Beadle's Half Dime Library (no. 828) (1893 06 06)
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a apathy ==. 2) RRS ~ ENE Oy ; ex ‘ Helellal, ey y ? er "4 | ‘ a GZ titties ““ BEE oda LOR DF SRW, ‘ K\ TT ta at a minis = | Bano Copyrighted 1898, by BE ADLE AND ADAMS, June 6, 1893, PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY BEA DLE AND AD AMS. i No. 828. No. 98 WILLIAM STREET, NEW YORK.” 5 pre eR Sit ei a a ee ee WL, -DEADWOON 0 I, df. 8 URS, SCOOP. BY HDWARD L. WHEELER. DICK STEPPED INTO THE BIG BOX AND SOON THE HEAVY LID WAS CLOSED DOWN UPON HIM,
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2 Deadwood Dick, dns, Scoop; THE BIG HAUL AT HARD HOLE. The Story of the Reclaimed Placer. BY EDWARD L. WHEELER, AUTHOR OF ‘DEADWOOD DICK” NOVELS, ETC,, ETC., ETC. CHAPTER I. THE GOLD-SEEKER’S HOME. Srop!” Clear and ringing the command, but in a sweet, musical, feminine voice. And, so unexpected the order, so com- lete the surprise, that. the two travelers instantly drew rein, with exclamations of amazement. They were in a narrow mountain pass which, just here, widened a little, only to narrow again a few yards further on, and there, at the place of narrowing, had sud- denly appeared a young woman with a rifle pressed to her shoulder, She was young, not more than twenty-five at most, and good-looking, with a full, rounded form, shapely in every line and curve. Her hair was dark, and her eyes keen and flashing. She seemed altogether out of place in that wild region, for it was miles from any camp. The two men whom she had thus brought to a stop were big, burly, ruffianly fellows— about as hard-looking a pair as can be im- agined. One had a perfectly hideous face, he being spotted all over with livid spots about the size of a dime, either by nature or disease, and these spots were in great con- trast to the rusty-reddish hue of the rest of the surface, His companion was no more reputable, in looks, though not similarly disfigured. He had an evil face, one that bespoke for him a hard and cruel nature and upon which crime had made its imprint, the two, almost a giant in size, and had a belt full“of formidable weapons. The other had only one revolver in sight, carried in a leathern pocket that swung by his right us CeBlazes!” the larger of the pair ejacu- lated, at the word of command, and he drew his horse to a stop with a jerk. ‘What d’ye mean, gal?” “Thunder!” from the other at the same time. ‘Look out whar ye p'int that ‘ar thing, gal! Ib’lieve you wouldn’t have no more sense ’n to shoot! Lower et, now, or by ther—” : ‘*Put up your hands!” came the young ‘woman's peremptory demand, Prompt, though under protest, was the obedience, since there was no help for it. There was that in the manner of the plucky little woman which carried the conviction that she meant ‘ shoot.” ‘‘See hyer!” demanded the giant of the ask “What d’ye mean by holdin’ us up n this hyer fashion, gal? Ar’ ye a road- agent? an’ do ye mean to call us fer our wealth? ’Cause ef ye ar’, ye ar’ goin’ ter fool yerself, fer me an’ ther Spotted Tiger ar’ as poor as plucked pigeons.” ‘“‘That’s what’s thé matter,” the Spotted Tiger supported, angel like you kin be a road-agent, gal; what zs yer reason fer this deal? Ye have dropped on us heayy, an’ that’s ther fack. What do et mean? Hang me ef you ain’t a. good-looker, anyhow! Come, lower that ’ar gun, an’ let us talk sense an’ see what is ther—” “Make a single move toward a weapon, either of you,” the young woman warned positively, ‘‘and I will tumble you off your He was the larger of | - “But, et can’t be that a Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. horse. More, if youdo not turn about at once, and go back the way you came, I will shoot, anyhow.” *“What?” cried the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘ You mean ter say we can’t go any furder ‘long this hyer pass, gal?” “That is just what I do mean! Back with you!” ** Ar’ we goin’ to stan’ this, an’ from a gal like that ‘ar, Giant Jack?” and the Spot- ted Tiger turned to his companion, his spots taking on a darker hue while the surround- ing skin paled. “Not by a mighty sight!” Giant Jack roared, ‘* Drop that gun, gal, or by the great—” ‘Take care! If you value life, do not touch a weapon. I will not warn you again, but will fire, and my bullet can find your heart before you can draw, for I am no baby with the rifle.” The baffled rascals cursed fiercely, but did not take the risk of disobeying the defiant woman who thus held the ‘‘ drop” on them with such nerve. ‘But, what does et mean?” the Spotted Tiger demanded. ‘‘ Why do ye stop us an’ order us back?” “Tt means business, that is all I will tell you. Will you turn and go? or will you force me to kill you here?” “We'll go, we'll go,” promised Giant Jack, in haste, as the deadly rifle removed its bead from the Tiger’s heart to cover his own. ““Yas, we'll go,” agreed the Spotted Tiger, ‘seein’ that* you have got ther best of et. But, tell us, gal, what is beyond hyer that you ar’ so ’fraid of?” ‘‘There is nothing beyond here that I am afraid of. Iam afraid of nothing, and least of all of you. Go, now, and without fur- ther parley. I will count twenty, and if you are not out of sight by the time I cover the score I will make cold meat of you.” Cold words, and grim, and hard, to come from lips so pretty; and, there was a glitter of the eyes that spoke even louder than, the words, and the two hard-looking men spoke to their horses and turned. ** Yas, we go, cuss ye!” cried the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘ You have got ther drop on us an’ we can’t help et. ut, we ar’ comin’ back ag’in, I warn ye, an’ then we'll find out what secret ye ar’ guardin’ at ther rifle’s p’int. We're bound ter know what’s beyond hyer.” This while the young woman was count- ing the deadly twenty, and as she had already nearly reached the half-way mark, they struck their borses with their heels and dashed away, getting out of range be- fore the closing number was reached. No sooner had they disappeared from view than the young woman's face paled, her hands trembled, and she leaned her shoul- der against the rocky wall of the narrow pass for support. — While she stood thus, running steps were heard coming from the opposite direction along the pass, and ina few seconds a man appeared upon the scene, ‘‘What is it, Myra?’ he asked, ‘Wh did you signal me? “Are you sick—yes, can see you are-—” ‘No, no; I am not sick, Frank; I have had a great fright.” , “A fright? Ha!" here are tracks. At last, then, we have been been discovered. Who were they, Myra?” “‘Two of the worst-looking wretches my eyes ever beheld, Frank. They were big men, one almost a giant, and the other was horribly spotted, like a snake.” “But, yqu foiled them, brave little wo- man that you are! It is what we have been dreading, that our secret would sooner or iors be discovered, and now that has hap- D 582 - — not yet, Frank, for I turned them back.” “True; but they will never rest until for this day. They are sure to they know what is here. come again.” ; ‘* Yes, for so they have taken oath to do. They are determined to learn what secret I was guarding so carefully. Oh! I wonder how Lever faced them as I did, and over- came them.” “It is no wonder to me, Myra dear; I know how you did it. You are as brave a woman as ever lived. But, I tremble as I think what might have happened, It was wrong of me to allow you to stand guard here, where all the danger lay. You shall not do it again.” ‘‘But, Frank, it is all I can do, you know. And, with the secret signal-bell arranged as we have it, so that I can sound it with my foot and no one “be the wiser, my dan- geris not so great. See how quickly you came to my aid this time. No, the danger is not great, and now that I have regained my nerve I am ready to continue at my 0st.” ‘“‘T think you are speaking more bravely than your heart feels, Myra,” the man re- joined. - He was & young man, maybe thirty, of good looks and figure, but just now soiled with dirt, proof that he had dropped work to respond to the call. | ; “No, Iam all right again now, Frank; can’t you take my. word for it? See; 1 do not look like a coward, do I? No; you go back to your work, and I will finish out the day’s guard at the cabin.” “‘T will not allow it, Myra. I am*done I must look and learn where these fellows have gone to, and then we must take such measures as we can for our protection against the invasion that is now sure to come. Oh! that we might have had a few months more in secret!” ’ He, too, was armed with a rifle, and hold- ing it ready for instant use he advanced along the pass in the direction the horsemen had gone. ° : At the end of about twenty minutes he re- turned, his face wearing a lighter-look than when he had set forth. C ‘*Have they gone, then?” the young wo- man asked, “Yes, dear wife,” was the cheery re- % sponse; ‘‘they have taken themselyes off, ~ beyond doubt.” ‘Then we are safe, for a time, at_leas eee all the courage I could bring to bear ta O it. . you would work no more.” _ Let’s go to the cabin. will have warning of it.” Stooping, the young gold-seeker took up the end of a piece of wire that lay along the If they return we ground, and stretching it across the trail, — made it fast over a ring that was there to re- ceive it, “There,” he said, ‘they cannot return without our knowing it, and together at the cabin we can give them a warm reception, I. think. Come on, By the way, did the fel- lows let out their names?” “One was called Spotted Tiger, the other Giant Jack.” “ Spotted Tiger? That is astrange enough name, I must say. Was he— But, you did say so—that he was spotted like a snake.” he young woman explained as they walked along through the pass, and by the time she finished her story they came out into a beautiful pocket, where stood a cabin right at the entrance, ; The place looked a veritable Eden. Tt was at and warm, flowers bloomed in pee e grass was rich and thick, an a creek wound its way along through ~ the southern half, Closed in completely with rocky walls, save the narrow pass we have seen, it was a place where a few men might defy a host. And on the northern side, where a sharp rock ledge stood out, a drift had been opened. Iam glad I was able to defy them, but it~ What are we to do now? You said —~) | si . Ss ~— eS
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This, then, was the secret the young woman had been guarding. The young man was a gold-seeker; he had found a rich vein, and had been delving hard to wrest a for- tune from the find before it was discovered by others and a stampede to the little moun- tain pocket begun. CHAPTER II. THE INVADERS COME. et Sucn was the simple story of the pocket which this couple, man and wife, had named Rose Dell. Frank Westley, a young mineralogist, traveling for his health in the far West, had been taken with the ‘‘ gold fever,” and had made up his mind to show the native pros- pectors that they did not know it all. With his ‘‘book” knowledge, as the called it out there, and the practical knowl- edge added to that by close observation dur- ing a couple of years of wandering around from camp to camp while in quest of health, he was better equipped than any man with whom he had come in contact. He had found health, and not only that, ut a loving wife who was now his “ pard” in the truest sense. Myra Treatman, whose acquaintance hc had made in one. of the Western mining ‘‘ cities,” was the daughter of a physician who had come to the West with the same object ia view that had brought young Westley there; but who had been less fortunate in his seeking. Frank and Myra had loved each other at sight, and after a short acquaintance they were married and she accompained him on his further wanderings, now in search of a **find” that would satisfy his prospector’s ambition and at the same time give him the wealth he desired to accumulate before he returned to his native eastern city. Finally their wanderings discovered to them this beautiful little mountain pocket, and at sight of it Frank had Meslared his belief that gold was there. And, he set about proving it. > He found it a richer “strike” than he had ever dreamed of making, almost, and the couple resolved upon staying-right there till they had gained a fortune. ~~) They laid in a store of provisions, and re- “turning, Frank built a rude cabin for their Some months they had been there, at the “ime of which our opening chapter treats, snd it had been their intention to fill out the “co Sy year, at least, at the end of which time they am mg oe te Q : “her as - would be rich enough to be independent while they lived. Now, however, the forerunner of trouble had come, and the worst was feared. They » were likely not only to lose all they had gained, but their mine as well. Thus far the claim had not been entered, . Westley knew that to do so would be to disclose the secret, and in less than a week he would have more adventurers there than the pocket — could contain. If he could work it in secret till he had taken out a fortune, then he could file his claim to the mine, and if a stampede was ‘made it could not then do him any harm, even if he was ousted temporarily from his ossession; for, he would have already made is fortune, and would be reasonably sure of getting hold of the mine again in the course of time. And, there had been a prospect of his succeeding, till now, when trouble might be expected, ‘ec ell, Myra,” Frank said, when they reached the cabin, ‘‘what is going to be done?” ‘“‘T wish I knew what to say, Frank,” was _ the response. “* Advise me, anyhow,” . “Well, I would say hide what you have - dug, so that it cannot:be discovered, and let us keep right on. They may come and ‘Wrest the mine from us, but it.is not likely _ they will do us harm.” > bee A ies == ate Spysr-s = oe mee Ce = US es State SS ee a NS Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoo Oe in ar nO Ef EN ‘* And then what?” ‘There will be some chance to get away, at some time or other. We certainly have no means of taking it now, with no animal to carry it. We can hide it well, and then let Providence take care of us and it. This is the best I can advise you; you know I do not know much.” *T see but one flaw in your plan, Myra.” ** And what is that?” “They will know.I have not been here without having something to show for it, and they ae hold us and force us to reveal the hiding place to them.” *“Then let us hide it and get away im- mediately, record our claim to the pocket, and then come back again with force enough to seize the place and hold it. I suppose that is wild, however.” * Little wife, we are ina dilemma. If we go out they can hold us out. If we stay, it is just possible that we may be able to hold them out, Not forall time, of course, but long enough to force them to terms, If they are honest men they will acknowledge our right to the Myra Minc at least. ‘‘Well, your judgment must guide us, Frank. The first thing to be done, though, must be to cache our little fortune securely, We may be able to do that before they get back, if we niake haste,” The work was begun from that moment, andin a couple of days it had been done thoroughly. Their treasure had been stored away ina hiding-place which they deemed secure, When the invaders came, as come they did not a great while later, it was by night. The occupants of the little cabin heard the alarm-bell ring, and sprung to the defense of their claim, but the invaders were coming with a rush, determined to carry all before them, and werein the pocket in a body almost before action could have been taken, even had there beena score of men to defend the pass. It was a moonlight night, and Myra West- ley recognized at a glance as the leaders of the invading party the Spotted Tiger and Giant Jack. ‘* Whoopee!” the Spotted Tiger yelled, firing off his revolvers to celebrate his vic- tory, as it were. ‘Hyer we ar’, as we said we'd be, an’ what ar’ ye goin’ to do about it?” *“That’s what's ther matter!” shouted Giant Jack. ‘We s’pected somethin’ of this kind, we did, an’ we made up our minds ef thar was a find hid hyer we was goin’ to have a hand in it, an’ hyer we be! Come out an’ show yerselves, citerzens, till we size ye up.” ** You see all there are of us,” spoke up Frank Westley, in fearless tone, as he stood i ust in advance of Myra before their cabin oor, ** Ye don’t mean ter say you two is all!” “There is not another soul here besides Os; 'Siz,.. ‘*Then et looks,as if we have tooken ther place, don’t et? ’Pearsto me et do,” “We are certainly in your hands, that I must admit,” rejoined Frank, fearlessly. ‘That is to say, the pocket is.” **Wull, what hey i got hyer, anyhow, young feller?” demanded Giant Jack. ‘Is et a rich strike what you have been workin’ all to yourself?” “You have guessed it.” ‘And does it pay big?” “Tt is a paying claim. It is mine, of course; found, located and opened by me. x oe are honest men you will not try to ump it. . “Honest be darn! We ar’ hyer to make the stuff, we ar’, and if you have opened a paying streak, so much the better. Git ck into your cabin thar till daylight, an’ then we'll talk biz.” There appeared to be at least twenty of the band, most of whom were almost as evil in looks as the Spotted Tiger and Giant | Jack, . : Westley accepted the situation as cheer- fully as possible, and withdrew within the cabin and secured the door. There was no more sleep for either him or his wife that night, needless to say. ; At an early hour the invaders were astir, and a call was made for Westley and his wife to come forth. They had already breakfasted, and when they appeared, each had a rifle in hand and a revolver in sight, They were prepared to fight if it came to that, large as the odds against them. ‘Well, boy an’ gal,” greeted