CHAPTER XVII
Black Bill to the Rescue
"You kin fire away as soon as yer like. We've got a hold of him, and efhe kicks we'll show who's strongest."
Tom shouted the words, and at the same time sat himself down heavilybeside Jacob, while Seth placed himself on the other side. Themanoeuvre, coupled with the frowns and grimaces of the stolid hunter,caused a roar of laughter from those assembled round the fire. BlackBill grinned, a grin of huge enjoyment, while Steve increased thehilarity of the proceedings by beckoning to Jack.
"Jest draw yer shooter" he said with a dry smile. "He knows as yer ain'tover practised, and ef he sees you fingerin' the trigger pretty close tohis head he'll lay quiet, same as he's ordered. Now, the party's ready;yer kin git in at it, mate."
Thus bidden, Bill at once proceeded with his yarn.
"Old Jacob war clean gone," he said, "and no amount of hunting wouldfind him. So we guessed that some of them Injun varmint had collared himand dragged him off in the scrimmage. 'All the same, mates,' said oldman Staples, 'we'll be extry careful when we're shootin' to-night. EfJacob aer been hauled away he may be able to give 'em the slip beforethey kin kill him.'
"It war lucky he gave that warning. Somewhares about midnight Jacob tharcrawls back into the camp, and precious nigh gets a bullet in him. Incourse the hull crowd of us was anxious to know why he'd gone, and howhe come to be able to git back. But ye've seen fer yerselves what acritter he is fer keepin' his mouth shut when he's axed questions, andblessed ef he'd say a word about his doin's. 'I want a man,' he says,squatting down beside the fire, 'a man as ain't too fond of this life.Who'll come?' Wall, I happened to be right next to him," explained Bill,looking round at the circle of friends apologetically, as if he werementioning something he had need to be ashamed of. "In course I said Iwar his man. I warn't over tired of life, and not now, neither, but Ikinder wanted to see what he was up to. It war sheer curiosity."
There was a murmur from the scouts, and a general shaking of heads. Allknew very well that the words were prompted by Bill's modesty.
"You was like the rest," said Tom deliberately, in a manner there was nocorrecting. "Every one of them boys was game to go. Yer knew thebusiness was likely ter be warmish, fer Jacob had as good as said so. Itwarn't curiosity--it war duty. Git on."
Bill would have gladly remonstrated with him. The words were actually onhis lips. Then he changed his mind. It was obvious to him that hiscomrades had already formed their own conclusions.
"Wall, curiosity or not, I war next him, and the fust ter get a chanceof speaking. It aer curious; though there war some fifty boys in thecrowd, and all had heard Jacob sing out fer a man who wasn't too fondof his life, every man jack of the crowd found he war in that position.They shouted to be his man. They was too late, as I've told yer; fer,sense I war the first ter offer, in course I was the one ter go.
"'We'll take knives and shooters, and enough grub ter last us a coupleof days,' says Jacob, when the shouting was done with; 'and then we'llwait for them critters ter come along. They'll be here agin by two inthe mornin', and when we've let 'em see that we're lively, and askin'for a ruction, why, they'll clear back ter their wigwams. That'll be ourtime, Bill. We'll move away with them. You, mates, can look to see usback most at any time. All depends on sarcumstances.'
"That was all we could get outer him that night," went on Bill. "He jestsat silent, eatin' his supper, and thinking. Then he turns into hisblanket and sleeps. But at two in the mornin' he war up and lively likethe rest, and seems he was right about the Injuns. They came creepinglike snakes up the hill, and it warn't till one of our mines went off,and gave the alarm, that we guessed that they were near. Then we took toshooting, and precious soon sent them critters down to the plain agin.
"'Now's our time,' says Jacob. 'Aer yer ready, Bill?'
"'You bet,' I says. 'What thin?'
"'Got yer grub and thet shooter?'
"I jest nodded.
