Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 173 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

aliforin may as well go tov ork to draw out my will so as to dispose of these articles together with what I leave of my own,” the Fresh remarked. a . *“* Pretty tough on you, pardner; I suppose I | plied, with another series of knowing winks. ‘Wot is under this hyer floor?” ‘*The earth, of course.” Such a thing as a cellar was unknown in Nee- ‘‘Hold on, pardner,” said Hairpin, in a very | dle Bar. mysterious manner, reaching his big paw across \ve table and placing it upon the arm of the other, ** We kin play a leetie while longer.” ‘Why, what else have you got to stake?” ‘* Ain’t a chance to get out.of this hole worth somthing, old man?’ ‘You don’t mean it?’ exclaimed John, in the same cautious tone that the other bad used. ‘‘ Tf I don’t you may take my head and use it as a bait for cat-fish! What do you s’pose J wanted to bother with this hyer office for? W’at gocdisif to me? Nary nothing, you bet! I took it to help you out of this scrape, and I am going to do it too, and don’t you forget it.” CHAPTER XVII. A CUNNING TRICK. Tux Californian was more astonished by this unexpected disclosure than by all the other surprises of the day and night, as Hairpin was about the last man from whom he would have expected aid. But now the game the skinner had played was plainly to be seen. His eager- ness to be appointed sheriff, his loud vaunts of answering for the prisoner with his life, and his general pihelougnens wereallexplained. He had won the confidence of the men of the camp so that he would be in a condition to assist the prisoner, apie ‘* Well, old man, I wouldn’t have believed it!” the Fresh declared, earnestly. ‘In course not; I played too durned sharp for all that,” returned the other, with a pro- dirious grin, ‘‘ but when these feliers corraled you I jest made up my mind that I would see you through, and | am going to doit, too, and you can jest bet all your rocks onto it.” wah believe that I am innocent tien?” *‘Sartin! sure as you’re born! A man like you, so handy with your we’pons, so quick to ‘et the drop on a cuss and game aes to bluff ede Keno Bill right in his own ranch—fer you to steal up and knife a man with a toad-sticker no Ligger than a darning-needle, whv, I would jest as soon think of being kicked by a China- man. No, sir-ee! You never did that trick, and [reckon all this hyer is a put-up job by Keno Bill to rastle you into the other worla; but, don’t you be afeard; I’m jesta-gwine to put a spoke in his wheel.” * Well, old fellow, they say that a friend in need is a friend indeed, and Lreckon you fill the bill this time.” ‘In course, and that is wot I’m byer for. That is the reason why I elected myself to be sheriff. Wot in thunder did I want to bother with the thing for, hey? Nuary time. It is no good! but 1 jest made up my mind to pull you out of the mud the moment I see’d that you were a-going to get stuck init. Oh, when a thing of this kindis on hand I’m a@ derrick on wheels, when I get a-going, and don’t you forget it, either!” ‘Well, whatis the programme? and if I és- cape through your aid won’t it be likely to put your neck in danger?’ The mule-driver closed one eye and winked with the other in a manuer which he intended to be highly significant. ‘*Catch a weasel asleep!” he vociferated, in a hoarse whisper. ‘‘ Don’t you worry ’bout that. I reckon thar ain’t ary man on top of this airth wot kin play roots on me if I havea fair chance for ny money. No, sir-ee! I’ve jest had my thinking-cap on ever since this lettle fuss has been a-b’iling, and I reckon IJ have hit on a leetle game so that you kin slide out of this calaboose and not leave me in the hole either.” _ ‘* That is the game to play.” ** You bet, and I’m the galoot as kin jest play it, too, for all it’s worth. Itain’t often that take a shine toa man, but when I do J’m his meat clear to the back-bone. I have been made to take water in my time—mighty few men in this hyer world wot don’t git tu the under dog one’t in a while—but, never since I was fouled was it done so slick as when you raked in the persimmons in Keno Bili’s place. ‘Drink or fite!’ but durned if you did either!” RS But about this plan of yours—ain’t we losing time?’ ‘Oh no; we have got gobs of time, It is jest as easy and simple as kin be,” and the mule- driver leaned across the table and lowered his voive to a hoarse whisper. ‘‘ Keno Bill has got this hyer thing right down fine, you know. Hyer I’m right in the room with you, for to keep guard, never take my eyes offen you till morning, and if I get tired and think that I am gwine to sleep, thar’s a cuss outside who is to come in and take my place. Then thar’s two men at the back-door and two more in the saloon at the door thar, and at one o’clock all tour men are to be relieved by four fresh men, so, even if you were to get away with me, you would have a mighty hard job to git out.” _ ** Yes, but your plan?” asked tke Fresh, a little impatiently. Coe Hold on, I’m a coming to it,” Hairpin re- It can’t be did. | cd ‘ ~ = ve Ps ae >. FS a “Yes, but thar is bout a foot, or mebbe a foot and a hali of space atween the boards of this hyer floor and the airth ain’t thar?’ ‘*Of course.” Like nearly all the buildings in the town that were of account, the saloon of the Keno King was elevated about eighteen inches from the surface of the ground in order to avoid the dam pness. ‘I know’d a cuss onc’t,” said Hairpin, still cautiously speaking in a boarse whisper, ‘* who had the bad luck to be corraled in jest sich a box as this hyer, but they didn't put nary guard in with him, although they had a heap.of pao at the doors. Waal, some one of this yer cuss’s friends, who had a head on his shoulders wot was bigger nor a peanut, smug- gled a saw in to him, and what does the corraled chap do but saw one of the boards in ‘the floor so as to make a hole for him to git through, and when t’other parties came to look for‘him in the morning for to present him with a necktie made out of rope and warranted to fit, they couldn’t find hair nor hoof of him. He had slid without even waiting for to bid anybody good by.” The feasibility of the scheme which the mule- driver had thought out was at‘once apparent to the prisoner. Tosaw one of the planks of the floor—only a common inch board—so as,to make a hole, through which to descend to the open space below, would be an extremely easy mat- ter and could be accomplisbed in a very short time indeed, provided that the task was not in- terrupted. And then from the .open space be- low, which was only boarded up in the front of the building, it would be easy to reach the street. True, there -were two-guards posted by the back door of ‘the ‘saloon, ‘but, as their watch would be directed entirely to the door, the chances were a hundred to one against their rag ge any one creeping from under the build- in the darkness, ‘Have you a saw?” . “You bet, and an auger on top of it,” the other replied, with another prodigious grin and then he produced a small eyhole saw an a brace with a quarter-inch bit attached, from amid deep recesses of one of his huge boots. ‘* Thar’s the articles and nomistake! This hyer boring machine is the king-pin of the outfit, though, ’cos it don’t make ary bit of noise. All ou have got t» dois to plug the board full of oles right across, close as you kin git ’em, you know, and then use the saw for to break ’em into one another. Not much sawing, you see, and I reckon that the cusses who air on the watch outside will have to haveemighty sharp ears for to hear it. Jes” pick @ board over ‘in the front corner hyer,” and the big fellow moved noiselessly to the spot indicated, ‘ Pull one of the buffler robes up round you while you work, and then, if — one should happen to come in, you kin knock off and snuggie down like as if you was snoozing.” ‘* But when they come in the morning and discover that Iam gone, how will yu get out of the scrape?” ‘They will diskiver me sleeping away like a house afire, and I shall jest sw’ar that you guv mea single drink outen a leetle bottle of the queerest-tasting whisky that I ever h’isted into my stomach, and that arter I drank it I didn’t know mengre Jest you take the tools with you, so as to kinder kiver the thiug up.” The Californian at once set to work, and ina short time indeed severed one of the boards so as to form a trap-door sufficiently large for him Ny pass through into the open space be- neath. ' ‘* But how "bout this ee plunder that you skinned me out of?” asked Hairpin, as the Fresh disappeared through the hole in the floor to the darkness beneath. ‘‘Keep it in exchange for the tools; a fair exchange is no robbery !” Again was the Californian free from the toils which had surrounded him. CHAPTER XVIII. A HAZARDOUS ADVENTURE, AFTER the prisoner disappeared in the dark- ness H irpin stretched himself out. on the buf- falo-robes which he pulled over in front of the rear door and in ten minutes was sound asleep. And those ten minutes which the mule-driver spent in wooing the god of sleep were anxious ones indeed to the fugitive lurking beneath the building. He could not pass ut into the street for there were two gangs of half-drunken men, one at each end of the. building, noisily debat- ing whether to go home or to call. upon some other drinking-shop which had not yet closed its doors and ‘‘ make a night of it,” as one sug- gested, At last one of the parties moved to the front of the building and the Californian was allowed to crawl out into the open air; the night was quite dark, although the moon was slowly rising, but the Fresh happened to be in the sha- dow of the building and his eyes, not yet used to the gloom, could not distinguish objects a , he ea 4 Sy ot ~ tok AT i * soi —— John, the Pacific Thoroughbred. | . $< —$ eee | party, and as far as he coul yard