Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 229 — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

te ~ eae ee _ SS Se Captain Cutsleeve. 23 ooo rr was a Sylvanus Coffin, and that wretch stripped | meet the guard whom he had, as Lieutenant him of all be bad, and perhaps of life itself. If he bad not first slain him he would not now dare to bear this name, instead of his true one of Wentworth Case, Let him deny it if he dares!” The doctor’s face showed a contemptuous smile as he once more turned to the crowd. ‘‘I’ve nussed tew many men here back ag’in tew life fur them tew b’lieve I’m a fraud. at that woman is Ellen Canley I firmly b’lieve. That she's ravin’ mad jist neow I know, an’ fur ther rest I dunnoa thing. But fur ther good a pd pore woman, I say she’d better go ack,” ** Went. Case, or Captain Cutsleeve as you be ou ar’ a liar! Let ‘em tetch that woman ef bey dar’!” As toe three men made a combined move- ment toward the woman a new champion had stepped between her and them, and a shout of derision went up as the men of the Galch recognized Bill nder! ‘And who at yew?” ‘*f’m the simon pure Doctor Sylvanus Coffin! Every word that that woman says is a gospel truth. This devil stole my money, my wife and my name, By the gods, I’m byar fur ven- geance!” And Billy Benders with an old-fashioned howl, swung out his huge navy revolver. There were half a dozen of the doctor’s own rticular men in the crowd, roughs and fight- ng men who jumped as he winked. They be- n to close up on the old man. ‘It’s that lying old bummer, Billy Bender, Hustle bim out!” “‘He’s got the jim-jams, an’ll make a kill ov it ef some one don’t snuff bim off.” ‘“‘ This is business hyar; we ain’t no time fur ga ith such exclamations half a dozen men made a dash at Billy, just as he drew up his weapon at Doctor Coffin, and pulled the trigger. There was a stunning report, a room full of drifting smoke, under cover of which there was a sudden rush of feet and a woman’s cry. At the appearance of Billv Bender, and at the sound of his voice, Ellen Canley stood like a woman turned to stone, the muzzlegof her pis- tols drooping downward, and ber eyes staring at the bummer as though he was a phantom from the grave. No wonder that she forgot her threat, or that ber weapons were twisted from her unresisting hands. As the smoke rolled away the hard, taunting Jaugh of the doctor was heard. ‘*A mad woman, an’ a drunken ijeot! Quite a carryvan! Git eout ther hull ov yer afore ther atr murder done.” “Tt’s all right, doctor; we don’t go back on ou; but it pears ter me we smell somethin’ rot- n somewhar.” ** And here it is!” Through the doorway, with the spring of a cat, came a little man, with a red shirt, a broad sombrero, and a mask on his face, who burled himself upon the doctor before that worthy had even noticed his advent. There was the sharp click of steel, and before them all the doctor stood manacled. “I’m a United States Marshal, and I arrest ou, Wentworth Case, alias Captain Cutsleeve, or the murder of Courtly Hammond and fora hundred other crimes. I’ve got you dead to rights, and the first man that draws in your de- fense drops. No more muscle now; I’m on the shoot.” The mask ped away from the face of the ker, and with one hand he clutched the doc- tor’s shoulder, while the otber handled a cocked revolver, Jobnny Goodman and others gave a shout as they recognized Touch-Me-Not, the lit- tle sport, back once more, and very much alive. As he ceased speaking there was a great crash in the furtherend of the room, and the woman known as Colonel Canley’s wife dropped to the floor with the blood oozing from a wound in her breast. CHAPTER XXXVI. A TRANSFORMATION SCENE. THE rd who thought he bad Touch-Me- Not lined made a very great mistake. The weasel had noteven closed his eyes. Straight backward the little sport flung himself, at the risk of , and as he fell his revolver flew up, anda et went crashing through the out- law’s brain. Then Touch-Me-Not sprung to his feet. “We're in a heap of danger, but if that shot don’t draw a crowd we can make the riffle. We must be raking lively tracks out of this, anyhow. ; ‘But not without my father. If you save one you must take both.” And so it happened that Torch-Me-Not, in a few words being put in possession of the facts ot the case, as Ellen understood them, and bav- ing explained his identity to ber, succeeded not only in rescuing the young girl, but in bearing her father away—a proceeding that taxed heav- ily the wonderful strength that lay in his small Once only was he at fault en the downward path. Somewhere below he knew he would Lew, sent inthat direction. Hampered as he | was it was a question who would catch the drop if they met without warning, Yet Touch-Me- Not held it for a moment; and then went on. | In the canyon below he concealed Ellen and her father and then hurried on to Glory Gulch, | arriving there just in time to take part in the | scene at the doctor’s office, For a moment the more bonest portion of his hearers were stupefied at bis announcement, which was more startling, even, than the fall of the woman. “Oh, [mean