Doctor Dick had an uneventful run to W——, and arrived without accident or delay on time at the end of his journey. He was well received, but the stage-agent told him that not a volunteer had put in an appearance for the place of driver. Double the price had been offered, but there were no takers, and the agent added:
"You must find some daredevil at Last Chance who is willing to risk his life upon the box, while rest assured, Doctor Dick, I have reported your noble service for the company in its need and it will be appreciated."
"I do not care for pay, or thanks, only I wish to be relieved of a duty I do not like, especially as it interferes with my own work," was the answer.
Just before the time came for the starting of the coach a horseman rode up and dismounted at the stage office. He was an odd-looking individual, tall, butwith a hump on his back, awkward in gait, and dressed in buckskin leggings and hunting-shirt.
His hair was long, very long, bushy, and would have been white but for its soiled appearance, and he had it cropped, or banged in front like an Indian, or fashionable young miss, to keep it out of his eyes.
His face was clean-shaven, but the hue of leather, and he wore a pair of iron-rimmed spectacles.
His slouch-hat was worn in reality, for the rim fell down upon his shoulders, save in front where the flap was turned up and fastened with an army-button.
He was armed with a pair of old, but serviceable revolvers, an ugly-looking bowie-knife with a deer-horn handle, and a combined rifle and shotgun, double-barreled.
His horse was as queer as his master in appearance, being a large, raw-boned animal, with patches of hair upon him, a long tangled mane and tail, and he was unshod, though his hoofs looked as tough as iron.
The saddle was also a back number, and the stake-rope served for a bridle as well. A lariat hung at the saddle-horn, also a hatchet, and in a large rubber blanket was rolled his bedding, while a bag containeda coffee-pot, frying-pan, tin cup, plate, and some provisions.
He looked the crowd over as he drew rein, and asked quietly:
"Who's boss o' this layout?"
"I am," and the stage-agent stepped forward.
"I hears thet yer wants a man ter drive yer old hearse on ther trail ter Last Chance and back."
"I do."
"I'm yer huckleberry."
"You?"
"Yas, me."
"Are you a driver?"
"Ef I wasn't I'd not be sich a durned fool as ter trust myself on a two-story hearse, pard."
"Who sent you here?"
"Nobody, for I hain't one ter be sent."
"Where did you come from?"
"Ther up-country, whar I has been trappin', huntin', prospectin', and killin' a Injin or two—see!"
"And now you wish to turn stage-driver?"
"If it pays what they told me at Fort Faraway I does."
"The pay is good; but have you no references?"
"Yas."
"Where are they?"
"Here."
The old man put his hands upon his revolvers and drew them with a lightninglike motion that surprised the lookers-on.
"They are pretty good references on a pinch, and you may have cause to use them if you drive this trail."
"I has used them before, and I guess I kin do it ag'in," was the quiet response.
"When could you begin?"
"Now."
"What is your name?"
"Old Huckleberry, but the boys calls me old Huck for short; but durn ther name, call me what yer wants ter, and I'll be thar."
"Well, Pard Huckleberry, I rather like your style, and have a mind to give you a trial."
"Ef yer kin do better, don't do it; but if yer can't, count on me, for as I said afore, I'm yer huckleberry, and ready for the game."
Doctor Dick had been closely looking at the old volunteer and said something in a whisper to the stage-agent, who at once said:
"I'll take you, and the time for starting is almost up."
"I'm ready, only take care of my horse at my expense," and the volunteer dismounted ready for work.
When old Huckleberry mounted the stage-box, Doctor Dick yielded to him the reins, which he seized in a somewhat awkward manner, yet with the air of one who knew just what to do; took the whip, gave it a resounding crack, and started off at a brisk pace.
There were four passengers inside, all miners going to Last Chance, lured there by the rumor of richer mines having been found, for the stories were circulating more and more that there were rich finds being discovered there every day.
"That man knows how to handle the reins as well as the best of them, old though he may be, and a trifle awkward," said the stage-agent, as he saw the volunteer driver sending his team along, at a slapping pace, in spite of the fact that the trail was none of the best along there.
The coach soon disappeared from the sight of those at W——, made the night halt on time, and as soon as he had had his supper the new driver wrapped himself in his blankets and threw himself down outdoors, declining the invitation of the stock-tender to sleep in the cabin.
He was on his box on time the next morning, and with Doctor Dick by his side, went off on his run.
He was a man disposed to silence, for he did not speak often, unless Doctor Dick addressed him. But he would ask now and then about the trails, and showed some interest in the gambler-king's stories of the different road-agents' attacks upon the way to Last Chance.
He greeted the stock-tenders at the relay-stations pleasantly, said he hoped to be with them for some time, and kept the team at the pace set for schedule-time.
Passing the scenes of the several tragedies, he drew rein for a few minutes and attentively regarded the surroundings, but drove on again without a word of comment.
Doctor Dick had become more and more interestedin the strange driver, had told him all he could about the trail, the time to make going and coming, and was anxious to have him make no mistakes, he said.
He tried to draw him out time and again, but in vain. All he could learn from him was that he had lived for many years upon the frontier and preferred to do so for reasons best known to himself.
