The Boy Soldier; Or, Garibaldi's Young Captain — page 326: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

4 320 THE BOY SOLDIER; OR, GARIBALDI’S YOUNG CAPTAIN. nen SITES EEE nnIIEE=E se ee we will show once more to- fo time! be in time! night! Bein time! be in time : And thus old Hautwig continued his show for two © or three hours longer. , But, meanwhile, Gale was laying his plans, to capture the whole lot of swindlers. He gsauntered through the) fair, never, for a moment losing sight of one of them; and, from ‘all appearances, old Hautwig was doing a flourishing business with his. real wild North, American Indians, and passing of a great amount of spurious coin, pe —_—-——e oo a CHAPTER CVIII.- IN WHICH THEREIS A SUDDEN COMMOTION AMONG THE WILD AMERICAN INDIANS—HAUTWIG PER- FORMS THE RED HOT POKER TRICK, WH, ; THE fair had closed, and it was past midnight, /» ~~ - The poor clowns who had been jumping about all the live-long day, and endeayouring to attract the - notice and patronage) of admiring audiences, had tumbled for the last time. Hi A Ns ia Mr, Merryman, in the circus, to use his own phrase, was “regularly “ flip-flap ” was not in him, hi) Mir In truth, save here and there an expiring faggot — or flickering lamp, all the fair was wrapt in slum- ber, or behind the scenes were regaling themselves with beef-steaks and beer, after the arduous labours / of the day. OW Ee = eee age 74 Gale went his rounds through the deserted fair and after dodging about for some time, he ‘go¢ under old Hautwig’s caravan, and secreted himself, =| — Hautwig,, and his reakzwild—North American- Indians (now, of course, /liberated from= their: chains, and captivity), were enjoying themselves over an Irish stew, and from the~ clattering of plates, and the continual roars of laughter, Gale began to think the wild Indians, after all, were jolly, jovial sort of fellows, and were humbugging the credulous public to very great advautage, both to themselves and old Hautwig.. “ Pass along sime more 0’ that “ere stew,” said one ot the Indians,’ ‘SL hikes ‘it amazin” well.” “Didn't We take’ in the greentiorus?’” ‘said ano- ther. = ~ ‘CA rare old thing we made on it to-day, Haut- wig,” said a third. ‘‘Ah !’? said the proprietor of. thé show, with a deep sigh, ‘‘all ain’t gold tha. glitters, my lads ; it ain’t because you sees the show full 0’ people every time that we are making a. good thing on it, No, not by any means,” — “Oh ! that’s always the tale,” said one, “Tt don't matter how..much you make, you. is always losing,” said another. ‘*L never see such a fe as. you is, old Hautwig.; I didn’t, so,help my ater.”’ =" Gale heard all of this, concealed as he was under the cart, and as it. mow began to rain, he covered himself up in an old tarpauling he found there, and listened still longer. ‘I know. what old Hautwig is. growling about,’’ thought Gale; “he and Bandy Bob go shares in the thimble-rigging job, and he has heard long before this that I won five pounds, It will, take all the gilt off their gingerbread for a few days, I think.” But from, all he heard, he made gure that the poor devils who were hired at two shillings per day and their grub to “do” the wild Indian business, AU iy tn were not.at all aware of the rascality of their em- ployer. He felt confident that they were totally unaware of the passing or dealing in spurious coin carried on by old Hautwig ; and, therefore, he made up his mind)to have nothing to do with them, come what might, , . He remained in his place of concealment some time, whcn in the distance Gale perceived Bandy Bob, trudging along through the rain and mud towards old Hautwig’s caravan. He: whistled twice or thrice, and Gale heard Hautwig over head, shuffling towards the caravan door, which he opened. «That you, Bob,?” Veg ty NM fe “ Can’t come in, yet, my joker ; these ere Indians o’ mine ate haying their supper ; they’ll soon wash up and go off to their lodgings.” f° All night.” —‘‘Tt’s just’'as well not to let every one know what we've been up to.” . - “Just so’; but come down, I wants to speak to you ; only a minute or two.” “This conversation was carried on between the two |rascdls in-an undertone, and in slang words a + and another | peculiar to themselves, so that the wild Indians pone UP) ane Banks | Gnside, if even they had heard it, could not under- stand the meaning of it. Hautwig came down the steps, and the rain began to fall heavily. Heand Bandy Bob-goteunderneath the caravan, and sat on the straw, not more than six feet from Gale, who was curled up under the tarpaulin, _ “Have you seen Alf Green?” said Bob. “ies.” = yt ty s= cies Be a “Tn course he told-you how I was done out of a ‘fiver?’ Se ek ‘He did, more’s the pity ; bad luck to the man tee who fleecéd us, I say.” “Tt’s knocked off all our earnings for the next two days.” So it has, Bobby, soit has. If Alf hadn’t seen it I wouldn’t have believed it,’’ ‘‘T was forced to pay, or the crowd would have broken ‘my head ?3u5 619: LOW MS “Bat I made sure he’d”’play again. ‘He didn’t though,” INO OD Svat LOY ts ; . Au artful cove whoever he was, and- no. mis- akeisn IOVS .197TR Tigi C ¥ “Alf Green followed him, and tried ‘to bounce ’ him out of the money again ; but it was no go, he showed fight, so Alf says, and gathered a rare crowd around him, who took his part, else Alf would haye knocked him down and ‘eased him of the lot,” Now, as we know, this was all a lie. an Being a bit of a fighting man he had intended to pick a quarrel with the stranger, Gale ; but when the detective appeared teaiy for it, and willing, Alf’s craven heart grew faint, | _ He didn’t like the brightness of, the .stranger’s eye, nor, the muscular development of his arms and broad chest, 1 | Hence, as we have previously seen, he ‘‘ squared ” it, with the unknown detective fora. spurious half sovereign. To keep his credit good with Bandy Bob, how- ever, Alf trumped up the tale told to Hautwig. Gale, as he lay concealed, and listening, could not but smile as Bob continued, : “Things are getting worser and worser, We How’s it with you, have you done much to day?” | ere le ee com GComichoo S