Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 163 — page 2: what you’re looking at

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

) _* ar ‘ : a * | 7 _* “ , f « "a € 7 -_ « * q oe y« <at> » meee . mee oS + eee eee - en ee ee nnn eS a a me ee. ee ae ee 'Litte Texas, the Young Mustazger Little Texas, THE YOUNG MUSTANGER. A Wale of the Texan Prairies. BY OLL COOMES, ,arcomorn oF “‘EAGLE KIT,”’ “SILVER sTAR,”’ ‘‘ SCAR- WACE SAUL,”’ ** SURE SHOT SETH,”’ “* ROLLO, THE BOY RANGER’ ‘‘ HAWK-EYE HARRY,”’ ETC. CHAPTER 1. LITTLE TEXAS. Acsummrr day on a Texan prairie. A light south wind drifting across the great ocean wef verdure comes laden with the sounds of wild excitement. Savage a the thunder of hoofed feet, and the | report of firearms disturb the silence of | “the distant wood and quiet valley. skimming low along the plain in quest ‘f food, soar aloft in affright and wheel away into the bine depths of the sky; the wild deer, reposing 4m the shade of motte and bush, starts from its repose aml sniffs the air with alarm. Then out of the distance comes a horseman at a wild, break-neck speed. He is an old man. His face | with perspiration and dust. wecking with foam. He is being pursued. Close be- thimd comes another rider—a boy; and still further “en comes a band of wild Apache Indians, Ttis a strange chase; the boy appears to be in pur- wuit of the old map, and the savages in pursuit of the v. othe foremost fugitive is mounted upon a fine ba horse and is leading a dark chestnut mustang, both «remarkable for their beauty and speed. The boy Tides a dark bay mustang caparisoned with Mexican ~ogaddie and bridle. At the bow of the saddle hangs © «a coiled lasso. The young rider was not over seventeen years of and possessed of a lithe, yet well-developed ‘form. His face, which was bronzed to the hue of an Mn@ian’s, wore an expression of manly pride and “eourage, while a pair of soft blue eyes looked out | “from under the brim of his sombrero, full of the ; of wild adventure and reckless daring. he chase was a wild and desperate one. The horses of all parties bore evidence of having been lon and hard ridden, though that of the boy ap- open red to be the least fatigued. The savages seem- ed possessed of the fury of demons, and lashed and “spmrred their peving easts onward with fiendish _ eruelty—bran we their lances and tomahawks above their plumed heads, shrieking and yelling, “The boy ore was far beyond rifle range of his —— and was gaining rapidly upon them, while ’ distance ct eg — and the old ome was 1no- wmentarily lessening. eé was pursuer and pursued, sand a look of defiance flashed fn his eyes as he gazed “back atthe foe, while a strange, triumphant smile fitap his handsome face as he glanced gorward at ‘the old man fleeing as if from the wrath of an aveng- | : Nemesis. under the burning sun, the chase continued, amile after mile; but the Apache horses were no aasetch in speed for those of the fugitives, and one ‘by ove the savages dropped out of the chase until fin- | ~vally the last one had given up in hopeless despair. Be- “tween the old man and the boy, however, the race scontinned; and pow that the youth was enabled to ail his aitention to the man before, he seemed more rapidly upon him. He took off his hat women by: above his head in triumph. His long yellow hair floating on the wind at his back, his flash- | his firm-set teeth visible between his parted Ry lithe form fixed immovably in the saddle -wgeeeve him the wild, picturesque expression of a fabled “@ke face of the old man wore a different look. <a was written upon it, and as he clutched his . wrevolver in one hand and the reins in the other, he ~wangedshis panting horse onward with tongue and > ’ “<a him, and, glancing back—watchin ‘4or a shot—he saw the boy waving his bat above his Pe and heard him, My distinctly call out: “Hokt up! hold up! I'm a friend; don’t you see I S ald stranger?” man gradually drew up, but in the meantime the kept his eye upon the boy and his finger upon the apeer of his revolver. _Ina very few moments more the young horseman , hed within a few ces, when the old ‘maa, trai half around in his saddle, raised his el back one eye and screwing up his mouth, = it ou be a-foolin’ of me, blest if I don't air your ‘Senne ina twinkle—I will by the smilin’ Gatamozin. “ Oh, yes!” replied the boy, in an easy, good-na- tured tone. *‘’'m not deceivin’ you, old mossy back. ‘I wasa prisoner when the chase begun, and by vir- ‘tue of a fast horse, I managed to escape from those Do you hear what I’m sayin’, baby- sn Sane scoundrels,” ~~ are you?’ yelled the old man, with a sav- age frown. “i'm Little Texas.” , 2 The Boy Mustanger?” his eyes opening with as- "™ Ye-ou?” exclaimed the old man, in astonish- /wmaent, “do you pertend to insinuate that ye-ou are -wtheweal, honest, bona fide Little Texas?” ~ “Sdeysir,” wes the boy's prompt answer. His horse is | out and out! ny. As to takin’ in deer and game of any His pursuer was now within a hundred yards | his chances | es Nm “Wal, what do you take me for?” the man askec, | in a distrustful tone. ‘*A borse-thie*, accordin’ to the Apaches’ story.” **Uh-bump!” he ejaculated, with compressed lips; | ‘““now, youugster, I'll asseverate that Tm not tie | | finally came to a litule creek where they watere! handsomesi critter livin’, nor the honestest man in Texas, nordo 1 possess the sweetest disposition on . | yearth, but J am the aurora that’s rejoiced to collide with Little Texas; and so \ slap your paw thar, you little vagabond of the prairie. The man seized the Young Mustanger’s hand and _ shook it till he fairiy rattled in the saddle; at the same time he burst into a peal of hearty laughter. This odd old stranger was a man of some fifty ears of age. He was dressed in a suit of buck-skin, lf-civilized and half-savage in style. Upon his head he wore the battered remains of a white hat that was settled down over his small head until his ears were just visible under the broken brim. His nose was of a strong Roman type; his mouth quite large and surrounded by short, stubby whiskers, well stained with sun and tobacco-juice. There was nothing at all repulsive in the appear- ance of the man—nothing to denote the character- istics of a Texan horse-thief; but there was some- thing so frank and outspoken in his address, so warm and genial in his nature, and so bluff and comical in the expression of his thin, bearded face, that they convinced Little Texas he had met a brave, jolly and generous-hearted old plainsman. ‘Who are you, anyhow?” the Young Mustanger asked, as soon as an opportunity was afforded. ‘‘1’m Bill Morrel—old Morality for short. TI are the centeral figger o’ moral gravitation in this ‘ere sin-besot land; i are what keeps the morals o’ the deestrict up to the proper standard—white-heat, hi know! And, sir, 1 asseverate and affirm that the In- gin that says I'm a hoss-thief can discount Ananias so bad that lyin’in Ana’s day looked like truth in- laid with fidelity. These hosses, my festive young gambolier, belong to Senor—well—ahem !|—well, at any rate, the Ingins stole ’em fust from their owner and then I waltzed up to the ’Pache country like a tropical wind, inserted my anatomy into their vil- lage one night when the lightnin’ slid through the sky and the storm wrastled squar’-holts with the old mountain and forest, and—well, well, here Il am, the same smiling sunbeam, Ole Mo-rality.”’ “ Exactly,” said the boy; ‘I see how it is now; but where do you belong?—live, Morality?” ‘* Anywhere, everywhere and nowhere; that’s me But, boy, ’'ve hearn of you, course I have, and have been dyin’ to meet you. You’ve never been up—over—down our way, bave you?”’ ** Which way is that?” ‘Oh, never mind,”’ returned the old man, evasive- ly; “it’s anyway and everyway; but I reckon them Ingins ‘ll still try to foller me up, don’t ye think? But if they'll jist foller up till the last, [ll lead ’em to where they'll smell brimstone strong. Oh, my little captain, you may beat me throwin’ a lasso, or makin’ love to some purty gal; but jist rile me up ' and I’m wusser’n a cactus-burr to sot down on—I’m a hornet’s nest full of tar-ant’‘lers—a small tempest. I war never in love but once in my life and then [ got salted so bad that I swore allegiance to wo- man’s s'’ciety and sailed westward on the fust ox- cart that left the port of Crabtown over in Inj Aur nd, from a cochineal bug to an Ingin =ap, I’ve never see’d the critter that can beat me. Oh, I love to hunt, and, if I never told the truth in my life, I’ve shot and skinned many a deer afore it quit runnin’. Now that’s what Iam, my pa ‘* And for all this you're ed Morality,’’ said Lit- tle Texas, ** For all this, and more, too numerous to mention; but, Texas, hadn't we better be moseyin’ ott, “Yes, it’s just as well; our horses are rested.” And so they rode on together. ‘What particular occupation do you foller now, Morality?’ asked Texas, as they journeyed along. “Anything that turns up, from herdin’ Texan bulls to fightin’ regulators andIngins. I’m handy at anything, from ‘fishiatin’ at a weddin’—as a hostler —and commandin’ an earmy—as a scout. I oscillate from one thing to another jist as easy as lightnin’ rp in’ down a cloud, and I vibrate up and down this kentry jist as nice as a gazelle; but when I take hold, boy, it’s got to come or you'll hear somethin’ rip. Now, I know you’re mathimatican enough to put these things all together, subtract what you think doubtful, add fun and frolic to the quotient, find the square root and then you have Old Morality doubly rectified. As to you, boy, 1 know you from hearsay better than I know the commandments. But say, what do you think of the prospect of the *Paches catchin’ us?’ ‘*T have no more fears of that than of breakin’ my neck by fallin’ over a gold nugget; but there is dan- ger of Black Boniface’s regulators.” ‘*P’izen tar-rant’lers! do you mean to asseverate that them rollickin’ vampires are roamin’ here- away ?’’ ‘*T do, for a serious fact, Morality; I'm just out of the clutches of the villain and his minions, and had stopped to rest when the Ingins stole a march on me. Would you believe it, | give old Bonny a pop on the nose with my fist and made the blood just spout; but if ever you seen a feller git up and dust it war that very Sonny, By gracious! he resolved to have revenge, and ordered old Doctor Rocheford to amputate my hand; but I tricked the whole kit of | them and started out lively, Tl tell you all about it %? when we P. ‘Great Jolliphagus! I hope they won’t find—well,”’ and the old man checked himself as an expression of i over his face, *‘ all one can do is to hope or the best, and do the best he-can.”’ Little Texas saw that the old man could be serious, that his mind occasionally reverted to scmethis ' that evidently gave him great concern and uneui :- | ness, The two rode on at a waik, though they tt 3 ” close watch behind them for their pursuers. They their horses and siaked their own thirst. By ft! 's | time the sun was almost down, still they rede or = , few miles further and finally turned into a liti c motte of timber and halted for the night, providis : they were net compelled to move on by danger. Oid Morality had a anor of dried meats, ais: some water in a canieen, which he divided with t})- Boy Mustanger, and the two made a sumptuous meal. The horses were not unsaddled. Morality icketed his animal out to grass while Texas turned tis loose, knowing, that should denger approach, t! « beast would manifest some signs of alarm. Morality kept watch during the first half of the night, ai «i was relieved by Little Texas. And thus the houix wore aneys and with the first streaks of dawn thy were ready for departure, but just as they were about to ride from the grove the keen eye of the mustanger discovered War-Ax and his warriors en- camped on the open plain not over half a mile east of them. This delayed their departure. Old Moral- ity insisted upon keeping under cover until the course of the Apaches was determined. Little Texas believed that the old man had more reasons than one for thus keeping concealed; but he did not try to fathom one of the secrets of the old fellow’s heart. To the surprise of the two friends, however, the Indians made no preparations for departure as the day advanced, and so it became evident that they were resting there before beginning their homeward eraky. It mattered not to Little Texas, after all, ow long they remained there. He was in no par- ticular hurry, and so he made up his mind that they would pass another night in the motte together; but to the surprise of both, the Indians mounted their horses about sunset and rode away northward. This afforded the two friends great relief and gave them the assurance of a quiet night’s rest. The. unsaddled and picketed their animals to grass in th.