Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 522 — page 3: what you’re looking at

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

- -— —~- _s oo * he - ————— ee ° ‘ ~~ + > + ‘trated by the rough den pronounced it satisfactory, and then, in the | presence of the other three men, attached his | fear, signature to it. McDonald and Coleman signed themselves as witnesses, and the will was put away in the prefessor’s desk, and that part of the matter was completed. Pillbury then filled out an insurance applica- tion, which Fairfax signed, after which Pillbury received a sum of premium-money from Mc- Donald, and Fred was informed that the policy would be ready in a few days. Unfortunately the young man knew little or nothing of the rules and regulations of life in- surance, and trusted wholly to McDonald’s al- leged friendship. ** Now you're all fixed,” McDonald said, when the business was transacted. ‘‘ You have done a wise thing in providing for your wife, for, in the event of your death, she will receive a nice little competency. Of course we hope you may jive for years yet, and [ trust you will hold your counsel as to to-day’s arrangements, until, at least, your last moments.” ‘‘[ shall doso. I feel greatly relieved at the ‘prospect that Fannie will be left in comfortable circumstances, and [ am much obliged to you all. I must return to work now, so I'll bid you Se oer: And shaking hands all around, he took his de- parture, Pillbury then turned to Coleman. ‘* What do you want?” he demanded. ‘That can best be told when we are alone,” ‘was the quiet reply. ssf Oh,-it-P'm in the way, I will retire!” Mc- Donald said, with sarcasm. ‘‘ Shall I see you to-night, professor?” ‘+ Yes; I will meet you at the appointed place at eight o’clock.” ‘Allright. Pe punctual.” **T will. Good-day.” " Soe Sey ag Duncan McDonald buttoned up his great-coat ‘and left the room, casting a glance back over this shoulder at his confederate. CHAPTER II. THE OPIUM JOINT—THE THREE. As many of the readers are probably aware, - Bismarck, in its earlier days, was an pei sos ’ ly hard town; next to Cheyenne and Deadw one of the roughest and toughest. But as the tide of settlement increased its pop- ulation, and lifted it to the most important place in Dakota, its citizens with a firm hand weeded out the ‘‘ resorts” until, at the present time, the town bears a respectable reputation. The worst section is known as ‘** The Borders,” ‘where nearly every vice had its house of repre- ‘sentation, from the gilded gaming-palace to the lowest gin-mill, or opium-joimt, It was worth a stranger’s life to venture across the Border after dark, and many were the ‘startling stories of the gross indignities perpe- ns of the settlement. __ Among the worst resorts of this locality, was Wah Lee’s opium-joint. It was, with one or ‘two exceptions, the largest shanty in the dis- trict, one story in hight, and barn-like in ap- pearance, A small room in the front was occupied as a ‘Chinese grocery, and presided over by an almond- eyed Chinaman, Passing through a door at the rear of this ocery, you entered a room some fifty feet long y twenty in width. At the further end was a bar. Scattered about were tables fur gambling ‘purposes, and lounges where one who wanted a dO hift ” could recline and smoke opium with comfort. - Opening off the main apartment, on either side, were numerous doors, which communicated with smalier rooms or box stalls, for the con- venience of persons who did not wish to smoke in Bg ck his resort was nightly a scene of revelry and excitement, the principal features of which were gambling and drinking. : Money in larg» sums nightly changed hands, free fights were of frequent occurrence, and it was said that many persons who had ventured anto the joint, out of curiosity, had never been known to come out, Certain it was, at least, thata number of the frequenters of the place, had died ‘* with their boots on.” lt was also rumored that beneath the big shanty, were dungeons, where dangerous char- acters could be secreted, if occasion required. Wah Lee, the proprietor, was a raw-boned, ‘sallow-skinned chap, who, unlike most of his Tace, was a very