Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 394 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

Powell, wit ‘ .. ¥ : : - White Beaver, the Exile of the Platte. him to be disturbed in any way. Answer my question !” eb There was a quiet dignity in the man before him that the outlaw could not withstand, so he answerer: ‘Yes, a messenger was sent.” “To bring the rest of the band?’. “ec Yes ” ‘‘ How far had he to go?” ‘‘T suppose he would have thirty miles to ride.” ‘¢ What force can he bring?” ‘‘ About twenty men; perhaps more.” ** He was well mounted?” se Yes.” ‘*Then he could ride there in two hours and a half?” ‘** About that.” ‘Tt would take perhaps four hours for the re- inforcements to reach here—say seven hours be- fore relief could come?” ‘* All of that.” ‘¢ Tt is now but five hours to nightfall.” ce Yes. ” ‘‘ And as soon as it is dark, if not before, the Indians certainly will overwhelm us here in this timber, as we now are.” ‘*So it seems.” ‘‘ Well, there is but one thing for us to do,” ‘‘ Well, sir?” and the chief also listened atten- tively for the response. ‘‘ Retreat toward your reinforcements,” ‘‘ Why, if we leave this timber we will all be murdered!” cried Van, in surprised alarm, ‘“Tf we stay here we certainly will be, for the trees allow the Indians to get near us, where they can use their arrows; but, out upon the rairie, your long-range rifles can keep them at ay. ‘*Get to work and make a litter for your chief, and then call the men together.” ‘*T will not leave the timber to be massa- cred!” Doggedly the man spoke, but_he was com- )letely taken aback when Frank Powell sudden- ty covered him with one of Captain Kit’s re- volvers, and said, sternly: ‘‘ You will do as 1 order, sir; for, if you are a band of cut-throats, and I a surgeon in the army, for the present I command here!” CHAPTER XXIII. THE RETREAT FROM THE TIMBER, FRANK POWELL was not a man to stand in his own iight. He saw that Van, the outlaw officer, was of the nature of the ‘‘dog in the manger;” that is, he knew that, by right, he should command when his chief, Captain Kit, was not able to do so; but the emergency of the case alarmed him, and he wished to shirk the resp Tear et was not willing that any one else sho d ave the control, A coward at heart, he still wanted to save his scalp, but did not care to owe it to the Doc- tor Scout that he did not lose it, The men were busy watching the Indians, and he dared not call them to the scene to back him up; but he knew there were several who would instantly turn against the prisoner, un- armed as he was, for he had been their deadly foe. All this Frank Powell seemed to read in the villainous countenance of the outlaw, and de- termined to govern himself accordingly. While wiping off his instruments, he very quietly slipped one of the chief’s revolvers that lay near into his breast-pocket, and thus sur- rised the outlaw rebel suddenly covering Tine with the weapon, and uttering the words that closed the last chapter. Even Captain Kit, suffering as he was, smiled at the cool way in which the Doctor Scout had turned the tables upon his sub-offi- cer, and said faintly: ‘Van, you seem to have forgotten that you have to deal with the Wizard Doctor, Look out that the red-skins don’t find you ready for scalping when they come.” ‘‘T will not leave the timber,” sullenly said the man. ‘¢ You will either leave the timber a live man, or you will remain there in your tracks a dead one, and I warn you that lam not one to par- ley with.” ' ‘he words were uttered in almost serene tones; but there was a look in the eyes of the Doctor Scout that made the outlaw shudder, and he answered: ' “Well, I obey now; but we will settle this another time, my fine Doctor.” ‘T warn you that you had better bury the matter, rather than become a subject yourself for others to bury,” was the significant reply of Frank Powell, as he turned to glance up and down the river to see what the Sioux were about. Van the outlaw was a dangerous man, if he could have his own way; but he loved life too well to risk it with chances against him, and he wisely said no more, but at the same time he vowed to himself that the matter was not ended between the Doctor Scout and himself. So he bie A quietly walked away, while Frank a hatchet taken from a saddle ly- ae _e oa + ip r . 