Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 1003 — page 26: what you’re looking at

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

- ~ — vine lla. , ~~ =e em 28 -_ = ——_—-~ sn ew ee ee ne ee ee ee -~ om g'rl exclaimed, her cheeks burning with excitement. ‘I am as good a shot as any man in Corinne, and if they do kill you, you shall not die unavenged!” Gold Dan thanked the impulsive girl with a smile, and passing through the door, joined the little crowd of townsmen gathered without; the Red-Dog giant followed close behind, while Castana brought up the rear. “What are you a-doin’, anyway?” the old man cried. “I aever did nothin’ to you!” ‘(Search him!” was John Clark’s unexpected order. But a most vigorous resistance the old man made to this, displaying a strength that few would have supposed dwelt within his feeble frame. Cries. of ‘* Shame!” went up on the air. And Gold Dan, taking that leadership which seemed so natural to him, stepped boldly forward and protested against the treat- Joent that the old man was receiving. “This is a high-handed proceeding!” he cried. ‘ How long since is it that you Mormon chaps have taken upon yourselves the right to seize a man in the streets of Corinne at your own eweet will?’ ‘Tt makes my blood bile when I see sich a deal!” the irre- pressible man-from-Red-Dog howled, at the top of his lungs. “Tf you want fun, let some two or three of you much-married galoots come and s’arch me/ I’m your antelope, for stamps, you bet!” “Gold Dan, you are the last man in this town who should raise your voice against this proceeding,” the Danite chief responded, in his loud, deep voice, which resounded plainly throughout the town, although he made no effort to make him- self heard. This announcement took all by surprise, for not a man within sound of the Danite’s voice could possibly imagine what con- nection there could be between the plainsman and the old cripple. “‘Well, I don’t understand how that can be!” the plainsman suid in some surprise. ‘‘A few words will explain,” the Danite replied, ‘Only a short time ago, on this very spot, I accused you of the murder of Bellman Googer, and if I had had my way at the time, your shade would be roaming in the other world long before this,” ‘‘T haven’t the least doubt of it,” Gold Dan observed, dryly. “Andif I had suvceeded in my design and had killed you in revenge for Googer’s death, it would have been a foul murder, for you are innocent of ail knowledge of the deed.” This announcement astounded the listeners, and each man iooked at his neighbor as if wondering what was to come next. ‘*You are an innocent man,” Clark continued, ‘‘as innocent of Googer’s murder as a child unborn. This miserable wretch here is the guilty man!” and the Danite pointed with out- stretched finger at the old man, who wasstill struggling in the clutches of the two Mormons, and endeavoring to prevent them from searching him. But the brace of stout fellows were too souch for him, and one of them, diving his hand into a secret pocket, fashioned in the lining of the old man’s coat, produced a pair of derringer pistols, which he held up to view. Clark instantly spurred his horse forward, and seized the pis- tols, The old man turned deadly pale, but still continued to struggle violently. ‘‘ Here is the proof!” the Danite chief cried. ‘‘ Googer was killed by the ball which would fit only such pistols as these. This man took advantage of the quarrel in which Googer was engaged to fire at bim from behind the cover of some shanty, rightly thinking that in the confusion and under the cireum- stances all would believe that you, Gold Dan, fired the shot.” ‘‘’Tain’t so! it’s a lie! ’tain’t no sich thing!” the old man cried. ‘Why should I kill bim?” “Why!” cried Clark, in a voice of thunder, ‘“‘because you were the man who was secretly working the hidden lodes near Bear river, and Googer, acting under orders from Salt Lake, had repeatedly driven you off. You thought thatthe secret of the mine was known only to you and him, and that if you got him out of the way you would not be troubled any more. And you are the mean, miserable wretch who revealed to the Mormon elders at Salt Lake that the girl who took care of you—who was sacrificing ail her young life for your worthless sake—was one of the rescued victims cf the Mountain Meadows massacre.” “?Tain’t so! I don’t know nothin’ ’bout it!” the old man protested, big drops of sweat standing upon his brow and every fiber within his body trembling as he saw the coil of circum- stantial evidence closing so tightly around him, - ‘“‘7t is the truth|—you know it is the truth!” the Danite chief oried. ‘‘You were afraid that the girl would betray the secret of the mine, and so you attempted to sacrifice her,” “Nv, no; L only wanted to skear you away; I knew that you was arter the gal, and I thought that if I told on you the head devils at Salt Lake would fix you,” Cripples cried, making a wirtue of necessity, and stammering out this partial confession. ‘*Ob! Jobn Clark is the Mormon’s dog, but he’s dangerous even to the men that own him!” the Danite returned, bitterly. “ You made up your mind to kill all of us. You settled Googer, plugged Biddeman, and would have winged me, but for the girl. You sent her to heaven, aud now prepare yourself for a journey to the other place.” “Qh, mercy! ’tain’t the truth!. Would you murder