He could think of no way of getting out, nor of warning the crowd who were waiting for their dinner. Within minutes, that contaminated stew would be served to them. It was a plan for wholesale murder which was even more sure to work than the smallpox scheme which he had frustrated, unless he could find a way to warn them, before they had eaten anything. But how? There seemed to be no way out, save by the trap door above.
The door up there was opening now, just a crack. Doc saw the gleam of light, then the door was quickly closed again. A sweetish, overpowering odor assailed his nostrils. Chloroform! Peavey was taking no chances. He had lost no time in raiding Doc’s medicine bag, had found and emptied the bottle of it down here, so that it would soon overwhelm and put him to sleep.
For a moment, panic seized Doc, a sick feeling of helplessness. He was sweating, his hands shaking. If he could only fight back! But he didn’t have a chance, nor did any of the others. Once he succumbed, he’d never wake from that drugged sleep—
Realization of that fact steadied him. He was going to die. But, since that was inevitable, it didn’t matter now. If he could still save his patients…
Doc grew steady again, that first moment of panic gone. Holding his breath against the odor of the chloroform, he fumbled in a pocket, found a match, and scratched it.
The flare showed about what he had expected to see. Empty boxes, piles of burlap bags, paper wrappings. He touched the match to the nearest paper, and the flame licked greedily at it, flared up redly. As the flames spread, Doc retreated.
This room was choked with debris, most of which was tinder-dry, and the fire was spreading fast. The light revealed a stairway, leading up to the trap-door, but that was fastened up above, and the stairway was already a mass of flame.
The fire was having one good effect, though. The chloroform had spilled mostly on one box, and that was burning, the stuff gone before the whole cellar could be saturated with it. He could still breathe, but that wouldn’t help him long. The whole room would soon be a roaring mass of fire. Already, the heat was becoming oppressive.
And then he heard what he had been waiting for—a new sound from up above, the pound of panicky feet as the crowd stampeded from the banquet hall. Doc smiled grimly. The flames were starting to eat up through the floor above, now, and they could clean out all that prepared food and the evil of it in a hurry. And there had been no time for anyone to eat.
This miner’s hall was far enough off by itself that the blaze was not apt to endanger other buildings. Light reflected back from something small and high up, mirror-like, and Doc grabbed a box and smashed at it with sudden wild hope. A tiny window! He broke it out, climbed up onto boxes, and crawled out into the red-lit night. As he got to his feet, there was an insane bellow of rage, and Matt Peavey rushed at him.
Doc discovered that there was a double purpose in that rush. Bursting through the floor, off at the side, the fire had spread faster, up above, and now the whole side of the building above him was beginning to flame fiercely. The heat was a blistering thing, despite the arctic chill of forty below. Peavey had seen him crawl out, and had rushed at him—ostensibly to help him, but really to fling him back into that fiery pit!
Barely on his feet, Doc was knocked back by Peavey’s rush. But as he went down, his arms reached out, closed around Peavey’s legs, and twisted with all his strength. Peavey went down as well. His head shot through the cellar window from which Doc had just crawled, and in the impetus of that jerking tumble, he went clear through it and in.
There was one smothered howl. Then another pair of arms grabbed Doc and dragged him back as the wall above caved down in a smother of flame, and he saw Tom McTigue, smudged and singed, but grinning.
“Close call, Doc,” he gasped. “I—just got here—they’d knocked me out and left me for dead—guess we fooled ’em, though. Too tough to kill.”
Then Doc spoke to the crowd, briefly but pointedly. A growl went up as they began to understand, and before the sheer fury of that soundy, Peavey’s henchmen broke and ran for their lives. And, as McTigue reported, grinning, some time later:
“Danged if they didn’t manage to wallow through that snow and get away! Though, out on a night like this, without food or shelter—” he shivered, shrugged. “I’d rather taken chances with this crowd. Good riddance, though.”
That was right enough. But Doc was thinking. If they’d got out, so could he, on the morrow, back to his own neglected practice. Deadman’s didn’t need him now, particularly. This night had purged the camp.
