Did the boys return the horse because they were conscience-stricken or because they were afraid?
Answers
no the boys were not afraid....they were just conscience striken...as they belonged to a very good reputed family..their family was known for their sake and honesty....so they returned that horse just because they were conscience striken.
Chapter Name - The Summer of the Beautiful White Horse Short story by William Saroyan:
By reading this story it does not tell us whether the boys were afraid of anyone. They did not return the horse because of fearing from anyone. They were also not conscience stricken because they did not steal the horse for money the reason why they stole the horse is for their passion for horse riding which they love to do. According to Murad it would be stealing only if they sold the horse for money in the market which he never did. Mourad had this horse for more than a month. He used to hide this horse during this time.
As their family had the name for being the most honest. One day they met up with Jhon Byro who was a farmer and he was the real owner of this horse. When he saw the horse the boys were carrying around he looked at it closely and also the teeth of the horse it looked very similar to his own horse but because the family was famous for their honesty. He did not suspect them for stealing is horse because he knew their parents and know that their children would not do such a thing.
By seeing this reaction of Jhon Byro the boys returned the horse so that they could maintain their family tradition of honesty and returned the horse to its rightful owner.