me in cold blood?” the miserable old man shrieked, in abject terror. In reality, it did seem like a moekery of justice to call this trembling old wretch to an account. It was plain that he was partially demented, and then, too, more than one in the crowd coubted the truth of the charges, ‘‘Shame!” ‘‘Let the old man alone!” --. eee, es 3 z Dime Library. a re ee wee A a a EE EDS oe ee ee eee —_— ree le ‘“You shall die by a bullet from one of your own weapons!” the Danite cried; his keen eyes had, upon the first examination, 2-tseted that both of the pistols were loaded. ‘‘Hold on! give the man atrial! you’ve no right to kill bins in cold blood!” Gold Dan exclaimed. CHAPTER XXXIV. CLARK’S VENGEANCE. ‘‘No right, eh?’ the Danite chief snesred., ‘‘No, not without a trial,” the piainsman responded, boldly ; ‘¢ sive the man a chatice for his life!” ‘*Yes, that’s the talk—give the old cuss a show for his white alley!” the aver-vociferous Red-Dogite insisted. And then the bystanders took up the word. ‘* Yor, ves, a trial—give the old man a chance!” The Danilte chef smiled darkly, as he listened to the earnest words, and the fear-stricken old man, looking into his stern face, understood that he could expect no mercy from his hands. ‘What more trial do you want than the one he has already had?” Clark demanded, in scorn. ‘‘ Why, he almost owns up to the whole thing!” ‘‘No, no; I don’t!” demurred old Cripples, wild with terror. ‘‘T didn’t understand it that way!’ Gold Dan averred. ‘He admitted that he gave the information that you spoke about, but I didn’t understand him to admit that he did any killing.” ‘¢‘No more did he nuther!” howled the-man-from-Red-Dog, now greatly excited, ‘‘an’ the man wot says he did, is a left-handed p’ison-h’ister, an’ I kin whaie him for the drinks for the crowd!” The bold stand taken by the two men encouraged the rest of the townsmen to protest, and as by this time there were some forty to fifty people on the ground, attracted by the sceno, the Corinne men felt tolerably strong. But, though the townsmen — had the advantage in numbers, the Danites were by far the most formidable body of the two, as they were all united and prepared for action. ‘‘He has been tried—fully tried and found guilty!” Clark announced, sternly. ‘‘ Here are the pistols with which the mur- ders were committed. Googer was killed by a big ball; you ought to remember it well enough, Gold Dan, for that fact saved you when you were accused of the deed, Here is the ball, now,” and the Danite took the leaden instrument of death from his pocket, ‘‘Any one with half an eye can see that it fits the pistol.” And in truth there was really no doubt about this. ‘‘And we found the pistols concealed on this miserable old wretch; what better proof do you want?” “YT found them, this morning, comin’ to town!” Cripplas eried, clinging like a drowning man to every straw, in order to . .avert the doom which seemed so terribly near. “Oh, yes; we know all about that!” the Danite chief replied, : in bitter sarcasm, ‘But the old man may not be in his right mind,” urged Dan, and in truth this did seem to be the case, ‘We don’t split hairs here on the frontier!” Clark suggested, bluntly. ‘‘Mad or not, he did the deeds and must answer for them. Come, prepare!” And then, at a signal from Clark, the Mormons began to bind — the arms of the old man. In a second, Gold Dan’s revolvers were out, the hammers raised, and their polished muzzles leveled full at the Mormons who held the old man. ‘‘ Hold on, there! You shan’t kill him without trial!” and the plainsman was in dead earnest, now. ‘© A trial, or blood!” Dandy Jim yelled, also flourishing his | weapons. ‘‘ Yes, yes; a trial—a fair trial!” the by-standers shouted. ‘A fair trial, eh?’ and the Danite chief glared grimly around upon the crowd. “‘ That’s all we ask!” Dan replied. ‘The clean white thing, and no mistake!” the giant cried, “And nothing else will satisfy you?” No, nothing else. sv, why we'll attend to his punishment.” ie If the man is really guilty, and is proved ‘“‘ Yes, sir-ee; we'll hang him up like a string of sassingers!” tus ~ Red-Dog man added. “A fair trial,” the Danite repeated, slowly, and his fingers played restlessly with one of the pistols which he held in his rigot hand. “¢ That’s all we ask; he shall have justice!” *‘ Justice! That’s correct. Release him!” This command wag addressed to the two Mormons who still held the old man secure © in their grasp. ; Sullenly the two men dropped their hold of the prisoner, and stepped beck a pace. For a moment, the men of Corinne took a long breath; & was the first time, in the history of the town, that the Gentiles had ever dared to step between the terrible Destroying Angels —the fearful White Savages of the Great Salt Lake—and their prey. The moment the two rufflans released their hold of the old ae Cripples feil upon his knees; the struggle had weakened weg And then there came a sudden, sharp crack—a sound that the - town of Corinne knew only too well; a yell of agony came from ~ the lips of old Cripples, and then he foll forward upon his face, . writhing in the agonies of death. The dark Danite leader was not to be cheated of his vengeance; with the weapon of the secret slayer he had-driven a bali - straight to the heart of the old man. * Now try him as much as you like; I’m satisfied!” the Damite eried, with a scornful laugh. 7