"'Then slip these over yer boots, or, better still, take 'em off and puton these moccasins,' says Jacob, handin' over a pair he'd likely enoughtaken from one of the Injuns we'd wiped out 'Now. Ready?'
"Wall, thar ain't over much talkin' from Jacob thar, as ye've seen feryerselves," went on Bill. "But blessed ef I didn't feel inclined tershake him before very long. Did he talk to our mates afore we left thehill? Not much! Did he open that 'ere huge mouth of his once we was off?Nary a word could I git from him, till I began ter get savage. 'Look yehere, Jacob lad,' I says; 'you and I are pards on this here excursion,and seems to me as things ain't equal. I'm your man, whatever happens,but thar's maybe sarcumstances as I should understand. Yer might getwiped out, and then whar should I be?'
"I could kinder hear the critter grinnin' to hisself in the darkness,some hundred yards from our camp," said Bill, looking round at hisaudience; "and, I tell yer, I felt jest like kickin' him. But Jacob aera trifle too big fer me. 'Sides, he owned up as I war in the right.
"'I'll tell yer, curious!' he said, grinnin' still. 'We're off to HawkEye's camp, to that ledge whar his wigwams aer pitched, and in courseyer don't want to ask fer what we're goin'. Thar's that kid ter berescued. I axed fer a man as was kinder done with his life, 'cos Ididn't see much chance of gettin' outer the business. Still, I've beenthar, and got back. Two may do the same.'
"'You?' I asked, under my breath, fer yer must remember we had to bespecially quiet. 'You've been up thar on the ledge?'
"Wall, the critter allowed as he had. He'd followed them Injuns out ofour stockade after their first attack, had kinder mixed hisself up withthem, and had coolly climbed with the varmint up to the ledge. Thenhe'd laid doggo in some hole he'd come across, had seen all there waster be seen, and had heard 'em plotting the attack which had jest takenplace.
"'What we're up to now,' he says, 'is to climb up thar agin, and waitfer a second business same as to-night. That'll be our time to snatchthe kid and come away. In course ye'll be wonderin' why I didn't managethat whilst I war thar. But thar's a critter on guard at the top of thetrack, and a second down below. I knew I shouldn't have no chance terget away with the kid with them thar; fer I was bound ter raise aruction in their camp when I went fer the kid, and by the time I got terthe track those two Injun varmint would have others ter help 'em. So Isays to myself that I would git back to our camp, call fer a man as wasa man, and then return to the ledge. Even with two the job'll be askeary one. It ain't likely to be all milk and cream.'"
Bill looked round his listening circle reflectively for a few moments.No doubt he was passing in review those incidents which had occurred nowsome years ago, and, if the truth were only known, was recalling his ownimpressions, his own feelings as the risk of the undertaking becameplainly apparent to him. His audience regarded him closely withinterest, and perhaps a little impatience. Then Tom broke the silence,and gave him encouragement.
"Gee! It war a teaser," he said. "Thar's some men as I've met who wouldha' backed out. Jacob thar was kinder asking yer to a funeral."
Bill laughed. "It war ticklish," he admitted. "As ter the funeral a mandon't think of them 'ere things when he's warmed up. I was dead keen ongettin' the kid. There warn't no more ter be said, so Jacob led the wayfer the cliff. In course there was Injuns about, but it was dark, asI've said, and, 'sides, we'd come away with our blankets, the same sortof thing as used by the Injuns. With them over our heads, and themoccasins on our feet, there wasn't much chance of being spotted. Inaddition, it began ter rain, and when it rains even an Injun critterlikes ter have a covering. So guess they made tracks fer their wigwams,and tried ter sleep off the licking we had given them. Jacob and mefound the cliff path, and scrambled up it. It war steep, steeper than awall in parts, whar they had fixed poles and cross pieces ter help them,sorter ladders, which leaned right out, making yer climb like a fly. Butwe didn't mind the steepness so long as the enemy wasn't anywhar'sabout. And after a bit we reached the top. Even thar thar wasn't acritter, fer I guess the rain had driven him in.
