Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 148 — page 18: what you’re looking at

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

18 can not par Cine Arm slew him, for all he at- tempted to kill me.”’ ‘*One Arm speaks the truth,” replied Wild Cat, seriously impressed. ‘‘The Spirit of the Woods is abroad with death in his heart. But, for every victim that he finds among the Ojib- ways, a pale-face shall die, too.” murmur of applause met this declaration. ‘Let the young hunter, then, be tied to a | | Into the woods, tree and burned alive.’ All turned toward Koder, or rather to where he had been left standing, for Koder was gone —Koder was nowhere to be seen, and it was then that acry of rage rung out from savage lips. number of warriors darted away like hounds that have just lost a trail, their ies half-bent and their burning, ferret like eyes searching every foot of ground. While the attention of the Ojibways was thus engaged, a figure upon hands and knees crept from the shadow of the woods toward the point where Colonel Bliss and his fellow- men were bound. With a keen knife he cut their bonds, whispering something to each one as he did so. The prisoners still sat as motion- less as though their bonds had not been sever- ed; but the skulker arose to his feet and strode boldly into camp. And the skulker was our old friend, Jack Eller, the hero of Brandywine! CHAPTER XXVIII. HOT WORDS AND DEADLY BLOWS. THE presence of old Jack Eller at this mo- ment and under the existing circumstances, in the Indian camp, was attended with great dar- ing and fearlessness of consequences. The sav- ages, enraged by the death of Yellowface and the escape of Koder, no sooner caught. sight. of him than they turned upon him with all the fury of demons depicted upon their dusky faces, e was immediately surrounded by those of the band who had not gone in search of Koder; still he maintained the daring defiance which characterized his intrusion into the camp, ‘*Keep back here, ye red ’ell pups; keep ery or lll bu’st the hull kit of ye, tooth and nail! Waugh!” exclaimed Wild Cat; “the old oa Sued is the coward that killed Yellow- ace. ‘Yer a ’tarnal liar, so ye are, you nigger- head, ye! It was the Spirit of the Woods that chucked it to the greasy varlet, and now look sharp or [ll call in the Spirit and have him snatch you cold, in a jiffy.” The savages shrunk back appalled. The name of the dread avenger was at times like that sufficient to fill them with terror.. This however, was only momentary. Wild Cat drew his tomahawk, and advancing toward the old hero of Brandy wine, raised it over his head and said: ‘The old white-head has spoken with power in his words, He has said that he could call the Spirit of the Woods. The red-men have never seen him. Let the old white-hair call him here that we may see him.” The old borderman and One-Armed Alf ex- changed glances, “Su I refuse ye, Wild Cat, what then?” he finally replied. ‘‘The tomahawk of Wild Cat will drink the blood of the cld white-head. I have spoken.” ‘* Well, red-skin, if I must, reckon I must, but I swear I’m afraid the Spirit will kill some of you. It’s an orful thing, and likes Injin blood like sin,” ** Let the old white-head not spend words, or be shall die,” interrupted the impatient chief. ‘Beg pardon, Wild Pussy; and so now if you'll jist turn yer eyes toward that tree-top and look sharp fur about forty eg ie you'll see the Spirit descending out of a cloud with a dew- bax. 2 on his nose.” e savage turned their eyes toward the tree-top as directed, but their knowledge of the civilized calendar and measurement of time must have been imperfectly understood, unless they had construed Eller’s stated time for the Spirit to appear, into that of an instant. ‘““Come, oh Spirit of the Woods!” cried El- ler, raising his voice to a shrill, harsh pitch; ‘‘come, bloody snoozer, and gobble up these red Ojibs, tooth and nail, foot and—” He did not finish the sentence. The clear, sharp report of a rifle rung out, apparently in their very midst, and ild Cat staggering backw with an unearthly cry, fell dead at the feet of his comrades, A glance at his naked breast which lay plainly revealed by the glare of the camp-fires, showed a tiny bullet-hole in the region of the heart from which the blood was welling, It told the savages that he had been slain by the Spirit of the Woods who had entered the camp unseen iy mortal eye. With faces upon which was stamped mute terror, the ovens gazed first at Eller, then the Giant Scout. The former stood with empt hands where he had stood when Wild Cat te and the latter was still standing where he had been for the last ten minutes, still leaning upon his cane, regarding the scene before him with silent wonder and surprise. For full five minutes a dead silence reigned. Re ia, - = a