Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 768 — page 14: what you’re looking at

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

led them on the firs: occasion. He was eager to find the person who had winged him, e wanted to recapture Alta, who had given them the slip and when be found bimself in the old mine, he stopped, and gave his followers their orders, They kept on into the mine looking every- where for the fugitives, and every now and then listening in the corridors for footfalls. They were armed for an eme geney, and all had promised that they would not come up out of the bonanza without their prisoners, Crawling along ledges in the dark, thread- ing trails that seemed to bave no ending, feel- ing their way up one corridor and down an- other, the toughs of Ragged Robin, on bunt of Eagle Ned and Alta, pursued their danger- ous way. They knew what depended on their bravery and caution, They felt that their stay in camp depended on their success in the mine, and all believed that if they failed to find those for whom they hunted, thejreignjof the Spiders would close in darkuess and ruin, ‘** Hark, I heard some one then,” whisperedjthe leader of the band, stopping while those behind came up. * All heard voices, all beard sounds which seemed to tell them that they were near the end of the bunt, In the darkness of the corridor they stood with their hands on their weapons and in this position listened for a repetition of the sounds, ‘“* They are coming this way. Divide and bug the walls,” said Dick, The men did so. They stood against the stone walls of the the passage and seemed to hold their breath, Down the subterranean way came footfalls which they could not mistake. Nearer and nearer, Some one was walking into the Spiders’ trap. All at once balf a dozen bands shot forward and a cry was heard, ‘* We've got ’em!” shouted Captain Dick. ** We've found the tenants of the mine,” ‘Strike a light,” said another voice, In a moment the flame of a lucifer was rising in the corridor, and when the men saw by it their eyes sent forth sparks of delight, for both Eagle Ned and Alta stood in the grip of their enemies! ** It was a 'trap you waru’t looking for, eh?” sneered Dick. ‘**Tt’s all one,” answered the boy spy. ‘‘ We were On our way up to the light, and to the tri- bunai of the camp.” ‘To the tribunal?” *““Yes. | am ready, ay, eager to meet the court of the Black Mesa, I want to stand face to face with Captain Jack at its bar,” The men looked in astonishment at one anoth- er, but the very coolness of the boy gave empha- : sis to his words, | ‘*Come, Captain Dick, Alta and I want to go up out of tais underground pit,” The wounded tough glared at Eagle Ned, and then looked at his own bandaged arm. ‘Your work, isn’t it?” be said, ** Yes, my work,” smiled the young spy. “I could have sent the bullet through your head just as easily, but I thought I would give you a chance to repent.” The others laughed at their leader’s expense, but the face of Captain Dick grew dark and he shut his teeth hard in reply. ; - CHAPTER XVII, IN THE LAST WEB, CLOSELY guarded by those into whose hands they had fallen, Eagle Ned and Alta went up out of the mine, and the sunlight fell upon them still in the hands of the Camp Spiders, ‘* Heavens, they have caught the boy and Alta!” cried Selina who saw the procession as it | came out of the bonanza and made its way to- a ward the Plaza, on one side of which stood the saloon run by Black Burt. ‘“* They must have captured the pair without a struggle, I wouder if Captain Dick did not exhibit some prowess in the mine. Now, what will The Count do?’ Captain Jack had gone back to the palace, and at that very moment was the sole occupant of one of the rooms, not knowing that Ned and Alta had been captured. The nabob was leaning over some documents which he had spread before him, and he was if looking carefully at each one as he separated it K from the others, ‘Me The figure of his sister went up the stairs and ie) did not disturb him, ee All at once the door opened, and the face of Captain Dick appeared. : : N ° ‘ he > ! iG ~ "> *9 « 7 - *%) bad . tee Fig Oe! HALE Piet ‘ eN ed Ms . Se 40k. VG ba a0 - . “Te hk 14 Eagle Ned, the Boy on Guard. ‘* We have hoth of them,” said the tough, ‘*Who? Eagle Ned and the girl?” Dick bowed, and at a look from the man with papers he came forward and stood at the table, Captain Jack pulled at his mustache a mo- ment and then pushed the papers from him, ‘** Dick, do you recollect the man who came to Ragged Robin last May? The man who said to you that be heard we had a seraph in camp? And you came and told me that the man was there?” ‘** I recollect him very distinctly, captain,” was the answer, ‘* What about him?” ‘acne nabob of the camp seemed to look beyond ick, “That man had a history,” he said, * How much time have you, Dick?” ** All you want me to have,” Captain Dick, touching the table, folded his arms and waited for the chief of the Camp Spiders to proceed, ‘* Look here, Dick, That man was looking for a lost child, a girl who he said was taken from him years ago. He talked a good deal like one demented, and sometimes he would break down and weep, It was distressing to hear his story. These papers before me were found on the man’s body after he died,” ‘** Did be die?” asked Dick, starting some. ‘*He died. These papers, I say, were found omhis body, They tell the story of his life, and it is a singular one, He had a wife and two children, but when he lost the daughter be regis- tered a vow that he would not return home un- til he had found her. It proved a fruitless chase; he died in Ragged Robin,” ‘*T never heard of that,” said Dick, ‘t Perhaps not,” There was a sinister smile at the corners of the man’s mouth, and he was looking at Captain Jack as he bad never watched him before, ** Kagle Ned, who disappeared and came back disguised as Doodles, the half-breed Comanche boy, knows something about the death of that man,” the nabob went on. ‘* The boy spy came hither on hunt of a sister who was lost years avo; he, like the man before him, registered a vow that he would not give up the hunt until