Beadle's Dime Novels No. 213: Squatter Dick — page 18: what you’re looking at

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

20 SQUATTER DICK. camé to me, and told me’a hard yarn about how Jim Sloan’s boys played ‘the devil ginerally, down to his shanty, the other day, killin’ the wimmin folk’ an’ burnin’ the ‘house. He told me that so fur he’d kinder bin’ ag’in’ the Tories, but that this had changed his feélin’s, and as le had heerd as how we war down on Jim, too, he ‘wantéd to jine the band. “Pye knowed: Dick fer a long time, arid he's a mighty good feller, one that'll fight like blue Blazes.” “He's thé best “ swamp packer” around here, can shoot plum center, and hain’t afeard of man nor devil. “And ‘a8 he’s of good ‘arms withthe rébels all over the country, he can put us in a good way for business. Itold him I'd let the captain’ know at the next meetin’, air see ef the band would let him fine”) This speech was greeted with cheérs’ by all, save the four Keedy boys, and two others. "The brothers withdrew into one corner and began a whispered conversation. * But there are events transpiring outtide that ‘demand ‘our attention. ~~ It was probably two hours atid the evening that a man approached’ the island on the’ opposite sidé from the ‘point where the fallen tree rested. ” “He crouched ‘under’ the shelter of a bush and peered anxtouslyat the island for a short time in silence. Then retreating further into the swamp, where the shades cast by the’trees rendered him invisible to any one unless close at hand, he began —— the grove, muttering, as he did so; a mist be hyarabouts, ‘cause Bivins said they’s to meet to-night, an’ whar else could he bé goin’? Blast thet open trac’, ef it hadn’t ’a’ bin fer thet, I could ‘a’ follered him cl’ar thar. P’raps they ‘won't | ‘take me, an’ I've got to diskiver them somé way. ~~ -“'Thar’s a chawed bullit in the oP gun, an’ it rests mighty oneasy, I tell you! H—st, what's thet ?” he muttered, dropping to the ground, and peering eagerly through the bushes at the bridge, now only a few paces distant. | He saw a ait guddehly’ glide’ tow! the trde, and begin to cross. ‘Then he paused and repeated the formula, after which he passed on and was soon lost to view among the underbrush on the island. The spy had overheard a portion of the conversation, but comiclooks.conn