the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘we hev sized up this hyer place of yours, an’ it’s a likely spot.” ; “Yes, itisa rich place, no use denying it,” Westley admitted. ‘‘ What terms do you feel disposed to make with us if we let you remain here and share the pocket with us?” “Bf ye let us remain hyer? Haw! haw! Wull, that ’ar’s good, thatis, Why, ye young snipper-snapper ye, ain’t we hyer all ewe an’ in full possession? What more could we ask? I reckon ther boot is on t’other hoof, ain’t et? Ye mean what is ther terms we'll ‘low you.” “Then you mean to jump my claim, re- gardless of my rights to the mine, and not only the mine but the pocket as well?” ‘Ther jump has been tooken ae young feller,” here put in Giant Jack. “‘ Wear’ boss of the camp now, an’ we have been talkin’ et all over an’ we'll tell ye what our terms will be ef we let ye stay hyer. Do ye git on to that? Spotted Tiger, you jes’ tell him what ther conditions ar’, an’ we'll see what he has ter say fer himself on ther p’int.” “Rascals that you are!” cried Frank, in anger. ‘It is lucky for us that we have already disposed of most of our gold, or you would no doubt demand that, too. I will hear what your terms, as you call them, are,” “‘Cuss ther luck!” growled Giant Jack, ‘‘he has sent away most of his dust, an’ our haul is that much ther less.” ‘‘He didn’t say he’d sent it away,” dis- puted the Spotted Tiger. ‘“You will not find it here,” Westley de- clared., ‘*Wal, do ye want to hear ther terms we'll give ye?” the Spotted Tiger passed over. ‘‘Then hyer ’em is: We will give ye share an’ share alike with us in ther mine, and your woman hyer is ter do ther cookin’ fer ther camp. How does that ar’ hit ye?” ; ‘““You infernal wer the young gold- uch a proposition is seeker cried, hotly. ‘ worse than an insult. Rather than accept such terms, we will go away and let you re- main in full possession.” : ‘Ye had better have a keer how ye ating er pet names ’round vitae the Spottec Tiger warned. ‘Et will be as we say whether ye go away or not.” ; “What! Do you mean to say you would try to hold us against our will?” ‘‘ Et shall be as ther boys say *bout that. What do ye say to et, pards? Ar’ we goin’ ter let ’°em move out?” “We want a woman ter cook an’ wash fer us, that’s a straight deal, an’ as oc a we hev got one hyer I’m in favor of holdin’ on to her,” spoke Giant Jack. ““That’s what’s ther matter,” chorused the crowd. . : “And do you think a woman like my wife could cook and wash for a score?” the gold-seeker cried, boiling with indignation, ‘Tf she could, do you imagine I would al- low It?” “How could ye hel *T could, and would; came to that.” yerself?” take her life, if it “Bah! Talk ischeap. Ef ye say much \
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| f i i i (" } " 4 h Sy 4 we'll make yer wife a widdy, and then we'll see what’s what.” ‘*Do not anger them, Frank,” the young wife cautioned. ‘‘I will undertake to do anything, for your sake, Do not anger them against us.” ‘‘Hear what ther gal says?’ cried Giant Jack. ‘‘She is willin’, an’ I guess that set- tles et; hey, Spotted Tiger?” ‘*T guess et does,” the Tiger agreed. “You'll stay hyer, young feller, an’ then we'll be sure of ye. We'll enlarge ther cabin an’ make et our headquarters, an’ your purty wife kin be chief cook—” “You infernal scoundrel!” burst forth Westley, unable to contain himself longer. “* You seem to overlook the fact that we have got the drop on you! Up with your hands, every man of you, or we'll see what damage a bullet will do in your vital parts! |” Up with them!” With the words, man and wife raised their rifles to their shoulders, and the crowd was for the moment at their mercy. But, they could not hope to overcome them; their only chance lay in taking advan- tage of the moment. ould they be able to make good their escape. CHAPTER III. THE SPORT. A LONE horseman was riding along at a fively canter on one of Arizona’s highway trails. He was a young man, seeming not over thirty years of age, of medium size but athletic build, with a pair of keen and flashing magnetic black eyes. The horse he bestrode was a sleek, strong- limbed black, which. appeared to glory in its strength, and which any one could see had in reserve a power of speed that few might surpass. o stranger this horseman to us; it was Deadwood Dick, Jr. Presently, turning a point in the trail, he came upon two travelers on foot, a man and a woman, going in the same direction as himself. They were roughly clad, their garments showing evidences of hard wear and long service, and the man was carrying a pair} y of rifles upon his left shoulder while with his right arm he was half supporting the woman, As they looked around, hearing the sound of the approaching horse, Deadwood Dick had a chance to see their faces. The man, he saw, was bearded, and the worman was pale and evidently weak. They drew aside out of the trail to allow the horseman to pass them, but as he came up with them Dick drew rein and stopped. “Ts your companion sick, sir?” he in- quired of the man, “« She is just recovering from a very severe illness, sir,” was the well-spoken response. s ea paso eae es ae for é pe way, at least,” leapin htly from the sad- aie an he spoke, ‘“‘ Black Enele is perfect gentle, lady, so you need not fear. It will rest me to stretch my legs.” ; The woman’s eyes showed her gratitude, but she looked at her companion in an in- quiring manner. ‘Your offer is certainly a generous one, sir,” spoke the man, “and under the cir- cumstances I am loth to decline it; but, it will delay you on your journey. It wasour intention to stop in a little while for our enomee rest, anyhow, so perhaps it will be as WES 4 on 7 wi Don’t think of are he me, sir,” Dick interrupted, ‘‘ for I have plenty of time at my command. Let me assist you in helping the beat 8 to mount, and we will then talk as we walk along together. I feel an awakened _ dnterest in you, sir, for your language has betrayed the fact that you are a gentleman, in temporary hard luck. Now, lady.” ‘You say the horse is perfectly gentle, sir?” the young woman asked, rather shy of the spirited animal. ‘* Perfectly gentle, I assure you. Were he not, I would not have you risk it. But, you need have no fear,” The woman accepted the offer and was lifted to the saddle, where, sitting sidewise, she was comfortably at rest after the long walk she had come. ‘May I ask where you are going?” Dick inquired, as they started on. “We are aiming for Bristol City, sir,” was the answer. ** Bristol City ?” “ Yes; are you going there?” “Tam. The fact is, there is my home.” “Ah! this is fortunate. Do you know Mr. Bristol?” “‘T have some acquaintance with him,” Dick answered, smiling. *‘He is the detective, better known as Deadwood Dick, Junior, I believe.” ‘Yes, sohe is known, sir. Are you go- ing to Bristol City for the purpose of seeing him?” ‘“Such is my object in going there, sir. Can you tell me whether I shall find him at home? But, you can hardly know.” “On the contrary, I do know. He is not at home at present, sir, but, will be there by the time you arrive, if nothing happens. The truth is, 7 am he.” . ““What!” in greatest amaze. ‘‘ You Dead- wood Dick?” ‘‘Yes; Iam Dick Bristol.” “Then let me have the honor of shaking hands with you. ‘You, of all men, are the person I most desired to see,” Dick gave his hand, and they shook hands warmly. ‘““My name, sir,” the foot-traveler then said, ‘‘is Frank Westley. I was going to your city to see if I could not get you to assist me in recovering a claim that has been wrested from me by force.” ‘‘Well, that comes right in my line of work, sir,” Dick freely answered. ‘‘I will hear your story, and if you satisfy me that you are in the right in the matter, I will do what I can for you. If your cause is all right, I will chip in with you and try to win our case,” ‘¢You will not doubt the justice of my cause when you have heard, sir.” “Then let me hear as we journey along.” Thereupon the young gold-seeker told his story, beginning with the facts which have already been made known to the reader, and from the point where the preceding chapter left him he continued: ‘‘Having the drop on them, for the mo- ment, we had the best of the situation, and we did not hesitate to take advantage of it. Warning them not to move, not a man of them, we walked backward into the narrow pass, and making our way through with all haste, made good our escape.” “The knaves!” cried Dick. ‘‘ We'll see whether they will wrest that claim out of our hands or not. But, go on, Mr. West- ey. You say this took place some time ago, I believe?” ‘‘Tt is now more than three months ago, sir, The excitement and exposure threw my wife into a fever, and for weeks her life hung in the balance. I could not leave her, and having no animal, could not move her, so I could only watch over her and pray that her life might be spared, At last she ‘began to recover, and now, though sheis very weak, she is gaining strength daily.” ‘You have been greatly wroaged, sir, and I will dwall in my power to right it for you. “You said you cached your gold, I believe.” “ce ag: eae “Do you think it is secure from dis- covery ?”” ‘‘ Yes, I think it is. Still, it is not in am impossible place, and it may be gone ere this.” ‘““And you could find the place easily enough—that is, without drawing attention, if we could gain admittance to the camp in disguise?” “Oh, yes; I could do that easily enough. But, the trouble will be about getting ilto the pocket. There is only one way, the narrow pass I have told you about, and five men could hold that against a host. ‘*That is bad. That is the worst feature ofthe problem. If we could get into the place freely, and out again, we might plam to carry off the treasure for you, if it is still where you left it. A little spy work will have to be done to learn the fact.” ‘Would it do to go to the hiding-place, without being prepared to take it away?” “The thought came to me at the same time it came to you, evidently. No, it would not do, for, if discovered, that would spoil the chances of getting it. By the way, how much is there of it?” “Quite a bulk, for itisin the rough. It is about all two men would want to lift, if it were ina chest or some similar recep- tacle.” . ‘When we gothere we must prepare to remove it. We will take a wagon anda big chest if one is to be had. One can be: made, at short notice, anyhow, so it can be counted on.” ‘We had to leave everything we possessed. in the world,” the woman here put in her voice. ne ‘“‘Everything save our weapons and the clothes we had on,” added the man. ‘‘T did not dare risk staying there another minute, for my wife’s sake.” “You did wisely,” Dick approved. ‘“ They would probably have put you out of the way, and your wife would have been a worse than slave among them. I have heard of this Spotted Tiger.” ‘“‘A hideous creature!” Mrs. Westley ex- claimed. at, } “T can imagine he must be. But, we will not let his. face scare us any, I venture to say. ” On the following day the trio entered Bristol City. Deadwood Dick had camped with the Westleys over night, although but for meet- ing them he might have reached home the same day e : Mrs. Westley was takef at once to Dick’s roomy cottage, where she was cared for by Mrs. Bristol—‘‘ Kodak Kate "”—in the best. possible manner, while Dick and Westley set ; about the business in hand. By night everything had been arranged, | and the start was to be made on the follow- ing morning. That evening came a messenger to Bristol > City, bearing a communication from the. Governor of the Territory for Deadwood Dick. The word was brought to Dick, and he re- ceived the man at his house. «You havyé a message for me, Iam told,” _ he said, when he had given the man a cor- dial greeting. ‘Yes, but not a written one, sir,” was the response. might not reach here in safety, and such a message if found might hinder your work. upon a case he desires you to take.” ‘“‘T'see. Let me have the story, then.” ‘‘Down in the mountains to the south- west, sir, a rich discovery has been made, according to all accounts, but the find is held by a horde of outlaws, supposed to be, who — will not admit honest men into the valley where the gold is.” Ae, ‘And the governor wants me to go and open it up?” “That is a part of it, sir, but not all> AG xe a 5 “The governor feared that L[-
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Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. . cbs) DSL) be nem Ee 4 oT a a Vea ee ee FEF cre eae eee cae We Minas phe te Da ea ie a tae ets is believed that a murderer is harbored there, | a close secret, and the amount of their sup- | wall of stones and bowlders, behind which a and the governor wants him.” plies on hand, and the signs of what.they | few men could hold the pass against big “What is his name?” had had at the beginning, indicated that they | odds, and there the outlaws had been keep- “He is called Giant Jack.” had not been away from the place for | ing a constant guard. **Ffa! What is the name of this place you | months—at ary rate not since the misfortune Beyond, a little distance out upon the speak of? | of losing their horse. Taking all things to- | plain, was a clump of trees, and it was there ‘* Tt has come to be called Hard Hole. We } gether, it was believed that the gold they | the party of prospectors had camped. do not know any other name for it now, and | had mined was still there. The Spotted Tiger and Giant Jack took a I guess that name fits it well.” ‘*T tell ye what et is,” the Spotted Tiger | good survey of them before speaking their ‘*A good name for it, no doubt. A mild | had proclaimed, ‘‘that ’ar gold is hyer, | thoughts. name, too, as names go out this way, some- | som’rs, and et has got to be found, To the ““What d’ye think?” asked Giant Jack. : times. If itis the place I think it is, I am | feller what finds it a double share will be ‘*T think they mean business, an’ so will going there to-morrow in the interest of the | given. Hustle, now, you galoots, and bring | we,” the Tiger growled. original discoverer of the find.” et to light!” ‘* You bet we will! There will be less of . “The governor*will be glad to hear that. And they had hustled, to a man, putting |’em before they git into our camp,’ I’m He has a requisition for this murderer, from | in their spare time in hunting for it with a | guessin’.” California, and hoped you could take hold | will. There were tracks beyond the stone wall, } of the case at once.” So, the pocket had been torn up almost | showing that the party had come close to the ‘You did not bring the papers, then?” from end to end with spade and pick, in| pass before going into camp. The trees “No; he said you could operate without | search of the hidden treasnre that was sup- | were about five hundred yards away. 3 aslongas you knewthe man. I can give | posed to be almost within their easy grasp, “Who is their captain?” asked Spotted you a description of him,” could they only get the clue to the hiding- | Tiger. **Do so,” place. “‘He’s a broad-shouldered feller, *bout | The description was given, briefly and to Now, however, the search had been about | middlin’ height, wi’ a close black whiskers. , the point, and it fitted well the Giant Jack | given over, since it did not appear likely | Thar, thar he is now, walkin’ ‘round ther who had been described by Westley. that it would ever be found. wagon.” ‘‘T think I know something about the “Let us oncet git holt of that feller,” A man had just appeared in sight, and ; man,” said Dick, ‘‘and you may say to the | threatened Giant Jack, ‘‘an’ we'll make | reaching the rear of the wagon, stopped and overnor that I will hunt him out if he is to | him show us whar et is, if we have to tor- | looked toward the pass, “ i e found, and I think Iean put my hands | ture him to make him tell. He'll be back ‘*Hullo!” the Spotted Tiger called, i f on him. It may take a little time, for these | some time, ef he did leave the stuff hyer, The answer came back, as aang, as the i ee outlaws hold the best hand there and can | an’ ef he does come we'll know fer sure | distance would admit of, and the Tiger in- Tay hold the place me an atmy, if they are | what he has come fer That gold is ourn | vited him to come forward for a parley. determined and have anything like govern- | by all the rights of persession—ef we kin} The man strode to where a black horse was i if ment in their stronghold,” only git our grip onto et.” tethered, loosed him and vaulted lightly in- i | " : And that was the sentiment of the whole | to the saddle, and in a few moments was CHAPTER IV. camp. within a hundred feet of the stone wall. \ FOES IN THE FIELD, It was late on a pleasant afternoon that He came with a handkerchief displayed as A TPRRIBLE place is deserving of a ter- | one of the outer guardsmen came running | a flag of truce. rible name, and when a horde of villains | into the camp with alarm. ‘« That’s a-plenty clost enough,” the Spot- of the worst type select a name for their ‘‘Wull, what’s ther matter?” demanded | ted Tiger sung out. ‘‘ Who ar’ ye, an’ what stronghold it is not likely to be a saintly | the Spotted Tiger. _ | do ye want hyer?” : "| appellation. ‘«Thar’s a hull stampede out thar wantin’ ‘*We are a party under the guidance of 7 So it was with this beautiful mountain | to come in hyar,” the guardsman reported. | one Frank Westley, owner of this place you . sep pocket which had been wrested from the “'That’s all right; you know what to tell | have jumped, and we are here for the pur- i a hand of its rightful possessor. Instead | ’em, don’t ye? They can’t come in, and the | pose of retaking it for him, Are you dis- 4 of Rose Dell, the name that had been given | sooner they mosey along ther better et will | posed to make terms with us?” ; a it by Myra Westley, it had come to be | be fer their health. © back an’ tell ’em “Waw! haw! Make terms wi’ ou? } if called ‘‘ Hard Hole.’”” And the place deserv- | that.” Wull, not this year, I reckon, Mister Man. 4 ie ed the name or even worse. “That's what I done, Captain Tiger, but | We have got ther camp an’ we ar’ goin’ to 4 ys ) a A camp had sprung up, by this time, | they say they ar’ comin’ in anyhow, an’ I | hold it, you bet. What kin ye do about et, i! and there was a population of at least a | hey come fer you.” I'd like ter know? What’s more, we warn H, Wi hundred souls, with not a single honest ‘Comin’ in anyhow, be they? Wiull, I }-ye to git up an’ git out of hyer while ye ar’ _ f man among the lot, guess we'll see bout that/ Come on, Giant, | in good health.” 