Two men ran forward and seized the rope which their comrade had thrown so skillfully.
Then the three pulled hard.
But the quarry was too magnificent.

They had miscalculated the white stallion's strength.

Caught by the neck, he dragged, nevertheless, all three over the prairie, and then, suddenly making a mighty lunge, tore the rope from their grasp, leaving them thrown headlong to the earth.

Away he went, the long rope flying out behind him like a streamer.
Doubtless some failure of the noose to draw tightly around his neck had saved the horse, and this was proved when the rope catching in a bush slipped off over his head as he struggled again.

Then the stallion, by chance, or because his horse's mind inclined him to it, uttered a long, shrill neigh of triumph, kicked his heels high in the air, and galloped away, his flowing tail streaming out behind him, a banner of triumph.
"He's won again," said Henry in a tone of gladness.