Beadle's Dime Library No. 309 — page 20: what you’re looking at

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20 He was filled with amazement. Sbe was the same white squaw that he had seen in the cave in the cliff. All around hiin lay the dead—his brother Apraves, None attempted to take the sombrero from his bead, knowing that Black Fox must bave warded off death, to bring it to camp. All bad exchanged significant glances at each other, as soon as the hat bad been recognized; each thrusting bis fore-finger forward, and imi- tating the crawling of a serpent—the sign of the Snake Indians, though used by but a branch of that tribe, the most vorthern at the time of which we write. « Big Foot waited uotil Black Fox had, as he thought become able to speak. Then the chief thus addressed him: ‘‘Biack Fox wear the head-dress of Rattler, the Ranger, and has felt diablo Texano’s knife. W here is be?” ‘‘ Rattler lies in bole in rocks, over San Saba. Black Fox’s tomabawk brought our enemy to the rocks. But his hand was weak, he could mot bring scalp.” A tremendous and exultant yell burst from ‘the group of warriors simultaneously, at this ‘announcement, in which Big Foot joined. ‘‘ Where young braves?” asked the chief. ‘““Some in gulch, some-in hole in rock—all gone on long dark trail. Black Fox soon go. See”—pointing feebly upward—‘‘spirits of Black Fox’s fatbers in air. Whisper in Black Fox’s ear. Black Fox must go.” With these words, the young brave began to chant, in low, feeble, and monotonous tones, his death-song; Big Foot then removing the som- ‘rero, and casting it to the earth, with a scowl of most fiendish hate. All folded their arms, and listened to Black Fox with solemn attention. The young brave’s death-cbhant was brief, but he me ely panera it by frequent pauses, is deeds of war bad been few, Suddenly he ceased, and, gathering all the strength that remained in his weak frame, he sprung erect. For a moment be stood thus, with scalping- knife circling about his hideous head. Then the war-cry burst from his lips, closely follow- ed by the death-yell; a gush of blood starting from his breast, as he sprung into the air, and then fell dead, beside the circle of bis fallen comrade braves! As an echo to the death-cry of Black Fox, there rung, loud, free, and taunting, through the bottom-timber, the defiant whoop of Turtle, the ‘Tonkaway. Guttural ‘‘ughs” and ‘‘ waughs” of frantic rage issued from every Comanche throat, as they gripped their weapons more tightly. Vet, what could they dc? Not a brave who entered the timber had re- ‘turned. ‘‘ Let so many "—holding up six fingers ex- ‘tended—‘ of my braves go for scalp of Rattler. Bring bere the ranger. We will wash our hands in his blood. Take bows, take lance. “It is good. Let the Tonkaway dog bark. Keep your ears on your beads. Big Foot has spoken.” Instantly the designated number of warriors darted down the track of the stampede, in the direction of the ford, CHAPTER XXIII. PREPARING FOR THE TORTURE. RATTLER, the Ranger, was the first to return to Paul Pemberton in the tree, Old Rocky, how- ever, soon following. Rattler did not appear to Paul to be the same person whom he had first met three months ago, The terrible events of the past few hours, the agony of soul, that the sight of the wronged and unconscious maiden and the tortured team- ters had seemed to bave banished all the cheery, free, and open speech and manner which were characteristic of him, There was a deep longing for revenge, min- led with his deathly anguish, frozen upon bis andsome face that to one who had known him previously was too plainly apparent. He seemed to have aged years in an evening. As a matter of course, Old Rocky could not feel such deep anguish as either of his pards; but the old man was racked to the inmost soul at the situation of affairs. Yet be knew that to express his feelings or, indeed, in any way to show the same upon his face or in his manner would but render the po- sition of matters much worse, by causing all, himself included, to be less capable of the plans and action that were necessary to the trying occasion, ‘‘Double me up an’ dang my palpertator, narves, an’ gin’ral systematics, ef things ain’t workin’ jabous fer ther cantankerous cusses all ?roun’! ‘* Rattler, sbake! Paul, shake! We-uns hes salerwated three more o’ ther heilyuns, an’ I never did feel quite so chuck-full o’ glad ter hear ther yell of a ole pard, when needed, es ter hear ther Tonk spit music! Didn’t yer bear him, Rattler?’ ** Yes, old pard; I heard him, and I am as really the Comanches, | rejoiced as a man can be under the circum- stances. ‘‘ But even if Turtle is here, what in Heaven’s | Old | Rocky, | believe I shall go stark, raving mad, | name can we do to rescue that poor girl? it I have to look upon teat scene much lon- er!’ ‘Then don’t yer gaze thet-a-way, Rattler, fer hit’ll ruinate everythin’, cf yer gits lunified. Yer’ll lose yer own ha’r, an’ I can’t take keer 0’ yer, an’ make ther leastest fiicker toward git- Lin’ purty Pearl out’n ther fix she’s in. ‘*T opine poor Bud an’ Jim air gone coons. I doesn’t jist ‘zactly see how we-uns kin snatch ’em from tortur’. Ther bestest we kin do, ef ther painted piruts starts on ther big tortur’ biz, air ter put’em outen the’r misery with a blue whistler; though hit’s resky, an’ goes hefty ag’in’ ther grain. ‘One thing ’m dead sure on, an’ thet air they won’t tortur’ purty Pearl. They’)l calker- late on takin’ ber up-country, an’ thet’s whar we-uns will git a show fer ter resky ber on ther trail. ‘‘ Hitv’s ther only chance I kin see, an’ our game hyer air ter thin’em out, which hes bin did, remarkable well, considerin’. Waz-al, I wisht some thet Tonk ’u’d show up, What in thunderation air yer gazin’ et, Rattler? Dang me, ef yer ain’t goin’ lunified, I sw’ar!” The young ranger peimted to the north, along the line of timber; his eyes, as were those of Paul also, staring wildly in the extreme of as- tonishment. Old Rocky followed the line of the pointed finger of bis pard. The old scout gave a squirt of tobacco-juice, viciously, in that direction; bis countenance ex- pressing the same emotions as did those of his young friends, ‘““Wa-al, I hopes ter be baked wi’ yaller dorgs, an’ fed ter Piute pappooses, ef thar ain’t ther same hashed-up red cuss I see’d 'cross ther drink, ‘mong ther rocks—an’, by ther livin’ Jeruserlum, be’s gut your sombrerer onter his dog-goned head! ‘*He war so nigh ter kickin’ up an’ floppin’ over ter make a die o’ hit, ’crost ther river, thet I let bim slide when I heard ther whoopin’ this- a-wayv. By ther bleed o’ Crockett, ef ther sight 0’ him doesn’t sorter sot back ther hull capoodle o’ Big Foot’s reds!” ** He’s one of the party I knifed in the cave,” explained Rattler; ‘‘one of those who cap- tured poor Pear] at the ford.” ‘* Ye’re a roarin’ rager, when yer gits started, pard. Yer cleaned ’em all out. 1 reckon he war ther last, er yer’d ha’ lost yer ha’r when yer lay ’mong ther rocks, wi’ ther sense knock- ed plum outen yer wi’ ther tomahawk, ** Whar in thunderation did ther cuss cab- bidge yer cabase kiver?” ‘“‘T lost it in the cave, during the fight.” The ranger spoke as though he felt little interest in the coming of Black Fox. ‘Then, by ther rompin’, ragin’, roarin’ thun- der o’ Buner Vister, tbet’s goin’ ter count, to- ward ther thiunin’ biz, er I’m a dod-gasted, slab-sided, Jong-eared liar! ‘* Ef thet cuss doesn’t think you’ve keeled up, an’ made a die of hit, ’'m a bug, an’ snake-eat- in’ digger! Ef he badn’t, he w’u’d ha’ stayed whar he war, an’ died easy-like; ’stead 0’ crawl- in’ this fur, ter spit out his infermacbe. Rat- tler, come on! Er no—come ter me“ertake, I reckon yer’d better hang out byer wi’ Paul. ‘Ther Tonk an’ this ole raw-bide ripper kin clean out all they sends over ther drink ter anon yer ba’r, Jist hear’em yell! het proves it, ‘“‘Thet yell ses, ‘Rattler hey gone up ther spout!’ Hyer I goes fer more head-skinnin’.” Again the old scout glided down the tree, leaving his two pards gezing down into the camp of the Comanches. But neither of them observed anything in that wild and savage scene, except that poor insensible maiden, whose protracted state of unconsciousness caused them to fear that she was dead, And yet, as matters stood, they both felt that, were she to die as she was, witbout again opening her beautiful eyes, it would be a mercy. But few strong men were ever entirely hope- less, under any circumstances; and, notwith- standing his look and manner did not show the slightest hope of having a chance to rescue the darling of his heart, still, had there not been that hope in his mind, he would have gone hopelessly mad, and dashed in among the red demons, to his death. Very soon, bowever, both Paul and the Rat- tler were obliged to withdraw their gaze, and to reason coolly and calmly upon the situation, Both witnessed the departure of six of the braves toward the ford, ard they understood how much depended upon Old Rocky, who had foreseen this, and had aJready departed to take measures that would prevent those warriors from ever again joining the main force. Should the old scout meet with Turtle, the friendly Tonkaway, they felt that his tack would be easily accomplished by a resort to their revolvers; and, for the report of these weapons, they listened now most, anxiously. Meanwhile Big Foot, 'o turn the minds of his braves from whatever of superstition or depres- cess A VCc_——_ LR RRR ALLA sion these strange events had evidently caused, ordered a shield to be beaten—in place of a ‘* tum-tum ’’—to call all to the death