CHAPTER XV.
The Outlaw's Escape.
"Before goin' further," continued the trapper, "I oughter tell youthat this Black Bill had been on the prairy a long time. Like a goodmany others, he had run away from the law in the States, an', fallin'in with more rascals as bad as he war, he soon made himself known, byname, to nearly every trapper in the country. 'Sides robbin' lone menhe met on the prairy an' in the mountains, he would jine in withInjuns, an' lead 'em ag'in wagon trains.
"None of our comp'ny had ever seed him, although, in course, we hadoften heered of him, an' we never onct thought that he would have theface to jine in with a party of honest trappers; so we called himPeters, bein' very fur from thinkin' that he war the feller that haddone so much mischief. If we _had_ knowed who he war, prairy lawwouldn't have let him live five minits.
"Wal, arter we had been at the fort 'bout two weeks, Cap'n Forbes gotevery thing ready fur the start, an', one mornin', bright an' 'arly,we sot off t'wards the mountains. Thar war fourteen of usaltogether--seven of us fellers, five of Bosh Peters' party, thetrader, and his darkey. We had four pack mules; and, as the Cap'nwarn't a bit stingy, he had give us good we'pons an' plenty of powderan' lead. I hadn't forgot what them two fellers said that night,although I hadn't never spoke about it, fur fear of bein' laughedat--an' I kept close watch on the trader, to find out if he had hismoney with him. He carried a pair of saddle-bags, an' they were wellpacked, too; but, judgin' by the keerless way he throwed them around,when we camped fur the night, thar warn't no money in 'em. Bosh Petersand his party had all along been tryin' to git on the right side ofus, and purty soon our fellers begun to think that we had been fooledin 'em, an' that they war all right arter all.
"Wal, when we reached the trappin' grounds, we built our quarters furthe winter, an' then commenced work. The trader went with one fellerone day, an' with another the next. He warn't no trapper; but he likedthe sport, an' seemed to want to larn how it war done. But, arterawhile he got tired of this, an' staid in the camp from mornin' tillnight. He never went out with me; if he had, I should have told him tokeep his eye on them money-bags, if he had 'em with him.
"One day, as I war at work settin' a trap in a clump of bushes thatgrew on the banks of a little creek, I heered some fellers comin'along, talkin' to each other. Now, jest that one little thing warenough to make me b'lieve that thar war somethin' wrong in the wind,'cause, when fellers go out to hunt an' trap, an' fur nothin' else,they don't go together through the woods, as though they were huntin'cows. So I sot still an' listened, an' purty quick heered Bosh Peterstalkin'. Thar war one feller with him, but the bushes war so thick Icouldn't see him, an' I didn't know his voice. They war comin' rightt'wards me, an' when they reached the creek, one of 'em went to get adrink, an' the others sot down on a log not ten foot from me. Purtysoon I heered Bosh Peters say:
"'I know it's time we war doin' somethin', Tom, but I'm a'most afraidto try it. Them 'ar fellers are seven to our five, an' if we shouldn'thappen to get away, we would ketch prairy law, sartin; an' that's aheap wusser nor law in the settlements. They don't give a feller achance to break jail on the prairy.'
"'Black Bill,' said the other, 'thar's jest no use a talkin that 'arway. If we're a goin' to do it at all, now is jest as good a chance aswe shall have. The cap'n stays in the camp all day alone, an' aforethe other chaps get back to larn what's done, we can be miles in themountains.'
"'Wal, then,' said Black Bill, 'let's do the job to onct. The cap'nwar in the camp this mornin' when I left, an' if he's thar thisarternoon, we'll finish him, an' the money-bags are ourn. But let'smove off; it won't do fur us to be seed together.'
