Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 673 — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

1 . ‘? : 4 oe 2, — = _— ee OE me LO eee | \ - . . — te eet ne lg . Nt ee ee ne te th ne a eet ee den way ry . ’ > Pd wy + ‘ \ oo . - + —— . ba ~ a as} ~ - ul Oe eo Lo Aga . = a PP - bv * ~ ae ¥ i 4. whee Lo 5 face; when he rose again, he wassafeamong the rushes on the opposite side of the stream. The craftshot swiftly toward the shore, and, with its occupants, disappeared from view. Whither had it vanished so mysteriously? For several minutes Harry waited, his eyes glued on the spot where the outlaws disappear- ed; then,as the boat failed to materialize, he resolutely crossed the stream. Once there, he beheld a curious sight. Great wreaths and festoons of vines hung from the branches, like myriad serpents, Thickly interlaced, they reached to the water’s edge, forming a complete curtain for some dis- tance along the shore. The young trailer cautiously parted this natural curtain, and they the mystery of the boat’s disappearance was’revyealed. The craft was drawn up on the bank, but its occupants had vanished; whither, was indicated by the narrow, rugged path leading from the water's edge. Bor a moment Headlight Harry hesitated. Hie surmised that the secret trail led to the stronghold of the Black Brotherhood. Most lads would have sought assistance before venturing further; but the railroad-boy resolved to press on alone, and locate the whereabouts of the ban- dits beyond the possibility of a mistake, Carefully replacing the vines, the trailer ad- vanced stealthily along the secret path, not without fear, for at any moment a lurking ban- dit might perforate him with a bullet. The trail was a narrow, winding one, and as- cended gradually, being litfed with overhanging bushes, and strewn with loose rocky fragments. Harry was compelled to use the utmost caution, lest a chance misstep should betray him. Ashe advanced, the path grew more precipitate, and the lad judged that he was climbing the side of a mountain. At last a gleam of daylight appeared ahead, warning the trailer that the end of the path was near. Forsaking the trail, Harry entered the bushes, continuing his way until the thicket merged into an extensive clearing. Pausing at the edge of the thicket, Harry cautiously parted the bushes, and looked out in- to the clearing—gazed in surprise and wonder, for he saw before him the secret stronghold of Black Bart’s Brotherhood! CHAPTER IX. ‘* TREED.”’ A MINIATURE plateau, level as a floor, formed the tip-top of the mountain. Three sides ended ae y at the verge of a towering cliff, steep and inaccessible; while upon the remaining side, the narrow path afore-mentioned desceud- ed to the river, and formedthe ony means of ap- proach. The mountain-top was heavily wood- ed; but the industrious outlaws had cleared away « space in the center, and erected a num- ber of rude huts. This was the stronghold of the Brotherhood, long and vainly sought for by the authorities, No one dreamed of looking for Black Bart at the tip-top of Mad Mountain; and, indeed, the discovery would have been of little value, for the position was well-nigh impregnable. Ap- roached from only one direction, a few reso- ute, well-armed men upon the summit could hold an army atbay. From his elevated hid- ing-place, the bandit chief could, witha glass, look into the very streets of Richville, a dozen miles away. The plateau at this moment presented a lively spectacle. A number of horses were tethered at one end of the clearing, though it must have been difficult to get them up the path. Over a dozen rough, burly fellows, members of the Black Brotherhood, were scattered about, loung- ing in various attitudes, proceeding to enjoy themselves after a hard night’s labor. The re- doubtable captain stood in the door of his cabin, stroking his fierce mustache in evident satisfaction. Crouching in his covert, Harry looked inter- estedly upon the picturesque scene. He could see nothing of Grace Garland; but there was a hut near the edge of the clearing, somewhat isolated from the others, and: on the grass in front of it was stretched a solitary outlaw, evi- dently on guard. His presence led the spy to believe that this particular cabin held the maiden of whom he was in search. The audacious lad determined to make sure of this,and also make Grace aware of his presence. Cautiously he changed his position, until he ' was directly behind the hut, which was hard] a dozen yards from where he was conceal This change of base brought the cabin between him and the outlaws; and Harry saw with : ¢ . a : ‘¢ 7 ¢ , ae mre ak -hood clean outer their boots. The Lightning Express Detective. 