_ CHAPTER XXVII. CAPTURE OF ALL HANDS, BY THE BUSHRANGERS
There was no time to retreat, had we been so disposed; and though Fred's rifle flew to his shoulder with the quickness of thought, he apparently considered it better policy not to commence hostilities until the bushrangers showed their disposition.
Fighting was not to be thought of; for who would think of taking part in a struggle when eighteen or twenty guns were aimed, and ready to be discharged upon the least sign of resistance.
There was one thing which I had the presence of mind to do. I stepped quietly behind the stockman and Smith, and dropped the bag of gold amidst a thicket of bushes, and I inwardly prayed that whatever might be our fate, the robbers would not get sight of the treasure.
"Do you surrender?" asked a voice; and following the bushranger's words, we could hear the ominous clink of the muskets as they were brought to their shoulders.
"What promises do you make us?" replied Fred, undaunted.
"What do you wish us to promise?" continued the bushranger.
"Our lives and arms."
"Our promises are easily broken. Why do you request mercy at the hands of bushrangers?"
"Because, in this case, if we do not obtain your most solemn pledge that our lives shall be spared, we will die with our rifles in our hands. I need not tell you that when we aim, we do so with the intention to kill."
The bushrangers whispered together for a few minutes, and from their eagerness we could see that a large majority of the men were in favor of complying with Fred's request. Once or twice we heard the word "gold" mentioned, as though that was the chief theme of their discussion. Presently the whispering ceased, and the man who appeared to be the leader of the band again spoke:--
"I have talked with my men, and they are willing to comply with your desire, provided you will deliver to us the gold which you found buried in this clearing."
"As for the gold," returned Fred, "we dropped it some time ago, and you are welcome to it if it can be found."
"Then lay down your arms and step towards us. We are not to be taken by surprise, having heard of your Yankee tricks."
"We had better trust to darkness and our guns," muttered the old stockman; but his warning was too late, for Fred advanced towards the bushrangers and placed his rifle in their hands, and with a sigh I followed his example.
"Come!" shouted the leader, his voice growing harsher as the disarming proceeded--"there are two more of 'em; hurry up, and don't keep us waiting too long."
"I make the third," said Smith, handing in his double barrelled gun.
"Ha, driver, are you here?" laughed the ruffian, as his eyes fell upon Smith's burly form. "You had better have stuck to the teaming business than digging up dead men's gold--I think you would have found it more profitable and less dangerous."
"There is where we differ in opinion, Sam Nosey," replied Smith, quite coolly. "I work at any kind of business where I think I can make an honest shilling, and don't see but this expedition comes under the head of regular trade. At the edge of the wood you will find my team and two pair of good oxen, with a bottle of brandy such as you have not tasted for many a day."
"You mean that I would have found things as you describe, an hour or two ago; but the fact is, my men were hungry; so two of your cattle were knocked in the head, and a right jolly feed we had, I assure you."
"I wish they had been so tough that their flesh would have choked you," was the unsatisfactory exclamation of the stout-hearted Smith.
"Your wish is unkind, considering the favor which we intend to show you," sneered the bushranger captain.
Smith uttered an oath, and I thought, that in spite of the number around us, he would make a push for freedom; but after glancing around and seeing that his intention was anticipated, and that the crowd had enclosed us in a circle, he gave up the idea.
"There is one prisoner missing--where is he?" demanded the chief, abruptly.
"There's no other to be seen," cried half a dozen voices.
"Fools! why do you talk in that way? The old stockman is one of the party, for I saw him not more than five minutes ago. Bring him out of the bushes and let us see if his hair has grown any whiter since the time he shot at me for killing a lamb. I have an account to settle with him."
"He has made his escape, for no one is to be seen," cried the men, after searching for a few minutes.
"It can't be, for only a moment ago I saw him mumbling prayers and hoping that his life would be spared. Fire the pile of brush, call in the scouts, and let me hear their report."
As the chief spoke, a huge pile of brush was fired, which illuminated the open space and cast a bright glare upon the faces of those present. Involuntarily, I looked at the person of the man who appeared to hold such despotic sway over his followers, and I shuddered while I gazed, for a more horrible face I never saw, except in my dreams.
His cheeks were seared until the flesh appeared livid and raw, and I expected to see blood trickle from the half-healed wounds. His eyes were large and glaring, being entirely unprotected by eyelashes, and as for eyebrows, they seemed to be eaten away and destroyed. The fellow's nose, however, was the most disgusting part of his face; for the nasal organ was entirely gone, and nothing was to be seen excepting two small holes which led to the chambers of the head.
