Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 292 — page 14: what you’re looking at

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

ry 4 . + i ”) ~?. -mon slung-shot, and 14 arena was pronounced in readiness for the glad- iators by the mate. ahead over the muddy, turbulent, swiftly flow- ing water, showing the many floating objects which told of such widespread ruin and desola- | tion which was yet to be passed. Purty Paddy was the first to enter the imag- inary ring, stripped to his shoes and coarse overalls. His closely-cropped head, seamed with scars and cuts, showed the very ideal of a tough scrapper, and from the narrow space between and each side of the buge smoke-stacks, came the sounds of eager offers to bet at odds on the white. In very few cases these offers were closed with, but the majority preferred waiting for a sight of the other man before placing their money. They were not long in suspense, Moke Hor- ner, stripped to the waist, his skin shining like freshly-oiled ebony, his muscles working like tempered steel with his slightest motion, bis magnificent torso forming a strong contrast to the thick-set body of bis rival, Jeaped lightly forward into the full glow of the fire-crates, He doffed his battered felt hat, making a sweep- ing bow to the gentlemen above, before casting the dilapidated head-covering into the facs of fat zeny, uttering a mellow, rollicking laugh as the yellow boy started back, tripping over a mischievous foot and coming down on his beam- ends with a tremendous jar and sonorous grunt! One breathless stare from the eager eyes above, during which the sports took in each de- tail with practiced skill, then the betting began afresh in the upper regions, the odds now equal- ized and the ubolce varying rapidly from one to the other of the gladiators, Below, the speculation was even more ardent, though conducted on a more moderate scale, The crew of roustabouts was about evenly di- vided as to numbers between black and white, and each section backed the representative of their own race. Money and personal property, even to the clothes on their backs and the shoes on their feet were recklessly wagered during the few moments consumed by Mate Devlin in cautioning the rival roustabouts, “You two fellows wanted a fight, and now hehe going to get your fill. e can’t waste ime in making a landing for any such small matter, por are we prepared here to make a regulation ring, One of you is going to get whipped enough to keep quiet for the rest of the trip, and as the shortest method of getting to that end, you can go in rough-and-tumble if you like—only mind; no foul play! Tl crack the skull of the one who tries to make use of other weapons than those nature armed you witb, You understand?” “Thin it’s a bloody scramble ye’re wantin’, mate, dear?’ asked Purty Paddy, looking a little bit disappointed, “Why not give the gintle- min the worth ov their money, by sthickin’ to the good ould rules? Not that it’s Purty Paddy pat ater av ye think the scramble is the bet- er “T eat him an’ he rules too, marse mate,” grinned the ebony athlete, ‘Bes’ say de wu'd pow’ful hasty, boss, or de po’ debble git so mighty bad skeer he melt an’ yun down in he ole shoe—he des will!” “Four to three, in hundreds, on the black y!’ cried outa clear voice from the guards _ above, and Purty Paddy started as though he had received a stinging blow, his little eyes dis- tended to their utmost capacity as he glared at the dimly-visible faces above. Was it only fancy, or had he heard that voice before? Was it only an echo from the black past, or had—bab! He lowered his staring eyes, shaking his head like an angry bull as he drove the chilling doubt away. ‘* With knife or pistol, in the dark, and attack- ing a man who suspects no such peril, l’d back the white thug; but give the black boy a com- e would get away with the Irishman and another just like him!” came that clear and cold voice from the upper regions. It was a curious speech for a person to make under the existing circumstances, and probably there were not more than three or four persons within earshot at that moment who had a clew to the enigma. One of these most clearly was Purty Paddy, for his stocky form shook as though under a violent chill, and he glared a- round him as though about to seek safety in flight from some dreaded enemy. ndeed, so plain was his discomposure that one of the sports who had wagered bis money freely upon him against the black athlete, utter- ed a curse of angry disgust as he glared around in quest of the man who uttered the words, ‘Fair play, gentlemen! fair play is all we ask for the little man, and that no gentleman will refuse us!” The sharp emphasis pointed his meaning, but there came no answer. If not frightened off, the mysterious speaker evidently believed he had scored the desired point, “Get down to it, you rascals!” suddenly cried the mate. Active as a cat, Moke Horner leaped to the middle of the cleared space, throwing himself in- toa position with a freedom and grace that proved bim no novice in the then highly