7 J, % i. _ 2 ij ™ ta Yale {& @* be y p - , 4 j , } ing ~~ quickly cut down two long slender | Doctor Scout himself took a wea trees, and trimmed them into poles. These he fastened a harness to, making it of a a horse in, the other ends of the poles being al- lowed to drag upon the ground, and thereby 11 n and dis-_ . charged it, and each time it tumbled a Sioux — _ from his saddle. lariat, and thus formed a pair of shafts to hitch © form an easy cot, or litter, for the wounded chief to lie on, It was an Indian style of carrying off their wounded, and a very good one, for it was easier for a man suffering from wounds, than even a hand-stretcher would be. The Indians had, in the mean time, approach- ed the river-bank from three different points, for, as stated, the timber was in a bend of the ; stream just here. j Just before darkness settled down upon the epeby the Doctor ordered a sudden halt, while e sat upon his horse viewing the prairie in four different directions. It did not take the outlaws long to see that their prisoner captain had made some important discovery, and they. too, looked about them at what had appeared in view. First, their pursuing foes had taken up a posi- tion upon their left, and about three hundred yards distant, and halted when they did. Then back upon their trail came quite a party of red-skins, whom Doctor Powell set down as A few shots with the long-range rifles had | the remainder of the band who had gone in brought the red-skins to a halt, and they then | chase of Janette. waited in seeming patience, to see what their white foes would do, and to watch their every movement, They knew well that when darkness came | | | They were coming slowly, as though their horses were tired, but at a gait that would soon bring them up with the retreating outlaws. As the red-skins discovered their comrades they could rush into the timber, and end the | they gave a yell of triumph; but that yell was fight very quickly, protected as they would be | fa hushed when their eyes made a second by the trees. iscovery that had already attracted the gaze Doctor Powell saw them send a small force | of the Doctor Scout. ) ‘ off down the river, doubtless to see what had What they saw was a party of whites coming become of those who had gone in pursuit of | rapidly toward the outlaws, and a glance was Janette, and their not peices gave him hope that the young girl had escaped. To prevent the red-skins from thinking the intended to decamp, the Doctor Scout set a but two of the men to work throwing up a for-| _back on the trail to hasten on, and started to tification of logs and dirt. sufficient to show that they were a score in number, and the reinforcements which the Red | Angel chief had sent for. . This put the red-skins off their guard, as to | his intentions to retreat; but the two men not engaged in the work were busy getting all in readiness to move off at a moment’s notice. When the horse had been hitched in the shafts of the litter, the ponies saddled, and all in readiness for the move, the Doctor Scout ; Determined to keep them from joining their — comrades, the red-skins signaled to their braves _ ride ahead, so as to place themselves between — the two parties. re But they had not gone far before theycame to a halt, for a third party, coming from the © | right of the fugitive outlaws, fell under their observation. tal A glance was sufficient to show them that the suddenly called the men from their work on the | last party were soldiers, for the glimme “a little fort, Then, to the intense amazement of the red- skins, in broad daylight, before their eyes, the little band mounted their horses and rode out of the timber. With their first move the Indians uttered wild yells of rage at being so cleverly deceived, and quickly pulling up their lariat-stakes, they sprung upon their ponies and dashed in pur- sult, But the fugitive band had gotten out of range from the grove of timber, out upon the x 0 prairie, by the time the red-skins had reached the spot from which they had retreated. Forming his little party into a hollow square with one man, who had been slightly woundec in the leg, to lead the horse drawing the chief, alongside of the animal he bestrode, and the re- mainder to keep at an equal distance around it, the Doctor Scout kept on his way. In their rage the Indians made a bold dash to ride down the whites; but the Doctor Scout gave his orders quietly; the men with long- range rifles fired t, then those with weapons of shorter range, and next using their revol- vers, so that the charge was checked with the death of one outlaw and the wounding of an- other, while the Indians suffered greatly, as several warriors fe]l and some half-dozen ponies were knocked over. . Having repulsed this charge so easily, the outlaws saw the wisdom of the » er adopted by the Doctor Scout, and even Van, the