Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 730 — page 4: what you’re looking at

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

- ae | . o *, vs. ~ Violet Vane’s Verdict. Slink, the crafty, was stirred by a momentary feeling of repulsion for the man whose money had lifted him from the gutter. The citizens of the place who happened to see him paused and stared at the singular sight, for never before had the ‘*‘ Rev.” Adam appeared After a few moments, Adam broke into a | on the street in that deplorable condition, cackling laugh, tipped his silk hat back on his head and called for a cigar, **1 believe I will schmoke, Brother Shlink,” he said, The lawyer hastened to set out a box of cigars, ‘*T should have offered them before, but you have always declined previously, saying you did not use the weed,” he apologized. ‘*Tha’s all ri’,” assured Adam, selecting one and thrusting the wrong end into his mouth, while he vainly tried to light the wrong endof a match. ‘‘ Useter schmoke, Shlinky, useter schmoke when I—hic—wash one of the boysh, y’ know, I tell you, Shlinky, I wash a good one —hbic! Cunfound thish ma’ch!” ‘* Try the other end, sir.” ** No, I won’t try t’other end! ma’cb,” After considerable trouble, Adam succeeded i lighting the cigar, having changed ends fin- Gimme ’nother ‘ Mull aser b’iled owl!” gurgled ** Judge” Ben- jamin Hogg. ‘‘ Parson’s bin hittin’ ther bottle, 1 reckon.” Hogg was the corpulent and greasy Judge Lynch of the torchlight tribunal, the intended result of which had been defeated by Violet Vane, ‘* It w’u’d do him good ef some one ’d hit him with er yood heavy club an’ knock bim sense- less!” snorted Old Daddy Duzenberry, a recent comer in Coffin City, Hogg instantly turned on the tall, lank old man, ‘“Do ye know thet gent?’ demanded the ** judge.” ‘‘ Mebbe so; mebbe not. Who is he?” ‘‘ Thet is ther Reverend Adam Jayne.” ‘‘'Yedon’t say! Waal, waal! I tuck him fer Adam fool,” and the old man chuckled at his own pun, Jayne continued his way along the street till he came to a small cabin not far from the out- y. * Well, now we will go on wish our bushi- | skirts, Turning up to this, he pushed if open ness,” he said. ‘*Jesht lemme know what you propose to do anyhow, Brother Shlink.” ‘*T propose to watch Violet Vane,” *¢ Tha’s all ri’,” **To do this, I must put two new men on his track,” ** Yesh,” “Tt will cost money.” ** Cer-hic !—cert !” **T shall need some more.” ‘*?Bout how much you want?” Slink hesitated, being afraid to ask for too large a sum, He hb succeeded in getting Jayne into the very condition he desired, but, from past experience, he knew there was such a aia OF overstepping the limit, ** Hain’t got mush ready monish,” declared snes “Got ter go—hic!—light, Brother ink, The lawyer seized a pencil and paper and pre- tended to figure rapidly for a few moments, Finally, he paused with his head canted on one side and his half-smoked cigar pointing ceiling- ward from the upper corner of his mouth. ‘* How much?” impatiently demanded Jayne, * Well,” replied the lawyer, slowly, ‘‘ I need five hundred, but I may be able to squeeze along for a couple of weeks on four but four is the very lowest figure.” Adam drew forth his pocketbook and counted out the sum of four hundred dollars, ‘* There you hash it,” pushing the bills toward Slink’s itching fingers, ‘‘ And tha’s the lasht you'll get ‘lesht it mounts to something,” **T shall surely make it amount to something,” declared the wily eee A few momets later, Adam Jayne left the office, When he was gone, Slink executed some- thing like a war-dance in the middle of the room, restraining his desire to whoop with delight, “Struck him again!” he snickered, triumph- antly waving the money over his head, ‘*‘ Had to fill the old dog to do it, but I hit bim just the game, I will be able to weara silk hat soon! Ha, ha, ha! what a pie! I have bled the old rascal in great shape, and if I can play the cards