Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 420 — page 10: what you’re looking at

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

ee ee ee ee mm ane te ee ek etn a ne re a eg ee ge eg tee oe - P SSS —— 4 ~ 4 at — es Te te ST iO when I swam ashore, and therefore I could not have taken them from that flatboat.” ‘There might be something in that if you had swam ashore,” answered the old moonshiner; “but I see no reason to believe that you did anything of the kind. It was easy enough to wet the money so as to back up your yarn. Mr. Gonder, is that your property ?” ‘*Of course it is.” promptly replied the elder eS Israel. pC son here kin sw'ar to it, and so could the old woman, if she was able to git here.”’ **'You had better take care of it, then.” Israel Gonder pounced upon the plunder like a duck on a June-bug, and I care of it; and thus the case was settled, the victims perceiving the uselessness of protests. **Do you want anything more?” grumpily de- manded Gordon. ‘‘ As you have stripped us, perhaps you will now turn us loose.” “Is there anything more?” inquired Colonel ‘We ought to take the durn thieves out and give ’em a dose o’ hickory,” declared old Israel. “T reckon not, Mr. Gonder. that you’ve got enough out of them. go, my friends.” ‘Friends?’ grumbled Gordon. way you treat your friends?” ‘* It is the way we treat ycur sort. If youare going to talk like that, I shall feel inclined to accept Mr. Gonder’s suggestion.” No further violence was attempted, however, and the two castaways left the cabin, accom- panied by the chief moonshiner to the place where they had been halted. Colonel Rapp pointed out the course which they might take to reach the river ata point below where they had struck it; but something You may ‘* Is this the seemed to weigh upon his mind, as he stared | strangely at Gordon. **T wonder where [ have met you before?” he said to that gentleman. ‘You are too much for me there,” answered Gordon; ** but [ am willing to say that 1 doubt pet ga it will be healthy for you to meet me n.’ Seems to me | —— le . = e Old River Sport. ——- ee a Th ——— -—— is _— Considerably to their surprise, they came out , nafin as he grasped her, and she resolutely én- where another flatboat was moored at the bank —a craft similar in appearance to that of the | Gonders, but somewhat larger. This caused them to halt and consider what | they had better do. st no time in taking | | ‘That is a gcod place to keep away from,” was Gerald’s opinion. ‘‘A burnt child dreads the fire, and | am afraid of flatboats.” ‘* What's the odds? We have nothing to gain. No enemies can hurt us, and we may find friends to help us.” Just then there came out of the flatboat, and stepped up on on the roof, a man whom Gordon | recognized at once. ‘*Come on, Gerald!” he joyfully exclaimed. ‘Weare all right now. That man is Josh Sim- bell, and he is a friend of mine.” Gordon hastened to the flatboat, and was in- stantly descried by the man on the roof, who | came down and greeted him warmly. ‘Why, Mr. Gordon, how did you ever get here?” ‘“‘ How did you ever get here, Josh, your- self?” * All your doing, Mr. Gordon. You helped me to buy this boat and stock it, and I have been getting on right well, Come aboard and see for yourself.” The two friends followed Josh Simbell into the boat, where they ciscovered that the crew consisted of five people—Josh, his two sons, his wife and his father. The flatboat was loaded with stoneware from the southern part of Indiana, which explained Gray Gordon’s connection with the business, and there was still a good stock on hand, to be peddled out on the way down the river. When Gordon had made Gerald Talcott ac- quainted with the flatboat people, he wanted to satisfy his curiosity concernihg the presence of the craft at that locality. ‘Tt is an out-of-the-way place,” said he. ‘*There is no sign of a settlement about here, and I can’t imagine what business you find to do," ‘“We have doze right well here, though,” an- “swered Josh Simbell. ‘‘ We have struck one of ‘**Do you threaten me? Well, I don’t care if | the best settlements near here’ that we have yet you do, and you may just go along.” Gray Gordon and Gerald Talcott trudged away silently and wich rueful countenances. - They were too much ashamed of themselves to speak to each other, or felt unable to do justice | to the subiect. It was not until they reached the bottom-land that they began to brighten up, and Gerald was then the first to recover his spirits. come across.” ‘* Where is the settlement?” inquired Gordon. ‘* Not much of a settiement, but good enough for us. Back in the woods is a moonshiners’ still that was needing jugs when we came. «In he bend above here isa flatboat that takes a | —— of stuff from the still, and those folks