He said he was trapper, Indian-fighter, hunter, and prospector, that was all, and he tried to do his duty in every work he undertook. More he would not say of himself, and the doctor gave up trying to "pump" him.
When the coach came in sight of Last Chance, old Huckleberry showed no satisfaction at having made the run in safety, or excitement at driving in for the first time.
He quickened the pace of his team, handled his reins with a skill that won the admiration, as he had all along, of Doctor Dick, and at last came to a halt before the hotel with a whoop and the words:
"Here we be, boss!"
Doctor Dick introduced old Huckleberry from thebox, as soon as the cheer that greeted their arrival had died away.
"Pards, I is glad ter know yer, and I greets yer," and with this old Huckleberry dismounted from the box and asked at once for the "feed-room."
He ate his supper with a relish, smoked his pipe, and, declining a bed in the hotel, saying it would smother him to sleep in between walls, took an ax and hatchet, with a few nails, and, going up on the hillside where there was a thicket, soon built for himself a wickiup that would keep him sheltered even in a storm.
He carried his few traps there, and then stuck up a notice which read: "Old Huckleberry's Claim."
Having completed his quarters, he strolled about among the saloons and gambling-dens, watched the playing, but neither drank nor gambled, and at last, tiring of looking on, went to his roost and turned in for the night, an object of curiosity to all, yet also of admiration, for a man who would volunteer to drive the coach over that trail was one to command respect in Last Chance.
The new driver drove the run to W—- for several round trips, and not once was he held up.
He made the regular time, drove without any accident whatever, attended to his business, associated with no one, or, that is, to be on intimate terms with any one, not even Doctor Dick, and still slept in his little shelter on the hill.
He had fitted this up more comfortably, and said that he felt perfectly at home there, while on his return from W—— he had led his horse back behind the coach, wishing to have him at Last Chance, where his stay was always two weeks, for there was only a day's stop at the other end of the run.
He was wont to go on long hunts, mounted upon Rawbones, as he called his horse, and he kept Landlord Larry well supplied with game.
One day as old Huckleberry was returning to Last Chance, and neared the Dead Line, the scene of the other hold-up, he suddenly threw his rifle to hisshoulder and sent a shower of buckshot into a thicket ahead.
A rifle-bullet from the other barrel was sent to the other side, and the whip was brought down upon his team in a way that put them into a run.
Seeing them well started he threw the reins over the brake and with a revolver in each hand opened a fusillade on both sides of the trail, while he called out to his passengers:
"Blaze away into the bushes, durn yer, for thar is game thar ter kill!"
All this had not taken over half a dozen seconds, and that there was "game" in the thickets, and dangerous game at that, was proven by hearing several loud cries of pain, and stern orders given, while men were seen hunting shelter from the unexpected fusillade opened upon them.
There were eight passengers in the coach, and, urged by the old driver, several of them obeyed and opened fire from the windows.
The result was that where road-agents had been lying in wait for the coach, and were just about to show themselves and command a halt, they were takencompletely by surprise and forced to seek shelter from the leaden messengers flying about them.
The rapid fire caused the road-agents to believe that there was a coach full of soldiers, that a trap was prepared for them, and ere they could rally and their leader could convince them that it was not so, the coach had gone by the Dead Line and was going along the pass at the full speed of its horses, the reins now in the hands of old Huck once more.
The passengers all saw the panic-stricken road-agents, half a dozen in number, and, encouraged by the boldness of old Huck, kept up a hot fire, which they felt confident had not been thrown away.
When pursuit was no longer feared, old Huck drew his team down to a trot, and, leaning over, called out:
"We done 'em up thet time, pards."
The passengers cheered the old driver, and when he drew rein at the hotel in Last Chance they quickly made known his act of heroism, for, throwing the reins upon the backs of his horses, he had gotten down from the box, reported the safe arrival of the coach to Landlord Larry, and gone in to his supper.
When the story was told, of how bravely he had run the gantlet, Landlord Larry went in to have a talk with him, but found that he had finished his supper and gone.
It was a cold evening, and there was snow flying, so, looking over to the hill where the little shanty of old Huck was located, Landlord Larry saw a bright fire burning and at once went there.
There sat old Huck enjoying his pipe and warming his feet before the fire in the clay chimney he had built.
He had a canvas covering the doorway, to keep out the cold and snow, and seemed as contented as could be in his lone quarters.
"Well old man, you seem happy," he said.
"Why not?"
"You brought in a valuable freight to-night, in money and registered letters."
"I know it."
"Do you know how much?"
"Ther agent at W—— told me he thought about forty thousand, and so I made a rush, ter git through."
"And did it grandly."
"That's what I'm paid fer."
"I have heard the story of your running the gantlet and surprising the road-agents."
Old Huck laughed and replied:
"Waal, I calkilate as how they was astonished. You see I seen the tracks on the trail, foot-tracks, and fresh ones, goin' on toward the Dead Line, and so I kinder felt sart'in o' a hold-up. When I come to ther pass I seen ther top o' a small tree wavin' and knowed somebody were up in it looking over t'other trees.
"So I jist up with old drop-'em, and I let drive with a handful o' bullets I had dropped into ther shot-barrel, and I put a piece o' lead on t'other side o' trail, dropped ther ribbons and set my two puppies ter barking, as soon as I hed laid ther silk onter ther team and got 'em inter a run.