dance; for he determined to place the slain in one of the caverns beyond the stream, to gather the plun- der, pack the same on mules, and then proceed toward bis village. Too much time bad already been lost. The war-cry of the Tonkaway bad always proved av omen of disaster to his war-party; and this, he had seen, was recalled by his braves, by their ejaculations at the time, Instantly after tbe pounding upon the stiff buffalo-skin shield, the sounds made by which were dismal in the extreme, the warriors thrust their lances in the earth, ina circle around the cead and the captives; the shields, and bows with quivers, being attached to the central por- tion «f the shaft of the lance. Then, within this circle of weapons, the braves all bounded, and stood for a moment, facing their dead; their arms folded across their painted breasts, their faces bowed, and their eyes fixed upon the upturned faces of the slain, The improvised **tum-tum” had ceased, and all was still as death; and death ruled there— ruled the silent, outstretched, mutilated forms; and, as far as thought went, those who were dead ruled, for the time, the living, or were supposed to do so, Presently there sounded a single thump of the ‘*tum-tum,” and, as if all were moved by the same force at the same time, every brave faced to the right; bis arms falling to bis sides, as if all control of them bad ceased—hanging limp, and swaying, as if the bones had been broken at the sboulder-joint. At the same instant, the straight forms bent forward; the bodies being at an almost right-angle from the hips. Then, at another stroke of the *‘ tum-tum,” the knee joints of all became bent, when a mo- no onous beating was begun on the shield, and the circle of braves, in spasmodic hop, moved around the dead—a weird and guttural chant sounding from every lip, and commencing from the first bound, This chant was broken by the most hideous how]s, every brave, as be reached his old position, turning toward the dead, utter- ing, his bowl, and tben circling on. onsequently, as the **tum-tum” was beat in faster time, the chant merged into one continu- ous series of unearthly yells, All this time the Comanche chief stood some five paces outside of the circle of erms, his eagle eye sweeping continuously the borders of the timber-cove, and one yell from his lips would have almost instantly placed that ring of demoniac dancers in their places, with arms in hand, and ready to meet the foe. Suddenly the wild music ceased. Every brave sprung erect, and jerked bis scalping- knife, when, at a fierce war-whoop from Big Foot, all became frantic. The ‘‘tum-tum” began striking up at quick time, as fast as arms could strike; the circle of warriors struck the ground first with one foot and then with the other. Then they Jeaped bigh in the air, cir- cling their knives above their heads, the steel glinting continuously in the firelight and the moonlight. Througbout this fiendish fandango the warri- ors gesticulated wildly, first at the dead in gestures as if to draw their attention, as they uttered a guttural chant, then with fierce and vengrful yells, menacing the captives with their knives, and hacking and scalping in pan- tomime. Most horrible w:s the sight, as were also the sounds, in that timber-cove on the Rio San Saba—that beautiful young girl, the cen- tral figure in that circle of dancing demons; those two men bound to the wheels, the raw- hide ropes cutting deepinto their bare flesh, their lips cracked and swollen, as were their tongues, their breath coming and going in short and rasping gasps and moans. These, surrounded by blood smeared, paint- daubed braves, some of them ag) madeup the awful tableau, which was framed in by that whirling cyclone of maddened savages. And near to this was the demolished wagor- train, the scattered goods lying around, while wild-eyed mustangs pranced about the border of the undergrowth, with fright at the terrible yells of their masters, The towering forest-trees framed all tbis in while down upon it the silvery moon smiled placidly—smiled alike upon the silent dead, the dancing demons, the agony-drawn faces of the tortured, and the bowed down form of the an- gelic maiden, Pearl Pemberton! Poor gitl! May Heaven belpand sustain you! The efforts of brave men are as naught when that fiendish horde surround you. CHAPTER XXIV. THE RED AND WHITE PARDS, Oty Rocky, after leaving his pards in the branches of the huge tree, overlooking the camp of Big Foot, proceeded, as rapidly as pos- sible, directly toward the ford, with every ex- pectation of meeting the Tonkaway. Nor was the old scout mistaken in this re- spect; for there, in the clear space, the entrance to the ford being outlined in the bright mocn- light, facing tke Comanche camp as if meditat- JOO (E(©) AACE S) Cc (0)