Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 244 — page 17: what you’re looking at

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

a Matters were beeoming still more compli- cated. Should Flora now be rescued from the Co- manches, she would still be in danger from the desperate ruffian, who had murdered her father, driven her mother to insanity, berself to obscure me sa Py and squandered her inheritance, aining his feet, by a great effort, Will stag- gered forward; but was met by Old Rocky, who rushed against him, filling the air with his unearthly whoops and yells. ‘These changed to uncontrollable laughter, as he caught bold of the young man, and pulled him back into the ‘* wash-out.” ** Dong my em ole heart!” cried out the scout, as soon as he could em ee his laughter, ‘IT never bed sich a heap o’ fun, in so danged sbort a flicker o’ time afore. Thar’s two tender- huffs started fer ther head o’ Elm Fork, on a cyclone stompede; an’ they won’t stop, I don’t reckon, ontil sun-up, er they gits out o’ breethe, ‘‘Pard Will, I bes cabbidged a “six,” an’ a ‘bowie, an’ a fust-class nag, with ’quipments. “ Hit war a proverdential ’rangement, thet we-uns levanted this-a-ways; though bit warn’t much thet a-way fer ther tenderhuffs, though I’m jist a bettin’ are they ain’t pee op an’ down squar’ an’ white humans, an’ 1 mos’ knows hit. There had been no chance for Will to put in a word until Old ym ceased speaking. Thon he surprised his old friend, by bursting out: “You have, indeed, been fortunate, my friend, and bave done a great service to me in more ways than one. Those men are assassins —villains of the blackest dye—and they are here in pursuit of the poor girl, who is pow in the power of the Indians. , ‘* My only regret is that you did not shoot them both. However, as you have saved my life, and we are to be pards in the attempt to rescue Flora, I will give you a history of the wrongs planned, and those already done, by the men whom you have just driven up-stream.” Then the young man proceeded to relate all the fucts connected with the life of Flora Flor- ence as they bad become known to himself. The old scout was vow furious with rage and regret. Had he but known these facts in regard | ion followin to the two ruffians he would have shot them in | ar tracks. Pursuit, however, was now use- ess. Still the two wretches, being without their arms and borses, were now belpless, and unable to travel in any directlon. There was some con- solation in this. ‘“ We've got ’em corral’d, Will,” said Old Rock; ‘tan’ we kin run ’em outen ther bush, an’ then h’ist’em upa limb. We'll do hit, too, when we gits Flory outen ther clutches o’ ther red beathen!” More confident and hopeful now, and witha and crawled along its bed, for some distance; oaths, his voice trembling with the intensity of tbrew himself against the bank, in the darkness. We're in a pretty fix now, I must say! the wild border, without horses, food, or ammu- and one of us keep guard, while the other Merciless Mart. —— “You're a poor kind of a pard to travel with | in this country, Rand. I’ve been running to | vatch you, and nothing else. You don’t mean to say that you thought I was frightened at the yell of a single red-skin, prowling around to steal our horses, which he’ll do, I dare say, if he can find them. You’re a nice one! ‘Come back! I don't want you to desert me | in that way again, It’s evident you have lost your ‘sand’ somehow, You're not the same man you were before you were put in the ‘ iu Rand looked at Mart in astonishment. He could not contradict him, He was obliged to believe that he spoke true, or partly so, He began to think that probably his comrade would have stood his ground, bad he himself not dart- ed away at the moment of alarm. Being now afraid to remain alone, Rand fol- lowed Mart on the back trail, the latter having turned back, in a reckless manner, toward the ashing the blood from their hands and faces, when they reached the stream, they went on stealthily down-stream; Mart in advance, and keeping well in the undergrowth. In this way, they reached the place where they had left their horses, The animals, as we know, were gone; but Mart did not dare vent his intense anger in saat as he feared the near presence of the Qe. In a few minutes the startled pair entered the thicket where they bad been asleep, but there were no indications of their former presence. Saddles, bridles, blankets, all bad disappeared; yet they prudently refrained from commenting | on the circumstance, For a few moments, they stood silent, listening intently, but not a sound reached them. All was still as death. The patches of moonlight, there and there, gave the wood a weird, and ost