"I tell yer, landlord, it were prime fun and no mistake, and as ther insiders helped with ther guns, you bet we waltzed through them scared road-agents in a way that crippled 'em; and we come in on time.
"That's all thar is of ther story, boss," and old Huckleberry puffed away at his pipe again in the most unconcerned manner possible.
Hardly had old Huckleberry finished his simple story of his brave act when a voice at the door said:
"Ho, old gentleman, I have just heard at the hotel of your splendid work this afternoon and have come to congratulate you."
"Come in, Pard Doc, and camp on that blanket thar before ther fire, I is glad to see yer, but I don't need no congratulations, for I hain't done nothing more than I oughter."
"Well, old man, you saved the lives of your passengers, and a rich freight, I learn, and I know as well as any one how to appreciate what you did, for I have driven the trail, you remember."
"I know it, and done it well."
"I also praised old Huck, Doc, but he does not care to be thanked; but what is to be done about this attempted attack on the coach?" said Landlord Larry.
"I'll go out so as ter git thar at daybreak, and see if thar can be any trail found. It is spittin' now, but not much, and I guess we can find if we done any harm in our fire and maybe track the varmints," said old Huck.
"And I'll go with you," said Landlord Larry.
"Count me another," the doctor added.
Then it was decided to take a dozen men along, and the doctor and the landlord bade the old driver good night and departed, when he at once turned in, after throwing a large log upon his fire to burn until morning.
"That is a strange old character, Larry," said Doctor Dick as the two walked back to the hotel.
"He is, indeed, Doc. I do not understand him, for he is a mystery to me."
"And to me; but do you think I should send another courier to Buffalo Bill making known this intended attack?"
"No, write as you did before to him, and he'll get it by way of W——."
"I'll do so; but did you learn anything in particular about this attack?"
"Nothing more than that fully half a dozen road-agents were seen, and but for the bold and prompt act of old Huck there would have been death and robbery beyond all doubt."
"He is a very daring man to do what he did."
"He is indeed, and it will surely mark him for death with the road-agents."
"Beyond all doubt; but we must make a start early enough to bring us to the scene by daybreak, so good night."
The two separated to meet again when old Huck came up ready mounted to take the trail.
The party who were to go were soon in the saddle, and they started off at a canter. There was just a trace of snow upon the ground, and they were glad to see that there was no more.
A brisk gallop brought them to the Dead Line at dawn, and the search was at once begun.
Hardly any snow had fallen there, and in the piñons there was none, so that in several places the ground was stained red, showing that the fire from the coach had not been useless if not fatal.
Then old Huck showed his skill as a trailer, for he at once went to work in a way that revealed the fact that he was an old hand at the business.
He went from blood-stain to blood-stain in silence, examined the position of the thicket, took in the whole situation, and the direction of the stage when thefiring had been going on, and at last started off up the cañon following a trail that was so faint that a number of the party said that there was no trail at all.
But he climbed up the steep side of the cañon end, followed by the others, and there on the top were found several red spots in different places.
"Three, maybe dead, maybe only wounded," he said shortly.
"Those three stains tell you that, old man?" asked Doctor Dick.
"Yas, they took off their dead or wounded, as ther case might be, and halted ter rest after climbin' up here, and right here is whar they laid the dead or wounded down, while they was restin'."
"Well, which way now, Huck, for your solution seems the right one," said Doctor Dick.
"That's hard ter tell, for a horse wouldn't leave no track here," was the reply.
That even old Huckleberry had lost his grip on the trail, after reaching the top of the ridge, was soon evident, for, search as he might, he could find no trace of a track in the hard, rocky soil about them.
"We'll scatter, pards, and try ter find another place whar they has rested the'r loads, for they won't carry heavy weights far up this slope without restin'," he said.
So the party separated, and half an hour later a halloo from old Huck brought them together again.
There was another place where the road-agents had halted, for there were the three telltale spots of blood lying close together.
Again they separated on a search, but after hours spent in vain, they were forced to give it up, old Huck remarking:
"Thar is snow higher up, so it's no use, now."
Back to Last Chance the party reluctantly retracedtheir way, after they had eaten their noonday meal, and all hope of finding a clue to the retreat of the road-agents was given up, save by old Huckleberry, who each day went off on a hunt, though many were sure that it was a trail, not game, that he was hunting.
When at last the day came for him to start off on his run, he mounted his box without the slightest apparent reluctance, nodded good-by and drove off on his perilous journey.
There was much anxiety felt at Last Chance for his return, and a number talked of riding out to the Dead Line and meeting him, but this was not done, as a suggestion was made that the old man might not take it kindly, but look upon it as an interference, a belief that he was not able to take care of himself.
When, however, the time for his arrival came, and no stage appeared, men looked anxiously at each other and wondered if the old man was another victim to the road-agents' hunt for gold.
When an hour passed and there was no stage in sight, Doctor Dick said that he would mount his horse and go to see what was the matter. He was not allowed to go alone, for a score of mounted men atonce followed him, and the ride was a rapid one to the Dead Line, for the coach was not met on the way.
Arriving at the Dead Line the coach loomed in sight. It was still, and dashing up the horses were found hitched to trees.
