Chapter 18

IN DEAD MAN'S GULCH.

The sun was gleaming down brightly as the cavalcade of bandits went thundering out of Husking Valley chased by the electric stage.

A cloud of dust was kicked up by the horses' hoofs which almost obscured the riders from view.

Jack steered the machine with the greatest precision, and Fritz came through the forward door and joined him.

"How did Wood Hite get free to escape?" asked the inventor.

"Ach, he didn'd got free, His hants vos died behint his beck yet," replied Fritz. "Me and Dim vos sittin' oud here, vaitin' tet hear yer sicknal. Puddy soon ve hear somepody behint dot stages, und see Vood Hite had got oud der beck door. He vas runnin' avay. Ve runt afder him. But vhen ve got down der streed, ve don'd see nodding ohf him. He ditsappeared."

"Couldn't you find him?"

"Nein. Ve ditn'd couldt seen vhere he vented."

"I'm sorry, for I wished to put him behind the bars!"

"Nefer mindt," said Fritz. "Ve mebbe caughted more ohf dem."

"I hope so. Anyway, we are pretty close to them now."

"So dey gotted der money from der pank?"

"Jesse rode into the building on horseback and looted it single-handed."

"Dot son-ohf-a-sea-ghooks vos got blenty spunks alretty!"

"Too much for the safety of the public. I'd sooner arrest him individually than his whole gang put together."

"Dot vould preak dem up!"

"That's just my impression."

In a few moments the town was left behind and the horse-men galloped out into the open country over a rocky tract.

There the horses had an advantage over the Terror, as they could pick their way over the rough ground.

A fearful jolting and rattling of the stage ensued, and Jack was forced to slacken speed.

That gave the fugitives an advantage.

They quickly gained a long lead, for Jack had to zigzag the Terror in and out among the stones.

She kept falling farther and still further behind.

Some distance beyond the rocky place Jack caught view of a prairie covered with brush and long dry grass.

It renewed his hope, and he remarked confidentially:

"Once we reach that place we'll soon catch up to them."

"I don't tink so," answered Fritz, who was watching the bandits.

"Why don't you?"

"See vot dey vos doin'!"

A chill of dismay passed over the inventor, for he now saw the bandits setting fire to the long grass.

The wind was blowing toward the Terror.

That kept the fire burning in her direction, while the bandits galloped away from it, setting fire to it as they proceeded.

In a short space of time there was a roaring wall of flame and smoke opposed to the Terror.

In order to prevent Jack from coming in on a flank, the outlaws, spread out like a fan, and kept dropping lighted matches into the combustible grass.

It did not take long to thus create such a wide barrier that the Terror could not hope to get around it in time to overtake the miscreants.

Jack stopped her short.

Clouds of spark-laden smoke were being swept into their faces by the wind, and an intense heat was generated.

"Fritz, we are thwarted."

"Donner vetter! Dey cover deir redreat vell!"

"We can't remain here; those flames will roast us."

"Make a large circle vunct."

"That's the only way," said Jack, starting the Terror.

She now ran off at an angle, and the flames swept to the rocky section and burned out.

There was not enough grass there to keep tha fire going, but behind the first avalanche of flame came another.

It was, therefore, impossible to chase the bandits further.

The fire rendered the air stifling.

Timberlake and Tim were disgusted at this turn of affairs, for both had been confidant of capturing the outlaws.

"If it hadn't ben for ther escape of Wood Hite," growled the old sailor, "we'd aheerd yer signal in ther town, an' reached yer wi' ther Terror afore them lubbers got away."

"Regrets are useless now, Tim."

"O' course. But it allers makes a feller mad ter think he didn't do sich an' sich a thing at ther time he wuz doin' anything wot don't pan out jist as he'd like it ter."

"Perhaps we can head them off yet."

