Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 707 — page 2: what you’re looking at

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

eae eos Be} va Wt +e, Caos ~ 7 » “4 7 fe ao Hp She was dressed in.a riding-habit, and her horse was hitched near. ° The scene was a country school in a dense forest. the bour verging upon sunset, and the locality on the eastern shore of the State of Maryland, At her feet lay the prostrate form of a youth scarcely nineteen, gasping for breath from a bullet-wound in his side, and near him was a squirrel-rifle, just discharged, Standing near, with a rifle clutched ate | in his hand, was a young man of twenty, and to him the threatening words of the young girl were addressed. ‘* Nonsense, Ethel; it was a fair, stand-up duel,” he said, ‘* Tc was a cruel murder, for now I know that Gray’s rifle had no bullet in it, for you drew it out to-day. ** No, no! you shall hangif he dies, and, my God! | fear there is no hope for him!” The young man’ started and turned deadly pale now, while a look of terror spread over his face. Governed by au impulse beyond control as he gazed upon the prostrate form, and then caught the determined expression of the young girl, he turned and fled, mounted his horse, and dashed away from the fatal spot. Like the wind his horse sped toward a distant. hill, whereon stood a handsome mansion, Dashing up to the stable be dismounted, rushed irito the mansion to the library and going to- ward a desk that stood there he said: ‘*T must take it, or I am lost.” He opened the desk, grasped a roll of bills, took other things from a small box, and sought bis own room, ** My father will be furious, but better that I take his wealth than his son be hanged on a tree, for that girl will hang me. ! ‘*Ob! how I have loved her, and though I have my revenge on him, she drives me away in terror of my life. ‘*T must be off, or she will come to my father to arrest me as the judge of the district, and he will do it, yes, he would not spare even his own son. j With a mumber of things put in a pair of sad- die-bags, the ycuthful fugitive from a judgment he had brought upon himself, went out, mounted the best horse in his father’s stables and rode away in the gathering twilight. He did not spare the animal, but kept at a sweeping gallop mile after mile. Late at night he arrived at a village upon the Tred-Avon River, and putting up at the inn learned that a schooner was to sail from there the following morning for the West Indies. He drove a good bargain with the landlord of the inn for the sale of his horse, and before noon the following day stoog upon the deck of a large schooner which was leaving the waters of the Tred-Avon astern, as it sped down the Chesa- peake toward the blue Atlantic. He had engaged passage for the island of Cuba, and with the shores of his native land dropping out of sight, his reckless nature be- caine cheerful, the shadow of tbe gallows no longer fell upon him and he ground a curse be- tween his teeth against the boyhood rival at whose heart he had aimed his bullet, first secur- ing his own safety by extracting the bullet from the weapon of his victim, 7 CHAPTER II. A RECKLESS ADVENTURER, ALONG an unfrequented highway, in the sunny land of Mexico, a horseman was ridin ___ one pleasant afternoon, several years after the he wore a sombrero and the costume o , country. light of Hugh Hammond from his home, driven away by the threat of the maiden he had madly loved, boy though he was in years. ! The horseman’s face was darkly a and the He was well mounted, and if armed showed no weapons, His face was a handsome one, his physique superb, and about him there was the reckless, indifferent air of @ man ready for any emer- ency. So changed was the boy of twenty, in the three years which had passed since his duel with his rival, Gray St. John, at the old school- house in Maryland that few, if any one could have recognized bim, ' “Halt, senor! no one travels this trail without paying toll!” he command, and what followed came from some one at first invisible among the mesquite trees that bordered the road, but there was a ore 5 a } * oa. * -~ a ~ é eee Sete Mia Sen pe a ee ? as . : : ae . i i. ~ » t * . < s al A. a * v7: Re : ~ The Red Sombrero | | | aed [= . ? * °F re? - “ ® pi an 7 "| $ é * “' . ‘ 5 Ss. anger rifle muzzle only too plainly seen peering out into the face of the horseman, and a moment after a man stepped out before him. A quick glance of the horseman over his shoulder revealed to him a second man in the trailin his rear, so be accepted the situation cheerfully and said in excellent Spanish: ‘*’nere is an old saying, senor, that you can- not extract blood from a turnip, and if you can find anything of value about me it is more than I bave been able to do for some days.” ‘*You are cool about it, senor, to say the least,” muttered the man. : ‘‘ There is no need of a heated discussion ove nothing,” was the response, with a smile. ‘‘ Who are you, senor?’ and the man, eyed him closely, while three others of a like kind came out of hiding and gathered about the horseman, : ‘‘A poor devil with whom the world is at odds, for lam moneyless, friendless and out of work; but what little I bave I'll share with you if you demand it.” ‘he men looked at each other, and then the leader said: ‘‘ Well, senor, you are just the kind to take with men of our profession, for we admire your style.” ‘* Then perhaps you can give me a job?” ‘‘ Well, yes, if you like the work.” ‘*T prefer to be strangers to work, but then a man must not starve, and the world owes usa living, you know.” | ‘‘That is just what we think, and we can give you a job if you like it?” ‘¢ As gentleman, cowboy or cut-throat?” ‘¢ Which do you prefer?” ‘* The former of course, while I would turn to herding if I bad to, and throat-cutting is not so bad if one gets well paid for the work.” ‘* Bravo, senor, you are more and more after our style.” ‘* May I ask if you are gentlemen, cowboys or cut-throats, or mayhap you are soldiers, for I’no- tice that you wear the remains of what once was a uniform.” ‘‘ We were soldiers, senor, but have given up cutting throats for the Government at a few esos a month, to doso for ourselves at a very air profit upon a small investment,” . ‘* Senors, Fam glad to know you, for I was meditating upon the subject of blood-letting for gold, when you rudely. awakened me from dreams of future wealth.” The four were again looking at each other sig- nificantly. : In all their experience they had never met one just like the horseman who so coolly confronted them, If there was sarcasm in his words they failed to detect if, and mastered by a strong mind the leader said: “Well, senor, you are not the man we were looking for, but we are glad to bave met you.” ‘¢ Yon are not a Mexican in spite of your good Spanish,” ; ; ‘““T am a citizen of the wide, wide world, amigo. =" fe you wish my horse and outfit, and demand it at the rifle’s muzzle, itis yours, and I will gd on my way on foot. / pe Tt yon wieh my life you must fight for it, while if you desire neither, pitying my poverty, unless you have something to propose will bid you adios and go on my way. ‘‘ Sonor, we have something to propose, for your brains and our weapons will enrich us all. ‘““We were soldiers, senor, belonging to the Lancero League of Colonel Eldoro, the richest man in Mexico. ‘‘ As I said, we prefer to soldier for ourselves, so discharged ourselves from the colonel’s regi- ment, and took to the road. ‘‘ Business has not been as good as we could wish, so we decided to. waylay the colonel on his way to his hacienda, where he goes every two weeks or so to see bis beautiful daughter. “He always has a well-filled purse, and car- ries jeweled gifts to ‘his daughter, so we were waiting for his coming when you appeared in sight, and we thought you might have money also, “es rances are deceitful, my friends, in my case; but this is a good plan of yours indeed, if the colonel is not a desperate man to handle.” “Oh, we know him well, and he seldom car- ries a pistol loaded, and depends upon his sword, ‘“‘ He will deliver when we make the demand,” ‘See here: I have a plan to get far more,” ** Name it, senor.” “You complimented me by saying I could be the brains of the party nor.” ‘Well, you halt this Colonel Eldoro, rob him, 4 ‘ ~ Pt oa rig het , os ~~ ‘ rr rrr