But not a soul was visible. The box was empty, and not a soul was found within.
Where was old Huck? That question could not be answered, and a search was at once begun.
Upon the stage-box blood was found. That looked very bad for old Huck.
Some one had hitched those horses to the trees surely, but who?
The coach, had evidently been searched, for the cushions were thrown out and the boot open, and yet, strange to say, the mail-bag had escaped the eyes of the searchers, being found by Landlord Larry where old Huck always hid it, in one of the cushions arranged for the purpose by the old man.
Who had been killed, or what the coach had been robbed of, was not revealed.
The party camped all night upon the scene, and athorough search was made the next morning again for the missing driver.
Miles back on the trail had the miners ridden, and more, every rock and thicket by the way was thoroughly searched, yet all in vain.
At last the party were reluctantly compelled to give up further search for old Huck, be he dead or alive, for not the slightest clue could be found, and there was no trace of any trail whatever.
Doctor Dick mounted the box and drove the coach back to Last Chance, and the miners had knocked off work and were assembled to hear bad news, which the delay caused them to look for.
Landlord Larry and Doctor Dick at once held a consultation upon their return, and it was decided to send Harding again to Fort Faraway as a courier with a message to Buffalo Bill.
But when called upon to go, to the surprise of both, Harding refused.
"You went before, Pard Harding, so why refuse this time, when you know it is our duty to report, as agreed, to Buffalo Bill the attacks of the road-agents upon the coaches, that he may place the matter beforethe commandant?" said Doctor Dick, who was anxious to have the mysterious disappearance of old Huckleberry known.
"I went before, Doctor Dick, but I do not care to go again," was Harding's firm rejoinder.
"Do you fear to go?" asked Landlord Larry, with a smile.
"If you think that I am influenced by fear I will prove to the contrary," was the quiet rejoinder.
"By going?"
"No."
"How then?"
"Have you a driver to take the coach out to W—— on its next run, landlord?"
"No, unless Doctor Dick will kindly do so."
"I cannot," was the quick response of the doctor.
"Then I will," said the young miner.
"You?"
"Yes, landlord."
"Do you know how to drive?"
"I have driven six-in-hand often."
"When?"
"I drove wagons and ambulances in the army, andon one occasion drove the general with four-in-hand over four hundred miles of the worst country I ever saw."
"I guess you will do, then, and it is far easier to get a courier to go to the fort, than it is a driver for the coach."
"Yes, as if I go under, Pard Larry, I will be number five."
"Five?" asked the doctor meditatively.
"Yes; Bud Benton was one, Dave Dockery two, Doctor Dick number three, and old Huckleberry number four, so I will come in asfive."
"You are right."
"And you are in earnest, Harding?" asked the landlord.
"Certainly."
"You know all that you risk?"
"Thoroughly."
"Then I retract my words in asking you if you feared to go to the fort as courier, for your volunteering as driver proves that you fear nothing."
"All right. Pard Larry, let it go at that."
"Well, Harding, consider yourself engaged for theberth of driver, and be ready to take the coach out on its next run."
"You will find me on hand."
"And let me tell you that I am authorized to pay three times the regular wages."
"It will be acceptable."
"If you live to get it," was the suggestive response of Landlord Larry.
This having been settled upon, greatly to Larry's relief, he further talked with Doctor Dick, and it was decided that as old Huck had only disappeared, and the coach had not been robbed of the mails, they would send no report of the affair to Buffalo Bill, but wait and see how Harding came out with his drive.
The news soon spread about that Hal Harding had volunteered to drive the coach through to W—— and he at once became a hero in the camps, for those bold fellows always loved heroism in a man above all other qualities.
He was, however, regarded as a dead man beforehand, for that he would be killed seemed a foregone conclusion, and many felt pity for the fate that they felt assured would befall the handsome young miner.
But Harding seemed not to dread the drive in the least, but went on about his duties in his usual cheery way.
Sticking to the work in his mine he had found that it panned out richer than he had anticipated, and he already had partnership offers, and a good price if he would sell.
He had kept his eyes open, too, in his secret-service work for Buffalo Bill, and had noted down certain discoveries he had made of a suspicious nature, and also had the names of a few whom he considered worth while watching.
At last the day came for the coach to start out, and as nothing had been heard of old Huck, Hal Harding reported at the hotel ready to mount the box and drive through.
As he passed through the crowd he could not but hear several remarks that were made, one being:
"He is number five, and he is doomed also."
There was not a shadow of dread, at the fate that might be his, upon the face of Hal Harding as he mounted to the stage-box and gathered up the reins.
The mails were aboard, and he knew that he had a valuable freight hidden away, as best it could be, of gold-dust, being risked by miners who were sending it eastward.
What gold was to be sent out was always kept a secret, known only to the senders, to Landlord Larry, and the driver, and though it was taking chances to let it go, the senders were risking it, as gamblers chance money in large sums upon the turn of a card.
Then, too, there was a very strange feature in the holding up of the coaches, and that was the fact that they had never been halted on the outward run, no matter how much gold they carried out, but always when bringing back to Last Chance the exchange in bank-notes.
