Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 308 — page 5: what you’re looking at

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

ran os Tn Hemlock Hank. 5 by, and pulled them in and squeezed the water out of them. “Talk about Pamolah!” suddenly exclaimed Charley Creed. ‘ Look there, Hank!” Darkuess still sat upon the face of the water, but near the shore they saw dimly the phantom canoe which had astonished and bewildered them the night before. Charley Creed dipped his paddle in the water, and pulled with all his strength in that direction. Hank Ward did not help him by a single stroke, A form was visible in the skiff, but they could not make it out until a flash of lightning showed it pretty plainly against the dark background of the shore. “It isa man!” cried Charley. ‘ He looks like an Indian.” ‘*Old Pamolah himself, this time,” muttered Hank. Then the darkness was deeper than ever, and the next instant the phantom canve vanished as if it bad melted into the night. Charley Creed paddled close to the land and ranged along the shore, but he saw no canoe there nor any sign of a janding. All at once the clouds seemed to dro Gpoe them, and such a flood of rain fell that they were glad to turn and paddle back to camp as swiftly as 5 tea They did not reach it until they were soaking wet, and the canoe was balf-full of water, As they were drying themselves under their shelter tent, and smoking meditative pipes pre- vious to turning in, they naturally spoke of the strange events of the night. In Charley Creed’s mind the phantom canoe was uppermost. But he and Hank had different views con- -cerning it. “Tell you what, sonny,” said the latter, ** we'll have to git away from here.” “Why so?’ demanded Charley. ‘‘ Seems to me that this is as good a place to camp as we will be likely to find.” “Tain’t the camp that I’m speakin’ of. We must git away from this lake—away from this neck o’ woods. Suppose we go back and try the Mattawamkeog or the Sebois. Big, wild country eith+r way, with lots to see and to shoot.” Charley Creed stared at his companion as if he supposed him to have taken leave of his senses, ‘*Why, Hank, what's the matter with you? You talk as if you want torun away. What is there to run away from?” *Charley,” solemnly answered the guide, “‘haven’t we had warnin’s enough?” ‘*Warnings? Whatsort of warnings? About what?” ‘*Warnin’s from old Pamolah that he don’t want us bere, and that he means to drive us away. When he gits his bead set on that, we’ve got to go—or die.’ The “ee man stared harder than ever, His friend must surely be going crazy. ‘*Hank Ward, do you really mean to tell me that you actually believe all that stuff and non- sense about the Indian god and his squaw? Are ou really under the impression that we have been seeing spooks?” ‘** Now, Charley,” slowly answered the guide, as he fidgeted about, ‘‘it is hard fora man to tell what he oe believes or don’t believe about anythin’ but hard facts. There’s lots of tales about sperrits and spooks and sech, and about signs and wonders, that a many folks be- lieve in solid. For my part, whether I act’ally believe in’em or not, I don’t like to go ag’in’ ’em. When one of the signs or warnin’s that are told about comes to me, I think it is best to be on the safe side and mind it.” “I'll be shot, Hank Ward, if I understand you. Please tell me plainly what you mean, and what signs and warnings we bave had.” “We all know, Charley—leastways, all the jumbermen and te know it—that old Katah- din beats all creation for storms, and that they are the allfiredest, outtearin’est storms that this part of the kentry can show, There must be a reason for the old hillock’s cantankerous con- duct, and the Injuns give us their reason. Who is to say that they ain’t right? They’ve been here longer than we have, and know more about the mounting than we know, ‘As for signs and warnin’s, they have been ‘plain enough, and have come hot and heavy. ** Last night we saw a spook of a woman ina canoe. A raal woman in a ginooine canoe couldn’t have got away like that outfit did. That was a gentle bint to us to clear out. _ didn’t mind it, and this mornin’ a bear gobbled _ our canoe and sailed away with it.” Charley Creed could no longer restrain his laughter. **Do you mean to say, Hank, that the bear was sent to us by Pamolah?” ‘‘No tellin’,” ambiguously answered the de, ‘* Like as not it was.” ~ Then he has lost a bear, and bad luck to m. , **To-night,” continued Hank, “* we