lieuten- ant, admitted that he was right in leaving the timber, where they never could have held out after nightfall, when, under the cover of the darkness, the Indians could have crept near enough to spring upon them in a body, and in a hand-to-hand fight take the lives of CHAPTER XXIV. FRANK POWELL’S PLEDGE. THOUGH beaten off by the outlaws, the In- dians by no means gave up the chase. They sent back runners to hurry on the two parties that had followed on the trail of Ja- nette, left others to bury their dead, while the larger force persistently dogged the steps of the fugitives. The Doctor Scout watched them with an eagle eye. Not a movement of theirs escaped him, and he at once surmised their object when he saw runners go back on the trail, and noticed that some had dropped off, when hidden by a rise of the prairie from bis view, His glass showed him that they no longer carried their dead, and this proved that they had left some of the braves to bury their fallen comrades, At a quick walk Powell urged the outlaws on over the prairie, halting now and then to look after the comfort of the wounded chief, who several times had been lulled to sleep by the gentle motion of the stretcher upon which he was riding. : The men he kept riding in the shape of a square as before, and this order of march was not changed, though the Indians rode ahead, behind, or upon either side. Several times the red-skins divided their force in four parties, and made a feint of at- tack from each quarter; but the long-range rifles were orde discharged, and they beat a retreat in haste, for on two occasions the mn 2 -* ‘light from tbe west, where the sun had j gone down, fell upon dark-blue uniforms and — glistened upon steel. é. ‘*Three-score Indians, when the second party comes up, about half that number of cut-throats, when they unite, and half a hundred NT f each party a hated foe of the other, will make > things lively here on this prairie,” said Doctor — Powell with a light laugh, addressing the Red Angel chief. ‘Sh “Tt will bea draw game, hard tosolve,I guess; os agi are my men yonder doing?” asked the — chief, ‘‘Coming toward us at full gallop,” answered Powell. | <e ** And the Indians?” re ‘Those on the trail are coming on rapidly to — join their comrades over there on the left.” al ‘* And the soldiers?” eet ‘They have balted to take in the situation.” = ** And what will you do, Doctor?” een ‘*Go into a dry camp for the night, and, like _ Micawber, wait for something to turn up.” ms ‘** It is the best that can be done.” WA ‘So I think now; if anything else suggests itself, I will let you know. ee ‘*Fortunately we have water for ourselves, fe but the horses will have to suffer for the night,” and turning to the men, the Doctor Scout gave orders to go into camp for the night, and they __ had just obeyed him, when up dashed the score ie of outlaws coming to the relief, and at their head was Brick, the Black Bravo, as the Red Angel band called him, eT CHAPTER XXV. Bio A TRIO OF HOSTILES, thea ScARCELY a man in the Red Angel band who did not know Frank Powell, the Wizard Doctor, _ atleast by sight. They had all heardof him, and /_ how he was wont to go alone over the prairies, and often remain so lofig that he was given up __ as dead, and search-parties had been sent out to look him up or find his body. as At the fort, where he was chief surgeon, he _ had an assistant to look after the health, aches —_ and wounds of the soldiers; but his great skill — had won him the name of being, in soldier par- lance, ‘* the boss Sawhones in the army,” whi > he had also arifted into the fame of being a Wizard Doctor. Oe tes A thorough plainsman, and often heading a — command when guides and scouts were at fault, he also became known as the Doctor and Sur- 3 4 - ad Oe : i ¥ ‘ eon Scout, while the Indians spoke of him as ighty Medicine. ie Under these several appellations, his fame had spread along the border, until he was Greats by all white evil-doers and raiding red- _ skins. r,t When the re-enforcement of outlaws dashed _ up to their comrades, and threw themselves | from their horses, their eyes fell upon the tall, he, splendid form of the Surgeon Scout, notin bonds amid their comrades, but free and issu- ing orders as though their leader. 1A Their amazement was the further increased at beholding their chief lying wounded in their midst, and, with the Indians upom one side of them, the soldiers on the other, and the general __ aspect of affairs, they were disturbed toknow what had happened, or A few words of explanation were whispered _ ritwaGOmMmiGbooks.co i