I understood the reason that he was nicknamed Nosey, without asking a question, but it was not until some days after that I learned how he came to be so badly disfigured.
Charles Bowen, alias Nosey, was sentenced to transportation for twenty-five years for appropriating about ten thousand pounds to his own use by means of a forged will. He was a man of a good education, and withal shrewd and unscrupulous; but sharp as he was, it did not prevent his getting convicted and sentenced--and from the time that he stepped foot on board of the transport he began his career of defying officers and all wholesome discipline.
One day he attacked an assistant surgeon, who was attached to the vessel, and the doctor repelled him by hurling a bottle of oil of vitriol at his head. Bowen closed his eyes when he saw that the liquid was about to strike his face, and by resolutely keeping them closed until the powerful acid was cleaned from his flesh, managed to save them, and then the surgeons of the ship commenced and arrested the progress of the vitriol, and preserved his life; but not until the fellow's nose was entirely gone, and his eyebrows and cheeks nearly eaten away.
A more hideous-looking wretch, as he stood by the blazing pile of brush, I never saw; and it appeared to me that he gloried in his deformity, for he rolled his glaring eyes at me, and chuckled immensely when he saw that I regarded him rather closely.
"The stockman has given us the go-by," said one of the gang, returning from his pursuit of the old convict.
"Have you examined every bush and tree between this and the prairie?" asked the chief.
"As well as we can in the darkness," was the answer.
"Return to the woods, and don't allow a space as large as a man's body to escape inspection. Away with you--our triumph is not complete without the head of the old shepherd."
"I can find nothing of the gold," said a voice that I had heard before, and looking up I saw our treacherous companion, Steel Spring.
The fellow regarded me with a sly grin, and winked his eye as he pointed to the deep hole where he had labored when we discovered the treasure.
A frightful expression came over the robber's face as he heard the report. His staring eyes seemed to become injected with blood, and the scars on his countenance turned to a more livid hue.
"Where have you secreted the gold?" he asked, with a voice trembling with passion.
"What gold?" I demanded, indifferently.
"The gold which Jim Gulpin buried here. You know what I mean; and let me tell you that a civil and correct answer will stand your friend, just at this time. You have no police to fall back upon, and if I but give the word, your lives are not worth a farthing."
"It is true, we were after the gold, but what evidence have you that we found it?" I demanded.
"The evidence of the man who has been on your track ever since you entered the forest--saw you remove the sack, and then saw you attempt to escape with your plunder. Come here, Steel Spring."
The long, lank, lying wretch came at the call of his commander, and with a gracious nod towards us, stood ready to answer any questions.
"At what time did you give the signal, Steel Spring?"
"The hinstant that I sees they had got the money. I didn't know vether you had returned from the trip vich you vas to make, but I vas determined to try the signal agreed upon, and to my great joy, I heard you hanswer the first time I calls."
"And you saw them remove the sack?" demanded the chief.
"Yes, hindeed I did; and 'cos I calls to you, these fellows fires at me, but they vas not quick enough for Steel Spring."
"You hear what my man says; you were seen to take the gold. Yield it to us, and go, and the devil go with you, for all I care; but deprive us of it, and to-morrow's sun shall not see you alive."
Fred, Smith, and myself held a whispered conversation for a few minutes, and concluded that it was better to give up the money and save our lives, and trust to chance to recover the treasure.
"Have you decided?" asked the chief, his voice growing more rough at each moment's delay. "We have."
"Enough; lead us to the spot where it is secreted."
"You have but a few steps to go," I said, as I motioned for the bushrangers to stand one side and allow me to approach the spot where I had dropped the bag.
"Let him pass!" exclaimed the robber; and, obedient to his word, the gang stepped aside, but closed in upon me, so that I had no chance to escape, even had I been so disposed.
"You will find the gold there," I said, pointing to the spot where I had dropped the sack.
Half a dozen arms were thrust eagerly forth, and searched amidst the rank grass and stunted bushes. Suddenly, one of the men uttered an exclamation and sprang back, holding aloft his hand, upon a finger of which was fastened a deadly snake, of a pale orange hue, with a fine ring of black around its neck.
With oaths, and cries of terror, the robbers sought to escape from the vicinity of their companion, who, with yells such as I thought no mortal man capable of uttering, endeavored to unfasten the firm grip of the adder's teeth.
We could have escaped at that time, and no one would have thought of pursuit, so busy were the gang in regarding the contortions of the wretch, who rushed wildly back and forth, begging, cursing, and praying in one breath.