The road-agents knew that they could carry large sums in money where they could not be bothered with gold in bulk, was the reason that Landlord Larry assigned for the attacks being made only on the westward runs of the coaches.
Not a passenger was to go, and Harding sang out in a cheerful tone:
"All ready."
"Go," cried Larry, and the vehicle rolled away in a manner that showed that the young miner was a good driver, as he had asserted that he was.
The crowd cheered wildly, the voices echoing down the cañon as he drove along, and now and then he would raise his hat to those who greeted him from their cabins and mines as he went along.
Out of the valley he turned, swinging at a brisk trot along through cañons, over hills, up mountains, by the way of narrow passes and down again to the valleys.
He reached the relay-station nearest Last Chance, and made known to the stock-tender the fate of old Huck.
"You goes next, pard, for it won't be long aforeDoctor Dick will come along and tell me that poor Hal Harding has gone under," said the sympathetic stock-tender.
"Think so?"
"Sure of it."
"Why Doctor Dick?"
"Waal, ef you gets kilt no other man in or out o' Last Chance will have ther grit to drive ther old death-trap, for thet hearse you is sittin' on is no more."
"It is an unlucky old vehicle, I admit, pard; but I'll be going," and Harding drove on once more.
He had not seen a soul at the Dead Line. All was as quiet at that dread spot as the forms of those who had lost their lives there.
Only the stockmen at the station greeted him on the way, and at night he came to the halting-cabin a little ahead of time.
He had the same story to tell at each one of the relay-stations, about the fate of old Huck, and an ominous shake of the head from those who listened convinced him that they expected him to be the next victim.
The next morning he rolled into W—— a few minutes ahead of time, and the stage-agent seemed surprised to see a new man upon the box.
He heard what Harding had to say of old Huck, listened to his report of his uneventful run, and received from him the way-bill of what he carried.
"You have done well, Mr. Harding, and I hope we will hear no more of these attacks, so that you may escape, for, if they make a victim of you, I do not know who we can look to unless it be that fearless fellow, Doctor Dick."
"And his practise, mining interests, and gambling occupy him so thoroughly that he will not drive again, sir, I am sure."
"Not unless no other can be found, for he is just the man to step in then in open defiance of danger."
"Yes, he is just what you say of him, sir."
"Now, how is that poor passenger who was crazed by a shot from the road-agents?"
"Aimlessly wandering about Last Chance, sir, harmless and to be pitied."
"Well, I have received letters asking about him, and had to make a report of the circumstances. It willbe upon your return trip that you will have to be watchful."
"I will be, sir, never fear," was the cheery response.
The news of the mysterious disappearance of the old driver soon spread about W——, and people gathered about the stage-office to have a look at the brave fellow who had, in the face of the past experience, brought the coach through.
The agent had told Harding that if the mails had gone through nothing had been taken, for no freight had been sent and no passengers were along on that trip.
As they had found nothing to take, the road-agents had doubtless visited their vengeance upon old Huck, especially to repay him for having run the gantlet on a former occasion.
There were passengers booked for Last Chance by stage, but when it became known that old Huck had been killed, as all supposed he must have been, they concluded they were in no great hurry to reach the mining-camps and could wait a while longer.
So Harding discovered that he would have to returnwith an empty coach, as far as passengers were concerned.
He showed no disappointment, however, at having to return alone, and was told by the agent that he was to carry back considerable money and a valuable mail.
"All right, sir, I'll do my best to go through in safety," he said, and he grasped the outstretched hand of the agent, who said:
"I feel as though I was shaking hands with a man about to die."
"Now, I don't feel that way in the least," was the laughing response, and Harding sprang up to the box, seized the reins, cracked his whip when he got the word, and was off.
The crowd gathered there cheered him, of course, but a generally sad expression rested upon every face as they looked upon the brave young miner who had taken his life in his hand to drive what was now called the death-trap.
Having halted for the night at the way cabin, Harding pushed on the next morning with the firstglimmer of dawn, and reached the third relay at noon.
There was then one more relay and the run into Last Chance, which in good weather could readily be made before sunset. He passed the last relay, and the stock-tender said, as he was about to start:
"Good-by, pard, and do you know I kinder feels as if yer was a dead man already?"
"Don't you believe it, for I am worth a dozen dead men, old man," was the laughing response, and Harding drove on, with the Dead Line rising in his mind before him.
He drove more rapidly than was the schedule-time, and when he came into the pass, with the Dead Line just ahead, he had half an hour to spare.
The horses pricked up their ears, as though they knew the doomed place well, and the leaders gave a snort as they beheld a form ahead. It was a man leaning against the cross erected in memory of Bud Benton.
That Harding also saw the form was certain, for his eyes were riveted upon the spot. As he drewnearer, the man moved away from the cross and advanced down into the trail.
Still Harding made no move to halt, to rush by, or appeared to take notice of him. The man placed himself by the side of the trail, and stood as still as a statue, after making a slight sign, as it appeared.
The answer of Harding to this sign was to shake his head.
On rolled the coach, and when it neared the silent form, without any command to do so, Harding drew hard upon the reins, pressed his foot heavily upon the brake, and brought the coach to a standstill, the horses, which had before drawn it through the deadly dangers it had passed at that spot, showing a restless dread and expectancy of the cracking of revolvers.
