Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 221 — page 13: what you’re looking at

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

= --—--- -—_——— ity appeared at Bessie’s side, clad in the same attire she had worn when she had played up Bumblebee Bob. ‘What is the rmetter?” she demanded, her wild eyes gleaming /uridly. ‘““It weans that the townspeople are after you, ani we are trying tosave you from their clutches!” Bessie replied. Calamity stood an instantas if not quite com- pre hevding the drift of the words; then with a wild laugh she turned and dashed back into her ewn room and slammed the door shut. Bara! ban! bang! Hammer! tear! \ ell! ‘Tie-e seemed. to be the ruling sounds that mde the nichts hideous, ‘he ruflians were getting several boards loose; soo they would have made a hole large enough te admit them to the inside of the cabin. It seemed buba moment, now, from the life to the death of the plucky defenders. ‘Give it to ’em!’ Langdon gritted, his face smoked with powder, ‘‘ If we give up now we’re lost.” ‘We are, anyhow, I am afraid,” Bessie an- swered, ber courage wavering. “Take hope, till the last! Ah! hark!” Tie mob had temporarily ceased their attack upon the building, and the hoofstrokes of ap- proeching borses were heard above the subdued yells of the rioters. ‘Thank God! help of some kind is coming,” Lanidon cried. Ani so it appeared, for the attack. on the shanty ceased altogether, while the mob opened fire upon the approaching party, whoever they might be, and their salute was promptly and stvacdily returned, ; By aid of a step-ladder, Joe climbed up to the roof of canvas, and cutting a slit, thrust his heed through to see what was the aspect of things. What he saw was a band of horsemen bear- ing down upon the mob, firing as they came— not plainly attired riders, by any means, but the same white-robed things that had once be- fore paid the town a visit, They appeared rather lively for ghosts, just now, and the mob seemed to think so too, for there was evident terror among them; they wero the defensive rather than the attacking party, now. Joe, as soon as he hadreconnoitered, descended avd apprised Bessie of the situation, and she claspei ber bands in joy. “This is good news. ‘Whoever these pre- tended ghosts maybe, I do not believe we bave any more to fear from them than from this mob ef rufians. Whatis best to do?’ ‘ Is ape while the two parties are engaged in battie. 1s there not a rear way?” ‘Yes; but can we get Calamity to accom- pony us? You know how she isin her state of delirium.” ‘We can try. bave on ler.” He crossed the room and opened the door which communicated with Calamity’s apart- ment. A glance showed him that it was vacant. She was gone, and a raised window told how she Laci escaped. eiAa Langdon immediately reported to Bessie this foc . and she was greatly surprised. “Poor girl,” she said. ‘‘I fear she will fall into greater peril, and then she is so sick and weak too! Come, let us get away if possible. Lie battle outside is furious now, and we shail perbaps be able to escape unnoticed.” ‘luey hurried to the rear enirance, not for- gol ing to take along their weapons, Opening the door they went forth into the almost Siygian darkness of the night, but not ha'f a dozen steps had they taken when they were jounced upon by several white-robed fiv ures, made prisoners in a jiffy—then mounted upon horses, with a guard, and borne rapidly away. I will see what effect I can The “«hosts” made short work of cleaning eut ihe mob, for seeing that defeat was inevita- ble, ie rougzbs soon broke into confusion and ficu in all directions. Many were successful in beating a retreat, but not all, and those who were not, fell beneath the fire of the white-robed asses ilants, One of those whomade an attempt to escape was the Danite, Commodore Burt, but before he ran ten varcs he got a bullet in his leg which cause:| Lim intense pain and disabled him so that ie could scarcely walk. Then be became aw:re that he was being followed, and that, tov, by one of the white-robed figures, Tis terror at this was great, and was hight- Sa Sugar-Coated Sam. ened by the fact that he was weaponless, having loaned them to one of the roughs at the begin- ning of the attack on the shanty. Cursing and groaning at every step, he hob- bled along as fastas ho could; but the footsteps of the pursuer sounded close in his rear, and he came to a halt. The white figure also came to a halt, and threw off his ghostly gown, revealing the same gray-bearded man who had once before at- tacked the commodore and whom Bessie had called ‘* father.” ‘Hal you?” the Danite gasped. ‘Yes, 1,” the other replied, sternly. ‘“‘I see you recognize me now, as your brother, whom you *onsigned to a dog’s death, at the hands of your accursed Danite allies. But 1 escaped them, and after [ found the persecution you were offering my child, [| took your trail, swear- ing to hunt you down to the death you deserve, Your time has come: you shall die now, before any more crime stains your vile soul. Here is a revolver—take it and blow