Beadle's Dime Library No. 309 — page 10: what you’re looking at

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

~~ 10 ——= —— —7 = ee = = _ Raybold, the Rattling Ranger. Suddenly Old Rocky became aware of the ‘presence of a moving object in the huge rocky rent in whicb be wus. He was conscious of some crawling thing being near him—sometbhing that was dragging over the stones like a serpent—and soon he located the sounds, They came from the rear of the bowlder, beside which he sat; and he stole stealthily around the same, peeping up the gorge-like rent in the range. Even the old scout, so long accustomed to strange, and startling, and bloody scenes, stared in open mouthed amazement, more from the strange and unaccountable presence of a human being in such a condition, and in such a place, than from the horrible state of the object it- self, which bore but a faint resemblance to humanity, especially in the position in which it now advanced, lt was an Indian brave, in war-paint; but little of paint or skin was visible, all being covered with blood. His long hair was_ be- draggled and tangled, his leggins were torn by the rocks, and he crawled slowly and trem- blin ly along the rocky bed of the gulch; his ak wed, and his gaze—if indeed his eyes were open—fixed upon the rocks, over which he made bis slow and painful wae A more horrid and wretched-looking object could not well be imagined. It was plain. from the vermilioned head of the savage, half of the same being clear of hair, that he was a Comanche. This Old Rocky well knew, as well as by other plain paint marks, The old scout knew more than this. This was one of Big Foot’s marauders, If any doubts remained in Old Rocky’s mind, in regard to there being a war-party near at hand, they were removed at once. He knew that the red raiders of the Comanche chief were in the vicinity, and that the train was in great danger. Still more than this he knew, and that was, that one of the abductors of Pearl Pemberton was before him—a victim to the knife of Ray- bold, the Ranger! These two conclusions perfectly dumfounded the old scout, for the reason that it was his duty at once to return, and warn the people of the train to pranare for defense, or death would come to all! The sun was half below the horizon line, ’ and it would be useless now to search for Ray- bold and Pearl—who, if the latter had been rescued, were now safe—while the train was in great-peril. He would finish the Indian—put him out of misery—and then rush over the plain, Thus Old Rocky decided, and clutched his knife; but, at that very instant, loud ‘echoing through the timber beyond the river, rung the awful war-whoops of the Comanches! For a moment, the old scout paused, trem- bling, and then cried out: — “Great Master, fergive Old Rocky fer hang- in’ ’round hyer, when yer warned me thet hellishness war in ther air ’round San Saba!” Thinking not again of the wounded Indian, the old scout rushed madly, at the risk of life and limb, down tbe rough cliff-side, in search of his horse. _ ; CHAPTER XI. THE HORRORS OF THE CAVE. We will now return to the ranchero, whom we left senseless, near to the corpse of the Co- mauche who had felled him. Fora long time the colonel was happily oblivious to the over- whelming misery which had reached its climax when he saw the Indian strike his son to the earth, at the very moment that the brave boy had saved bis father’s life. He had been paralyzed by his own nearness to death, and the shooting of his would-be mur- derer, and then upon recognizing his son as bis preserver. Powerless to move a limb, he had seen Paul stricken down by a red raider; and then, when the Indian bad clutched the senseless youth and disappeared in the undergrowth, utterly over- whelmed, and believing himself forsaken of Heaven, he fell senseless with a heart-rending groan. Certainly the cross was a heavy one for even a strong man to bear. Both his darlings, all he had on earth to love, Synerens to a death too horrible to even think of, He was now left alone in the world, and through bis own stubbornness, by not heeding the advice of those who knew better than he the dangers on the San Saba, Not until just before the arrival of the train at the cove, did Colonel Pemberton revive, heavy groans mark- ing his recovery. e opened his eyes, saw the arch of verdure overhead, and realized that be Jay upon the ground. Then, in the utmost bewilderment, be sprung toa sitting posture and gazed wildly upon bis surroundings, but not comprehending his position, condition, or the events just past. And not until hesaw the hideous paint.daubed brave near him—did the truth—the awful truth dawn upon him! i OO ——— Then, not a sound left his pallid lips, as he arose and stood erect, but stiffly. His eyes