received.

As soon as the boy found himself beyond the reach of the animal's fury
he halted the man and made a minute examination of the machinery.

The head and horns of the buffalo had dented the iron skin of the
steam man, but the blow being distributed over a large area, inflicted
no other damageif indeed this could be called damage of itself.

The boy was greatly pleased, not only at his escape but at the
admirable manner in which his invention had borne the shock of
collision. It gave him a confidence in it which hitherto he had not
felt.

Turning his face more toward the mountains, he again let on a good
head of steam and rattled over the prairie at a stirring rate. An hour
was sufficient to bring him to the base, where he halted.

He had not forgotten the warning of the trapper, but, like almost any
inexperienced person, he could not see any cause for alarm. He scanned
every part of the prairie and mountain that was in his field of
vision, but could detect nothing alarming.

He supposed the parting admonition of Baldy was merely a general
warning, such as a cautious person gives to one whom he has reason to
fear is somewhat careless in his conduct.

It therefore required little self-argument upon his part after putting
his man in proper 'condition,' to start off on a ramble up the
mountain side. It was not his intention to remain more than an hour or