Beadle's Dime Novels No. 213: Squatter Dick — page 54: what you’re looking at

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

56 SQUATTER DICE. CHAPTER VII. THE SWOOP OF THE BLACK BAND, At the designated time James Sloan led his men up to the great gate of the avenue, where he was. met by Colonel De Forrest, who greeted him gladly ; and then the entire party filed into the house’ wie took the eee assigned them at the windows. ‘The housé was’ Bichon tot a light was burning, save one, and the shutters of that room were tightly closed. For a time ‘both the young leaders were somewhat tineasy, lest the party feeling should break out openly between the two bands, and kept upon the alert, going from one point to another. Alto- ‘gether, the time passed drearily enough. ui} At about the same time that the young partisan reached the mansion, the Black Band, now led ‘by only two brothers, Mat and Seth Keedy, filed out from the woods immediately sur- rounding the little island upon which was their rendezvous. They rode in silence, all conversation being forbidden ; or if one man ventured to speak to his neighbor, it was in such iow tones that only the ear addressed caught it. — ‘Had it not been for the splashing of their “horses’ hoofs in the swam pytrail, one might have fancied it was a procession of evil spirits. Not but that they were evil enough, and were well supplied with abundance of spirit, as’ ‘well; but the grating oaths they would utter, as now and then a horse’s hoof sinks ‘deep itito the niire, almost throwing pene from the saddle, savored strongly of flesh and blood. With them rode Squatter Dick, abd was gouiey over his anticipated feast of vengeance, fur as he had told the young partisan, James Sloan, he had determined that Seth Keely should die that night, thus making the third installment of his revenge. As for Matthew Keedy, his was to be a different kind of death, a retaliation in kind. When near the planter’s house, they dismounted, and se- curing their horses within the wood, cautiously advanced upon conmiclooOoks. conn