rg SSS SSS SSS se <a and then let me come in sight, charge upon you and accomplish his rescue. ‘‘ You will fire, but not at me, and I will fire, but not to hit you, and you escape with your booty. ‘‘The colonel will invite me to bis hacienda, and as a guest there I can arrange a plan toyrob him so that we can enrich ourselves, i ‘Or better still, you might be demanding of him an enormous ransom, see, when 1 come to the rescue, : ‘‘ What do you think, amigos ?” There was but one opinior, and that was ex- pressed in a bravo for the reckless adventurer, who then arranged the plot against the Mexican colonel, so that there should be no mistake, and the villains took positions to carry it out, CHAPTER [II TREACHERY. y CoLcNnEL CortTEzZ ELpoRo was a dashing com- mander of Lanceros, still some years under fifty, very handsome, immensely wealthy, a widower with one child, a daughter of seventeen, whose beauty, added to her being an heiress, made her a reigning belle in society. The colonel was popular with the fair sex and the idol of his soldiers, while he was atten fear- less, and few. men cared to force a duel upon him, for at that time dueling was the gentle- manly way of settling difficulties in Mexico. Stationed some dozen leagues from his mag- nificent home, a palatial hacienda, surrounded by thousands of acres, the colonel was wont to go twice a month to visit his daughter there, who was under the charge of competent gov- ernesses for her instruction, He nad laughed at the idea of taking an escort of Lancers, had not thought of danger to him- self, and seldom went with his pistols loaded, © little dreaming that he would ever be halted on the highway, though he was wont to say, when asked, what he would do if confronted by ban- dits: ‘Throw them my purse if the odds are against me, and if not, ride over them.” “The colonel was within a league of his home, almost upon his own lands, and was riding leisurely along, when he passed through a ridge of rocks which caused him to remark: ‘What a place for highwaymen to ambush one!” Hardly had the words left his lips when two men stepped into the pass before him, two be- hind him, all with rifles leveled, faces masked, and a determined air that showed that they felt that they held the game in their hands, ‘‘Halt, Senor Colonel, if you value your life!” came the stern order, The reins were upon the neck of his horse; he did not know whether his soldier valet had loaded his pistols or not; his sword was in its scabbard, and a glance showed the Mexican colonel four against one, and their rifles leveled. The colonel took it coolly, however, and re- plied: ‘‘T value my life, of course, so buy it with | this,” and he tossed his purse upon the ground, But, the men did not stoop to pick it up, and the leader said: rs ; ‘‘ You have some jewels, colonel, purchased for your daughter.” ‘* Ah, now | know you as deserters from my command, so of course you are posted. ‘¢- You demand the jewels, too, do you?” ‘‘-Yes, my colonel,’ ‘‘Take them!” and drawing a red morocco i . case from his saddle-pocket, he tossed that also upon the ground, ‘* Now, colonel, you wear a valuable ring, and a watch and chain, which we also want,” “The ring is my signet, and the watch and rene - oe © nome » . » — eer tee @ ~ ~ = a - ne OE chain was presented by my regiment, peer un- 4 worthy scamps should know, so Pl their value,” ‘** How can you?” — ‘ ‘In any way that you ae ** We'll take the valuables now, upon receipt of cash.” | ‘Might is right, so handed his ring, watch and chain to the leader ve you bude and said: pone Cal a \ } ' ta “ o *. i] \ Ne ht t and re umn out here they are,” and he a : : ar tsétthe of the bandits, who thrust them into his pockeé _ } ay Shea Tl ’ s al ad 1 brill ae is not all. Senor Colonelti.—" 4. havi bat more ge “You are valuable to us, 80° we will hold yon xm ee a prisoner until our demand for ransom is = Ar “An! that is your game, is it? yp ee “Well, name your price. pee Bu “ Twenty thousand pesos. 9 eG 1 ‘See here, villains, Ihave handed you allI 4; had of value about me, but I will not be . of a small fortune.” robbed. * ‘ \ -_ a e 7 * ‘ i " ne , i > i VG ba) toe i! J ae ‘a j JIT ae