your brains out, and save me the trouble.” The Danite picked up the weapon, and ex- amined it; then, instead of aiming it at himself, suddenly leveled it at bis brother. But he did not fire. He fell to the ground, shot through the heart by the one whom he would bave assassinated. Thus ended this life of crime—the checkered existence of one of the worst wretches that ever helped to add to the dark reputation of Mor- mon Utah. Deadwood Dick and Shakespeare found that they were getting more then they bar- gained for, in attempting to find their way back to Grim Gulch, for they lost their bearing, on a dozen different occasions, and were obliged to retrace their footsteps, all of which was most vexatious. Not only that night was absorbed in this wan- dering about, but also the ensuing day, and it was considerably after nightfall the noxt night ere they reached any familiar landmarks that told them where they were. ‘*T reckon we’re not far from Grim Gulch, now,” Dick said, as they strode down a gloomy ravine. “lf lam not greatly mistaken, this is a tributary of the main gulch,” ‘By ther cackle of old Job’s turkey, I hope were purty nigh thar, fer ’'m sufferin’ fer refreshments like some camel, ten weeks out in ther desert o’ Sarah Jane,” was the poet’s gloomy answer. “ve noticed that you’ve been less poetical than usual,” Dick observed with asmile. ‘* But cheer up; it cannot be far now to a place where strychnine-juice isfor sale. Ha! hold on!” They came to a halt, Dick a few paces in ad- vance and standing in an attitude on the de- fensive. : A few rods ahead gleamed a faint light throuch a thin motte of trees, which looked as if there might be an encampment there of some sore. ‘‘ We'd better investigate the origin of that,” Dick said, pointing toward i’, ** before we stum- ble into a hornets’ nest. You stay here, and Ill go ahead and explore.” He did so, and found a little eamp-fire burn- ing in the motte, in the light of which were four persons, who had evidently but recently ar- rived, Two of the persons were duplicates of the white-robed gang who had been Dick’s captors from the Grim Gulch jail; the other two were Joe Langdon and Bessie Burt. Deadwood Dick grew pale, when he saw them, for he knew there had been trouble at Bessie’s home, and if Calamity was there sick, what may not have been her fate? At first be was tempted to sail in and attack the two ‘‘ghosts,” single handed, but, having only one weapon, and that a knife, he conclud- ed it would be the safest to enlist the poet in the rescue, Therefore he hastily notified that worthy, and together they made a detour, and approached the camp from the opposite side, to which their backs were turned. To approach close behind them, and seize them, was sbort but careful work, and their ghostships found themselves bound and helpless, almost before they were aware of it, Langdon and Bessie were then released, and explanations were exchanged when Dick learned of Calamity’s condition and her strange flight. ‘‘IT fear I will never see her again-—-at any rate, not like the same girl she once was. God watch over and protect her!” The outlaws were unmasked of their white zowns, and proved to be two of the pilgu/ms eet tect ct tt LL LLL LAL LL LL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL LLL ae. ' f * a hres . y | l | a’ ™ who had once, in the early days of Deadwood, belonged to one of Dick’s bands of road-agents. On this account, Dick decided not to do them any further harm than to leave them where they were bound, to await the arrival of their companions, Feeling that it was no longer safe for any of the party in that region, Dick proposed that they cross the range to the favorite mining dis- tricts, thirty or forty miles distant, to which all assented, and they set forth, The following day they came across the body of Mr. Burt or Silver Brow. In the darkness he had evidently fallen from a cliff above the trail, to which he had been making his way. He was stone dead; and by his side were sev- eral bags of gold, both in nuggets and shining dust, which be was, for some reason, bearing along with him. The gold was turned over to Bessie, who re cognized the dead man as her father; and he was given as good a burial as circumstances would permit. The party safely reached the new camp, and here Bessie, jn due time, became Mrs. Joe g- don, while Deadwood Dick and his now fast friend, Shakespeare, took their leave on a tour of search for lost Calamity Jane. THE END, , oe - “The Model Family Paper —AND— Most Charming of the Weeklies.” A pure paper; good in every thing; bright, brilliant and attractive. Serials, Tales, Romances, Sketches, Adventures, Biographies, Pungent Essays, Poetry, Notes and Answers to Correspondents Wit and Fun— All are features in every number, from such celebrated writers as no paper in America can boast of., Whatis best in POPULAR READING, that the paper always has; hence for Homr, Srop, Li- BRARY and GENERAL READER it is witbout a rival; and hence its great and steadily increasing circulation. 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