View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When Venters sees Jerry Card on this horse, what does Venters do?
(a) He chases him.
(b) He talks to him and convinces him to give up the horse.
(c) He runs him off a cliff.
(d) He shoots him.

2. After his time in Surprise Valley, Venters believes that it was wrong of Jane to love him. Why?
(a) He is really a Mormon.
(b) It put Jane in a bad position.
(c) He works for Tull.
(d) He never loved Jane.

3. The morning after the storm, Venters wants to return to Cottonwoods, but what are his reasons?
(a) He must break his engagement to Jane.
(b) He must kill Oldring.
(c) He must talk to Lassiter.
(d) He must also get fresh horses.

4. In the end, what does Venters do to Oldring?
(a) He kills him.
(b) He tells him that he loves Bess.
(c) He shares a drink with him.
(d) He takes him to Surprise Valley.

5. What does Venters tell Lassiter as he leaves Surprise Valley?
(a) That Bess is leaving.
(b) That Bess is kidnapped.
(c) That Bess is dead.
(d) That Bess is injured.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is Venters thinking about as he races across the sage?

2. How many years had Lassiter been looking for his sister?

3. Who tells Bess about the fate of her father?

4. Venters returns to Surprise Valley with supplies for how long?

5. After Lassiter visits Surprise Valley, what is the plan Venters comes up with?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the bet between Venters and Jane about the speed of the horses? Who is right in the end?

2. Why is Jane angered when she meets Bess? What else does Jane discover when she and Lassiter meet with Bess and Venters?

3. When running from Tull and his riders, Venters is amazed at Bess. Why? What does he remember as he rides. What are some of her exploits?

4. How did the loss of Milly affect Lassiter? He talks about traveling and going to the "bad." What did this mean and how is this connected to the loss of his sister?

5. Venters gives a tribute to Jane when he faces Tull. How does Jane react to this? Describe the range of her emotions.

6. The title of the book is used for the first time in Chapter 22 as Bess looks at the band of riders and calls them sage riders. What does this mean? How is this different that rustlers?

7. Judkins comes to tell Jane the white herd is missing. What happened to them? Who was lost? How does this compare to Lassiter's work earlier in the novel with the white herd?

8. Describe the trial of Jane's men. Who is the judge? Do you think this is a fair trial? Why or why not?

9. What do Bess and Venters think about when they find human bone in the cliff dwellings?

10. When Lassiter returns from Surprise Valley, what do he and Jane discover about her horses? Why is this important? What does this mean to Jane and Lassiter?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 1,102 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample