Sunset Ranch: A Story of a Boy's Adventures in the West — page 283: what you’re looking at

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

The Last Round-Up. 271 tion to return to the X bar X outfit, for any length of time, at least, even in the spring. Other plans awaited their attention, Cuthbert hav- ing long desired to see the Land of the Montezumas, where a cousin operated a curious ranch and had lately insisted on a visit from the young Virginian, throwing out mysterious remarks about some long forgotten mine once worked by the Dons when Spain was at the height of her glory and ruled the world. Before the time came for the final breaking up, the young range riders were given an opportunity to indulge in a last round-up, when the cattle were selected for shipment, it being Mr. Kelly’s desire to thin out his vast herds in order that he might carry as little worry with him to sunny California as pos- sible. They entered into the game with more zest than ever before. Somehow there is always a peculiar charm about what might once have seemed an onerous duty, when doing it for the last time. Cuthbert fairly outdid himself in “milling” his bunch of cattle and heading off stragglers. His shout was as strong as the war whoop of a Sioux brave out for loot, and his rope fell true every time with marvelous precision, so that Karl was more than proud of the expert cowboy, who had so re- cently graduated from the tenderfoot class. And, as on that former occasion, when he wit- nesed his first round-up, Cuthbert climbed to the roof of Sunset Ranch to cast his eyes around upon the stirring scene, to gaze upon the galloping herds heading from every quarter toward the grand cor- ral, with cowboys circling around, shouting, waving their hats, slapping their chaps with quirts, in order to startle a sluggish steer, or darting out like ar- rows from the bow, so as to head off a straggler— cComiclooks C©