- center of the grove and made a meager supper o? the remnants of Morality’s supplies. After darkness set in the two sat down under ., tree to converse, The moon came up ina soft blu: sky, flooding the landscape in a mellow light. Not s breath of wind was stirring. The sweet perfume o: the little grove and the wild prairie flowers was di: - tilled upon the cool night air. The drone of insect: , the piping of a tree-frog, the tinkling of tne hors: » bit-rings, and the occasional cry of a night-bir’, were the only sounds that disturbed the silence or the hour. ** Boy—Little Texas,” demanded Old Moralif+. starting from a reverie, ‘do you like this kind vy ‘*T like the life of a mustanger,” replied the boy, “it is so full of fun and adventure, though I mi:+ admit I had all the adventure-yesterday with Blac Boniface I care about.” “Then Black Boniface is act’ly in the San Sab. ; valley again?”’ “Yes, in force;. yesterday, asI told you before, } was in his power, and now I'll tell you the partic'le:; You know there has been a buck-skin ee, ' the head of a herd on these prairies that has defi: .; the lassoes of the mustangers for years—”’ ‘Yes, I do that, Texas,” interrupted the old men, “and I don’t b’lieve there’s a hoss i Texas that cai: run that buck-skin down. Do you?” Ps I caught that mustang myself yesterday. and—”’ “You did?” “Yes, after a five-and-twenty-mile chase I tak the buck-skin in,” continued the youth; “I was of fered a hundred dollars by a trader for it; bur scarcely had I thrown the animal ere old Bonifac: and his whole gang surrounded me and demande, my surrender; but I wasn’t to be scared by word... and I drew my revolver and let into them, and it's « fact, Morality, I emptied three saddles before the, could close in on me.” i “Good! good, you little tarrapin!”’ put in the oj) an. “But,” Texas went on, ‘they overpowered me and took my horses, and waltzed me off up to the timber where they went into camp, There Blac}: Boniface, the villain, thought he’d git some secre , out of me about some ranches over east that he’; like to raid on; but he couldn’t get anything out «©; me, and so he up and give me a furious slap on th, cheek, and quicker’n a wink I lit into him like , sailor, and I give him a blow on the proboscis tha; like to kiltered him over, The blood just flew fron, his nose, and if ever you seen a madman it was that Black Boniface. e fairly raved and tore, an;| swore that the hand that struck him should be eu; off. Among his men is one called Dr. Rochefora. He is a Frenchman, and served in the Mexican arm» as a surgeon, years ago. He is Boniface’s lieute:. ant. He is the wickedekst, cruelest wretch on th: top of God’s earth; and his looks do not belie hin: His eyes are small, squinty and gray, and his face i» pitted and plowed by small-pox, and seamed an:! scarred with the result of many a deadly encounte Well, Dr. Rocheford was notified that he must pre sare to amputate my hand, and the doctor was rea!- ty delighted. That night the job wasto be don», and after an hour’s halt I was mounted upon n. own horse, Lightfoot, and we set off. Dr. Roch: - ford couldn’t hardly wait for night to come, | .- wanted to get at me so bad. But we pegged slow’ - slong through the woods, a pirate leading my hors. . By the way, Lightfoot was awful lame—he fai) |, hobbled on three feet. He'd strained his ankle, yr \t see, when 1 ss the buck-skin—at least, I mai > old Boniface believe such was the case, though I co. | COMIGDOOKS GO - ee : ‘ x : s 7 re” hh A - PT « -~ ~