7 i They were villains of every stripe and | an’ we'll walk out thar an’ see whether] ‘Just what we do not intend to do, If 4 ie »-> grade, “‘ worse, worser and worsest,” as a | they’ll move on or not. Call half a dozen of | you will not make terms with us, we are go- 7 es certain adept scholar once put it. ther boys.” ing to camp here until we starve ye into sub- i At the head was the Spotted Tiger, with | The headquarters of the horde was at the | mission, that is all. We know you cannot . | 4 Giant Jack as second in command. entrance to the pocket, in the cabin that had | get out or in except by this pass.’ ~ v 5 as These did not reign because it was the | been built by the original proprietor, and} ‘‘Ho! That’syer game, iset? Wull, now, i Pic g will and pleasure of the band, exactly, but | which had now been enlarged. thar may be two sides to this hyer question,” E we? ‘because they were, personally, the two most On the side facing the pass it had been ‘There generally are two sides to a ques- Fie 5 ia powerful villains of the lot doubly logged, and it was a fort on a small | tion.” : > ; F <a * ~ Their presence had marred the natural | scale. ‘An’ this hyer is ours: Ef you ain’t out } M beauty of the pocket to a great extent, for} There were loopholes, and a dozen men jan’ away from hyer by daylight, we ar’ 2 they cared nothing for that. Holes had | within could hold a hundred out of the | comin’ out tharan’ sweep ye off ther face of - ‘been made everywhere in quest of new veins | pocket, In fact, with the fort properly | ther. y’arth, Do ye savvy what I’m i mt of the precious metal. manned and managed, entrance tothe pocket | shoutin’?” : a ; 3 "And, too, several had been discovered and | was almost out of the question. ‘You may find us a tough gang to run up . 4. were being worked with a certain feverish | ‘How many is thar of ’em?” asked the | against, my good man.” ; jpn degree of activity. Spotted Tiger. ‘Don’t ye good man me, fer I’m a mighty . f | _, But, all the digging had not been made in| ‘*’Bout twenty, I should say,” the guards- | bad one, as you ar’ likely to l’arn ef ye 4 3, ime the hunt for new leads, for it had come to be | man answered. monkey around hyer. We don’t keer how sty ts 4 the fixed belief in the minds of the Spotted | ‘An’ how ar’ they fixed?” tough year’, we have got men_ five to one rel | “Tiger and Giant Jack that the original dis-| ‘Bang up. Every man has got a hoss,} against ye, an’ we think we kin make ye = | goverer had taken nothing out of the Dell, | an’ they have pack-mules besides, and there | hustle.” . i ey ab but had cached his gold somewhere within | is an open wagon with a big box in et.” “All right, if we understand each other ase tn the inclosing walls, and according to the ‘ Looks as if they have come to stay, that’s | there is nothing more to be said, 1 imagine. : ee richness of the mine he had been working, | a fack. But they can’t camp hyer, an’ we | You go back to your rascally crew and pre- ao - of ‘and the length of time he had been there, | may as well have et out with’em first as last, | pare fora siege, for that is what it is going | va f which “could be fixed pretty accurately by | Come along, pards, and we'll see.” to be. You are ina trap, as we well know, Saige yo other signs, he must have taken out a snug The guardsman led the way out, the Spot- | and if we cannot get in, neithercan you get i fortune. : ted Tiger and Giant Jack following close | out.” °43 t ted hi bit Then, digging in a certain place they had | after him, half a dozen or so others bringing | ‘‘ You might be foolin’ yerself on that ’ar <a - found where digging had been done hc- | up the rear. ' pint,” sung out Giant Jack, : siti fore, and discovered the carcass of a horse} It was not a great way to the place where] ‘That will remain to be seen, If you bee | ‘that had been there for some months at the | the pass widened, but from there to the outer | have any other means of communication with _ Bie) least. Hence, they had been there without | end was quite a distance, the outer world you w‘ll have occasion to | Means for transporting any heavy burden| There, at the outer end, it opened upon a | make use of it.” hoe out of the pocket. . ; plain, or mountain meadow, so to call it. And with that asa parting remark the |. Again, they had been keeping their find | Across the pass there had been built a rude | horseman wheeled suddenly and darted away
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R a oi a * - ['m bettin’!” - you?” , Couldn’t we hide about forty, or even thirty good men hyar, with you or me as leader, an’ then the rest of us go out an’ make terms 6 Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. like the wind to his own little camp in the clump of cottonwoods, with several bullets singing after him from the cowardly villains behind the bowlder wall. *“Wull, cuss his sassy tongue, anyhow!” cried the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘Sorry we didn’t plug him when he was standin’ thar, This hyer begins ter look like a little war, Giant.” ‘“That’s what et do, pardner,” the giant agreed, ‘‘ But, I guess we kin hold our own, ef they don’t starve us out.” . ‘*An’ that is our weak p’inf, sure as ye ve.” ‘** But, we hev got ther odds in our favor, in ther way of numbers, an’ mebby we kin drive ’em off an’ gobble up their pack- mules.” ‘‘ That’s ther idee, by thunder et is! Keep a close watch hyer, boys, an’ I will double ther guard as soon’s I git back to ther camp. Ef et’s goin’ ter be war, we'll make et war in earnest,” With that, the Spotted Tiger and Giant Jack set out to return to the camp, talking the situation over as they went along. CHAPTER V. THE SPOTTED TIGER’S DISCOVERY. ** We ar’ on ther right track, now, Giant,” the Spotted Tiger declared most emphati- cally, | “Et begins ter look ter me as if we was rats ina trap,” the Giant returned with less of enthusiasm, ‘‘ Thar ain’t no other way out of this hole, that’s ther fack, an’ that feller knows et.” s ‘**-You don’t ketch on to what I mean.” “‘T guess I don’t, fer I don’t see nothin’ ter crow about in ther prospeck ahead.” ‘‘Don’t ye see one thing? Why, this feller has come back, ther rooster what we put out, ye know; an’ don’t that speak louder’n words fer a cache of gold hyer som’rs?” ' Blazes! That’s ther very truth of et, **So I think, too, That’s what ther wagon with ther box on et means; they hev come ter tote et off.” “You ar right, ten to one ye ar’! But, ef ther cache is hyer in ther pocket I don’t see clear how they ar’ goin’ to git at et, do ‘“Wull, no, not ’zackly; but I reckon they think to freeze us out, or starve us out I mean, an’ then they will step in an’ take p’session an’ have et all their own way.” S Guess we'll have somethin’ ter say ’bout at. “Wull, I think they’ll find we will. Ef thar is a cache of gold hyer, we ar’ goin’ to find et!” “We hev tried that, but didn’t seem ter make anything out of et. How ar’ we goin’ about et? But, mebbe you hev some cute pas oe mind to trump their trick.” **No, [haven’t, yet, but I’m goin’ to think up one, ef Ikin. If we kin let ’em think we hev weakened, or somethin’ like that, an’ let em git in hyer an’ at work, an’ then swoop down on ’em, we might snatch ther prize out of their hands,” Both were thoughtful for a time. “Tl tell ye what!” suddenly cried the Spotted Tiger. = ““Wull, what is et? Somethin’ has hit ye, that I know ’thout askin’.” “Yes, you ar’ right, pard. Here is a*idee that has jest popped inter my headpiece. with ’em an’ let ’em in?’ ; ‘** That’s ther tune, or sounds like et any- hew! Then when they’d marched in an’ laid bare ther gold, out would come our men, an’ in we would swoop and gobble up ther hull kit an’ bilin’ of ’em. You ar’a chief, Spotted Tiger, an’ no mistake. But, ef et en aa a a Ra a a a a a a a am a es a ‘would work,” / **That part of et is ter be seen,” They were now at the pocket, and found all their men gathered around the headquar- ters awaiting their return to learn what was up. Spotted Tiger harangued them for a few moments, giving them the newsand a shadow of the ideas he and Giant Jack had been try- ing to shape for the emergency, and the men pledged their support with a whoop. Said one man: “You ar’ boss, Spotted Tiger, an’ what- ever you say do, that we does, you kin jes’ bet; an’ ef we don’t knock ’em out et won’t be our fault.” The captain of the horde appointed an ad- ditional guard for the entrance to the pass, and sent them out, and when they had gone he and the Giant entered the cabin. There they talked over the situation at length, and finally agreed upon a plan of action. They had come to the conclusion that the thing of most importance, first was to make sure of the wealth they had already taken from the pocket mines. If outgen- eraled and ousted, it would not do to lose that. Not that the Spotted Tiger and Giant Jack meant to make a fair divide amon their followers, oh, no; but they atenitad to make a pretense of so doing. All the gold had been stored in bulk at headquar- ters, in charge of the captain and his second in command, These two had taken good care that their portion did not fall behind theaverage, and had a separate treasure apart from the gen- eral store, made by their thieving from the whole. This was their secret, and now it was not a convenient one to be taken care of, for their part of the wealth was more than they could carry without being discovered, They decided to cache it. _ Amecting was called, all the gold brought forth—except the stolen portion—and it was divided up equally among all the men, to the satisfaction of all; and so divided, it could be carried with ease, each man having his portion. By this time it was night, and while Giant Jack was out with the whole force at the end of the pass, for the purpose of preparing for a charge upon the little camp in the cotton- woods, the Spotted Tiger was intrusted with the important task of hiding the stealings. It was a moonlight night, and when the others had gone out he stood at the door of the cabin headquarters and tried to think of a suitable place for his purpose. One had not previously been chosen. «Darn me ef I ain’t stumped,” he solilo- uized, ‘‘I must hide it in a place where ack kin go an’ see et fer himself, fer I can’t think of playin’ et on him—he is too big.” He looked up the pocket, down, and around on every hand, ~“*T wonder ef et wouldn’t be a good idea,” he mused further, ‘‘to take et up there in the rocks som’rs, an’ hide et? Funny we never thought "bout lookin’ fer t’other feller’s treasure up thar— By blazes! Won- der ef I hev stumbled onto anything here? I mean ter know.” ~ He stepped out into the open and looked carefully around at the wall on all sides. Above the cabin itself was the most rugged and ragged portion of all, and the place least open to access. ‘“That would be ther spot,” he said to himself, ‘‘but how in misery could a feller ever git up there? That is what stumps me ” > He looked, studying the situation well, and at last an idea came to him like a flash. It seemed strange that he had not thought of it before, it was so simple. Considerably higher up was a ledge that could be gained by careful climbing from the Myra Mine. This ledge was further back than the main wall, and the cabins un- ee der it could not be seen from its narrow i? face, owing to an outward swell of the rock below. Could he not go along the trail, lower a |= rope from there out over the rounded face | of the wall, and so let himself down to the | bottom? It was a risk, and it meant hard is work, but it was necessary to cache the’ treasure well while he was about it, and more important than that, he hope to find the treasure the rightful owner of the pocket. | was supposed to have hid away. But for that hope, the hope of finding Westley’s gold, he would have given up the idea, but that spurred him,on. There was plenty of rope at the mine, ; Westley having had a good supply of it when the invaders took possession and they bringing more, and the fact that ‘Westley had had rope added strength tothe Spotted. Tiger’s suspicion concerning where the gold had been stored, He could but wonder why he had not thought of it before. With all haste he went to the Myra Mine, gathered up. rope enough for his purpose, and with it slung across his back made the perilous climb to the ledge above the cabin. headquarters. Soom When he had reached what he considered to be about the right spot for his purpose, : he looked around for a suitable projection } to which to make the rope fast, and found 3 a one sooner than he had hoped for. Every~- } thing seemed to be working in his favor. : He took extra care to know that he was making the ropesecure against all possibility of slipping, and when that had been done he coiled it carefully, making sure it was in good order, and when finally satisfied with it, flung the coil out oyer the bulge of rock and let it fall to the depths below. The preparatory steps had now been taken. The point where he was working was just within the. belt of shadow cast by the towering heights across the pass, and of this e- the Spotted Tiger was glad. Should any one come back he would not be seen, if he was quiet and did not draw attention to himself, Drawing his belt a notch tighter, and bracing his muscles and neives for the un- dertaking, he laid bold upon the rope and boldly began the descent over the bowing slope to the point where the rope swung - clear. It was trying to his fingers, but they were - tough and har ened and he could stand it. He made no stop, but went down as quickly as safety would admit of, and in & brief time had passed over the ledge and be- gun the downward course, Here the work was not so hard, since the rope swung close to the wall and he could use his feet as well as his hands, and «s he went down he kept his eyes well open for whatever might come under their notice. When a little more than half-way down amt ejaculation of gratification escaped him. He stopped, looked close, and exclaimed: “Discovered! by the roaring blazes? - Who'd ’a’ thought it. Here is the cache of gold, sure's I’m a livin’ man!” It was a little to his right, just where the moonlight fell full and strong, and there was no mistaking it. There it was, rich, yellow and plenteous! a bulk of the richest yield. from the Myra Mine! « Tt was upon a shoulder of rock that seem- ed to have been fashioned by nature on pur pose for this very use. The shoulder, to call it that, sloped backward and downward, and the latest rain had left water standing in the cavity, but above the water gleamed the ‘old. oe It is mine! it is mine!” the excited Ti er said to himself. ‘‘ You git no share in this = |_—— hyer find, Giant Jack, and our little pinch o* nae $2 stuff must be hid som’rs else. It’s only a =f cent’s worth, compared wi’ the royal fmd. | Gee-lory! but I'l be a dook, ef I kin only
