Beadle's Dime Library No. 387 — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

a and patient, tell me if you really believe you can save my life?” Doctor Shipley parted his lips only to close them again as one long finger lifted warningly. He tried to meet those bright orbs, but his own drooped and shifted. ‘‘There’s no certainty. Nothing is certain in this world. But you have a chance—a good fizhting chance—if you'll only listen to reason and keep your mouth shut.” Humpy Dick smiled still, but there was some- thing in it that sent a chill through the veins of the maiden. ‘That comes from your Jips, not your brain, doctor. You know, as I know, that my race is run.” ‘Tf you will persist—good Lord! who’u be a doctor? Only an infer—ahem! Fool! I will say it. And now I feel better. Much !” Rex Stuart stepped forward. ** Disputing can do no good, are too weak to talk much, just now. Take the doctor’s advice and rest as best you can. When you are stroncer, we will listen to whatever you wish tosay. itis for your own good that I give this advice.” “T’ll never be stronger. I know that 1s have got my last sickness, My brain is clear and I must speak. I have been mad—TI know it now! That madness may return atany moment. I may—” His very eagerness choked him, and flinging out one hand he looked imploringly at Doctor Shipley. Dee Professional instinct overpowered disgust, and the docter bustled to the bedside, plying all his arts, with ultimate success, The faintness pass- ed 07, end once more Humpy Dick spoke: ‘“Tinust tell my story. You must give me streng’4, doctor, Lask it in the name of jus- tice. It I die with my story untold—I will not ! I must tell it before that frightful numbness once more seizes my poor brain! Give me brandy—anything, just so I may tell all!” ‘Got to! Suicide if I don't. Die if I do. Good Lord! Tear up my sheepskin to-morrow, Will. If it kills me!” Thoroughly disgusted, the little doctor mixed up a draught and thrust it into Stuart’s hand. ‘*Give it to him. I won't. Murder. No Tess!” ‘*On my own head be it,” smiled Humpy Dick, reaching out his hand as the young man hesitated. ‘‘ Quick! My time is short. I must speak!” Almost involuntarily Rex Stuart held the glass to the deformed man’s lips. Tremblingly, eager- ly, Humpy Dick swallowed the contents, then sunk esti on his pillow with closed eyes, Stuart glanced quickly toward the doctor, but a shake of the head banished his new-born sus- picion, ; “Straight. Wake up in a minute. Strong as a horse foran hour, Go out like a candle, Ugh! Take down my shingle first thing in the morning. Won't stand it! Can’t stand it! That’s flat!” His prediction ‘proved correct, for in a brief space Humpy Dick opened his eyes, a faint color coming into his thin face. The doctor gave him one keen glance, then turned his face to the op- posite wall, hands folded behind his back, his nose high in theair. He would not countenance this frightful violation of medical laws by look- ing on. Fhe deformed seemed about to speak, when a rap at the door checked him. Rex opened it anl revealed Nettie Malcom, who courtesied prettily as she uttered: “ Ploase, Miss Precious, your father has waked up and wishes to see you. Nurse sent me with the message, please.” Precious left the room, Rex softly breathing a word or two in her ear as she passed by him, She nodded slightly, he closed the door and turned again to the bed on which lay the wound- ed man, ‘It is as well, perhaps,” slowly uttered Humpy Dick. st a tale is hardly fit for young and innocent ears. You can tell her what is necessary atterward,” ““T will, unless you will listen to reason and postpone—” ‘*Tt is now or never with me,” a little sharply interposed the hunchback, ‘TI know my hours are numbered. If know I have been unsettled in my poor brajn, and that may come back again. No! if you arean honest man, you will listen to what I have to say, and now!” “Kill him, sure! I don’t care! Give up the case, Won't touch it. Sorry I ever saw him. Ugh!” “oes: I have been what men call crazy, but it was not precisely that. My brain was clouded, but still I never wholly lost my reason. I can See things dimly, as through a smoked glass, that happened when my brain was at its worst, and I conldn’t do that if I had been all mad! “Years ago—how plain it is to me now! I was strong and active and straight, not the mis- erable, deformed wretch you see now! It was co men Called me by my right name—Sterling oin. “Eh?” ejaculated the doctor, whirling about with his face all aglow with interest and wonder, Sterling—J won't!’ and he doggedly faced the \ You, my friend, ' a —— Dark Durg, the Ishmael of the Hills. wall again. ‘“‘Won’t listen. Stop my ears. Murder. Accessory before the fact. Sterling— git out /” and he clapped both hands to his ears, shaking his white fringed head vigorously. ‘‘T had a college education,” added the de- formed, paying no attention