29-“OH! SUSANNAH”

"OH! SUSANNAH" I shuffled to the bathroom. I looked for a pail so I could wash my face. Then I remembered... I wasn't in the Wild West. I went down to the kitchen for breakfast. I looked for a can of beans to eat. Then I remembered... I wasn't in the Wild West. I went outside. I looked for my horse to ride to work. Then I remembered... I

wasn't in the Wild West anymore. At last I realized what was happening. I WAS MISSING THE WILD WEST. I wanted to go back—for real. I took a taxi to the office. I hummed "Oh! Susannah" as we zoomed along. It seemed as if there were a thousand cars on the street. Rodents beeped. Brakes screeched. What a rat race! I needed a break. That's when I got an idea. No, not just any idea. A great, perfect, fabumouse idea! I raced up the stairs of The Rodent's Gazette. I called Thea, Trap, and Benjamin into my office. "I feel like taking a TRIP," I announced. "Who wants to go with me

to the WILD, WILD WEST?" Of course, everyone wanted to go. My family loves to travel. And they love adventure. Trap pushed me toward the door. "Good for you, Germeister!" he chuckled. "It's about time you stopped being a scaredy mouse. You're gonna love the WILD, WILD WEST!" I rolled my eyes. But then I smiled. I had to admit; for once, I knew my cousin was right. Now if I could just get him to stop calling me Germeister...

THE ABC'S OF THE WILD WEST BRIDLE: a horse's headgear, which carries the bit and reins that the rider uses to guide the horse. BUNKHOUSE: a very simple wooden building where the ranch hands slept. CANTER: a horse's three-beat gait that resembles a gallop but is smoother and slower. CORRAL: an enclosure or pen where livestock is kept. Corral is also what the settlers called the circle of wagons formed by wagon trains when they stopped to rest during a long trip. COWBOY: a cattle ranch hand who tends the livestock from horseback. Cowboys were experts in driving a herd along trails that stretched for miles among the western United States. GAIT: the sequence of footsteps a horse takes when it moves forward, such as a canter, gallop, trot, rack, pace, or walk. GALLOP: a horse's fast three-beat gait. When your horse gallops, it seems as if you're flying!

LASSO: a rope or long thong of leather with a slip noose, used to catch horses and cattle. Roping is one of the many skills that cowboys needed in their work. LIVESTOCK TRAILS: paths cowboys used when driving herds of livestock to market. These trails were many miles long, and a cattle drive could take several weeks to complete. MUSTANG: a wild horse of the western plains. It is small and hardy, a descendant of horses brought to North America by the Spaniards. RANCH: a large farm for raising horses, cattle, or sheep. RAINS: the straps used by a rider to guide a horse. The reins are fastened to a bit in the horse's mouth. RODEO: a public contest among cowboys showing the skills they use in their work, such as riding bucking broncos and bulls, roping calves, and wrestling steers to the ground. SADDLE: a padded and usually leather-covered seat for a horseback rider. The saddle is kept in place by straps that go around the horse's belly.

SALOON: a typical gathering place in the Wild West where people ate, played cards, listened to music, and danced. SHERIFF: a law officer whose main jobs are to keep order and make sure no laws are being broken. SPURS: pointed metal pieces attached to a horseback rider's boot heels. A cowboy would urge his horse by pressing the spurs into the horse's side. STAGECOACH: a carriage, usually drawn by a six-horse team, that transported passengers and mail in the old West. TAME: to train a wild animal so that it gets used to being around humans. THOROUGHBRED: a valuable horse whose ancestors are English mares and Arabian stallions. Thoroughbreds are light and fast, so they are used especially for racing. TROT: a horse's medium-fast two-beat gait. The horse moves its feet in diagonal pairs—just as humans swing their arms as they walk.