THE END OF THE TRAIL, by Clarence E. Mulford
When one finds on his ranch the carcasses of two cows on the same day, and both are skinned, there can be only one conclusion. The killing and skinning of two cows out of herds that are numbered by thousands need not, in themselves, bring lines of worry to any foreman’s brow; but there is the sting of being cheated, the possibility of the losses going higher unless a sharp lesson be given upon the folly of fooling with a very keen and active buzz-saw,—and it was the determination of the outfit of the Bar-20 to teach that lesson, and as quickly as circumstances would permit.
It was common knowledge that there was a more or less organized band of shiftless malcontents making its headquarters in and near Perry’s Bend, some distance up the river, and the deduction in this case was easy. The Bar-20 cared very little about what went on at Perry’s Bend—that was a matter which concerned only the ranches near that town—so long as no vexatious happenings sifted too far south. But they had so sifted, and Perry’s Bend, or rather the undesirable class hanging out there, was due to receive a shock before long.
About a week after the finding of the first skinned cows, Pete Wilson tornadoed up to the bunk house with a perforated arm. Pete was on foot, having lost his horse at the first exchange of shots, which accounts for the expression describing his arrival. Pete hated to walk, he hated still more to get shot, and most of all he hated to have to admit that his rifle-shooting was so far below par. He had seen the thief at work and, too eager to work up close to the cattle skinner before announcing his displeasure, had missed the first shot. When he dragged himself out from under his deceased horse the scenery was undisturbed save for a small cloud of dust hovering over a distant rise to the north of him. After delivering a short and bitter monologue he struck out for the ranch and arrived in a very hot and wrathful condition. It was contagious, that condition, and before long the entire outfit was in the saddle and pounding north, Pete overjoyed because his wound was so slight as not to bar him from the chase. The shock was on the way, and as events proved, was to be one long to linger in the minds of the inhabitants of Perry’s Bend and the surrounding range.
* * * *
The patrons of the Oasis liked their tobacco strong. The pungent smoke drifted in sluggish clouds along the low, black ceiling, following its upward slant toward the east wall and away from the high bar at the other end. This bar, rough and strong, ran from the north wall to within a scant two feet of the south wall, the opening bridged by a hinged board which served as an extension to the counter. Behind the bar was a rear door, low and double, the upper part barred securely—the lower part was used most. In front of and near the bar was a large round table, at which four men played cards silently, while two smaller tables were located along the north wall. Besides dilapidated chairs there were half a dozen low wooden boxes partly filled with sand, and attention was directed to the existence and purpose of these by a roughly lettered sign on the wall, reading: “Gents will look for a box first,” which the “gents” sometimes did. The majority of the “gents” preferred to aim at various knotholes in the floor and bet on the result, chancing the outpouring of the proprietor’s wrath if they missed.
On the wall behind the bar was a smaller and neater request: “Leave your guns with the bartender.—Edwards.” This, although a month old, still called forth caustic and profane remarks from the regular frequenters of the saloon, for hitherto restraint in the matter of carrying weapons
had been unknown. They forthwith evaded the order in a manner consistent with their characteristics—by carrying smaller guns where they could not be seen. The majority had simply sawed off a generous part of the long barrels of their Colts and Remingtons, which did not improve their accuracy.
Edwards, the new marshal of Perry’s Bend, had come direct from Kansas and his reputation as a fighter had preceded him. When he took up his first day’s work he was kept busy proving that he was the rightful owner of it and that it had not been exaggerated in any manner or degree. With the exception of one instance the proof had been bloodless, for he reasoned that gun-play should give way, whenever possible, to a crushing “right” or “left” to the point of the jaw or the pit of the stomach. His proficiency in the manly art was polished and thorough and bespoke earnest application. The last doubting Thomas to be convinced came to five minutes after his diaphragm had been rudely and suddenly raised several inches by a low right hook, and as he groped for his bearings and got his wind back again he asked, very feebly, where “Kansas” was; and the name stuck.
