Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 439 — page 17: what you’re looking at

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

“ * ter be comin’ back, and then we'll git him; We'll wait.’ They had not long to wait, and their confident expectation was not disappoin ted. Shortly the sound of Sam Startle’s sculls was heard, and then the din hy shot into view as it rounded the bend above. Fortunately for him the swampers had not concealed themselves, and the blazing camp-fire set their figures in strong relief against the dark- ness of the forest. They could not have gone out of sight without taking their captives with them, and that cir- cumstance must equally have awakened the lad’s suspicions. Rush Powell was determined to do what he could to save his young friend, and at the right moment he knocked the hopes of the swampers in the head with his warning cry. Searcely had the words escaped his lips when Jim Summers, who was angry enough to eat him, scruck him with all the force of his right arm, and the man’s fist was like iron. The engineer fell as if he had been shot, and Sam Startle got away in the darkness, in spite of the shots that were fired at him and the vain attempt to deceive him. ‘That was your fault, dod-durn you!” grum- bled Jim Summers, administering a malicious kick to Rush Powell as he was slowly arising. He jerked the dazed engincer to his feet, and steadied him there with another kick. “Ef it hadn’t been fur you, the boy would ba’ come on, and you'll bave to pay fur that. He can’t git fur away, and we'll ‘light on him afo’ long. You said you wanted me to guide er, and you'll see how I’m gwine ter do it. ring ’em along, fellers.” Jim Summers took the advance, and the three prisoners were led away through the for- est to an open space about a quarter of a mile from the water, partly glade and partly clear- ing, the existence of which the Wave party had not suspected, In this open space was an old log building, which seemed to have been intended for a barn or stable, and at some time in the past used for such a purpose, It was near twenty feet high, but was not large, and its breadth was only a third of its length, t one end was a low doorway, fat Ae a door made of heavy slabs and hung on wooden hinges, which opened outwardly. As the party halted in front of this building, some of them began to sniff at the air, whic had lately been loaded witha pungent odor, and to gaze in the direction from which the breeze blew. Soon they caught sight through the trees of a light at the westward, and they knew well enough what was the matter. “The woods is afire over yonder,” observed the leader, ‘‘and it’s apt to make a clean sweep. This side 0’ the water is safe, I reckon; but that boy ‘ll be in a pickle unless he’s a sala- mander. [Ef the fire don’t wipe him out, it’ll be easy fur us to pick him up.” When the captives had been conducted into the log building, they were seated on the earth- en floor, and, asa measure of further precau- tion, their feet were tied with thongs. Jim Summers gave them a parting admoni- tion. ** All thet you’ns hev Og to do is to stay put right whar you are. e won’t none of us be fur away, and ef you try to git out, it'll be wuss fur yer.” He followed his comrades outside, and the door was closed and fastened there. The three men of the Wave party, when they were left to themselves, had not much to say about their ignominious surprise and capture. To that subject they could not begin to do justice; but they could discuss the question of the possible escape or capture of Sam Startle, the only member of the party who was left at large. “Tt is my opinion,” said Rush Powell, ‘‘ thet Morley EISEN is at the bottom of this busi- ness. I am almost sure that he was responsible for our affair with the Hyleys, and there is no doubt that he has been hand and glove with more than one of the gangs that run wild in the woods and swamps.’ “Suppose you are right,” observed Engel, ** what then?” “If this is Morley Plympton’s work, we may presume that Sam is what those men are after, and that our capture is only incidental to the 0 of getting rid of him, Though Plymp- os a grudge against me, I doubt if he w ca'ry it to the extent of getting me kill- mt Sam stands between him and a for- ‘Tis a good thing that he was away when we were gobbled up,” remarked Boney Priddle. * But can he keep out of the way? That is the question. Even if he should escape those swampers, Wh are like wild beasts on the trail of their prey, what would becomeof him? How could he live or find his way to any settlement? It is more than likely, too, Sam being what he is, that be will not try to get far away, but will hang about bere in the hope of finding us and helping us. Of course he can’t