&nb
sp; "'Them's the wigwams,' says Jacob, pointin' to somethin' that might havebeen one, or may have been a piece of rock. Anyway, I took his word forit. 'We're right on the edge of the ledge,' he whispers, 'and the hole Ilocated is dead straight back, as dead straight as yer kin go. Jestremember that, ef you have ter make a run for it. Now let's get undercover.'
"It was an old bear hole he'd found," explained Bill, "a deep cleft inthe rocks, twistin' and turnin' as it went, and runnin' into the clifffor perhaps fifty feet. Leastwise that's what I guessed by creepin'round and feelin' with my fingers. Jacob jest went in as far as he wasable, and then rolled himself in his blanket.
"'Reckon a man don't want to set a watch,' he said. 'Thar's never anInjun as will dare to come in here. Most likely they think it's hauntedby a spirit, and, ef not, then thar'll be a bear, though that ain'tlikely. Take a sleep, Bill, and ter-morrer we'll be fresh and lively.'
"It war a queer place ter rest in, and I don't mind admitting ter youmates here as I was skeared. I couldn't make up my mind ter sleep ferquite a bit, but kept creeping to the opening ter look out. And mosttimes thar was nothing to see. Not a star even, not a sight of thecritters as would have torn us bit by bit ter pieces ef they only couldha' known that we was thar. But near to morning the clouds were sweptaside, and then one could see the outline of the wigwams, not forty feetfrom us, with the dead ashes of the fires they had been cookin' at theevening before jest in front of their skin shanties. While not so faraway, seeming quite close in that 'ere sorter light, was our camp, ontop of the hill, whar our pals lay. Precious little use they could ha'been ter us ef there had been a call. It war skeary work!"
Bill passed his hand across his forehead, as if even the recollection ofhis daring made him hot, while Steve and his comrades drew in asuccession of deep breaths.
"It war the riskiest thing as ever I heard of," said the former slowlyand seriously. "I 'low now that any man called upon fer sich a job had aright ter back out. It were downright the darndest bit of foolery asever I come across. Yer was kinder puttin' yer heads into the open mouthof a hungry lion, and I'm fair surprised to see yer here. It don't seempossible that them critters could ha' missed yer, and yet--wall, I'veknowed pretty nigh as wonderful cases," he admitted after a few moments'thought. "Them critters is queer folk. They're superstitious, ef that'sthe right word fer it, and I've known 'em back away from bear holes, notbecause they was afeard of the beast, but because they thought theywould be meddlin' with some spirit. Gee! I 'low as this here fix war ateaser."
"It war," came from many quarters.
"But this here big lump of a Jacob didn't seem to think nothink of it,"proceeded Bill, pointing a condemning finger at the huge scout, whereatthe burly fellow flushed a dusky red and fidgeted as if he had cause tofeel ashamed. "I war jest jumpin' with nerves when the morning came, andthem braves began ter sneak out from their wigwams. It war warm andfine, and there they stood, jest without a move, staring down at ourcamp on the hill, while their women bustled ter find dry wood, ter lightthe fires, and ter cook the grub for their masters.
"'It makes yer hungry,' says Jacob thar. 'Jest fetch out that 'ere driedmeat of ours, and we'll have a square meal. Them critters ain't fertalkin' till they have had their fill.'
"We sat in that 'ere cave all day long, outer sight of any of thebraves, staring at them through a chink that opened on their camp. Andit gave me a better idea, so to speak, of their ways of livin' andeatin' and speakin' than ever I had had before, or sence, fer the matterof that. And we warn't long in seeing that they was fairly mad with ourpals. They sat thar on the ledge, fifty of the chiefs of the varioustribes, chewin' the ends of their pipes, and fairly glarin' sparks atour camp. And one by one the chiefs got up on their hind legs andpalavered. One wanted ter get ter work right away, another advised anattack in force that night, a sudden retreat as ef they was scared, andthen a return to the business. Hawk Eye war cautious. Yer see, he'd beenhaving a fair gruelling, and he warn't so keen ter be hit harder. 'Thewhite man is strong,' he says, when he gets to his feet, jest as ef wehadn't proved that already, 'but he can be beaten by craft together withforce. And when he are beaten, there are his farms, his wives, and hischildren, all fer our taking.'
