Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 902 — page 8: what you’re looking at

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

q m ye (7 . - » Yo ow Fa eae : f aS ae? foes PEER BRP ae PIS TET LS Ba LS Par SF RT ee te - yal x 5 two ee eee oo -_> o— eee 2 ee we ee re a re’! al i ae Ps og “eR, <7 . a aay % oe A vi one, > iy Te od ery aw rs Xs gg » pe New York Nat in Colorado. / . + ——— entrance and exit, and in the center opened ‘‘ Hands up, all of you, for you are cov- into a valley almost. ered!” i ry of her step-brother, and hopes for his return ey home, telling me that he has-been sinned ¥ against rather than sinning, her mother says It was here that the spring and camping- There were yells of alarm and a bounding 4 almost the same thing about him, and longs | ground were, for the water was clear and | to cover in spite of the command; but a shot rung out, then another and another. One of the assassins fell dead in his tracks, at which a second turned, and holding his _ hands high above his head, cried out plead- ; ingly: ‘“ | surrender! don’t kill me!” The third bounded away in the pines, and, ig a moment after, the clatter of hoofs was 4 heard as he dashed down the canyon, fol- lowed by a command to halt, then severar F | rapid shots and a shout. | But the clatter of hoofs was still heard, so [: it was hard to tell the result of the firing. At the camp, however, the man that had fallen at the fire from ambush lay as still as death, and the one who had cried for mercy stood as he bad halted, his hands raised “iit oe his head, while the firelight fell upon im, / But those in ambush had not yet appeared, | and the assassin was becoming mystified and | more and more alarmed each moment of sus- % pense that he suffered. ' , cool, there was plenty of wood and grass, and the pine timber and huge rocks protect- ed campers from the icy winds that swept through the canyon nine months in the year. - The three Boy Ferrets had staked their horses out on a grassy plotin sight of their camp—had built their fire in a sheltered nook and spread their blankets within the radius of its light. The camp was 4s still as death, the fire flickered low, and the forms enveloped in the blankets were seen when the burning embers brightened up into a flame now and then. The four ponies had ceased clipping grass and were lying down to rest, and no sound broke the silence of night save the whine of a coyote impatient for the morning to come so that the campers would go and Jeayg the pickings of the camp to him and his Mount comrades, But if all was silent in the camp, moving toward it, as cautiously as Indians, were three forms, , They had crept in through the pass side by side, in a way that showed that they.ex- pected to find campers there at the spring. Side by side they had kept along the trail, reached the pine thicket and then halt- ed to take an observation. The glare of the camp-fire was visible, and they saw apart the three saddle and for his coming, yet dreads that he may really be dead. Thus it stands between the two, but are both innocent, or both guilty, or if one is guilty of wrong-doing, which one of these two lovely women is it? ‘«T leave this for your more experienced head to decide, though of. course I will still keep up my watching and waiting for a glimpse of the closet skeleton and the mys- terious Hidden Hand. ‘The servants have all been in the family for some time, and are devoted to the master, Mrs. Hammond and Miss Benson, while the two who knew Jack Hammond speak of him as a noble youth. _ **In their minds there is not the shadow of # suspicion against the mother and daugh- ter, that they are plotting against Mr. Ham- mond, or that one of them is doing so, ‘‘In my mind the only suspicious circum- stances against one of them, or both, is the strange behavior of the mother and daughter about the medicines for Mr. Hammond. ‘“A peculiar feature also is that before my coming, there have been no less than five women holding my position discharged after a short stay, ““Two of them were discharged by Miss Benson, during her mother’s temporary ab- sence from the house, the others by Mrs. Hammond. ‘‘Another feature is that neither Mrs. —— rc — . ae Me at oe al ae ve ~ i oa “ i ut? Reais i ee ee ey . . - " “5 *'; — if a "ees - * M «s » AS ‘ss _- , —_ z+ “ ae ~* - 4 x 2 ++ eee +“ ¥ - CHAPTER XIV. THE CAPTIVE: ) WHEN the firing down the canyon had Fe spent its echoes, and the clatter of hoofs had ceased, there was heard a shot in the dis- tance, followed by the words: “T am O, K., Pard Nat, but he got — ‘= — ~~" aa 3 7% = = - - ~ Yr ®@»% . © gee & Sn eae a ype apm Beaty Hammond or her daughter ever see the doc- | pack-ponies. away!’ | : tor. Then they did not disturb the four ponies, Then from the other pass came the words; y fF ‘« Now the question arises, Nat, what have | for it were their riders they were after then. ‘‘All right here, Pard Nat!’ ater these women to gain individually or together The three men carried rifles, and they At this, from the group of rocks was | | by an evil deed, and just what is that deed | crept nearer and nearer to the little camp. heard: | 1 to be? , At last they gained the edge of the pines, ‘“‘Ay, ay, pards. Come into camp!” | : . ‘‘Miss Benson’s advertising recently for | and was within fifty feet of the camp. It was New York Nat who spoke, and, a | ee Jack Hammond’s return, and having you go As though to aid them the fire sprung in- | moment after, he stepped out from the rocks , iia in search of him, may be both for and |to flame just then, and the three blanket- | in full view of the one who had so quickly — | against her, wrapped forms were revealed. surrendered, and still stood with hands ele- f ‘lf Jack Hammond should be dead his ‘« !’ll take the right, you the center one, | vated. ’ father gets his property, but already is a] and you the one on the left, whispered one ‘Well, pard, it was a clever game to kill Mesias, rich man himself, of the three men. us that Satan Sam planned, but we can plot, \ \Saee ‘‘If Mr. Hammond, senior, should die, The other two nodded as they understood | too, and your bullets only cut into dummy ; Ps | then Mrs. Hammond will get all of his for- | the instructions. forms. . ‘4 After a moment, as though to steady their nerves, thé same one who had before spoken whispered: ** Now be ready. , ‘Fire at ther word, and, should any shot fail to kill, fire again upon ther one who springs to his feet. a, ‘There must be no mistake, for that trio is dangerous, if they is boys, and to miss any one of them may mean your death or mine, pards.” ‘* We knows it,” said ohe. wee tune, and that of his son, saying that Juck is its. dead. iat ‘*But she is said to have been a rich wo- man when Mr, Hammond married her. SR eee ‘‘He is a fine man, one any woman would ae respect and love, so she cannot wish to get SYS Mige rid of him, unless there is another man in | the case. * If Miss Benson is her daughter, as she STK clnims, then she will naturally be her heir, ees anil between these two there appears to exist the deepest affection. ‘So am J, for he was the one who ought to have been caught, or be in the place of © my pard there.” ‘¢Don’t be alarmed, for his day will come, and I guess that it will be at a rope end that , he will shuffle out of life. “Put your hands behind you and clasp them. ‘‘Mind you, I’ll pull trigger if you make & move to resist or escape.” ‘“‘T'm not goin’ ter throw away my life,” - ‘Tam sorry Satan Sam escaped, though.” | ie 3 t i ET, Xe ‘If Mr. Hammond dies it is said that he ‘We hain’t got no excuse for missing,” | sullenly said the man, and he placed his ae Bit has willed his son’s fortune to Miss Benson, | the other remarked. hands behind his back, and instantly Nat it me _ but should the son turn up, then she is to A moment of waiting and there came the | clasped a pair of slender steel manacles upon Aus share half of bis own estate wilh her | sternly spoken command from the leader: them. , mr mother. ty ‘* Fire!” ‘‘Now sit down there,” and as the man eo Binge chee “Miss Benson has many admirers, but] The three rifles flashed together, and but | obeyed Nat threw a lariat about him and reat L | ag : admits none on the footing of an accepted | for the sharp reports the dull sound of the | made him fast to & tree. a P , : lover, | bullets would have been heard. Just then Keno came up to the fire, lead me 3 “Ts there really some one who is making | “ Dead center shots all of'’em, for thar | ing three horses already saddled and bridled. sae B her the victim of his plot for gain? isn’t a kick,” cried the leader, ‘Here are their horses, Pard Nat. Siam B bi} ‘Thus the matter stands for you to ponder ‘Now fera few hundreds in money and ‘The fellow who skipped went by like Aas Bs? ovcr an! give me a hint to guide me. a good outfit to sell in ther mines,” another | the wind and threw himself upon the other et | ‘An amusing feature of my stay here is | remarked, while the third cried: side of my pony, for he got mine, and re- he - . that the butler is in love with me, and Ican]} . *‘ Let us see what we has got and git out | turned my fire. A rt hs BS" do no more under the circumstances than to | of this quick, for tnis are a trail that is] ‘I saw them leave their horses just out- Tg) ep trailed pretty frequent.” side of the pass, so I pressed him so hard he The others seemed to recognize the truth | did not have time to get one, and so kept on of this warning, so the three stepped quick- | in flight, riding my pony bareback.” | “ie -. accept his attentions while here. x ‘““T will write you regularly, and hope ; you will keep me informed. | : ~ ~~ Oe : ‘ bey ‘' ay |e a s / = i ° ~ -_-. =>. . Sone » p: re ‘* Ever your loving ly toward the silent forms in their blankets, |“ 1t was Satan Sam. Keno, that got away, _ Lae a: we s ‘* SISTER.” one of the-men rowlae an armful of! wood | but there lies one of the trio, dead ; here is eae aS | | NE upon the fire which made it blaze up bright- | the third,” said Nat. - | eS ‘ | ly. ea Dg, ? ‘Good! but where is Freclsles ?” © CHAPTER XIII. ©. -. As they neared the prostrate forms, being ‘ Here to speak for himself,” and Freckles , re DHE MIDNIGHT ASSASSINS. | within a few feet of them; suddenly, from a | appeared from the upper pass, and added: = a Sprrne Canyon, through which the stage- | group of rocks just bevond, rung out sharp, ‘But I wasn’t in it even a little bit, ye eee ena en <a eee eee C—O ne ee ae ~ + trail wound, from Junction City to the min- clear and threatening from one who was not ; pards.” 7 ey _ ing country, was a narrow pass at both! visible, = lrg “You did your share, Freckles, and . ia - ~ tte . > AN we a q ' 1s, 2 a + ~ 7 ; ‘ "Sact 4 ’ ™ 7 bd . - : De Le Nay pegr: ’ ; to ) ; : * , " } y Fuse te y>,, q re ' : - ' 2 ORE eae fe rN | ay | : | . MLA aye as wet ' a fi ee eur ‘ oe oF 2 eas ao a / ve _- : “y+ . 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