success crowned bis efforts; but you have cap- tured him in the beart of the mine, and he is now in the grip of the court.” ‘* Tt can hold him till doomsday, captain.” ‘““T know that. It can hold him despite the mutineers beaded by Carejo Phil. I want the boy brought before me,” ‘* To this house?” ‘* Yes. I want Eagle Ned under the roof where he played spy with so much cunning. Do you think vou could get him away without ex- citing much suspicion?” ‘ ‘* 1 shall be done,” ‘* Do it at once, if possible, but don’t let any one follow with the intention of rescuing him,” Captain Dick departed and the nabob was once more alone, ‘* | want to see the boy alone,” he said to him- self. ‘Ll want to look himintheeye and hear what he knows, Though young, he is danger- ous. Selina knows this and she is nearly always right. Meantime Alta had been permitted to return to her little home under pledge that when want- ted she would come forth and face the tribunal of Ragged Robin, but Eagle Ned had been kept in custody and: was one of the occupants of Black Burt’s place with more than forty men looking bim in the face, There was no sign of fear on the calm face of the boy prisoner, He stood near the counter where the glasses kept up an ominous clinking and where the toughs of the camp, all bis mortal enemies, im- bibed the villainous liquor which Black Burt sold. He saw the form of Captain Dick come back, He had missed the man, but did not know what had become of him, though be felt that he bad carried a report of some kind to bis master, Dick, eager to carry out the orders he bad re- ceived, sidled along the counter and at the first opportunity touched Eagle Ned on thearm and then drew him toward him, The boy resented the touch with an indignant flash and Dick grinned. ‘* What is it?” demanded Ned, ‘*T want you. Ask no questions and it will be safer,” There was a slight movement on the part of the mountain wolves as Eagle Ned was drawn across the threshold of the den asif they feared that Dick bad turned rescuer, but the hand of the desperado checked them, “The boy will be brought back presently,” he said. ‘‘ The Count wants to see bim.” Dick was followed from the den and escorted almost to the door of the palace. W hen Ned and his guard had vanished beyond the door the mob drew off and cast sullen looks toward the shanty where the mutineers were sup- posed to be concealed, ‘* Let’s raid them now an throttle the whole lot?’ said one of the crowd, ** Let’s crush the rebellion before it can strike, and, with the hull lot in the web, there will bea wholesale wearing of the mark of the Camp Spiders,” These suggestions carried weight with them. The mep bad been to Black Burt’s counter just often enough to fire them witha desire to crush out ‘‘ tle rebellion,” and before long they were moving sullenly toward the suspected shanty, Not far off, the occupants of Phocion’s cabin, stood the red-beard and Stirrup Steve, They saw the movement and guessed what it meant. Presently they saw the figure of Alta run across the Square and in a moment the girl was at the door, ‘**They have taken Eagle Ned to the palace!” cried the girl as Stirrup Steve opened the portal, ‘* They willsettle accounts with him there. But look yonder! The mob is moving down upon Carejo Phil and his rebels,” ‘lt is the beginning of the end,” said Stirrup Steve, But all at once, as if moved by some unac- countable impulse, the bronzed men moving toward the cabin turned back and went the other way, When they had nearly crossed the Plaza, the door of Careju Phil’s shanty opened aud the fig- ure of that worthy came out. He was followed by twenty men, the entire number of the mu- tineer’s. For a moment the two factions glared at one another like rival packs of wolves, but there was no hor work, Captain Dick’s Spiders went on toward Black Burt’s, and an hour of quiet passed, ‘‘ What has happened in that house?” said Alta, ill at ease ay she printed toward the na- bob’s palace, while she looked up into the faces of Steve and Phocion, ‘* lt is too quiet there not to mean something,” said Phocion. ‘*1t means that another trap has closed on Eagle Ned,” No one came out of the palace, no one entered it, and the sun beating uponit, sunk lower and lower, and still the mystery was not solved, ‘‘ I am going to see,” suddenly cried Alta, “I can’t stand this any longer.” ‘* No, let me go,” put in Stirrup Steve, where- upon the sturdy Phocion caught bis arm, ‘*T am the one to go. I am only Phocion, with nothing particular to live for, I will go.” The tall form of the red-beard was seen to cross the Square and approach the palace, His step did not falter, There was a slight demonstration as he ad- vanced, by the men who watched him from the poreh of Black Burt’s place, but they did not in- terrupt bis march, The old miner did not knock at the front door, but caugbt the knob, gave it a wrench and en- tered. He was in the house of the nabob, the headqnarters of the Camp Spiders. He heard no noise, but this did not deter bim, He saw abead the door, which stood half-ajar, and went forward, : In another moment he bad entered a room, in the middle of which, the tenant of a chair, with his head thrown back and a rope round his neck, appeared Kagle Ned, the boy spy and ferret, Phociou sprung forward with a cry, but as he touched the boy he was startled by a voice, and the next moment he stood face to face with Cap- tain Jack, ‘Drop that rope!” commanded the nabob. ‘The young spy is paying the penalty for spy- ing. He is in the web of the Camp Spiders, and so are you!” Phocion seemed to increase in stature, He threw up his hands as he sprung toward the man in the doorway; there was a flash and re- port, and the figure of the red-beard reeled against the wall and fell to the floor. , CHAPTER XVIII. / THE END OF THE GAME, THE rule of Jack Jargo was such that he was held in awe even by those who belonged to the Camp Spiders. | They dared not question him in anything and when they beard the shot in the palace they did not go to see what had followed it. They belisved that ere long Captain Jack himself would come out and tell them all, but when $a teal