But there was no weapon drawn either by the man on the side of the trail, or by Harding, and neither seemed to dread the other.
The reason for this was that the one who had awaited the coming of the coach at the Dead Line was none other than old Huckleberry.
Just fifteen minutes before the time of arrival set for the coach by schedule, Hal Harding drove up to the hotel at Last Chance.
From his entering the valley, and passing the first mine, he had been followed by cheer after cheer, until when he reached Landlord Larry's tavern there were many there to swell the chorus of welcome.
Larry greeted him most warmly, and when he saw what a valuable freight he had brought through with him, he told him that he was deserving of the highest praise.
Harding received the honors heaped upon him in a modest manner, and when asked by Landlord Larry if he had seen any road-agents, answered:
"Not one."
"All quiet along the trail, then?"
"As quiet as the grave."
"I suppose you were anxious upon reaching the Dead Line?"
"I think the horses were more nervous than I was, for they at least showed it."
"You told the agent at W—— about old Huck's fate?"
"Of course, sir, I told him of his mysterious disappearance."
"Do you know I half-way hoped you would hear something of old Huck at W——."
"No, I heard nothing of him there."
"And none of the stock-tenders had seen him?"
"They did not speak to me of having done so."
"Well, he is gone, that is certain; but you have begun well, Harding, and I hope may keep it up."
"Thank you, Landlord Larry, I hope that I will, for I have an abiding faith in the belief that I will live to be an old man."
"I hope so sincerely," said the doctor, who had been an attentive listener to the conversation between the young miner and Larry.
"They say at W——, Doctor Dick, that if I go under, you will be the only man who will dare drive the coach through."
"And I will not do it unless we are doomed to becut off from all communication, and I see that Last Chance will be ruined, from fear of traveling the trail to it," said Doctor Dick decidedly.
"How is your patient, doctor?"
"Which one, for I have a number of patients just now?"
"The young man whose wound at the hands of the road-agents turned his brain."
"I see him daily, and he is about the same, like a child, mentally."
"They asked about him at W——, for the agent had received several letters regarding him."
"Ah!" said Doctor Dick, with interest. "What was their tenor?"
"That he had come out West upon a special mission, and with considerable money, and, since leaving W—— where he had written of his arrival, not a word had been heard from him."
"I am glad that he has friends, then, for he will be cared for in his misfortune."
"Yes, Doctor Dick, and the agent hinted that some one was coming out to look him up."
"I rejoice at this, for he needs care," the doctor rejoined, and he added:
"I have been convinced that he was no ordinary individual, and had been well reared; but what a blow it will be to his friends to find him as he is, poor fellow."
After some further conversation Harding went to his cabin for the night; but he was not long in discovering that he was regarded as a hero by all.
He had not made the slightest reference to having met old Huckleberry at the Dead Line, and as he thought over the fact that he had done so, and the secret that was known to him alone, he muttered to himself:
"If they only knew, what a sensation it would be for Last Chance, yes, and for W—— as well, not to speak of the masked road-agent chief and his men, who thus far have been playing a winning game; but luck sometimes turns, and I guess it is nearing the turning-point now, and will come our way."
Harding reported for duty promptly when the time came around for him to take the coach again on its perilous run.
"We have got considerable gold-dust aboard, pard, and a big outgoing mail, so I hope you will go through all right," said Landlord Larry, while Doctor Dick, who just then came up, said:
"Yes, Harding, I have several valuable letters in the mail with drafts for large sums which I sincerely hope will not miscarry."
"I'll do the best I can, Doctor Dick," was the answer, and Harding went out and mounted the box.
He could not but feel gratified at the size of the crowd that had gathered to see him depart, and he raised his sombrero politely in response to the cheers.
He had gone through in safety once; but could he do it a second time? That was the thought in the brain of every man there assembled.
At last the word was given, and away went the coach, cheered all the way down the valley until it was out of sight.
As before, the young driver lost no time on the trail, but upon reaching the Dead Line, instead of seeming to dread the spot and wishing to drive rapidly by, he dismounted from the box, and, going to the cross, felt about among the wild flowers growingabout it until he picked up a slip of paper, while he hastily read what he found written thereon.
Taking from his pocket a similar slip, on which there was writing, he thrust it out of sight in the spot he had taken the other from. Then he returned to the coach and drove on once more as though he felt no fear of his surroundings.
He reached the night-cabin on time, and surprised the stock-tender there by telling him that he intended to drive on to W—— that night.
"You don't mean it?"
"I certainly do."
"Why, yer'll kill yer team, smash ther old box, and crush yerself to atoms."
"I believe I can drive the road at night," was the firm response.
"It's ther wust piece of road on ther whole Overland Trail."
"It is a bad one, but I will depend upon my team mainly and risk it."
"Why do you do it?"
"I have an idea that it will be safer."
"How so?"
"Well, if there were road-agents on the trail to hold me up to-morrow, I'll miss them, that is all."
"Right you are, pard; but I don't believe they is as dangerous as traveling this trail to-night."
"I'll let you know what I think upon my return," was Harding's answer, and he drove on once more.
Night had come on, and he well knew the dangers before him from a mistake in driving. He had been over the road perhaps half a dozen times, always riding upon the box, but upon his last run as driver he had most carefully noted every foot of the way.
