Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 961 — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

al ae ve) 5e 2 “ei " guess. They had not been in it long enough to make any exploration. Falling into the stream from the ledge, they had been swept through the funnel. Isett could swim like a fish, and had not only been able to save himself, but had saved the life of Bazoo Smith. He had been hurled against the tramp, after the choking funnel had been passed. Bazoo was floating as senseless as a log. Isett had laid hold of him, and, touching the rocky bottom with his feet, had dragged him out of the stream, and had succeeded in restoring him to life. Isett had quickly comprehended that they were in some part of a cave, and, as- sured they could not hope to get out by the way they came in, he and the tramp had gone carefully down the stream until they stumbled on a heap of driftwood. The driftwood was dry. Luckily Isett chanced to have in his pocket a water- proof match-case, well filled, and he had lost no time in making a fire. They had been drying themselves by this fire, had been peering into the mysterious gloom encompassing them, and had been discussing the seriousness of the situation for some time, when the cries of Aztec Al attracted their attention, Now, releasing him from the logs, they assisted him to the fire, and there, in its cheering glow, they heard his story and reiated theirs, Whatever the future might hold for them, they were still alive, and they took hope. -_- CHAPTER X. THE TREASURE CAVE. With an excited cry the tramp leaped to his feet, plucked a brand from the fire, and, taking a step forward, flashed its light against the rocks nearest. He. had been staring in that direction for Several moments. " Pards, if this ain’t the elear yaller stuff, stickin’ in this rock jist like raisins in a cake, then I'll eat my old hat!” A more difficult feat than the one prom- ised cannot well be imagined, for it was a very dilapidated and greasy hat. His words brought Isett and Al to their Teet, and all three stared at the rock, which was undoubtedly rich in free gold. The shining specks glittered so enticingly that the beholders were fairly thrown into a fever of excitement, The tramp moved along the wall with the torch, but he found no other specks until he had gone a dozen yards. Here there seemed to be a rich seam, like the first. All three went back to the fire, and dis- cussed the situation and the outlook. “Tf there’s millions of gold in here, it won't make any difference to us if we can’t find a way out,’ said Isett, looking “anx- iously at the black water that tumbled by. ‘* Let’s make torches of this drift and go on down the river! Because the Mexicans have never heard that the stream has an outlet somewhere above ground is no sign that it hasn’t!” Al’s suggestion was immediately acted on. A number of sticks were selected that promised to flame well, and others were drawn out of the fire. In the drift was found a broad board, and this board, ecoy- ered with sand, served as a shovel on Which the fire could be carried. Thus prepared, the trio set off down the stream, The big cavern seemed without limit. They had not gone far, however, when they came on indications of human oecu- paney that set their hearts aflutter. There /were prints of naked feet in the sand, and ithe broken shaft of an arrow. ‘“ Indians!’ Isett announced, staring . : - The Tramp’s Trump-Trick. — —_——_ -- about as if he expected to see them rush on him out of the gloom. These signs of human occupancy in- creased, and, a short distance below, a rocky room was discovered, that held a small store of dried meat and some dried berries, The tramp’s rapture knew no bounds. “Il say, pards, this is jist all hunk! [I reckon we kin make this chuek do two or three days on a pinch, though I feel hun- gry enough to eat it all at once, myself!” Up to this time he had been fearful. The sight of the food was a stimulant that acted like magic. “T’ve bummed it in thirty States, and I never lost heart so long as the farmers’ wives cheerfully handed out the bread rete meat. But whenever supplies ran ow—’’ Al was searching farther down stream, and now came back to say the river and shore continued on. They decided not to eat any of the food, but to take it with them, as a store to be sparingly drawn on. They had now burned out all the dry wood except what lay flaming on the sanded board. “Shall we go further down stream or go back ?”’ “ A little further!’ Al urged, in reply to his father’s question. “We can’t get lost. All we'll have to do is to follow the stream back to the drift.”’ Isett ‘was too cautious, though, to run unnecessary risks, and hurried Al back to get more torch-wood, saying that he and the tramp would explore a short distance during Al’s absence, Al scampered away, not well pleased with the arrangement, and he was less pleased on his return to find, as he sup- posed, that the light had been allowed to zo out, He pushed on through the rocky room and opened hit lips to call aloud, when a hiss almost at his elbow startled and stopped him, It came from his father, who had pur- posely extinguished the light. “ There’s some one coming. hear?”’ Standing quite still, Aztee Al voices that were startlingly near. Then, out of a passage farther up the river, which they had passed without see- ing, a light streamed, and, shortly after- ward, two almost naked Indians came into view, holding above their heads torches of greasewood. They instantly sighted the tracks made by the shoes of the whites in a stretch of sand near the river’s edge, and grew much excited. “That’s bad!” whispered Isett. “But good may come out of evil. Maybe we can follow them and find a way out of here!’ The Indians, however, did not come farther than the little room, where, dis- covering that the ‘meat and berries were gone, they grew more excited than ever, blew out their torches, and disappeared As our friends felt that it was impossi ble to go on without a light, the fresh sup- ply of wood brought by Al was used, and they again hastened down stream. Not a dozen yards farther on they came to a storeroom of altogether a different character. Not only did the tramp grow fairly wild as he entered this, but the Isetts equally lost their heads, , It was a treasure chamber such as they had never dreamed of seeing. AW around the walls were little rocky niches. where were great bars of pure gold, and the cor- ners of the room were littered with hun- dreds of pounds of silver bricks. There was so much -gold that they paid no more Don’t you heard —_— attention to the silver than if it had been cubes of granite. In all his mining experiences Isett had never seen such a treasure chamber. “My, I wish I had that stuff in New York! There must be a solid ton of it!” The tramp drew in his breath with a whistle, and, picking up Several of the heavy bars of gold, thrust them into his pockets. ‘**Do not load yourself down,’’ Isett ad- vised. “Surely we can find the place again!’ “You don’t reckon them Indians will leave this stuff here for us to come back to it, do you? Not much!” and the tramp stuffed some more bars into his pockets. The argument was so sound and the ex- ainple so infectious that they could not forbear imitating his example. Thus laden with bars of gold, they - pressed on down the stream, their excite- ment whetted by the... cinarkable adven- tures, On they hurried beside the stream, until they came to a wall that outthrust itself into the water, and felt a strong blast of air. The blast came from an opening to the left, and, seeing they: must leave the water because of the interposing barrier, they turned to the opening. Al led the way with the torch, but he had not taken half a dozen steps when the blast struck him fairly, and with such force that the light was extinguished and the embers and wood scattered. The extinction of the light was a lucky chance, apparently, for it was scarcely out when they discovered that Indians were on their trail. An arrow struck the rock near the tramp’s head. Listening, now, they heard soft pattering of feet, and the gurgle of water where an Indian seemed to be wading. To relight the torch was out of the ques- tion, and, in spite of the danger, they hast- ened along the passage. How long they wandered thus they could never afterward tell. The sounds of pursuit were lost, and they seemed stumbling on through endless re- gions of night. In his fright Aztec Al had neglected to pick up the wood tossed down by the blast,‘and they could not make another torch even when it appeared they might do so with safety. ‘“ We're lost!’ Isett declared, fetching. up with a groan. ‘I’ve been watching, and I’m sure this passage has branched and’ turned a dozen times in the last half hour.” CHAPTER XT. MADE CAPTIVES. “ What is that?’ cried Aztec Al. “The river!” They had turned an angle. Now they Stood stock still and canght the roar of water just ahead of them. Though in. darkness and_ peril, their hearts leaped as if they had found free- dom, and they ran forward. Al, who was in the lead, floundered over - a lot of driftwood. ‘* We're back in the treasure chamber!” at His hand had fallen on a stick whose | shape he remembered. Back in the treasure chamber they were, though it was a bewildering fact. They were about to strike a match with the intention of igniting some of the drift, - when a pattering of feet. sounded all about them, and, with loud cries, they were as- - sailed by a number of Indians. Before they could comprehend what had — occurred or think of resistance, they were hurled down and made prisoners. A torch was speedily lighted and its | light flashed over them. There were more than a dozen Indians— : Ly = - ~ . >, my “a 4 .. ; 46 Mae at : - ‘ - re A at ; " Sate » ia Vik ‘ ; on - vaeee Ph ye