ave been wanting jugs, too. Between the two | I have done a good stroke of business here, and ‘“Well, Mr. Gordon,” said he, “there is one | have disposed of nearly all my jug stock.” consolation for us in the midst of our misfor- tunes. We have had a good brealfast.” ‘* And a good price we paid for it, too,” grum- bled Gordon. ‘‘ But Iam glad to see, my boy, that you are disposed to bear your afilicticns so well, and was done as by the way it was done. thrashed for the stupid style in which I got us | into that scrape. was all caused by telling the truth.” ** How so?” ‘“‘That’s just what tho matter is, Gerald. If there was a preacher here, he would have a fine chance to make a sermon and bring out the int that the truth must not be told at all times. ust now we are mournful examples of the evil effects of telling the truth.” “‘T would not have thought of looking at it in that light.” ‘* But that is exactly the state of the case. If I had lied to that confounded moonshiner, the chances are that we would have had no sort of difficulty. But I was foolish enough to tell him the truth, and the truth, as is usually the case, was too tough to be believed. I could easily have cooked up a yarn which he would have swallowed without the slightest difficulty, and then we would have come through all right.” ‘*So you don’t recommend telling the truth as a practice.” ‘Not always. You must know who it is that you are giving it to, and be careful not to cast your pearls before swine,” ‘*What is your opinion of that old moon- shiner?’ inquired Gerald. “The colonel? He is a queer customer, and I - doubt if he is altogether right in his head. But he was sharp enough to join in with those -scamps to rob us, and that settles his case.” Gerald was not realy to take this view of the se. ‘“‘Tf the moonshiner wanted to rob us,” said he, “ hecould have done it easily enough without calling in those flatboat people.” ‘* T suppose so,” answered Gordon; ‘ but that is a bit of his queerness, Perhaps he wanted to compromise with his conscience and give a show of right to the robbery. I don’t bear him as strong a grudge asI bear those rascals of flat- boatmen, and if I come aeross them again I will be sure to make hfe a misery to them.” By taking the route which had been pointed out to them by ‘‘ Colonel” Rapp, the two friends crossed a bend and struck the river several miles below the point where they had landed, and after a comparatively short journey. It is sad to think, too, that it | id , .) we! ? = » if ‘ 4 ) , ‘4 ‘‘We struck that settlement, too,” observed Gordon, ** and it struck us very hard.” ‘* What do you mean by that?” Gordon related his experience with the Gon- ' ders and the moonshiners, and Ceclared his in- I am worried not so much by what | tention of getting even with them, or with the It was a!l | flathoatmen at least, though it should take ‘‘a my fault, and I ought to be tied toa tree and | monthof Sundays.” ‘*T am willing to help you in that, if you are in a hurry about it,” said Simbell. ‘‘ Weare not a big enough crowd to tackle the moon- shiners; but [ reckon we can get away with the scamps who robbed you.” ‘‘Much obliged to you, Josh; but you have your family and your business to attend to, and I don’t propose to let you fight my battles. I shail ask you to lend me a little money, and put me and my friend aboard the first boat you sight going down the river.” ‘*'You shall have all the money I can s~are, and that will only be paying you a part of what I owe you.” CHAPTER XI, MORE CASTAWAYS. IT was no easy contract that Mark Hannafin and Silas Birch had undertaken when they pro- d to convey Eva Talcott from the burning yoat to a place of safety. Of this fact they were fully aware; but they had carefully measured the dangers and esti- mated the chances, determining the exact course they should take with coolness and sagacity which, under the circumstances, were worthy of high praise. They had jumped off on the upper side of the steamer, because most of the people who were by in the water were on the lower side and they hoped to be spared the difficul and ‘seme of fighting their way through the throng. Although this proceeding subjected them to the danger of being swept down against the burning mass, the fact that the stern of the boat lay up-stream gave them a chance by vigorous efforts to avoid that peril. Both were young and active men, as well as excellent swimmers, and both had deprived themselves of a considerable portion of their clothing, so as to have as little incumbrance as possible in the severe task before them. Yet they had all they could do, and more than once the contract threatened to be too much for their strength and skill. | ** Just try to keep your head out of the water,” Miss Talcott, and do nothing at