He and his Rancheros were armed to the teeth, and prepared for a fight; and, after a siege of two days, during which time the robbers poured an almost constant shower of bullets against the walls of the house, they withdrew, after shooting and dispersing the cattle, and destroying the crops.

Not one of Mr.
Winters's party was injured; but the outlaws suffered so severely, that they never repeated the attempt to rob that rancho.
Frank and Archie never grew tired of hearing Uncle James tell the story of that fight, and nearly every day they examined the marks of the bullets on the logs, sometimes being foolish enough to wish that they had been there to take part in those exciting scenes, or that the robbers would return and make another attack on the house, so that they might be able to say that they had been in a real battle.

Then they should have a story to tell that would be worth listening to.

They never imagined that, before they were many years older, they could recount adventures quite as exciting as their uncle's.
The interior of the house presented a strange contrast to the outside.
When one crossed the threshold, he found himself surrounded with all the comforts of civilization.

There were fine carpets on the floors, oil paintings on the walls, and easy chairs, sofas, and musical instruments in abundance.