Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 90 — page 8: what you’re looking at

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

a Cy a ew —— = —————————— ——— ————— $$ ————_— —— ———— —— SE ee eS a a er —————————————————— ————S=S =_ — ] i} | brave man, and efficient scout—was to have « southerly direction. While to our friends, Dandy Rock and Hank Webber, was assigned the territory of the north. A few parting injunctions from Curt Dash, and they separated, with the understanding that at least one of each twain should meet there at sunset, and report their success, If this should fail, the others might know they were in trouble, and needing help. _ Leaving their comrades, Rock and Hank soon entered the “‘ Black Gulch,” where they were forced to make a slow and laborious pas- sage; and as they worked through the narrow defile between the two great cliffs, they could not help thinking of the fearful trap they would be in should their foes chance to sweep down upon them then. An ominous silence hung over the place; and when its shadows were left behind, they breathed easier. Slowly, and often at disadvantage, the Reg- ulators keep upon their course, now pressing through the tangled stunted growth, then across gullies and rocky ravines, past huge bowlders and over fallen trees, whose forms, slowly yielding to decay, present a strong con- trast to their successors covering the wild waste, and finally following a well-worn path, bearing plainly the foot-prints of wild beasts, They knew too well the perils of their situation to relax for one moment their vigilance, and exercised the utmost caution, feeling that at any moment they might meet members cf the out- law brotherhood, though as yet they seemed alone in the wflderness. The sun was past the meridian when the scouts suddenly came upon an opening in the forest, which proved to be the valley of the Rio Burte. Here were water and pasturing for their horses, both of which they needed; so, quickly dismounting, and allowing their animals to eat and drink at their leisure, they were about to withdraw into the shade for an hour’s rest, when the quick eye of Rock caught sight of a fresh hoof-print near the margin of the river, It had not been made by one of their horses; some one else must have been in the valley before them. A hasty examination, yand they knew that a horse had crossed the river at this point. Doubtless it bore a rider; if so, provably an outlaw. Here was a clue, and they must follow it up. Knowing their horses would not stray far, the regulators quickly crossed the stream, and finding the hoof-prints on the other side as they had expected, they found no difficulty in fol- lowing the trail, which soon entered the growth. For a mile, perhaps, the Regulators followed on without trouble or any new discovery; then they were surprised to find that though they had been following the trail made by the hoof- prints of a single horse, there wera now two sets, one branching to the right, and the other to the left, Puzzled by this, they made a thorough examination, but could not solve thé mystery. The tracks were all made by one animal—the two trails seeming to have grown out of one! “Wal, Rock,” exclaimed Hank, “‘this beats me; but you take the left and this coon’ll take the right, and p’r’aps we'll git even with it yet.” Thus they separated. Rock followed his for a while without diffi- culty; then suddenly it ended. Baffled for a time, he still kept on, till at last ke found the trail again. Half an hour later Rock suddenly stopped, with an ejaculation of surprise. He had found the footprints of a man upon the trail. They had been made within an hour, too. He saw at a glance they were too small for Hank’s. Whose were they then? Cautiously, the wary scout advanced, half expecting to see the burly form of an outlaw rise in his path at every step. Then again he paused. There seemed something familiar in the footprints, and another exclamation escaped his lips, when a moment later he discovered that they were his own, and tbat in following the trail he had been going round in a circle ! The now thoroughly puzzled Regulator was 8 The Dread Rider. half inclined to turn back; but something seemed to prompt him on, and paying no more regard to the trail, he cautiously yet rapidly advanced through the growth, heeding not the direction he took, only seeming anxious to press on. Rock had considered himself familiar with nearly every inch of the Red Lands, but he soon found that he was coming into a district where he had never been. The country was growing wilder and more broken. Soon he heard the roaring of water, as of a river dash- ing over a precipice. Could it be the sluggish Rio Burte? He soon found that he was ap- proaching more elevated ground; and five min- utes later had ascended a large ridge or sort of plateau, covered here and there with patches of dwarf oak. He could still hear the roaring of water, plainer than ever, but now it seemed below him. Ahead was a cliff nearly twenty ~ feet in hight, sloping back to the west until it came on a level with the plateau, while its east side was perpendicular. A short distance to the right and he came upon the bank of a chasm, where twenty feet below, the waters of the Rio Burte were dashed furiously over piles of loose stones and huge bowlders in continual rapids, till the river was a mad, roaring, foam- ing cataract. Following along on the brink of the preci pice, Rock sooned reached the base of the cliff, to discover what seemed a sort of footpath leading to the edge of the abyss, where of course it came to an abrupt termination, But down where the cliff connected with the nearly perpendicular bank of the river was a sort of shelf or projection of the regular ledge, which was well designed for a natural pass-way, though this, like the other, apparently came to a sudden end by an