Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 239 — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

_—- apron, ef ther young Fo’th o’ July ain't a-goin’ ter hatch, an’ spread hitself on a cyclone stom- pede, jist a-knockin’ things ter flinders, an’ singein’ their pin-feathers all offen ther ‘ Black- birds,’ ’sides a wing an’ a leg now an’ then, I reckons! “Gabriel air ’bout ter blow his horn an’ bu’st up ther innercent slumbers o’ ther lovely cut-throats, what air innercent only whea they’re in thet condition, an’ dang’d ef | more’n half believes they is then! Reckon they prac- tices devilment when—” Further words in the old scout’s soliloquy were prevented by a most terrific and thunder- ous explosion, followed by a crashing of huge branches and trees, as the heavy oaken logs of the cabin were shot upward and outward, with the velocity of bullets, in every direction; a sheet of blinding flame illuminating every twig and blade of grass, as it shot up, through the gloom to the very tree-tops, Then came wild yells of fright and supersti- tious terror, of dread, horror and agony, as the outlaws sprung madly to their feet, three or four remaining dead, or mangled, in their blankets! For an instant, the survivors gazed at the hHewildering sheet of flame and smoke. Then, beginning to comprehend the catastrophe, they bounded like terrified deer, into the wood; as, crashing .here and there, through the inter- locked branches of the bottom timber, fell the logs that were blown up to a great hight by the tremendous explosion. Some of these, with sounding surge, fell into the river, dashiag spray in all directions. The Concho and Colorado bottom rung with maddened yells of desperation, the bandits being scattered in all directions unarmed; they having left their belts of weapons under the heading of their blankets, as they rushed mad- ly out from the scene of destruction and death. Some of the outlaws bad bounded toward the river; and, to cause greater alarm and consternation, Single-Eye, with fierce yell and whoop and derisive laughter, that sounded as if a host of men were beyond the river, jerked his revolvers. and fired a rattling fusilade here and there into the thickets on the opposite side of the stream. Yells of agony proved that in some cases his bullets had not beea missent. This for the time satisfied the scout’s desire to avenge the murder of the driver of the mail-stage and his passengers; and he was not without the hope that a chance bullet might have lodged in the heart or brain of Bird Blackwell. Single-Eye next dashed up the river, screened from the view of thosa who had been so ter- ribly appailed by his strategic movement, and who were now so terror-stricken and bewil- dered, that they were unable even to look about them; and too much trightened to pay any attention to the dark shades beyond the Colorado, except at the point from which the pistol-shots had flashed, And so, back toward Lionel Lacrosse, with the magnificent horse of the bandit chief, dashed Single Eye, leaving behind bim the blazing debris of the cabin, within which were being destroyed all the accumulated stores of the ‘‘ Blackbirds ” that had not been blown to fragments by the explosion, The knowledge of this loss, when they came gradually to a realization of the state of things, drove the bandits to frenzy and insane desperation. CHAPTER XXIV. THE TONKAWAY ON THE TRAIL, LONE WouF and his warriors, with their captives, lost no time in traveling over the plains that stretched between the Concho ford and the Rio Pecos, ' They bent their course more to the south- ward, and again crossed the stage trail near the head-quarters of the Concho, and encamped the first night at that poinr. Then, under cover of the darkness of the second night, they forded the Pecos at Horse- Head Crossing, making sure of no interruption by having advanced spies. : Then in place of proceeding directly west to the Apache Mountains, they galloped due south to the Sierra Charrate, to avoid leaving any ‘“‘sign,” and encamped ina great gorge, that afforded grazing-cover, and was easy of defense. f ; Here the Apache chief decided to remain, antil the badly-fagged horses had recruited, , orbs of Lieutenant Warrington, while bis every bis reflections upon the retreat from the Con- cho having forced upon him the probability of pursuit by the soldiers at Camp Jobnston, In- deed, be well knew that a detail would be dis- patched on his trail, as soon as the slain escort should be discovered, which would be soon after his departure, for the down-country stage would pass the spot on its way to El Paso. From the fact that the escort had all been shot and scalped, and an officer captured, Lone Wolf reasoned that a pursuing detail must have started on his trail shortly after his de- parture; hence his change from the course he would naturally be supposed to have taken, toward his stronghold in the Apache Moun- tains, From the fact that his war-party had tray- eled a& great speed day and night, to avoid be- ing overtaken, previous to the ambush at the Concho, all were in a greatly fatigued and worn state; so they immediately rolled them- selves in their blankets, after the horses had been attended to and the guard posted, and fell asleep. The mouth of the gorge was narrow, and across it grew cedars, thick and dense; the towering rocks on either side affording a favor- able position for sentinels to be posted, who could overlook the plain in the direction of the Rio Pecos. Bound, as had been Lieutenant Warrington, he had suffered most terribly on the forced march from the Concho; but bis sufferings were somewhat mitigated from the fact that he knew that Winnie’s bonds had been cut, the chief knowing it to be impossible for her to escape; Lone Wolf having, with his party, overtaken the advance with the captive of- ficer. Upon arriving at the gorge, the lieutenant was cut free from the horse; and now, incapa- ble of movement, his arms and legs benumbed by the tightly-drawn lariats, be was roughly dragged within the cedars, there laid upon his back and secured, his limbs outstretched, to