Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 522 — page 8: what you’re looking at

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

Pll be igs to give ye a chance!” Black Bud ‘ declared. Then, turning to Deadwood Dick, he added: ‘‘Kin Task you to wait till I fix this chap, afore I tackle you?” ‘*Certainly!” Dick replied. ‘‘ Anything to accommodate you! I’m thinking [ shall Tea nothing to do, however, by the time the other fellow gets through with you!” ‘* Never fear!” was the reply. The arrangements for the duel were quickly e. The doors of the saloon were barred, and the window curtains pulled down; thea, armed with two infantry swords, which the proprietor of the Punch Bow! furnished for the occasion, the two combatants stepped into the ring, which had been formed by the spectators. Black Bud had stripped to the waist, and roved to have an elegant physique, his chest ing broad and massive, while his arms were large and muscular, and looked capable of wielding a mighty blow. Bullwhack, as he had styled himself, had re- } moved nothing but his hat, and was decidedly inferior, both in size and physical development, to the gambler. The choosing of seconds next followed, Black Bud ‘selecting Peachblow Pete, and Bullwhack choosing Deadwood Dick. ‘This is to be to the death!” Bud announced, us he faced his adversary. ‘*Just as you please!” Bullwhack averred. ** Tt is well we understand each other at the out- set. I shall show no mercy, nor shall I expect any. Are you ready?’ You bet!” Bud declared, grimly. “Allright. Thenlet her go!” Both men grasped their light swords firmly, and advanced cautiously toward each other, : The next instant there was a clash of steel that sent the sparl:s flying, and the battle was ot Sore amidst the most intense excitement, t became apparent, from the first, that Bud | had handled the sword before, for he fenced ' with the ease and gracefulness of a master of ‘the art, # But, in the Bellerin’ Bull of Bismarck he had an adversary whom it required all his skill to contend with, for Bullwback took the aggres- sive rather than the defensive. Clash! clash! clash! sounded the blades, as they came together in rapid strokes; feint _ - parry and thrust, as the two gladiators leaped I nimbly about, neither scoring a point. | Black Bud, though a man of massive chest and iron muscle, was, unfortunately, not gifted with much wind, and it soon became perceptible _ * that he was beginning to get*worried, for the active exercise caused the perspiration to stamd out freely on both neck and brow. On the other hand, Bullwhack did not sweat a Ne.» As the combat continued, bets were freely . madé on the result, and the odds were in favor . scratching bis opponent’s right arm. The wound was not serious, however, for it did not interfere with the Bellerin’ Bull’s ag- oe attack, and, as the moments passed, it | ecame more and moreapparent that Black Bud 4 was weakening. . He seemed to realize the fact, too, and gath- ering all his strength, he made a desperate master lunge at his enemy, which was deftly f ried, and then came the end—a thrust, and Black Bud fell’to the floor. x -| It had indeed been the duel a Poutrance ! > 7 _— aS ny a = & Ly CHAPTER IX. } ey, THREE ACES AND A JACK’S VICTORY. "THE rough crowd had all been in sympathy | with Black Bud, and when the death-blow was ' dealt by the stranger, a howl of vengeance filled 3) a the air. iN Revolvers were drawn, and one sharp report : was followed by Bullwhack’s fall with a wound } Lf in the breast, and he would have been trampled Wag under foot by the infuriated crowd but for Dead- wood Dick, who, raising the man in his arms, _ plunged from the saloon through the open door- 4} way at the rear, no one barring his way. _ . Two tragedies were enough for one night, ' even for that bad crowd. ' ‘With his burden, Dick made his way across _ to the hotel, and soon had the Bellerin’ Bull . comfortably laid out upon a lounge in his own KP oie then had a doctor summoned, who made an examination of Bullwhack’s wound, and ‘ ' + if " <7 1 + /* - i With some difficulty the man was restored to ' >onsc1ousn BSS, and then, after dressing the wound 4 ’ . —~l trf Sa > te ss St of the gambler, who finally drew first blood, by | sronounced it not necessarily fatal, though very e . » ” * > - ” * oe es sll oes me d bo © “ fh... - 7 x wt _ a mr rr and leaving a composing draught, the doctor took his departure. : When he was gone, Deadwood Dick endeav- ored to question the bullwhacker and learn who and what he was, for, judging by his prowess, he concluded that he was not precisely the sort of person he looked to be. This suspicion was strengthened by the fact which Dick discovered—that the beard and hair of the bullwhacker were false. All inquiries, however, failed to elicit any- thing but evasive answers, and finally, as Bull- whack expressed a desire to take a nap, Dick left him lying on the lounge aud went down- After a half-hour’s absence he returned to his room, and was astonished to find that the Bel- lerin’ Bull was not there! Nor did inquiry about the hotel furnish any clew to the wounded man’s whereabouts, or a thorough search find him. Literally, he had folded his tent and silently stolen away. Finding that he had fled, Dick dismissed the matter from his mind, presuming that would be the last he would ever see of the fellow, By this time it was dark, and Avalanche and Johnny Smile bad brought the horses to the front of the hotel, and a few minutes later the trio were riding away toward the southern limits of the town. They had proceeded but a couple of blocks, however, when they saw a line of men, part in civilians’ garb and part in policemen’s uniform, file out into the street and blockade it from side to side, Sheriff Shields was a central figure of this aap ane array, all of whom were armed with rifles. Deadwood Dick immediately drew rein, and looked behind him, his companions following his example, What they saw was hardly encouraging. A line of armed men similar to that in front was strung across the street, in the rear, an were rapidly closing up the intervening dis- tance, It was plain that Sheriff Shields had carefully laid his plans to capture the Three ‘* Aces,” and it looked decidedly as though he would succeed in his undertaking, for the odds against the trio were overwhelming, being fully twenty to one! Deadwood Dick turned to Old Avalanche with rather a grim expression of countenance. = Well, fr this looks rather rough on rats, don’t it?” he said. ‘*By ther great ham-bone, et do!” the An- nihilator assented, puckering up his withered face dubiously. ‘* We’re between two fires, sure enough. What's ter be did? Shall ther Three Aces an’ a Jack surrender?” ‘* Not if the court knows herself, and [ ruther opine she do!” Dick declared. ‘‘if we were to surrender to these cusses, there’s no telling. what indignities';we will be subjected to. The cur, Duncan McDonald, bas put up a job against us, to get us out of his way, and the sheriff stands in with him, Our only lay-out is to run the gantlet, and take our chances, Yonder is a narrow alley, between two stores. Can we ride through it? : Old Avalanche shook his head. ‘1 fear not!” he said. ‘‘Et ain’t wide enough. But, look! Yonder comes the sheriff!” lt was even so. The sheriff was advancing toward them, with a white handkerchief tied to his rifle, as a flag of truce. ‘‘Let him come!” Dick said. ‘*‘ We will at least give him a chance to speak.” When he was within hailing distance, Dick covered him with his revolver, and cried: ‘* Halt! where you are! What do you want?” **T want to know whether you intend to sur- render peaceably, or if we must take you by main force!” the sheriff demanded, ‘‘Tf you take us at all, you must do so by main force. We have done nothing to make us liable to arrest, and will not surrender!” ‘‘You are suspicious characters, who would sneak out of town under the cover of darkness, and it is my duty to take you, no matter what the consequences. So you had best act sensible, and surrender!” ‘* Never!” Dick cried, firmly. ‘I have al- ready proven to you who and what we ure, and for any attack upon us you will be held responsi- ble by the Government, So, you’d better change your tactics, or you'll get into graver trouble!” ‘*Bah! that don’t scare me, for a cent. You’re no detective, and I know it. That paper isa forgery. So, once and for the last time, will you surrender?’ “a ‘* Never !” : Tycht : ‘ 1% ? ek Ne Gey, ear "> es <4 ; so wf Z > cc. 7 Bek es ae $4 : 4 Reo! “o a ait , areas F td x alo a) ie \ af wey ? Pa } ‘A. Aa .