The Flight of Pony Baker

The Flight of Pony Baker, by W. D. Howells

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Title: The Flight of Pony Baker A Boy's Town Story
Author: W. D. Howells
Release Date: August 2, 2007 [EBook #22219]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
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[Illustration: See p. 21 "ALL THE FELLOWS CAME ROUND AND ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS GOING TO DO NOW"]

THE FLIGHT OF PONY BAKER
A Boy's Town Story
By W.D. HOWELLS
AUTHOR OF "A BOY'S TOWN" "CHRISTMAS EVERY DAY" ETC.
ILLUSTRATED
NEW YORK AND LONDON HARPER & BROTHERS

BOOKS BY W.D. HOWELLS
Annie Kilburn. 12mo.
April Hopes. 12mo.
Between the Dark and Daylight. New Edition. 12mo.
Boy Life. Illustrated. 12mo.
Boy's Town. Illustrated. Post 8vo.
Certain Delightful English Towns. Illustrated. 8vo. Traveller's Edition, Leather.
Christmas Every Day, and Other Stories. Illustrated. 12mo. Holiday Edition. Illustrated. 4to.
Coast of Bohemia. Illustrated. 12mo.
Criticism and Fiction. Portrait. 16mo.
Day of Their Wedding. Illustrated. 12mo.
Familiar Spanish Travels. Illustrated. 8vo.
Fennel and Rue. Illustrated. New Edition. 12mo.
Flight of Pony Baker. Post 8vo.
Hazard of New Fortunes. New Edition. 12mo.
Heroines of Fiction. Illustrated. 2 vols. 8vo.
Imaginary Interviews. 8vo.
Imperative Duty. 12mo. Paper.
Impressions and Experiences. New Edition. 12mo.
Kentons. 12mo.
Landlord at Lion's Head. Illustrated. New Edition. 12mo.
Letters Home. 12mo.
Library of Universal Adventure. Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth. Three-quarter Calf.
Literary Friends and Acquaintance. Illustrated. 8vo.
Literature and Life. 8vo.
Little Swiss Sojourn. Illustrated. 32mo.
London Films. Illustrated. 8vo. Traveller's Edition, Leather.
Miss Bellard's Inspiration. 12mo.
Modern Italian Poets. Illustrated. 12mo.
Mother and the Father. Illustrated. New Edition. 12mo.
Mouse-Trap, A Likely Story, The Garroters, Five-o'Clock Tea. Illustrated. New Edition. 12mo.
My Literary Passions. New Edition. 12mo.
My Mark Twain. Illustrated. 8vo.
My Year in a Log Cabin. Illustrated. 32mo.
Open-Eyed Conspiracy. 12mo.
Pair of Patient Lovers. 12mo.
Parting and a Meeting. Illustrated. Square 32mo.
Quality of Mercy. New Edition. 12mo.
Questionable Shapes. Ill'd. 12mo.
Ragged Lady. Illustrated. New Edition. 12mo.
Roman Holidays. Illustrated. 8vo. Traveller's Edition, Leather.
Seven English Cities. Illustrated. 8vo. Traveller's Edition, Leather.
Shadow of a Dream. 12mo.
Son of Royal Langbrith. 8vo.
Stops of Various Quills. Illustrated. 4to. Limited Edition.
Story of a Play. 12mo.
The Seen and Unseen at Stratford-on-Avon. Crown 8vo.
Their Silver Wedding Journey. Illustrated. 2 vols. Crown 8vo. In 1 vol. New Edition. 12mo.
Through the Eye of a Needle. New Edition. 12mo.
Traveller from Altruria. New Edition. 12mo.
World of Chance. 12mo.
FARCES:
A Letter of Introduction. Illustrated. 32mo.
A Likely Story. Illustrated. 32mo.
A Previous Engagement. 32mo. Paper.
Evening Dress. Illustrated. 32mo.
Five-o'Clock Tea. Illustrated. 32mo.
Parting Friends. Illustrated. 32mo.
The Albany Depot. Illustrated. 32mo.
The Garroters. Illustrated. 32mo.
The Mouse-Trap. Illustrated. 32mo.
The Unexpected Guests. Illustrated. 32mo.
HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK Copyright, 1902, by HARPER & BROTHERS.
Published September, 1902.

Contents
CHAP. PAGE
I. PONY'S MOTHER, AND WHY HE HAD A RIGHT TO RUN OFF 3
II. THE RIGHT THAT PONY HAD TO RUN OFF, FROM THE WAY HIS FATHER ACTED 15
III. JIM LEONARD'S HAIR-BREADTH ESCAPE 32
IV. THE SCRAPE THAT JIM LEONARD GOT THE BOYS INTO 52
V. ABOUT RUNNING AWAY TO THE INDIAN RESERVATION ON A CANAL-BOAT, AND HOW THE PLAN FAILED 77
VI. HOW THE INDIANS CAME TO THE BOY'S TOWN AND JIM LEONARD ACTED THE COWARD 89
VII. HOW FRANK BAKER SPENT THE FOURTH AT PAWPAW BOTTOM, AND SAW THE FOURTH OF JULY BOY 105
VIII. HOW PONY BAKER CAME PRETTY NEAR RUNNING OFF WITH A CIRCUS 141
IX. HOW PONY DID NOT QUITE GET OFF WITH THE CIRCUS 152
X. THE ADVENTURES THAT PONY'S COUSIN, FRANK BAKER, HAD WITH A POCKETFUL OF MONEY 165
XI. HOW JIM LEONARD PLANNED FOR PONY BAKER TO RUN OFF ON A RAFT 192
XII. HOW JIM LEONARD BACKED OUT, AND PONY HAD TO GIVE IT UP 208

Illustrations
"ALL THE FELLOWS CAME ROUND AND ASKED HIM WHAT HE WAS GOING TO DO NOW" Frontispiece
"BEING DRESSED SO WELL WAS ONE OF THE WORST THINGS THAT WAS DONE TO HIM BY HIS MOTHER" 4
"'I'LL LEARN THAT LIMB TO SLEEP IN A COW-BARN!' 50
"REAL INDIANS, IN BLANKETS, WITH BOWS AND ARROWS" 90
"VERY SMILING-LOOKING" 124
"HE BEGAN BEING COLD AND STIFF WITH HER THE VERY NEXT MORNING" 144
"FRANK BAKER WAS ONE OF THOSE FELLOWS THAT EVERY MOTHER WOULD FEEL HER BOY WAS SAFE WITH" 166
"'WHY, YOU AIN'T AFRAID, ARE YOU, PONY?'" 204

The Flight of Pony Baker

The Flight of Pony Baker
I
PONY'S MOTHER, AND WHY HE HAD A RIGHT TO RUN OFF
If there was any fellow in the Boy's Town fifty years ago who had a good reason to run off it was Pony Baker. Pony was not his real name; it was what the boys called him, because there were so many fellows who had to be told apart, as Big Joe and Little Joe, and Big