Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 85 — page 6: what you’re looking at

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

6 ,Beadle’s Half-Dime ‘Library. take their peltries with them, and it was de- cided, therefore, to cache them, with a strong probability that they would be stolen by the Apaches, before the hunters could return to claim them. Dick Havens, in answer to the = rat his companion, said that his first shot had slain the antelope, and his second, a murderous Apache, who sprung upon him from behind a rock, with og evident belief that he had an easy thing of This oecurrence aroused the hunter’s suspi- cions that something was wrong, and he made a reconnoissance of the vicinity, and discovered gully thirty Indians encamped less than quarter of a mile away. Among them, he recognized several of the very savages, who had given him such a hot pursuit on the preceding day. He was almost positive also that he saw the half-breed Velasquies and an Indian join the party. This conflicted somewhat with the story of Bess, which placed these gentry upon | the opposite side of the stream, but still both state- ments could easily be correct. The river or creek, as it might be called, was very narrow, and could readily be crossed in a few omen pe and the whole ot might have crossed recrossed several times. It was ir aA characteristic of the hunter that he should not say a word about this en 88 until after the meal was finished. Now t f they were ready to meet it, he made a clean breast of the whole thing. ‘* Afore we cache the furs there’s another thing we’ve got to ’tend to,” said Buck Buck- ram, speaking in low, serious tones. His companion looked inquiringly at him. ‘What's that?” ‘The way things ’pears now, thar’s likely to be hot times afore we git out o’ yar. If the reds should come on us whar we be now, we'd o under, that’s sartin, and both our ha’r would lifted afore we could sneeze, so we must look out for a place whar we can retreat.” ‘Will it take us both?’ ‘No; you keep yer eyes on the Injins, and Pl hunt up a good place, and one at the same time , whar we can cache our peltries.” The suggestion was acted upon at once, and, while Havens went off to scrutinize the move- ments’ of the Apaches, Buck Buckram took little Bess by the hand, and went in quest of the hiding-place. The girl chatted gayly by his side, all uncon- scious of what a terrible catastrophe was about to break upon them. In sucha wild, mountainous region they could not search long without discovering some suit- able retreat. In less than half an hour, the hunter stumbled upon the very spot. A cavern some twenty feet in depth, the en- trance of barely sufficient width to admit his body; the walls massive and dark, effectually shutting out any approach except by the one entrance; witha small stream trickling through the rear portion. Such was the cavern which Buck Buckram selected as their retreat until er could leave safely. ere, upon full reflection, the hunter con- cluded to make his cache. ving Bess in the eave he started out for his peltries. On his way ne heard a low whistle, which he recognized as that of his companion. He replied to it in the same cautious manner, and a few minutes later the two were together. ‘‘See anything of ’em?” inquired Buck, in a whisper. ‘*They’re in the same place.” ‘* Will we have time?” “* Guess so.” They set to work at once. It was no small task to ‘transport the peltries to this place, as the distance was considerable, and the way very rough and uneven. en the sun reached the meridian, their la- bor was not half finished. Then, too, Bess complained of hunger, and, as might be expected, both of them gave over the work to attend to her wants. _ And when this was completed, it was deemed proper that Havens should make another recon- noissance to satisfy himself as to the imminence of the danger. Upon reaching the spot where he had last seen the Apaches, they were found to be absent; and as great caution was necessary in his move- ments, over an hour was consumed before he discovered their whereabouts. To his surprise he found that the entire party had crossed the river and were upon the oppo- site side. He did not conclude it worth while to follow them, although he was not a little puzzled to understand the meaning of the move- ments. When he returned to his friends the afternoon was half gone, and there still remained a good deal of work to do. But the two set about it with a will, and toil- ed unceasingly until dusk, by which time every fur was stowed away in the cavern. “Now, ef they’ll only stay away till mornin’ there’ll be some chance of givin’ ’em the slip,” remarked Buck, as he sat down, and wiped the perspiration from his forehead. ‘What do you think of doing?’ inquired his companion, who always deferred to his judg- ment in the hour of peril. “We'll take a.short rest, fur _’m dog-goned tired, and then, ef the way be cl’ar, we’ll dig out. ‘* By the canoe?”’ ‘*That’s the way I'd like to try, as we hain’t got any hosses, but the thing is, are we goin’ to git the chance?’ ‘* We might carry it up-stream a ways, till we git the chance to put it in the water.” ‘* You see thar’s a bright moon, and it’s going to be a risky business.” ‘*That’s what we allers calc’lates on.” ‘But we’ve got to use extra caution,” said Buck, glancing toward Bess, ‘‘ fur we’ve got her to ’tend to.” ‘*Tn course—” ‘Hark! there the skunks come!” CHAPTER XI. AT BAY. Tur words were still in Buck Buckram’s mouth, when the sharp crack of several rifles was heard, followed by a chorus of wild yells, which told them that the fearful peril had burst upon them with appalling suddenness. But they were not totally repared, A large stone had been rolled near the mouth of the cavern, to serve as a sort of door, and the bn immediately sprung forward, and shift- ed around, so as to offer an impassable bar- rier to a forcible entrance. | It was not done a moment too soon; for the next moment, it seemed that the place was swarming and alive withred-skins. Their yells were heard incessantly, and they fired their guns in such a reckless manner that it was fully as dangerous to those upon the outside as those within. Stilla