{"product_id":"2940012898043","title":"The Sweep Winner","description":"Contents\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e         _Chapter_                                  _Page_\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e              I. THE GLITTERING WIRE                  11\u003cbr\u003e             II. IN THE HUT                           21\u003cbr\u003e            III. A STRANGE SITUATION                  31\u003cbr\u003e             IV. \"IT'S FOR A WOMAN\"                   41\u003cbr\u003e              V. WHY JIM CAME TO THE HUT              51\u003cbr\u003e             VI. \"COME\"                               61\u003cbr\u003e            VII. THE FACE IN THE WATER                71\u003cbr\u003e           VIII. WAYS AND MEANS                       81\u003cbr\u003e             IX. THE CHINAMAN'S SHOP                  91\u003cbr\u003e              X. THE ACCUSATION                      102\u003cbr\u003e             XI. JERRY, JOURNALIST                   113\u003cbr\u003e            XII. IN SEARCH OF HORSES                 123\u003cbr\u003e           XIII. LEIGH HEARS STRANGE THINGS          133\u003cbr\u003e            XIV. \"A MAGNIFICENT BRUTE\"               143\u003cbr\u003e             XV. THE BIG SHOW                        153\u003cbr\u003e            XVI. MRS. PREVOST                        163\u003cbr\u003e           XVII. JEALOUSY                            173\u003cbr\u003e          XVIII. A QUESTION OF JOCKEYS               183\u003cbr\u003e            XIX. MRS. PREVOST'S DILEMMA              194\u003cbr\u003e             XX. THE DRAWER OF BARELLAN              205\u003cbr\u003e            XXI. LAME                                215\u003cbr\u003e           XXII. SWEEP MONEY                         225\u003cbr\u003e          XXIII. BEATEN                              236\u003cbr\u003e           XXIV. AT FLEMINGTON                       247\u003cbr\u003e            XXV. HE LOOKED AT HIS TICKET             257\u003cbr\u003e           XXVI. BARELLAN FALLS BACK                 268\u003cbr\u003e          XXVII. WHAT A FINISH!                      279\u003cbr\u003e          XVIII. A TERRIBLE SAVAGE                   288\u003cbr\u003e           XXIX. MAN AND HORSE LAY SIDE BY SIDE      299\u003cbr\u003e            XXX. THE SWEEP WINNER'S HOME             311\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Sweep Winner\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCHAPTER I\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE GLITTERING WIRE\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA man on horseback shaded his eyes with his hands as he looked along the\u003cbr\u003eglittering line of wire which runs for hundreds of miles between New\u003cbr\u003eSouth Wales and Queensland, and forms the great rabbit-proof fence, of\u003cbr\u003ewhich he was one of the keepers.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe blazing sunlight scorched all things living. Not a blade of grass\u003cbr\u003ewas to be seen. The baked ground gasped with thirst. The slight breeze\u003cbr\u003ewas like the breath from a huge furnace.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe wire was hot and dazzling. Millions of glimmering specks and\u003cbr\u003ehundreds of thousands of electric sparks danced on it in revelry. Merely\u003cbr\u003eto look at the shimmering wire blinded the eyes. The horse turned his\u003cbr\u003ehead away. He was dried, shrivelled, mere skin and bone. Yet he was\u003cbr\u003estrong, enduring, capable of going long journeys; an heroic beast,\u003cbr\u003efighting a terrific battle against tremendous odds; a faithful\u003cbr\u003ecompanion, a true friend--always reliable. There was a mute appeal in\u003cbr\u003ehis puzzled pathetic eyes, which questioned why such things were; why he\u003cbr\u003eshould be rewarded for his efforts with a parched throat, an empty\u003cbr\u003estomach, and a hot skin.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe man dismounted, carelessly placing his hand on the wire, then\u003cbr\u003esnatching it back quickly, with a sharp oath.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Everything burns in this cursed country,\" he muttered.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe horse rubbed his nose against the man's arm.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ping, old fellow, it's hotter than hell. Thirsty? of course; so am I.\u003cbr\u003eWe'll have to thirst until we reach the next hole.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe man was strong, well-built, six feet high; even the hard life had\u003cbr\u003enot sapped his strength. His dark hair, moustache, and beard, gave him\u003cbr\u003ea sombre appearance. His eyes shone fiercely under bushy brows. His\u003cbr\u003eface, hands and arms were tanned a deep brown, as also was his chest,\u003cbr\u003ewhere the shirt opened from the throat. He was no common man. His speech\u003cbr\u003ewas not that of the keepers of the fence, or the bulk of them, for there\u003cbr\u003ewere many and strange beings on these hundreds of miles of wire line.\u003cbr\u003eThe majority were old boundary riders, stockmen, tank sinkers, fencers,\u003cbr\u003eteamsters. In another class were criminals, convicts and men whose hands\u003cbr\u003ewere against their fellows; who were dangerous sometimes, when they\u003cbr\u003escented betrayal, or suspected they were being tracked. The man looking\u003cbr\u003eat the mirage in the distance belonged to none of these classes; he\u003cbr\u003estood out alone. They knew it, and gave him a show of respect, when they\u003cbr\u003emet him, which was seldom.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere must have been some weighty reason for him to bury himself in this\u003cbr\u003esolitude, and to accept an occupation from which any educated man must\u003cbr\u003eshrink. He wanted to be alone. He could not have come to a better\u003cbr\u003eplace. Boonara, the nearest bush town, was fifty miles away from where\u003cbr\u003ehe stood, and a dozen less from his hut.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe descended upon Boonara at night, and waited for it to wake up.","brand":"SAP","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47079008272624,"sku":"2940012898043","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940012898043_p0.jpg?v=1763573671","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940012898043","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}