Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 902 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

2 a CO Oe ee — nn A ALE COT cme A i —— <= << ‘ . ~ With this the party pushed on again, and reached the camp where the attack bad been made. The good trailers took up the trail, in spite of the outlaws’ pretended precau- a tions to hide it. mi” They found notroublein following it, and aes | toward nightfall, by taking cut-oifs, as they . knew which way the fugitives would have to go, they camped in the} canyon. which New York Nat and his comrades had left to seek aecure hiding place. They did not appear to fear being heard, ball for they laughed and joked around the an camp-fire, and it was their voices that New York York Nat had heard. ‘a The outlaw prisoner had heard them, too, a but had made no move, hoping that the A! pursuers would soon come upon the camp. % He felt sure that Satan Sam was leading ! the pursuit, and supposed that he had only bas the members of his own band, not believing hy that he had been bold enough to go to Junc- ; tion City and lay the charge he was guilty of upon the Boy Ferrets. It was coming upon the camp in the can- yon that had shown New York Nat the dan- ger they were in, q 4 | CHAPTER XIX IN CLOSE QUARTERS, New Yorx Nar had been too long a clever detective not to understand recon- noitering, even if it was on the frontier, He drew near enough to the camp to see the forms of the pursuers about the fires, and counted thirteen. ‘* An unlucky number for them, at least,” muttered the young Ferret, and he drew xi nearer to take in the whole situation, te ty ‘‘Ah! Satan Sam is there; yes, and the | Jleader,”” he suid as he recognized the des- | ‘perado of Junction City. | —_ The recognition, too, convinced him that bd Ree ag he and his comrades were in deadliest dan- | |. ger at the hands of the men whom such a ae man would lead. | “it aun Determined to hear as well as see, New and skill of an Indian, and soon gained a Be Pe York Nat crept nearer, using all the caution -__ elump of pines within fifty feet of the camp- RNG Sh 9 i alg : a eae The men had just sat down to supper, ra aaa and were laughing and talking among them- | __- selves in a tone that plainly reached the ears ey Tea __ of the youth in his concealment. ; | _ Listening attentively to catch every word, Se iccriee' he soon discovered enough to convince. him ae ee that the daring desperado had played a bold | game against them to save himself. __._He heard how they were accused of having made the attack on Satan Sam and his two _ eompanions, for the whole’ story was gone -—sover again, and that the men were in pur- a Weer? _ suit of them to hang them without trial, for eae _ the murder of the two men Satan Sam ac- AE aa _ cused them of killing, and for stealing their Panta fe. meee and trying to kill him, Satan Sam, fe be "That they had unstecessfully followed ~~ their trail thus fur showed that they were in earnest. ) nie tye The fact that they had not killed the man with them would be no protection, as he _-would side with Satan Sam against them, yw), They were in a blind canyon, and there Be was no escape for them, and they must } ag ght it out if their pursuers followed them ( VAS i ( “ae ee . That they had not camped in the entrance |) * convinced Nat that they suspected that they Hye 2 ha pushed on into the mountains, — SS SS he A in their favor, this ‘here was one thin being that their trail i) yon could not be seen, on account of the ~ mature of the ground, | ee Hit + So New York Nat at once determined up- on his course, and hastily retreating from ars his position he retreated to the blind canyon te « 0. . int i >» 4 . 5 : ' , x - so ; 7's vi Pd ve a e eh wa q rie ee ot nh! “" » : > A o Ly iu Sota vw : . . s “1 - a’ ‘ff ”% ba A! b « os % ji le o%* 4 4 7 ; ve a\ a4 ‘ * ron YA . Mass y te Fa ih 2 : . ‘ ee « ; * Ay «* + sm rs ¥ — P it Ws : A & ‘ ; ~*& eee ’ - j ee: Ly ir. totes mr ee : a + . : , " "> 2 ha > - anit af \ 4 ay at a IF wal a i ee ec - anf - ri “Si-~aM Sts we he wih 68 bs) <p. i. oe Sting eae Tak? | #7) Get te ler a $1 h-d hg ey. 9. See ' * -_ . yee , . Pog TE) ces ter entering the can- 3) dv zat Abi tt Bite’ 4 \e At ‘yikes New OY ee er ae ne oe CC S— 7+ — eo ee . — — - aE ee ee OED ‘2 ." ~ : My. o b . 