"Yer see," commented Bill, "Hawk Eye war an artful critter. He could seeas he had let the other tribes into a hot business, and so he told 'emfirst of all of the things they would gain, not forgetting the scalps.And in course, jest like all Injuns, the very talk of scalps made 'emforget most everything else. Them critters has sich hate fer white menthat the mention of one aer like a red rag to 'em. Anyway, they saidthey were ready to follow him, and he warn't long in coming out with hisplan.
"'We are many,' he says, 'and they are few. Yet they are so stronglyposted that my brothers are likely to suffer heavily if we attack again.Let us lure them into the open. Consider; what are they here for? Torescue an infant whom we have taken, and whom the squaw, who is my wife,will cling to as if it were her own. They sit yonder on the hillwaiting, knowing that the child is here. Let us move from this post. Letus leave a sufficient guard to hold the path to this ledge, and then, asto-morrow morning breaks, we will muster on the plain, with men dressedto appear as squaws, or boys will serve that purpose, with wigwam polesslung, and appearing in every way as if we were leaving this spot foranother. Consider now, my brothers, what will happen. It is the childthese white men seek. They will follow us, thinking the infant is withus. We will appear to ride away, as if in fear. But once they are farenough from the hill yonder we will turn, and then----'
"I give yer my word," said Bill impressively, "it fairly made a man'sblood curdle to hear the grunts them critters give and the way theireyes flashed. In course they was fer Hawk Eye's scheme right away, andfor the next few hours they sat talkin' it over, sharpenin' theirtomahawks, or simply looking down at our camp, doin' nothing, not movin'so much as an eyelid, same as only Injuns kin do.
"'It aer a case of ter-night or never,' says Jacob, as evening camealong. 'That wigwam thar,' and he pointed to the nearest, 'aer HawkEye's, and though we ain't never seen the kid, yet it stands ter reasonshe's thar. We aer got to snatch it once it's really dark, and then oneof us has got ter get through. Bill, ye'll take the kid, I'll followclose with my shooter. We may have the luck ter get clear of the ledgewithout being discovered and afore they've found that the kid's gone. Efwe do, then all depends on her. She may howl. That would be enough terfinish us.'
"Believe it or not, mates, jest before it got too dark ter see, when thelight from the fires was beginning to get helpful, a squaw come out ofthe wigwam that was Hawk Eye's, carryin' a kid. It war the white gal. Wewas sure then that she was thar. Then the squaw walks up and down abit, and at last goes back to the wigwam. But she didn't stay in long.In five minutes she war outside, tending the fire burning on the edge ofthe ledge.
"'It aer the time,' says Jacob. 'Jest sit right here and wait. Ef I'mseen, and thar ain't a chance fer me to get away, I'll chuck the kid teryou; yer can make a run fer it.'
"He war gone afore I knew it, and I seed him creeping along beside therock. Reckon he reached the wigwam without a soul being the wiser, andafter that, jest when I was expecting to hear a hullabaloo, he turns upat my elbow.
"'Here's the kid,' he says. 'Let's be gittin'. Take it, Bill.'
"It warn't the time fer talkin'. Me and Jacob thar gets our blanketsover our heads and moves out, the kid kinder tucked under one of myarms. And outside that cleft it war plaguey light. I knew right off thatan Injun could see jest then as well almost as he would in broad day, soit wasn't altogether a question of whether the kid made a noise or not.And, in any case, we wasn't long afore we come bang up agin trouble.Thar was a critter standing guard at the top of the path leading downfrom the ledge."
