Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 375 — page 8: what you’re looking at

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

royal were ereeted with a cheer. No one stopped to inquire whoshe was. She was leading them against Joe Lipscombe; and at that minute that was enough. There was a rush, a crash, and then a section of the wall went down, re- vealing behind it a narrow, hidden passage, at the end of which was a stairway, that evi- dently extended to the floor above. Into the passage a dozen men struggled, forgetful of the fact that as against the first comers the revolvers of Gentle Joe could hold the place, if he chose to run the risk. ‘The cooler ones probably counted on some such move, but they and the rest were doom- ed to disappointment; since the way was open und the little gambler had vanished. Mrs, Ormsby, instead of being terrified by the confusion, was in the lead, and darted up the stairs, Above was a loft rather than a story, and an open window at the gable end suggested how Lipscombe might have made his way to the zeround. Looking out through the win- dow frame. Mrs, Ormsby caught sight of a man speeding away at a great rate, and had not a doubt but that it was the one she had just claimed as her husband. She pointed out the flitting figure, and though she had decided to give up the chase herself, now that she had had time for a little cool reflec- dion, she had the satisfaction of seeing a goodly portion of the town go streaming away in chase, and of hearing a few scatter- ing shots, that told that. they were as willing to take him dead as alive. When pursuers and pursued had been swallowed up in the darkness she left the loft and made the best of her way back to the room she had lately left. The citizens generally had deserted it, and the only persons there were the two with whom she had been holding a conference, and Andy Byies, the well-known and univer- sally popular landlord. The latter had just been expressing his surprise at the prominent position his guest had taken, and the belief that she must be a 1: ‘Je off her base. ‘“ And if she was who could blame her?” isdignantly asked Mr. Cathcart, who had come around by the door as soon as the crowd had left an open road. ‘‘ Few wo- men could have stood the terrible strain un- der which she has been placed for the last few years, Yet she is sane as the sanest; as that renegade husband will yet find out to his sorrow.” ‘You don’t mean to say that you believe that Lipscombe is the man for whom she is in search?” The major seemed more surprised at the credence given by Cathcart than at the charge itself, when it was made. ‘*{ have had occasion to investigate a good many of her statements that seemed more iuprobable than this, and I have always found that she made no mistakes. Until Ll have some evidence to the contrary I shall coutinue to believe that Mrs. Ormsby is able to identify her own husband.” The positive way that he spoke had its in- fluence. The major rubbed his chin thought- fully, as though trying to reconcile this with what he had already known—and evidently he felt like giving up the job. Before he had made any answer Mrs, Ormsby had re- turned. Mr. Cathcart looked curiously at her. ** Tf it will not interfere with your plans to answer, might I take the liberty of asking why you were so foolish as to show your hand? If you were right in naming him, then you have only made your enemy more deadly; if you were wrong, you have gone far toward ruining your case in advance, ‘What credence do you: suppose the world wi!l placein your statements whenever Major ‘W :despin begins to doubt?” ‘‘What is the world tome? Yow believe in me; andif Major Widespin loses faith, he does it at his peril. Iam here to stay until the last shred of mystery is torn away and I have found both justice and vengeance,” She straightened herself up as she spoke and darted a keen look at the major, who started under her burning gaze and the un- named threat of her words, ‘That's ther way ter talk ter him,” chuckled a voice at the window. ‘‘ Blazer’s Bar are in fur a holy picnic, an’ yer can't hold back ther fun. May’s well keep up _yourend, Ther town hez gone wild sence 4 ‘ i eorge, the Three ee es ee ee — M4 ’ , . . . | they found Sing’lar Sam's daisy a-missin’ an’ It looks ez though | srillyunt Bess wouldn’t sparkle ’rcund ther | blood on ther floor. camp fur sum time ter come,” ‘What's that?’ exclaimed the major, springing toward the aperture, when Ragged Kiufe’s evil face appeared. ‘“Ther daisy are gone, an’ ther camp are settin’ up pistols all ’round. Don’t yer hear ‘em jingle?” He held up his dirty paw, and from the distance came the'sound of a dozen revolver- shots. near, and his expianation of 1t was as reason- able, at least, as none at all; and seeing that he had produced an effect, he thrust his face fairly into the room, and continued: ‘* Ef Gentle Joe hedn’t a hand in it, w’ich . I don't say he had, ther Bar are ther furdest off ov ary crowd yer ever see’d, an’ when they ketch him, onless ther rope breaks, there’ll be bloody murder,”’ CHAPTER X. A SPLOTCH OF BLOOD. A.THouesH only a few seconds had elapsed from the time that Gentle Joe sprung through the doorway until his disappearance was known on the outside, the eyes of every one must have been directed toward the wrong spot, since no one saw him make his exit from the building. When a running man made his appearance in the distance, the un- certainly seen figure was taken for that of Lipscombe, and a pursuit immediately be- gan, As the crowd went streaming by the shanty of Singular Sam, it was only the very last man of all that heard a smothered cry, and he did not at once stop. The fuu was all ahead, and he had gone a dozen yards before he was struck with the idea that there might be something going on that needed investiga- tion. He halted then, and tvrned around with his face toward the building, just as a clearer cry rung out on the night air. As yet he could see nothing, but he had no longer any doubt. ‘‘Hfo, thar, pards!” he shouted. ‘* Hyar’s yer game! This way, some on yer; thar’s biz wu’th ther seein’—a snag game