4 ‘ - ’ * 3 - : " a eg P at) s + aie a Ct: 4 Se al Bi eeh Ol hen HE By ‘< pir at § Abe : Oe ees AN Sh SR Ses eS * y P. ra . i , * wg © ’ “A. * s f . ri = 4 ’ * , ‘all - Pe » alte . Ads TR ee . ee Wins s iin he pm ® 4 : . : 4 ] Ving ae — . } . ~~? : a% j < dy w 5 bee a Dal @ "'y . fi ; ‘ o 2 x sie ‘ ‘ ; 7 ‘ - Ss - * |, a m, ro 2 _~. ° . 7 4 ty ‘* 1 is ‘ “> < ey . 7 Oui: : / oT yew ‘s He found his comrades and the prisoner awaiting supper for him, and the two young Ferrets were becoming very anxious for the safety of their leader. The prisoner had also seemed anxious, and had suggested that they go in search of Nat, but this neither Keno or Freckles woule lis- ten to, As Nat drew near the camp he heard the prisoner say: “IT tell yer, I’m going to call out for yer pard, for I don’t hear nobody in the big canyon now, and if they hain’t kilt him he kin hear us. ‘*T has a voice like a fog-horn, and [’ll jist whoop her up one time and—” ‘You give acry and I'll see that it is your last,” was uttered in the stern voice of New York Nat as he suddenly appeared before them, his rifle muzzle pointed directly at the prisoner. ‘You would betray us, and purposely, for you know well that the men are in the canyon. ‘‘] have a mind to gag you, and if you mse louder than a whisper I will do so, while if you’ call out, your pard, Satan Sam, will find you dead when he comes here.” The prisoner saw that Nat was in deadly earnest and he was cowed into silence, while the young detective went on to say: ‘* Boys, Satan Sam is there and has twelve men with him, most of whom 1 recognized as men I suw in Junction City, ‘*He has told them that we attacked him in camp, killed his two comrades and cap- tured him, robbing them all and stealing their horses, ‘‘He is after us to hang us, and they are going to pull out before daybreak and go on up into the mountains, and we will take the back track and hide in a place I remember we passed, and we will leave no trail, ‘‘We could go to Junction City and tell all, but some there might not believe us, and we would lose our chance of rescuing Gentle- man Jack and that would never de, so we just go into hiding until Satan Sam and his followers give up the trail. ' ‘** Now to have supper, and then we'll get & few hours’ rest and be ready to leave here as soon as Our pursuers depart from their | camp.” | This plan was considered the best that could be done, so the Ferrets and their prisoner ate supper, after which Nat gagged the outlaw, and the four laid down to sleep for a few hours. ‘ CHAPTER XX... i, IN HIDING, NAT was awake two hours before dawn, and awaking his comrades told them to get ready to move and come on down the canyon slowly unless they heard from him to the contrary, The prisoner had passed a wretched night of it, ironed as he was and with the gag in | his mouth and he was in a very sullen humor, ‘Remove his gag, but knock him in the head if he speaks out of a whisper,” Nat had said as he walked away. . He reached the mouth of the blind canyon just as the leading man of the pursuers was riding by and heard one in the rear call out: ‘“There’s a big canyon, pard.” ‘¢Tt’s a blind one, only runs a few hundred | yards back,” was the reply of Satan Sam. | Then the party rode by within a hundred feet of the boy detective, ‘S New York Nat counted them carefully, and found there were thirteen, | a * ? _As they passed on out of sight he smiled eet ed ee ee ee TX ow’ “a ‘ him his two Ferret pards wholly agreed, though the prisoner was dead | the bed of the stream was sandy, and quick- OTe OR —— a ~~ epeeee oe ta na | iM ‘ eae ‘ , 1 a . , A ' 4 +." be Y, » tou oo my é ‘ ‘‘Somehow I believe I hold trumps and I shall play them for all they are worth. | ‘*Good! the boys are coming now, and we will get well out