HOME RANCH

New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1935., 1935. First edition. First edition. 8vo. Burnt orange cloth, titles in black on front cover and spine, xvii [blank], 346 pp., preface, illustrated in black & white. "John B. Mitchell started out with nothing but a saddle and a long rope--long enough to lasso someone else's cattle. He left Texas in a hurry with an "appropriated" herd and headed north to find a spread of his own. Half a century later he reigned over the Seven X Ranch, a "fair sized outfit" about sixty miles long and more than forty miles wide. With characteristic understatement and drawl, Will James tells the story of life on the Seven X--a story of hard work, tough humor, and longtime friendships. Join John B. and his family on the home ranch as they round up long horns, ride circle with the cowboys, and try in vain to keep tenderfoots from the city out of trouble." Don Frazier says of this book: "In spite of the weakness of some of the illustrations, as stated below, this is a good and descriptive book about cowboying and ranch work. The presence of the obnoxious dudes in the story gives clear examples of, and graphic counterpoint to, the many and varied skills that a real cowboy must have to get every day's work done. You don't learn those skills in just weeks and months. Some don't learn them in years and years." Inked Christmas gift sentiment on the front free fly leaf, very minor toning to the front and rear endpapers, a tiny ding to the rear cover fore-edge else very good in price-clipped dust jacket, lightly sunned on the spine and with light wear to the spine ends, corners and extremities.