No. 20. Price, Five Cents
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Issued Weekly. By SubscrzfJ!io11 $2so per year. Entered as Second Class Matter at New York Post Office by SrR E ET & SMITH, 238 William St., N. Y. No. 20. Price, Five Cents. "HANDS UP OR DIEi" CRIED BUF~' ALO B LL STERNLY, AS A BULLET FROM HIS REVOLVER SEVERED THE ROPE AROUND LIEL"T. DANFORTH'S NECK.-( CHAPTER VIII.) • bsrmi Weekly. By Su!Jscdptum $2.50 per yea.r. Entered as Second Class /I.fatter at (fie N . Y. P/Jsf Office, zy STREET & SMITH, 238 William St. N. Y. Et1tered acco1·di11K' to Act of Congress in tlie year 1qo1, in tlte Office ofthe Librarian of Congress, Washz'n.r;ton, D. C. ' No. 20. NEW YORK, September 28, 1901. Price Five Cents. BUff ALO BILL'S VICIO I[ By the author of "BUFF ALO BILL." CHAPTER I. aged, fo r they were camped in a grassless, treeless, water TUE LOST T llOO P2 f.S. less country of rock and sand. About them towered rncky ranges on every side, forming a basin so desolate, "Danforth, our situation is desperate, th ough I would so drbry, that no vegetation grew there, for they were not have the men thiHk so as lnng :.is \Ve ha n~ the slight in one of those desert valleys of Arizona, surrounded by est ray of hope:" .. "I feel as you do, Captain Ames, and think that a ranges of volcanic mountains. strarnge fatality has dogged our steps eve.r since we were In the night .they had been led into the valley by thei r sent on this ill-omened expedition, for so it seems, now guide, by a wifd and rugged way, •vhere even the artilkw:y that the last of our three scouts has been killed." and caiss·on wheels left no trail, an·d then suddenly, in the ·. "But we must make another effort to find our way out darkness, had come a whining sound, a thud, a cry, and of this valley of death, for it is nothing. more." the last of the three scouts who had started· with the ex The two who thus spoke were officers of the United pedition had toppled over, a dying man, with an arrow States army, clad in the fatigue suit of the cavalry, and sticking deep in his body. with the appearance of having been long in the saddle A score of carbines had fl.ashed to avenge him, but not and seen hard service. a sound had followed the discharge, arid who had been Near them were half a hundred troopers, some forty the silent slayer of the guide no one knew. mounted infantry and artillery men who formed' the crew "Push straight ahead from here as the crow flies-do of two light guns. Then there were pack animals, a not swerve either to the right or left, er you are lost. couple of ambulances and a seore of led horses. Ten miles away is. a pass out of this valley, with grass, Beth men and h<:>rses seemed worn out and discour- wood and ·water beyond-stay here and you die--" THE BUffALO_BiLL STORUES.. ' 'Tne voice of the dying guide had sunk to a whisper; had led them into the valley, they could rrot fiad any he uttered a few words more, that were not understood, break where they could get out. .and' he was dead. Strapped to a caisison, the guide's dead lips were for Captain Ames, the commandant of the e'xpedition, de ever scaled, and they could only struggle on and hope fo r termined to obey the last words of _the scout; so, bearing success at last. The horses, without water or food, were his body, they pushed on. They rode as straight ahead well-nigh used up; in fact, tw-0 of the animals lhad fallen as t'hey could, and after several hours reached the other by the way. side of the valley. But there was an unbroken wall, and At last, late m the afternoon, a halt was made, and no pass could be found. The command halted', and the Captain Ames had spoken the words !Jo Lieutenant Dan men went on foot in search of the pass. forth of the artillery that open this story. After con Suddenly there was a cry off under the cliffs. Men versing together a few minutes, the two infantry officers rushed there, and a soldier was found lying dead, an ar and the lieutenant commanding .the troopers were callecl row in his throat. The men were ca1led togietiher, and :into council with Lieutenant Danforth and Captain Ames, camped in a circle around the horses and guns. and their really desperate situation was discussed. Long and earnestly the six officers talked together, and The men 111ad a cold supper and water in their can teens, but the horses had neither grass nor water to drink, then it was decided to divide the command in two, each so it was a long and dreary night for them. Morning party starting out again to search for a pass, the one to dawned, and then the soldiers could see that they were the right and t'he other to the left, and to keep on until in a desert valley, with not a tree, blade of grass, shrub night, go into camp, and continue on in the morning unril or water near. they met again. Each party was to take one of the light guns, and, if a pass was found, it was to be fired as a And it was seen, too, that ano!Jher of their number had signal, and to continue firing until the other gun an fallen-a sentinel, who lay upon ·his post, an arrow in his swered it. brain. The same, silent, unseen and mysterious foe who I So they started, and halted only at nightfall. With had dogged them for two nights and a day had brought the da:wn they again moved on, horses and men nearly down another victim-the three scouts first, then· the two used up now, but struggling on, until they again met, soldiers, making five in all. Search was at once made many miles from their starting point. But they had found for the pass leading out of the valley, but nowhere could no' exit from the "fatal valley." a break be found in the walls of rock. And in the har.d, flinty soil a grave could not even be dug for the dead, and so the bodies were :ta:ken along un CHA,PTER II. til they could be buried. THE MYSTERIOUS GUIDE. \ Around the death valley, close to the base of the rocky The situation was, indeed, a desperate one for the sol range, the command1 slowly marched, searching for an diers. They had been sent out from Fort Way to estab- p opening. But in vain did fhey enter canon after canon, lish an ad;vance post still further west into the Indian for there was no outlet, and they were compelled to re country. The scouts, who were also the guides, and ~ turn . knew the country, were known oo be competent men, and . The sun beat down upon them with relentless fury, but had led .Captain Ames to several situations that were • r still they pushed on. At last it was decided to recross t'he good for an outpost; but, under his orders, he desired to) valley and leave it where th~y had entered. But though pus,h still farther into the land of danger, and sec ure a ,\, they recrossed to the spot where they thought the guide position where he could liYe on the surrounding country, ~ THE BUfY!\LO BH.. L STORIES. ~1 here timber would be plentiful and the grass and water seen that he was a young man, attired in a hunting shi rt, in abundance, while the natural means of defense would buckskin leggings and top boots, and wearing a som - also be all that was required. brero. His form was tall, gracefu l and sinewy, anJ his With this aim in view, the guides had p,ushecl on face was handsome, bold, and darkly bronzed. About hi s toward a country lying beyond the desert lands, and waist was a belt of arms, and a repeating rifle was hung which one of the number knew, and told how the nearest to his saddle horn. trail led through a valley that was shunned by all Indians As he came up, the men, feeling that they saw in hi m and palefaces alike. a rescuer, greeted him with a cheer, to which he re To cr.oss the valley-and the guide ref.erred to knew th e t sponded by raising l).is sombrero courteously, while he trail-would save a ride of forty or fifty miles, and so halted just before Captain Ames and said: the march was taken up, with the result that in the night "Are you in command of this party, sir?" camp, before entering the desert trail, two of the scouts "I am, sir,'' responded Captain' Ames. I bad been slain , and the third al so became a_ victim, after "May I suggest that you put the man who guided you leading the soldiers into the fatal valley of d eath. here at once under arrest?" Thus it was that Captain Ames found hi s little com- '"That is impossible, sir, as he is deaci°." mancl with death staring th em in the face, unless they "You discovered his treachery, then, and s:hot him?" deserted their horses, guns, packs and supplies, and "No; our guide, Arizona Al, was not a traitor," re- lclim bed over t'he rocky ridge to make their way on foot sponded the captain, somewhat warmly.