Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 934 — page 6: what you’re looking at

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

~ =F NM ~~ 5 Ms . 3 2 — - " ad 7 ° - 6 8 ee ae wee Se They had to stoop low, in order to be able to move, but the depth increased as they advanced. | The ground sloped downward toward the center, in which way Rashton ad- vanced with the light, Dick right be- hind him, who soon saw the secret of the dismal hole into which they had pen- etrated. On the ground, in the center of the pit, lay a skeleton. “Stop! said the president, when they had come within four feet of where the hideous reminder lay. “Do you see?” ‘T see,”’ said Diek. “Examine closely, sir.” Just where the skeleton lay was an iron stanchion, reaching from the bedrock to the summit of the building, supporting the central weight of the structure. Around this stanchion was a rusty chain, which also embraced the skeleton in a way horribly suggestive, and this chain was secured with two big locks. Nor was that all, as Dick looked yet closer, for between the jaws of the skel- eton was a short piece of chain, also se- cured with a lock. Dick would have stepped nearer, but the banker detained him. ‘No nearer, yet,” he ordered, “ Look still more closely, before you advance another foot. Would that we had done so, in the first instance.” “Why, what do you mean?” asked the detective, in some surprise. * Examine the ground.” Dick did so, and in a moment an. ex- elamation escaped him. “Ha! I see! The poor fellow, “by the only means. possible, has given us a clew!” “It might have beea a clew, Dead- wood Dick, had not Hurdle and myself trampled upon a portion of it before we discovered what it was, but now I fear | it has been spoiled.” “TI hope not.” “What we saw first was your name, there where you see it yourself.” There, in the ground—rather - upon. it, for the letters were raised— in letters of sand, was the name— DBADWOOD DICK. | yew under that, in similar letters, the word— AVENGE. “Te must have known you,” banker. | “Perhaps, but not necessarily so; he may have heard of me by reputation. What further wording remains?’ “Take the light, step forward care- fully, and see for yourself.”’ On another section of an fmagined cir- cle, and at the same distance from the stanchion, to which it was plain the man had been chained, Dick read these addi- tional words, similarly formed— JENNIE JAMES, "Nahi. St, Paul. , This, with the other, occupied a half of the circle, that half farthest from the trap door which opened into the place. On that side had been other words, but they had been trampled upon, as the bank president had explained. This was to be regretted. “Tt is too bad you did not see them said the - gooner,” observed Dick. * Yes, indeed, too bad.” “And this gave you the idea. of send- ing at once for the lady and myself, | i see. Poor fellow!” ““Who can he have been?” “We must discover that, sir. Row. let me see if I can make out anything of ares obliterated words.” _ examined them closely, but only a a se of the letters remained. oa ee Ct eS Se so will Hurdle. | only to us three, at present, and the cir- cle need not be widened.” One was like this—and even then some of the letters were not perfect, but had to be guessed: +—QD— =—R—LD — ul. And the other: —GE— —Ds—. That was all that could be made out; absolutely all. But ‘it was Dick. Knowing what he did, it gave him the hey. “What cam you make of it?’ asked Ra.shton, ‘Ic gives me a elew, sir.’’ “ And you think you can find the wretch who was so cruel, so heartless, as to chain a fellow creature here to die?’ “Tt think I can, and I will, too, if life is Spared me. He appealed to me, and it shall not be an appeal in vyain if Richard Bristol can do aught to carry out his desire.” sufficient for Deadwood ‘God grant that you may be able to bring the guilty to justice,” said the president. “ T hope that I may, sir—in fact, I will, if the murderer is alive and 1 ¢an strike his trail. And you may be able to help me by giving me more of the particulars of the history of this building, sir. This crime was probably done by the fellows who last controlled it.” “Ah! yes, to be sure, In fact, we have thought so, and yet it does nat seem possible that men of business could—. But some men are equal to anything, and the motive may have been great.” “It should not have been great enough for this atrocious deed!” ‘That is true, that is very true.”’ “We can read the signs: This poor wretch was locked in Chains to this post, a gag of chain was placed in his mouth and locked there, and here he was left to die, miserably. Heavens! It was a cruelty unworthy the worst of savages! I will avenge it, yes, I swear that I will, as surely as I am Deadwood Dick!’ CHAPTER VILL. THE FRAGMENT LBET. Deadwood Dick. spoke with almost fierce determination. There was something in all this that ap- -pealed to him with awful force; it was the strongest call he had ever reeeived for the exercise of his skill in uncovering crime and bringing guilty wretches to justice. The unexampled cruelty of the crime, and the appeal that had been made to him by the dying man, in the man- ner in which he e¢ould') make = any- thing known—it was enough—more than enough! “Shall we go?’ asked the president. “We may as well, I suppose.” “And what about this? Shall we make it known, now?’ “ Decidedly not, sir. secret, We must keep it in order to work in the dark; * not a soul must be informed of, this dis. covery or o* my identity.” “T see; better so.” “To make it known woukd: be to give the wretch an opportunity to get. out of the country, and we must guard against that.” 4 “You have only to direct me, Mr. Bris- tol, and I will do whatever you say, and The matter is known “Tt must not be widened, positively, as” I have said.” “What about the young ‘woman? “Ah! that is so; she must be oe And yet, her.” “Then you think the poor fellow was—” “Her lover!’ “* Indeed!” “You must keep this as secret as the rest of it, for the present. I think you had better not sée the lady yourself, but let me deal with her.’ “Tam mighty glad of the chance to let you do it; if what you say is true, that he was her lover.” ‘Then it shall be done that way. you looked around carefully for a further clew? ‘That is, something that may have been dropped by the fellows when they put their victim here,” “No, we made no such seareh.”’ “Then I will do so before we go. It will save another trip down here, and I may possibly find something.” Dick still held the lantern, and began a careful search of the dismal hc in every part, but it was a useless one, for nothing was discovered that would throw more light upon the mystery. Coming again to the central space, he there examined more closely than ever the ground where the skeleton lay. Suddenly an exclamation. “What is it?’ asked Rashton. “Writing in the earth with nail!” “Then possibly whole story. What does it say?’ ‘Worse luck, sir; we have trampled. it almost out of sight; but a little of it remains.” “ Read it! read it!’ 3 “Which I am trying to do. Poor fel- low, he no doubt found: this nail in. the Have this old boards over his head, and made use of — it, after spending so much time making the larger letters.” “Better so, for the writing would. never have been discovered of itself.” Dick was trying to decipher the further discovery which his’ keen search had dis- closed. | The writing was in big script in the soft. but firm. clay that. lay on the roe and formed the bottom or floor of sie pit, but only a little of it now remained. All that could be made out was this: June’ 9 here by who has the pa- per where fortune is hid find to her Dick read this aloud as he deciphered. | it, “Then there was a fortune at stake, it scems,” said Rashton. ,. “So it appears; and that is: going. ae complicate matters, I am afraid. Has the fortune been found wt, | ‘\ “Who ean tell?’ “Well, it devolves upon me and my pard to find out. The murderer, I take it, has a paper that tells where it has been: concealed, and to find it we must first find him. Mr. Rashton, the motive for the cmme grows deeper at every tep.”” “Tt certainly appears to, sir.” : * Well, let us return to your office, iid * Yes, ‘for I will be glad enough to get. out of here, I assure you.” “Not by any means a pleasant place. We will allow the skeleton to remain where it is, for the present:’” “You have use for it here?” “Tt may be useful here before the case | terminates.” “You have only to command, Mr. Prise | tol, and what you command shall be ~ carried out. I am determined Phd the — terrible mystery shall be cleare ‘A They got up out of the hole, closed: the | trap ‘ees them, and ascended the stairs. leading to the bank above, having put | out the lantern | below and. replaced re on as upon its peg, | | eet : P j ~ . “comicboo rn 7 oks.col it will be a terrible blow to “e you have found the - — _-— * oo» * ha eee : — aa oe t en ~— -_— ¥ — —« <8 . ———_ . 2 a ra aa ao ~ | eee a 7 - 4 ig a ae i) a? Ye Nie ia p A < ; he ‘ a il fs 4-05) Mp ao y> Lp 7 7 4 ye fa ars: "). : : i * v +! ” rf ar od 4. vec® nae Maa oh ba ibys a ae aun ag | i ee OU pa