were picked 2 by a storm, and sech a storm! I wonder it didn’t snatch us into kingdom come. As if that wasn’t warnino’ enough, we saw the spook ag’in.” Wel ** Another spook,” suggested Charley. ** Mebbe it Seal tet spook this OF Like as not it was old Pamolah bimself.” “You have hit it!” exclaimed ae be | believe you now. That is just what it was, And I mean to hunt the old scoundrel by day- light to-morrow, and run him down, and make bim repent his bad behavior. That’s enough now, Hank. I am going to sleep.” CHAPTER VI. ’ HUNTING THE SPOOK, CHARLEY CREED'S defiant declaration before he turned in bad dazed his companion some- what; but it was not likely that the guide was worried about it in his dreams, In the morning, however, it was repeated and emphasized, After breakfast Hemlock Hank reiterated his opinion that they vopnt to abandon that part of the country; but Charley resolutely declared that he would do nothing of the kind. “If you want to run away, old man,” said he, ‘you can go. I shall be sorry to part from you; but you can’t take me with you, Here I stay until I investigate that canoe business, and run down that s : Hank Ward fidgeted and frowned. **Now, Charley,” he pleaded, “you don’t raally mean to go ag’inst me like that.” “TD do, though, and my heart is as hard as flint. I amas solid in this matter as old Katah- din, and as cantankerous as Pamolah himself.” Hemlock Hank endeavored to accomplish by the use of his authority what was evidently be- yond the reach of his arguments. ‘You know, sonny, that it was settled be- tween us that I am the captain of this craft,” *That’s right. You are the captain when the craft is in commission; but [am the owner and bave aright to say what voyage she shall make. Tam the crew, too, and 1 give you fair warning that on this question the crew is liable to desert, Come, Hank; tbhere’s no use talking; lam going to start out this morning, and mean to search the lake, and all about it, until I find that canoe and run down that spook.” '“ What shall I say to your father, my buoy, when I go home without you?” It was Charley’s turn to plead now, and his ee at: even more sorrowful tban that of his riend, **Please, old man, don’t speak in that way. Honest, now, do you really think you could leave me? Why, you dear old chap, you know that I would pine away and grieve myself to death if you were gone, You could never have the heart to go home without me.” There were actually tears in the young man’s ha and even the rough visage of Hemlock seer bon signs of yielding to the melting mood. ‘*Give me to-day, Hank,” pleaded Charle again—** oan Age day! Let me take one loo around the lake, and then [ will go wherever you say.” What could the guide do but es ‘Jest like you, Charley Creed,” said he. ‘* Allus wantin’ to run your head ag’inst some stun wall or another, and crazy if anybody tries to bold you back.” ‘*Tt is my own head,” suggested Charley. “But it bas been putin my care. Git your traps ready, my boy, and [ll go with you, so Heat if you git swallered up, I'll be swallered, Charley was decidedly of the opinion that there was no danger of being swallowed; but he did not say so. He had gained so much that he felt in honor se to conform to the prejudices of his riend, They took their rifles and a lunch, and folded up the shelter-tent and put it in the canoe, All their other belongogs were cached to ron them out of the reach of the forest depreda- ors, It was nearly noon when they started, and the day was bright and beautiful. -he lake was like a mirror, and the islands were like gems upon its shining surface, and the shores were lovely with the variegated tints of pss ait ibd 4s arley perceived with surprise and pleasure that when they were fairly under way bis friend’s demeanor changed quickly and con- siderably Hank no longer frowned, or uttered dismal forebodings, or spoke of Pamolah or the spooks; nor did he make any reference to bis recent project of running away. Indeed, he seemed to take a lively interest in the expedition, and was as bright and cheery as a boy at Pe pe Re Though Charley was agreeably surprised at this change, he made no mention of it, for fear that he might break the charm. He had a suspicion, too, tbat bis friend’s pleasant demeanor might be assumed for the purpose of covering some plan to cheat him out of his search for the spook. The young man had not failed to notice the fact that each time the phantom canoe vanished it ye oak at about the same spot as