Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 961 — page 6: what you’re looking at

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

2 ce t09 jake =a rae ~~ of these and passed the musket to his father. The gate was not hard to unlock, and in a few seconds they found themselves in the street. The lights were not so bright as they had thought. In one of the: streets, in the center of the town, a camp-fire was burn- ing, casting a glow against the sky, but they knew they could readily avoid its light. Groups of men were visible here and there, but none near the jail. “This Way,’ whispered Al, relocking the gate, and turning toward the right. When he had gone a few feet, tossing the jail keys into a rubbish heap, he hur- ried on, leading by a circuitous route, to- ward the northeast corner of the mud wall which enclosed the town. Their arrangements were complete. They had even agreed on a place of meeting should they become separated. All was going well, more than half of the distance had been traversed, and their hopes were growing, when a dog leaped out of one of the adobe huts, and assailed them, with furious barkings. They paused irresolutely. Voices were heard in the hut, and it seemed impossible to escape discovery. Israel Isett lifted the musket as if to fire, but hesitatingly lowered it. ‘“‘ Better make a run for it, I reckon,” suggested the juggler, suiting the action to the word. The fat tramp could run at a lively gait when put to it, and he now cut out at his best pace. Al leaped after him, and Isett brought up the rear with the musket. Their flight increased the rage of the dog. Some one rushed to the door of the mud hut, and, seeing them dashing down e narrow street, raised a cry of alarm. Again and again he yelled, and, in re- sponse to his cries, the adobe huis along the way began to vomit their inhalsttants. Pell mell they tumbled out of the houses, men, women and children, and some sol- diers being also attracted, a lively chase ensued, led by the barking dog. As yet the pursuers did not know whom they were pursuing, but that took noth- ing from the fervor with which they en- tered into the chase. The juggler was puffing like a porpoise, and the sweat was rolling from his fat body before he had gone a hundred yards. AS for Israel Isett, the cur was leaping at him, and snapping at his heels in a way to drive him mad. “This will never do!’ “We can never get away while they led by this dog!” With this he wheeled, and, firing quick- ly,.had the satisfaction of seeing the cur roll over with a loud yelp. The musket shot served but to increase the speed and fury of the pursuers, and, a number of soldiers coming out of a side street, the hotly-pressed fugitives were pushed harder than ever. Al, fleeter of foot than the tramp, again led. Reaching the angle of the wall, he coiled the rope he had carried, and hurled it at the spikes with which the wall fwas sur- mounted, ( Once, twice, three times he threw, before the noose of the rope caught and held fast. Then he pulléd on it to test it, and be- gan to climb up, hand over hand, pressing his feet against the wall. But the guard, stationed in a tower not far distant, had not only heard, but. had seen them, and now came running to pre- vent their escape. Tsrael Isett’s musket was empty, and he _.powerless. Nevertheless, he threw it to was his thought. are . . his shoulder, as if he would shoot the guard, The only effect was to draw the fire of the Greaser, which, fortunately, flew wild. Then Al, who had almost. reached the top, saw the guard’s knife flash, and tum- bled headlong to the ground. The rope in which he had trusted “hs id been severed at a stroke! They could not escape by that way, so all turned down along the wall, running as they had never run before. But the camp was now thoroughly aroused, and, though they reached the other angle, they could not there mount, and were then surrounded and forced to surrender. CHAPTER VI. AFTER AN EARTHQUAKE. Worn out, humiliated and depressed, they were dragged back to the jail. Bazoo Smith was utterly disconsolate and filled with a terrible fear. It was he who had bribed the soldier and sent for the aguardiente. A great rage filled the ‘hearts of the sol- diers when they discovered the guard asleep at his post. When they could not arouse him by calls, other keys were produced and the gate opened. It was quickly evident that he had been drugged, and it was not long until the dis- covery was also made that the prisoners still in the jail had been served likewise. As for the soldier whose weakness for strong drink had caused him to fall a vic- tim to the tramp’s tempting offer, he was probably somewhere sleeping off the ef- fects of his potation. Though the trio were threatened with instant death if they did not confess the means by which they had secured the liquor, they refused to