Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 13 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

-of their naked breasts. —_——_— —- - 7 nimbonum place, boys,”’ said Old Hurricane, leading the way toward the fringe of tall stalks. The whole party hastily ensconced themselves among the dense reeds on the upper side of the peninsula, where they could command a view of both the sand-bar and the river. In a moment all was still as though the place had never been called from the silence of the great Void. But this lasted only for a moment. The dip of many paddles soon came to the ears of the lis- teners. Each plash of the blade grew louder and louder as the canoes approached. The sounds, how- ever, seemed to be bearing in toward the west shore of the river as though the voyagers intended to land, All at once the dip of paddles ceased, then followed a dull thump—thump, like persons leaping to the ground and the next minute there came a heavy crashing through the reeds on the lower side of the peninsula, and two score of Indian warriors made their appearance on the bar, within ten paces of our friends, ‘** By heavens, aap sula!*’ whispered arry “Yes, yes!” replied the captain; ‘‘ but, as we value our lives let us keep silent. One sound will betray our presence !”’ ‘But our tracks will do that anyhow, captain.” “There is scarcely a doubt of it, but let us trust to fortune. If I could only communicate with Old Hur- ricane, he might suggest some way to get us out of this trap, but he is several yards away, and the are movement will cause these reeds to stir and rustle.”’ A profound silence reigned within that dense bor- der of stalks, and the murmur of the savages’ voices proved a decided relief to our friends, for they were afraid their own breathing would betray their pres- ence, Every movement the foe made was carefully noted by the whites. They saw some of them lay aside their rifles and depart into the forest. They saw them return a few minutes later with loads of dry sticks and boughs, which were deposited in the cen- ter of the peninsula. By this it was readily perceived what was up. The savages were going to strike a fire, and now new fears were entertained by our friends. The light would be sure to reveal their tracks in the sand, and these would lead to their discovery in the reeds. “Tell yer friends to yer right,”’ said Old Hurricane, to the man at his side, “to keep a sharp look-out, a stiff upper lip, and reddy for the wust. If we're dis- kivered, we'll have to make a dash fur our lives and a rush fur the woods.” The old borderman’s advice was communicated from one to the other of the party, and every one nerved himself for the worst. A fire was kindled by the warriors in the center of the peninsula. Then most of them threw them- selves on the earth around if in positions of listless repose. Some filled the bowls on the head of their tomahawks and began to smoke, while others enter- ed into a low conversation. Our friends gaze . pest the scene before them. They can see the warriors puffing the white smoke from their nostrils. They can see every lincament of the swarthy features. They can see the rise and fa!" They can see the glow of their evil, glittering eyes: and all these conspire to impress them—the whites—more forcibly with the great peril of their situation. While the savages remained there upon the bar, there was no avenue of escape open to the whites. The river was at their backs, and to reach the woods they would be compelled to expose themselves to the Indians’ eyes and rifles. Several minutes dragged by. A profound silence settled over the peninsula, At length a cry from one of the savages breaks up- on every ear. The warrior has discovered a white man’s track in is powae ‘ word, and every warrior was upon his feet. Our friends’ greatest fears were Réalibed. “Look out, boys, the tug is comin!” was Old Hur- ricane’s injunction, communicated from man to iifan. _ Like a hound, the savage that had made the dis- covery glided hither and thither over the peninsula. He moved outward toward the reeds, his form bent forward and his eyes fixed upon thesand. He was wellin toward the reeds on the western extremi- ty of the bar, when he came toa sudden stop. His acute ear had caught a e among the 8, The eyes of our friends upon his movements, He stands motionless, he is listening. Suddenly there is a rustle in the reeds— something clips through the blades. The savage ut- ters & Cry of agony, staggers and falls to the earth under a violent blow from an unseen hand! Friends rush to his side and bend over him, Acry wails from their lips. They shrink back from the fale Sige A wi tounge written upon their dusky e Demon n the warrior! The Demon was in the reeds, and the claim-stakers started too, when they had been apprised of the fact. For a moment the sav stand appalled; then the sound of a new terror their ears. It is alow, plaintive cry as if of agony. It comes from the depth of their camp-fire, as though something was nerlal- in the crackling Teme. é astonished, terrified savages fix their eyes up- on the fire. Those cries increase, ey see There is life within it, me | ter- ror-stricken the red-men turn and flee from the