regard- ed the shore of the lake, | That spot, therefore, was the one which he determined should have the first and the most careful inspection. . At that point, as near as he could ‘locate it, and for some distance on each side of it, the shore was heavily overgrown with a tangled mass of bushes. - The lake-side of the bushes was marshy and covered with arank growth of reeds and rushes, beyond which abundant lily-pads extended for some distance into the water. But there was one spot where the lily-pads were less numerous, and where the reeds and rushes were more scattering. At that point, too, there seemed to be a gentle current flowing into the lake. Here the canoe was halted, and Charley in- spected the spot closely. He perceived that some of the reeds were bent, and others broken, as if by the passage of something through and over them. He was sure that be was on the track of the phantom canoe. “There is a stream that comes out here, Hank,” he said. ‘‘ We will get into it and see what it looks like.” “All right, my boy. Stand by to part the bushes, and I will 'tend to the paddlin’, Charley may have distrusted his friend’s alacrity; but there was no discount on the style in which the canoe was sent straight ahead and at a good rate of speed, through the lily-pads and the reeds, right where the water was deepest. The young man bad as much as he could do to clear a way through the bushes that hung over the stream and hid it. For it was a stream, as was plain enough to them when hey had pushed through the tangle —a stream sufficiently broad and deep to float their canoe, It flowed through flat and heavily-timbered land, each side bordered by a rank growth of ‘bushes, and the voyagers saw there no sign of any canoe but their own, ‘What are you going to do now?” inquired Hank. ‘*Going straight ahead,” answered Charley. Aipaight ahead they did go—that is to say, in as straight a course as the windings of the stream would permit, though in places it was so narrow that it was no easy matter to shove the canoe ahead, Still it passed through the same Beary tim- ber, and still its low banks were lined thichly with bushes, which Charley Creed scrutinized carefully as they passed, but saw no further sign of the presence or passage of the phantom canoe, Thus they voyaged, as they judged, fully two miles, and the stream grew no narrower or shal- lower, and there was nothing to prevent their going abead, until they came in sight of a spur of the great mountain. It loomed up before them suddenly, baving been hid by the Sey: timber, and in a few minutes they reached it. Then they discovered that there was no longer any passage for their. boat, as at that point the es made a considerable fall over the rocks, There, if anywhere, the phantom canoe was to be found, unless it had been carried away, | As the light craft touched the shore near the foot of the rapids, Charley Creed u.tered a cry of joy and leaped out on the land. e pointed triumphantly at the print of a foot on the soft earth there. It was the print of a moccasin, but of a moc- casin that had covered a small foot, , “Injuns!” muttered Hemlock Hark, . “Tt is the footprint of the spook:” exclaimed Charley. pom, Before them was a wall of rock, at the foot of which was a ig A arts of bushes. As Charley lifted the bushes and locked among them, he uttered another cry of joy. ““Tve found her!" he exclaimed. .. ‘What! No!” shou‘ed Hank, in tones of dis- may. : ) Rot the spook, but the canoe. Here it is.” They did not pull it out, but examined it as it lay there in its place of concealment, t was a birch bark canoe made in the Indian fasbion, and very well made, evidently by an Indian—very light, but at the same time quite strong. At ebtion paddle lay in it, and that was all. No—there was something else, A small sometbing, but sufficient to give a clew to the ownersbip of the craft. It was a bit of figured muslin, evidently torn from a dress of that material, Charley put it in his pocket after he had closely examined it. Then he sat down on a stone by the water and lighted bis pipe. 7 t are you going to do now?” inquired Hank. “Going to camp right here until I see the spook,” ‘* Suppose old Pamolah should fling the moun- tain down on you?” Y oe “Then I would stay here, because I couldn’t get away. You see, Hank, I am convinced that sid spook is a woman, because the footprint I ound is that of a woman’s foot. She is white, ll — ee Ee ee eee — ee ee ee ee ee eee ee MUCLOOOKS (E(@) G (0)