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i Se rr bl) Aad, gre ~ wood Dick. . gested ee Se I a i Trew ~ Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. dag Rv BE git away with et. And I'l take keer that I o that, I’m bettin’ high on’t.” Without delay he climbed up to the top, not an easy task, but one which his excite- ment lent him strength to accomplish, and as soon as upon the ledge again he untied the rope and hastened back to the mine: Leaving the rope, he hurried down and to the cabin, where the stolen gold yet awaited a hiding-place. It mattered little where it was put now, so long as a pretense at hiding it was observed to satisfy Giant Jack. It was now under one of the bunks ina corner. Bringing it forth, the Spotted Tiger laid hold upon a spade, and rushing out into the open, dug a hole in a place where one had been dug before in the search for treasure, and there buried it. He had chosen wisely, in spite of his care- lessness about it, for it was ina place not likely to be searched a second time. And, as soon as his work was done, he made haste to get out to the end of the pass to learn what was going on there. He hada new policy to work now. CHAPTER VI. PLANS ON BOTH SIDES. Tue reader must have guessed that the prospectors, so to call them, who had gone into camp just outside the pass that led into the pocket formerly called Rose Dell, were none other than Deadwood Dick and _ his party. Indeed, Bristol had informed the Spotted Tiger who they were, and their object in coming. War had been declared, as it were, and it remained to-be seen which side would win. It was after supper in the camp that Dick called his men together for a talk over the situation. ‘Well, boys, here we are,” he said. ** What is going to be done?” ; ‘You are in command, sir,” reminded Frank Westley. ‘‘ Whatever you order will be carried out.” “Yes, I know; but, we must consider the situation well before we act. It is going to be a dangerous piece of work, unless handled just right.” ‘“We ought to learn their strength, if pos- sible.” i “Tagree with you inthat.” «© “But, how is it going to be done?” oF. apy must be sent in, sagmehow,” sug- etective Hardy, now one of Dick's most trusted aids. ‘**Great hambone, yes!” cried Old Ava- lanche, who had insisted upon coming out with the party. ‘An’, ef ye say so, I’m ther currogated can o’ dynamite what'll un- dertake ther job.” “How would you get in, old man?” asked Dick. “Wull, I dunno, ’zactly, but I'll git in somehow, ef you say ther word, Ef had Prudence Cordeliar and Florence Night- - in-a-gale now, et would be a easy bit o’ work ter wind up this whole business—” ‘“‘T wish I could have seen those remark- able animals, old man,” observed Hardy, with a smile. ‘ But, you haven’t them, an] we must figure without them.” ‘Great currogated old nambone! + Do ye mean ‘er doubt that I ever owned sech a ir of creetur’s? *Cause ef you do, by ther ring-twisted gyrashuns of discombobberated devastashuns I kin bring ther proof! Did I ever tell ye wiped out—” ‘That story will have to stand over for this time, old friend,” interrupted Dead- “We must talk business. now.” « ‘An’ that was what I was goin’ to talk, confound ye, boy! Ther greatest bit o’ real old business ye ever dreamed ’bout; great ! > _, hambone, yes Sr 7hs only "bout the time that my muel- ‘‘The question is, if a spy is to*be sent | was to stand second to the first, or to form a into that camp how is he going to get in? | part of it if the first part miscarried, “4 And then, whois going to be the man’ to undertake the work? You, old friend, are too well-known,” ‘Ye think I’m too old, that’s what et is; why don’t ye say what ye mean?” ‘A younger man must take the risk, old friend. You have played your part, and have enjoyed your share of dangers.” ‘“Wull, doas you please. I know what's ther matter wi’ you, you want all the fun yerself. Don’t fergit that you hev a wife an’ baby, Dicky, boy.” ‘* No fear of my forgetting, old man. But, that does not stand in the way of my facing danger when itis to be faced. As Ihave a double object in going into the camp, I’m going to offer myself for the work.” “Then I go with you, sir,” declared Westley. “ee Why ae ‘* Because the danger is great, and I must share it since you are here on my behalf. You shall not take all the risks,” **Tam here on business of my own as well. I must know whether Giant™Jack is with this evil crew or not, and the ay way to learn is to go in and find out. Must not alarm him, you know.” ‘Well, it is not for me to oppose you, but shall remain here unwillingly if forced to 0 80,” : ‘Tt is not likely that more than one man could get in, even if one can, and I have had more experience than you in such work. I think I will play the traitor to you and go over to their side.” “Thar’s danger in et, boyee,” reminded Old Avalanche, : “I’m well aware of if, old man, but dan- | that. ger has no terrors for me. I guess I can make it work,” | SS When the Spotted Tiger reached the outer end of the pass he found Giant Jack and all his men there on guard, The clump of cottonwoods seemed nearer by inthe moonlight than by daylight, and by remaining quiet the men at the pass could hear the voices of those in the little camp. Words, however, could not be made out, at that distance, spoken in the ordinary tone, The Spotted Tiger drew Jack aside, ‘*Tt’s all right,” he announced, ‘‘Found a good place for it, did ye?” the Giant inquired. ‘*Yes, bully place! Put it in a place where diggin’ had been done fer et, an’ no one will think ter look there.” “Et took ye long enough ter do et.” **Wull, did ye think I could do et ina minnit? Et took longer to decide on a place fer et than et did ter put et thar when ther place had been picked out.” * Yes, that’s so, I s’pose.” “Wull, how’s things hyer?” “Ther same,” 7 ‘No move has been made, hey? “None a tall, yit. They hev camped down ter stay, et ’pears.” “Well, I think we'll roust ’em out 0’ that *fore mornin’. We hey enough men ter go out an’ wipe ’em out.” “That is yer plan, then?” ‘Et is. We'll wait till ther moon gits over ther hills an’ throws a shadder over ther motte, an’ then we'll go fer ’¢m.” ‘All right, ef you say so. We'll tell ther boys, an’ have ’em all in good trim fer et. They won’t want no better fun ’n We'll git quite a prize, too, fer they must have a good store 0’ grub,” “And we are short on -that leg. Et ‘* But, what ef they find ye out, and make | wouldn’t take ’em long to starve us out, as et hot fer ye? little bit. Ye had better go a trifle slow, Dicky, boy.” ‘* Dick, let me be the one to take the risk,” spoke up Hardy. for me if I go under. wife and child as you have, What do you say?” , .‘*IT say no-to it,” answered Dick. ‘You and Westley are both needed here, as are all the rest. I will go, and if Ido not return in twenty-four hours you will then know that something has gone wrong, and you must then lay a plan for getting into the pocket.” . “Why not lay that plan first, and all fight our way in together.” ‘“* Just the object I have in view in going in there—to learn their force. They claim to have five men to one against us, and we must know whether they are lying or not.” ‘An’ ef they won't .give ye no show ter git out ergain, what good will yer spyin’ do us?” demanded the old scout. ‘Tn that case, our effort will have been a failure, and you will have to act without the knowledge. But, I think I can get in and That is to say, no | We couldn't help ye even aj; they threatened, ef they could hold us here. Come on, and I ll tell the men what is up, so every one can prime his weepins fer ther fray. We'll make ’em sick of this hyer job, “‘T have no one to mourn | you bet.” “But, say, Tiger.” “Wull?” ‘‘We'd orter take that feller prisoner, ef we kin.” ** What feller?” \ “Ther one what was hyer when we kem, Mebby we kin make him disclose where his gold is hid,” ‘That's so, We'll try ter work that part of et in, ef we kin do et. Ef not, he will have ter take his pills with ther rest of ’em, Ther cleaner we wipe ’em out ther better et will be.” “*T reckon that’s so, too.” They went back to the stone barricade, where the horde was assembled. ‘‘ Boys,” spoke the Spctted Tiger, loud enough for all to hear, at the same timg standing up where all could see him, “ we hev Jaid out a plan ter go by, now.” A little cheer greeted his words. “Them fellers out thar hev declarcd their out again all right, by playing the fine points | ‘tention of starvin’ ts out of our camp, and well.” “Then that is asked Westley. “Tt is.” ; ‘‘ Nothing remains to be done, then, but.to see you well off,” said Hardy. ~ 5 “T'll need no help, for I'll steal out of your determination, sir?” camp as though a traitor in fact, and will | somethin’,” the Tiger cautioned, you all know et wouldn't take ‘em long ter do et, ef they could hold .us in hyer like a passel o’ rats. Now, I think we kin show em a trick wu’th two o’ that,” This time a cheer that was a little louder than before. ‘Not too much _ noise, or they will s’peck “7 will creep over to their lines and have a talk with | tell ye what ther skeem is, an’ see what ye them, something,” a “Who will take command here?” asked Hardy. mis “You, Dolan,” was the reply. = The matter was talked over fully, more fully than need be quoted here, and at last Dick set forth from the camp. : Another plan had been arranged, in case Even if Ido not get in I may learn | think of et. When ther moon gits down so’s et will be dark out thar, then we will slip out of hyer an’ swoop down on ’em an’ wipe ‘em clean out,” n spite of the caution this was cheered louder than anything before it had been, “They hev hosses and rations out thar, an’ that’s jest what we want hyer. ye et will be a big thing, ef we kin only this one should prove a failure, a plan that carry et out an’ not let ‘em s'peck et til _ a ee a @ . ‘. ips of . . be Sahn" iy Ade et Tice - i 5 Pht ap. ae ae ghruxtor? chet hace a is Sia A ~ San tet Seat legos hapheriae beeen Seat ee 7; s >. \ tte”.
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8 et happens. And ther Giant hyer thinks et would be a good trick ter git holt o’ that feller Westley an’ make him disclose whar his gold is. We’ll do that too, ef ét kin be done.” That was all the Spotted Tiger had to say, and it looked as if the party in the cot- tonwoods was in danger. But, outside the wall, lying under a bowl- Welt eet hearing it all, was Deadwood Dick him ; self! The danger was at a discount, that was sure! CHAPTER VII. AT CROSS PURPOSES, Ir was something like twenty minutes i later when the outlaws behind their works Wy heard a cautious voice calling to them from : without. Those doing actual guard duty were the first to hear it, and when they were sure they were not mistaken, one of their num- ber responded, demanding to know who was there. “I’m a deserter from t’other camp,” came back the reply. ** Well, come out an’ show yerself, then, till we kin size ye up,” the guardsmen in- yited, ** An’ git a bullet inter me? I guess not, not till | have ther promise of yer captain that he won’t kill me on sight an’ on s’pi- cion, Jest call him up till r hold a chin wi’ m , “Whar be ye, anyhow?” **Out hyer ufder a bowlder, to which I hev jest crawled. Thought I'd git my ker- kess out o’ sight ’fore I made known I was hyer.” Word was carried to the Spotted Tiger immediately, and he came promptly to the front to learn What the man wanted, who he we and as much more about him as possi. H e, : ** Who ar’ ye?” he called out. , “ nf name is Job Hyer,” was the response. oe, *“Wull, what ar’ ye doin’ hyer?” the Tiger y demanded. . “I ain’t doin’ nothin’ but layin’ hyer,” was the rejoinder. ‘* Well, come out an’ show yerself, till we kin size ye up. What ye skulkin’ fer?” ** Ar’ you ther captain?” ‘**'That’s what I am.” ‘Will ye promise me ye won't shoot if I do come out?” ‘* Yes, we'll promise ye that, ef ye hev a straight story to tell, Out of thar with ye now.” : There was silence for a second or so, and then a rough-looking customer made his ap- pore in the moonlight, holding up his nds. ‘‘Yesee J thean ye fair,” he said, ‘‘so ; don’t take ther trouble ter shoot me, please. } I think I kin put you boys onto a seri thing ef ye will give me ther show.” D ** What is et?” " ‘“Thar’s a hidden treasure in that pocket a yourn, an’ I know .whar to dig fer et. *g qa’! ’ _-“ You're a liar,” accused the Spotted Tiger; and then he caught himself immedi- ately. ‘That is ter say, et don’t seem rea- sonable that Westley would trust anybody with that secret.” ‘That's jest et, he don’t, nobody but his head man of ther party. I heerd him tellin’ him all about et, an’ he said he had papers ter prove whar et was, that is, a map of ther round. An’ what did I do but steal et. you come with me in what I’m tellin’?” ‘“‘ We kin understand ye, yes.” “ , ‘Well, ef ye will let me come in thar I'll give ye ther papers, ef ye will give me half of the gold when it’s found.” ef ae - » _ ‘Let him come in, by all means,” whis- oe ‘pered Giant Jack.” ee “He's a darn liar, an’ I know it, Giant,” ,Fesponded the Tiger in the same undertone, ; Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. fs ana aR AS SSRN ms ERR RT ARRAN ORR NE REREAD SNS FE A HE A ET Ne OR A RR SRE ERLE “How do ye know et?” ‘Wull, I think he is, anyhow.” to make his discovery known. ‘* What brought ye to us, then, feller?” he called out to the self-styled deserter, ** Why, I want a slice o’ that treasure, an’ as I can’t git it alone I thought I'd see ef I couldn’t come ter terms wi’ you and give ye a share in et.” **Mebbe he does know somethin’ about et,” whispered the Giant. ‘‘If he does, et won't take long ter put him out of ther way, ed we git our hands onto et. What say, iger.” ** You let me do this hyer, will ye?” “ Yas, go ahead.” ‘*Say, you feller, how do: we know but what you ar’ a blame spy sent out from t’other side?” **T'd be a fool ter poke my head inter a hole I couldn’t git it out of again, now wouldn’t 1?) I’m givin’ you a straight deal, an’ ef ye don’t want ter take et up, no harm done.” , ‘But, you will be out all around then, won't ye?” ** Job Hyer ain’t no fool, you bet. If ye don’t take me in I'll go back with ther camp, that’s all.” ‘* How strong is the camp out there?” **’*Bout twenty men, all told.” “Do they have a guard?” ** They will have, when they go to roost,” ** Mebbe you will be one of them, eh?” ** Jest as mebbe as not.” ‘** Shall we trust him a little, Giant?” the Tiger whispered. **That’s accordims to what trust him with, I should say.” **©an’t we ask him ter play false to ther camp an’ fix et so we kin git in an’ take ’em without a fight?” ** An’ then ef he plays us false, as you think he ain’t square, they would be posted on our ’tention t’ords ’em, an’ be ready fer us. I don’tthink ye better had, pard.” “Then it’s plain that you don't trust him no more’n I do, so I’ll send him back.” ‘* But,” the Giant argued, ‘‘we orter know about that map he claims ter have,” ** Say,” the Tiger called out. ‘‘Show us that ’ar map, will ye?” The man drew a paper from his pocket and held it up in the moonlight so that they could see it. “Tm givin’ ye a straight deal,” he de- clared. ‘‘ You kin take my word or not, jest‘as you please. But, let me know quick, so’s I kin git back an’ et not be knowed that Lhev been out.” ** Ask him what that ’ar wagon an’ box is fer,” whispered the Giant. ‘*That’s so; glad ye ’minded me of et. Hey, what does yer folks out thar in- tend ter do wi’ that wagon an’ big box, feller?” . “Why, they hev brought that along ter tote off ther gold in. I tellye et is a big fortune, an’ ye may be missin’ et ef ye don’t take up my offer. I’m anxious ter git ahead of ’em.” ‘** Well, we ain’t anxious ter hev ye, that’s flat. Go back to your own camp, an’ when we want ye we'll send fer ye.” “‘ You're a fool!” growled the Giant, in undertone, ‘‘ With that paper we might git at ther hull thing without no more trouble. Let him comein! We kin see that he never gits out again,” , “‘Fool yourself,” retorted the Spotted Tiger, ‘If we let him inyan’ his paper is good fer anything, won’t ther hull lot of our gang be onto et? Then what good would et do us?” No, we'll wait till we swoop down on ’em’ an’ carry off everything they’ve got, and then we kin search this feller when he’s dead an’ git ther paper.” This was not the Spotted Tiger’s real ob- ject, but it answered his purpose. He was ye mean ter The Tiger saw that he would have to be a | knowledge already, and which great deal more guarded, unless he wanted | anxious to keep to himself. afraid the paper would reveal to the Giant and the others the secret of which he had he was ‘«Wull, do as ye please,” the Giant growl- ed. ‘You ar’ a-doin’ et, not me. Go ahead with et.” ‘‘Whatar’ ye goin’ ter do?” called out the man in the moonlight, ‘Wait jest a minnit,” responded the Spot- ted Tiger, and turning to the Giant he added: ‘«*Spose we give him a scare, an’ ef he is a traitor that will give him away an’ his own \ folks out thar will most likely hang him. \, We'll fire some shots over his head.” ‘Better fire’em* at him an’ go out an’ git \ that paper.” ‘*No, no; that paper will keep. We'll get that later on, fer they won’t destroy et; \ no fear of that.” *“T'll tell ye what we ar’ goin’ ter do,” the S, Tiger then called out, ‘‘ We ar’ goin’ ter | have nothin’ ter do wi’ you, so ye kin git back to yer camp as soon as ye want to. We don’t want any more men in our band, an’ as fer ther treasure, we'll git et sooner or later.” ** All right; 1 won’t force myself in on ye, so I'll sneak right back ’fore [ am wanted. If I kinanytime do anything ter help ye out of a fix, let me know an’ I will come over to your side. But, let me give ye a word of caution fore I go: Do not try to come.out thar to whip ther boys, ’cause ye can’t do et, They’ve got a couple o’ Gatlin’ guns ’they brought in that wagon,” ‘“« Whew /” whistled the Tiger and Giant Jack together. , “I only tell ye this ter show ye that I mean ye fair,” the traitor added. ‘‘If they range ‘em on ye an’ open fire they will sweep ye off’n ther face of the earth as sure as ye live. If they git a foothold in that ’ar pass with ’em, they will git right on into ther pocket, an’ ye can't stop ’em. _ So, take good care that they don’t git past this hyer stone wall, That's all I have got tersay. lonly tell ye fer yer own good.” ‘ With that he turned and walked away in the border of shadow along by the bills. ‘*Call him back, Tiger,” the Giant now urged, *Nary acatl back!” was. the refusal: the Tiger determined that a map of that secret cache should not fall into the hands of the Giant and the rest of the bandif he could © help it, ‘Fire after him, boys, but not. to kill,” he ordered. ‘‘Give him a good big | scare.” ; ff A score of shots rung out spitefully, and 9 a shout rose from behind the wall barricade. 9 * Hillo over thar!” yelled the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘Thar goes a traitorto yercamp! Ye had better ketch him an’ hang him!” ‘*My curse upon ye!’ cried the fugitive, as he ran with might to get out of range. **What did ye want to go back on me fer, when Tonly meant ye fair? But, I'll git even.”’ Other shots answered him, and he got out of range as soon as 7 ossible. **TTillo!” came a call from the other camp. ** Hillo to you!” the answer was sent back by the Spotted Tiger. ‘*What’s all that row about? Was you calling out to us? What’s the matter with ou?” ‘‘We have jest sent back a spy that kem over hyer an’ tried ter git into our camp. You had better ketch and hang ther traitor.” No rejoinder was made, but loud talking could be heard, and a few minutes later horsemen were seen running this way and that about on the plain, in hunt of the mis- sing man, © ; ; CHAPTER VIII Rete GIANT JACK’S MOVE, ~: i aeeae NrEEpDLEsSs to say the outlaws watched this proceeding with interest. < 5 Among them there was a division of opin- ion as to whether or not the Spotted Tiger had acted wisely.