make any confes- sion. More than an hour passed before the guard could be made sensible of his situa- tion; then he was ignominiously cast into an adjoining cell and told that, for his de- fection, he would be promptly shot in the morning,‘ with the trio Whose attempted escape had produced so much excitement. The prisoners in the other cell were also brought out of their somnolent condition, and they, with the guard, implicated the soldier, who, however, when search was instituted for him, could not be found. In the midst of it all, another assault was made by the enemy, accompanied by a lively musketry fire, so that, altogether, the people of Carretas had little time for sleep. Thus the night passed, and the day dawned redly, bringing with it a seeming increase of excitement. A wild mob gathered in front of, the jail for the purpose of witnessing the an- ticipated executions. Our friends looked out on this mob with blanching faces. Nowhere was there a ‘ay of hope. The juggler had entirely lost his air of half-humorous bluster and bravado. He was as pale as a ghost, and his limbs shook under him so that he could hardly stand as he clung to the bars and looked out through the high window at this array of foes. ‘* Pardners, I reckon I never was so near the end of my rope as I am at this blessed minute, If I could get them rascals to lis- ten to me, mebbe I could do some kind of show trick that would give us a few min- utes.” He called aloud, but they did not hear him or did not choose to understand. Aztee Al and his father were probably quite as much shaken. though they man- aged better to conceal the fact. The crowd was seen to give way, and @ _——_— wr ee oat me he clung to the bars and tooked out througit gate, followed by a file of armed soldiers. y) A guard advanced and unlocked the door, of their cell. The hour of execution had come. 7 The condemned guard dropped to his’ knees and began to pray aloud in piteous tones. As if in answer to this prayer, the walls and the bujlding reeled, the earth billowed like the sea, and many of the adobe huts toppled into the streets. A panic instantly ensued, and when the ground jarred again and the heavy mud wall of the prison gaped open, the sol- diers became a demoralized mob and fled in terror. An earthquake was shaking Carretas, boxing it to and fro as if angry at the out- rages the town had witnessed. Though almost as much demoralized as the soldiers, and the citizens, the trio of condemned prisoners were the first to re- rain their heads, | The guard, too, who had been praying so appealingly, leaped to his feet and stared about. ‘God be praised, senors. we’re saved!” He crossed himself devoutly as he looked at the fleeing soldiers and at the still trembling houses. His face was blanched, but the light of hope shone in his eyes. “It is the merey of God, senors, and if you are but willing to follow me, and to fight, if need be, I can lead you out of this place.” “We'll follow you anywhere, just so you take us out of this accursed town,’ said Isett, who was also inclined to look on the earthquake as something divinely ordered to save their lives. The guard had fled without relocking the door of their cell, and the way to lib- erty seemed open, They rushed out now, and passed with- out hindrance from the jail. The soldiers and the people were hud- dling here and there in scared groups, afraid to remain in the houses, and equally afraid to stand in the narrow streets. A more propitious time could not have been had, and the guard quickly conducted them to the nearest wall. : At this Acisit two adobe houses had been thrown down. From behind one of them he drew a rude ladder, which he reared against the wall, and up which he scrambled with trembling haste. He was followed instantly by friends. It was now broad day, though the sun was obscured by a strange haze that kept one from seeing a dozen yards in any di- rection, They tumbled from the wall, and then were suddenly made aware of the fact that a body of the besieging soldiery, unterri- fied by the earthquake, and thinking them escaping inmates of the town. was run- ning in that direction with the intention of making them prisoners. “This way,” shouted the guide, setting off over the rough ground at a breakneck speed. Aztec Al had fallen behind. His foot slipped on a bowlder, and he was. precip- itated so heavily that he was unable im- mediately to rise. He had dropned into a hollow, and when he lifted his head with .the intention of scrambling out of the place, he saw the soldiers very near. our They ran on, however, without seeing him, Rut the delav, was most unfortunate. When he got up and looked for his father and the others they were not to be seen, and when he followed, hoping to come up jeg them soon, he ‘found ne had lost. em. ° ' . id, - - > _ Font ae th be dg e . & J By Ay “ oF boo <s.com 6 , wat