A series of sounds, almost of groans, came from the scouts. Theirsympathy was deeply centred in the fortunes of the two comrades seatedwith them, and in that of the comrades who were helping them to rescue achild and help a distracted mother.
&nbs
p; "There was a critter thar, war there?" growled Tom, kicking the ground."Yer didn't 'low----"
"I ain't never seed the varmint as could stop me ef I was minded termove on," declared Bill sturdily, a flush on his dark skin. "I give that'ere critter what for. He turned as we come up ter him, looked at usclose, and then whipped out his tomahawk. Afore he could shout I givehim one with my fist full in the face."
"Ah!" There came an exclamation of relief from his mates.
"He didn't stop fallin', I reckon, till he got to the bottom of thecliff, and when he reached ground agin, guess he warn't no more use toHawk Eye. But he jest made the critters down below extry lively."
"Thar was more down thar then?" asked Steve.
"Thar was a round dozen. They heard us comin', in course, but couldn'trightly say who we was or what had happened. Yer see, their mate mighthave come by an accident, and fallen from the ledge in the darkness.They wouldn't never have known till we dropped amongst 'em ef it hadn'tbeen fer the kid. She yowled."
Again there came a chorus of growls from the hunters. They realizedthoroughly what that meant. If the rescued child called out, the crywould awaken every Indian within hearing, while the chance of Bill andJacob reaching their friends again was almost destroyed.
"She yowled," repeated Bill solemnly, "while someone up above us on theledge set to shoutin'. It war a woman's voice, and we knew, in course,that it must be Hawk Eye's squaw. Wall, within the minute the hull lotof the critters was dancing, and we could hear 'em coming down the pathabove.
"'Git behind me,' says Jacob thar, as ef he war boss of the business.'When we're a few steps lower, jest feel about with yer feet. Thar's abranch in the road bearin' to the left and leadin' out on to smoothgrass. Yer make along it. I'll go by the other, and give yer a start.There it aer. Move.'
"He aer a plaguey feller, he's that short-winded," grumbled Bill. "Hejest pushed me and the kid on ter the second path and then went straighton; fer we was near to the bottom of the cliff thar, and the road wasnearly level. And then what do yer think he did?"
"Set to at them varmint," suggested Seth fiercely.
"Run back and broke up them that was following," came from another.
"I aer seed his game. Yer git on with it, lad," said Steve. "It war abrave thing. No, Jacob, lad, you ain't got no call ter shake yer fist,and look as ef you'd like ter kill me. It war a brave thing. Ye'd havedone it fer nothing, though, ef the kid had given tongue again."
"He would," came warmly from Bill. "Ye've hit it fust time, Steve. Jacobgoes down the path, makin' as much clatter with his feet as he war able,and every second or so calling out in a squeaky voice, same as ef he warthe kid. And in course it drawed every one of the critters in them partson ter him. I heard his shooter going in less than a minute. It war warmwork while it lasted, and I tell yer it aer luck that he come throughalive."
"Luck!" shouted Jacob, suddenly rousing himself and turning upon Billlike a tiger. Indeed it seemed as if he were eager to draw the attentionof his comrades from himself to the dark-skinned scout who had beenyarning. "It warn't luck," he shouted, pointing at Bill. "It warhim--Bill, Black Bill, him as had the kid. Do yer think he did as I toldhim? He war always a stubborn, stiff-necked sorter feller. He didn'trun. He risked the child that we'd waited and watched fer, slings hersomehow over his shoulder in his blanket, and comes right back to helpme. It warn't luck that made me get off from them critters. It warBill."
RUNNING A RISK]
Had the listeners not been so full of the yarn they would have shoutedwith laughter; for the two scouts, Bill and Jacob, glared at one anotherfor some few seconds as if they were mortal enemies. Then Bill grinned,kicked the fire vigorously, sending a column of sparks flying into theair, and lay back with an air of resignation.
