Luke and McCade

Out on the range where the tumbleweed travels,
Luke rode this stallion whose name was McCade.
Then in a canyon they spotted a cougar--
suddenly Luke knew his horse was afraid.

He felt McCade tense up tight as a noose,
then with a whinny the horse turned around;
Luke was flung back as McCade bolted up,
and he fell shoulder first onto the ground.

Luke brushed the dust off his chaps and holster--
he saw McCade gallop east on the trail.
He looked ahead to the mouth of the canyon,
seeing the cougar with leery-tucked tail.

Then with a growl and a predator glare,
Luke saw the cougar flash claws in alarm.
His pistol lay near a thicket of brush,
but he did not know if he could re-arm.

So he was frozen a moment or two,
thinking a grab for his gun could be bad.
Knowing McCade was so spooked by the cat,
facing the cougar now very much mad.

All of a sudden a rumble began,
and like a dust cloud caught up in a blur,
it was McCade coming back to the scene,
charging full gallop with mane-flowing fur!

The cougar’s eyes enlarged like milk saucers,
and it is possible that he felt chills.
When old McCade put his head down in fury,
that cougar turned and ran straight for the hills.

Out on the range full of sagebrush and cacti,
Luke rode his stallion contented and staid.
Then when he talked to friends and the town folk,
he told the tale of the hero McCade.

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