Cowboys in sombreros and long-heeled boots, with kerchiefs knotted about their necks, careered on swift ponies in and out of the little towns or met the newcomers on the river road.

They rode in a fashion new to Mose, with toes pointed straight down, the weight of their bodies a little on one side.

They skimmed the ground like swallows, forcing their ponies mercilessly.
Their saddles were very heavy, with high pommels and leather-covered stirrups, and Mose determined to have one at once.

Some of them carried rifles under their legs in a long holster.
Realizing that those were the real "cow-punchers," the youth studied their outfits as keenly as a country girl scrutinizes the new gown of a visiting city cousin.

He changed his manner of riding (which was more nearly that of the cavalry) to theirs.