abrupt angle of the cliff. Did the two have any connection? Rock Randel was not one to speculate. With him to think was to act; and though the jutting out of the rock promised but mere foot- hold upon the side of the massive cliff, with no chance for a hand-hold above, and twenty feet certain destruction below, he resolved to hazard the attempt of scaling the narrow rim, to know if there was aught beyond its sudden turn. Slowly and carefully thé Regulator worked his way along the dangerous pathway. A stone loosed from its place by his foot went crashing down the precipitous side into the madly rushing river, with an angry splash, which sent a shudder through his frame as he thought of what would be his fate should he miss his footing. But, the angle was safely reached, when he saw that his labor had been in vain. The rude passage continued on a short distance, then abruptly widened out into asort of platform, to be met beyond by the solid ledge. Rock was about to turn back, when a noise from,the cliff above caught his attention; and looking up, he saw standing upon its very brink a dozen armed men, their rifles pointed directly at his person. Cospita! Move a hand or foot and we'll rid- dle you with bullets!” CHAPTER IX, ‘ROCK RANDEL WILL DIE GAME.” ‘‘Move a hand or foot and we'll riddle you with bullets!” For one moment the Regulator was as mo- tionless as a statue. A single glance was suffi- cient to tell him the peril of his situation. The speaker was his most dreaded enemy, the Mexican avenger, and he was completely in his power; but Dandy Rock was not one to be easily frightened, and he resolved to make the best of his situation. “Wal, old yaller-skin, what ‘ll yer hev’? Spit it out mighty suddint, fur I don’t like this posish at at all!” With an oath, the Mexican exclaimed: “Lay down your arms,” ‘“S’posen I don’t, what then, asked the imperturbable Regulator. “ Caramba!” ejaculated the other fiercely, Tl not fool with you! Lay down your arms, dog, or you shall die!” Greaser?” A less impetuous person would have quietly submitted to the inevitable, and become the prisoner of the Mexican and his horde. But, not so with Rock Randel; he knew too well what captivity meant. Better would it be for him to hurl himself into the rocky canon of the Rio Burte, than yield to his revengeful foe, the outlawed desperado, San Mullre. ‘“No, old hoss! you’re mighty important! Say, hain’t ye goin’ ter give a feller no kind uv a show? Jess p’int them ar’ shooters t’other way, please.” ‘* Fool!” exclaimed the Mexican, ‘‘ will you surrender without resistance, or die like a dog?” | ‘‘ Never!” cried the other defiantly; ‘when Rock Randel sells out to a sneaking Greaser, thar’s got to be blood spilt! Take that, dog of a yaller-skin!” and forgetting his precarious footing, unmindful of the dozen ominous muz- zles pointed at his breast, caring for naught else but his determination to fight to the bitter end, the reckless Regulator brought his own rifle to shoulder, and before the horde upon the cliff’realized his intentions, a sharp ringing report broke upon the air, and a bullet just grazed San Mullre’s temple. A wild yell, and a dosen bullets cleft the ledge where the daring Regulator had stood; but he had sprung forward in season to escape the volley which he knew would follow his shot. Then he turned as if to spring into the mad river. But at that moment, a lasso thrown by a dextrous hand came whirring through the air, and the roose settled down around his shoulders, pinioning his arms to his side. A shout of triumph went up from the Mex- ican’s band, as Rock felt the cord straighten- ing; and crouching back against the cliff for an instant, the Regulator then sprung forward upon the rock platform. The Mexican lassoer, leaning slightly over the cliff to note his suc- cess, suddenly felt himself snatched forward, and powerless to save himself, was hurled through the air to fall at Randel’s feet a life- less body. Quick as a flash Rock threw off the lasso, and seized the burly form of the dead Mexican, when backing up against the rock, he held it before him as a shield, with his left hand, while with the other, he drew and cocked one of his heavy revolvers; and holding it in a menacing manner, he cried, tauntingly: “Bang away, my coyotes! Rock Randel dies game!” The Mexican and his followers were baffled, for at least a time. It was true they had an almost unlimited advantage, and it seemed certain that the Regulator must sooner or later fall into their power. But they knew the first man who should make a move would sign his death-warrant, and no one in all that gang felt like facing death, thus they stood like men transfixed. Five minutes, that seemed like so many hours, wore away, and not a word had been spoken, not a move hid been made, The men upon the cliff were standing there like blocks of adamant, knowing that to move was to die, The Regulator, too, was motionless, held in his position by the same power. But he was getting the worst of it. Already his left arm seemed paralyzed, He felt that the crisis was near at hand, and he could not help wondering how it would all end. Intuitively, his mind went back to his pleasant home, and the fond one anxiously waiting for his return; and then, he thought of his Regulator companion, and hoped, prayed that he might come to his— Like a flash, a man seemed to drop by his side, So sudden, so unexpected, that Rock uttered an involuntary cry, and dropped the body of the dead Mexican. Then he felt him- self seized in a grasp of iron, and saw the blade of a knife glisten in the air, Instinctively he grappled with his unknown assailant. Back and forth, to and fro, the combatants struggled, each trying in vain to gain the mastery, so evenly were they matched. Rock had been taken at a great disadvantage, and for a moment it had seemed as if he must suo- Coin | | CbOOKs.com