were glassy, and set with a strange and unnatural stare; bis teeth were clinched tightly, and his features drawn with an agony of soul that was painful to witness, Looking neither to the right nor to the left, he strode toward the river at the same point where he had crossed and recrossed. Soon he reached the bank and without hesitation walked directly into the waters, and waded across in the same unnatural manner. Reaching the opposite bank, he halted where the boof-prints of Pearl’s horse, which he so well knew, had left plain trail in the soft earth. Here he threw himself upon the ground, and the tears streamed from his eyes, thus giving vent to his anguish of ‘svul. In a moment he arose erect, raising his eyes and clinched hand skyward; then, in a strange and unnatural, deep and hoarse voice, and filled with the concentrated agony within him, he cried out: ‘Give me back, oh, give me back my lost darlings! Let not those red fiends tear them from my very heart and soul! Nerve my brain and arm, oh, merciful Heaven, to rescue or avenge my children, or else lead me on to death!” After this impassioned supplication, the col- onel resumed his former strange look and man- ner, as if the terrible load that had moment- arily been removed, had again fallen upon him. Ho strode directly to the spot where Old Roeky bad left his faithful steed—a horse without which the old scout was-almost liter- ally lost. oosing the neck-rope from the tree, Colonel Pemberton vaulted into the saddle, and turned the beast toward and into the ford. >on he reached the south bank again, when he spurred up the river and through the undergrowth, at the greatest speed possible under the circum- stances of the situation. Evidently the colonel had, by bis great agony of mind, conceived the idea that the Indian, who had dashed up the river with Paul, was one of the party who had captured Pearl, and that he would join that party which had cross- ed the stream, leaving the ranger and the old scout to blunder about the cliffs on the north ank. Colonel Pemberton, although reasoning plaus- ibly, was none the less a madman. His only aim was to rescue his children or to avenge them, and in the attempt probably make sure of his own death, thus relieving the terrible torture that now turned his brain seemingly to seething moiten lead, He came to the conclusion that the camp of the red foe was up the river, that there he would find his darlings, and there he would go! We will thus leave him on this mad gallop, tearing through the undergrowth and tearing himself by the wild rush through the thickets. All thoughts of the wagon-train and bis friends were banished from his mind. He had but one set purpose. Long lay both Rattler and Pearl in the cave, as devoid of ail life, seemingly, as the corpses beside them. The first of all to show evidence of recovery, which became to all appearance but partial, was Black F'ox—the young brave who had carried intelligence in regard to the coming of the train to Big Foot, and who had been honored, most unhappily for himself and others under him, by being sent to capture the stragglers from the wagon-train. The torch of resinous pine still burned in the inner cave-chamber, where lay the béautiful Pearl Pemberton beside the blood and paint- smeared Comanche, whom the band of death had prevented from strangling the fair maiden. Pearl lay with hands clasped, her face the pallor of death and her lips apart showing her small, pearly teeth. The expression on her face seemed to denote that a partial consciousness had for a time returned to her, but now all was again oblivion. A horrible scene was that cave in the sickly light of the torch, the flame of which flared, its Tight becoming now bright and now dim, playing upon the pools of blood and on the ghastly and soulless eyes of the prostrate Co- manche braves, Outside, in the winding passage, a partial darkness prevailed, the light from the entrance being dim on account of the windings and blending with that of the torch. There lay Rattler, the Ranger, his head bruised and gore- stained from the blow of the tomahawk, and his face appearing more pallid from contrast with the blood. His three victims lay but a short distance from him, in the darker portion of the passage; the fourth being near Pearl, as described. __ But one of these braves, who had fought like a panther, was now, as has been said, showing signs of recovery. This was Black Fox, whose desire for the eagle-feathers of 4 warrior, and for renown and honor ia his tribe, was the ruling passion of his life; and he seemed now to combat death with unnatural and superhuman sirength of will, for eS Eo EEE ee —— a terrible wound was in his painted breast, and the pool of blood by bis side appeared as though it must contain