Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 971 — page 4: what you’re looking at

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

—e= ~ | oer, Cave ~- > — Wing? Pee, ~ = Se y _ Deadwood Dick, J r.’s, Oath. The bor’s name was Dougherty Baker, | the direction of the trail that went down No wonder, then, that the rage of the called “ Doughy ”’ for short. to the stage road, which lay a couple of | people was great against the cowardiy : “No, I ain’t dreamin’,” the boy de-| miles distant down the gulch. miscreant who had taken his life. che clared; and, indeed, the scared expression Paradise was not on a main trail. The men talked among themselves in = of his face supported his story. “He “That is what we wanted,” the mayor | bitter undertones as they hastened along has had a knife jammed clean through | cried. “It will oe easy to follow, and | the trail, close upon the mayor’s heels, him, and he is stone dead.” we will have the cuss before he can give | and regret was expressed that they had A howl for vengeance went up imme-| us the slip. But let’s see if the report | not thought to bring a rope with them. diately from the score or so who had col- | is true before we go any further.” The mayor was for the most part si-. Hs lected before the mayor’s cabin, for Da- He pushed open the door of the cabin | lent, save now and then when he spoke’ SB vid Hamilton had been one of the most | and entered, the others crowding close | approval of some threat made against © ra popular men of the camp; and a rush behind him and peering over one anoth- | the murderer, if caught, and kept his =e was made straightway in the direction | er’s shoulders to get a better view, and | eyes fixed steadfastly upon the tracks a of his cabin. But the mayor called on | the sight that met their gaze was one} they were following as they descended them to stop. to strike awe to a stout heart. There, | the winding trail that led to the stage- ry “Hold on, you galoots!” he shouted. | on his bunk, lay David Hamilton, dead, | road. fry." “Don’t go trampling all over the ground | Stricken down in the prime of life. “Ther cuss has sartain not tried to | like a lot of cattle. It has been rain- For a moment no one spoke. hide his tracks,” one man observed, as ing, and if there are any tracks we ought “The man who has done this thing | they hurried along. to be able to follow them. Act with shall perish, I swear it!” the mayor “IT opine that he thinks to get clean some sense, and know what you are do- suddenly cried out. “Come! We must | away before the discovery is made,” was ing. If murder has been done, as this be after him before he can make good | the mayor’s response, “‘ But we will have Jad tells us, we will want to get hold of | his escape. him, Gil Rogers, as sure as my name is a clew if possible to find one.” The crowd shouted approval. Turning | Pete Eastwood! ” “Ther mayor is right, boys,” cried one and leaving the cabin, the mayor closing “Onless ther stage was sure on time, bearded miner, stopping short and hold- the door, and stationing a couple of men | and he intended goin’ by et,” spske yet ing up his hands for the others to do there to guard the cabin, with orders to | another. But, even so, we’re bound to the same. “ We mustn’t sp’il ther chances admit no one, he led the others in the | have him, Have ye yet s’picioned who of findin’ ther right man by any fool direction of the trail, following the | et can ’a’ been, mayor?” > - ~ be, 3 ee ee oe ee -6 > vue ; oe ee “apes ‘ > aad & ree be > x's o</ > + <i ~_ iS. + J abe a - AT S aa . ~. Pe te mate, . > (a8 .. er - . _~ = ie , ‘ nd let Mayor tracks. The men behind him were grim- “Yes, I have,” the mayor grimly an- eh nb Ben hing pecans as? Come, Pete, | Visaged and determined. ayeres. “I may be wrong, of course, et : boot and git yer hat, and let’s ut— | rs Steen thar pat ty teat han If Dave Ham- brats ppt oye addy ELE ONCE ne bbe ye s’pect?” was the excited body has : , nterruption. one Tae ad tt rene: somebody Paradise, in Horsetail Gulch, was a “T prefer not to sfy; I may be én- af: That's what they has!” raged the rude, rough settlement. tirely wrong. But these tracks don’t It was at this time four or five years | prove that I am. No matter, we’ll find . crowd, whic h was growing a dm hae old, but it had never grown beyond a ott all in good time, for we’re bound to > eal moment. “Thar will be a hangin hyer | cortain limited population. have him.” aa in Paradise before the sun is an hour) “ here were two reasons for this: first 2 aah high, if we kin git holt of ther cuss what 1s; Urst, So they pressed on, talking one to an- x dame ott? it wee in i hom aa poctand er: other in sullen half-whispers, and at last. Soe) ‘ and second, room in the | they came out upon the st 4 estas The mayor ee a “ee es and | narrow gulch for much of-a town. There they found wher the ent! tok fe pe. rushing aie " me vigeoinentlerty Reine aa , on A population of about two hundred] been standing for some time. till at. ae ree ote ' ef way in me airection | souls, all told, it was a peculiar place length, tired of waiting, as it indicated, — Tag of Hamilton's ca “a fa Nth in that not a woman was to be found | he had walked leisurely in the direction Bes Meantime the boy had given all the/ in the gulch. It was a ‘standing joke | from which the stage would come. Mess >" particulars to a group who had gathered | that this was the reason the camp was The stage had not yet gone. | ‘i around him. . _, | called Paradise. Be that