The Prairie Detective — page 96: what you’re looking at

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

THE PRAIRIE DETECTIVE. 87 “It’s your turn now, doggone ye!’’ he muttered, with a grin, as with the butt of his rifle he smashed to atoms the skull of a man who had thrust a re- volver into his face; “‘but the time hez got to come, my fine chaps, when old man Ryan will hev the best o’ the argyment. An’ when thet time does come,”’ he continued, fairly severing a Bloodsucker’s head. from his body by a long sweep of his.knife, ‘‘ye kin bet I'll make it tarnal lively for ye.’’ : Then fora few moments he was too busy to do much thinking. Three or four of the robbers at- tacked him at once, and he was obliged to keep every energy upon the quz vive in order to avoid beyag killed. But his opponents could not have known the man they were fighting with, else they would have chosen some other foeman not so formidable. With one hand he threw his bowie so terribly straight, and with such fearful accuracy, that the long blade was buried to the hilt in the throat of the man nearest him. Then clubbing his heavy rifle, he struck out with such strength and rapidity that in less time than it takes me to put the fact on paper he had felled the last of the party which at- tacked him. Thus he was left for a moment alone in the midst of a cleared space. “Great snakes!’’ he exclaimed, “‘them two fellers - we captoored yisterday will git away ez sure ez eggs is eggs, ef we are licked so bad ez I think we shall be. But I reckon, seein’ ez how my time’s unockkpyed jest now, thet I'll go an’ put them roos- ters outen ther misery.” Seizing his knife again he ran rapidly over to the spot where Hatfield and Robinson had been left bound hand and foot, Eomicbooks:co