giant in size—a modern Sam- | gether to Bismarck—on what errand, we shall sonin strength, and even the worst ruffians | see, 7c . $ seas emery dl TPS A ene — Deadwood Dick’s Three, who frequented his resort regarded him with | ss He possessed more than the ordinary intelli- gence of his race, and was said to be rich, ‘I'he joint, in itself, was a gold-mine, and though oc- casionally raided by the sheriff, there was no change in the character of the place, Karly evening about two weeks succeeding the events chronicled in our first chapter, saw the joint well filled with its motley throng, most of whom were engaged in games of chance, but the bar also had its earn, while here and there a snuff-skinned Mongolian lay upon a lounge, seeking solace from the inevitable pipe, the peculiar odor from which filled the room, The big proprietor, Wah Lee, paced slowly up and down the room, as was his usual custom, ready to take a hand in any disturbance that might occur. At one of the tables sat three men, two of whom were professional gamblers and patrons of the joint, while the third, a stylishly-dressed, good-looking young fellow of twenty-one, was a stranger, and evidently from the East. The gamblers’ names were Black Bud and Van Scooter; the Easterner’s, Luke Lenton, of Boston. The Bostonian evidently had been losing, for he had only a small pile of chips in front of him, while the two gamblers’ stacks were un- usually large. There was a bet of one hundred dollars, and it was young Lenton’s turn. He looked over his cards, and then counted his chips, slowly. ‘* Tt costs me ten to play, gents?” he queried. **'You bet!” declared Black Bud, triumph in his tones. ‘‘If you can’t play, the pot’s mine, for Scooter has put down his cards.” ‘*Tcan play!” Lenton replied. and I, we'll fight it out. Here is a hundred dol- lars. I see you the ten, and go you ninety bet- ter—yes, [have ten in chips—there you are; one hundred better!” Black Bud scowled. ‘“Humph! you think to bluff me, eh?” he sneered. ‘‘ You'll miss it. No greenhorn ever bluffs me. Here! Tll see your hundred, and raise it five!” And suiting action to the word, the gambler drew a huge roll of bills from his pocket, and counted out six hundred dollars upon the pot. ‘** There!” he said, in triumph. Luke Lenton looked at the pile of wealth thoughtfully, as if in doubt what to do. Already he bad lost three times as much as what the pile represented, and the last hundred pop he had wagered had exhausted his ready cash. Three persons had been watching the game over the Kasterner’s shoulder—one a young man, handsome and dashing of appearance; the sec- ond an old man, weather-beaten, wrinkled and gray-haired; the third, a youth, sixteen or seven - teen years of age, with a mischief-expressioned ace, These three evidently were accustomed to frontier experience, and, from appearances, knew each other, and were traveling together for they were strangers in the camp, and had been regarded by the denizens of the joint with suspicion for some minutes—even by gigantic Wah Lee. In fact, they were none others than the re- doubtable Deadwood Dick Junior, his boy com- panion Johnny Smile, and that veteran and re- nowned prince of bordermen, the hero of hun- dreds of adventures and hairbreadth escapes— Old Avalanche—a name immortalized in con- nection with wild western deeds of bravery. May his name ever remain fresh in the mem- m4 of this generation, and those to come! here was no particular change in either Dick or his young companion, since last we met them in Pistol Pocket; but the Great Annibilator looked older considerably, and his war-scarred visage*seemed sad, as if he had lost some dear and beloved friend. And he had! Several weeks prior to,our story he had been attacked by a band of river roughs, near old Fort Ruford, and his two famous and faithful companions of many a scrimmage, Prudence Cordelia, the mule, and Jeremiah, the wonder- ful goat, had been killed, The loss fell heavily upon him, and he tried to bear up under it with fortitude, and within a few days had secured a jack-mule to fill the va- cancy, because the aforesaid jack was as scrawny and ugly looking as was the lamented Prudence. , ; Later he had met Deadwood Dick and Johnny Smile, by appointment, and they had come to- SS AT A A a . | | | ‘Tf it’s you | a winning hand! } ' ‘‘Well! what are you going to do?” Black ud demanded, as Luke Lenton looked over his cards. ‘‘ Goin’ to play?’ ‘*Of course I am!” was the reply, and taking a check-book from his pocket, he hastily wrote out a check on a Boston bank for fifteen hundred dollars, ‘‘There!” he said, laying it on the pile “I see your five and go you ten better!” Black Bud picked up the check, glanced at it, and then threw it down, wita a shrug. ‘** Bah! that’s no good!” he declared. ‘ Cash is what talks in this game,so if ye’r’ goin’ to play, slap down the dudads!” ‘*T have noemore money with me,” Lenton said, anxiously, ‘‘ but the check is perfectly good, as I have money in bank, in Boston, Or, should you win, bring the check to me, in Bis- marck, to-morrow, and I will cash it!” ‘*Nary time, me royal duke! I don’t do thet kind o’ business, cause I ain’t built that way, e see. Jest slap down the money or I'll e in the pot!” and reaching forth his hand, the gambler laid it upon the stakes, ‘* Hands off!” cried a stern voice, and the next instant, Deadwood Dick’s revolver gazed warningly into Black Bud’sface. ‘* That money don’t belong to you, my man, until it is fairly won!” The gambler withdrew his band, as ordered. ‘‘Who the deuce are you?” he demanded, fiercely. ‘Tt am Deadwood Dick!” was the cool reply, ‘‘and I am likewise one of the firm of Three Aces and A Jack! I and these two friends of mine,”—indicating Old Avalanche and Johnny Smile—‘‘ constitute the Three Aces, and the Jack is outside, and you bet, as a whole we are If you have any doubts about the matter, just attempt to rake in that pot!” ‘“Cuss ye, what bizness hev ye got to meddle wi’ the game!” Black Bud roared, growing red with rage. ‘‘The feller can’t cover the pile with money, and I ain’t obliged to take his check, so he’s froze out, an’ the pot is mine!” ‘Not by a long shot!” Dick declared, “If the geatleman wants his check cashed, I reckon I can accommodate him, Let me see your check, friend,” Lenton obeyed, at the same time surveying Dick and the other two ‘‘ Aces,” wonderingly. This unexpected and accommodating offer was surprising to him. Dick looked at the check, and then tore it up. ‘* Draw up another check, payable to the or- der of Richard Bristol,” he said, “‘and you shall have the money.” Lenton hastened to do so, while Dick counted out from a roll of bills, fifteen one hundred dol- lar notes. Though furious with rage, Black Bud dared make no hostile demonstration, for Old Ava- lanche kept him covered. As soon as Lenton received the money, he de- posited it on top of the other stakes. ‘* Now, then!” he said, ‘* what will you do?” **Call you!” Black Bud cried, putting a thou- sand dollars into the pot, and laying down tour Kings. " They're good, but not good enough !” Len- ton replied, laying down four aces. ‘* The is mine, mister,” and reaching forward, he raked it in. Then, rising quickly, he made a dash for the door, and was out of the room before any one could hardly realize what bad ha At the same time, every lamp went out, and the room was left in darkness! e _—-__ CHAPTER III. THE SHADOW OF CONSPIRACY GROWS LARGER, So suddenly had the lights gone out, that the — Three Aces were left, for a minute, in a state of bewilderment; then Dick, comprehending thas they were in a trap, cried to his companions; ‘* Look out for yourself, boys! Scoot!” As he uttered the words there was a flash in front of him and a bullet tinged his ear. The answer was the report of hisown revolver | and a yell of human pain succeeded, , For the s of several seconds the sh ports, coupled with yells and curses, made, ally’ a pandemonium, — irectly, a light was produced, and the firing ceased, The room wasa scene of disorder and confusion —tables and chairs had been overturned; several — men had been more or less dangerously wound. — ed, while Van Scooter, Black Bud’s was killed. Black Bud himself was wounded in the left arm. When search was made for the ‘* Three Aces,’ Spin ; . P mt com Te- AG books.com “team ME Pa > ee eee