\ + ; My — — eee , = : Pm. —_ «— © Without a word, Shields turned and strode toward his posse, who had come to a hali,a score of yards away, and dropped their rifles to ground rest, pending the confab. Deadwood Dick’s quick eyes took note of this fact, and he turned to Avalanche, agar. ““Now’s our chance!” exclaimed he. ‘t There’s not a weapon covering us. Jab in yer spurs, draw your weapons, and sell your lives as dear- ly as possible! Forward !” The next instant the detective prince’s horse bounded forward at mad _ speed, directly to. ward the sheriff’s crowd! Johnny Smile’s horse quickly followed suit, while Old Avalanche on his superannuated jackass, Thunderbolt, was only a second behind. Like a hurricane the three horsemen swept down into the midst of the line of astounded Llockaders, firing right and left as they went, and creating a general panic, for the sudden on- slaught took the sheriff’s posse wholly by sur- prise, as Dick intended, while the body of men under Duncan McDonald were not yet within range to render shooting safe for their friends. With the desperation born of imminent danger the Three Aces blazed away and almost literall mowed a pathway through the human barri- cade, The sheriff’s men lost no time in getting out of the way of the hoofs and whizzing bullets, and in almost less time than it takes to tell it, the Three Aces and a Jack had succeeded in their daring dash, and were borne away like the wind by their fleet steeds, followed by stray Lullets, which, however, did no damage. And the gloom of the night covered their departure! CHAPTER X. ENTRAPPED. None of the blockading party being mounted, there was of course no use in trying to pursue the Three, and therefore they scattered to vari- ous saloons and other haunts, not a few going home to repair damages, for, although no one had been killed in the melee, not a few had been more or less severely wounded. The sheriff was thoroughly disgusted with his defeat, and blamed his men for having permitted the trio to escape. Said he: ‘Tf over two-score of able-bodied men are not able to cope with and capture a lone three, one of whom is a boy, and the other an old moke, ay {am candidly glad we were euchered!” uncan McDonald did not accord with these sentiments, and openly told the sheriff so, and further intimated that he, the sheriff, was a ninny of the first water, The two, however, did not come to blows, but parted on what could hardly be called amicable terms, ' When McDonald learned of the tragic death of Black Bud, at the hands of the Bellerin’ Bull of Bismarck, and of the disappearance of the latter, he devoted some minutes in exhausting his vocabulary of expletives. But, on second thought, he reconsidered, ‘¢ Perhaps it is better he is killed!” he muttered. ‘‘He knew all about my schemes, and would have insisted upon a division of the spoils in the bargain! So, everything considered, I reckon L am lucky he’s out of my way, for I can utilize Pillbury in his place,” Leaving Bismarck, we will follow the Three who had so successfully broken through the ranks of the sheriff's posse. y : Following the southern course of the Missouri for two miles, and then branching abruptly to the eastward, they soon reached a deserted cabin which stood in a small thicket. | : The cabin was an old affair, and evidently had not been in use for some time. The Three dismounted, and entered this cabin, when Dick lighted his dark-lantern, which he had brought along for a purpose. The illumination thus afforded revealed the fact that the place was Wholly unfurnished and deserted. ‘‘T puess no one has been here since I was here last,” Dick said, depositing the lantern upon the | floor, ‘‘We must hasten to disguise ourselves, and then leave for Wah Lee’s place.” The work of donning their disguises did not oecupy much time. ) From a closet, which seemed a part of the rough chimney, Dick drew forth a bag that con- tained a varied assortment of clothing, wigs, and false-beards, | The first thing wasto fix up Johnny Smile ak ga part he was to play, which was that of a girl. | si » Being rather short in stature, with a round, plump face, and light complexion, he was fairly — | - : a joa , : 1" - : se ste « ef, e ‘ é j i" ' lo. * com ~ epee >, } a we Sd at il. » near. ot 4 —_ ~ ; is u yo | af =~ "¥