9 satisfaction that he could approach, without much fear of discovery. With desperate courage Headlight Harry crept across the intervening space. The hut was a rickety structure, much less substantially built than the others, It consisted of a frame-work of poles, with rude walls of bark and old canvas, hastily patched together. Reaching the rear of the shanty, the youth peered cager’y through a convenient orifice in the leaky wall. A brief glance told him that he had not guessed incorrectly, for the hut con- tained Black Bart’s captive. In one corner was a rude couch of bearskins, and upon this reclined Grace Garland, weeping violently. At sight of the lovely girl Harry’s heart gave a thrill of pleasure. **Grace!—Miss Grace!” he whispered, softly. At the sound of a familiar voice pronouncing her name the captive started up in astonish- ment. ‘* Hist! Don’t make a noise!” warned the lad, softly. ‘‘It’s I, Harry Hilton, an’ l’ve come to save you.” Drawing a keen-edged jack-knife from his pocket Headlight Harry went to work upon the canvas wall. It took but a short time to make an opening large enough to admit his slender body, and then he crawled noiselessly inside and clasped the hand of the delighted maiden. ‘* I’m so glad to see you, Harry!” she ex- claimed, half-smiling through her tears, ‘‘ But how came you here?” ‘*Reckon my legs brought me, ’cept when I was riding,” answered the boy, quaintly. ‘* But, i say, Miss Grace, this is a deuced pickle you’ve got into, eh?’ ‘Tam frightened nearly to death, though as yet no indignity has been offered me. I su pose this outrage has been committed to obtain money, for the wretches know my father is wealthy, and would gladly pay any sum for my ransom.” ) Headlight Harry shook his head decidedly. ‘* Not by a jugful!” he declared, ‘I pen Be: to know the ins an’ outs of this scheme, an’ kin tell you you’re clear off the track, Miss Grace, you owe your present position to one of your would-be-if-he-could-be fellers— Dave Darke, the bank cashier, who is a member of this out- law band.” And the railroad boy proceeded to tell how he had chanced to overhear the plot and briefly outlined his adventures while attempting to prevent the abduction. Grace Garland listened in undisguised horror. Much as she disliked the cashier, she had not believed him capable of such an atrocious out- rage. The boy’s revelation multiplied the ter- rors of her situation a thousand-fold. ‘* Harry, no time is to be lost,” exclaimed: the girl, excitedly. ‘* Unless help comes soon I am doomed to a horrible fate, and you are the one on whom [ rely for assistance.’ ‘€ An’ betcher life I’m with you, through thick an’ thin, Miss Grace.” ‘You must leave me at once, Harry. If these rough men discover you, everything is lest, Hurry back to Richville, and apprise my friends of my danger. I know they will come at once to my rescue,” ‘* An’ especially one that I knows of—Ralph Renwood, eh? bet Ralph’s boiler is bu’stin’ with grief ’bout this time; an’ro engine on the line "ll bring him here quick ¢nou rh, when he knows where you are. ‘*?’'m going,Grace! The mornin’ mail is soon due, an’ I'll flag’em at the bridge with this,” displaying a huge red handkerchief, ‘‘They’ll ois me home in a couple o’ shakes, an’ then Pil find Ralph, an’ we'll get up a gang that'll come down here an’swipe the Black Brother- Expect to see all Richville here in a few hours, Don’t get down- hearted, miss. Now, good-by!” Pressing the girl’s hand, Headlight Harry turned to depart, only to recoil with a sharp cry of lismay. At that moment the door of the hut flew tc and on the threshold stood the outlaw sen- inel! For some reason or other, the guard had be- come suspicious that all was not well, and so ap- upon the scene justin time to block the escape of the railroad-boy. For an instant the two glared at each other in mutual surprise; then the outlaw moved for- ward, his hand seeking a revolver, Quick as he was, Headlight Harry was quicker! Uttering a yell that would have done credit to a Comanche warrior, he