right, I will continue to bleed him, Iam inno great hurry about finding the boy, for I know a good snap when I strike it, and I never had such another one, When he refuses to pod over any more, then I will hustle to find the kid and get that reward, Oh, he, he, he!” He danced around the floor once more, and kicked the broken-backed chair across the room, where it struck the wall and fell in a splintered wreck, ** Soft, soft!” he muttered, . ‘t‘ Chain up, Elias! You have ruined a chair and you cannot afford to buy another elegant easy to take its place, You don’t want to lay out more money than is necessary in this God-forsaken hole, hen this bit of business blows over, Elias Slink, attorney- at-law, will fold up his wigwam, like the noble red-man, and silently sneak away, Coffin City will know him no more forever. Yea, verily; so mote it be!” - _With his silk hat tipped far back on his head, his hands thrust into his pockets, and the cigar pointing upward from one corner of his mouth, Adam 6 made his way unsteadily down the street. He had taken a final drink before leav- ing Slink’s office, and the result was that ih pd around bim seemed decidedly shaky. | “Blesh my eyesh!” he gurgled, speaking softly to himself. ‘‘ I never notished b’fore that thish schtreet wash—hic!—sho confounded crook- ed. Crookedesth schtreet I ever shaw, tha’s . } , ~ a. . a 4 iy 4 , Ss 7. t } ' 7 7 ~ y 4 ) 4 -—* ¥ iS i, 4 4 , ms ? eee 5 oe and entered, thickly humming; “ We won't go home Lill morning, We won't go home till morning, We won't zo home till morning, Till daylight doesh appear,”’ ‘© Well, I sthwear!” The exclamation came from an individual who was swinging in a hammock suspended within the room Adam had entered. And that individual was a youth of about ninetesn, dress- ed in a decidedly “‘loud” suit of clothes. He was adecidedly insipid-looking young man, the downy mustache he was trying to raise on his upper lip adding none to his manliness, ha Adam entered, he started up in the ham- mock and adjusted an eyeglass to survey Elias Slink’s client. ‘Hullo, Jonash,” greeted Jayne. ‘*‘Sho you are taking things comfortable, my—hic—boysh! Well, tha’s ri’—tha’s all ri’.” “Well, I sthwear!” repeated Jonas, drawl- ingly. y ae steadied himself with his feet wide apart, pulling vainly at a cigar, which had gone out while he was singing. ‘Don’t schwear, my son,” he admonished, with great vity, ‘* Don’t schwear, for it ish wicked. You know, Jonash, I have alwaysh been very careful to—-bic!—bring you up in the way you schould go. I have tried to inculcate in your youthful mind the—hic!—prinschipalsh of virtue and morality. I have felt a heavy ’*sponshibility reshting on my shouldersh, have prayed for you in public an’ in the closhet, have—” ‘You have been making a weglar fool of yourthelf, old man,” drawled the respectful son, as he sunk backin the hammock and lighted a cigarette, ‘‘ Why, you’re half-shot!” Adam looked shocked. “Why will you—hic!—continue to ushe schlang?’ he demanded, with attempted sever- ity. ‘‘I hash done my besht to insthruct you in the folly of the pernacious habit, but all my efforts sheem to be wasted—hic! Ob, Jonash, Jonash! I hash spent many weary nights pray- ing for you, my shon!” ‘Thay,” lisped Jonas, ‘* come off your pearch, paw! You make me tired!” Adam began to snuffle and sob, at the same time fishing in his pocket for a handkerchief and dropping his cigar as he did so, ‘* This ish moré than I can schtand!” he blub- bered, ‘*Oh, my shon, my shon! that I should ever come to thish!” ‘‘Well, I thould think you would feel athamed,” asserted the youth, languidly breath- ing the smoke of the cigarette through his nos- trils. ‘*l am athamed of you. You talk to me about dwinking, and here you are dwunk!” Adam suddenly braced up and glared at the boy. % Who ’sh drunk?” be demanded, ‘You are, paw; dwunk ath an owl!” ** Jonash !” “Tt ith a fact, old man.” ‘¢ Jonash,—hic!