The night was dark, but he knew that he had the instinct of his team to depend upon, and this was more than half the battle.
He was determined to push through and save his load of gold, and if he did make a successful run over that part of the trail by night, he would do what no other driver had done, and on this account his pride was at stake.
So he started boldly yet cautiously upon his way, and when the sun was just rising in W—— the stage-agent there was awakened by wheels dashing up to his door and heard the call:
"The coach from Last Chance has arrived."
He was up in a hurry and congratulating the young driver upon his night drive, while he said:
"Do you know I feared you would be held up to-day, for a party of desperadoes lately left W——, and I felt most anxious about you."
"Yes, they are on the trail waiting for me now, not knowing that I slipped by in the night. I'll get together a band of brave fellows and go back after them," and an hour after Harding was mounted upon a fine horse and leading a dozen men back upon the trail he had safely driven over in the night.
The stage-agent at W—— was right in declaring that the coach might be held up on the rough trail that was always driven by daylight, for the party he feared were some wild fellows who had ridden into the settlement two days before and stated that they were on their way to the mines.
They were well mounted and armed, had several packhorses with them, and, though not having the excuse of drinking to make them dreaded, had carried on in a way that caused all peaceably disposed persons to dread them.
Who they were no one knew, and when they left the place honest men breathed more freely and congratulated each other that no tragedy had occurred, as a reminder of their visit.
They had gone out upon the trail to Last Chance late in the afternoon, and the agent felt sure that they would camp early and meet the coach the next morning, and the result he greatly feared, after a look at the party in question; so he was rejoiced to find that Harding had taken the great risk of driving through by night.
The crowd that he dreaded were five in number, and they were young men, bronzed-faced, brawny, and with an air of recklessness stamped upon them. That they were a dangerous lot their appearance indicated, and few men would care to face them where no help was at hand.
They had halted some dozen miles from W——, and gone into camp on a brook a few hundred yards from the trail the stage would follow. That they knew their way well their movements were proof of, for they rode at once to the camping-place, staked out their horses, spread their blankets, and gathered wood to cook their supper with.
The spot chosen was one where they could command a view of the trail for a mile in both directions, yet remain in concealment themselves.
They had supper, then gambled a while by the light of the fire, and afterward turned in, setting no watch.
It was about midnight when one of the party awoke,half-arose and listened. He heard a rumbling sound that seemed to surprise him.
"I say, pards," he called out.
A man awoke, and asked drowsily:
"What is it, Sully?"
"I hear wheels."
"Nonsense."
"But I do."
"It's the roar of the stream."
"I don't think so."
"I does."
Others were awakened and listened, and they distinctly heard a low, rumbling sound. But, after some minutes, the sound died away and the one who had first discovered it asked:
"Do you think it could have been the coach?"
"No, indeed."
"Why not?"
"No man living would dare drive a coach over this trail at night."
"It sounded to me like wheels."
"There it is again."
All listened attentively, and then one said:
"It is the wind in the pines."
The wind was rising and this solution of mysterious sound seemed to settle the matter, so all laid down in their blankets once more.
The man who had discovered the sound was the one to arise first in the morning, and the day was just dawning when he left his blankets, gazed about him, and then walked over to where the stage-trail ran, several hundred yards from their camp, and along through a bit of meadow-land.
He had hardly reached the trail when he gave a loud halloo, which brought his comrades from their blankets in an instant, and his call set them coming toward him at a run.
"Look there, pards!" he cried, and as each man reached his side he stood gazing down at the trail.
"The stage has gone by," said one, with an oath, as his eyes fell upon the tracks of the six horses and the wheel-marks, lately made.
"Then one man was bold enough to dare the drive at night!"
"Sure, and the chief will be furious with us!"
"What is to be done now?"
"The coach is safe in W—— now, for if that fellow drove safely over the back trail he had no trouble beyond here."
"Then we had better get a move on us."
"Sure, for that agent suspects us, and there'll be a gang on our heels mighty quick," and hastening back to camp, the party mounted and rode rapidly on toward the mountains.
Harding had ridden rapidly upon the trail back toward the night relay, for he felt sure that the agent was right in his conjecture that the party of wild fellows who had left W—— had intended to hold him up on the trail the next day when he came along.
In fact, the slip of paper he had picked up at the Dead Line had been a warning to that effect, and hence he had dared take the drive at night, hoping thus to elude his foes, and had been successful.
When he reached the trail where the party had turned off to camp, they soon came upon their halting-place, and as the ashes of their fire was cold, it proved that they had departed before having breakfast there.
"Something frightened them off," said Harding. "But I wonder they did not hear my wheels, camping as they did this near to the stage-trail."
"They kept no watch, doubtless; but will you follow them?"
"Yes, to the relay-station at least."
Arriving there, for their trail had been lost in the rocky soil, Harding found that the men had not passed, so they turned back for W——, arriving there by nightfall.
The coaches that came in from the South and East the next morning brought valuable mail for Last Chance, and, to the surprise of all, a lady passenger. She was young and veiled, but enough was seen of her face to reveal its beauty.
