You never saw anything so queer." "Oh! yes, I have," said the doctor drily, "often.

Our horses here have that bad habit, and we call it buck jumping, for it is very much the action of a bounding deer.

Have you been pitched off like that more than once ?" "Oh! yes, father; scores, perhaps hundreds of times," said Nic, laughing.
"Come then, you will not be afraid to mount this horse, and I dare say I can soon teach you to ride.

It's too late now, or I'd give you a lesson." He closed the door of the shed, went back to the waggon, where the younger man was on the top straining at a rope, and the elder giving orders, while the black was squatting down and looking on.

Here a few words of instruction were given, and a question or two asked about the flour barrels and bacon.
These being answered satisfactorily, the doctor led the way back to the Government House, where they had just time to prepare for dinner and meet the two officers and the captain and ship's doctor, who had been asked to meet them by way of farewell.
Bed was sought early, the doctor laughingly telling his son to make much of it, for he would have to make shift for some time to come.
"It's good-bye to civilisation when we leave here in the morning," said the doctor, looking hard at his son.
"And he won't mind it a bit," said Lady O'Hara.