"The varlets walked away, an' I lay thar in them bushes fifteenminutes afore I stirred. This war the fust time that I knowed BlackBill war one of our comp'ny. To say that I war surprised to hear it,wouldn't half tell how I felt. I war teetotally tuk back. The idee ofthat feller comin' into our camp, when he knowed that if he war foundout, short work would be made with him! I could hardly b'lieve it. ButI couldn't lay thar, foolin' away time with such thoughts, when Iknowed that the cap'n's life war in danger. So, thinkin' the rascalshad got out of sight an' hearin', I crawled out of the bushes,intendin' to start at onct fur the camp, an' tell the fellers what Ihad jest heered. I walked down to the creek fust, to get a drink, an'jest as I war bendin' over, I heered the crack of a rifle; a bulletwhistled by, not half an inch from my head, an' buried itself in theground. I jumped to my feet, an' lookin' up the bank, saw a leetlesmoke risin' from behind a log not twenty yards distant. Grabbin' myrifle, which I had laid down as I war goin' to drink, I rushed acrostthe creek, an' the next minit war standin' face to face with BlackBill. Fur an instant the chap shook like a leaf, an' turned as pale ashis black skin would let him. Then he seemed to find his wits ag'in,fur he stuck out his hand, sayin':
"'By gum, Bob Kelly! is that you? I'll be shot if I didn't take youfur an Injun. I'm mighty glad I didn't hit you, Bob!'
"'You can't blarney me, Black Bill,' said I. 'I know you;' an' as Istood thar lookin' at the rascal, an' thought of all the badness hehad done, I had half a mind to shoot him. The way of it war, thevarlet kind o' thought that somebody had been listenin' to what hesaid 'bout robbin' the cap'n, an' he had hid behind the log to watch.When he seed me come out of the bushes, he knowed that I had heeredall that had been goin' on, an' he thought his best plan war to leaveme thar dead. But, although he warn't twenty yards off when he firedat me, he missed me teetotally. Wal, when he seed that I knowed him,an' that he couldn't fool me into b'lievin' that he tuk me fur anInjun, he thought he would skeer me, so he growled:
"'If you know me, Bob Kelly, you know a man that won't stand nononsense. I have friends not fur off, an' if you know any thing,you'll travel on 'bout your own bisness.'
"'Now, look a here, Black Bill,' said I, 'I haint never been in thehabit of standin' much nonsense, neither--leastways not from suchfellers as you, an' if you knowed me, you would know that I don'tskeer wuth a charge of gunpowder. That 'ar is the way to the camp,an' if you want to live two minutes longer, you'll travel off toonct.' Seein' that he didn't start, but that he stood eyein' me as ifhe'd a good mind to walk into me, I stepped back, an' p'intin' myrifle straight at his heart, said: 'I shan't tell you more'n onct morethat 'ar is the way to camp. You can go thar, or you can stay here furthe wolves, jest as you please.'
"I guess he seed that I war in 'arnest, fur he shouldered his emptyrifle, an' started through the woods, I follerin' close behind, readyto drop him if he should run or show fight. I felt mighty on-easywhile travelin' through that timber, 'cause I knowed well enough thatthe rascal had friends, an' if one of 'em should happen to see memarchin' Black Bill off that 'ar way, he'd drop me, sartin. But Ireached the camp in safety, an' thar I found two of our own fellers,an' four that I had allers thought war friends of Black Bill. They alljumped up as we came in, fur they knowed by the way I looked thatsomethin' war wrong, an' one of 'em said:
"'What's Bosh Peters been a doin', Bob?'
"'That aint no Bosh Peters,' said I; 'that 'ar chap is Black Bill.'
"Now comes the funniest part of the hul bisness. Every trapper on theprairy, as I told you, had heered of Black Bill, an' when I told 'emthat my prisoner war the very chap, an' that he had been layin' a planto rob the cap'n, I never seed sich a mad set of men in my life.