all,” said Han- ‘ ' : fs ; ” ‘ , j Ca. ~~) "% ? , ‘ Le ATs ae, pe P al sa -. _ : ’ » ere a a3 meet a , deavored to do his bidding. Instantly the two young men, one on each | side of her, struck out boldly and vigcrously, _ quartering across the current, and seeking to _ reach the sandbar, where they could at least find a footing. Being partially dammed by the grounded steamer, the current was not as swift there as further out in the stream; but it was strong enough to sweep down to their destruction the | helpless ones who had gone overboard on that | side, thus removing one element of darger from the two swimmers and their charge. | Eva was at first buoyed up by her clothing, | but it soon became wet, seriously retarding the | motions of her conductors. Yor their part, they exerted themselves yet more vigorously, striving to reach a place of safety before their burden became too heavy for them to manage, It was to be feared that the best they could | do would not be good enough, as the current and the downward suction were so strong as to bear them, in spite of their utmost efforts, toward the bow of the steamer, where the fire was blaz- ing most fiercely. The fire was what was then to be dreaded, as the wind was blowing up-stream, and the heat near the boat was frightful. Eva Talcott knew this, and appealed to the young men to desert her when they came within reach of the scorching element. ‘“‘It will be as ‘*Let me go!” she insisted. much as you can do to save yourselves. Please | let me go!” i | ‘Strike out, Birch!” ordered Mark Hannafin. ** Strike out now for all you’re worth, Cue more push, and we’re safe!” They did both strike out, putting all their strength of limb and lung ito the push, and in another moment they were safe, or nearly 80, a3 they just shaved the bow of the burning boset, and had but a few more strokes to swim to take them into shoal water. Those few strokes they swam, and their feet touched the sandy bottom, not a bit to soon, as poth the men were exhausted. In 4 of the swift current they managed to keep their feet, and led their charge through the gradually shoaling water, unti! they were safe on the sandbar. Though the entire distance bad not been mores than two hundred yards, it was a woncer that ‘ it bad been safely accomplished. So close had they been to destruction thet | Mark Haunafin, who had been on the lower side, discovered that his hair was scorched. ‘*Tt was a close shave, Birch,” he seid, when he had recovered his breath—‘ could hardly have deen, closer—but a miss isas good esa mile, ard we are safe,” ‘“‘ And my safety I owe to you two,” said Eva, | who had seated herself cn the sand with her companions, aa ; ‘e were glad of the chance,” observed ark. ‘‘Thank you; but I know that you risked your lives to save me, What are we to co now?” “Tt seems to me, Miss Talcott, that we wll not have much trouble in reaching the shore from here. It must be shoal water most of the way between this bar and the bank, and we may hope to be able to wade across. Anyhow, there is no current inside to speak of, and I think we can make tbe trip without much difficulty.” ‘Why can we not reach that steamboat which has just come up?” The boat in question, a stern-wheel craft heavily loaded with cotton, had by this time got as near to the burning steamer as she dared to come, and was busily employed in picking out of the water the few pecple who had managed to keep afloat. _ As for the ill-fated Rowena, she was wrapped in flames from stem to stern, and would soon be burned to the water’s edge. . ‘That steamboat can’t come near ws,” sn- swered Hannafin. ‘If she dared torisk taking {ire from the Rowena the shoal water would not let her approach this sandbar, What do you think about it, Silas?” ‘“My opinion is the same as yours,” said Birch, ay don’t think the le on the stern- wheeler are likely to bother about us anyhow, as they have as much as they can attend to, If they should happen to notice us they will con- clude that we are safe here, and sure to get help if we want it.” ‘“‘ Besides,” suggested Mark, “I know just where we are, and am acquainted with some people living near here, who will be glad to take care of you for my sake, if not for your own.” The stern-wheeler, in fact, did not remain long in the vicinity of the nearly destroyed Rowena, as all she could do there was soon accomplished. After saving the lives that it was possible to save, she steamed away up the river, without apparently paying any attention to the three people on the sandbar. Eva Talcott sighed as she saw the steamer leaving the scene, as she was oppressed by sad- dening thoughts. The stern-wheeler would soon carry to some port the news of the destruction of the Rowena, ms IcOImMIcbooks. :y : vo Sa rye i aaa et — — oa s