President William Howard Taft, all 335 pounds of him, personally welcomed the Abernathy brothers to Washington D.C. on May 27, 1910 and gave the famous travelers a guided tour of the White House.

At only ten and six years of age, Louie and Temple Abernathy already were bigtime celebrities with thousands of unchaperoned miles under their tiny belts. In less than two years, the youngsters had made the lonely round trip to New Mexico from their home in Oklahoma and rode to New York City all on horse...