unearthly appearance, and impressed the discomfited Villains with a sense of some coming danger, On all sides of them, they seemed to see only hiding-places for the merciless Comanches, Twitching the arm of Rand, Mart stole back in the direction of the “‘ wash-out,” bis compan- him, In a few 2 EN they reached the same, when, of a sudden, Mart burst into a volley of bis ragea d fury. ** By all the fiends!” he exclaimed, as he ‘‘] shall burst a blood-vessel with madness. Out on nition! “Satan! Why did we not show more sense, fresh and well-equipped horse under him, Will | slept? followed the old scout down Elm Fork, north- ‘But it would have been just the same, | erly and toward the point where Single-Eye had | reckon; for if you bed been on watch, you'd waited for the darkness to screen his advance | have run and left me to have my head skinned over the plain after the Comanche war-party. when I was asleep. Leading the horse of Rand Rogers and ‘* What in the imp’s name do you suppose we chuckling as he went at the manner in which | are todonow? Have you had all the few ideas he bad ‘ sarcumvented ther condemned kiotes | you ever had frightened clean out of your what made war on weemin an’ leetle gals in | head?” ther States,” Old Rocky set out on the trail of “I haven’t the slightest idea,” Rand replied, the Comanches. wis “what we are to do, Wecan’t walk—that’s certain! In short, we are gone up for good, CHAPTER XX, Mart, That girl bas led us toour doom. Retri- ‘* SUCH MEASURE AS YE METH.” bution is on our trail. Our luck is gone; our For at least half a mile from the spot from | race is run!” which they bad sprung io affright, Mart Max- “Tf you hadn't run that race of yours—con- well and Rand Rogers did not pause for a mo- | found you!—we’d have been O, K. and could ment, have started in the morning on the trail of the The latter would have kept on even then had | girl, I don’t belong to a faint-hearted famil not Mart, gaining bis side, grasped him by the myself, and failure and despondency are words shoulder and buried him to the earth, that I have long since blotted from my voc, bu- was furious, but for the time was unable to | lary. vent his wrath in words, * But one thing we can do, and need t6 do, Torn and seratehed, the blood streaming | and that is sleep, For myself, I shall most as- | from every exposed portion of their flesh from | suredly indulge in it, and daylight may brighten contact with the thorny undergrowth, the two | our affairs in every way.” | men presented a pitiable sight, if pity could be ‘“‘T don’t think I can sleep another wink,” | felt for sucb. said Rand dubiously; ‘tin fact, 1 know [I can- At last Mart spoke, in a flerce and angry | not. The situation is too perilous to think of | voice: - such a thing. ** Why, in the fiend’s name, did you run out ‘* As to Flora Florence, I have no doubt the | of our camp! Are you going mad, Rand | reds have tortured her before this, so that puts | Rogers?” an end to all our plans as far as she is con- | Still panting, his face contorted with horror, | cerned.” Rand bent his gaze at these words upon bis “Take my advice and go to sleep,” advised companion in crime in the utmost surprise and | Mart, ‘Sleep is what you need to bring you bewilderment. At length be, too, found voice. | around natural, Then you’il see clearer what “What do you mean, Mart Maxwell? I’ll ask | our chances are, and have less fear as to our you the same question. Why did you rusb | personal safety. I told you that white men from the camp, as if the ghosts of Frank | were on the trail of the Indians. If they rescue Florence and all your other victims was after | Flora, we will take her from them or die trying. ou?” ° She is our only hope, But go to sleep now, and The wretch was furious, but, realizing the | dream of success,’ folly of quarreling with the only man he knew With these words, Mart Maxwell turned on for hundreds of miles, he crushed down the | his side, and his heavy breathing soon proved feeling, and even endeavored to turn it into a | that he had acted on his own suggestion. His est. pard fought against somnolence for some time, * Rand rs, do you pretend to say that | but eventually succumbed, and both villains | you don’t know why 1 was running?” slumbered for the time. **T pretend no such absurdity. know very Searce half an hour later, Old Rocky and well that you were running to escape those in- | Will Washburne having been all this time on fernal red-skins: and you are a fool now, for | their way down Elm Fork, half a dozen Coman- lingering here. What did you jerk me to the | che braves dashed down over the west plain to- ground in that manner for! I’m all shook up.” ward their former encampment; slackening