spot —away into the deep, dark forest. But still that cry in the flames is heard. Suddenly a figure issued from the reeds into the glare of the light, tain, phew ve landed on the penin- Dudley. It was the figure of Old Hurricane, and his brown, men moving through the village. were carrying a kin ee ee eee — EE — EE -—ti—‘“ COO lU bearded face was convulsed with silent laughter. ‘*‘Come out, boys,” he at length called, ‘the red varlets have waltzed away like autumn leaves in ter- ror, They'll venture hereaways no more to-night.” The claim-stakers, followed by Witless Seth, the — came from their concealment and joined the unter. | And still that piteous cry in the flames was heard, | though it was growing fainter each moment. “Tl eend that poor critter’s sufferin’,”’ said Old | Hurricane, and advancing to the fire he brushed | aside the brands with his moccasined foot, and but a few inches under the surface of the sand he found a large mud-turtle in the last agonies of death. The ws gg of the flame stood explained. Near the fallen savage that bore the mark of Scarlet Death, the imprint of a cloven hoof was | found leading into the reeds. But, despite all these | mysteries and dangers, Old Hurricane uttered a yell of triumph that rolled in prolonged echoes through the forest aisles. CHAPTER VIII. THE DUMB SPY AT WORK. WE will now leave the claim-stakers for a while to follow up the adventuresome footsteps of Wild Dick, the hunter, who, it will be remembered, went se 5,2 are to personate his mute brother, Wit- ess Seth. we Boe bm the directions detailed to him by his mute brother, a few hours’ brisk walking brought him to the outskirts of the little settlement or villa called og The place lay plainly revealed by the moonlight, an he could command a general view of the place, Dick ed to locate the different prominent build- gs,as he had already located them in his mind from the description hp by his brother. This be- ing accomplished, satisfactorily to himself at least, he p ed on toward Beaver Lake, where Seth was to meet Lieutenant Thoms and his men. The bright glimmer of the little sheet of water soon burst upon view; then, with c foot- steps, he approached the point where the outlaws were to cong te. He had no difficulty in finding them, for the stormy voice of the impatient lieuten- ant was distinctly heard several rods away. He had grown restless and impatient with gig and cursed, with impotent , the stupidity of Witless Seth, for being absent so long. For a moment Wild Dick hesitated. He now real- ized more fully the great risk he was running, but having placed a “sized pebble in his mouth, and nerved himself for his first appearance in the star vole of the Dumb Spy he m ed boldly forward to beard the lion in h den! “ Ah!” sneered theo lieutenant, as hc ome from the shadows of tho undergrowth, ‘*here’s the stupid snail at last.” “Dick drew a breath of relicf, for he saw the rob- bers did not detect his disguise, which he felt satis- fied they would do at first sight, if they did at all. Thoms advanced close to him, and raising his hand so that his fingers could be distinctly scen, asked, in the mute language: ‘**Have you been to those claim-stakers’ camp?’ The Dumb Spy informed him that he had by a nod of the head: then Thoms communicated the fact to his friends. “How many of them are there?’ he then ques- tioned the Spy. TN a es the latter replied, with a flash of his ers, ‘** And where are they camped?”’ ‘*On Chequest Creek, four miles from the river.” ‘** Are they well armed?” ** Not very well.” : are they pretty cautious?” ‘ No.”’ ‘**Hurrah!”’ shouted Thoms, turning +- his friends and im the information just reo.uved. “Sacre! Mon ami!” exclaimed the enthusiastic French robber, Godio, “‘we then have one grand time. Vive la spy! He one grand instetush to have on our sree: ** Yes,”’ replied Thome, “‘the Dumb Spy is just fool enough to tell the truth, coward enough to care- ful, and withal, a very valuable tool. But see here, boys, we had better make that trip on horseflesh, for it is several miles up to the Chequest.”’ ‘I’m heartily agreed to that, lieutenant,” replied and I,’’ responded the others. “Then let us get our horses and be off at once,” said Thoms. As they moved away, the lieutenant turned to the Dumb Spy, and his hand, said with his fin- rs: ‘ Seth, you can go to your nest and go to bed. We'll need your services to-morrow night ’ The Dum a lied to the robber with simply a d him into the vil- nod, and then on his sides with suppressed laughter over the success of his adventure and the ignorance of the outlaws. Thoms and his men were soon mounted and flying riorthward toward the Chequest, with all possible Dick found his brother's “nest,’’ as Thoms had —— the room occupied by the mute, but, in- st of going to bed, he went out and spent a rtion of the night ereting etre bee es himself with location romi- nent features. = . Late in the —— while thus wandering about, he was suddenly startled by the sound of voices and footsteps approaching m the direction of the river. Hurrying in the direction from whence these sounds emanated, he caught sight of half a dozen ng d gaining a prominence from whence - 7 -—d ——— ae Four of them of