Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 1003 — page 2: what you’re looking at

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

and this time the ‘‘ Flying Dutchman” fell heavily to the floor. e4 German Joe, The inmates of the saloon, although accus- pe. tomed to all phases of border life, were thrown Sed THE H AYSEED SPORT: into great excitement over this deliberate S: 9 | attempt at murdering the new-comer, A rs OR, dozen men with drawn revolvers sprung out of the door, and another dozen rushed to iia) | The Twin Racket at Placer Ranch, the broken window from which the shots had come. BY HOWARD M, BOYNTON, Little Pete, the proprietor of the place, came AUTHOR oF ‘‘ CADET DETECTIVE,” ETO, from behind the bar and knelt by the side of Landaa the fallen cama ge slowly opened his eyes and ‘ lanced about the room, CHAPTER 3. | alt Whar’d ther bullet strike ye?” inquired | A WANDERING MINSTREL, Pete, ae ‘T.00K oudt, yo’ son-uf-a-gun; don’dt yo’ ‘‘T vkhas not shot ad all,” replied the Dutch- | Be A" gee dodt horse? Maype yo’ own t’is roat, ain’d | man, ‘I ontly fell town so bs to make pelief I ee it?” vhas hurdt, ain’t id?” The speaker regained his feet and flashed a ‘*Do you know who fired the shots?’ asked dark- lantern in the face of the man who had | Pete. ‘It ain’t often a man is fired at like that just collided with him. fur nothin’.” “Uf yo’ vant der hull roat, v’y’n t’under ‘*T don’t know,” said the other, rising to his don’dt yo’ take id in de daytime und not prowl | feet. ‘‘No von vould gain anything by shootin’ arount ad dis time uf night?” me,” . ‘* Who in blazes are you?” growled the other, ‘* Waoat’s yor name?” trying to dodge the blinding glare of the lan- ‘t Joseph Schlerger—German Joe fur short. I tern, ‘‘and what do yeu want here?” | shust come from Silverside, unt [ haf no ene- ‘‘T don’dt vant nothin’ uf you; budt v’en } mies as I knows uf.” hd some vild Indian tries to climb ofer me in de Pete returned to his place behind the bar, and presently the men who had left the room at the first discharge came hack and reported that they had discovered no trace of the would- be murderer. « dark, unter deimpression dat I ain’t vurth no- ticin’, he ish likely to gedt left, ain’t id?” ‘All right, Dutchy,” responded the man, **T didn’t mean to run into you, and I guess a you didn’t try to telescope me, so we're German Joe again invited the ‘‘poys” up to ee square. I’ve got my arms full or I’d shake, | the bar, and while they were drinking to his future good health and prosperity, the door Bars. So-long !” wit he **Dutchy” remouanted his horse and con- tinued his journey along the narrow road that led from Placer Ranch down through Horse- shoe Valley to Silverside, He had left the lat- 7. ter village late jp the evening, and had not Ae er to encounter any one on the lonely "=< road, 68 | About half a mile from Placer Ranch he had * collided with a mounted horseman, whom he wecognized as one of the leading citizens of the town toward whieh he was traveling. Bat what surprised him most, was that the man carried in his arms the unconscious form of a beautiful young lady. ‘‘Dutchy” had lived long enough in that section of the coun- try to understand the meaning of the axiom ‘* Mind your own business,” and he concluded to on nothing about his adventure in Placer Ranch. opened and a well-dressed, aristocratic-looking man of about fifty years of age burried into the room, ‘‘Quick, Pete!” he exclaimed. ‘‘Get out a dozen of your fastest horses. My daughter has been stolen, and unless we can get the trail of the villains now, we may not be able to do so at all.’ Not only the proprietor of the ‘* Golden Gar- ter,” but every man within the sound of the speaker’s voice put down his glass and sprung. toward the door. Pete unlocked the entrance to the hotel stables, and in a few moments a soore of excited men were galloving rapidly toward Silverside. The name of the man who had just aroused | the citizens of Placer Ranch to such a marked degree, was Colonel Harris Denmore. He and his invalid wife and only daughter had started nearly a year before from Denver to take a tripina pair of prairie schooners across the elevated plains of Colorado for his wife’s health. They had stopped at Placer Ranch on account of its anusuall y healthful climate, and | at the time of which we write, Mrs. Denmore was very much improved in health. The daughter, Grace, was a very beautiful young lady of about seventeen, and during her stay in Placer Ranch, had made friends with néarly all of its rough residents, One of the buckskin desperadoes of the place, a rather good-looking man by the name of Nick Goodloe, had fallen violently in love with Grace, And 80 he journeyed leisurely on in the dark- “uss, Occasionally roaring out some favorite , German song: anon | ‘** Dere vhas a flyin’ Dutchman, ae Who sailed ofer der sea; He robbed der beoples on der ships Look oudt fur me - oe ** He stole enough to puy a house, ey | In goot oldt German-ee, is And dere he lived his vicked life— | Look oudt fur 1 1e! ** Unt v’en he tied hc left a son, A vicked poy vhas he; 3 ard had attempted for along time to pay ber He !-*"'s der beoplcs like his pa~ his disagreeable attentions; but she and her Look oudt—dot’s me!” father objected to this, and for some time before | the girl’s disappearance Nick had ceased his This simple ditty seemed to suit him better | persecutions. than all others, fom he ccocg¢ it a half-dozen| All this Colonol Denmore told his companions times, and ht stil have been singing it | as they sped rapidly toward his residence, which * had not the lights of Placer Ranch greeted his | wassitaated nearly a quarter of a mile from the * eyes, : . aa ae Vol ve vhas “2 der town, unt now /ed’s see ao). ut der “lyin’ Dutchman kin findt a place to lay . his ycary headt.” He fastenec his horse, with the aid 0. a pad- lock and chain, to a tree near tho entrance of wn. Arriving there, search was at once made for some clue to in their work upon. It was discovered that the girl had been taken from a hammock in tho front yard and carried to the road, rican Be a single person. oO the ‘* Goiden ter,”and then walkod into that | No signs o lence were visible anywhere, Mh? hospitable place for a 3 of beer. | and it was clear that she had either been too ‘Hi, dere, Dutchy!” yelled one of the men | much frightened to. le or had swooned of 1 standing about the bar. ‘‘ How did yo’ blow | fright in the grasp of her e trail, followed the if nx-eyed scou known aver the West as "Kid ‘Ken: ied straight toward Silverside, | Sy ess balf of us had r foller up the trail and the rest will eg Fag and see if we kin find anythin’, Mebbe Nick Goodloe’s got ’r hand in this. sf Thus spoke Little Pete, and a dozen of the i. by Kid Keen, galloped away toward Vv in?” “*T didt n low in,” replied the person ad- dressed. “* a : oe fa from Siiverside unt "in number, sur- bout twen ank at the expense of We +8 é - e . . " - , - , 4S t Ww | in the bar within two inches | tu 2 of the night before, when, with a ery | light, one of the searchers held aloft a kcen-blad ; > bout to explain his adven- of de- 9 o 7 5 -. , , th | Yee torack! | SMe. _-__.