of the canyon before day breaks and then, when we reach the brook: | beyond which the tracks will show we will M4 turn into it and I'll be the guide, for I would not trust that outlaw aguin on any account, as lam sure he meant to betray us when he wanted to call out for me Jast night.” In a few minutes the others rode up, and mounting his horse Nat led the way on the back trail. a ‘‘See here, pard, I wants ter sarve you, ve and l tells you this trail will lead you af wrong,” said the prisoner. ‘“Not so wrong as the one in the other di- rection would.” ‘You is wrong, for we would follow om : after them and then hide in the mountains, ae for they would not look to find us following ly Ae them,” ‘I'll go my own way, pard, as I’ve had to do many atime before, and if I go wrong. you won't be to blame.” . So Nat led the way back over the trackless. land through the canyon, and on across a ; flinty plain until just after sunrise they came to a brook. | Then the strange spectacle was seen of) a. desert, treeless, grassless and rocky upon one- side of the brook, while upon the other side were meadows of juicy grass, trees and roll- ing hills. eaching the brook Nat turned down the: stream, a course which would take them: nearer to, instead of further from Junetiom | City. | | a We can,” he explained to his two pards, “if driven to bay, make arun for Junction | City and tell our story to the people there, ‘*Enough will belive it to prevent ous oh being strung up without mercy,.thongh Fo believe the prisoner would side with Satan, = Sam against us, pe Aw we eres: ‘‘Now we will find a biding-place and re- main there until the band searching forus. return to Junction City. | ‘Then we will try and find the eutlaw) band’s dén, rescue Gentleman Jack, and with = him and another outlaw prisoner we will 5 haye enough proof to back up all our charges against Satan Sam.” HF a | esis Thig was New York Nat’s plan, and with = set against their view of the situation, — hi Like one reared upon the;frontier New York Nat led the way down the stream, =~ the others following, and the prisoner wear- ing an anxious look upon his face, wa Aa. St Before they turned into the brook Nat | and Keno bad dismounted and most care- fully seurched to see if they had left any trace of a trail upon the hard soil. WN To their delight they found none, and | y. all the tracks were obliterated by the awing waters." =. |. -\\ | 2 So down the current they rode for several — miles, and then they came to a place at. which the same flinty soil was found, so that they left the water and soon found a camping place back among a range of hills, ood, grass and water were in plenty, the horses could be hemmed up in one of tes aA blind canyons close at hand, and the very spot be a good camp and safe retreat was. Sah found, © | | Sa On ena Not fearing that any foes were near Nat ‘i shot a decr, and while the prisoner ibe dah Ope ray ae 4 work cutting it up, Keno and Freckles 2 fa fine fish in the Ba NE eh ‘“We have a safe retreat, a finecampand = are set up With fresh food in plenty, boys,so we can stand it fora few days and then the oa | ae prisoner here must guide us o his den if hes ier) Z ‘, | a & 4 . ' ' J a ‘* . As Pee to “te his neck.” Ba SON ae ae | grimly. and muttered to himself; = |_ ** You bet I'll do Moc ih mmeif you wii ‘Well Satun Sam, we are playing another | hain’t sarcumvented an Samif yeristen- tie . ; act As, ‘ . , Te \’ : ¥ ; : + ¥ Y ath ve Bs Coe , game and we will see who will win. ———_—‘| derfoot kids, pain at wate aly Prison ete Hey thet ; A a fi - ae pee Me 2 bie Fo ee , Shy aah Gui Sy OF my Poa tale Ort. me Les * tad Pha nest Re awe ates sy Ree iy He a oh my Pan Sti eS Wide aa | pele REL 4 He posed et sy Mirela BAe. pee se, wal fat 7 Lye Ty he ari Wet Lin ke Ee ‘ ald Ailes SAREE EY a) . EG. ae ene ICM LE RL aoe cat ah 8 - kor Ne Dit san ie ey » | tie, os A St irae Ae \ xh - ACD) 5 be aa c ; : f iim @ ¥ Wee L » 4 ‘we rT ¥ Wy r —. “ voy bs { i" - y : ‘po 5. C , " «| 1 — @ Mm , } "e “4! x! as aA ‘ SS ay oe