—I am astonished!” “Tho am I,” “To think you should shay such a thing of your father!” | ‘* Stwait goods, paw.” Once more Adam began to snuffle as he swayed to and fro, ‘Don’t you think you had better lay down and cool off, paw?’ drawled the youth in the To this Adam growled a negative rely. ‘*You’ll be off your pinth in a thort time, ruv.” **T hash only—hic!—been taking shumshin for my throat,” mumbled the elder Jayne. ‘‘ Jesht one littlesh schwaller.” ‘*Tt mutbt have been awful pwowerful.” **T think it wash drugged,” gurgled Adam, a I thuppothe you would like the hammock, aw? ** Well,—hem!—I might find it comfortable— hic!—for a schort time, Jonasb,” The youth arose with evident reluctance, ** Allow me to atbitht you, guv.” 5 ret out!” exclaimed the elder, ‘*T’sh all yi’, He staggered toward the hammock, but made a miscalculation and fell headlong over it, striking on his head and literally driving his silk hat over his ears, With a groan, he col- lapsed in a heap on the floor. Jonas laughed, heartlessly. : ‘* Weg’lar jag the old man hath got on,” he ob- served, as he bent over his fallen parent. ‘* Hi, guv! rout up!” But Adam made no attempt to rise. ‘** Knocked clean out!” chuckled the youth, as he dragged the silk hat from his father’s head and held it up for inspection. ‘‘Thereth a ten-dollar thilk hat gone to the deuth,” he added, ‘‘ I weckon the old gent won’t be able to thay much to me after tbhith,” He tried to lift his parent into the hammock, but found the task too great for his puny strength, so he dragged the now snoring man into a corner and left him there. ‘‘ He'll never know the differenth till he waketh up,” grinned Jonas, returning to the hammock, CHAPTER IV. SLINK FINDS AN ALLY, ELIas SLING was still dancing and chuckling when his office door was softly opened and a man slid silently into the room. Indeed, he en- tered so silently that he was well within the room before the lawyer was aware of his pres- ence. \ ‘* Buenos dios, senor.” ) At this greeting Slink stopped his dancing with a suddenness somewhat ridiculous, and im. mediately began to bow, smile and rub his bands together, ‘ Ah, sir! good day, sir. Did you speak me, sir?’ | ** Si, senoc,” The new-comer was apparently a Mexican, judging from his fanciful dress and dark face, to say nothing of the fact that he bad thus far spoken in Spanish. Lan aes. ‘What can I do for you, sir?” inquired Law- yer Slink, The man glanced around the room, as if to make sure no other persons were present, then | replied: ‘IT came to make some inquiries, senor.” ‘ Anything I can do for you I will willingly do—at regular rates,” smiled Blias. ‘‘Have a chair, sir, have a cbair. By accident I fell over my other one and slightly damaged it,” indicat- ing the wreck of the one he had kicked against the wall. ‘In doing so, I hurt a pet corn, and nat dancing with the pain when you entered, The Mexican smiled and accepted the proffered chair, as the lawyer seated himself on the flat- top table, : Smoke?” and Elias offered the cigars, The visitor shook his head. ‘**Not those, senor,” was the reply. ‘ Beg- ging your pardon for declining, I will smoke a cigarette, f you do not object.” Oh, certainly not, certainly not!” assured the lawyer, selecting a fresh cigar for himself. ‘Every man to his own taste, One’s meat, an- other’s poison.” | The Mexican swiftly rolled a cigarette and lighted it. ; ‘Now, senor, we will speak of business.” The lawyer, having lighted his cigar, rolled it into the left corner of bis mouth, replying: ‘“O, K, Drive ahead, sir.” ri First, I will say my name is Juan Pacheco, | and I have come to these parts for the purpose of revenge, As you La igh know, my people seldom forget an injury. hen we have been wronged, there is nothing we desire so much as revenge,” an lawyer shrugged his shoulders and nod- “Ty saw a man leave this office a few moments er Great Scott!” exclaimed Elias, nearly drop- ping his cigar in his surprise. ‘*'You don’t mean