Beadle's Dime Library, No. 149 — page 3: what you’re looking at

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

' ‘ ~—_ The Border Rifies. 3 And a second bullet at this moment smashed the rifle one of the servants was reloading. “Come, cnough of pe ioe TS, shouted, greatly exasperated; “w 0 you want?” “T told you—treat amicably with you.”’ ‘* But on what gonditions? Tell me them at least." “In a moment.” The rifle of the second servant was broken like that of the first. Of the five men, three were now disarmed. **Curses,”’ the slave-dealer howled; “‘ have you re- solved to make a target of us in turn?”’ ** No, I only wish to equalize chances.” But—”" “It is done now.” “The fourth rifle was broken. “ And now,” the Canadian said, as he showed him- self, ‘‘ suppose we have a talk.”’ And, leaving his shelter, he walked to the river “ Yes, talk, demon,"’ the American shouted. With a movement swift as thought, he seized the last rifle, and shouldered it; but, ere he could pull the orige fer, he rolled on the platform, uttering a of pain. e hunter’s bullet had broken his arm. ‘* Wait for me, lam coming,” the Canadian con- tinued with perfect calmness. He reloaded his rifle, leaped into the canoe, and with a few strokes of his paddle, found himself on the other side of the river. ‘‘There,”’ he said as he landed and walked 7 to the American, who was writhing like a serpent on the platform, howling and blaspheming; ‘I warned ; Lonly wished to equation the chances, and you fave no right to complain of what has happened to you, my dear sir; the fault rests entirely with your- “Seize him! kill him!’’ the wretch shouted, a prey to indescribable fury. ‘““Come, come, calm yourself. Good gracious, you have only a broken arm, after all; remember, Icould have easily killed you, had I pleased. Hang it, you are not reasonable.” **Oh! I will kill him,” he yelled, as he gnashed his th. “*T hardly think so, at least not for the present; I willsay nothing about by and by. But let that be; I will examine your wound, and dress it while we “Do not touch me! do not come near me, or I know not to what extremities I may proceed.”’ The Canadian shrugged his shoulders, * You must be mad,”’ he said. Incapable of endu longer the state of exaspeya- tion in which he was, the dealer, who was also weak- ened by the loss of blood, made a vain effort to rise and rush on his foe; but he fell back and fainted while muttering a final curse. The servants stood startled, as much by the un- paralleled skill of this strange man, as by the bold- ness with which, after disarming them all in turn, he had crossed the river, in order, as it were, to de- liver himself into their hands; for, if they had no _ longer their rifles, their knives and pistols were left them. “Come, gentlemen,’ the Canadian said with a frown, ‘‘ have the goodness to shake out the priming of your pistols, or, by Heaven! we shall have a row.”’ The servants did not atall desire to begin a fight with him; moreover, the sympathy they felt for their master was not great, while, on the other hand, the Canadian, owing to the expeditious way in which he had acted, inspired them witha super- stitionus fear; hence they obeyed his orders witha cies of ern and even wished to hand him it =. “{t is not necessary,’’ he said; ‘‘now, let us see about dressing this worthy gentleman's wound; it would be a pity to deprive society of so estimable a person, who is one of its ere ornaments.”’ He set to work at once, aided by the servants, who executed his orders with extraordinary rapidity and zeal, for they felt so thoroughly mastered by hy Compelled by the mode of life they pass to do without any strange assistance, the wood-rangers all possess, to a certain extent, elementary notions of medicine, and especially ef surgery, and can, in case of n treat a fracture or wound of any na- ture as well as a professional man; and that, too, by simple means usually employed with the greatest success by the Indians. The hunter proved by the skill and dexterity with which he dressed the slave-dealer’s wound, that, if he knew how to inflict wounds, he was equally clever in curing them. The servants regarded with hightened admiration this extraordinary man, who seemed suddenly me- tamorphosed, and proceeded with certainty of glance and lightness of hand which many a surgeon might have envied him. During the bandaging, the wounded man returned to consciousness, and opened his eyes, but remained silent; his fury had been calmed, and his brutal nature subd by the Suergatio resistance the Canadian opposed to him. The first and piercing pain of the wound had been succeeded, as always happens when the bandaging is papas done, by an extraordinary feeling of re- lief; hence, recognizing, in spite of himself, the comfort he had experienced, he had felt his hatred melting away in a feeling for which he could not yet account, but which now made him regard his enemy almost with a inthe k air, To render John Davis the justice due him, we will say that he was neither better nor worse than any of his fellows who trafficked in human flesh. Ac- customed to the suffering of slaves, who to him were nothing but beings deprived of reason, or mer- chandise in a word, his heart had grad grown callous to softer emotions; he only saw in a Begro the money he had expended, and what he expected to gain by him, and hke a true tradesman, he was very fond of money; @ runaway negro seemed to him a wretched oe against —— any means were rmissible in order to prevent a loss. Pst, this man was not insensible to every good fecling; apart from his trade, he even enjoyed a certain reputation for kindness, and passed for a gentleman. “There, that is all right,” the Canadian as satiohed son at the - <ip be nothing to be seen, if you take care of yourself; for, through a remarkable piece of good luck, the bone has not been touched, and the ball has only passed through the fleshy of the arm, Now, my good friend, if you like talk, I am # aaah *T have nothing to say, except to ask you to re- turn the scoundrel who is the Trailiat of the whole “Hum! if we go on in that way, I am afraid we shall not come to an understanding. You know perfectly that the whole quarrel arose about the surrender of the scoundrel, as you term him.” “Still, I cannot lose my money.”’ “ What money do you mean?’ * Well, my slave, if you prefer it; he represents a things have been gates ary ipiéecty with toe lately, n ve been very queerly me . and I have suffered some heavy losses.” “That is samoring, S00 I pity you sincerely; still, I should like to settle the affair amicably as I be ” the Canadian continued, e American made a grimace. “It is a deuced amicable way you have of settling said. “It is your fault, my friend; if we did not come to an immediate arrangement, it was because you were a little too quick, as you will allow.” “ Well, we will not say any more about that, for what’s done cannot be undone.” ‘* You are right, so let us return to business. Un- luckily, Iam poor were I not so, I would give youa few hundred dollars, and all would be settled.” The dealer scratched his head. . “I do not know why, but, in spite of all that has passed between us, perhaps in consequence of it, I should not like for us to sepa- rate on terms; the more so because, to tell you the truth, I eare v little for Quoniam. ' “ Who's Quoniam?” “The nigger.” “Oh, very good, that’s a funny name you have given him; however, no matter, you say you care Vv little for him?” ‘** Indeed I do.” “Then why did you begin the obstinate hunt with dogs and guns?” “Through pride.” “Oh!” the Canadian said, with a start of dissat- isfaction. “ Listen to me, I am a slave dealer.’’ % - very ugly trade, by the way,’’ the hunter ob- served, ‘* Perhaps so, but I shall not discuss that point. * About a month ago, a large was announced at Baton Rouge, of slaves of both sexes, ge a to arich gentleman who had died suddenly, and proceeded there. Among the slaves exposed for sale was Quoniam. The rascal is young, active, and vig- orous; he has a bold and intelligent look: so he naturally pleased me at the first glance, and I felt d sto.buy him, I[ went up an questioned him; and the scamp answered me word for word as fol- lows, which put me out of countenance for a mo- ment, I confess: + ‘Master, IL do not advise. you to buy me, for I have sworn to be free or die; whatever you many to prevent me, I warn you that I shall escape. you can do as you please.’ “This clear and perempto me. ‘We shall see,’ I said to him, and then went to find the auctioneer. The latter, who was a friend of mine, dissuaded me from buying oniam, giving me reasons, each better than the other, against do- ing so. But my mind was made up, and I stuck to it. Quoniam was knocked down to me for ninety dollars, an absurd price for a negro of his age, and built as he is; but no one would have him at any rice. I put irons on him, and took him away, not o my house, but to the prison, so that I might feel sure he would not escape. The next day, when I re- turned to the prison, Quoniam was gone; he had kept his word. At the end of two days he was caught n; the same evening he was off once more, and it was im- possible for me to discover how he had foiled the plans I had formed to restrain him, This has been going on for a month; a week ago he esca again, and since then I have been in search o ; de- spairing of being able to keep him, I got into a pas- on, and started after him, this time with my blood- hounds, resolved to finish, once for all, with this accursed rg ee constantly slips through my fin- gers likea vt, “ is to say,’’ the Canadian remarked, who had listened with interest to the dealer’s story, * you would not have hesitated to kill him.” “That I should, for the confounded scamp is so crafty; he’ has so constantly taken me in, that I have wn to hate him.” “ Listen in your turn, Mr. John Davis; I am not rich, but a long way from it. What do I need gold or silver, as a man of the desert to whom Heaven supplies daily food so liberally? This Quoniam, who is so eager for liberty and the open air, inspires me with a lively interest, and I wish to try and give him that freedom to which he so persistently aspires. This is what I propose; I have in my canoe three jaguar skins and twelve beaver skins, which, if sold at any town of the Union, will be worth from one hundred and fifty to two hundred dollars; take them, and let all be finished.” The dealer looked at him with a surprise mingled with a certain degree of kindliness. “You are wrong,’ he said, presently; “‘ the bar- ain you offer is too advan ous for me, and too ittlesofor you. That is not the way to do busi- ness." ‘How does that concern you? I have got it inmy head that this man shall be free.” ‘You do not know the ungrateful nature of nig- gers,’ the other persisted; “this one will be in no way grateful to yon for what you do for him; on the contrary, on the first opportunity he will proba- bly eve you cause to repent your good action.” ; is possible, but it is his business, for I do not ask gratitude of him; if he shows it, all the bet- ter for him; if not, the Lord’s will be done! I act in accordance with my heart, and my reward is in my conscience,” ‘By the Lord, you are a fine fellow, I tell you,” do ow declaration piqued the dealer exclaimed, incapable of restraining him- longer. ‘‘It would be all the better if a fellow could meet with more of your sort. ell, I intend to [ete you that I am not so bad as you have a right to suppose, after what has passed between us, | the border, the hunter, after givin reason, because he had almost the certaint I will sign the assignment of Quoniam to you, and I will only accept in return ous ger skin in remem- brance of our guar Hcy ’ he added, with a grimace, as he poin to arm, “you have already given me another.” “Done,” the Canadian exclaimed, eagerly; ‘‘ but you must take two skins instead of one, as I intend to ask of you @ rifle, ene aoe eee oe rdevil we now set at liberty (for you are now as in my good deed) may provide for his sup- po ” “Be it so,” the dealer said, good-humoredly; ‘“*as the scoundrel insists on being at liberty, let him be, and he can go to the deuce.”’ At a sign from his master, one of the servants produced from his game- ink and r, and drew up on the spot, not a deed of sale’ bots regular ticket of freedom, to which the dealer put his signature, and which the servants afterward witnessed ‘**On my word,” John Davis exclaimed, ** it is sible that from a business point of view I have done a foolish thing, but, — may believe me or not, as you like, I never Poa elt so satisfied with myself.” “That is,” the Canadian answered, seriously, ‘‘ be- nn you have to-day followed the impulses of your eart.” The Canadian then quitted the platform to go and fetch the skins. A moment after, he returned with two magnificent hides, ectly intact, j which he handed to the dealer. e latter, as was arranged, then delivered the weapons to him; but a sc e suddenly assailed the hunter. * One greene he said; “if you give me these weapons, howewill you manage to return to town?” 9 t need not trouble you,”’ John Davis replied; “IT left my horse and people scarce three |} es from here. des, we have our pistols, which we could use if n ty “That is true,”’ the Canadian remarked, “you have therefore nothing to fear; still, as your wound will not allow you to go so far afoot, I will help your servants to prepare you a litter.” And with that skill, of which he had alread raf plied so many proofs, the manuf x with branches of trees he cut down with his hatchet, a litter, on which the two tiger skins were laid. “And now,” he said, “* good-by; haps we shall never meet again. We part, I , on better terms than we came ee 1A gee remember, there is no trade, however shameful, which an honest man cannot carry on honorably: when your heart oe ou to do a good action, do not be deaf to it, but doit without regret, for God will have spoken to you.” “ Thanks,” the dealer said, with considerable emo- tion, “ but grant me one word before we part.”’ “ Sa on. ? “Tell me your name, so that if any day accident brought us together again, I might appeal to your recollections, as you could to mine.” “That is true. My name is Tranquil; the wood- rangers, my companions, have surnamed me the Panther-killer. And, ere the slave dealer had recovered from the astonishment caused by this sudden revelation of the name of a man whose renown was universal on g him a parting wave of the hand, bounded from the platform, un- fastened his canoe, and paddled vigorously to the other bank. “Tranguil, the Panther-killer,”” John Davis mut- tered when he was alone; “it was truly my good genius which inspired me to make a friend of That man. He lay down on the litter, which two of his men raised, and, after giving a glance at the Canadian, who at this moment was landing on the opposite bank, he said: * Forward!’ The platform was soon deserted again, the dealer a men nae Sey, a under the pores and nothing was au e but S ey, — ago of the bloodhounds, as they ran on ead of e little party. CHAPTER III. BLACK AND WHITE. In the meanwhile, as we have said, the Canadian son aed Manag A name we ee len Be ype had reached e bank o e river where the n con- cealed in the shrubs, ile During the long absence of his defender the slave could easily have fied, and that with the a of not being pursued before a lapse of time, which would have given him a considerable start on those who were so obstinately bent on capturing him. He had not done so, however; either because the idea of flight did not appear to him realizable, or be- cause he was too wearied, he had not stirred from the spot where he sought a refuge at the first mo- ment, and had remained with his eyes obstinately fixed on the platform, following with anxious glance the movements of the persons collected on it. John Davis had not at all flattered him in the por- trait he had drawn of him to the hunter. Quoriam was really one of the most magnificent specimens of the African race; twenty-two years of age at the most, he was tall, well-proportioned and powerfully built: he had wide shoulders, bag hg wd developed chest, and Met oe | limbs; was plain that he combined unequaled strength with far from ordi- nary speed and lightness; his features were fine and expressive, his countenance breathed frankness, hi: widel Spe eyes were intelligent—in short, al- though his skin was of the deepest black, this man did not seem at all to have been created for slavery, for owes Tene about him aspired to liberty and that free which God has given to his creatures, and men have tried in vain to tear from them. When the Canadian re-entered the canoe, and the American quitted the platform, a sigh of satisfac- tion e ed the negro’s chest, for, without know- ing tively what had passed between the hunter and his old master, as he was too far off to hear what was said, he understood that, tem at least, he had nothing to fear from the latter, and he awaited with feverish impatience the return of his defender, that he might learn from him what he had henceforth to hope or fear. So he reached land, the Canadian pulled ph canst dpe a mde mey Cog Dirge apiote Dy hnineh one eliberate step toward spot where expected to find the negro. <S GO COMING m