The marshal did not like the Oasis; indeed, he went further and cordially hated it. Harlan’s saloon was a thorn in his side and he was only waiting for a good excuse to wipe it off the local map. He was the Law, and behind him were the range riders, who would be only too glad to have the nest of rustlers wiped out and its gang of ne’er-do-wells scattered to the four winds. Indeed, he had been given to understand in a most polite and diplomatic way that if this were not done lawfully, they would try to do it themselves, and they had great faith in their ability to handle the situation in a thorough and workmanlike manner. This would not do in a law-abiding community, as he called the town, and so he had replied that the work was his, and that it would be performed as soon as he believed himself justified to act. Harlan and his friends were fully conversant with the feeling against them and had become a little more cautious, alertly watching out for trouble.
On the evening of the day which saw Pete Wilson’s discomfiture most of the habitués had assembled in the Oasis where, besides the card-players already mentioned, eight men lounged against the bar. There was some laughter, much subdued talking, and a little whispering. More whispering went on under that roof than in all the other places in town put together; for here rustling was planned, wayfaring strangers were “trimmed” in “frame-up” at cards, and a hunted man was certain to find assistance. Harlan had once boasted that no fugitive had ever been taken from his saloon, and he was behind the bar and standing on the trap door which led to the six-by-six cellar when he made the assertion. It was true, for only those in his confidence knew of the place of refuge under the floor: it had been dug at night and the dirt carefully disposed of.
It had not been dark very long before talking ceased and card-playing was suspended while all looked up as the front door crashed open and two punchers entered, looking the crowd over with critical care.
“Stay here, Johnny,” Hopalong told his youthful companion, and then walked forward, scrutinizing each scowling face in turn, while Johnny stood with his back to the door, keenly alert, his right hand resting lightly on his belt not far from the holster.
Harlan’s thick neck grew crimson and his eyes hard. “Lookin’ fer something?” he asked with bitter sarcasm, his hands under the bar. Johnny grinned hopefully and a sudden tenseness took possession of him as he watched for the first hostile move.
“Yes,” Hopalong replied coolly, appraising Harlan’s attitude and look in one swift glance, “but it ain’t here, now. Johnny, get out,” he ordered, backing after his companion, and safely outside, the two walked towards Jackson’s store, Johnny complaining about the little time spent in the Oasis.
As they entered the store they saw Edwards, whose eyes asked a question.
“No; he ain’t in there yet,” Hopalong replied.
“Did you look all over? Behind th’ bar?” Edwards asked, slowly. “He can’t get out of town through that cordon you’ve got strung around it, an’ he ain’t nowhere else. Leastwise, I couldn’t find him.”
“Come on back!” excitedly exclaimed Johnny, turning towards the door. “You didn’t look behind th’ bar! Come on—bet you ten dollars that’s where he is!”
“Mebby yo’re right, Kid,” replied Hopalong, and the marshal’s nodding head decided it.
In the saloon there was strong language, and Jack Quinn, expert skinner of other men’s cows, looked inquiringly at the proprietor. “What’s up now, Harlan?”
The proprietor laughed harshly but said nothing—taciturnity was his one redeeming trait. “Did you say cigars?” he asked, pushing a box across the bar to an impatient customer. Another beckoned to him and he leaned over to hear the whispered request, a frown struggling to show itself on his face. “Nix; you know my rule. No trust in here.”
But the man at the far end of the line was unlike the proprietor and he prefaced his remarks with a curse. “I know what’s up! They want Jerry Brown, that’s what! An’ I hopes they don’t get him, th’ bullies!”
“What did he do? Why do they want him?” asked the man who had wanted trust.
“Skinning. He was careless or crazy, working so close to their ranch houses. Nobody that had any sense would take a chance like that,” replied Boston, adept at sleight-of-hand with cards and very much in demand when a frame-up was to be rung in on some unsuspecting stranger. His one great fault in the eyes of his partners was that he hated to divvy his winnings and at times had to be coerced into sharing equally.
