Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 936 — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

P There, coming along the trail from the - Buffalo Bill, mounting, while he was searching for his dog, fort, was a horseman he could not mistake. The large roan horse was in a swift gailop, for the rider had heard shots ahead and felt that his aid was needed, The rider was erect in the saddle, rid- ing with the perfect ease and grace of tiie frontier horseman, and his rifle lay across his left arm, the stock grasped in the right hand ready for instant use. The long, dark hair of the horseman streamed out behind as he rode, his broad- brimmed sombrero was placed jauntily upon one side of his head, his eagle eyes were glancing ahead, and his handsome face was aglow with the excitement of danger and the hope to serve some poor unfortunate. As he came around a patch of under- brush his eyes fell upon the red hilland the horses on top, one riderless, one carrying a dead body, and two with the prisoners tied in the saddle. The five horsemen he had seen flying’ away, and then one had fallen from iis saddle from a shot from the hil, next a horse had gone down, but the others sped on, to quickly disappear, Had the horseman intended to pursue he was checked in the intention by sud- denly discovering a slender form appear upon the hill and hearing a shout and the words, “Bravo, Buffalo Bill?” “It is my boy pard, and he has been corralled by outlaws,” cried Buffalo Bill, as he spurred rapidly toward the hill. “That hangs us, pard,” growled one of the prisoners, as Buffalo Bill advanced toward them. “You bet it does, for Buffalo Bill will show us no mercy, and believe all his cub says.” Ned had sprung out of the crater and called out: ‘* Don’t ride up here; it’s too rough, sir. *T will come down,” and he led the horses down the hill. : ‘Then Buffalo Bill stood by the body of the outlaw, whom he had unmasked. “Well, boy pard, we meet again; but whom have you there, and how did yon cor- ral them?’ and Buffalo Bill warmly shook hands with ‘he youth, who responded: “Some game I picked up on the way, and they are bad ones. “T’'ll tell you about it.” “But I thought -ou were with Joe Jar- vis?’ “T went with him on his run east, sir, but we returned last night, Joe quite bad- ly wounded, Chum lame from a shot, and I ean hardly raise my left arm, for I got two slight wounds in it.” ‘My poor boy! Road-agents, of course?” ‘‘ Yes, sir; Mounted Miners. “There were four of them, and they held us up at the same place as before. “T’ve got quite a story to tell you.” “And these felows and those that just had you corralled, no doubt, are more of the gang?” “ Yes, sir; but shall we ride back toward the fort, for I was going there, and I can tell you, as we go along, all about it.” “Yes, as soon as I strap this body to his horse, which I will cateh,” and leaping into his saddle, Buffalo Bill swung his lariat over his head and rode after the horse of the dead outlaw. . He soon roped him, and the body was strapped to the saddle, when the dead animal was stripped of his saddle, bridle and outfit, and it was tied upon one of _ the horses behind the prisoner. ‘Now, boy pard, we will move,” said and the horses were driven on ahead, the prisoners being - dng out about how the two fair passen- | gers had held up and robbed Joe Jarvis does not like women, you know. CHAPTER XY. THE TWO PARDS. Buffalo Bill was a good listener, always, and he kept up a great deal of thinking While he listened. He let Ned tell his story in his own way, from beginning to end, and never ouce asked a question. Having “booked it,’ so to speak, in his mind, he then began to ask questions. As though reading from copy he went over the narrative and questioned here and there as closely as a lawyer could have done. At last he said: “Well, boy pard, we’ve got the whole story down.” ‘Yes. sir.’”’ “And you were on your way to see me?” “Yes, sir; and my lie panned out the truth,” and Ned laughed. “ Why were you coming to see me?” “TI thought it best, and so did Joe Jar- vis, after we talked it over, and -»when Captain Luke and Doctor Night-Hawk were let into the secret, they also said you should know the faets, so I started for the fort.” “And you say you do not know who it was who saved you from that ambush?” ‘“T cannot guess, sir—unless—’ ‘Unless what?” “Tt was you.” “It was not, I assure you. I just came from the fort, or rather left it last night and camped some dozen miles from here. “JT saw Indian signs, so concluded to post the camps and then return to the fort.” “Then the outlaws might have been right in saying I would run upon red- Skins upon this trail?’ “No, for they know nothing about the redskins, at least those you were with. “The other party of five, yes, for they came from that direction, but their trail leads our way and we will find out. *Do you think you could recognize any of those men if you saw them in the mines ?”’ | “They were masked, you know, and I am afraid not, though I might Know the voice of their leader, and his general make-up.” | ‘‘ Well, we will see to that later. “Now, about those two women, for I confess that part of the story Knocks me out.” ) “ You wish me to deseribe them?” “* Yes.” “One was dressed in black and heavily yailed. ‘Tt was mourning she wore, and I did not get a glimpse of her face, but her vyoies was youthful, and her hand, one of which she had drawn the glove off of, was small and looked like a young woman's. “T noticed that it was bronzed like the hands of one exposed to sunshine, and there were diamond rings upon it that were very bandsome.” | “Diamond rings upon the hand of-a woman in Mourning don’t go well, Ned.” “So I thought, sir, and concluded that her dress Was doing all the mourning.” “You are right.” “Now the other one.” The vailed woman Was tall and slender, and dressed well,” ‘* Phe other was a mere girl, and mighty pretty, for even Joe said that, and he “Some girl has buncoed him, I guess,” “Maybe so,” replied Ned, and be re- ealled the driver’s confession to him, and how cruelly he had been deceived by the woman he had loved and trusted. But that was Joe’s secret, not his, so he kept silent about it. ' . * . .“« Te 5 athe .% Men Ms ie a a te Oe bere, Seek tA ae a 8 toa on SMe ar i . “a " ié* and Feo ~ ? 4 —- . ~— —_—_—_—- — CF > RE —< a 9 NN ——— ee “They did not appear to be pards, you Say, until the hold-up?” “And then?’ “They got awful thick all of a sudden, and both were most anxious to help dress Joe’s wound and mine; but I helped Joe, and the young girl dressed my shoulder and did it well, too.” “The pretty one?” * Yes, sir.” “And then?” “1 went off to look up Chum and was gone a quarter of an hour, I guess, and when I came back Joe was tied to a tree, his wrists were ironed, and the passengers were gone.” “Tt was remarkable. “I could hardly believe my eyes, Mr. Cody, and Joe told me just how it was done, that the vailed woman leveled on him and the young girl clasped the brace- lets on him and helped tie him. “Then they mounted to the box, opened the iron strong box with a key they had along, lifted out the money and walked off up the trail.” “It was well done. “Tt nearly broke poor Joe’s heart, to think he had been held up by women.” “Tt was hard. “But now about those two male pas- sengers. “ What did they look like?” “Tf I can be a judge of myself, like ten- derfoots, sir.” “Don’t you worry about your being a tenderfoot, boy pard, for you have passed that stage a long way... “Tenderfoot, indeed! You can canter barefoot where an Indian pony would go lame—no, you are not a tenderfoot, Ned, not much.” The boy seemed pleased at the scout’s words and said, modestly: “I'm trying to learn, sir.” “Yes, and you are head in your class; but about those two fellows?” “One was a well-formed man with heavy whiskers. | “The other a small man with smooth face, and both were fairly well dressed. “They might pass for drummers in Boston, or book-agents, more like.” “Then they were tough, for I’m blessed if a book-agent didn’t sell old Chief Spotted Tail a dictionary with the back of a bible sewed on it, and I captured it and gave it to the ehaplain. “He did not have a chance to look at the contents, guess he thought he knew it all, and the next day started to preach out of it at the fort. “Why, the poor man thought he was crazy, turned red, pale, called for prayer and had a fit. “The surgeon dosed him with whisky, and he got drunk and went to the hos- pital for a week, and it took a special order from the colonel to prove to him that he was not. crazy—no, book-agents don’t go in the Land of the Setting Sun, boy pard.” Ned laughed heartily Story and replied: “Well, the two men might not have been as bad as that, they were only out- laws.” 9 9 at the secout’s no doubt; in fact, the King Bees. | ** But now the question is, who are they and where do they camp?) * Are they in with the Mounted Miners, or are they a separate gang, playing a lone hand for that little game they won so cleverly from poor Joe? * Boy pard, there is work for us to do, on the trail.” ‘ Osmond's emphatic rejoinder, 2 " ¥ -— z ‘e- « oo 4" ">, MEAL = . Cee ~ | CRIS HF © 62 Tae att on ¢ a ee eg ot a” 1 5 py Eo v “They were the allies of the women, . if you wish to chip in with Buffalo Billh — “That's just what I do want,” was Ned ; ete —* mh ; * >a a omicbooks.com