In Barracks and Wigwam — page 183: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

CHAPTER XXVIII. A. PERILOUS CLIMB. Linn knew pretty well what he was about. He had hurriedly weighed the chances for and against the suc- cess of his errand, and he was satisfied that vigilance and. caution would pull him through safely. He had every reason to think the ledge was not under surveillance at present, and that no Indians were in the immediate vi- cinity. He also had a deeper and secret purpose in view other than the procuring of water for the wounded man. His heart almost failed him for a moment, as he found himself crouching at the foot of the ledge. Behind him were his comrades and shelter, while in front was a sheet of blackness that might or might not abound with peril. — “T’ve got to do it,’ he reflected. “I can’t shirk my plain duty. So here goes.” _ He listened a second or two, but could detect nothing alarming. Then he crept slowly forward on his hands and knees, taking every precaution to avoid touching loose stones or dried twigs. On and on he went with the craft and cunning of a serpent, guided in his course by the faint tinkle of the rivulet down in the trough of the ravine. _It was wearisome work, and he was constantly beset by the fear that his beating heart would betray him, or _ that some brawny foe would pounce upon him unawares. Twice he stopped short, terrified by sounds that he be- lieved to be Indian signals—the hooting of an owl and | the sory bark of a coyote. comicbooks:co