ov some kind. Sail in, you Blazers!” He only checked his spring for a moment, in One. There was fun in progress somewhere | Before he had gone many steps the trailer, found something that attracted his attention. He halted, stooped down, and in spite of the | wavering nature of the moonlight, seemed to have made a discovery. “What is it?” yelled half a score of voices. ‘‘ Blood,” was the cold answer. ‘* Blood, and plenty of it. Here the footsteps begin, and yonder they go—whither, in this dark- i ness, who can follow?” When so expert a man as heacknowledged himself at fault, what chance was there for any of the rest to do better? They eared no more for his caution, and crowded up to see what it was that he had been examining. <A little circle formed, with heads turned in toa center, Where, on the ground, was # dark splotch. No foot-prints, uo other sign; but that was enough to mark some desperate deed. And while a dozen men were huddled together, seeing little, but suspecting a great deal, there came a single pistol-shot, that cut from the fingers of Copper Car] the match he bad just ignited, and then by chance, as it seemed, burying itself in the ground with- out further damage. . The shot broke the spell, and up leaped the dozen, all facing toward the spot whence it came. Every man had a weapon handy; and as Blazer's Bar was populated chiefly by experts, there was a unanimous answer. This was the rattle of fire-arms heard by the listeners at the Golden Lamb. The bullets went spat, spat, against a neighboring shanty, but no answer came; and when the men of the Bar had rushed headlong to the spot, they found no one there. Whoever the reckless fire-eater was, he bad managed to make good his escape. Pursuit was impossible, since there was no one to pursue; and while the crowd stood there, sullenly venting its spleen against the ‘unknown marksman, it was joined by the but that time seemed to have been used to good advantage, since, when half a dozen of the men that had answered to his call had reached the other side of the shanty—the spot where the cry had seemed to arise—no one was to be seen. *“]t war a woman’s yell, that,” said Copper Carl, as he peered around. ‘‘ I’m a-bettin’ it war ther daisy thet stood us off. a bit ago at ther p’int of her revolver, Ef thar’s ary one in Blazer’s ez hez gone ter git even fur thet bit ov foolishness, hyar’s one ez sez string | We don’t want no gerloots hyar ez ») him up. kin hold spite ag'in’ a woman like Bess, ‘“'Thet’s so, stand there in helpless inaction. Try ther Jay-out. “Mebbe it | ‘ . . | ain’t ez bad ez yer think, an’ mebbe it’s wuss. See ef ther daisy are at home.” Without stopping to consider whether their | intrusion might prove acceptable, half a doz- en men rushed into the shanty, splintering the locked door as they went. She was not there, and they went out. again as hastily as they had entered. “ Dog-gone my cats!” exclaimed Copper Carl, ‘‘ | b’lieve it’s all part ov thersame job. Ef yer find ther daisy youll find Gentle Joe an’ his pard not fur off. Whar’s ther | Don’t over-run Creeper? Hold on, thar! Bet yer ther trail till he hez a squint at il. -’thout bevin’ a object. other crowd, returning empty-handed from the chase of Gentle Joe. In the advance came Hurley and the Baby. ‘‘No use ter waste time on sich a weasel ez that,’ growled the Baby, sulkily, and as if ashamed of his want of suceess. ‘* He’s struck kiver, an’ ther’s no chatce ter roust. him cut afore mornin’, ef we kin g:t onto his trail then. What's bin a-goin’ on hyar? Hes Joe got away with ther crowd?” ‘You bet he’s got erway with it. An’ it ain’t more ner half doubtful but he’s got er- way with suthin’ else, Didn’t yer hear ther racket? Bess Stanley are missin’, an’ it looks as tho’ there hed bin murder done.” Copper Carl came to the front as he spoke, and stared in a sulky way at all of these men, who had been ramping around to so little purpose. The late arrivals showed more sign of ex- citement than those who had been first to know of the trouble at Singular Sam’s, and the Baby and Hurley were not the kind to At this in- telligence they sprung forward. ‘‘Show us ther spot, an’ put us on ther trail. This time I sw’ar we won’t kim back thout suthin’ ter show fur it. Ther cussed hound hez doubled back an’ got in his work. He wa’n't hangin’ onter ther skirts ov Bess It’s cl'ar ez day. Help hyar.” The two pards meant business, as they al- ways did when there was anything going on in camp that called for work. Bad, they might be; but when there was need of some one to stir Blazer's Bar up to its duty, the Baby and Jess Hurley were always around. Whether it was hanging a cripple, or going life he kin tell who hed a hand in it; an’ ef he. don’t say ther fu’st letter of his name are Joe Lipscombe, Ill cat snakes.” The Creeper was so well known in camp that the suggestion was grected with a howl of approbation. A Mexican he was, who could take up any trail that could be shown to him, and follow it to the end. By chance he was there, and he came forward at the mention of his name. ‘‘Where did they stand when thou heard’st the cry? But show me that, or the mark of a footstep, and leave things as they are, and I lead to them. Ah, stand back!” He spread out his arms, as some of the more thoughtless or self-sufficient would have rushed past, and his words were taken up by others. In a moment he had the field to himself. ones (eo) to the rescue of Bess Stanley, was all the same to them. They might, perhaps, be willing to cut a throat or two themselves, but that did not interfere with their regard for the welfare of the public. | Copper Carl shrugged his shoulders and turned away, He was not a friend of either _of the two men, and if he made any deroga- tory remarks, they would hardly be noticed by the bystanders. He did grow] out some- thing about ‘‘ having the wrong pig by the ear,” but no one paid any attention. In the briefest time Hurley had brought order out of chaos, and was moving swiftly away, fol- lowing the probable line of retreat of the unknown marksman, and taking half the town with him. er the creeper. looked up at Copper Carl. 200 (E