"I'd like to try my hand at it--or my feet, I
should say. I should think it would be great fun. Yesterday I saw
Johnnie Green and some other boys walking on the tread mill and making
it go. They seemed to find it a lark."
"Huh!" said one of the bays. "They'd _hate_ it if they had to walk up
hill hour after hour and never get anywhere. The noise of the tread mill
and the thrashing machine is most unpleasant."
"It wouldn't be so bad," said his mate, "if Farmer Green would let us
eat all we wanted of the oats that we help thrash. But he doesn't give
us even an extra measure."
"We'd run away," remarked the bay that had spoken first, "except that
running away wouldn't do us any good. All our running would only make
the mill turn faster."
"We can't even stand still if we want to," his mate muttered. "There's a
bar that crosses the top of the tread mill, right in front of us. Farmer
Green ties us to it. There we are! When he unlocks the tread mill we
have to start walking or we'd slide down backwards; and unless our
halters broke, our necks would get a terrible stretching.
Pages:
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66