I know that Little Joe meant to do his best for me after my exhausting run for the doctor.
But he hadn't been working at the stable long and didn't know much yet.
When he brought me into my stall, I was dripping with sweat.
He rubbed my legs and chest but didn't put anything over me to keep me warm.
He thought I was so warm already that I wouldn't like it.
Then he brought me lots of cold water.
It tasted good when I was hot, so I gulped it all down.
Little Joe thought I must be hungry after working so hard.
He brought me a bucket of corn.
Not long after that, I began to tremble and feel very cold.
My legs and chest ached. My stomach felt tight. I was sore all over.
Little Joe had left by then.
I stood there for a long time, wishing I wasn't so cold.
Finally I collapsed onto the straw and tried to sleep.
I woke up when I heard John at the door.
He'd finally finished his long walk home and had come to check on me.
I let out a moan of distress. John was at my side in an instant.
"Oh, Beauty," he exclaimed. "What has that stupid boy done?"
I couldn't tell him how bad I felt, but he seemed to know.
He grabbed a blanket and draped it over me.
Then he brought me some warm food.
I felt a little better after I finished it, and I fell asleep.
The next day I was still very sick.
I had a fever and couldn't breathe without pain.
John stayed by my side, and the squire came to my stall to see me several times.
"My poor Beauty," he said. "You saved your mistress's life, do you know that?
If it had taken the doctor any longer to get here, it would have been too late."
"There was no chance of arriving too late with Beauty," John said.
"I never saw a horse go so fast! It seemed as if he knew what was wrong!"
Of course I knew, even if John didn't realize it.
Maybe I didn't understand everything.
But I understood that I had to go fast, and that it was for the sake of the mistress.
I'm not sure how many days passed while I was sick. The vet came every day.
John moved Ginger and Merrylegs into another part of the stable so I wouldn't be disturbed.
Finally I got better, to everyone's relief.
I could tell that Little Joe felt terrible.
He'd learned his lesson, and he'd never make those mistakes again.
John stayed angry with Little Joe for a long while.
But as time passed and Joe kept trying to learn, John started to trust him again.
One day the squire needed to send a note to a neighboring estate.
John was out, so the squire told Little Joe to saddle me.
"I know you haven't ridden much," he told Little Joe.
"But Beauty will take care of you. Just ride carefully and you'll be fine."
Little Joe wasn't a skilled rider, but he was gentle and careful.
We delivered the note, then started for home.
On the way we passed a muddy field. A two-horse cart was stuck there.
It was piled high with heavy bricks.
The driver was yelling and whipping his two horses again and again.
Little Joe brought me to a halt. "Stop beating those horses!" he called.
"They can't move the cart with all those bricks in it.
The wheels are stuck in the mud!"
The man ignored him. He lashed the horses once more.
"Please stop!" Little Joe cried. "I'll help you unload some bricks.
Maybe then they can pull out the cart."
"Mind your own business!" the man yelled.
Little Joe turned me around. "Come on, Beauty," he whispered.
"We'd better tell that man's boss what's going on before he kills those horses."
He kicked me into a gallop.
We raced to the brickmaker's house, and Little Joe told him what was happening.
"Thanks for letting me know," the brickmaker said.
"I'll put a stop to it right now."
When we got home, John could see that Little Joe looked angry.
He asked what was wrong, and Little Joe told him the whole story.
"Well done," John said when the boy had finished.
"Many people would have ridden past and not done anything.
But it's everybody's business to put a stop to cruelty when they see it."
Little Joe looked shy and proud of himself at the same time.
After that there was something different about him.
John said it was as if the boy had grown an inch taller that day.
I believe it was true.