"They all sot up a yell, an' one of 'em, that I would have swore war afriend of Black Bill, drawed his knife, an' made at the varlet as ifhe war goin' to rub him out to onct. But my chum, Ned Roberts, ketchedhim, and tuk the we'pon away from him. This sot the feller to bilin',and he rushed round the camp wusser nor a crazy man. He said thatBlack Bill had shot his chum, an' that he war swore to kill himwherever he found him; and he war goin' to do it, too. An' the fustthing we knowed, he grabbed somebody's rifle, an' jumped back to shootthe pris'ner. But he war ketched ag'in, afore he could fire, and thenhe howled wusser nor ever. Wal, we tied Black Bill to a tree in thecamp, an' this feller kept slippin' round,
with his tomahawk in hishand, an' it tuk two men to get the we'pon away from him.
"The chap tuk on so, that we all thought that he told the truth, but,(would you believe it?) I arterwards larnt that he war the very samechap that I had heered talkin' with Black Bill 'bout robbin' thecap'n. He kind o' thought that we might know something ag'in him, an'he carried on in that way to make us b'lieve that he war really anenemy of Black Bill. In course we didn't know this at the time. If wehad, he'd soon been a pris'ner too. But, supposin' him to be tellin'the gospel truth, we felt sorry fur him, an' promised that Black Billshouldn't ever be let loose to do meanness ag'in. While the fuss wargoin on, the trader come out; an' when we told him what happened--howthe pris'ner an' one of his friends, that we didn't know, had beenlayin' a plan to do robbery an' killin'; an' that the chap he calledBosh Peters war none other than Black Bill the outlaw--I never seed aman so tuk back in my life. It skeered him purty bad. He had allerslooked upon Black Bill as one of the honestest men in the expedition;an', when he found that he war a traitor, he didn't know who to trust;an' he tuk mighty good keer not to be alone durin' the rest of thearternoon.
"Wal, when it growed dark, the fellers began to come in from theirday's work, some loaded with furs, an' others with a piece of bar orbig-horn, which they had knocked over for supper. As fast as they comein, we told 'em what war up, an' they didn't take it very easy, now, Itell you.
"The idee that Black Bill, arter doin' so much badness--robbin' lonetrappers an' leadin' wild Injuns ag'in wagon trains--should come intoone of our forts, an' stick his name down with those of honest,hard-workin' trappers, when he knowed that every one of 'em had plentyag'in him, I say it war hard to b'lieve. But thar he war, tied to atree, an', when the boys come to look at him close, they wondered thatthey hadn't knowed afore that he war a villain.
"Wal, we waited a long time for all of our fellers to come in; butthar war three of us missin', an' that war the only thing that savedBlack Bill. We didn't want to pass sentence on him without lettin' allthe boys have a chance to say somethin'; an' as they might come insome time durin' the night, we thought we would keep the varlet tillmorning. So we tied him, hand an' foot, and laid him away in one ofthe cabins. The cap'n's darkey made him a bed of hemlock boughs, an'laid him on it, abusin' him all the while like all natur', an' goin'in for shootin' him to onct. It would have been well for one of us, ifwe had put that darkey in there as a pris'ner too. But we didn't knowit, an' afore we got through he cost us the life of one of the bestmen in our comp'ny. The fellers then all went to bed except me. Iguarded the varlet till the moon went down, and then, arter calling mychum, who war to watch him till daylight, I went into my quarters an'slept soundly all the rest of the night. When it come mornin', Iawoke, an', in a few minits, all our boys war up. The fellers had allcome in durin' the night, an' ole Jim Roberts--my chum's ole man--whowar our leader, called a council. Black Bill didn't seem to have afriend among us, for the last man of us said as how the law must belived up to.
"'Who guarded him last night?' asked the ole man.
"'I did,' I answered, 'till the moon went down, and then Ned tuk myplace.'
"'Wal, Ned, bring out the pris'ner,' said the ole man. 'But whar isNed?' he asked, runnin' his eye over the camp. 'Ned! Ned Roberts!'