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oo — Ae se ee Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. The majority were inclined to think he had not, for, if the fellow really had a map to the hiding-place of the gold, it was just what they wanted. , On the other hand, the Tiger declared he suspected a trick in the whole business, and Was not going to lay open any chance for anything of that sort if he could help it. Those who stvod with him agreed that this was a wise stand to take in the matter, since they did not want to run chances of being ousted from the pocket, ‘* But, I tell ye what et is,” declared the Giant. ‘‘Ef they have got Gatlin’ guns, as that feller said, they have got us in a tight fix, for we can’t hope ter do nothin’ ’gin’ them things.” ‘An’ ef they haven't, et will prove ther feller a liar,” the Spotted Tiger suggested. ** Yas, an’ ef they have, et will prove that he told the truth,” reminded the Giant. ** But, then, that will be too late, fer if they find him and he has been plannin’ ter give *emaway, they will hang him.” ** An’ they ar’ goin’ to git him, onless he Jays mighty low,” another man here put in. ah This looked | pretty certain, for there were several of the mounted men, and they were « covering the bottom in all directions toward - the pass. Presently one of them was heard to raisea shout, and all the others dashed in his direc- > athens tion. Z } ‘«They hey nailed him!” cried the Spotted Tiger, excitedly. ““That’s what they’ve done,” agreed the Giant. ‘‘ Now we'll mighty soon know what's what.” - The horsemen were soon in a group, and a man was seen to get up from out of the j grass among them, who was immediately seized, There was loud talking, most of which could be plainly heard by the listening out- laws, and the impression was conveyed that this fellow had been suspected before and now was found out. The horsemen returned to the motte, tak- ing their man with them, and for a time all was still. All things had worked together finely for the furthering of Deadwood Dick's daring undertaking, and now under cover of the _ trees the next moves in the play were being >) prepared. + The daring detective had given his men directions what to do, and, casting a look ’ over toward the pass, having mounted upon * the wagon with his trusty Hardy, Dick ) stepped into the big box and soon the heavy lid was closed down upon him. What this strange move meant remains to be disclosed. That it was one of Deadwood Dick’s dare-devil dodges all very well knew. There were holes in the ends of the big box to admit air, so he was perfectly safe for any length of time, almost. Horses were now put to the wagon, and a couple of objects that had been hastily fash- joned to look like guns on wheels, from a distance, if covered, were loaded in, and the ‘wagon was driven toward the pass, The outlaws were looking on in wonder- ment. i The wagon was driven straight out toa point a certain distince from the pass on the north, where it stopped, and one of the ob- jects was unloaded. S It now took several men to handle it, though only one had been necessary to lift it into the wagon under the trees. And oe -when once on the ground it was. covered |» >with a piece of blanket, ‘Four men remained there with it, while |. the wagon went on toa point south of the -{ pass, where the other was unloaded, and that was covered in like manner and four men left there. It was plain to the out- -. ‘Were serious. ; -. 'Them’s ther Gatlin’ guns,” declared Jaws what was going on, now, and they Giant Jack, ‘“an’ now ye kin see that feller told ther truth.” “That's what’s ther matter,” admitted the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘We ar’ in a bad fix, fer sure, but we'll fight et out as long as we hey a leg to stand on,” ** You was crazy when ye didn’t take in that deserter; that’s where you was off your level,’”’ growled the Giant. ‘‘ Now they have got us ina tight place, with them ar’ guns— a mighty tight pinch, or I’m a fool-sucker,” “They'd ’a’ put ’em there anyhow, it’s most likely. It’s as broad as it is long. Hello! what's the wagon drivin’ this way fer?” : . “‘Soetis! I give et up.” The wagon came on to a point midway be- tween the two guns, where it came to a stop and a man called out: ° ** Hello, there, the pass!” The response was given. “Have you got plenty of rope there?” ‘*We have got some. What’s wanted o' rope?” ‘*Tn this box is an accursed traitor, and if you wilfhang him for us you are welcome to him. What say?” ‘‘We want him!” shouted Giant Jack, be- fore the Spotted Tiger could respond. “‘Leave yerbox right thar, an’ we'll come it him. Dont you say a word ag’in’ et, iger,” in lower tone, ‘‘or I'll clip yer claws fer ye. We want that feller alive, now that thar’s a chance ter git him.” ‘You ar’ a fool, that’s what’s ther matter wi’ you,” the Tiger growled. ‘‘Yas, I know et, Tiger; I’m jest fool enough ter want ter git onto that ’ar cache o’ gold that you. would throw away. That’s whar my foolishness lays. Don’t you chip in hyer, now, or et won’t be well fer ye.” You talk as if you was captain of this hyer band—” **T’ll bet all ther men ar’ on my side in this hyer question. Ef this feller has got papers showin’ whar that gold is, we won't let ther chance git away from us ergain, you bet.” *“That’s et,” agreed the men who stood near enough to hear, ‘‘We want that feller, Cap’n Tiger.” ** An’ mebby Hit’s a blame spy—” ‘“Let him be one,” brokein the Giant. ‘Et won't take much trouble ter hang him, as secon as he’s told usall he can about that gold. You kin bet we don’t mean ter give him no share in et.” This was greeted with a cheer. While this was being said the men out on the bottom were unloading the big box from the wagon, and now having disposed of it, one called out: . “*Hello, outlaws!” “Say yer say,” Giant Jack shouted back. ‘*Here is the box, and if you will hang the man you will do us a great favor. If there is anything we can do for you in re- turn, let us know.” ‘We'll ’tend fg cee an’ don't you doubt et,” assured the Giant. ‘‘ Ef thar is one thing we hate wuss’n another et is a spy, an’ pA crt him as high as a rope will yank im ** Yas, you bet we will!” added the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘ An’ we'll stretch him a good deal higher’n that, ef we find that he is a spy sent here from your camp, an’ this hyer is only a trick ter git him in. this purty piece of bizness.” : “That need not trouble you a moment,” came back the rejoinder. ‘‘ Hang him, any- how.” The men had now got upon the wagon again, and drove off in the direction of the cottonwoods, leaving the box there on the plain, unguarded! . ~ But there were the two Gatling’ guns, supposed to be, and they had .command of the mouth of the pass in such a way that if IT hev my doubts about. The Giant thought of this. ‘*Hyer’s a thorn in ther flesh, pards,” he observed. ** What's that?” asked the Tiger. begin ter see et as I do?” **T see them ’ar guns out thar on ther plain, an’ hang me ef I hanker ter go out from hyer.” "That's so; jigger me ef et ain't! Why, ef they opened fire on us we could never git back alive hyer in the world, They’d sweep us out o’ time.” “T should smile if they wouldn't. hillo, out thar!” ‘Well, hello!” * We want that ’ar box, but we ain’t goin’ out thar to git et while you fellers is by them ’ar guns.” ‘Then we reckon you'll have ter let et be, fer our orders is ter stay here and see that not a man of ye comes out of that ’ar trap ye ar’ in. Don’t reckon yer game will work.’ ‘But that ’ar box and ther man in et is ourn,” The wagon going toward the motte was seen to stop, anda man stood up init and called out: ‘That part of it slipped our minds, You men there at the guns, retire and remain away from your pieces till they have come out and carried in the box. And if they do not come and get it in five minutes, turn your guns upon it and riddle it with bullets.” ~ Allright, cap’n!” | “By blazes, but thar’s no mistakin’ that kind of a order!” cried Giant Jack to the Spotted Tiger, Ra “‘T begin ter guess youar’ right,” the Tiger agreed, ‘‘ An’ now see hyer, my gallus Giant, I want ter have a word o’ speak wi’ you in private.” “Well, what is et?” stepping aside from the others. ‘‘Suppose that feller has got papers on him that shows whar that gold is hid, I hope you ain’t fool enough ter let ther hull band come in fer et.” “Do ye see any pas in these hyer orbs o’ mine, Tiger? Ef ye do, jest indercate et. Ef that paper shows whar that gold is, et will be fer you an’ me ter find et.” ‘* But, that will make trouble with ther boys.” **Wull, I dunno, I s’pose we’ll have ter be guided by ther sarcumstances of ther case.” The wagon had now reached the motte again, the men were walking away from the guns, and the way was clear for the outlaws to sally out and bring in the coveted box. The Spotted Tiger, forced into the thing against his will, selected six of his men for . the business of going out for it, and they set forth, presently returning with it, when others assisted them in lifting it up over the barricade, Then they opened it, and there within was a man, apparently having »been jammed down into the box by main force, so cramped seemed his position, and it took two strong men to release him and get him ottt of his close quarters, CHAPTER IX. POINTS GAINED. THe reader can readily understand that this was only a trick of Deadwood Dick’s. He had plenty of room, or at any rate enough room, when getting into the box, but now was wadouk in so tightly that it was with difficulty he was taken out by force. r ee stiffening of his muscles had done it all, made it néxt to impossible for them to re- move him from his narrow prison. And ‘Do ye Say, when out, he could fora few moments barely stand. ‘‘ Curse them!” he muttered, ‘they shall men left the barricade they could be mowed | pay for this!” down, ‘*So, youar’ the fellow what was out thar Had it been his desire, he could have — 5 ay, | ¥ oe Bis Ss iy eA geen ee e339
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= ” - / SS ee ae Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. ‘under ther bowlder, ar’ ye?” demanded the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘Yes, I’m that same feller,” was the an- swer. ‘‘If youare goin’ to hang me, as they said, all I ask is that you will let me have a word with ’em first, to let ’em know I have tricked ’em.” ** How have ye tricked ’em?”’ ‘“They don’t know I've stole their map.” ‘*Let him have his say, then,” advised the Giant. With the Spotted Tiger the request of Giant Jack was a command, and he made re- sponse: ‘All right, Jack; he kin say et.” The prisoner had now regained his strength, and mounting to the top of the stone barricade, he sung out: ‘Hello, gold-hunters!” ‘* Well?” came back the shout. ‘“You would have done better ef ye had’ hanged me yerselves, Now I’m ’gainst ye from ther word Go.” There was.a trivial response to that. **That’s ali right,” the prisoner shouted back again, “‘ but whether they hang me or not, you have been dished out of that ’ar gold. Take alookaround and see ef ye miss anything. Mebby somebody has lost a map, or somethin’ of that kind. Ha! ha! ha!” There was no immediate rejoinder, but a hum of excited talk reached the ears of the outlaws, “That hits em whar they live,” remarked the prisoner, with a careless laugh. .‘* They thought they did a smart thing by fallin’ onto me an’ puttin’ me in that ’ar box an’ handin’ me over ter you, but I guess they will see that they had the wrong pig by the ear that time. Job Hyer wasn’t as much a fool as they thought him ter be. That makes ’em chin, don’t et!” In a few minutes a horseman was seen dashing out toward the barricade, waving a white rag as he came. p He did not come close up, but took a posi- tion between the two Gatling guns, so sup- posed to be, and called out from there for a hearing. ‘“What d’ye want?” demanded the Spot- ted Tiger. ‘* We will give you five hundred dollars cash for that prisoner back again, with all papers on him as found.” ‘Ha! ha! ha!” the prisoner himself laughed defiance, ‘‘ You ar’ too late, my respected cap’n. Thar will be a hangin’ hyer shortly, in which I will figger conspic- uous, I reckon, an’ then these hyer gentle- men will have ther secret of ther cache of gold.” “Curse you for the thief you are!” ** That’s all right, but that don’t alter ther fack any. I'm hyer, an’ so is ther paper, an’ you ar’ out.” ** Well, curse you and all the rest, you are ih a trap, and, even though you may have the secret of the hiding-place of the gold, you cannot get it out of that pocket, so we hold the best hand yet.” ‘*Mebbe ye do. We'll see *bout that ’ar, hoss. If these hyer, fellows will take me in with ’em instead of hangin’ me, I'll bet we will make you hustle tall ter keep us hyer. I know your weak p’ints as well as your strong ones, and thar’s’a cool hundred of us if thar’s one.” Thus did Dick, at once, give away the strength of the outlaw band, and they in their blindness never saw the point at all. - ‘* We defy you!” was shouted back again. “Do your worst, Job Hyer!” The horseman turned and rode back. ““That’s where we’ve got ’em, dang ’em!” the prisoner cried. ‘An’ I'm glad of et, cven gf ye do hang me, pards. If you'll spa my life, though, an’ let me j’ine g° T’ll do that most willin’, an’ will only ask a fair share of ther treasure when we git holt of et. What do ye say?” “A coming there and taking such a risk of his ife, He had learned the strength of the out- laws, and he had already found his man, Giant Jack; better luck than he had looked for so soon. And, the first point had already been made known to his men. “We says yes, ter that,” sung out a dozen or so of the outlaws at once, in response to his question. . *“Yes, we'll let ye live till we find ther treasure, anyhow; hey, Spotted Tiger?” sup- ported Jack, ‘*IT s’pose so, ef that’s what ye all want. Still, a traitor ter one side might be a traitor | to t’other side, ef he could, an’ I sha’n’t trust this feller a long ways.” “Ye don’t need ter trust me any further ’n ye can see me,” Mr, Hyer assured them. ‘How is et ye ar’ armed?” demanded the Tiger. The prisoner had on a belt with a single revolver thrust in it, a singular equipment for a prisoner, “They didn’t take my weepin away from me,” was the explanation offered, _‘‘I was jumped on an’ jammed down inter that box without a chance ter speak or a chance ter tell ’em their mistake.” _ The others laughed as though they saw a ‘Well, we'll relieve ye 6f that popper, anyhow,’’ said the Tiger. ‘‘ Giant, you take charge of et, ef ye will,” The Giant took the weapon, *‘An’ now,” he said, ‘‘ perdoose thaf ’ar mp ye talked about an’ let us see what et’s ike,” ‘Ar’ you ther captain?” the prisoner de- manded, ‘*No, but I’m ther next in command, and “* Where is et?” asked the Giant. “‘Can’t tell, ’zackly, but it’s some’rs "bout half-way up ther pocket, with a good deal of figgerin’ an’ measurin’ about et.” ‘““No matter how much of that thar is, ef it is anywheres near the spot we'll turn up ther hull bottom but what we'll find et. Come onan’ let’s go take a look over-ther ground now.” , ‘An’ ye don’t want ter ferget that we come in fer a share of et,” one man of the band spoke up. in ‘We'll ’p’int six of us ter go with ye, I’m thinkin’,” said another. This was urged with a shout. “Can’t ye trust yer captain?” demanded “the Spotted Tiger. ‘“Yas, whar we kin see him.” ** And ther same with Giant Jack!” ** Yas, you bet et is.” The Tiger spoke to the Giant in whisper, ‘“We've got to keep favor with ’em,” he said. ‘‘ We'll have to take ’em in et with us, and try ter dump ’em afterwards.” : ‘All right; I’m willin’ since there don’ seem ter be no way out of et, Tiger,” he as- sured, ‘Come on, then, a dozen of you, if you want to,” the Tiger invited. ‘ And the rest of you remain here on guard and see that no— one steals a march on ye.” ‘‘Et’s all up about attackin’ their camp now, I reckon,” suggested the Giant, “Yas, that dog is dead. Them Gatlin’ guns settled that ar’ question fer us. We'll have ter outplay ’em at ticktacks, ef we beat ’em a tall. But, come on with ye.” So, up the pocket—or up to the pocket— they went, the Spotted Tiger, the prisoner, Giant Jack, and about a dozen others, and work was begun to locate the spot indicated et don’t make no difference, anyhow,.fur as | on the map. you ar’ consarned, Perdoose ther docky- ment!” : ‘* Yes, let’s see et,” supported the Tiger, since he could not do otherwise now. He was in a feverish state to see it, too, for he could tell at a glance, with the knowl- edge he had, whether or not it was a map to the true hiding-place of the treasure. The prisoner sat down and drew off one of his boots, and giving it-a shake, out fell a folded paper. - ‘*Hyer et is,” he said. ‘‘ Take et an’ say what ye think of et. Et’s no use me tryin’ ter make terms wi’ you "bout et, I'll have ter take whatever terms ye are willin’ ter “low me Ef et’s hang, I'll have ter stand et, I s’pose,” f The Spotted Tiger leaped forward and snatched it up eagerly, although the Giant was reaching forward for it. ** You ar’ ’fraid I'll eat et, ain’t ye?” Jack rowled. ; . ‘“*T have ther first right, Giant, bein’ Cap- tain of the band,” the Tiger gave answer. He unfolded the paper, and even in the strong moonlight a look of relief could be seen to appear upon his face, It was noted both by Deadwood Dick and by Giant Jack, though with differing thoughts as to its cause, neither.of which was near the truth. Dick, on his part, read in the look the thought that at last the rascal held the clue to the hiding-place of the gold, proof that he had not already found it. Giant Jack, from another point of view, believed the Tiger recognized the map as a fenuine one of the valley pocket, and that the indicated cache was a spot that had not been searched. But, the Spotted Tiger himself was the only one who could have explained, then, what had caused the expression of relief and satisfaction. It was-that he saw at a glance that the map did nef indicate the true osition of the treasure spot in the pocket. ‘“*T believe we've got et!” he cried. ** So do I,” agreed the prisoner, so called, Dick had gained two points of his object ; though he was as free as any of them, yet. | ever dreamed it would be. It proved a harder task than they had The map and the ground did not quite agree in measure- ment, somehow. CHAPTER X. _ MR, HYERS CALL, Tury ‘‘monkeyed” around there in the moonlight until after, midnight, measuring and remeasuring, according to the map, but. could get little satisfaction. Taking it from one point on the map as the beginning, the end found them about in the middle of the little creek; while taking it from the other end as a starter, they finished half-way between the creek ant the northern wall. And there was something about this: which they could not understand. Far as they could see, they took the same number of paces each way cach time, and yet there was this difference. ‘ The Spotted Tiger, knowing what he did, was the first to tire of the farce, for such he knew it to be, and when they came again to the bank of the creek, with some paces: further to cover, he said: : ‘““Wull, fer one, I’m done fer to-night. Ther darn map ain’t made out right, onless thar isa ketch about et that covers ther secret, an’ I begin ter believe pest is jest et. If the gold is buried out tharm the middle: of ther creek, thar is whar you will have ter dig to-morrow!” “ An’ ef ct ain’t thar whar is et?” demand- — ed the Giant. “« Give et up.” ‘This is wuss’n I thought et would be,” ruminated Job Hyer, the prisoner, scratch- ing his head. ‘‘} thort 1 had a cinch on ' ther secret, when I got holt o’ this hyer paper.” “« But, et seems ye hadn’t. An’, now that we hev tired of this fer ther night, I wonder ef-we hadn’t better see to ther business of hangin’ you?” It was the Spotted Tiger who offered the remark, E ; “If ye hang me now I'll think et’s a dirty
