The first edition of this book is dated 1857. The edition used is dated 1857. The publisher was George Routledge & Sons, London, Glasgow, New York. The number of pages is 418.

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General information

This book, along with several other of this author’s, occupies an important position in the history of English literature, for it was one of the first to deal with the Wild West. The events take place shortly after the Mexican War of the late 1840s. The Mexicans themselves have been conquered, but now it is necessary to protect them from a further enemy, one who would war with both Americans and Mexicans—the Comanche Indians. The troop of rangers consists of many kinds of men, of Scots, Irish, English, German, Swiss, Polish descent, and many others. Some of these take major roles in this story, and their words are reported just as they would have been said.

Numerous extremely difficult situations are encountered, and it is often the woodcraft and ingenuity of these men that gets them out of them, sometimes in extremely (for you and me) unexpected ways. This results in a series of tense incidents, and, though the literary style is a bit unusual, they are very gripping.

Many books by this author were published in the second half of the nineteenth century, and some of them were printed with rather damaged type. The copy of this book that we worked from was one of these, so there may well be a very few typos left, for which we apologise.

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Contents

Chapter I.
Souvenirs.

Chapter II.
A Mexican frontier village.

Chapter III.
The rangers on picket.

Chapter IV.
Making a captive.

Chapter V.
My captive.

Chapter VI.
Isolina De Vargas.

Chapter VII.
An order to forage.

Chapter VIII.
Don Ramon.

Chapter IX.
“Un Papelcito.“

Chapter X.
An old enmity.

Chapter XI.
Rafael Ijurra.

Chapter XII.
The yellow domino.

Chapter XIII.
The blue domino.

Chapter XIV.
Love-thoughts.

Chapter XV.
An odd epistle.

Chapter XVI.
The Manada.

Chapter XVII.
The hunt of the wild-horse.

Chapter XVIII.
The phantom-horse.

Chapter XIX.
A prairie dream.

Chapter XX.
Lost upon the prairie.

Chapter XXI.
A Prairie Repast.

Chapter XXII.
Chased by a “Grizzly.“

Chapter XXIII.
The Toughest Struggle of my Life.

Chapter XXIV.
Old Comrades.

Chapter XXV.
A Queer Conversation.

Chapter XXVI.
Vows of Vengeance.

Chapter XXVII.
A “Weed”-Prairie on Fire.

Chapter XXVIII.
Rube roasted alive.

Chapter XXIX.
The Mesa.

Chapter XXX.
Guerrilleros.

Chapter XXXI.
The Parley.

Chapter XXXII.
A Dead Shot.

Chapter XXXIII.
A Running-Shot.

Chapter XXXIV.
Rube’s charger.

Chapter XXXV.
El Zorro.

Chapter XXXVI.
A Plan of Escape.

Chapter XXXVII.
Elijah Quackenboss.

Chapter XXXVIII.
Rube’s plan.

Chapter XXXIX.
Scaling the Cliff.

Chapter XL.
A Reinforcement.

Chapter XLI.
The Indian Spy.

Chapter XLII.
The Caballada.

Chapter XLIII.
A Chapter of Explanations.

Chapter XLIV.
Dutch Lige in a Difficulty.

Chapter XLV.
A Lover on the Trail.

Chapter XLVI.
A Declaration on Horseback.

Chapter XLVII.
Strayed from the Track.

Chapter XLVIII.
An Adios.

Chapter XLIX.
Threats.

Chapter L.
Awkward Odds.

Chapter LI.
An Official Black List.

Chapter LII.
The Route.

Chapter LIII.
Camp Gossip.

Chapter LIV.
The Ruined Rancho.

Chapter LV.
A Cruel Proscription.

Chapter LVI.
The Bivouac of the Guerrilla.

Chapter LVII.
Taking the Trail.

Chapter LVIII.
The Voyageur.

Chapter LIX.
Trailing by Torch-Light.

Chapter LX.
The Sombrero.

Chapter LXI.
The Trail Recovered.

Chapter LXII.
Wolves on the Track.

Chapter LXIII.
Across the Torrent.

Chapter LXIV.
A Lilliputian Forest.

Chapter LXV.
Scattering the Wild Stallions.

Chapter LXVI.
Lost in a Chapparal.

Chapter LXVII.
Encounter with Javall.

Chapter LXVIII.
The Woods on Fire?

Chapter LXIX.
Smoke and Thirst.

Chapter LXX.
A Burnt Prairie.

Chapter LXXI.
The Talk of the Trackers.

Chapter LXXII.
“Injun Sign.“

Chapter LXXIII.
Translating the “Sign.“

Chapter LXXIV.
The Steed Lazoed.

Chapter LXXV.
The “Indios Bravos.“

Chapter LXXVI.
On the War-Trail.

Chapter LXXVII.
The Writing on the Maguey.

Chapter LXXVIII.
The Southern Savage.

Chapter LXXIX.
A Subterranean Fire.

Chapter LXXX.
A Red Epistle.

Chapter LXXXI.
More Writing in Red.

Chapter LXXXII.
An “Injun on the Back-Track.“

Chapter LXXXIII.
My Plan.

Chapter LXXXIV.
“Painting Injun.“

Chapter LXXXV.
The Last Hours on the Trail.

Chapter LXXXVI.
The Comanche Camp.

Chapter LXXXVII.
No Cover.

Chapter LXXXVIII.
Rube Consulting his Oracle.

Chapter LXXXIX.
The Trapper’s Counsel.

Chapter XC.
Taking to the Water.

Chapter XCI.
Up-Stream.

Chapter XCII.
Coup-d’oeil of the Camp.

Chapter XCIII.
A Friendly Encounter.

Chapter XCIV.
The Council.

Chapter XCV.
Measuring the Chances.

Chapter XCVI.
The White-Haired Chief.

Chapter XCVII.
Speeches in Council.

Chapter XCVIII.
A Rough Courtship.

Chapter XCIX.
The Crisis.

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