esteem- ed art of manly defense, ¢ wal Like a war-horse scenting battle, Purty Paddy The red glare streamed far | seemed to cast aside all other thoughts but how to dispose of his tallrival in the neatest and surest manner. On his hard-favored mug was the stereotyped grin with which he invariably began his battles, and it is a characteristic fact of others besides Paddy, that he never liked a man better than when facing him in a fair fight. While both were confident of ultimate success, each seemed to feel that there was hard work and harder knocks ahead, and they sparred for some little time, busied in taking notes. Moke Horner was the first to lead off, shooting out his left at the grinning mug before him, which Purty Paddy avoided by a sudden duck, then rising and shooting out his famous ‘doa- ble,” after the style which later made Tom Sayers so formidable an antagonist. Vith nine men out of ten, Purty Paddy would bave succeeded in gaining his point, which would almost certainly have ended the fight in his favor ere Many more rounds, bul not so with the eagle- eyed negro. Just as he had once that night foil- ed those vicious cuts, so now Moke eluded the blows and sent out his heavy right in counter- ing. Temporarily without a guard, Purty Paddy could only jerk back his head, which he lost no time in doin , though unable to wholly elude the stroke, it alighted on his chin, with a sharp crack that sent a cold chill over more than one of the spectators, for it seemed as though the jaw bone had given way. Purty Paddy leaped back to keep from fall- ing, and Moke swiftly followed up his advan- tage, raining in heavy blows that would almcst any of them have put to sleep an ordinary man, But the Irishman was tough as a pine-knot, and though he received severe punishment before he could perfect his guard, he at length managed to do this, and for the first time his bony fist visited the face of his rival, It was a nasty blow, and a little trickle of blood followed it, Swiftly the white followed up his advantage, and in his turn Moke Horner was forced to give ground, Then, as though finding himself outdone in ure science, the Boss Roustabout ducked his ,ead and impetuously rushed toaclose. Fierce- ly Purty Paddy struck out, one fist seeking the victualing department while the other came in a vicious Peper out that would have knocked the life out of any common man, As it was, the low raised the head of the negro to an upright ition, and then, their arms intertwining, heir tempered muscles swelling and straining, they reeled to and fro in a fierce strnggle for the fall. The excitement among the spectators was now intense, So far the ‘‘sport” had been of a far higher order than any of them had anticipated from two roustabouts and under no regular rules of fighting. Each man had shown no mean degree of skill, while for such a brief space, both proved themselves as willing to take punishment as to inflict it. For full a minute that fierce struggle lasted, then the taller black fairly lifted the white clear of the deck, whirling his feet upward, then casting him with deadly force to the deck, head-foremost. ‘‘ Broke his neck, by the eternal!” cried one ex- cited man. But Purty Paddy was of better and tougber stuff than all that came to, and to the astonish- ment of all, none more so than the Boss Roust- about, he rolled swiftly over, then scrambled to bis feet with hands up guarding his face! ‘*A pity such a gritty rascal is doomed to pull bemp!” Sharp and cutting came the words from above, and in the same tones that had so start- led Paddy before, Mechanically he glanced up- ward, and then a wild yell of terror escaped his lips as be dropped his bands and turned to flee, “ Tt’s the divil! It’s the ghost av the did mon comin’ afther me—whirroo!” he screamed, then plunged headlong gver the edge of the boat, disappearing in the mad waters! CHAPTER XII, GROPING IN THE DARK, WHILE the rival roustabouts were preparing to settle their dispute once for all by an appeai to nature’s weapons, other events were taking lace on the hurricane deck of the Water Witch n which some of our characters were deeply in- terested. To explain their exact purport, it is necessary to take a brief retrospective glance, buck a few weeks in time, and some hundreds of miles in distance. When Horace Ward dismissed his very un- welcome visitors on thateventful day, there was scarcely the ghost of a-hope left in his troubled mind. The story told by Shaky Joe was so cir- cumstantial, so straightforward, so well fortified by proofs apparently covering every point, that it was enough in itself to breed serious doubts as to the innocence of Marcus Dingeon, even had the young lawyer manfully confronted his ac- cuser and asserted parent, But this he had not done. After having pledged bis sacred parole, he had broken it without even sending a mes- sage in excuse. bis conduct left only two evils to choose from: either Mar¢us Dingeon was really the rr a es illlsesnssssensmenensentennenss enema -aeestipemees os mss nun semis oa Moke Horner, the Boss