"If thar's a livin' show, Jack'll get it, When I wuz in ther navy we was once asallin' up ther Red Sea, when an Arabian dhow collided with us, an' busted a hole in ther side o' ther Wabash below ther water line; then ther willain coolly sailed away without ever excusin' himself.

"We could astood ther damage, but his indifference about ther injury he done ter us riled us all up. Seein' as he didn't care a blame, our skipper sent ther friggte aflyin' arter him. Waal, sir, ther cuss cracked on sail an' fled. Arter him we tacked, detarmined ter punish ther swab fer his imperdence. It wuz a long stern chase wot lasted ten hours. But we finally overhauled him---"

"Why didn't your frigate sink if she had a hole stove into her below the water liner."

Tim gave a slight start.

He had entirely overlooked this point.

Pondering a moment, he took a chew of tobacco, and replied:

"I guess ther hole wuzn't smashed all ther way through."

"Don't you know whether it was or not?"

"No; how could I go below ter look at sich a time?"

"You ought to know best."

"Waal, let it pass an' I'll go on."

"No, you won't go on."

"Why not, sir?"

"Because I won't stay here and listen to you."

"Say, sheriff d'yer mean ter insinuate as I'm a liar?"

"Oh, no. I'm too frank to insinuate what I know to be a fact, I say it right out, openly and plainly," laughed Timberlake.

Tim eyed him with a mystified look.

He did not know whether to accept this reply as a direct insult or to take it as a belief in his veracity.

"Wot d'yer mean?" he asked.

"Simply this--you are the most outrageous old liar I ever came in contact with!" replied Timberlake.

"Oh!" cried Tim, in horror. "Listen ter him! You wait till I finish this ere yarn, an' see if I'm tellin' ther truth."

"I'm afraid I won't live long enough to wait until you finish that story," dryly answered the sheriff. "It would be too long a wait on my part, and---"

But Fritz interrupted him just there by shouting:

"Dere dey go--dere dey go!"

Timberlake opened the front door.

"Who--the bandits?" he asked eagerly.

"Yah."

"Where are they?"

"Dey go among dem rocks."

The stage had by this time run around the fire.

The James Boys must have curved their course toward the very direction to which the Terror was running, for Fritz had suddenly caught view of them.

They were heading for the rocks at the base of a rugged range of hills directly ahead of the electric stage.

Jack noticed a number of gorges, gulches and canyons splitting the towering hills and cliffs ahead, and observed that the bandits were heading for one of them.

He pointed this out to his companions.

"They don't see us yet!" he exclaimed, "but they will the moment they glance back this way!"

"I think I know where they are going," said Timberlake.

"Where?' asked Jack.

"Into Dead Man's Gulch."

"What would bring them there?"

"A huge cave, where the James Boys sometimes retreat."

"Can we reach it with this stage?"

"Yes. But once they get in they could hold us at bay."

"We will see about that when we run them to cover!"

In single file the bandits rode into the dark gulch, and when it had swallowed up the last one Jack pulled over the lever and sent the Terror ahead at full speed.

She made rapid headway to the gulch and soon reached it.

"Where is the cave situated?" asked Jack.

"Opposite that big bowlder, on the left hand side," the sheriff replied. "You'd better put on your armor."

"I shall," Jack replied, as he stopped the Terror, "and you all had better arm yourselves, and prepare for trouble."

Their preparation, were hastily made.

As soon as everything was in readiness Jack alone went outside and assumed control of the wheel.

His friends ranged themselves at the windows.

All were well armed and ready for any danger.

In the course of a few minutes the Terror ran up to the big boulder and paused there.

Jack saw a mass of creeping vines that grew up the side of the wall, covering a dark aperture.

This was probably the cavern entrance.

He had scarcely noticed it when there sounded the sharp spiteful crack of a rifle behind the vines.

Ping! came a bullet.

It struck Jack squarely over the heart.

His breast plate flattened it and it fell harmless.

"A sentrys shot!" he muttered. "The villains know we are here now and the siege will soon begin."