Beadle's Dime Library No. 417: Tucson Tom — page 3: what you’re looking at

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

i 3 taking her hand he led her to the spot where torrent had been wont to leap like a young the surface of the wall seemed seared by a | Niagara, could not be scaled by the most | stream. It was worn so smooth in most | slanting line. | agile among them. ‘ places that the two fugitives had some diffi- It was a narrow path. |. One thing alone must ensue: they would culty in ascending it, but this was finally Tucson Tom led the way up it, and slowly | begin asearch, and the chances were in favor ‘a accomplished and the flight resumed, only | the two mounted. | of finding the oblique ledge that ran up the H soon to discover that a new danger presented | MHalf-way to the top of the wall the ob- | face of the wall. ; itself, and one that threatened them with | lique ledge came to an end. What then? Tucson Tom shut his teeth Tucson Tom, the Bowie Bravo. — —— The wall of rock must have formed a love- | ly cascade when the gulch was the bed of a | ® disaster. Here they were some twenty feet from hard, and with a grim smile drew back the a ‘4? The Indians above had been able to make | the bottom of the barranca, and half that hammer of the weapon he held in his hand. ay ' better speed than those in the rocky gulch, | distance from the line which, traced sharply , With revolver and bowie he believed he could hold his own against the foe. | against the gray sky, marked the top of the In the presence of the young girl he had wall. who found all manner of obstacles in their way, besides a much greater degree of dark- ness on account of the canyon walls. Ordinarily, a barranea cutting across the plain is simply a rocky rift which in many places can be, crossed by a horse. Sometimes, in order to get over, it is necessary after en- tering the gully to follow it up some little distance, in order to find an outlet on the other side. The hoofs of buffalo and ante- lope, besides the wild mustangs, have beaten a path at such points which one could not mistake. At the point where this barranca came in > contact with the foot-hills and the rugged | mountain spur, it was entirely different. An A further danger now threatened them. 'much to inspire him, yet possibly the time Should the Indians come below they would discover the fugitives in the same manner in which they themselves had discovered the Indian scouts when they crouched upon the might soon come when he would wish she were in safer quarters, for these devils who were so soon to be pitted against him in all their courage and cunning, would show ex- rocks above. To.avoid this they must press against the wall. The girl seemed to understand this. | | erin | ingenuity in their endeavors to get hold of him when once his hiding- place was _made known to them. _ The voices below had now ceased. Tucson Tom had passed to the very end of | He knew this meant that the conper- the little ledge to give her the best place. He | colored fiends were searching the place. was listening for some sign of the enemy be- | How slowly the minutes went by. low when he felt his brave companion tug at Tucson Tom never moved, but lying there his sleeve. with his eyes fastened upon the opening, he expert climber could hardly have scaled the| ‘‘I am listening, Dancing Feather!” he | held his revolver in a firm grip, waiting for cliff-like walls, so smooth were they. | said, | what he knew would eventually come. More than once within the last few min-| ‘‘I believe I have found a cave,” she re- | There was no outcry to tell him when the utes, while they toiled on over the rough | plied. Indians had found the ledge, which he be- way, Tucson Tom had been made acquainted | He could not repress a start as a sudden lieved must be a natural sequence to their with the fact that their enemies were above thought came into his mind: _ hunt. them. He saw the outline of a savage head for a ‘‘What makes you think so?” ‘There is an opening here. ,J will go in few seconds, as the Apache clung to a rock | and explore it.” far above and tried to pierce the black depths below with his keen orbs, some slight sound | having probably reached his ear, A little further on and the ranger knew an enemy was also on the other side of the | gulch, for a small pebble falling from above | gave him a smart rap on the shoulder. Behind them all was silence. ** Not so!” he said hastily; ‘‘ remain where you are and I will go.” He found the small opening, more of a | cleft apparently than aught else, and passing in, spent a minute or so in feeling around before he helped her through the aperture. ‘Why would you keep me back?” she Even the asked as she stood at his side. signals that, up to this time, had served to | ‘‘T feared thar might be a panther, or tell them the distance of their foes, had now worse still, a grizzly in here.” utterly ceased. Tueson Tom knew full well that the human wolves were all the more to be feared on that account. So long as they gave tongue he could locate them, but when this ceased, there began to be felt an uncertainty as to their positions and an uneasiness re-| garding the chances of their being close at and. Bravely the fugitives pushed on. They were now ascending the foot-hills, Still no means of leaving the gulch came before their eyes. What if the Indians above, hurrying on, ‘*PDo you tkink it the lair of a wild beast then?” “T thought it might prove to be such then, and now thar’s no doubt in my mind!” ‘What have you found, Senor Tom?” ““With my foot I moved a number of bones. However, the beast is prowling along the foot-hills, and thar ain’t much danger of areturn so long as the reds hold > the pass.”’ ‘*Can we escape?” **T don’t know, Mabel. How desperate the situation had become he could not help but realize, for, once cooped up in this cave, and surrounded by the savages who: sought his blood, what chance was there for escape? Even if fortune should be so kind as to show them a way out of the cave, on foot, in this hostile land their case would appear -—hoveless, There are times when in desperation one does not have any desire to look ahead. The present is sufficient to concentrate all our thoughts, and we covtinue vo shade our eyes hoping that something may soon turn up to bring a new phase upon the matter. Tucson Tom presently became aware that his enemies had found the secret ledge. How he knew this it would be hard to say, since no shout announced the discovery. He seemed to have an intuition that there was a hostile presence near him. He could almost feel its gradual approach. | Was it fancy or did he actually catch the suppressed breathing of some daring climber The chances were | outside the cleft? good before we lost our horses, but I reckon | Crouching there he strained his ears to the we stand a poorshow now. Thar’s one good | utmost, and quickly made up his mind that A should discover such an opening first, and descend into the barranca ? This would place the fugitives between two fires, and render their doom certain; thing about it. They believe I carried you | there was some one close by who was slowly off, and they won’t hurt you /” | and cautiously advancing, foot by foot, along ‘What happens to you must come to me. the narrow platform that ran upward from If you live, | live, but if they kill you, I | the bottom of the barranca. yet it was a possibility they had to look must die. After what you have told meI | A few more brief seconds and the struggle ‘ in the face, and which might yet confront could not go back again to that life. Do not | must begin that appeared to have but one si them. mistake, Tom. In taking chances for your- | end—the death of the daring ranger who had Tucson Tom’s advance was suddenly stay- self you are taking them for me,”’ ventured alone into the dangerous country i ed, and his companion heard him utter a ‘Brave girl!” he murmured. ‘‘ Heaven | of the Apache in order to rescue their priest- word of impatience. _ grant we may live to reach Tucson!” ess, between whom and himself some mys- ‘* What is it now, Tom?” she whispered. | No more was said. A pressure of the | terious affinity existed. He pointed in front. hand that meant volumes, and then the | Ah! the critical moment had arrived. ‘Look there. A wall of rock bars our ranger moved toward the opening todiscover | There was a movement beyond the mouth progress, and it cannot be scaled. Here we what he could of their foes. of the orifice, and then a moving object are brought to bay, and the red hounds are Silence reigned without. caught the attention of the statue-like ranger. on closing in!” It would not remain long, for the Apaches | Outlined against the sky with its curtain S must soon learn that their expected game was no longer in the darranca, Surveying the top of the opposite wall, the Texan ranger made two discoveries. First of all the moon was rising. Her silvery disk, almost perfect, was peep- ing into view above the plain, and broadly CHAPTER III. TUCSON TOM AT BAY, THERE remained a single hope, It flashed into the mind of the Texan even as he drew a revolver and prepared to face the creeping foe. of clouds screening the moon, wasthe figure |of a stalwart Indian warrior, who knelt up- wy on the pjatform at the entrance to the cave, and seemed to be endeavoring to pierce the gloom of its interior with his basilisk eyes. | Tucson Tom was face to face with his first victim. | ee - Makin ' sds While thus engaged, he heard certain ‘‘Stay here! I will be back presently!” and with these words he glided away. Tom moved to the side of the gulch, As he reached it, he hastily set to work an examination of its character. ‘sounds below which told him something. ‘The Apaches, creeping up the barranca, outlined against the bright background was the figure of an Apache brave, the night breeze blowing his long black hair as he stood on the opposite bank, leaning on his lance and apparently on _— The moon had hardly come into view before she met the black advance of cloud legions sweeping up from the West. CHAPTER IV. THE CAVE FORT. Hap it been possible for the Apache brave to have pierced the darkness he would not have remained so stationary upon the ledge, - his danger would then have become nown. had come to the deserted horses. This discovery would tell them that those | they sought were not far away, and would hese greedily ingulfed the bright queen | Tucson Tom had advanced his revolver ei % of night, and she was seen no more. | until the muzzle was within a yard of the ¢ if Pee | Since her rising, however, the intense naked breast of the giant Indian. .. +ecause them to continue their advance with darkness had flown, and things which had : The Apache, straining his eyes in the en- | / renewed vigor. | previously been wrapped in impenetrable | deavor to see into that black cleft saw a a 13 Although this fact could but have a de- gloom were now readily discerned. vivid flash, and that was all. ) 0 aoe _ . pressing effect upon the ranger, still he did Soon signals and low voices from below | His body fellover the edge of the little not allow it to hinder his work, and in a_ told that the Indians had arrived. shelf, and went to the bottom of the gulch brief space of time he had made a discovery | Evidently their astonishment was great, | where it struck heavily, that gave him new hope. ' | especially when they discovered that the The first tragedy was over; the seond was : __ Back to the fair girl he made his way, and rocky barrier in the gulch, over which the at hand, for the space occupied by the war- a 3 | Petes | 2 comicbooks.com : > * - ~ ‘ay’ . 7 : ‘tbe 2 7 > - ao as wa > te . a ’ — = ~ —