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‘,, herd of horses following him.
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“Tsay, Van, what do you. think: of. this 2? remarked
Jack, turning around.;
But there was no: answer, to his question. bos
Much: mystified Jack glanced at his compenions. |
They were all there-but Van.
“Van—Van!” he shouted. “Where are you?” *
be
seen goblin...
[0 CHAPTER XVII.
WHAT BEFELL DOC CLANCY. >
| It will now be the proper thing for us to follow Doc
Clancy and see how the villain fared after-his escape from
our friends. i Moy oe
The bullet from the rifle of Lank Edwards had not
{touched him, but, seeing his companion fall, he con-
cluded to do likewise, for fear he might be fired upon
again. _
‘jhe did net turn his head to see whether his friend had
‘}been killed or not, but galloped away from the spot with
all the speed his horse could command. .
What the dead man had told our friends about the herd
‘iof horses with his dying breath was.true. u Tet
The two scoundrels had followed ‘the roadway to the
iMmassive iron gate, and here discovered the queerly
“mounted animals waiting to get inside the wall.
They thought it best to leave, and when the herd: fok
lowed them, Doc Clancy was in high glee.
He thought he would surely best Van and his party
(mow. But the reader knows how well he-succeeded.
| When the fleeing scoundrel had placed.a quarter of a
mile between himself and our friends, he turned in the
saddle and saw them digging a hole in the ground.
_“The poor devil. must be dead,” he muttered.
Vil have to go it alone now. I suppose I had better make
direct for that gate and try and get inside it and.make
friends with the people wha live there. If I can do that,
I may be able to set them against that young upstart,
Van Vincent,.and the rest of his-gang. Well, I'll try
‘lit, anyhow. “Here goes.”
Clancy did not halt until he reached the gate, and: he
‘|was just wondering how he was going to get through,
‘twhen it opened. > or
Without any hesitation, the villain rode through, the
was now dark, but he determined to let the horses
_jtake him to where they belonged. He had not proceeded
iwery far before he noticed a number of ruined stone
Tt was
' Stop at any of these, he kept on. » .
When he had covered perhaps three miles over the
hard, level road; he beheld a city before him—such as he
had never beheld before.
We say a city, for though it did not contain over, two
hundred buildings, yet it was a city as far as its general
appearance went. All’its buildings were tall and beau-
tiful, and built. of stone, while the streets were broad and
y Well paved. .
The moment Doc Clancy entered it with the herd of
Eee ee De BRAVE AND BOLD. ~
But there. was no reply, Our hero had. vanished as .
xMysteriously as though he had been swallowed by an un-—
When he sprang upon his horse again and dashed away, |
“Well,.
_ buildings, but as the animals did not appear to want to
horses at his back, 2 number rf iren rushed out to meet
him and proceeded to catch the horses. .° 00 8
As the moon was now covered witly heavy clouds for
the first time that night, Clancy was not observed .at all,
‘and his horse was led away with those who had ‘the _
. dummies on their backs. ; we yan
They were all placed in a large, comfortable stable, and
then the men proceeded to remove the figures from their.
backs. - . welt -
Doc Clancy now began to grow very uneasy. /
He began to think of what would happen when they
discovered that one of the animals had a real man on
its back. Po
But the villain was desperate, and determined not be
killed or captured. oes a
Watching his opportunity, he slid from his horse’s back,
and then quickly removed the rude bridle from its head.
“Now,” thought he, “I’ll lay low till these fellows go
out. Then I'll sneak outside myself and.see what sort of
, a place this is.” ~ a oo
This was-a successful move, the men not noticing the”
deception at all. a oolh.
Fifteen minutes later they left the stable. It was now
raining, but Doc Clancy determined to go out, just the |
same. oc
‘Pushing his way between the horses, who were now
mupching their evening meal in a contented manner, he
at length reached the door. : pot
“This is a pretty tough night to go out, when you have
nice, dry quarters like this to stay in; but I must see what
sort of a place’ I'am in, and work a way to make myself
welcome,” muttered Clancy, as he buttoned his coat about *
his neck. : fos
The next moment he stepped outside in the storm. =.
‘The lights from houses on all sides of him could be.
seen, and he concluded to approach one of them and look
in the window. oe -
Selecting the nearest house for his purpose, he began
crawling stealthily toward it. ee
In less than two minutes he was'at the window. o
A- muffled cry. of. astonishment. escaped the villain’s |
lips as he peered in. -
He was gazing into an oblong room, furnished some-
“thing after the Oriental fashion. “2°
. The walls and ceiling seemed to be a glittering mass ‘of
gold and silver, and the light from a score of candles,
‘thrust in candlesticks of the same metal, made the scene
a‘dazzling oné, to say the least. .
Reclining on a divan was a woman, or, rather, a girl, ~
for she could not have been over sixteen years of age.
She, too, looked like one of the dazzling beauties of
the Orient, and was robed like the women of Egypt.
As Doc Clancy gazed at the ravishingly beautiful crea- .
ture, his eyes sparkled.
“By Jove!” he muttered ; “if I could only make friends
with the people of this place, and then marry that girl,
I think I should be as happy asa king, If I only dared, I~
would open the window. My! what a beautiful creature!
- [ll do it, anyhow.” v!
Seizing the'sash, he thrust it aside, and then sprang
into the room with a single-bound.
Foolish man! That was the very worst thing he could
\