Once I thought of starting alone, after vainly endeavoring to attract the attention of Fred and Smith; but I considered how cowardly it would be to desert my friends, and banished the idea, unless we could all go together.
"Will no one save me?" shrieked the wretch, running first to one and then another of his comrades; but as fast as he approached them, they would retreat, and hurl imprecations at his head for seeking to bring destruction upon themselves.
"Curse you all for a pack of cowards!" he yelled; "may you all die by the hands of a hangman! Will no one save me? Will no one relieve me of this cursed snake?"
"Hold your hand still, for a moment," cried Fred, suddenly starting forward, and picking up a bowie knife, which one of the men had dropped in his terror.
The poor fellow sought to obey, but his fright was too great; and as the adder curled its tail over his arm, without relinquishing its hold, he endeavored to shake it off, and succeeded so far as the tail was concerned, but the jaws were too firmly clinched to be made to let go so easily.
Fred's eye was quick, and his hand steady, and as the snake hung full length, pendent from the finger, he struck at it with the knife and severed it in two parts. The tail fell to the ground and wound itself into knots, but the jaws did not relinquish their hold until the last drop of blood had drained from the trunk, when, with an expiring gasp, the teeth were unlocked, and the robber's finger was free.
Stout-hearted as the fellow undoubtedly was, he no sooner saw that the reptile was dead than he fell to the ground in a fit. Foam issued from his mouth, and by the light of the fire I saw that the poison was already performing its work, and that it was mixing with his blood and coursing through his veins with the speed of thought. His face grew black and commenced swelling rapidly, and all the medical science in the world would have been unable to give him an hour's life.
"Can you do any thing for him?" asked the chief, turning to us.
We replied in the negative.
"Then let him die where he is, and one of you take a torch and find the money. Be careful; there may be more snakes in the grass."
The men obeyed the heartless speech, and forsook the writhing wretch to look for the gold.
"There is nothing here!" they cried, in chorus.
"I put the bag there but a moment ago," I replied.
"You lie!" roared the chief; "you are deceiving us, and think to escape with life, and pocket your stealing. I tell you, if the money is not forthcoming, I'll hang you like dogs. Tie them up and lash them to a tree; I will give them a short time to think the matter over."
The robbers threw themselves upon us and bound our arms, in spite of resistance, and with an expedition that proved they were experts in the matter; we were then fastened to trees, and taunted with our instrumentality in destroying the gangs of Darnley and Gulpin.
Luckily, Fred and myself were fastened to the same tree, so that we could condole with each other in our misfortunes. This was the hardest situation in which we had ever been placed, and yet we felt no fear of immediate death, although we knew that an injudicious word would seal our doom without a moment's delay.
"Where can the money have gone to?" whispered Fred.
"I know not," I replied; "you saw me throw it amidst the bushes, and yet, now, it cannot be found."
"One of the gang must have watched our movements, and, during the confusion, moved the bag to another place."
As Fred ceased speaking, the dying man, who was lying at our feet, raised his head, and sought to get up; the effort was unsuccessful, and, with a groan of agony, he fell back and called in feeble tones for water.
"Water," he cried; "for the love of mercy, give me a drink of water; I feel as though I was burning to death. My mouth is parched, and my tongue swollen to an unnatural size."
"Give him a drink, one of you," grunted the chief. "It's probably the last one he will ever ask for."
"Don't say that," exclaimed the snake-bitten man, struggling to rise. "I am not going to die just yet, I can tell you. I have not half revenged myself upon those who injured me."
"Live, and be hanged, if you can," retorted the chief, coolly, seating himself upon a log, and lighting his pipe; "I don't hinder you from getting well, do I?"
"No, no. Nosey, I know that you would rather assist me," said the man, with a faint attempt at a smile, but it was soon banished from his face, and then he again sought to rise, but without success.
The poison was spreading swiftly through his veins, and we could almost see his body swell, so rapidly was it bloating him. He had unbuttoned the wristbands and collar of his shirt, for the pain was too great to keep them fastened; and as he lay at our feet a spectacle too dreadful to be looked upon without pity, we wished that we had the means to save a life that had been passed regardless of laws or man.
"If one of you fellers are acquainted with a prayer or two, p'raps it would be well to mutter it over the poor devil, so that his soul may not be snatched by the evil one as soon as it leaves his body," said a bushranger of grim aspect, speaking to Fred and myself.
"I will willingly do all that I can to comfort the dying man," I replied; "but first I want my arms untied, so that I can hear his last words."