away and so before he hod taken three steps, after rising to an upright position, he tumbled over a man lying prostrate upon the ground and came down with considerable force. The man whom he had disturved in this un- ceremonious way, and whum at first the fuzi- tive had been afraid was dead, gr ey proved that he was alive and only under the influence of liquor by rolling over with a drunken grunt. A bright idea at once flashed upon the Cali- fornian. Now that he was free from his prison- pen about the only a that was to be feared was that he would be recognized by some of the stragglers around the town before he could get out of it. His appearance was so marked—his dress so different from that worn by the rest of the men that he could hardly mae to escape recognition, ut this drunken man afforded a golden op- portunity, and the Fresh knelt down and ex- amined him. He was roughly dressed after the usual fashion—big ‘boots, pantaloons tucked into them} flannel shirt and broad-brimmed felt hat, very much the worse for wear,’but in ad- dition he had on a rubber-cloth poncho, as the square blanket with the slit in the center through which'the head is put is called. This garment, if garment it can be termed, when worn, completely covers two-thirds of the wear- er’s body with its folds. A luckier discovery than this poncho just at the present moment the Fresh could not have made, for a more com- plete disguise, without seeming to be a disguise, could not have been procured if the fugitive had had the shops of a town from which to choose. With scant ceremony the Californian stripped the poncho off the drunken man, not however without a vigorous chorus of protesting grunts from the sleeper, annoyed at having his rest disturbed; then he took possession of his hat, leaving his own in exchange. The‘poncho and hat he oa arog upon his per- son, pulling the brim of the latter down over his eyes so as to hide his features. Then an idea occurred to him; he rubbed his hand on the soft, black, moist soil and with the dirt discol- ored all the lower partyof his face so as to give him the appearance of needing a clean shave pretty badly; and, thanks to thes@ simple pre- cautions, he presented an exceedingly disreput- able appearance. The last precaution he took was to remove the revolvers, with which he had been pro- vided so une tediy, from his bosom, and swing them in the holsters attached to his belt, Then he stepped boldly out from the shelter of Se —— —— the shadow cast by the saloon ‘and walked > openly down the street. As yet he bad not made up bis mind in which direction to go, but when he came to reflect upon the matter as he walked along he came to the conclusion that he would keep the ap- pointment suggested by the unknown frieud who had come so unexpectedly to his aid. He would go straight to the river and then follow, its course northward toward Fort Mohave un- til he came to the cottonwood grove. But, men propose and fate disposes, and, al- though the way seemed clear enough for him to walk through the town, (the streets of which were now almost deserted, two or three squads . of roystering miners, more or less under the in- fluence of liquor, generally more than less, alone breaking the stillness of the night with their Indian-like howls,) yet he was fated to en- counter a formidable obstacle before he had gone a bundred paces. He had marched boldly along right down the main street, calculating that he would not at- tract half as much attention by so doing, as by _skulking along as though he was afraid of being The way seemed clear when, suddenly, from out of one of the low drinking saloons came a gang of four men, all much under the influence of liquor, They were right in the way, and as the Californian turned to one side to avoid them, they hailed him as a brother. They were all teamsters, and all rigged out in ponchos and big hats, exactly like the man whose outward semblance the fugitive had as- sumed, At first sight the Fresh believed that he would either have to run or fight, for, fro: the manner of their dress be was afraid that he had stumbled upon the companions of the drunken man, but upon this point he was immediately set right. “Hello! Whar are you bound, pardner?? one of the drunken fellows cried. skeered! We're first-class gen’lemen, every mother’s son of us, and it you don’t bilieve it, come and take a drink!” : By the aid of the just rising moon the fugi- tive was enabled to get a good view of the make out, they were all strangers; at any rate he did not re- member ever to have seen any of them before, and as the Californian had a good memory for faces, he felt pretty sure that this gang had but recently arrived at “‘ The Bar,” so had not beey present at his trial. All had drank too much liquor to be classed as sober, and yet had not swallowed enongh to be completely drunk, And with men in such con- | (E ** Don’t be — comicboo ne » tA, ‘ ”~ Se ee ae ———— ~~