‘Lwo more bullets w ‘thro German Joe, the Hayseed Sport. rman Joe had followed the men from Placer | bowie-knife. ‘* Here’s suthin’ I found by this tree,” he said, ‘Toad a ———_—_ ____- eee ee excitedly. “*Iw’s got some one’s name on it— J-0-s-e-p-h, Josepb, S-c-h-1l-e-r-g-e-r, Thet’'s ther Dutchman there,” A half-dozen hands were laid on the Dutch- man, and Little Pete drew a dangerous-looking revolver from his belt. ‘‘See here, Dutchy, what do you know about this? Speak out—quick.” Joe was too much surprised for a moment to open his mouth, | ‘*Td vhas nod zo,” he gasped, at length, “I don’dt know noddings aboudt dod gurl. I nefer—” ‘* What’s the trouble, boys?” inquired a new- comer, interrupting the speaker, who recog- nized in him the man he had met on the Silver- side road the night before. ‘‘Is this a hangin’- | party ?” ‘‘No, it ain’t, Nick Goodloe,” replied Littlo Pete. ‘‘Buot it’s likely to be before long. Whar’ve yo’ been?” ‘None of yo’r business,” retorted the other, ‘‘ Webbe yo’ve got a right to know whar I’ve been but I kal’klate yo’ ain’t—not to-night.” Pete glared angrily at Nick, but that individ- ual was not to be disconcerted. ‘* Waal, ef yo’ don’t want’r tell whar yo’ wuz, mebbe we kin make yo’ tell,” said the former, motioning to the men, r a sprung back, drawing a revolver in each and. **{ don’t know what you fellers air drivin’ at, but it’ll cost yo’ sunthin’ to fool with me,” he cried, ‘* What’n thunder is all this about?” His apparent ignoranee disarmed Little Pete of suspicion and be said, more pleasantly than before: . ‘‘ Ef yo’ don’t know what’s happened, it’s time wetold you. Grace Denmore has been kidnap- ped, an’ we know you took her !” Pete threw out this bluff with a coolness that surprised his hearers, Nick most of all, ‘‘ Well, ef thet don’t beat alll ever see! It wuz only last night thet I met this Dutchman here a-carryin’ Miss Grace out to’ards Silverside, an’ when I interfered he shot my horse from un- der me an’ escaped, I wuz just comin’ here to tell the kernal,” The crowd of men gathered about German Joe and regarded him ominously, ‘* Dutchy,” said Little Pete, tightening his grip on the prisoner, ‘‘ Lead us to thet guri!” Joe was looking straight into the polished bar- rel of Pete’s six-shooter and he knew that there was a dangerous man behind it, but he never ‘**T don’dt know noddings aboudt dot gurl!” he protested. ‘‘I nefer see her in my life. Lasd night I medt dis man on ter roat to Silversite mit a pooty young gurl in his arms, but | nefer thought as he vhas a-stealin’ her.” ‘‘ And where did this knife come from then?” queried one of the men. “It’s got yo’r name on ther handle,” | Joe shook his head, ‘¢T nefer see dot knife pefore. I don’dt carry dose t’ings.” ‘‘ Mebbe yo’ don’t, but I reckon we'll hold yo’ till ther boys come back,” said Little Pete. The men remounted, and, accompanied by Colonel Denmore, whose broadcloth contrasted © strangely with the motley garments of his com- panions, started back to Placer Ranch, » During tho trip, Joe did a great deal of think- ing, and it did not take him very long to reac the conclusion that his absence would Be refer- able to his presence in that locality for the next few days. Tle saw that circumstances were dead against him and that he could scarcely hope to clear himseif, at least while a prisoner, with no one to help him, ‘This quickly through his mind as the party sped along the Horseshoe Valley Road, \7hich he had traversed only & few hours before. “Mere vhas only von vay of clearin’ myself, und dot vas to escabe now, unt den find oudt — vere the girl is hid,” thought Joe. ** Vodt scoun- are Nick, vill ledt them kill me uf I don’dt light oudt. vane the horsemen were within hailing dis- tance of Placer Ranch there was @ sudden com- motion in the rear of the party, foll by a me of the riders flew e. , score of pistol-sh as oO See ee teal we versid ) il *; t : | ie by “Ther Dutchman ee ed,” yelled oneofthe men. ‘He keeled Bil Taylor over and sneaked — . (outlikelightnin’.” —_ . < | Au “ Chase him!” roared Little Pete, wheelin horse around. “Git out your shooters and let Be, ay entir ut | . | in the early morning twilight, flew down the in full pursuit of German oi ee “™ ' ae