"Well, that's only asking for a reasonable thing, and hang me if I won't risk it," replied the grizzly robber, proceeding to untie my hands.
"Hullo," shouted the chief, "what are you about?"
"I'm going to let this feller confess Ben, 'cos I believe he's half priest or parson, and I think it's hard if a man can't have a little religion occasionally."
"Tie the prisoner up again," said Nosey, sternly, laying his hand carelessly upon a pistol which was stuck in his belt.
"Shan't do any thing of the kind," replied the robber, firmly. "Old Ben is going to die, and he wants religion before he starts. I'm not the one to refuse him."
"Once more I tell you to make the prisoner fast to the tree," cried Nosey, drawing the pistol and cocking it.
"Look a-here--is that your game?" demanded the humane robber; "let me tell you that you had better put up the barker, 'cos I've got one that can speak when it's told to."
The old bushranger drew a pistol and held it in his hand for a moment, and then, turning to his companions, said,--
"You ain't going to see me shot 'cos I want to 'friend as good a man as was ever transported? How do we know how soon we may want a prayer or two to help fix things up in the other world."
"Let him have the prayers," muttered the gang, with one accord. "What harm can they do?"
Thus backed up, the old robber, who had formerly been a sailor, continued to unbind my hands, while Nosey replaced his pistol without further remonstrance.
I knelt by the side of the dying man, but he was past consciousness, and no longer appeared to heed what was going on around. His tongue had swollen to such an extent that his jaws were open to their fullest width, and it was impossible to close them. His eyes were set and nearly concealed in their sockets, so rapidly had his face bloated from the effects of the poisonous virus that was coursing through his veins.
I spoke to him, but he did not heed me, and in answer to the robbers' questions, I predicted his speedy death. They received the news with great coolness, and fell back to their old occupation of smoking pipes, leaving me alone with the body.
For a few minutes I sat there endeavoring to relieve the poor fellow's sufferings by welting his lips with water, and while I was thus engaged I was startled by hearing a slight rustling in the bushes; I looked up, thinking that the companion of the dead snake was about to visit us in search of its mate, and as I did so, I caught a glimpse of the wrinkled face of the stockman. I did not start or manifest symptoms of surprise, for I had lived too long in a country where Indians were my nearest neighbors to allow such an emotion to be observed. I continued my occupation, therefore, and while I kept my eyes on the hiding-place of the convict, I did not neglect to note the movements of the bushrangers, who were grouped around the fire, and wholly unsuspicious of the presence of their most deadly enemy.
"Hist!" said the stockman, after successfully imitating the singing of a cricket to attract my attention.
I turned my head towards him, but I still pretended to be busy attending to the wants of the dying man.
"Cut Smith and your friend loose, and then stand ready to aid us in striking a blow. Be cautious, and not a word."
I was left in wonder, for the head disappeared so quietly, it was only by a slight rustling of dried leaves that I knew the stockman was working his form through the bushes to rejoin whomever he had enlisted to assist him.
I puzzled my head for a few minutes, trying to think who was near at hand, but it was in vain; and I at length concluded that a passing train of miners had volunteered, under a promise of a large reward, which now I had not the means of paying. I tried to invent excuses for the purpose of approaching Fred, and at length I hit upon a plan.
"I think," I said, speaking to the old sailor, "that I might relieve the man's sufferings were I to bleed him."
"Go ahead, then, matey," he answered, with a nod of his head.
"Let me see," I said, feeling in my pockets; "I believe that my friend has my lancet. Will you get it, or shall I?"
"Get it," he replied, mechanically, not even taking his pipe from his mouth to answer.
I had carefully secreted a knife which I had found upon the person of the bushranger, and with it I cut Fred's bonds, whispering words of caution as I did so.
"I haven't got the lancet," cried Fred, with a sudden shake, as though to prevent me from searching his pockets. "You know that I gave it to Smith."
"I'm sure that you didn't," Smith said, surprised at Fred's assertion. Before he could utter further remonstrance I had severed his bonds and repeated my words of caution.
"Are you ready?" I heard a voice whisper close behind me.
I glanced to the spot where the rifles were lying, and then surveyed the bushrangers, as they lay stretched out before the fire, perfectly unconscious that we were plotting their destruction.
"All ready," I responded, making a signal to Fred to be on the alert.
"Stoop down a little," was the whispered injunction. I obeyed the order, and no sooner did I bow my head than the bushes appeared to be illuminated with a sheet of flame. A roar of musketry that seemed to shake the forest followed the flash, and over my head I could hear the bullets whiz as they sped on their errand of death. _