to the antics of the eccentric doctor. ‘I made a close study of geology, and when the gold-fever broke out, I started for the mines to win a fortune. I was poor, and though I met with some success, I was unlucky in money matters. And so, lacking the gold to properly develop and work my dis- soveriea, & looked about for help. ‘*T found itin a man named Milo Garth, I told him of what I had discovered dwiing my last trip in the mountains, and soon gained his confidence. He had money in plenty, but that was not enough. The Indians were threatening trouble, They had killed my mate on my last trip, and I only escaped by a miracle. It would be worse than folly to penetrate so far into the hills without a stronger force. ‘* It was not difficult to gather men sufficient for our purpose. Though gold was plenty for the lucky ones, there were double the number who were on the point of starvation, Milo Garth selected the men, six in number, besides ourselves, ‘* It was easy to come to an arrangement with them, satisfactory to all. They had neither money nor outfits. Milo Garth was to fit them out with tools, animals and provisions. I was to guide them to the gold I had discovered, in a new and thus far unworked field, deep among the mountains. For my part, I was to receive one-fourth of all the dust the party brought back, Milo Garth was to have an equal share with me for his outlay. The rest were to divide one-half evenly among them, ‘‘We made all our arrangements with great secrecy. Where so many pnt pe wretches were fairly starving, though able and willing to work, an outfit like ours would prove a terrible temptation. And there were many others who would try to dog us to our new field, if they were to even suspect our purpose. But never mind that. It is enough that we succeeded in stealing away from Cherry Creek without being followed. ‘*T led the party direct to my discovery, and it proved even richer than I had painted it. There was gold in abundance, and we made big wages every day. But the more gold we gained the less satisfied grew some of our party. Though it was the same as a gift to them—for as yet we had seen nothing of the red-skins, and it was only to stand them off that we took the six men along—they grumbled at and envied us for our larger shares. ‘To eke out our provisions, we did some hunt- ing, taking care to go far away from our golden va ley before firing a shot, and after game was secured, hiding the back trail as thoroughly as ossible, lest some prowling savage or wander- ing prospector chance across it and follow it to our diggings. In this duty we took turns, hunt- ing in couples, the better to bring back such heavy game as might be killed. ‘One evening late, the man who went out that morning with Milo Garth for fresh meat, came stagper’ng into camp with a terrible tale. Our chief was dead! ‘* Tt was hours before he could tell his story, so exhausted was he with fright and fatigue com- bined. It was. simple and straightforward enough, when he did tell it, and not one who listened doubted his perfect truth at that time. ‘*'The two men had poor luck in finding game, and wandered many miles from camp before getting a shot. Then Milo Garth wounded an elk, and as it showed plenty of blood signs along the trail it made as it dashed up the hill, the hunters resolved to separate, each taking one side, and thus try to cut the elk off as it attempted to cross over. “This man—Tll tell you his name after a bit —said he performed his part of the agreement, but could discover no signs of either Garth or the game. He kept on around the bill, beginning to think that in his hurry Garth had fallen and crippled himself, while the elk was dead or hid- ing among the brush on top of the hill. And then—he made a frightful discovery! ‘* He saw the dead body of Milo Garth, and a tall Indian bending over it, knife in hand! _He lifted his rifle to shoot the savage, but before he could secure a certain aim, he heard other voices, and saw more savages running toward the spot. a He admitted that he did not stop to count them,though he declared he recognized at least one woman among the number as he turned to save his life by flight. He swore he believed the run- ning savages had discovered him, but a few min- utes convinced him of his mistake, And he had hardly made this discovery, when he tripped and fell into a deep hole, where he must have Jain in- sensible for hours. | _ ‘** When he recovered his senses and crept out of the hollow, he could hear nothing of the In- dians. Hestole back to where he first saw them, but they had gone. He found the gashed, scalpless and frightfully mutilated body of Milo Garth lying upon a fire of logs, almost burnt to a crisp 9 “Tt was an awful task, but he dragged the re- mains away from the fire and covered them over with stones, to keep off the wolves, then he made the best of his way 10 camp, to tell his story. ‘“ Weak and worn though he was, he led the way to the spot the next day, and we found that the wolves had seattered the stones and almost destroyed the remains, only a few dismembered bones remaining. The horrible sight sickened me, and my powers gave way. I could not aid in giving those remains burial, and I had to be helped back to camp. It was but the beginning of a spell of illness that—would it had— almost sent me after my poor friend!” Humpy Dick covered his eyes with his thin hands, his voice growing low and husky. Doctor Shipley, forgetting his repeated vows, eases mixed another draught and held it to his lips. The wounded man eagerly drained the glass, then cleared his voice and resumed his story: ‘‘And yet, as I afterward had reason to be- lieve, it was the means of saving my life, that fit of madness which fever brought upcn me. AsT learned afterward, I broke away from cemp and fled like a deer, yelling and calling on Milo Garth to wait for me—that Ll would not desert him! And how I passed the next two weeks, God only knows! Itis a perfect blank to me. ‘*T can dimly remember crawling into camp on my hands and knees early one morning, to be scowled at and cursed savagely. [ believe my life was even threatened by the very man who brought us the news of my poor friend’s death! I can remember his pointing a rifle at me, and of another’s wresting the weapon from him, Then all isa blank again. ‘*T was not to die soeasily, The curse of gold was not so merciful to me as that! Slowly I re- covered, and then I learned that only the day before my return, the murder of Milo Garth hed been fearfully avenged! ‘The hunters discovered a camp of Inciaens, they told me, and one of the savagés was pointed out as the same one who had murdered Garth, ‘““It was a family of Indians, they told me; two grown men, three women, and several children. The man who witnessed the murder swore that they were the guilty ones, and in re- venge that family was slain without mercy, even to the youngest child! ‘“*T shivered as I listened, for something told me that no good could come of sucha barbarcus deed. It was right enough to kill the n.urcerer, but the little children—that sickened me! * Still, I dared not say much. I received little kindness or care at the hands of those whom I had led to a fortune. I caught many a t lack and hateful glance, and overheard more than one muttered. curse and wish that I had never come back to rob them of their hard earnings. ‘Think what I suffered during those days! Alone with six reckless and hardened ruffians, any one of whom cculd have crushed my poor life out with a single hand, 1 was so weak and helpless? To lie there and see their ugly scowls, to hear their curses and hopes that 1 might soon clear myself ovt of their way! I could not sleep, lest they murder me while unconscious, I dared not eat, for fear they had put poison in the scraps they flung me, ‘*And so, one night while all were asleep, I silently crawled away, thinking that it would ke better to die in peace and quietness, I did not think I could live. Indeed, I doubt if I much desired to exist Icnger, after those wretched days and miserable nights. ‘But my time had not come yet. Strange as it may appear, I gained strength and vigor frem that very hour, though I had little save reots and berries to eat at first. And during my aim- less wanderings— urged on by that horrible dread of being tracked up and butchered—I unexpect- cdly came upon the scene of the Indian n as- sacre, . “ At first I was startled and puzzled. but then it all came back to me like a dream, I recalled the story my ccmredes had told me of their de- “scent urd the camp, and the butchery which followed, But there was cne fact which I could not make clear. They had said nothing of burn- ing their victims, or if they had, it had escaped me in my horror ‘Yet I saw that a huge pile of wood had been dragged to the spot and set on fire. I could see a few small benes or bits of tones gleaming whitely amidst the ashes. And near one end of the pile, I saw a portion of a human skull, so small that it must have once formed part of a child, almost baby. ‘*T cannot explain just what urged me on, Lut I know that I carefully examined the spot. I know that I felt a vague wonder as J discovered that the ashes were still warm! The burning could hardly have been longer ago than the day before I came on the spot! ‘From that instant my brain hegan to grow clearer and my powers of reascning to return, [ knew that my mates could not have kindled the fire without leaving traces near by, end I set out to look for any such. 1 found signs, butit need- -ed no more than a single glance to convince me that they were made by none of our party, fcr they were of a moccasined foot, ‘*T hurried away to the nearest cover, fearing a shot from ambush; but none came. Iwas afraid to stir from my hiding-place while the <S lcomicbooks:con