Beadle's Dime Novels No. 309: Mountain Ned — page 58: what you’re looking at

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

60 MOUNTAIN NED; But, why should we throw away our lives in fighting with the Texan Bravo, and the men he leads?” _ “Is there a man among you who can say where the daugh- ter of the Spaniard is ?” They hesitated, for, if the trath must be told, not a man among the tribe, save Minnitash, who knew every thing, could be certain which, among their many white prisoners, was the lost daughter of the house of Castelar. Numerous changes had been mades some had been exchanged captives with the braves of other villages. He noted their dilemma and smiled jn his grim contemp- tuous way. “Am I more of a spirit than you, my brothers, that [ should know? Let us fight the white men when they come as best we can, and if our strength fails, we Can get help. Listen, Bah-ion-est-lah. Ride hard to the village of Custo- din, and give this token.” : He laid a small silver amulet in the hand of the warrior, “Say to him ‘Silver Lance sends you this and bids you by the sign which it couveys, come with all your warriors and those of Cabanis to the feast of blood.” Bah-ton-est-ub looked at the sign and exchanged a ylance of intelligence with his chief. He had passed through the first degrees of the mystic science of which the symbol spoke, Freemasonry. And, strange as il may seem, uneducated as the Indians may be, their system of Masonry is beautiful, and they recognize in a white brother a friend, no matter where. he is met. They hold their “ lodges” at stated periods, and from far and near they come and are initiated with more form and ceremony than their white Brothers of the Mystic - Tie. Silver Lance in sending the token to his friend knew that he could not call for aid in vain, and the envoy, con- cealing the token about his person, mounted and rode away at a furious pace. | pe “ Look, children of the Comanche,” cried the chief; “1 have sent to Custodin and he will come with Cabanis and a thousand warriors. Woe to the white men then! Ag for us, we will keep this pass against them while life reémuins, We are not dogs to give up to white men because some-of our brave men have. fallen.” , Conniclooolks.comn)