"I had all along s'posed that Ned war still guardin' the pris'ner; butwhen he didn't answer, I knowed in a minit that somethin' had beengoin' wrong ag'in, an' the others knowed it too, fur men who havelived in danger all their lives aint long in seein' through a thing ofthat kind. So we all rushed to the cabin where we had left the outlaw,an' there lay my chum--stark an' dead--stabbed to the heart! Thepris'ner war gone. Thar war the strips of hickory bark we had tied himwith, an' thar war the knife he had used--but Black Bill had tukhimself safe off. We stood thar, not knowin' what to say or do. OleJim war the fust that could speak.
"'Another gone,' said he; 'an' it's my only son; an' now whar's thetraitor?'
"He looked from one to the other of us as he said this, but no oneanswered.
"'He's here right among you,' said the ole man, the tears rollin' downhis cheeks. 'He's right among you. That knife couldn't got in herewithout hands; an' thar's somebody in this yere camp, that's helpedBlack Bill in makin' his escape. Speak, men, who's the outlaw'sfriend?'
"But still no one answered. We all knowed he war thar, but how couldwe tell who it war, when we had no proff ag'in any one?
"'Bring him out, boys,' said the old man, at last. 'He war a kind son,an' a good trapper. But he's done his work now, an' we've lost one ofthe best men in our comp'ny.'
"Wal, we carried poor Ned out, an' arter layin' him in my cabin, westarted off on the trail of the outlaw. But he had a good long start,an' that night we had to come back without him. I've never seen himfrom that day to this.
"The next mornin' none of us went out to trap, fur we couldn't helpthinkin' of poor Ned. He war the fust chum I had ever had, an' me an'him had been together a'most ever since we had strength to shoulder arifle--more'n ten year--an', in course, I war in natur' bound toavenge him. I staid in my quarters, wonderin' who it war that hadhelped the outlaw; when, all of a sudden, I happened to think ofsomethin' that brought me to my feet in a hurry, an' sent me into oleJim's quarters. I talked the matter over with him, told him what Ithought, an', in a few minits more, we called our boys together, an'war marchin' t'wards the trader's camp. The darkey war cookin' hismaster's breakfast, in front of the cabin, singin' an' whistlin' asjolly as could be; but when he seed us a comin' he shet up in amighty hurry, an' actooally turned white! I knowed he wouldn't actthat ar' way if he warn't guilty, so I sung out, 'Here's the traitor,boys!'
"The darkey, seein' that the thing war out, started to run. He hadn'tgone far, howsomever, afore we had him, an' then he 'fessed the hulbisness. He said he had told the outlaw that the cap'n war goin' totake his money-bags with him, an' that, bein' the last to leave BlackBill arter we had tied him, he had hid the knife in his bed. Thepris'ner's arms had been fastened above his elbows, an', in course,havin' a sharp we'pon, it war the easiest thing in the world to cuthimself loose, an' to pitch into poor Ned afore he knowed it. Arter hehad 'fessed this, we held a council, an' prairy law tuk its course.This skeered the trader wusser nor ever. If his own servant wartreacherous, he couldn't trust nobody. So he ordered us to break upour camp an' strike fur the fort. When we got thar, an' offered togive up our hosses an' we'pons, he wouldn't listen to it at all. Hesaid that we had saved him an' his money-bags, an' that we could keepour kit, an' welcome.
"Wal, our huntin' expedition bein' broke up, we put out on our ownhook. We still thought that them four fellers b'longed to Black Bill'sparty, an' we soon found that it war so; fur we had hardly got out ofsight, afore they started fur the mountains. They knowed 'bout whar togo to find the outlaw, an' they've been with him ever since, robbin'an' stealin'. One of his party has been rubbed out, but thar ar' fourof them left yet, an' they do a heap of mischief. I have looked an'watched fur 'em fur years, an' if I never find 'em, I shall leave 'emto Dick; so I know justice will be done 'em. If you had knowed allthese things, youngster, I don't reckon you would have slept verysound in Black Bill's camp."