Sunset Ranch: A Story of a Boy's Adventures in the West — page 188: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

176 Bravo! Buckskin. Laughing at his inability to answer such a con- glomeration, Cuthbert proposed that he tell the whole story, and to this they one and all eagerly agreed. No Persian romancist ever had a more entranced audience than surrounded the boy who had twelve hours before been an almost hopeless prisoner in the Sioux camp. He neglected no details, but described all he saw and had experienced from the hour when the mid- night raid was made upon the wranglers and their saddle band charges, up to the time the hunting party gave chase. Generally speaking, the cowboys listened in si- lence, only an occasional grunt or exclamation at- testing their interest in the tale. When, however, he spoke of Caleb Cross and the miserable alliance he had made with Standing Elk, in order to secure a fat ransom for the prisoner, their indignation manifested itself in a more violent form. Evidently the treacherous schemer would have to steer clear of the range after this, and emigrate to Mexico, if he wished to avoid summary treatment at the hands of those whom he had once called com- rades. Cuthbert himself was so overflowing with a great joy at seeing Karl again that he could not for. the ~ life of him harbor ill feelings against even so dis- reputable a foe as this scheming cow puncher. Perhaps he was not yet done with Caleb Cross, since such men fight hard to carry a point that prom- ises rich rewards. On his part, Cuthbert was to learn what brought his friends to this section of the country, so far away from Sunset Ranch. A pleasant surprise awaited him. The cowboys had really been on the way to the ConnicloOolkks.۩