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Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. ae? = Pe we mean trick,” complained the prisoner, with a coolness that had to be admired, \ His remark elicited 4 laugh from the dozen or so around, andthe Giant made inquiry as to the point of objection the cool prisoner had raised. They wanted to know his rea- son. aa ‘‘Why, after lettin’ me work hyer with ye al: this time, like ary beaver,” he explained, ‘‘an’ then terhang me, is rough. Why didn’t ye do et in ther first place, and so save me all that trouble? Et would be ascurvy trick, that I’m tellin’ ye to your heads.” ‘But, we ain't no use fer ye,” insisted the captain, ‘‘and ther band is big enough as et c is. Besides, et will put ye out of yer mis- { ery.” “Wasn’t aware that I was in any p’tic’lar misery,” } = What do ye say to et, boys?” ip “ Hang him!” ‘““That seems ter be ther verdick,” the Tiger informed, solemnly. ‘‘Do ye want a little time ter say yer kittenkasm ’fore ye go, prisoner?” e **No, I guess et wouldn’t make any differ- ae | ence, now, about a little thing like that. If e mean ter hang me thar’s no use my kick- in’; but I thought I’d let ye know what I ! think about et.” < sl P mee you ar’ a cool one,” observed Giant t ack, | “‘Might as well be that as anything, I ) s’pose, But, ef ye mean business, go ahead ; with the funeral!” } “Say, et’s a pity ter hang a galoot with a ry nerve like that ’ar,” here putin one man of the party. ‘‘ Better let him j’ine us, cap’n.” * Nerve?” questioned the prisoner, care- lessly. ‘*‘ Whar do ye seenerve? Ef et’ster be hang, why hang et’s ter be, and what would be ther use of my howlin’ about et?” ‘* What do yesay, Giant Jack?’ asked the Spotted Tiger. ‘*Et don’t make no difference ter me, Tiger,” was the reply. ‘We hev got the map, an’ I reckon that is all ther use he kin" be to us,” ‘**Bout bein’ of use to ye, I am _ willin’ ter do my little best ef ye ar’ willin’ ter give me a show fer my alley,” the prisoner oe up. ‘I ain’t in no hurry to shuftie “How fur could we trust ye?” “ Jest as fur as ye wantto, Ef ye kept me in sight I think I kin say I'll be found ~—-trusty.” «7 s’pose so, But, you, who was et ye stole this map from?” * Ther feller what owned ther pocket when you kem and boosted him out of it, E “Andis he the head of that party out there?” ager “Yes; but he has eguide and friend with him | that he trusts with ’most all of his ‘Well, we'll let you live the night out, anyhow, We'll go out again to the end of ther pa.s, and there T’ll put you under )..~ * charge of one of ther guardsmen to do Be Loe OOLY . ‘ | “t ‘*Can’t do et, so ye might jest as well fin- ish me.” -. Why can’t ye do et?” «Been up all day, after bein’ awake most “ of last night, an’ now it’s midnight and I’m a, dyin’ fer sleep * Sa «Then ye might as well put him ter sleep BF fer keeps, Tiger,” sugested the Giant. aS 1 * . ‘*He kem to us a traitor and he) might go from us a traitor jost ther same, ef he got ther chance.” - Ton’t see what I could trait on, from hyer,” drawled Mr Hyer «* And he’ll be one ther less to share ther gold with when we do git holt of et,” added “a the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘Git a rope, boys, and ae we'll finish him off ther same as his friends asked us ter do.” ti BA **So ye like todo dirty Work fer yer Ps enemies, do ye?” suggested the prisoner. “Et don’t make no diff what ye call et,” retorted the Tiger. ‘‘ All we wanted any- how was ter git holt of that map, even ef et hasn’t beenof much use tous, So, et was only out of ther fryin’pan into ther fire, fer rou.” ‘* Well, allright, let’s have et done with, Where is the tree?” He looked around to find one. ‘*There’s a rig up thar by headquarters that will answer ther purpose,” said the cap- tain, ‘* We'll go up there,” “* All right, -I’m willing, seein’ that I can’t help myself, and I’m sleepy enough anyhow to go to sleep. Come on, and we'll go right up there, I'll save ye all the trouble I can.” And without further debate he set off in the direction of the headquarters cabin at the entrance of the pass. The others followed after him, making various comments needless to quote, for the most part the men being in favor of sparing his life. But, for reasons of their own, the Spotted Tiger and the Giant were resolved upon disposing of him. The Giant argued, privately, that maybe the fellow was holding back something, and the Tiger had a fear that maybe he did know the true hiding place. Mr. Hyer was first to reach the cabin, and when the others came up a few seconds be- hind him they found him leaning against the building. ‘“Get out your rope,” he laconically drawled. And the Giant brought it, ‘Put ina slip.” It was put. “«An’ now I want ter ask ye ef ye ain’t ashamed of yerselves, ter hang a fellow that ain’t done nothin’ to ye?” ‘*Oh! that’s stale, now. Lay onto him, men, and we'll fix him. No more foolin’ about et, now.” ‘And Ill fix ther man what» refuses,” threatened the Giant. This had more effect, really, than the captain’s order, and the men moved sullenly forward upon the lone and apparently de- fenseless man, But, immediately a change came over Mr. Hyer. He sprung. erect, his right foot for- ward and his head thrown slightly back, while his fists were put up in true pugilistic fashion. / “This has gone about fur enough,” he cried. ‘‘ Ther man that comes within reach of these hyer thumpers goes down, and don’t e forgit et!” ‘Haw! haw! haw!” laughed the Giant. ‘‘Mebby et would be me. think I'll see ef et would,” He stepped boldly forward in advance of the other men. Mr, Hyer allowed him to come close up, and just when the Giant reached out to deal him a smart slap, or take hold of him, which- < was his intention, out shot one of his sts. Over went Giant Jack, as though he had been kicked by a mule at close range, to the amazement of all. And, to complete the surprise, at the same timo, as it seemed, a pair of flashing revol- vers leaped into the fists of the sleepy Hyer! ‘« That’s ther kind of a hairpin I am, when ye wake me up!” he cried.“ You wouldn’t have me fer yer friend, so take me fer yer enemy and see what you'll do about et.” He had them covered in the finest way. “ Hang him!” thundered the Giant, as he athered himself up in haste from out the ust. ‘‘ String him right up!” ‘*Nothin’ of that sort this evenin’, ef you please,” said the late prisoner. ‘‘Put u your hands, every mother’s son of you! This place is called Hard Hole, and I guess it is, too; but, it isn’t hard enough to get away with yours truly.” E ) “Who in blazes are you!’ cried the Giant. . - ’ - **'Yas, who be ye?” the Tiger. ‘“‘T’m Job Hyer, right hyer every time, you bet! Now, what terms are you willin’ to make with me? I object to being hanged just toamuse such a measley set of rascals as you are,” There was something about the order that. had .caused the wretches to obey «before they realized it, and now they were in a trap indeed, Their hands were up, and there were two deadly revolvers aimed at their heads, ready for action. ‘What terms do ye demand?” asked the Spotted Tiger. ‘‘Nothing but my life. Let me out of here, and that will make it all right between us.” \ The dialect was gone, as he said that, and the Giant was quick to note it, for immedi- ately he exclaimed: ‘*Nary a let go!” ‘‘Might as well,” said the Tiger. got us foul.” “Not half as foul as we have got him, *Sides, he ain’t what he seemed ter be, Didn’t ye notice how he talked, jest then?” ‘‘T notice that he’s got ther drop on us, an’ that. it’s only a touch of his finger whether we be or whether we ain't. I’m of ther honest opine that common sense says let him go.” “Thank you!” said Dick. “I’m going, anyhow. File into that cabin, there, every man of you, and shut the door. Right about face, march [”. They turned, and at the same moment so did he, and ran for his life in the direction of the exit. attention for the present time, and he knew that the first man to enter the cabin would. have his life at his own will and pleasure. Deadwood Dick was in a desperate dilem- ma, now. CHAPTER XT. DICK MAKES DISCOVERIES. Dick was allowed only a few seconds the start, for his steps were heard, of course, and as soon as the outlaws took in the situa- tion they were after him immediately, A swift runner, hower, Dick had covered some distance by that time, and a bend im tbe pass had carried him beyond danger of bullets for the time being, But, he was in a tight trap, and the yells of the enraged outlaws were wild and fierce as they dashed in pursuit. . ick’s thoughts flew more rapidly than his feet, He had no doubt but that he would be able to pass the barricade, by shouting some deceptive words as he came up, but the other men would be right behind him, and he could be shot before he could get out of range. His next thought was to hide somewhere and let his pursuers pass him, after which he could return to the pocket and seek es- cape by some other means. If he could have a little time he could effect a disguise that would enable him to mingle with the out- laws themselves till daylight at least. With that thought came something that. Frank Westley had told him about a place in the pass he had discovered. At the point where it widened, under « projecting ledge, was an opening into which aman could slip, beyond which was a drop of about four feet. It was a place, too, that was not likely to be,discovered without close search, Westley had discovered it when he and his. wife ‘‘pard” were putting uP their signal bell, and it had been his intention to explore: it further at some convenient time, but he: had never found the time todoso. Dick resolved to find that place if he could and get into it. When he came out into the wider part of the pass he slackened his pace, and groped. ‘* He’s: . The loop-holes had caught his» , a a, ee Se ee
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all night, «along to find the ledge that had been de scribed to him. He carta found it, and dropping down, ‘pressed his body under it, when, of a sudden, he fell through and dropped to the bottom, escaping any injury further than a slight shock. The*next minute the Spotted Tiger and Giant Jack, with their men, dashed by, yell- ing wildly and fiercely, and their cries died away in the distance. ‘That was a pretty narrow shave,” said Dick to himself. ‘‘I knew it was taking a ‘big risk to come here as I did, but ’'m used ‘to taking risks. However, Iam not out of the woods yet,” When the Spotted Tiger and his gang ‘reached the barricade, they came up with smuch whoop and halloo. ‘*Stop him!” they came yelling. ‘‘ Stop ‘ther p’izen cuss! Don’t let him git by ye, an’ ef he does, riddle him wi’ bullets fore he git’s out o’ range! Make a porous plaster of him!” **What’s the matter?” demanded one of ‘the chiefs of the guards. ‘‘ What are ye yellin’ so about? Who is et ye want stopped?” ** Ain’t ye seen him?” cried the Tiger, coming up panting. “No, seen nobody.” **Didn’t he run out hyer?” from Giant Jack. ~ ‘*Nary arun out. Nobody kem this way ‘till you fellers kem yowlin’ along enough ter ‘scare the dickins.” : “Then he’s dodged us,” declared the ‘Tiger. ‘‘We must have him, ef et takes He wasn’t what he p’tended ter ‘be, an’ that’s a sure thing, now. He was a ‘blame spy!” ‘You mean that féller what kem in ther box?” “Yas, ther same.” And then was told what had taken place, when the whole horde of them became great- ly excited. * . ‘An’ you bet we will. But, did ye find ‘ther cache 0’ gold?” : ‘*No, cuss ther luck, An’, I begin ter think that map was only a sham, too. But, thar won’t be any sham hangin’ about et, ef ‘we git hold of that cuss!” That brought out a shout of approval. * The jig is up, about makin’ that attack on ther camp out thar, I s’pose,” Giant Jack observed. ; “Yas, clear up,” agreed the Spotted ‘Tiger. ‘‘ We don’t want no dose from them ar Gatlin’ guns—leastways J don’t, an’ I think we'll have ter hold ther fort an’ fight <t out.” The men were now divided in two parties, the one to remain there on guard to defend the pass against attack, while the others set out to find the lost prisoner. These provided themselves with lights, and they looked well along the pass as they. returned to the the pocket, but nothing was seen of the missing man. He had given them the slip. Believing, then, that he must be in the pocket, another guard was stationed at that end of the pass, while the remainder of the men carried on the search there, Needless to say their prisoner was not found, We now return to Dick. After the men had gone by he began feel- ing around in his narrow stone place of re-. treat, to learn how large the place was. He took several steps in the dark, with great caution, and found that the hole widen- ed rapidly, until he believed he must be in a cavern of some extent. : “This won't do,” he told himself, ‘‘ this EE —————E— ee eee Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. groping around in the dark. I must have a light. But, how am I to get one— Ha! have I that candle yet?” On the previous night he had had occa- sion to use a candle, doing something for his horse, and then had dropped it into the | pocket of his jacket. Yes, it was there yet! And a further search brought some matches to view, when he soon had a light. He held his hat behind the candle, so that its light might not be seen from the pass | through the opening by which he had got into the place, and looked around and about him. Yes, he was in a cavern true enough. It reached upward and away until in one direc- tion it was lost in distant blackness. with fragments left there by Nature when she had formed the chamber. The finishing hand of man had never been employed here, evidently. . Having taken his bearings, Dick walked away along the cavern wall, where the best footing was to be had, and was presently in the very bowels of the vast mountain, proba- bly where man’s foot had never before been set. The wild grandeur of the place charmed him. ‘*T wonder where I’m going?” he asked himself. be a very pleasant experience, I can well imagine. But, Ill take the risk of all that and press onand learn what I can of the cay- ern. It must have other Openings sorie- where, I imagine. If not, I shall have to get out the way I got in, and anyhow. it will serve me as a place to make up a disguise.” He came now to a point where there was a branching passway, it leading upward at a gentle angle, while the other, or main way, ie oe downward, Jeciding that it was better to be going up row way and pressed on, Needless to follow bim step by step. He finally came to a spot where he felt a breath of warmer air upon his face, and looking about him caught a glimpse of the moon- light just ahead. **Well, here I am,” he mused; ‘* but the question is, where am [at ?” Studying the footing fora moment, he put out his light and pressed on toward the open- ing through which he had caught the moon- ight, "pending it, he found it to be nothing more than a hole, one through which.a man might crawl, and putting out his head to look around he immediately recognized where he was. Below, straight down, was the camp of Hard Hole, and the lights were seen moving this way and that in the pocket as the out- laws were looking for their prisoner. ‘Ha! thisis a discovery worth something Dick exclaimed. ‘If we don’t circumvent ou now, my daisies, it will befunny. But don’t see yet just how it is going to be done.” Studying the position of the opening well, he decided that it could not be discerned for what it was from the pocket bottom, aud he believed it had never been discovered be- 1”? fore. ~ At the opening was a growth of grass and ground blackberry vines, such as dotted the wall here and there wherever the dust of ages had deposited soil enough for support. This grass and vines had never been dis- turbed, as was plain to be seen. and relighted his candle, preparatory to fur- ther exploration. Therefwas no other passage there save the one by which he had come, hence he had to go back that way, and in due time he came again to the juncture with the wider pas- sage. Turning into the wider pass, he pressed | The floor was rough and scattered over | “Tf I get lost in this hole, it won’t | | than down, Dick turfed aside into the nar- | li Satisfied, Dick drew back into the cavern any chasm that might be in the way. Of | these there were none, however, and finally he came to another branching passage, similar to the other but this time turning to the right. | ° Dick stopped to think before deciding / which way he should go. At last he chose the broad way, since here for one reason, it presented the better foot- ing of the two. ‘** It’s the broad road that leads to destruc- tion, I know,” he mused; ‘‘ but, it has the ap- pearance of the easiest traveling, so I’ll take ‘my chances this way. If I get out, all right; if not, I'll come back.” This was a mistake, but of course he could not know it then. He pressed forward, on and yet on, till it seemed as if the way was never ending. His candle, too, was burning low, and would not. _ Jast hima great while longer. ) ‘TDve come so far,” he mused, ‘‘ and what’s the sense of turning back now? The other passage may be worse. No, I must press on, come what may. There must be an ending somewhere.” | So, press on he did, and finally the end “was found. And, it was the end, indeed, | fomthere the cavern closed on all sides, and there was no further passage. ‘All this walk for nothing, eh?” Dick complained. ‘‘This is rough, but it was not to be helped. I must go back. My ' candle is not going to last me half-way there, ! but I’ hurry.” | And he did, trying to reach the branching passage before his light failed and went out, , but in that he was disappointed. ' As the candle died away, however, he lighted a cigar, and by its tiny spark guided ‘himself back along the broad passage till he came at last to the branching way, into which he turned. It would not do to give up his explora- tions yet, for he must find a way out if there was one. It would not do to go back again into the pocket if that could be avoid- ed at all. | So, he kept on, and at last was rewarded. Just as day was breaking in the east he came out upon the plain through a narro opening, and not far away was the clump ~ we of cottonwoods. CHAPTER XII. THE GIANT’S PRIZE. Who comes there?” “<FALT! It was the salute that greeted Deadwoot © Dick when he reached his own camp in the clump of cottonwoods, ‘ “It’s I, Deadwood Dick!” he promptly answered. ‘‘ How has everything been go- ing here, Ted? Has the night passed quiet- ly ?” " *«@lad to see ye back again, Mr. Bristol, No, everything ain’t been goin’ right at all. ae merry deuce has been to pay sence you e rot ‘* How is that? . What has happened?’ ~** Well, they have taken Westley pris- oner, fer one thing, an’ that’s about the worst I kin—” ‘Westley a prisoner! How in wonders did they get hold of him?” «Tt was an accident more’n anything else. We espied some of ’em sneakin’ out from their barricade, when the shadows got long, with the aid of the night-glass, and we swooped out thar to hustle ’em back in again.” “The knaves! I thought the story about the Gatling guns would keep them under shelter pretty close.” ‘* And so it did, too; this was only a few of ’em out ter scout. Well, we made a swoop down at ’em an’ chased ’em, and Westley’s hoss stumbled an’ he was throwed. ' What was worst, we didn’t know it till too late, in the dark.” ss | ‘ m on, using care not to come suddenly upon we) ae wt.