Roustabout. — echerping. traitor Shaky Joe so_ positively charged him with being, or else there had been a merciless crime committed the more perfectly to conceal dastardly plotting. Poor Drusilla, stricken down with what promised to become a dangerous spell of brain fever, but who was truly loyal even in her wild- est delirium, clung to the last terrible alterna- tive, moaning or sbrieking in fancy over tbe ghastly corpse of ber murdered lover. Horace Ward would almost certainly have taken this view of the young Jawyer’s absence at such an important crisis, had it not been for the apearance of the woman who claimed to be the wife of Marcus Dingeon. Though an bon- est, God-fearing man himself, the merchant was no novice in city life behind the scenes. He knew that many men babitually led a double life; that cases had been known where a man had kept two establishments in the same city, each one provided with a wife and family of children, between whom he divided his time so nicely and played his part so perfectly that neither wife so much as suspected him of the slightest infidelity, much less of such wonderful duplicity as this. nowing all this, Horace Ward could readily understand how it might be that Marcus Din- geon bad been married almost a year without that important fact peeoraing general proper- ty: yet it did not seem possible that he could have been so thoroughly deceived in the young lawyer. A conscienceless schemer like this, where he had believed naught but the very soul of honor was to be found! It was simply impossible, and he mentally vowed to believe it only when proof was piled on proof, and the smallest atom of doubt was crushed beneath the damning evidence, When he dismissed bis unwelcome guests, with the wild laugh and hysterical cries of his loved daughter ringing in their ears while cross- ing the threshold, Horace Ward told himself this, resolving to set out at once in quest of the missing man; but when he stood beside his moaning deughter, and acy tremblingly into the very grave face of their family physician, he forgot all else but the deadly peril which threatened his one ebild. For one full week be acerca, left her bedside, night nor day, as though his mere presence could frighten back the grim angel of death without its lovely prey. For seven long days and weary nights, he sat beside her, listening to the piteous appeals which she sent up—not that her lover might clear himself from the damning charges which had been brought forward against him, but that the deadly weapons of the cowardly assassins might be turned aside by the band of the Lord.» * 7s" But then came théturn in the tide, and with tears dimming bis old eyes, the doctor bade the haggard parents hope—that their daughter was restored to them, even from tbe jaws of death} Until then Mrs. Ward had fought against her own illness, but now her fictitious powers ab- ruptly failed her, and instead of one, the doctor had two seriously-ill patients on bis hands, It was nearly another week before Drusilla gained sufficient strength to speak of the sad past, but her first words were of Marcus Din- eon dead, not living; she asked if the body ad yet been discovered? It was in vain that Horace Ward endeavored to remove this belief. If he bad not come for- ward to face the base calumniators, and crush their foul lies with the power of truth and in- nocence, then it was because they had ruth- lessly murdered him before striking their crue} blows at her heart. Searce knowing what to think, Horace Ward set out on his blind search, endeavoring to solve the black mystery which overhung the case, No one could tell bim anything of Marcus Dingeono. He had not returned té bis od 34 after be left_them to attend the birth-night party at the Ward mansion, No one had seen him in or near bis office since that same event- ful day. He had vanished as completely as though the earth bad opened to swallow him up ¥ as a human sacrifice. One whole day Horace Ward spent in ques- tioning those with whom Marcus Dingeon had associated most intimately, putting his ques- tions as guardedly as possible, but when night came, it was only to find him _wearied and still more completely befogged. On the second day, he obtained what at first he regarded as a gleam of hope—not that Marcus Dingeon was true, but that he had not met with the terrible death to often pictured by Drusilla in her wild delirium, One Gideon Gillespie, a gay and dashing gen- tleman about town, and a former very ardent suitor for the band of his daughter, told Horace Ward that he had caught a glimpse of a man, shortly after the ball, on board a coaster which was just leaving the wharf, bound for New York; and that man he was ready to take oatb, was none Other than the missing lawyer. Nor could the closest pe shake his confidence, though he frankly admitted that the glimpse was brief, and that the man was evidently in disguise. Wearily Horace Ward turned to the police, and then sought for Shaky Joe. He found that his check had been cashed, early on the day it ; ‘ V00! a cS Gi od COHN) — — oe ee a ee oe ii ae