She was dressed in perfect keeping for one on a long journey, and carried only a small trunk with her. She told the station-agent that her name was Celeste Seldon, and that she had come West for a double purpose, searching for her father, and one other whom she was most anxious to find.
The last she had heard of her father was in a letter dated from W——, and a secret communication, also mailed from W——, was the last tidings received from the second person she sought.
"I wrote you, Mr. Agent," she said in her sweet way, "asking about a young man, Bernard Brandon by name, who had come West upon a special mission.You replied that he had been to W—— and gone on from here to Last Chance, a mining-camp, and though I have written there, no response came, so I decided to come myself and investigate. Have you heard anything more of Mr. Brandon?"
The agent looked troubled and, seeing it, she said quickly:
"You have heard of him, so I beg you to tell me all."
"I regret to say, miss, that he was wounded on his way to Last Chance, shot by road-agents; but here is Harding, the driver of the Last Chance coach, and he can tell you all."
Harding did not appear to like having to give pain to the young girl, but he frankly told her of the wound of the young man, who could be no other than Bernard Brandon, and the pitiful result.
"I will go to him. When do you start, sir?"
"This afternoon, miss; but the trail is a very dangerous one, and I had better bring him back with me."
"No, I will go with you and I will speak for the box-seat, if it is not engaged."
"Oh, no; no seats are engaged, for all dread the trail between here and Last Chance."
"I do not, so I ride with you, sir, on the box-seat," was the determined reply of the young girl.
She paid her fare, and when the coach started, after having dinner at the agent's, mounted to the box with Harding's aid, and took her seat by the young driver, while the crowd yelled lustily as they drove off to face the dangers of the trail.
Harding drove off with the air of one who felt his full responsibility in having the care of a young and beautiful girl, who dared risk the dangerous road he had to travel.
He found that his fair companion, as soon as she left the settlement, was very beautiful, for she removed her veil when only having to be gazed upon by one person, and that one a very handsome young miner.
It did not take her very long to discover that her companion, though driving an Overland coach, was above the average she had thus far met with among the Western wilds, for he was polite, well-informed, and his courage was proven by what he was then doing; for Miss Seldon had been told by the agent just what trouble they had had on the line.
The night relay was reached, and as there had been no expectation of ever accommodating young ladies, no provision had been made for them, so Harding and the stock-tender yielded the cabin to the fair passenger, while they occupied a shanty near-by.
The stock-tender exerted himself to make her comfortable, and to provide the best supper and breakfast his larder would allow.
"What a surprise they will get in Last Chance when they see her, pard. Why, them miners will make a goddess of her, whatever that may be," said the stock-tender.
"Yes, if we only get through, pard, for do you know I am more anxious now than when I am alone?"
"Why is that?"
"Well, I have my reasons; but let me tell you that I mean fight on this run if we are held up," and the eyes of the young driver flashed fire.
The next morning the coach started upon its way half an hour earlier than usual, and Harding pushedhis horses along at a far faster pace than they were accustomed to.
For some reason he seemed anxious to get by the Dead Line far ahead of time, and to push on into Last Chance with all speed that was possible.
He found his fair charge most entertaining, and she asked him all about life in the wild West, and he was surprised to discover how much she knew of the frontier and its characters.
She spoke of army officers known to her well by name, mentioned Buffalo Bill as a hero well known in the East, and seemed anxious to glean all the information she could of the strange country into which she had ventured.
At last she touched upon the cause of her coming, and her face saddened as she said:
"It grieves me deeply to learn of the sad result of Mr. Brandon's wound, though I cannot but feel, as you say that he is bodily strong, that something can be done to restore his mind.
"He came here on a mission for me, to find my father, who, I will confess to you, was driven Westby pretended friends and false misrepresentations that kept him here, as though he had been the veriest criminal hiding from justice.
"But it is not so, and I long to find my father and restore him to his home and those who love him. Have you ever heard of him here?—his name was Andrew Seldon."
"No, Miss Seldon, I never have heard the name, that I now recall. Where was he when last you heard of him?"
"Seven letters came into my possession long after they were written, for I have not seen my father for seven long years, and I was a little girl then, and the last of those letters was mailed at W——.
"In it he stated that he had been in the mining country, had been most successful, and would come home within a year or two. But this letter did not come to my hands directly, and it was answered by others, his enemies and mine, and so I, upon learning the truth, and of a cruel plot against him and myself, got Mr. Brandon to come and look him up that he might know all.
"As a dread came, upon receiving the agent's letter,that harm had befallen Mr. Brandon, I decided to come at once to the West myself, for I was reared on a plantation, am a good rider, have been inured to hardships and can handle firearms when there is need for them, so I was fitted for just such a trip as I am now taking; but here I am making a confidant of you, Mr. Harding, when I should be keeping my own counsel."
"Oh, no, I am glad to know more of you, and it may be in my power to aid you, for I will gladly do all I can."
"I feel that, and we will be friends; but why do you look so anxious?"
"Do I?"
"Yes, you do."
"Well, to be candid, I am anxious for your sake, not mine, for I half-dread trouble on this run, and we are nearing the scene of several tragedies which the miners call the Dead Line. Will you not ride in the coach now?"
"No; I take all chances with you and remain where I am," was the plucky reply of Celeste Seldon.