eww Sl I te -One-Armed . Alf. Then from their bonds arose those of our cap- tive friends whom Eller had freed, and with a wild shout, a the terrified savages with such weapons as they could snatch up. Jack Eller and One-Armed Alf joined with them in the conflict, and too, the scout’s dog took an active and deadly part in the struggle. The savages were taken cosa eeny by sur- prise, and were at once routed and driven away Our friends, however, did not ursue them. In fact, it would have been use- less; besides time was too precious. Two of the whites had been slightly wounded, and as soon as these could be attended to as well as circumstances would admit, the whole rty broke camp, and under the guidance of ne-Armed Alf, took their way westward through the lonely halls of the grim old woods, CHAPTER XXVIII. JABEZ MUGGINS APPEARS. THE scene upon which Captain North and his two fair companions, Hellice and Margery, gazed as they stood at the foot of the cliff, in the uncertain glare of the midnight moon, was one of intense agony, and intended to awake the deepest feelings of sympathy in the hearts of the three fugitives. It was the torture of a man who had been stripped to the waist of all his clothing, and lashed, face downward, upon a log, where a little jet of water fell ina constant stream on the back and head, causing the most excruciat- ing agony, and those awful groans of distress. oO any one unacquainted with the nature of this punishment, the situation of this helpless man would not have seemed at all painful. But it was a mode of punishment—the con- stant drop or fall of water upon the head—that has no parallel in the catalogue of tortures, and one that found its origin in the dark ages of Christian persecution. ‘Oh, Paul!” cried the terrified Margery, clinging closely to her lover’s side, ‘‘ that is no decoy—there is nothing feigned about that man’s suffering cries. Haste, Paul, and save him, will you not?” ‘*] will most assuredly, my dear Margery,” he replied; and, leaving the maidens, he has- tened down to the suffering man’s side, and with his sword cut the thongs that bound him to the log. But the man seemed aly un- conscious of his release, for he lay perfectly still, moaning out his agony, Captain North saw that he was insensible to ee Fe tive tools, sent out to incite the savages to war and vengeance. But why did they bind ou in such a place? Ihave always taken you o be a warm friend of the English and In- dians,” ** Now, see yere, young Britisher, ar’n’t you tryin’ to pump this ole cock of the fodder walk?” ‘‘T assure you, Muggins, I am not. I have this night renounced the king of England and the British flag, and am on my way to Point Michigan with these girls, and then for Detroit. When I reach there I shall enlist in the Ameri- can army, and fight for the land that holds all that is near and dear to me,” This declaration, Hellice saw, set Margery’s heart in a wild, joyous flutter, while her eyes sought the ground, a timid flush suffusing her pretty face to the very temples. ‘Wal then, J] s’pose you’re makin’ luv to one of these ’’ere ghirls, and that’s what’s bringin’ ye over,” replied Muggins, in his blunt, thought- less manner, “* You be a good-lookin’ chap, or, if 1 wara gal I’d say, scat, ye dog. Then it’s a mighty Sy ijee to rope, the red-coats and the red skins over to our side, but the best per- swashun I kin use is cold lead. Tospeak the truth, I’m down, tooth and nail on the darned Britishers, anu i hate ther red-skins wus than sin and p’izen.” : ‘This news is surprising to us, Mr. Mugeins, said Margery, ‘‘for we always supposed you were a warm friend of the English and Indians. In fact the settlers and the army have mis- trusted you of late of being a spy in the service of the allies.” ‘Wal, my. little chick, thar’s whar ’em Mack- inwers war mistooken, for I’m the spy of one of the deadliest enemies the red-skins have got on all creation, and the warmest friend the white folks ever had on the peninsular of Michigan. That’s what 1, Jabey Muggins, are, and to save the life of two friends, ole Jack Eller, of P’int Michigan, and Cap. St. John of Mack—” “Captain St. John!” cried Hellice, her young heart fluttering wildly; ‘‘ where is he? here is Captain St. John?’ “Thar, thar, chicky, don't take on,” replied Muggins; ‘‘[ see who loves the captain now, Wal, he is the finest, smackupest feller l ever run across, Hellice, and I hope he’s anchored safe with friends at this time.. I got him outen Injun clutches t’other nigbt, an’ got kotched doin’ it by ’em two red-mouthed, gib- berin’ Englishers, who seein’ as what I wer’n’t much in p’int of physical strength, seized on- all but his intense suffering, and so he lifted | to me, and havin’ scooted me hereaways, tied him from the log, and carried him out and laid me to that log under that stream of water, him on a little grass-plot where Hellice and 'whar I Margery stood, The instant he was taken from under the waterfall he began to revive, though the cap- I git a chance at their nig tain was compelled to chafe his limbs and tem- ples some time to renew the circulation of his chilled blood, and restore entire consciousness, Finally he recovered sufficiently as to be enabled to sit up and talk, though his words were rather thick and incoherent. ‘““Why, Hellice!” suddenly exclaimed Mar- ery Bliss, as the victim of the cascade turned fis face so that the moonlight fell upon it, ‘don’t you know who it is? It is the whisky- trader, Jabez Muggins.” Hellice scanned the face of the man closely, and saw that Margery was right—it was the whisk y-trader. “Where am I? How came I here? and who the creation are you, anyhow?” were the first questions Muggins asked, as he gazed around him in a bewilderment. ‘If you'll tell me how you came to be bound under that waterfall, I may be enabled to an- swer some of your questions,” replied Captain North. 2 “‘Seein’ as what you wear British duds, I reckon you know some of these things, don’t you, say, youngster?” **I do not, sir,” replied the captain, in a tone of assurance, ‘We can bear witness, Mr. Muggins, that Captain North, our friend and protector, knew nothing of your situation and suffering until drawn here by your cries,” said Hellice. ‘Upon my word and bonor, which ar’n’t much, after all!” exclaimed Muggins, who now, for the first time, noticed the maidens, “if yere ar’n’t two female ghirls! Whar, in the tarna- preg I see’d yer poorty little faces afore, ghirls ‘‘ At Mackinaw, I presume,” said Hellice. “That’s the identikul place, by the smoke of ‘Cattypetel,’ it are. i-ye! { know you now, chicks. You're ole Kurnel Bliss’s_ ghirl, Margery, and you're Hellice—Hellice— ellice —somethin’, no dif’rence what; but if you ‘uns say thatchap in the Britisher duds don’t know ym igs bout this piece of business, with me Jabez Muggins, Russian nabob, I'll swaller all offensive words I’ve sed, and ji-t say that, two low - lifted mud - snooters, w’aring Britisher clothes, are jist the very varmints that set me up in that ’are chin-music situation.” ‘‘Did you hear their names?” asked North, ‘Yas: but I don’t remember ’em now—think one war sumthin’ like Tom—Tom Tickler.” ‘‘Tom Thickler,” corrected North; ‘‘ I know him well, He is one of the king’s most effec- | <n a sees CL Ct tC CC LLL LL spent some orful ticklish moments. ut oh, cuss ther pictur’s of ’em, but Pl make ‘em think they’re in the sulphur diggin’s when ry carcasses, so I will—whoop tee doodle, whoop tee do,” and the trader, as if to give expression to his recu- perated and exultant spirit sprung to his feet, and waltzed away and back on airy foot. “You think then that the captain is safe, do you?” asked Hellice. ‘*'Ya-as,” drawled Muggins; ‘if he ar’n’t safe it’s not my fault, for, as I said afore, I came dogged nigh kilterin’ out to save him. Ole Jack Eller war with him, and I guess they’re together?” ‘Then your professional whisky-trading was only a ruse to enable you to play spy for the whites, was it?’ asked Margery. “Tt was, little honey-bud, and a ate in’ good thing I’ve made of both spyin’ and wh ky. tradin’.” ‘‘But whose employ were you in?” ques- tioned Hellice. , ‘“‘ There—now, my little starry-eyes, you've asked a leadin’ question; howsumever jist say it war the best friend you’ve got in the world that I worked for.” “That’s saying a great deal, but, as you evade a direct auswer, I will not insist on knowing more,” replied Hellice. ‘‘Allow me to say, friends,” said Captain North, ‘“‘that if you are all three ready, we had better continue our journey. We must put as great a distance as possible between us and the waigie k during the night, for during the day we will, in all probability, have to re- main in concealment.” “TI am ready to go on,” said Margery, and her words were repeated by Hellice. “Then, Muggins,” said the captain, turnin to the whisky-trader, “if you are acduainted with these parts, you will please take the lead, will you not, toward Point Michigan?” ‘To be sure I will, my laddie, for I know these diggin’s as well as a frog knows how to sing, and I’m ready to sail. I want to see them two little dew-drops safe and sound at the P’int, and I'll bu’st every narve to git them thar. So come on, little buds; foller me; and captain, you bring rn rear in good military style, and then we'll be off with, ‘“* 4 whoop tee doodle, whoop tee doo,’”’ The trader glanced at the sky to note the position of the stars, then shaped bis course and set off through the woods, followed by North and the two maidens. The journey was a tedious one, but nothing further occurrei during the remainder of the night to cause them delay. EGomGcoaoo <SiiGO