leaped swiftly forward, and drove his head full against the outlaw’s stomach, r 2. co With a grunt of pain the fellow collapsed, the breath driven from his body by theterrific blow. The boy, also, was upset by the shock, and rolled over and over upon the ground, Hurriedly scrambling to his feet, the lad dashed away, just as the entire party, hearing the disturbance, rushed upon the scene. . ‘A spy! After him, boys!” yelled Black art, With a defiant shout, Headlight Harry darted into the thicket. He was cut off from the path, and now found himself where, probably, the foot of man had never trod before; but the lad cared not for this,so long as he escaped the clutches of the Brotherhood. Recklessly he plunged down the rugged mountain-side, tearing through the dense thick- ets, overleaping fallen treesand massive bowl- ders that every where strewed the way. Half-way down the hill, Harry suddenly checked his headlong flight, pausing at the verge of a giddy precipice, over which it was certain death to leap. His retreat cut off, the lad stood like a stag at bay. He could hear the outlaws crasbing through the bushes in hot pursuit. Wildly he glared about him for some means of escape. Close at hand stood what had once been a mighty oak, but now all that remained was about twenty feet of the trunk. A huge cavity at the base showed thatit was hollow. As Harry’s gaze fell upon the tree, he saw a possible way of ec urriedly he scrambled into the hollow trunk, just as the party of out- laws arrived upon the spot, From his place of concealment, the lad could hear the voices of his enemies, as they paused at the brink of the precipice. They were evident- ly discussing the probability of his falling over the cliff, and he fervently hoped they would come to that conclusion and go away. Several minutes passed, andthen Harry could hear the ruffians gathering around the tree, Had they suspected the truth? Hoping against hope, the lad waited breathlessly. Suddenly per was thrust against the opening, and a bright light flashed in the eyes of the fugitive. Then followed the crackling of ee and an instant later a puff of smoke as- cended, The outlaws had suspected that the hollow tree contained their foe, and with devilish in- genuity had collected and set fire to a quantity of damp leaves and other material, intending to smoke out the ‘‘ treed ” fugitive. Headlight Harry viewed this proceeding with unutterable disgust. His situation was becom- ing uncomfortable. e burning leaves created a dense smoke, which poured up into the boy’s face, threatening to suffocate him. The tree being hollow to the top, Harry, by digging his knees and shoulders into the sides of the trunk, managed to work himself gradually upward, until his head was on a level with the top; but the change of position afforded no re- lief, for the smoke steadily increased in volume. In dense, black wreaths, it curled about the unfortunate lad, entering his mouth and nose and making breathing difficult. Choking and sputtering, he stood it as long as it was endur- able. To remain there meant speedy death from suffocation, so, with considerable reluc- tance, Headlight Harry poked his head above the tree-top, and looked down upon— A circle of outlaws, grimly surrounding the tree, each with a leveled weapon covering the head of the railroad-boy ! The appearance of the latter was the signal for an outburst of merriment, Scratched and bleeding, with torn clothes, and face smoked until it resembled that of an Ethiop, Headlight Harry presented a ludicrous spectacle. “Oh, ho! Wentin a white man, an’ cum out acoon! How d’ye think ye feel, young man?’ sung out a burly bandit, while other remarks, more or less sarcastic, assailed the crestfallen spy. Harry vouchsafed no reply to the badinage. His situation was not calculated to place him in a jocular mood, ‘¢ Come down off’n your perch, my gay black- bird, or we'll give you some leaden pills to mas- ticate,” then came the stern command, and the boy had no alternative but to obey. . The moment he reached the ground, he was pounced upon and made prisoner, after which soaps returned triumphant to the strong- 6) . Black Bart was impatiently awaiting the re- sult of the chase. At first he did not recognize the dirty, smoke-begrimed features of. the rail- road boy; but when he did, it was to start back with a cry of un -d amazement, 900 mic