Marion Marlowe in Omaha, or, Held up by Accident — page 27: what you’re looking at

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

24 snow to a sitting posture, so he could take a good look at him. The fellow winced. He was bleeding pro- fusely. The commodore drew another hand- kerchief from his pocket and proceeded to bandage a broken arm as well as he was able. “Thar now! I’d arter let yer die,’’ he said, as he finished. ““Sech scallywags as yew orter be got rid of quicker’n scat; but I reck’n now thet shootin’ is too good fer yer. A swing at er rope’s end will come nearer ter punishin’ yer!” The fellow had regained consciousne§s. from the pain of having his arm moved, but he did not speak, and the commodofe turned his back wpon him in order to look at his horses. In an instant two great tears were rolling down his cheeks. Here were two. faithful friends that he might grieve for. He drew his coat sleeve across’ his eyes; but he was not ashamed of his tears. It was awful to see such noble animals sacrificed. “Reck’n now I feel wuss erbout it on ercount of her likin’ ye so much,” he mut- tered, softly. “She was mighty taken with ther mustangs, an’ no mistake! Poor girl! she won’t fergit this sight. It’s er pity she had ter see it.” He half lifted the injured robber into an easier position, and then gave the fellow a drink from a flask that he found in his pocket; but there was not a trace of pity in the act—he was only trying to save him so as not to cheat the gallows. He had torn off their masks and recog- nized them at once. They were two of the trio who had tried to rob him on the wrecked train while he had been working like a hero to rescue the passengers of the derailed and burning coaches. And. meanwhile, Marion was passing through one of the strangest experiences of her eventful life. She was following like Nemesis upon the track of the escaping robber. She had never even seen such a horse be- fore as the one upon which she was mounted, fy was a thoroughbred, without doubt, and che was terrib® afraid of him at first, and had to cling to the saddle to keep him from inseating her. MY QUEEN. ’ But as they flew along she seemed to sud- denly lose her fear; and as her courage rose she straightened herself and sat as erect in the saddle as any experienced horsewoman. There was a flush upon her cheeks and a light in her eyes. achieve, and nothing should daunt her. A moving black object far ahead showed her that the ruffian was still fleeing, and now and then, as he would disappear and reap- She had a victory to~ pear again, each fresh glimpse made her arge — her horse faster. | Oh, if she could get near enough to see his ; She must be able to identify — him, even if some one else had to capture — face again! him. : Her eagerness increased with every rod of a 7 her wild ride, and, as she saw that her steed © was rapidly gaining upon him, every vestige | of fear vanished in the longing to outride | him. . . It was a fearful chase—and what would be the outcome? | ; She had no weapon; so she could not possibly take the fellow prisoner; but the commodore had told her to go after the rufian, and it did not occur to her to think any further. ' “It’s just like sailing through the air,” she cried out, suddenly. “It isn’t hard a bit, after one gets a little accustomed to it. Oh, I shall just love you, you dear horse, if you catch that fellow!” And the noble animal was certainly strain- ing every nerve. The snow-clad rocks and trees seemed to fly past as he rushed on to- ward a sharp turn in the roadway, which had _ just hidden her “quarry.” “Faster, boy, faster!” she urged, as she patted the noble animal's neck. She had lost all fear now, and was bending low in the saddle, like a jockey who hoped, by throw- ing his weight forward, to carry his mount to victory. Suddenly a shout from some one in the dis- tance was wafted to her ears, but she could not locate the direction from whence it came, Without checking the speed of her horse, she put her hands to her mouth and answered it like a clarion. Wis it some one coming to her rescue and= the commodore’s? (Elo) Eomicbooks im — ——_ |