“Aw, them big ranches make me mad,” announced the first speaker. “Ten years ago there was a lot of little ranchers, an’ every one of ’em had his own herd, an’ plenty of free grass an’ water fer it. Where are th’ little herds now? Where are th’ cows that we used to own?” he cried, hotly. “What happens to a maverick-hunter, nowadays? If a man helps hisself to a pore, sick dogie he’s hunted down! It can’t go on much longer, an’ that’s shore.”
Slivers Lowe leaped up from his chair. “Yo’re right, Harper! Dead right! I was a little cattle owner onct, so was you, an’ Jerry, an’ most of us!” Slivers found it convenient to forget that fully half of his small herd had perished in the bitter and long winter of five years before, and that the remainder had either flowed down his parched throat or been lost across the big round table near the bar. Not a few of his cows were banked in the East under Harlan’s name.
The rear door opened slightly and one of the loungers looked up and nodded. “It’s all right Jerry. But get a move on!”
“Here, you!” called Harlan, quickly bending over the trap door, “Lively!”
Jerry was halfway to the proprietor when the front door swung open and Hopalong, closely followed by the marshal, leaped into the room, and immediately thereafter the back door banged open and admitted Johnny. Jerry’s right hand was in his side coat pocket and Johnny, young and self-confident, and with a lot to learn, was certain that he could beat the fugitive on the draw.
“I reckon you won’t blot no more brands!” he cried, triumphantly, watching both Jerry and Harlan.
The card-players had leaped to their feet and at a signal from Harlan they surged forward to the bar and formed a barrier between Johnny and his friends; and as they did so that puncher jerked at his gun, twisting to half face the crowd. At that instant fire and smoke spurted from Jerry’s side coat pocket and the odor of burning cloth arose. As Johnny fell, the rustler ducked low and sprang for the door. A gun roared twice in the front of the room and Jerry staggered a little and cursed as he gained the opening, but he plunged into the darkness and threw himself into the saddle on the first horse he found in the small corral.
When the crowd massed, Hopalong leaped at it and strove to tear his way to the opening at the end of the bar, while the marshal covered Harlan and the others. Finding that he could not get through, Hopalong sprang on the shoulder of the nearest man and succeeded in winging the fugitive at the first shot, the other going wild. Then, frantic with rage and an
xiety, he beat his way through the crowd, hammering mercilessly at heads with the butt of his Colt, and knelt at his friend’s side.
Edwards, angered almost to the point of killing, ordered the crowd to stand against the wall, and laughed viciously when he saw two men senseless on the floor. “Hope he beat in yore heads!” he gritted, savagely. “Harlan, put yore paws up in sight or I’ll drill you clean! Now climb over an’ get in line—quick!”
Johnny moaned and opened his eyes. “Did—did I—get him?”
“No; but he gimleted you, all right,” Hopalong replied. “You’ll come ’round if you keep quiet.” He arose, his face hard with the desire to kill. “I’m coming back for you, Harlan, after I get yore friend! An’ all th’ rest of you pups, too!”
“Get me out of here,” whispered Johnny.
“Shore enough, Kid; but keep quiet,” replied Hopalong, picking him up in his arms and moving carefully towards the door. “We’ll get him, Johnny; an’ all th’ rest, too, when”—the voice died out in the direction of Jackson’s and the marshal, backing to the front door, slipped out and to one side, running backward, his eyes on the saloon.
“Yore day’s about over, Harlan,” he muttered.
“There’s going to be some few funerals around here before many hours pass.”
When he reached the store he found the owner and two Double-Arrow punchers taking care of Johnny. “Where’s Hopalong?” he asked.
“Gone to tell his foreman,” replied Jackson. “Hey, youngster, you let them bandages alone! Hear me?”
“Hullo, Kansas,” remarked John Bartlett, foreman of the Double-Arrow. “I come nigh getting yore man; somebody rode past me like a streak in th’ dark, so I just ups an’ lets drive for luck, an’ so did he. I heard him cuss an’ I emptied my gun after him.”
* * * *
The Second Western Megapack Page 46