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—_ / ‘*How did you find it out?” ‘“When we drawed away an’ his hoss came out with empty saddle.” ‘This is too bad, right on top of my own narrow escape. Had they been firing any shots?” ‘Yes, some scattering shots.” ‘“‘Tt is possible he was killed by one of them, then.” ‘‘ Not unless they lied like sin. We dashed right back over the ground, anda wild laugh greeted us. ‘«¢ What ye lookin’ fer?’ the rascals in the pass shouted out. ‘““We were silent on the point, but search- ed on as we galloped, hoping to pick up our man and get back again without loss.” * Well?” ‘«*« We know what ye ar’ lookin’ fer,’ the same voice called out again. ‘We ar’ up to ye. The man what you've lost is our prisoner, with a bump on his head, but he will beall right purty soon.’ And then they cae as a defiance, and what could we o?” - ““That is bad, mighty bad. Something must be done. Where is Detective Hardy now ?” ‘‘Chances are he'll soon be around here. He has done nothing but keep guard over us guardsmen since Westley was taken.” ‘“He’s a careful man. Guess this is he coming now.” Dick’s quick ears had caught the sound even before the guardsman, and in a mo- ment more Hardy appeared, It was just light enough now for him to recognize Dick when he came up, and an ejaculation of satisfaction escaped him. ‘‘Thank Heaven you are back again safe and sound, Bristol!” he greeted. _‘‘ You are needed now if ever you were. But, I sup- pose Ted has been telling you about it.” “‘ Yes, he has told me.” ‘“What can we do?” ‘Nothing before night again.” ‘‘But, Westley will be hanged by that time.” ‘Little fear of that, if he has the good judgment to play his part.” ‘You ought to know, having been there; but it looked about certain death for him, we thought.” “They will try to force out of him the ‘ the secret of the gold cache first, and if he can dally with them for a time we will save ‘‘ How did you escape?” é ick told his story, and it was listened to with interest. ‘‘Isn’t it about as tough a a. tackled?” Detective Hardy aske had heard all. “Tt certainly is not the easiest by an means,” Dick made reply. ‘‘ But, we shall get around them someho bring them to time, I'm sure. I must noW have an hour of sleep.” . ~ With the understanding that he was to be called in just an hour, he threw himself upon the ground and was almost instantly asleep. fee In the meantime the outlaws were jubilant over their capture. Giant Jack himself had been the one to make it, and he considered the prisoner as his personal property. The Spotted Tiger had been up the pocket while the Giant had come out to the end of the pass to see how everything was going there, and while there he had planned a little scouting party. Under Royer of the deepening shadows he did not think discovery could be possible. When it was made, however, and the 4 i -you ever , when he horsemen came out after them from the cottonwoods, there was a lively scramble to et back again, and the Giant witnessed Westley’s accident. : Quick to take advantage of it, he dashed out with a couple of men and the unfortu- | us,” give us ther secret | torture, that’s all. Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. ———$ $$ $$$ $$ —————————— ‘nate man was carried over the barricade and into the hostile camp. He was recognized at once, and the Giant was almost beside himself with joy. ‘Now I reckon we'll have that ar’ treas- ure,” he cried, ‘‘ Wait till this feller ; comes to, and see ef we don’t force et out | of him. Ef we don’t et will be a funny | thing.” After laughing at the gold-seekers, so to | call them, and taunting them, he with three others carried the insensible man up through the pass to the pocket. In falling, Westley’s head had come in contact with a stone, and he was for the | time helpless, When the Giant made known to the Spotted Tiger the prize he had found, or had taken, the Tiger showed less of en- thusiasm than he had been expected to show, and with good reason. : If the Giant could force the truth from his prisoner, he, the Tiger, would have to share the fortune he had found, ‘*You don’t seem ter keera cent about et,” the Giant growled. ‘‘Don’t ye see i that we hev got ther secret of that hidden gold right in our hands now? We kin make this feller tell, even ef we have ter torture him.” ““Mebby you kin, Giant Jack. I begin <4 doubt about thar bein’ any gold hyer at a Bet “That ’ar is fool talk. Don’t we know they hev come ter take et off?” ‘*We thought they had, but after that man | Hyer turned outas he did we don’t know | what ter think,” “Wull, I'll tell ye what et is, Spotted : Tiger, an’ I'll tell et to ye right out flat, too. You hev been actin’ sort o’ mulish ’bout this hyer gold all along, as ef ye wanted et all to ‘erig a and didn’t want nobody ter have a and in et, an’ now ef ye don’t want ter help me git ther secret out of this hyer prisoner, ye needn’t. I kin de et, I reckon, an’ then | | ther hull prize will be mine.” “Et will, hey?” ‘‘T ruther think et will.” ‘‘Wull, I happen ter guess et won't. I am captain of this hyer band yet, even ef you ar’ the biggest man, an’I guess ther boys will stand with me, Yes, sir, ef that gold is found I am in et, and don’t you fail ter re- member that as ye paddle along, Giant Jack.” “Then don’t you act up mulish no more, but take some interest in things that is fer ' yer own good as well as mine.” : i And so it was left, for the time being. | They took the prisoner into the cabin occu- | pied by the Giant, where they set about re- storing him to consciousness. When Westley came to he looked around : him with a start. ‘* Where am I?” he demanded. ‘Whar ther dogs won't bite you, you kin | bet,” he was told by the Giant. | The prisoner realized the truth, and his , face paled for a moment as the prospect rose before him. ** What do asked. ; ‘We mean ter have ye show us whar that | gold of yourn was hid, when et gits light,” was the response he got. ; ‘“‘T have no gold buried here, sir.” ne Spotted Tiger knew he toid only the uth. _ “You iie!” cried the Giant, ‘‘ Youlie like sin! We'll see ef torture won't make ye tell, in ther mornin’.” ‘* No amount of torture could make # man tell what he did not know to teli, sir. You might kiil me, but that would not help the | matter any.” ot ‘‘ We'll see ef et won’t or not. Ef ye don’t et will mean death by ) An’ ef ye hold out till ye die, then we’ll know for sure ye didn’t lie to you intend to do with me?” he i 4 ‘* You are a monster!” ‘Yas, so I hev been told afore, an’ some- how J begin ter think et must be so. Haw!! | haw! haw!” Wesrley turned from him in disgust, and ; when the fellow tired of talking to him he | gave hima kick and went out, leaving the~ prisoner securely bound. For the remainder of the night the camp was still, the outlaws being tired enough to. sleep, and it was some time after daylight. when the Giant roused himself and bethought. him of his prize. He made haste to see that he was all right,. and finding him so, prepared him something- to eat, Westley took the miserable apology for coffee and the chunk of horse meat, for he was hungry and knew the importance of keeping up strength. ~ A little time later the Spotted Tiger put in: his appearance, and soon after that the whole- camp was up and astir, and when all had breakfasted—to call it that—they were ready for the cache of gold, Westley was led out and ordered to reveal. the secret place. “‘T have told you,” he said impressively,. ‘that I buried no gold here, I cannot re- veal what is not.” ‘“Then what is ther meanin’ of this hyer- map?” demanded Giant Jack, holding it be~ fore his face. map aud find that ‘ar gold, or else we will. hang ye in short order.” ‘Where is the man who brought this to- you?” Westley demanded. nee EEE EEEEEEI SEER savage retort. ‘‘ You will j’ine him, ef ye: don’t git a hustle on ye and ‘bey orders hyer,, mind ye that. Come, now, mosey!” CHAPTER XIII. THE GIANT AND THE TIGER GROWL, FRANK WESTLEY was a man of coolness and judgment, and he brought these two essential qualities to beat upon his present. dilemma. He saw that the threat to torture him. would be no idle one, if he did not make some show of revealing the treasure to thee outlaws, and he rapidly evolved something. of a scheme. ‘*Well, Isee you have got me in a tight. place,” he said, ‘‘and there isn’t a chance: for me to get out of it.” ‘‘Ha! Pm glad ye see et that way,” cried the Giant, ‘‘Then ye admit that this hy er map is the jinooine article, do ye?” Yes, the map is genuine enough, for my own hand made it,” ‘*Come on, then, and we'll see what kin do at measurin’ et off and findin’ spot.” ‘*T’11 do it on one condition,” the prisoner parleyed. ‘You'll do et on no condishun a tall!* ronred the Giant, ‘‘Fetch him right along, men!” ‘““You can drag a horse to water, but yow can’t make him drink,” the prisoner cooll} reminded, ‘If Iam to show you the hid ing-place.of this gold, you have got to bind yourselves to a promise.” ‘Oh! ef that’s all, we kin do that, A promise is easy made. What is et-ye ar” after?” ‘‘Were Ia single man, I would makeno terms with you whatever, but would bid you do your worst, Asit is. I desire tolive. If Ishow a the hiding-place of my gold, you must pledge yourselves to give me one thou- sand doilars’ worth of it and let me go free. Do you agree to that?” The mentioning of the sum of a thousand dollars’ worth was intended to carry the im- pression that he really meant to disclose his secret, tary And, it was so effective, too, that the Spotted Tiger turned just a shade pale at the thought that’his secret was about to bemade om her- —————————E———————————————E- eS a Se ee a eS eee ’ 4 “You will take this hyer: - ‘Never you mind where he is,” was the: — ‘ ’
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/ — ee : 2 : B he! : = at yea Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scoop. | known to the whole band, and he despoiled of it, He would have liked to kill the prisoner there and then, and his hand was upon a weapon with nervous touch. It was only his fear of the consequences from Giant Jack that deterred him. ‘Yas, we agree to et, of course,” the i Giant readily promised. ‘‘ You show us ther spot, an’ then we'll do what's right by you. Ain’t that right, Spotted Tiger?” “I s’pose et is,” was the sullen response. ** You ar’ doin’ et. Ther prisoner is yourn,” o ** You ar’ inclined ter mule again, I see. I , begin ter suspect that thar is somethin’ ty _ rooked about you, hang me ef I don’t.” vy “Then that’s your fault. What do ye ‘want me ter do? Want me ter git up an’ crow? I believe this feller is only playin’ roots on us anyhow. You'll hear me whoop t up when ther find is made.” ‘All right, an’ we'll all whoop together. ‘Come on, now, feller, and let's see ye pace out this hyer map.” Westley had been disarmed, of course, and now he had been unbound, too, and was free to lead the search as he would. And the map was put in his hands as the Giant spoke. With the map in hand he advanced up the ‘pocket, finally coming to the pbdint from which the outlaws themselves had several - times measured. Here he stopped, looked well at the map, and began pacing forward from that point toward the creek. Following the directions of the map in its various turns, greatly to the delight of the Spotted Tiger, the prisoner eventually came to the bank of the creek, and had some paces Still to make. Y The Spotted Tiger knew that it was not ney Tae" saps the intention of the prisoner to reveal his eH secret. ““Wull, hyer we ar’,” said Jack. ‘ We hev paced et off this hyer wiy a dozen 0’ ee times, Whar is ther spot?” “Did you still follow the map from here?” the prisoner asked. ‘We followed et as near as we knowed how,” the Tiger spoke up. ‘‘ Jest show us how et orter be follered.” ‘* Well, it ought to be paced on to that point out there in the bed of the creek, but — as I do not care fora wetting I am not going lags eae Be to doit. How far out do you think that ' bright stone lies?” He pointed to a gleaming split bowlder on the creek bottom, “Bout seven paces, I should say,” the Giant responded. ‘Then that’s ther spot that round dot on ther map means, is ‘ea «Yes, that is the place, and we will call eee it six paces and a half. Then, the same foe iemyay t= distance back again makes it thirteen paces. Do you understand?” ** Yes, we git aboard with ye,” the Tiger answered. “Well, from the shore here, then, we _ must pace off according to the map again, = and then take off thirteen paces from the ES _ total, and there we are.” ae *“‘ By blazes!” cried the Spotted Tiger, i Bae | “why didn’t we think of that, Jack!” Rr ie ee The Tiger was overjoyed. He saw in all this a clever piece of planning to still keep. the true hiding-place a secret, and he was willing to aid all in his power to do it. t ** Reckon et’s ’cause we hadn’t ther clue to et,” the Giant responded, to his exclama- ue Sa tion. ‘‘Go on, prisoner, an’ let’s see ther end of et.” Westley paced forward again, now almost * dreading the outcome, for this was all blind work with him since the map had not been a ey made on the ground at all, but had been 4 ae eS drawn from memory for Deadwood Dick’s venture. — _ He went forward, slowly, the required number of paces according to the map, ~ passing as he did so a spot where an unusual amount of digging had been done. This was a spot where a curious arrange- ment of stones had been found by the out- laws, and they had suspected that possibly the gold was hid near that spot and had acted upon suspicion and dug for it. Coming to the end, the prisoner turned and retraced thirteen steps,‘as he had suggested, and, it brought him back to the spot where the digging had been done; and not only so, but to the deepest part of the excavation that had been made inthe vain search, The prisover’s heart gave a leap of exul- tation! He had the best chance in the world to declare that the treasure had already been discovered, and he acted upon the sug- gestion without weighing it for a moment. **Gone!” he exclaimed, and his tone and manner carried the conviction that’ he had met with a genuine disappointment. The Spotted Tiger, greatly pleased with the success of the prisoner’s ruse, and more pleased to think his own secret was still safe, could not have helpéd the look of exulta- that came upon his face, and which, as Jack turned upon him, was plainly read there. ‘*Curse ye, Spotted Tiger!” the Giant cried, fiercely. ‘‘ You hev got ahead of us on. this deal, and hev hid ther gold some’rs else!” ** No, no, honor bright I ain’t!” the Tiger protested, paling suddenly under the accusa- tion. ‘** Ye lie, dast ye! Yer face showed that ye knowed et wasn’t hyer!” ‘*T knowed nothin’ of ther kind.” ** An’ this explains why ye hev been act- in’ ther mule all along about et. By ther blue blazes, Spotted Tiger, you hev got ter show us whar that gold is, or you hev got ter die!” With his threat the Giant whipped out a knife and advanced savagely. “T tell ye I haven’ found nothin’ hyer a tall!” the Tiger denied warmly, retreating and likewise drawing a weapon. ‘‘If you come another step nearer I'll drop ye in yer tracks, cuss ye!” *‘Wull, I’m comin’ nearer, and don’t ye ferget et,” shouted the big ruffian. ‘‘ You hev tried ter play et on us, but we ain’t go- in’ ter stand et; hey, boys?” ‘Not much we ain’t! Ef he has tooken that ’ar treasure he has got ter give et up again.” ‘*But, I tell ye I haven’t touched et!” re- peated the