it! This man, years ago, was a gambling speculator who finally murdered his | partner, who went by the name of Ling; but whose right name was Courtly Hammond. He was my father, and a good deal such a little man as lam, only older. It was a big mistake | for father had twenty thousand dollars of the | firm’s money put away somewhere, and to this day cag Sur" Case never got his share of it though he did offer me my life if I would tell in what bank it was. Not much! It can lie there | and rot, first. I’ve been after him some time; but I don’t believe I’d ever dropped to him if he hadn’t stolen another old side-pardner’s name. ; ' There’s the real Sylvanus Coffin, and this scoundrel ran away with his wife. You can see what a wreck it made of him. As for thislittle game about the Slap Jack—it’s played! The genuine Jim Canley will be around in a day or 60, torun his own affairs; and, meantime, if there’s any kickers yd can settle with a com- pany of Uncle Sam’s biue-coats that are on the road over from Rat Trap. Doctor Coffin, alias Leetle Billy, alias Captain Cutsleeve, wil) go out of the west at the end of arope. Jim Can- ley and you three fellows from ‘Frisco, that he sent for, are fooled. This is Billy Bender's wife, and the wrong woman. Her sister died in Phenix, ayear ago, as I hepere to know. As for | the rest of the yarn—you'll hear it when the time comes. Meantime, if Johnny Goodman will pick out a guard of real solid men, of sense and sand. I'll corral my capture, and go on to finish ~ p the rest of my game, Huckleberry, you stand me. x You bet,” responded the chorus. Touch-Me-Not—or Courtly Hammond — was compelled to give some sort of explanation; now he looked over toward Howlin’ Billy. He was by the woman who had once been his wife. ‘‘It broke me all up,” the bummer was say- ing, “but it wa’n’t your fault, wasit, now? It was his dev’lish slick tongue that fooled us both. I wa’n’t of much account, but yer wouldn’t hev left me, would yer? I never know’d him before to-day; but I couldn’t hit him ’thout takin’ a slap atyou. An’ I didn’t eye you away, did I? erbeads an’ coal ile, I b’lieve she’s dyin’.” man from Black Dam was a wreck fore; but the events of the last hour bad crushed him all apart. Yet be still clung to the woman that once had been his, and she, wolf that she Moher died in his arms, without an answering word. The work that the little man had set out to do was well accomplished, and just in time. Captain Cutsleeve, or whatever he bad best |. | be called, saw himself suddenly beaten at every point, and closed bis mouth as tightly as the dead woman had done. Perhapsif he had had ber chance he, too, would have taken his own life, though he did not altogether despair. The rope was not actually around his neck. As this deective avenger was a Government officer, there was to be aregular trial, and meantime one might happen. James Canley and his daughter were found and brought safely in; and with Hammond at the fore, it did not take long to dissipate ever shadow of the plot that Sylvanus Coffin and associates had laid. When Touch-Me-Not, attended by a strong posse, went out to the Slap Jack todemand session in the name of the — owner, they found it evacuated; but cold and stiff in the shanty lay the body of Hartford Blaine, whether dead from the wound given him by Colonel Canley, or from poison, no one ever knew. He had ey, brought these old-time part- ners, and then died. The intricacies of their retreat having been discovered, the soldiers had no diffical in effectually dispersing the Cutsleeve gang. Some were killed, some captured, and the rest fled away in search of safer browsing ground. Tom Gouger—though his heart was so deeply centered in Huckleberry—appeared rejoiced to see the little sport who had so successfully held bim to his work, thouch perhaps he wus not so much flattered when Touch-Me-Not, with a cordial shake of the hand, remarked: ‘Ob, you’ve turned out a pretty square sort of a tough, especially when you know there’s a bigger hand out than you can raise. But, do vou know, I thought. for a spell, that you and Huckleberry belonged to the infernal Cutsleeves; and [ just flashed my dismond in your eyes to see if | could draw yon on.” “Thankee, pard! We're howlin’ tornaders when we strike ther war-path; but we ain’t them kind eggzactly, be we Huckleberry ’” *'You bet not!” And the refrain uttered, the man with the lus- cious appellation eyed the little sport with the deepest admiration. One so lively on the mus cle and shoot was more interesting to him than a crowned king. And Colonel Canley’s daughter? The reader has used his eves to little advan- tage if he has not already seen which way her heart was tending. Courtly Hammond could woo as well as win; and when the Cutsleeve matter was settled, and Wentworth Case had finally gone to his long home, the Slap Jack had a new manager, and Colonel Canley another child, THE END. The Great American Story Paper! Beatles Weekly The Best Weekly of Popular, Entertain, ing and Useful Literature Pub- lished in America! 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