number of their bullets entered and flattened themselves against the walls of the cavern. ‘**Keep out of the way, Bess!” called out Buck Buckram, in a voice, which sounded far above the din and tumult; and, fearful that the child might be struck by some of the passing bullets, he ran up to her, and seizing her like an infant, carried her to a dark corner, where there was no possibility of her being struck. ‘Now, don’t you stir away till I let you!” he commanded, as he set her softly down. ‘If you do, you'll surely be killed.” There was no danger of the child ms his orders, for she was old enough tocomprehen fully the peril, and she crouched down, like a frightened animal, scarcely daring to breathe. uck hastened back to the mouth of the cay- ern to be ready for any emergency. ‘‘Hang the varmints!” he muttered, as the tumult partly ceased, ‘‘ they come sooner than we thought. ss “Give ’em blazes!” said Dick, who was now thoroughly aroused; ‘‘we mought as well first as last.” Ashe spoke, he fired his gun for the third time, at a tufted head, which flitted by a crevice of the opening, and the ne, pee shriek of the victim told with how fatal a result. And without waiting to reload, he struck out with ue knife, with lightning quickness, at a bare limb which presented itself within reach. It was instantly withdrawn, but not until a frightful wound had been inflicted, and the owner of the limb crippled for life. Buck Buckram was not behind his companion, in the fierceness and promptness of his acts. Wherever and whenever the opportunity, he fired and struck with the same furious ferocity, and with equally telling results. This desultory fighting continued for some fifteen or twonty minutes, and then, as 1t was plain that the Apaches were getting the worst of it, they withdrew far enough away to be be- yond the immediate danger of the rage of the trappers at bay. he latter watched for an opportunity, with the vigilance of lynxes. It was plain that this was going to be a fight of the most desperate character, and the hunters understoo? the ne- cessity of gaining every iy advantage of their treacker-us t Eton wer Lorirrin’ of COS QU Y ° - —_. & dee ee —_ ~~ the a unter, soas to weaken them for the final contest. When the Indians drew off, the stillness that immediately succeeded was oppressive from the contrast. A murky, sulphurous odor filled the cavern, making respiration difficult, and rendering the situation of those within anything but pleasant. But it was not their danger which gave them esaeay but the future, and the near future, 00. It was in the power of the Indians to bring them to terms, and at no distant day, at that. The thoughtfulness of Buck Buckram had pro- vided them with enough antelope to last them for a day or so, but no more, The little stream trickling through the rear of the cavern gave them all the water they could need, but no person has yet been found whocan exist upon that substance alone. It was plain that the trappers had committed a blunder, which bid fair to be fatal. Had they let the itries o, they could have been far be- ond the reach of the Apaches by this time. ‘ven had they fled the moment the furs were placed within the cavern, they had a good pros- sparse getting off clear, as the night wasso close a Both the trappers felt this blunder keenly, but neither blamed the other, for each was equally at fault. Had it been otherwise, no word or even thought would have indicated it. However, it was now too late for regrets, and these mountaineers .were not the men to sit oo and idly bewail what was done past re- call. - They were the ones who were prepared to face re Soe stern reality of the matter, and they it. Both were thinking of the same thing, and as they looked in each other’s faces, they instinct- ively read the fact. ** Do you think we can doit?’ asked Havens. ** She’s the difficulty,” was the reply, in a low tone, as he lightly jerked his hand toward the corner where Bess lay asleep upon a pile of urs. sé . 3 - looks as though we shall have to give he1 Buck shook his head, ** Not till we’ve got to do it to save her life — there may be a chance of getting her out of is. “* §? we can’t?” “Pil do it then, and take the rest of my life to gittin’ her out of thar clutches, and J’ll do it! he added, striking his fist upon his knee; ‘‘and when I do do it, you won’t cotch me in = any such dog-goned of a scrape as this again; that you may be sartin about.’ * en will be the time to it?” “Not afore midnight, ef we kin do it then. This moon plays the deuce with us.” — ‘*Can we wait till to-morrow night?” “Ef it looks best.” “ All right; and between now and then, we’ll kill off all the varmints we kin.” This was unanimously agreed to, CHAPTER XII, IN THE CAVE. Tnx scheme which had entered the heads of the two trappers at the same moment was a desperate one. As their safety in the cavern was but a tem- rary one, they thought of pulling aside the stone, and making a rush, to pass the swarming A ches upon the outside. is would necessitate furious and sanguinary fighting, and there was great risk of being cut down without accomplishing it; but men who lead such a life as theirs are always accustomed to face the most appalling danger; and if they had known to a certainty that the chance of life and death were even, they would not have ' held back a moment. But there were several considerations which induced delay. So long as they held out, there was the remote prospect of the Apaches grow- ing weary of the siege, and raising it, by a vol- untary withdrawal, and the almost certain pos- sibility that they could succeed in weakening the power of those on the outside, by shooting uite a number, who would be sure to expose themselves during the succeeding day and night. Furthermore, to carry out this plan would ne- cessitate a surrender of little Bess into the hands of her barbaric captors, with the inevita- ble brutal treatment, and perhaps death; and the trappers were not yet prepared to resign her to such a fate. Still further, behind all this lingered the slightest probability that it might be possible to eet ne . anon 4% A’ e mm & 7 Lsfac Uerms Wits tae . Mg: CHEE DCL preper ecoim ' | ' : ' books,.com =