile. “Excuse me, but it’d have to be something more’n an old clothesline that would tempt me to go into that field again,” Bones declared. “Well,” Frank went on, “fortunately there’s no need of anyone going right now, because I told the farmer’s wife what I meant to do to get Lanky out of there, and she said to leave the rope where it was. Her husband would get it later on, after the bull was in the barn for the night.” “Let me have five minutes’ rest after that little slide, Frank,” entreated Lanky, “and then I’ll be ready to join you both in another run across to the road. It must have been the strain that told on me. Right now my heart is beating like fun.” “Sure thing,” assented Bones; “mine is, too, because I thought that black beast was going to get me when he ducked my way with a whoop. Say, ain’t he just the limit now, fellows? Old Hobson’ll get in trouble with that critter some fine day. He ought not to keep such a wicked animal around.” “Oh! well,” Frank remarked, “you know we really had no business going through his pasture. Even if you got hurt, your father couldn’t have recovered damages if Hobson chose to take it to the courts. When you trespass, you lose your rights up to a certain extent. How about it now, Lanky, feel like you could stand a grilling run again?”