the 17 ait of their horses as they approached the tim- r, which they entered in a stealthy manner, all dismounting except one, to whom the jaw- straps of the ponies were peed. The remaining five then hastened up the stream, along the buffalo trail. When the moonlight enabled the braves to study the ia ht in the soft clay, guttural grunts of surprise were audible, and they bast- ened on over the creek toward the eastern verge of the timber, It was not long before a vengeful ejacula- tion, followed by a low bowl, came from the foremost, as the scalped spy—their comrade— met their view. They all gathered around the mutilated corpse, but it was not en that they thus stood, Soon all except one glided toward the creek again, at an order from him who remained, and began to examine every thicket and the ground wherever it was illuminated by the moon, At last, a brave came up, leading the wild snorting steed of the slain Indian, which, he bad found, where it had been secured in the dense shades. Then the corpse was lifted to the back of the animal, and. there lasbed, a most hideous and revolting load. Barely bad this been Rope, when a bird-like whistle sounded from beyon Elm Fork, which caused the two warriors to riety elas erect, and utter grunts of exultant oy. | A low order, and a number of signs to the _ other, were now given by the leader; who then sprung down the path in the direction of the stream, leaving the other to follow. He was soon brought to a halt, by a hiss from an adjacent thicket; after entering which he reappeared with one of the braves, who con- ducted him directly to the ‘* wash-out,” There, they stood for a moment, to accustom themselves to the darkness; when they per- ceived the two sleeping white men. A series of quick signs and motions were sufficient, on | making this gratifying discovery, to make the wishes of the sub-chief known to his braves, Another hiss, in the awful silence, was the signal. As it reached their ears, all bounded upon the sleeping whites; a brave grasping each, an arm of both, A yell of mortal terror burst from Mart and Rand, thus suddenly awakened; but they were jerked to their feet on the instant, and forced out into the moonlight, on the bank of Elm Fork. Here, all bewilderment was soon banished by the sight of their terrible surround- ings. an arm of each was beld, in a vise-like erp, by a hideous Comanche, their long knives glit- tering in the moon, while a fifth Indian, with drawn knife also, stood in their front, an image of the fate that awaited them, Aftey the first sudden cry of alarm, the two wretches were struck dumb, by tbe realization of their terrible position, Thus they stood, supported by the red braves; their own strength banished by their abject terror. Then, down upon them, snorting with frenzied fear, came the steed of the slain spy, with its dread burden, This sight increased the terror of Mart and Rand; and all the reckless daring of the former at once left bim. They saw that the Indians laid the slaying of their comrade at their door; and any denial or explanation would bave been useless, The Comanches now lost no time. The arms of the two men were bound behind them; and, in five minutes, the warriors were all mounted, and forcing their captives, with yells of terror and pain, into a half-run toward the Clear Fork, From the breasts of the two white miscrean all hope bad now flown. That their crimin career was near an end, neither of them for a moment doubted; but such was their deathly terror and dread, at that instantaneous trans- formation, from profound slumber and appar- ent woge to dumfounded terror and hae a that, as they were lashed on by the pa ted ik not a word did the one speak to the other, Each communed, as well he might, with his own guilty, debased self; and nothing but tor. ture, both here and hereafter, was presented to their crime-stained souls, They were setting out on the bard way, which | every transgressor, sooner or later, must travel. CHAPTER XXII, * TOILING, REJOICING, SORROWING.” Ir has been stated that Old Rocky and Will Washburne bad been half an hour on their way down Elm Fork before the Comanches entered the deserted camp and captured the ruffian per- secutors of Flora Florence. They bad proceeded about two miles in the winding buffalo-path of the Elm Fork bottom | timber, when suddenly, upon taking a sweepin glanee through the branches, the old scout cal) quickly to Will: ‘““Dang my cat’s kittens! Ef thar ain’t a leetle surprise party fer ther condemned skunks what I skeckalt nigh outen thar butes, ’m a puserlanimous pervaricator!” ‘What do you mean, friend Rocky?” inquired Will. “‘ Jist gi’n yer peepers a rove ‘long ther per- Geom Ebooks..¢ Of