Beadle's New York Dime Library, No. 48 — page 36: what you’re looking at

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

36= Back areand the cabin he darted, and, placing the bar, heavy as it was, between his teeth, hastily climbed the rope to the roof of the house. With a wild, frenzied howl the wolves poured from their pri- son-pen in a perfect stream of shaggy forms. Billy hastily descended into Zoe’s room, and with the bar, procured for the purpose, securely fastened the door.on the in- side. - “Now, my little lady friend,” he said, ‘‘ your time has come, Let me toie the rhope around yees, for mees can toie a sailor’s knot that’ll not let yees fall.” The maiden yielded to his suggestions without a word of dis- sent, and the lad wound and twined the end of the rope around her form so as to give as little pain as possible. This done he again ascended to the roof, then with a steady nerve he drew the light, fairy form of the maiden from the prison to the house- top. She was trembling with terror and affright, but, in his droll, good-natured way, the youth succeeded in restoring her usual composure and: in strengthening her courage for the next terrible leap, as it were, for life and freedom. Molock and his men, by this time, had detected an unusual noise without, and quitting their cards they grasped their wea- pons and rushed out to inquire the cause of it. The hungry beasts, maddened now with their liberty, came pouring around the house and attacked the outlaw and his two savage coadjutors. In an instant one of the latter was down, while a sea of shaggy forms surged around him like a maelstrom —tearing and gnawing at his quivering flesh, Molock and the other Indian escaped into the house, but as they had not before closed the doors a dozen desperate, maddened beasts were al- ready inthe room. They were driven up the ladder into the loft. At the head of the stairs Molock stopped to rest. He was panting like an overworked ox, His face wore a wild look, and his eyes glared like coals of fire, He had been shocked by the terrible tide,of vengeance turned so suddenly upon him. He could not form the remotest idea as to how this critical state of affairs had been brought about—how the wolves had escaped. After a few minutes’ pause he advanced and unbarred Zoe’s prison-door and tried to open it; but it refused to yield. It was fastened on the inside. The outlaw kicked it, and pounded upon it with his fist till the whole building trembled under the blows, But finding it would not yield his fury burst forth in a storm of horrible oaths that were revolting to human ears. Billy and Zoe heard every blow and every oath from their position on the house, They filled the maiden’s heart with ter- ror and increased her anxiety to escape from the desperate vil- lain’s reach, She felt that there was no danger she would not risk to gain a point of safety. Billy untied, the rope from her waist, and leaving the end of it in her possession, with instructions how to proceed, he swung from the cabin and ascended to the ledge. ‘What in the name of Heaven has happened down cca Billy?’ was the first words that Frank said to him; ‘‘ where have you been all this time? and what doing? Is Zoe there?” “Yes; she’ll be along in a minute,” replied Billy, pulling the rope slightly, as a signal to the maiden to prepare to follow. With a steady hand Zoe tied the rope around her form, then signaled to her friends that all was ready. The rope was gradually drawn taut. The maiden swung from the roof as she was lifted from her feet. An involuntary cry of terror pealed from her lips when she felt herself swinging to and fro in mid-air, Carefully Frank and Billy drew up the dangling burden, When it appeared near the edge of the precipice, Frank threw himself along the rock, and reaching over, lifted the maiden in his strong arms to the summit of the ledge. But Zoe was per- fectly helpless, She had fainted! or was she dead? CHAPTER XXXTITIIL “VENGEANCE IS MINE, SAITH THE LORD.” THE great round moon burst suddenly through the vail of clouds, and lit up the desolate valley in which was located the den of Molock, the Wolf-Herder. It shone upon a scene of ten- derness and love, and upon a scene of tragic horror—the formes upon the ledge, the latter in the rock-girded valley. Over the motionless form of the beautiful Zoe Leland knelt the figure of noble Frank Caselton, chafing the temples and Beadle’s Dime Library. palms