Beadle's Dime Novels, No. 91: The Lost Cache — page 64: what you’re looking at

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

66 THE LOST CACHE, them ‘eshkthys they had led him to a smooth round stone,’ under which he hdd found a hole that had been intended) be- yond question, for a place of concealment. ' But it was empty ; some lucky individual had been before him, and had carrieg off the prize. 4 It was by no means difficult to track the course of his vic- tim, for it was evident that he had beén #& the brook to get, water more than once. Adams traced back the trail a distance of about half a mile from the cafion, until he saw a thin wreath of blue smoke rising up among the trees beyond him. Creeping stealthily up on the trail, he reached the summit of a ridge, from which he could look down into a deep and secluded glen. Still, he could see nothing but the smoke, and it was not until he had descended the hill, and had crawled among the bushes nearly to the smoke itself, that he could obtain a view of the occupants of the glen.’ , He could see two wagons, some horses grazing at a little distance; a Small fire, over Which a pot was boiling, and four persons seated near the fire. One was a fine-looking gentle- man, rather past the middle age; another was a tall, stout, dark-featured hunter, whom the outlaw recognized-as the voya- geur, Tete Bois ; a third was an athletic young man; and the fourth was the handsome girl hé had seen once before. His eyes were lit up with.a baleful fire as he gazed upon her, and he forgot, for the moment, the lost gold. “This is other party, fur sartin”” he thought. “Thar was four men in it, includin’ that big Kanititk, and the gal; here is the gal and three men, includin’ the Kanuck-_t’other chap I killéd, and got his skelp. Lucky I found him, ’cause I should never hey’ hit on this yere hole ef it hedn’t been fur his trait - and the smoke.” Those who sat around the fire were talking, and Adams crept toward them, under the bushes, until he was near enough to hear what they said. The slight rustling that he made at- tracted their attention, and they ceased speaking, and listened. “ Some animal, perhaps,” said the girl, as she raised a pistol and fired into the bushes. “She’s mighty quick with her shootin’-iron,” thought Adams, as he heard the bullet whistle near his head. “ Jest wait till I git holt of her!” commiclooks. conn