Beadle's Dime Novels No. 13 — page 54: what you’re looking at

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

56 CEDAR SWAMP; OR, WILD NAr’s BRIGADE. It was useless to question the woman. She had received her instructions from Turner, but was cute enough to under- stand that he was only the agent, not the master. Kate for a moment gave way to tears. The negress, seeirig her beautiful charge thus moved, became somewhat pitiful, offered a word of consolation : “Bless yer, honey, don’t be Skeered, now. No one gwine to hurt yer; only here ’cause gemman wants to show how he lubs yer !” ' This speech, spoken by the olq woman for the purpose of allaying, had the effect of increasing the excitement of the poor, bewildered: girl, wie “Seehere, missus. I bring a bit of breakfast for de lady and if we talk so, the coffee git cold. Come, take suthjn’.” Feeling the necessity of husbanding her strength as much as possible, to enable her to aet bravely her part in that which was sure to come, the young gir} was about partaking of the food, when a sudden thought struck her, “Was not this refreshment drugged?” She did not think it possible, after a few seconds of reflection, but could not refrain from térning and fixing her eye upon the old negress at the same time, with a searching glance, saying, “ How am I to know that thig food is not drugged?» How dare I eat it 9” “Law bless ye! I fix um wid dese ere hands, an’ nebber put nothin’ in to hurt any thin’. Dis chile fur fair play, an’? wouldn’t do no such a thing for nothin’, [Tf you want's I eat half of ebry thing I brings up.” “a “No! there is no necessity for that. I am satisfied,” — es Leaving Catherine to partake of the breakfast, let us return to the despoiled home of her widoweq mother, Though Catherine’s voice was not hearq at the usual hour the next morning, Mrs. Vale did not fee] alarmed. Thiuking that her daughter had merely verslept herself, the good woman was loth to awaken her, and jt was not until, to her, a late hour,.that she tapped at the door of the bedroom. No answer. Mrs. Vale again rapped. Again, no answer. She opened the door. A glance at the bed showed it to be empty ! That open window—the disordered state of the room—the mark of men’s feet all around in the goft grass, told to the YY comicbooks.conn