of the fair being in hopes of resuscitating the almest faded spark of life. He had wrapped the tender form in his woolen hunting-jacket to protect it from the chill, damp night air. In fact everything within his power was done to save her; and finally, to his infinite joy, he had the extreme pleasure of knowing that his administrations were not in vain. She opened her eyes, and gazing wildly about her into the misty moonlight, asked in a flighty voice: ‘‘Father, why don’t Frank Caselton ever come back to the island?” Frank was astonished. Why this question from the lips of the half-delirious girl? A second thought set his heart to throb- bing wildly with joy, and his brain became intoxicated with a sense of indescribable pleasure, Bending over the girl, he whie- | pered, tenderly: ‘Zoe, Frank Caselton is here by your side.” She started with a little cry, as if aroused by the magic of his voice, She gazed up into his face and around with a conscious, yet bewildered look. “You are safe, Zoe; rest easy,” Frank said. “ Then it really is you, Frank,” she said, feebly. “Tt is. You have had quite an adventure, Zoe, and a narrow escape. You have been in the den of Molock, the Wolf-Herder,” ‘IT mistrusted the fact when I saw a great herd of wolves from my prison window.” ‘He will not carry off another girl soon,” Frank said; “py e friend, Billy Brady, whe rescued you from the den, is already punishing the wretched villain.” True enough, the inimitable Billy was busily engaged in a work of vengeance upon the head of Molock. He carried stone after stone, many of them over a hundred pounds in weight, and rolled them over the precipice onto the roof of the cabin. Of course the huge missiles crashed through the roof and floor as though they had been paper; and the out- law and savage in the loft now discovered that the vengeance of _ an enraged enemy had overtaken them. They hovered close against the wall to escape death, but the rocks continued to rain down upon the house until it became necessary for the two . wretched men to seek safety elsewhere. The wolves were sweeping to and fro across the valley like scudding clouds. The outlaws’ horses and tame buffaloes had . drawn their pickets and were thundering here and there with wild whinny and terrified bellow, in frantic efforts to escape. from the pursuing animals, With hasty footsteps Molock and his man descended the lad- der. The wolves had all left the cabin and joined in the chase of the horses and buffaloes. “‘ Unque,” said Molock, in terror, ‘‘we can reach the tunnel before the wolves ketch us, but we’ll have to run for it.” “Yes,” was Unque’s reply, and he fell dead at Molock’s feet, crushed into a shapeless mass by a huge stone that came crash- ing from above, With alarm the now terrified outlaw rushed from the cabin and ran rapidly toward the tunnel opening into the valley. In the now clear moonlight, Billy and Frank saw the fleeing villain, when the latter cried out: “* Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord, and I will surely repay.” The outlaw merely glanced back as he ran on. sued by two score of wolves suddenly swept between him and the mouth of the cavern. The hungry beasts saw their keeper, and turned upon him. Molock saw his danger—that he was cut off from the tunnel, and turning to the right, he ran toward the great wall of tower- _ In his hand he carried an Indian hatchet—a formidable wea- pon in the hand of a man struggling for his life. _ The wolves were weak and clumsy from long confinement and | starvation, but rendered frantic by hunger. Reaching the wall, Molock placed his back against it, and with his hatchet began to hew right and left among the beasts. He was a powerful and active man, and quick and deadly fell the’ sodden blows upon the wrangling, snarling horde. He kept a space before him clear. The earth soon became piled with dead and wounded beasts around him. He would soon be protected by a wall of shaggy bodies; but the poll of the hatchet became’ wet with dripping gore. It followed down the handle and made it slippery; and in the midst of the conflict the weapon shot from the outlaw’s hand and flew far beyond his reach. A cry of awful agony burst from the strong lungs of the wicked wretch He was at the mercy of his beasts, but he fought on—beat them off with his great fists—fought bag aaeN and hand nerved by the desperation born of iam es Meg A horse pur-- EComicbooks = Gcom i