Tiger. ‘I haven’t done no diggin’ hyer! Et seems terme youar’ jump- in’ at a shadder, Giant Jack. When hev I had time ter do any diggin’ hyer an’ nobody knew et?” “Tl tell ye when, cuss ye! Ye was a mighty long while gettin’ out from hyer last night when I went out with ther men to the end of ther pass. I believe you know what’s become of this hyer gold, an’ you hey got ter own up or fight!” ““What makes you so strong in your sus- picion?” asked Westley. “’Cause he ain’t hunted feret with no heart in et from ther first, that’s one reason, An’ jest now I see a look of brag on his face when we kem to ther spot hyer an’ you said et was gone.” Westley recognized a chance to play fora double point. He could further impress up- on them the honesty with which he had sought the hiding-place of the gold, and at the same time perhaps avert a fight and save the Tiger’s tife, for he did not think the Tiger could stand against the Giant. **Tf that is the case you must not kill him,” he said. ‘‘If he knows the secret of where the gold is now, he must not be blotted out, for that would blot out the secret at the same time. J have an interest in this fora thou- sand, you must bear in mind, to say nothing of my life and liberty.” “That’s fair spoken,” the Tiger took up _ Et’s gone, so ther prisoner ’clares, an’ I’m as ! immediately, he having about the same ax to grind, ‘‘ Watch me, ef ye want to, an’ F see ef ye find me walkin’ in my sleep or otherwise te ther place whar ther gold is hid. anxious as anybody ter know who has hid et. Et's plain that et has been somebody in ther band.” ‘Then we want ter know who that some- | body was!” cried the Giant. ‘« Jest ¢z likely ter hev been you 2s any- body,” the Tiger growled. ‘* Youar’ makin’ ther greatest howl over et of anybody hyer, seems ter me,” There was a war of words, then, and the two almost came toa fight, but at last they cooled down, when it was proposed that they should have a little fun by hanging their prisoner, Westley. CHAPTER XIV. NARROWING THE CIRCLE. Ty the mean time Dick Bristol, awakened from his hour’s sleep, was fresh for the duties and dangers of another day. ~ The first thing he did was to dispatch a trusty messenger for aid, for he had nowa scheme in mind which his present force, he feared, would enable him to carry out only in part till aid came. That done, his next step was to learn some- thing about the fate of Westley, and to do that meant a trip through the cavern to the point above the pocket camp where the do- ings of the outlaws could be seen, and from which point entrance must be had into the camp. In company with three others he set out to take this trip, leaving Hardy in command of the camp in the cottonwoods. When they reached, in due time, the open- ing in the side of the rocky wall above the camp, and looked through, they beheld an exciting scene in the pocket below. There were the two outlaw ringleaders, with a large number of their men, all in an ; excited circle around the prisoner, Westley, whom they were preparing to hang, as was evident enough. ‘‘ Yas, we'll rope him,” yelled the Tiger, who had no object in sparing the man’s life, i} “* We'll yank him right up, now.” ve The Tiger was jealous of the secret he 7 9 held, and did not want any one else to share ie Pr. i it with him! Now was the time, therefore, ~ to get in his best work. Tie “That's what we will,” approved the) Giant. ‘‘He ain’t no use to us now, sence | |) ther treasure has been tooken from wharhe ~~~ . put et. Git ready that rope, boys! We'll ~~ make short work o’ him!” “The miserable wretches!” grated Dead- wood Dick, as he looked on and heard, ‘“T ; think Ill take a hand in this game. But, tL must be quick about it, or it wili be too late.” 2 Unslinging his rifle, for he had brought that with him, he quickly removed the cart- . ridges it contained and put in others in their stead, That done, he laid the rifle down, and taking pencil and paper, hastily jotted a message, ‘* Your bowie, quick!” he then said to one of his men. The knife was given, ( Dick tied the paper around the hilt of it al securely, and leaning out over the edge of the opening, hurled it downward into the rss crowd of men below! — . It had not been his desire or intention to 3 hit any one, though the chances were fair for his doing so, but hit some one the knife did, in the fleshy part of his back. This man was, as it happened, the one who was just in the act of putting a noose in the rope, and he dropped the rope and K leaped clear from the ground with a yell of ain, while the other outlaws drew away rom him with something of fear, staring at the bowie in his back. . a Rk ee ~ . —~--- ey: ~~ Re oe ee. ww i as ee pr ee
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| A a The three men waited th — cliff, and after a little while a them, coming down the rope fr” He reported that the Giant hac ~ at the top, and was secure under guard. And one by one the men continued to de- —— into the pocket until they numbered a ozen. Each man of them was armed with rifle and revolvers, and in a body they moved toward the cabin headquarters, keeping in the deepest shadows. ‘ Arriving there, they concealed themselves «
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16 behind the cabin, and there waited for an ex- pected signal. ; Some time passed, and the searchers for the esexped prisoner were returning to the cabin headquarters, when suddenly an alarm was sounded. : ‘‘Hfilloo, Spotted Tiger!” yelled a voice in the pass. ‘‘ Hilloo, Giant Jack! Hustle out hyer as fast as ever ye kin! Ther varmints ar’ comin’ up witli them ‘ar Gatlin’ guns.” The Spotted Tiger took the alarm at once, and shouted for his men to gather in haste. ‘‘Hilloo, thar! Hilloo, hilloo, hzlloo/” yelled the voice in the pass. ‘‘Do ye hear me, Tiger?” “Yes,” the Tiger shouted back. ‘‘ We’re comin’. Hold ther fort till we git thar, Mose!” That* was all, and in haste the Tiger got his men together, and set out at top of their speed for the other end of the pass. ** Good for Old Avalanche!"said Dead wood Dick, when the last man had gong, and he and his dozen came out from the shadows, ‘Now we have got them, and when they-re- turn they will meet a surprise.” They entered the cabin fort, as such it has been described, and when a light had been made, surveyed it critically. Ready at the loopholes were several maga- zine rifles, showing that the outlaws had not been unprepared for them, did they gain entrance into the pass and try to get into the pocket, Here a dozen men could keep an army at bay as long as the cabin remained for their shelter. — Meantime the outlaws were dashing on to- ward the end of the pass, and as they neared there they had their weapons ready in hand for action as soon as they reached the scene of the expected conflict. When they came up,however, and found | opening into the cavern from the center of | Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s, Scocp. | ‘Try it again, if you want more!” Dead. wood Dick called out. By a miracle, almost, the Spotted Tiger had been one to escape the deadly volley, ; and he now called out from behind a pro- ; tecting corner in the pass: | ‘*Who in tarnel ar’ ye, anyhow? How did ye git in thar?” ‘We are Deadwood Dick and his little company,” Dick informed him, ‘‘ Ever hear of me, you brute, well named Tiger?” ‘Deadwood Dick!” and the exclamation was heard in a hollow, frightened voice. “Then et’s all up wi’ us now, pards. We didn’t know who we was buckin’ ergainst.” ** You are right; it 7s all up with you,” Dick retorted. ‘‘Gather up your dead and wounded here and take them back out of sight, and to-morrow we will see what terms ; you will feel like accepting.” ‘“Ye won’t shoot us ef we come out ter git our pards?” ° ae No.” The promise was given and xccepted; the dead and wounded were taken back into the pass out of sight, and the ruffians did not show themselves again that night. - CHAPTER XVI. THE SURRENDER. Waren morning dawned it found Dead- wood Dick in command of twelve men on the plain in front of the pass. ** Yes, I'll do that: but you must come un- armed.” : **T take ye at yer word.” The outlaw chief was seen to throw- off his belt of weapons, and stepped forth to- ward Dick boldly. Dick advanced a little way to meet him, and when they met, demanded to know the object of the interview, “Tl tell ye,” said the outlaw, in confi- dence, ‘‘I have found ther richest pocket 0’ gold ye ever dreamed of, an’ef ye will let me go from hyer a free man, jest as Tam, Pll tell ye whar et is.” ; “Cannot do -it!’ Dick declared. ‘‘ You know no secrets about that pocket that are not known to me. You have taken pains and trouble in vain this*tyme. Go back to “your men, and when you are ready to sur- render, let me know. You had better come to terms.” “Terms is what I want ter come to, Deadwood Dick. Won’t ye give me no show | a tall?” ‘* You have heard what I have to say, sir.” Dick waved him away, and he slunk back to his men behind the barricade. P It was along about the middle of the afternoon, when hunger and thirst had be- gun to be felt pretty keenly, that he made his appearance again, this time to announce: their surrender. : Deadwood Dick told him to lay down his weapons and come out, his men to follow in The two Gatling guns, as they were still turn, one at a time, until all had been taken _ thought to be by the outlaws, were in nearer | care of, promising them that their lives position than before, and each was manned _ would be safe as long as they were in his , by three men. Dick and the other seven were between the guns. | The rest. of the party were at the cabin fort , in the pocket, where they could hold the pass lat that end against almost any odds, The charge, and that they should be fed. So, the Spotted Tiger gave up and came: out, and his men followed, one at a time, | Dick and some of his men meeting and se- curing the hands of each as he came. forth. There were ninety odd of them, all told, everything peaceful and quiet, what was | the pass had been stopped up with bowlders and a hideous horde they were. their surprise! ‘““What does Tiger, fiercely. alarm to ther pocket?” ‘* What ’larm?”’ asked the captain of the guard, innocently. ‘*Why, the call for help from here. Some- body said the gang out there was comin’ up et mean?” demanded the with their Gatlin’ guns to wipe ye out, and | told us-ter githyer quick as ever we could.” ‘‘Ton’t know nothin’ *bout et, Cap’n Tiger; thar is ther guns, out thar jest whar they wur, an’ hyer is us, jest ther same as we wuz. Don't know what ter make of et.” ‘*What do you make of et, Jack?” and the Tiger looked around to find his burly pard. But, the Giant was not there to respond! ‘Is this trick somethin’ of /7s doin’s?” the Tiger raved, ‘Hashe got that ’ar gold, an’ is he goin’ ter play us false ef he kin? I'll bet he won’t do et ef we know ourselves, Hey, boys?” a This hint. that. maybe the Giant had taken the gold, or had found it at least, was to win the men over to himself. ‘You bet he won't!” the men cried. ‘*Come back with me, about twenty of ye, and was not likely to be discovered. When Dick saw the outlaws astir he called ‘“Who was et brought that ; out to them, demanding an interview with | the Spotted Tiger. i "That ee customer made his appearance on top of the barricade, waving a white rag for his protection. “Well, what is it to be?’ Dick asked of him. ‘‘ Will you surrender? or must we starve you into submission?” “S’posen we surrender, what will ye do with us?” the Tiger asked. & “‘Make you prisoners, of course, and turn you over to the authorities to be dealt with according to law.” ‘¢ An’ ef we.don’t surrender, what then?” ‘*Then you will have to stay there, for you know there is no possible chance for you to | get out. If you attempt to break out this ly fire of these Gatling guns, and it is im- | possible for you to get out at the other end.” The Tiger was seen conferring with his men. ‘‘ We'll surrender on one condition,” ho presently called out. ‘Ef ye will let us git away with our tives we will file out an’ go : way not a dozen of you can escape the dead- | They were fed, and put under guard for _ the remainder of the day and night. On the following afternoon a company of ! soldiers arrived upon the scene, to whom the prisoners were turned over, except: Giant Jack, who was Deadwood Dick’s own. | especial prize. And so the nest of outlaws was broken up, and the pocket restored to its rightful Westley, of course, was very grate- _ owner. : ful to Bristol, and wanted him to take’ a. | share in the claim, but Dick would accept only thanks for what he had done. The young gold-hunter entered his claim, | officially at once, and the pocket was grant- ed tohim, It made him more than inde- pendent for life. He invited relations and friends to share his good fortune with him, and in a brief time a camp sprung up that. was worthy the name the pocket had borne at first—Rose Dell. There is one of the rich- est mines to be found in that section. Deadwood Dick reported in person to the: | governor, taking his prisoner with him, and received the hearty thanks of that official | for the remarkable service rendered. The delighted governor assured bim that when- an’ we'll try ter git some onderstandin’ "bout | away like a flock o’ lambs, Deadwood Dick. | ever a case came up that was likely to puz- ” this hyer thing.’ Back again they dashed, not only twenty but nearer fiftyeof them, with the Tiger in the lead, and they paused not till they were brought toa sudden and unexpected stop. As they were coming out near the cabin headquarters, a light suddenly flashed upon them, and a voice ordered them to halt “Another step this way,” was the warn- ing, ‘‘and a dozen of you will bite the dust.” * Et’s a trick!’ cried the Tiger, wildly. ‘Giant Jack, et’s your life or mine, this time! Boys, forward, charge!” ‘* Fire!” . . aay Out blazed the rifles from the loopholes, and over tumbled some six or eight of the outlaws in the lead, the others falling back and getting out of range with haste. &- An’ you won't never hear of us in these hyer parts no more.” “Not to be thought of!” Dick refused. “You must lay down your weapons and come out one by. one, till allare out and ) made prisoners, and then you will be taken care of properly untii vou are delivered to the officers. These are the only terms.” “ Where is Giant Jack?” the Tiger called out. ‘‘Have ye seen him? Has he been re us false?” Jack is my prisoner, for a murder com- mitted in California,” Dick explained. came here to get him, and I have succeeded.” “Good! I’m glad o’ that! Now, Dead- wood Dick, will ye let me come out thar fer jest a word wi’ you in private? An’ will ye et me come back hyer again, if we don’t , agree?” “ T -zle him, he would fall back at once upon the detective who never failed, and let him take | it in band. Ashe did! . THE END. | BEADLE’S HALF-DIME LIBRARY. nappratiincs | 824 Bowery hag the Bunco Bouncer, By Jo Pierce. | B25 Marlo, the Cowboy Coaster, Cy Col. P. Ingraham, 826 eae Billy Among Jersey Thugs. by J. Cy war wdrick. : ; 827 ie 6 Bentem Sport; or, The Miner-Bosa Ferret. By T. * ©. Harbangh, | 828 Deadwood Dick, Jr.’s. Scoop. By Ed. L. Wheeler 829 The Gentleman. Crook in Chicago or, Diek Doom’ Shadow Haunt, By Col. P. Ingraham. ; 880 The Grim rs in Rog Alley; or, Citizen Rubé . ~ of Number Seven, By Ben D, Halliduy. : ; A New Isane Every Tuesday. 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