as it might,| ‘We have got him, now,” said the Hamilton had made an arrangement | ipo fact remained. sia yors: wetnly. "“ Come."en. apd eens with the lad, whereby Doughy went up| ‘he chief man of the camp was Peter | as still as you can.” | ee to ‘his cabin every morning at a certain | Hastwood. He was sole owner.of the| They filed on, three to six abreast Beet our to awaken him and fetch a pail| Good Luck Mine, mayor of the camp, | these thirty and odd denizens of Para. 5) Pe of water, and perform any other chores | and monarch-of-all-he-surveyed general- | dise, till presently, turning a bend in | that might be required. ly. His claim was broad, comprising | the road, they c : Rae i , , ame sudden] Mee He had gone up as usual on this 0c-| nearly the whole of the gulch bottom | man. 4 | ea? eit ean) A casion, but had found the door slightly | at that point, and most of the miners| “Duplex John!” exclaimed he called ae open, as stated, and Mr. Hamilton dead | were his tenants, living in cabins of | Gil Rogers | Se hare in his bunk, having been killed with a/ Pastwood’s building and ownership. “Ty ” we me _ knife. He had not stopped to note any- Those who had cabins of their own Peet waeeTs a ee fal aeperted / the: | thing more than the one terrible fact, | had been obliged to build up on the “But he never done et; that I’ll swear’ eiaalicny made all haste to apprise the | gulch slope beyond Hatswood’s line, for | to,” declared sgiy lhnagienehae | : ) ‘ he had ever steadfastly refused to part “He will have to prove that.” ~The crowd, led by. the mayor, was not | with a single inch of his possession, His | the mayor. ‘1 think the proof is all the. | | --—s« Jong in reaching the scene of the crime, | cabins, even at reasonable rental, were | other way.” re CEN adttrmatRacas ek 4. map incies he owned the only store in the gulch,| the stem of a fallen tree, and he had _ it was not until they came near to the | he had everything pretty much his own | merely looked up at first, but sebing cabin, however, that tracks were found, | way. More than half the men of the | their dark and scowling looks, had leaped Save those of Doughy Baker—to which | camp owed their allegiance to him in one | to his feet. : % Sa > a mo attention had been paid; but as they | way or another. - “Good morning, ma nd : 3 , yor and citiz ; a «came near another set of tracks. was| Hence there was, perhaps, a third rea- | of Paradise,” he greeted them. “ What ts if iV discovered. ‘son why the camp had reached a certain | the meaning of this? Is it an exodus?” a | “Ha!” cried the mayor, ‘‘look here!” | point and then come to a standstill And he smiled in his usual | | He pofnted to the ground, and, sure _ Not that Eastwood was tyrannical, for | smile that had become familiar to eae | enough, there were other tracks leading | he was not; on the contrary, he was pop- | of them during his brief sojourn among — | | pony eady the cabin door from down | ular and well liked. He was a close man, | them at Paradise. bi a ag _ the , , wanting every cept that was due him,| He was a handsome fellow, straight as © _“ A pair of fine boots!’’ exclaimed one | and always claiming it; and yet he was | an arrow and perfect as an ‘Apollo. ae | ‘ rs a gq ~-s * 7 oa - te’ . - ~- ~ = - - 2 ao J « " wl ». 2 A i * a Sn Oe 7m . - Sat wai -* few +. = ty ‘5 —" a. - ©. o> oe ‘> seers. a ae ‘ _ =! . sete BV ws. yey ‘ae >) eh POA E- ~ | i <é ae pati, = ai Fees 45 Y pe, 7 ov << n't so . a - a a ee “ . x - . c + —e : —_= _ _“ That remains to be ascertained,” said | man, had filled the office of superin-|ers. He was rough] clad : Ye the mayor. “ Do you find any tracks lead- | tendent of the Good Luck for a year, and | the time and place, but that he ges ry _ 4mg away from the cabin, boys?” had been, as we have said, one of the} rough miner his face and hands Dé. A _ _ A hasty search was made, the men | most popular men in the camp. He was| ample testimony. He looked the sport. - _ taking care not to obliterate anything | about five years younger than Eastwood,| Seeing immediately that something — _ ‘with their own tracks, and after a mo-| and, had the question been put to vote, | was amiss, the smile left his face anda — ‘ment a shout went up that they had | without fear or favor, he would probably | look of inquiry succeeded it. ey ea i man. gk Steg 4 liberal withal, where it stood him in hand | had a pair of keen, magnetic dark e RS. Lo ae And not very big feet, either,” an-| to be so. _ | , | dark, graceful mustache, and a srartiae Lb 8 ae ther added. “ Who was ther galoot? ” David Hamilton, the now murdered | of hair rested in a mass upon his should- — r gs ‘ =i, a, 7 ' =; » -) Fane > Lal ab ae 4 tle ete ™. o> . bees .. BS a oe a eR par ar Se ‘> ofr, pa oc: ae + >. >. » he - *, 4 = AD ame : vr - wee + hams : -¥ ‘= > Ser 1 = : ~ - *. ae oe ake. - ee 8S 4 . t- e*,% + piey re pees Des = —— - > vs . te mr het fa found other boot-marks. | : _|have outranked the mayor in point of| “You will soon find what the mean- _ By It was the same track, now leading in popularity. | | eh | ing of it is, young man,” aoe ars % : ; fs Fig : | ‘ Te ' 7 | . | . ; ’ * , | . " a cs AZT a4) ea \d <= aie = te ow - ~~ aa - - o - - _ ( \ ai® -- » 10 5 ? . “y ‘ ; - e -? #, he : 7 > heh hy J - ‘ - - - ' ~ , if ole 7 et ‘ Lk ot cs s7 | i ie * * pi . ? 4 2 rit ‘ » C . _* Ph i iy : Las 7 4 . Ae’ ayes . — . aa * . J : Pa. i ‘ ° 2 are” fi . we _ 4 iB. e a" é . TR heh yk Pas & i er oe . 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