the trunks of four trees—-he groaning with agony, as his stiffened muscles were drawn into this new position. He felt that no torture could be invented by the red fiends that won'd cause him more agony than he now suffered ani had it not been for Winnie, he would have blessed the band that would have driven a knife through his heart. ’ And Winnie—beautiful, golden-haired Win- nie—though nearly dead from privation and anguish, the ruthless fiends hurried her along, | being forced at times to carry her bodily, to | the cedar thicket, there seating her at the trunk of one of the trees, to which they bound her in a position nearly opposite to that of her uncle. Thus they left her, where she would be wrung with sympathetic anguish at every groan and convulsive shudder of her tortured relative. But not a word spoke the bapless maiden. She noticed that her uncle was oblivious of her presence, and that bis eyes were glassy and un- uatural, resembling those of a corpse, In- deed, she would have thought him dead had she not detected the rise and fall of his breast | in breathing. Not a wink had either of the captives slept since they fell into the hands of the merciless Apaches; and poor Winnie now gazed upon the pallid face of ber uncle, until strange fan- cies and horrible shapes seemed before her eyes. The lieutenant seemed, to her disordered fancy, to burst from his bonds, and, hand in hand with Lone Wolf and his braves, dance in mad glee around the bleeding form of Lionel Lacrosse, who, bound hand and foot, and fas- tened in a crucified position, panted out his tortured life. The picture of bis fate, drawn for her by the Apache chief, was never absent fyom her eyes, Filled with horror, ber parched tongue cleav- ing to ber mouth and refnsing to articulate, | Winnie sat silent and motionless, her eyes fixed upon the view conjured up by thoughts of the | near past and the present. Then all became dark to her. The scene faded gradually. Her bead fell forward upon her breast, her long golden hair vailing her face from view. Winnie Warrington was at last oblivious of her dread surroundings. And the lids slowly closed over the glassy 23 breath was a groan; but growing less and less in sound, and at length dying away, while the silence of death ruled the cedars, as sleep, in mercy, ruled the minds and bodies of the cap- tives. When Turtle, the Tonkaway, strode from the thicket-inclosed opening, within which were Lionel and Single-Eye, he broke into a run, darting this way and that with great velocity between the trees, and soon reaching the spot where he had secreted his horse, The movements of Turtle proved that he did not propose to ride the horse on the trail of Lone Wolf, and it was evident that be would not make much headway did he do so, for the auimal showed plain signs of baving been rid- den long and unsparingly. Quickly leading the horse to the river, the Indian mounted, swam the animal across, and then, removing the saddle, bridle and neck- rope, left the beast to free range. He next proceeded through the timber toward the dog- town, soon after reaching the verge of the woods, whence he could view the horses of the bandits, which were picketed on the grazing- ground, between the bottom timber and the marmot city. Supposing, very naturally, thata bandit was posted to guard the animals, Turtle proceeded to the south side of the clear grass-grown space and lassoed the best horse he could find. This was a noble animal, unmarked by bar- ness, and as full of life and vim as a fresh-roped mustang, proving that if had not been long on the line, and was uninjured by coach-dragging, There was but one other horse in view that could compare with this one for beauty and speed, This was the animal of Captain Blackbird, which, being in the middle of the group, the Tonkaway did not deem prudent to attempt to gain possession of for fear of discovery. The plans that Turtle bad formed admitted of no delay or imprudence of management, Life and death depended upon his cunning and sagacity for the two or three days and nights to come, The mind of the Indian was made up the in- stant that Lionel disclosed the names of those who had been captured by Lone Wolf. He re- solved to save them, and formed plans imme- diately for the carrying out of that resolve, Upon lassoing the horse, Turtle quickly sad- dled and bridled the animal, sprung astride, and, beading for the river, urged the steed into the stream. Swimming across, he dashed through the belt of timber en the south side of the Concho, and soon was flying ike wind in the direction of Horse-Head Crossing. Speeding on, went Turtle, the Tonkaway; | his black eyes flashing glances abead, his eagle-feathers flaunting in tne wind, his paint- ed face showing iron resolution, and a thirst for revenge, Thus on, flew the lone red rider, towatd a horde whose skin was of a like hue, but who | would rend the sky with yells of triumph, could they bind him to the stake, and break his iron will by slow torture. Yet, knowing all this, Turtle sped on, Not a thought of fear, or delay was in his mind. Not a thought of personal consideration. His life was thrown daringly into all this peril, to save those whose kind words had warmed his heart; and the memory of whose kind deeds, and the consciousness that they were now dependent upon him for life—that their release from torture and death depended upon his exertions, together with his hatred for their merciless captors—all this nerved him to continuous action. All his natural frenzy and _ bloodthirsty excitement was regulated by his sagacity, and an iron determination to do or die. God speed you, Turtle, on the trail; and give you strength and hope, that you may take both to those for whom you are now tak- ing your desperate and daring ride into the jaws of death! CHAPTER XXV. ONCE MORE TO THE BREACH. THE scene at the junction ot the rivers, after the departure of Single-Eye, was a strange one. Many of the lower logs of the cabin had been blown but a short distance, and the blankets and clothing, which had burned only on the outside of the piles; were also blown in me * €o