all the life-current of bis frome. Cat-like in tenacity of life seemed Black Fox. His limbs twitched spasmodically, his eyes gave evidence of some slight working of the mind, and his lips moved. But a few moments thus; then he squirmed and writhed, serpent-like, and raised himself to a sitting posture by the aid of bis arms, slowly and painfully, but no groan manifested the agony he must have suffered. The fortitude to which he had been schooled was not forgotten, even in bis half-conscious state, and when the deatblike silence which ruled the cavern must have caused him to think himself alone. | His body, bent forward with weakness, was upbeld only by the bracing of his trembling arms; while down his breast, from his gaping wound, still ran tiny streams of blood, Neither to one side nor the other gazed Black Fox; bis lusterless eyes being fixed upon tne pao! of his own gore, as he had writhed beyond is former position. Gazing on that blood, there came from his lips, in low and strange guttural tones, a monotonous chant—his death- song—sounding weird and unearthly in tho cavern. It was evident that Black Fox retained suffi- cient reasoning powers to decide that he was still upon earth; that bis spirit had not flown, but it soon must start on the long dark trail. Little of prowess, or deeds of war—and these make up the death-song of a brave—had the youn omanche to recount; and this seemed to strike and fire him with the thought that he had, as yet, not a scalp to pass bim within the portals of the happy bunting-grounds, Bracing up for the first time, he gazed around him, and only after some moments did he show evidences that his sight still remained, Then his eyes glittered with an approach to the old luster, a demoniac and triumphant expression was shown upon bis brutal blood-stained face; while, from bis lips, in a superbuman effort to throw all his strength into an attempt at a natural volume of articulation, burst the war- whoop of his tribe, in horrible intonation. The eyes of Black Fox had fastened upon the outstretched form of Rattler, tbe Ranger; and instantly the Comanche became endued with enough remaining life and strength to get upon his hands and knees, and craw! to the side of his fallen foe, Here was a scalp—the scalp of a noted enemy “79 prize, a trophy, that would make an item in his death-song, and pass him beyond the moon, to the bright and wide valley, where the grass is ever green, the rivers never run dry, game is plen ae , and where mustangs are as fleet as the wince Bat his attempt proved futile, Black Fox could not sustain bimself in a sitting posture, without the use of both arms to brace him; and this gave him no chance to use his knife, which now fell from his nerveless hand. Then he lay down, and strove to tear the scalp from the head of the young ranger, clutching his hair with one hand, and circling bis knife with the other; but the point of the blade only described serrated circles in the air, and finally fell with a clang on the further side of the senseless Texan, At this moment, a low moan sounded from the cave-chamber, It was poor Pear] Pember- ton; and with every effort that he could com- mand, Black Fox worked himself around on-the other side of Rattler, placed his feet against the ranger’s body, and bracing himself, rolled it into the deeper darkness, away from the en- trance. The Comanche evidently expected to gain strength sufficient to scalp bis erf#my, after a little lapse of time; and he feared, by the groan, that there was some one in the cave- chamber who would deprive him of the coveted trophy. The effort foreed the wounded brave to re- main quiet for a few moments, Then he re- gained his knife, placed the blade between bis teeth, and crawled to the entrance of the cave- chamber. . But while this was transpiring, we must see what was going on within the cavern. The low moan which the Comanche had heard was the first indication of the return to consciousness Of the much-wronged Pearl of the Prairie, She opened her eyes, and the rough rock roof of the cave met her view, illumined by the flickering torch, Not a vestige of color was in the fair girl's face, her clothing was torn, and her wealth of silky hair disheveled. Thus she presented a pipbnre that would bave melted a heart of int. ; Shaddouig with horror at the sights that surrounded her, Pearl grasped the torch, and a forward toward the arched entrance. pool of blood lay before her, but the young ranger was nowhere to be seen! At once she resolved that she would find a way out of the cave, into the light of Heaven. She reed not seek for Rattler, for all search would bein vain. He had not left the cavern in life, He would never have deserted ber, He EOMmIiIGDoOoks — so « ‘s As PsEy 1 mw ™“s > “ 5h ee