"Gee, how he do talk!" he cried. "Ter hear Jacob, yer would think as hewar telling the yarn. Ef yer don't mind, mate, I'll get through with it.It war luck as saved him. I 'low as I went back to help him, 'cos nopartner could slink off and leave a mate ter them red varmint. Tharwarn't nothing in it but common duty, same as every man owes ter hismate. With Jacob thar it warn't the same. He'd no call ter take all therisks on his own shoulders. But, howsomever, we was both in the thick ofit, them critters coming at us all the while, and me and Jacob hoppingfrom rock to rock, keeping our faces to the braves, and setting ourshooters barking at them. Thar was a dozen of the Injuns down thar, andprecious soon we thinned their numbers. Then Jacob shouted out fer meter run with him, and sence it warn't no longer a case of leaving a pal,why, in course I runned."
"Yer got back ter the camp without more fighting?" asked Steve.
"None worth talkin' about," came the short answer. "Thar was crittershere and thar, doing their best ter cut us off. But the darkness helpedus, and what with that and our shooters we came through ter the bottomof the hill. And thar was Staples, with some of the boys, ter help us.My! You should ha' seen that old man shaking Jacob's hands! Themenemies! Gee! I'd like to see the man as would ha' dared to mention it.They was like brothers."
"And the Indians?" asked one of the hunters. "They tried their littlegame in the morning? They did their best to draw yer out into theplains?"
"Not they," came quickly from Bill. "They was flummoxed by the loss ofthe kid. It seemed to have turned their luck. They waited, I reckon, ferthe next day."
"And then?"
"We wasn't thar ter help 'em," grinned Bill. "Old man Staples was wortha better trick. We kept our fires going precious late that night, andwhen everything in and about the Injun camp war quiet, we slipped downthe hill and out on ter the plain. It warn't till two hours after dawnas they twigged what had happened, and then every man of them rushed ferthe hosses."
"Wall?" asked Steve.
"They wasn't so nigh and handy as Hawk Eye and his men imagined. Jacobaer an artful feller. He and a dozen of the others had rid round the endof the gully where we reckoned the critters kept their ponies. They wasso sure that we was kept in our camp on top of the hill that theyhadn't put more than ten of the braves to guard them. Reckon Jacob andhis mates went in with their shooters, and before you could wink theyhad them ponies runnin'."
"Then you got back to the ranches?" asked Tom, with something like asigh of relief.
"You may put it like that. Gee, how it did make Jacob thar blush whenMrs. Rivers kissed him fer handing back the kid! Mate, you ain't got nocall ter look thunder and wuss at me. This yarn aer true. You was axing,Tom, ef there was more business with thim Injun critters. There war.Hawk Eye and his men war that mad at the trick we'd played 'em that theyfollowed in full strength, and fer a time it war nearly a case with us.Thar was seventy whites in all; fer we had called up the other ranches,while Hawk Eye rode with four hundred Injuns. But some of thim had had amaulin', and we didn't sit down and let 'em forget it. We sent 'em tothe rightabout, and though I was four years longer in thim parts, tharwas never any further trouble from the varmint."
"In fact, you gave them a thumping," suggested Steve.
"It war pepper," answered Bill, smiling. "Wuss almost than we give theInjuns to-day. Pepper aer the only word fer it."
Sleepy after their day's exciting adventure, it was not long beforesilence reigned round the camp fire where Jacob and Bill had beenyarning. On the following day they pursued their way unmolested, andpresently climbed the mountain slopes of the Nevada range. Thence theydescended into California and reached at last the goal for which theyhad been making. By then Seth's wound was healed, while Steve was asactive as ever.
"And here we begins ter think about minin'," he said. "Thar ain't nomore Injuns to disturb us, so it's gold from this very instant. Seehere, Jack, I'll teach yer how ter look and keep yer eyes skinned, so aster light on likely places."