litter wpon which lay what he supposed to be the re of a woman. ) He mentally resolved to follow this party and see what they had and where they went to, but the next moment the clatter of horses’ hoofs broke upon the air, and, to elude discovery, he was compelled to seek shelter around the angle of a cabin. Then a party of horsemen awens = mg He saw they were Thoms and his men returning from their nocturnal raid upon the claim-stakers. As those on foot had. by this time, passed out of sight, the Dumb Spy beat a hasty retreat to his room, This was asmall apartment in the rear ofa large cab- in, the front room of which was known as the “‘court- room,”’ where “Judge” Raft dispensed the Club Laws of the Dispute, in assumed earnestness; but, as the ‘‘ Judge ’’ was also the notorious outlaw chief, Reckless ph, the court-room at times became the council-room of the freebooters. In fact, where a single sentence for the punishment of a crime was pronounced within that room, a dozen crimes that were never punished found a birthplace there. The Dumb Spy’s room was meanly furnished. A stool, a rude, rickety table, and a small couch of furs and blankets constituted the substantial furni- ture. There were, however, various other articles that served as ornaments, such as shells, ree pronged stag-horns, and a collection of stuffed and small animals. All these had been gathered by the mute, from time to time. The outlaw Nie grea favored him in all his whims, for he conside him just shallow enough in mind to make him a faithful servant and spy. But in this the robber was mis- taken. He himself was the dupe, for there were few | posnmaaes of a brighter mind than the so-called Wit- ess Seth. His stupidity was — assumed to enable him to work out an object of which Reckless Ralph little dreamed. Dick had scarcely made himself familiar with his surroundings when the sound of a booted foot in the adjoining apartment startled him. This was suc- ceeded by a faint beam of light streaming through a wes in the partition separating his room from the “ Judge's *’ office. you ng his eye to the opening, Dick gave the court-room a personal inspection. He saw a tall, fine-looking man, with a k eye and handsome face, seated near a long table toying with the hilt of a knife, ever and anon gian impatiently toward the door as if expecting some one. As Di pity. ess udged, this was the notorious robber-chief, A moment later another man entered the court- room. It was Lieutenant Thoms. Dick bent his ear to the crack and listened. - “Hullo, good-evening, Judge,’’ Thoms shouted, **I’m pleased to see your manly face in Spain again, which, of itself, speaks of your success abroad.’ A clear, music mae pealed from the lips of the outlaw-chief, as he replied: “Did you get my note, Thoms?” ‘I did, and forthwith I sent Witless Seth out to spy the enemy's numbers and location. When he came back, we mounted our horses and rode up to exter- . minate the claim-stakers. But what do you think! Why, we found the camp deserted, and Jules Dev- reaux lying dead as a door-nail within it!” “The furies! Jules Devreaux dead?’ exclaimed Reckless Ralph. “Yes, dead, and bearing the mark of that accursed Demon, Scarlet Death.”’ ‘‘And what about the claim-stakers?” “They were gone; every mother’s son of them had left for parts unknown.” Reckless Ralph arose and paced the floor like one in deep and painful meditation. ‘‘Curse that Scarlet Death!" he at last broke forth; ‘*he will be the death of us all yet. I tell you, Cale Thoms, that lurking fiend must be hunted down; and that ere it is too late. Iwill = Witless Seth upon his trail, and if there is a hound in creation that can track him to his lair, it is that dumb fool.” Wild Dick ground his teeth with rage when he heard his unfortunate brother thus spoken of. “ Yes, to-morrow’'s the day,” he heard the outlaw continue. “I will tee the Dumb Spy on the track of that Demon and the claim-stakers. If we can get wind of where they encamp to-morrow night, they'll not escape " ** Just so,” mused the spy, warming under the spirit of h's adventure, The outlaws conversed a while longer, then left the court-room. Dick sought his couch to but not to sleep. The thoughts revolving through his mind banished all desire for slumber. Almost step step he ee e viewed the perilous grounds over which traveled since leaving the ers’ ee The night wore slowly away. Early the following pone bee Spy was Summoned into the pres- ence of Ralph in the court-room. The outlaw fixed a gaze upon him that made him oe tremble Lo oem ae of ans? eae But een-eyed robber netrate disguise, and a sense of relief came to Wild Dick when the outlaw held up his hand and asked in the mutes’ ve you been sick, Seth?” The ser & shook his Tend. va then, I have some work for you,” the rob- ber chief replied; and so he ed to instruct the 5 the work he desired ith a vacant, simple smile, well assumed, the Dumb Spy replied, in his silent language: ‘All right, captain; I'll find them for you.” So saying, he left the room, and shortly after he was moving northward through the woods. It was night ere he returned. He found a number to perform. _ of the outlaws assembled in the court-room, Oj OK@) CS) GOMTE (EO)