Sunset Ranch: A Story of a Boy's Adventures in the West — page 220: what you’re looking at

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

CHAPTER XVI. WHERE KARL WENT, When Karl parted from his bosom friend and started to chase across the prairie after the band of mounted men in whose midst there seemed good reason to believe his keen eyes had discovered Polly, he was not thinking to any extent of the danger he ran. Rather, it was the miserable fate of the girl that gave him cause for anxiety. He had good reason to know how thoroughly she detested this man claiming to be her uncle and guar- dian, and that it was only force which could in- fluence her to accompany him. Polly was completely satisfied*with her life at the Kelly ranch, where each day was so many hours of joy, and where her sweet voice was so often uplifted in notes of glad thanksgiving. To go out again into the world, to resume a mis- erable nomadic life in company with this man from whom she insensibly shrank, though he had never been positively cruel to her—this prospect had been one to fill her with horror, as Karl well knew. Hence, he could be quite positive that she had not accompanied Jasper of her own free will. Karl had in his younger life been concerned in many dangerous enterprises. These usually had connection with hunting ad- ventures and the troubles that were apt to arise upon the range. Besides, there were occasions when his skill was pitted against human sagacity, and the game was a serious battle of wits and endurance. The raid of the cattle thieves and the seizure of conniclooolkks.conn