ybe we'll take a little of
the starch out of them this afternoon."

Sandy at last allowed himself to be persuaded, and the cowboys rode off.
Soon afterward the three boys left them, for they had arranged with Mr.
Melton to lunch with him at the principal hotel.

When they entered its doors he was waiting for them in the lobby, his
genial face beaming.

"Well, my lads," he exclaimed, "how do you like the way we spend our
holidays out here, eh?"

"Great!" exclaimed Bert, speaking for the others; "the boys certainly
know how to make things hum when they get started. There's something
doing every minute."

"Yes, they're a great lot," said Mr. Melton. "They're hot tempered and
inclined to jump too quickly into a quarrel, but their hearts are always
in the right place, and they're loyal to the core. But how do you feel,
Bert?" suddenly changing the subject. "Have you got your winged shoes on
to-day?"

"Never felt more like running in my life," smiled Bert. "Anybody that
beats me to-day will have to travel a little, I think."

"Good!" exclaimed the rancher, "that's the kind of talk I like to hear.
Everybody I've talked to in the hotel here seems to think that this
Johnson is going to have things all his own way, and I want you to give
them the surprise of their lives."

The fact that Bert was a Marathon winner was not generally known, and
everybody in town thought that their candidate would have an unknown
runner pitted against him, whom he could easily vanquish. It was,
therefore, with feelings of the utmost confidence that they streamed
toward the place where the race was to be held. They bantered the cowboys
they met unmercifully, but the latter kept their own counsel, and only
smiled in a knowing fashion. Money was bet freely on both sides, and
those who lost stood to lose heavily.

After the boys had finished luncheon, they and Mr. Melton repaired to the
meeting place. The race was to be run around a one-mile oval track, and
five men were entered as contestants. Besides Bert and Johnson, the
winner of the previous race, Jed Barnes, was to race, and two other men
from neighboring ranches. As soon as the boys and Mr. Melton reached the
track they parted, the former seeking out the dressing room, and the
latter securing a seat in the grand stand.

Bert got into his racing togs immediately, and his comrades left him and
walked out to secure seats for themselves. This was soon done, and they
settled themselves, wa