accomplish any- i SSS tsetse 17 in that direction were speedily choked off by Salamander Sam. thing in that way, and the fear is that he will | only succeed in getting himself caught.” the leader. ‘* Be not too sure of that, my friend,” broke in ‘*No yer don’t, mister. I don’t want yo the professor. ‘'Sam Startle is nofool. Indeed, | dod-durn yer! You're too rotten smart. want one o’ t’others.” “Which one?’ inquired Engel, probably hop- ing that the chance might fall to him. he lacks every one of the elements that go | to make up the ordinary fool. You must re- | member that I was out with him at the time of | the Hyley affair, and that I hada good chance ‘‘ Not you, nuther. When the thing was com- to judge of his style and the resources of his in’ up the water I see a fat man a-workin’ it. nature. Man is a complex being—” | We'll take that fat feller and make him show us ‘* Cut it short, professor,” demurred Boney. how it works. He’s got to do it, too, or the “The short of it is, then, that you owed your | ’gators ‘ll git him mighty quick.” rescue on that occasion quite as much to Sam The ‘‘ fat man” who was menticned, and whe Startle as to me, and I am convinced that if | could not pretend to doubt that be was the one I had not had his ready and intelligent help, | they wanted, was not enthusiastically apprecia- I would have been of little use to you. I have tive of the honor conferred upon him, no doubt, Rush, that you are right in saying | He was doubtless quite as willing as the others that he, instead of selfishly seeking to save him- | were to sacrifice himself for his friends, but was self, will remain near here and try to do some- | of the opinion that either the colonel or the pro- thing for us.” | fessor could manage the matter better than he ‘*The fire may ketch him,” suggested Boney, | could, and find a safer way out of the scrape. “ No fear of that. With a boat and pleuty of | They were decidedly of the same opinion, and water, he will have sense enough to keep out of | each would bave been glad to give him a word tne fire. If there were twoof him, we might ' of advice or caution before he left them; but no count with certainty on being saved from the , chance was offered them, consequences of our carelessness,” | Boney was led away like a sheep to the ‘‘But there isonly one of him,” mournfully | slaughter, and the swampers filed out again and remarked Powell, | fastened the door on the outside. ‘*Only one, and therefore I say thatfor his; The ‘fat feller” was no coward, having sake as well as our own we ought to waste no | proved himself on many occasions, before and more time here in useless regrets or idle talk, | since he joined the surveyors, a man of courage but go to work and try to help him, Todo | and nerve; but, though passably witty, he was that, the first thing necessary is to get out | not quick-witted. of this den.” He was well aware of the fact that his slug- ‘The leader of the gang told us,” objected | gish brain was not the best thing in the world Boney, “‘ that if we tried that game it would be | for an emergency, and that he needed somebody wuss for us.” | to go ahead and pick out the way, in order te ‘It cannot be much worse, They might | bring his full powers into play. as well kill us as deprive us of our boat and our The quick wit of Powell, or the ready re- arms. Without those we would be as bad | source of Engel, would have speedily hit upon a off in this wilderness as a fly in the middle of a | means of outwitting the swampers and turning pond,” the tables on them, and’ it was really a pity tha ‘That’s what’s the matter. Those folks have | one of his comrades bad not been chosen for the got all our guns now. What can we do without er te of this occasion. our tools?” hough Boney Priddle was not a bit afraid of ‘You are beginning at the wrong end of the | the ordeal, be did not relish the idea of furnish- business, Boney. Let us start at the right end, ; ing to the river reptiles such a famous feast of and when we have got hold of that we will see | fat things, and, as he had missed his supper, he what is next to be done. Guns or no guns, | actually fell toenvying the alligators the meal we shall be eternally disgraced if we allow those | they would make of him, ignorant and brutish swamp suckers to get the rom the last remark it is reasonable to infer better of us, and for my part I cannot rest | that he did not mean to show the swampers how patiently for a moment under what they have | to run the Wave, and that was exactly the state already done. The first thing isto get out | of the case. of this den, and we ought to succeed in that | Whatever thoughts might come into his head, without much difficulty, if they leave us a little | there was no room there for such an idea as time to work.” that. ‘That is what we are likely to have,” ob- He had not formed any plan, and confessed served Powell. ‘‘ They have either gone to hunt | himself incapable of forming a plan to defeat Sam, or are bothering themselves to find out the | their ends or get himself out of the scrape; but works and ways of the Wave, and neither | it was a settled thing in his mind that he would of tho-e jobs is likely to be finished in a hurry. | not run the engine for them or assist them in Come, Boney, we must try to get near each | any way. other, and then you may have some deerskin his determination came to him as naturally for your supper.’ as breathing, and was simply a matter of ‘*Come and give me a chaw, then,” requested | course, Boney. When he left the log house with his guards, Rush Powell succeeded in working his way to | the air was heavy with smoke, and he had only the fat man and backing up to him, when | to cast his eyes toward the west to see that a he offered the thongs with which his hands were | big forest fire was raging there and sweeping bound to the sharp teeth of his comrade. everything before it. Boney started into the task with an appetite; It was a fearful sight; but the swam but, as the, thongs had been knotted and re-| seemed to feel no uneasiness about it, as they knotted, and it was no easy matter to make an | were doubtless sure that the fire would not cross impression on the tough deerskiu, the work was | the water and reach them. not to be done as speedily as the captives hoped | They said nothing to Boney, and he said noth- it would be. _ing to them, 9s he was so entirely occupied with They had, however, the consolation of know- | cudgeling his brain for an idea, that he had no ing that if one of them could get his hands | time to waste in words, free, he would soon be able to release the They led him directly to the Wave, which others, Boney was still chewing vigorously at the | landed, with her fires out. deerskin when the voices of the swampers were When he had been allowed to step aboard, heard outside. Jim Summers abruptly ordered him to ‘‘ make The work was stopped at once, and Powell | the thing go.” tumbled back to bis place as quickly as he | The tone of the swamper was so positive and could, peremptory, that the alternative of feeding the alligators was clearly presented to the prisoner. CHAPTER XVIII. e had not as yet succeeded in getting hold of BONEY PRIDDLE IN A FIX, what he might call an idea; but it occurred te THE door was opened from the outside, and | him that he would surely not be able to do any- the four swampers came filing in. thing for himself with his hands tied, and must Rush Powell was glad to see that they were | be free before be could take advantage of any all there and that Sam Startle was not with | chance that micht offer. them. ‘*'You must untie me, then,” he remarked, as He judged that they had not vet captured the | he seated himself on a box, lad, but wanted tosatisfy himself on that point, ‘‘Nary time,” declared the leader. and spoke up as soon as he recognized Jim | takin’ no chance.” Sunmers in the darkness. ** How can I make it work, then?” ‘*Did you find the boy you spoke of?” he in- ** Jest set right thar, and tell us w’ot to do. quired, You'd better tell it straight as a line, too, or ‘‘ Naw,” answered Summers, gruffly. ‘‘ We) over you go to the ’gators,.” ain't botherin’ bout no boy. The woods is all him, we'll be sart’in to ketch him when we git | as much as he could do to keep his face straight ready. Jest now we wanter know how to work | while he framed his answer. that keenoo o’ yourn.” **Here goes, fhen. Cock up your ears and ‘“*Keenoo?” repeated Rush, ‘‘ What keenoo?” | listen for all you’re worth. The first thing to ‘That boat—a steamboat, as you’ns called it. | do is to build a fire in the furnace; then start The thing that goes by smoke.” the feed pump, examine the stopcocks, attach ‘Tf you are anxious to investigate that mat- the parabolic curve to the safety valve, and ad- ter, Mr. Summers,” observed Rush, “ I am will- | just the screv at a tangent with the shaft.” ing to go and show you how the thing works.” He had caught a number of words from the He doubtless thought that if he should be free- | surveyors, and used them as they happened te handed and on the launch, he might find a} come into his head. chance to “ make a break ”; but his aspirations The swampers stared at him and looked af cael | Ecomicbooks.c (E 2 ‘ ° - — = = — Se HL ae ee re * Cat ae eo oS ) Despite the seriousness of the situation, this — burnin’ up over thar, and ef the fire don’t git | seemed very funny to Boney Priddle, and it was | a was still tied up at the bank where she had been “Weaint ed : * : rc 37 et ie! : ale ; | a | . ¥