The Gold Hunters' Adventures Part 60

Give his cords an extra twist, men, for his impudence." Murden uttered the words with an expression of disgust that did not fail to convince the bushranger of the estimation in which he was held.

"You think, I suppose," Nosey said, with an angry scowl, "that you will have the pleasure and triumph of carrying me to Melbourne alive; you are mistaken."

"Look well to your prisoner!" shouted the officer, as the men prepared to slip a cord over his wrists.

He was too late in his warning, for the desperate robber suddenly thrust his hand into his bosom and drew forth a huge knife, which he waved over his head.

The policemen started back, surprised and confused at the suddenness of the action; and before they could rush and disarm the prisoner, he was outside of the door, nourishing the knife, and threatening death to all who opposed him.

"Fire on him!" yelled Murden, perfectly frantic at the thought of his escape. "Kill him--kill him!"

The robber rushed towards the woods, and it seemed as though he would escape in spite of the loaded guns which we carried in our hands; but one of the men, more cool than the rest of us, discharged his carbine, and the ball struck the right leg of Nosey, and crushed the bone as easily as though it was a pipe stem.

Wounded as he was, he did not immediately stop, but continued on, striving to gain the woods, as though his safety was secure if he could reach them. But the effort was too much for human endurance. He staggered, struggled to maintain his erect position, and then fell with a crash to the ground. We went towards him; he did not move; we turned him over, and found that he was lying in a pool of blood, quite dead.

Either by accident or design, he had fallen upon his knife, and it was sheathed to the hilt in his heart.

CHAPTER x.x.xII.

RETURN TO THE STOCKMAN'S HUT.--SMITH IN LOVE.

The bushrangers were struck with awe at the sudden death of their chief, and made no resistance as they were bound in pairs. Indeed their audacity appeared to desert them, although they maintained a sulken aspect until they got a glimpse of Steel Spring, who, to prevent mistakes had been bound to a tree, while we secured his comrades.

The glances of hate and scorn which were cast upon their betrayer appeared to have no effect upon his well-tried nerves, and he seemed to act as though he had done his duty and was not ashamed of it, and didn't care who knew the part which he had played in the drama. The death of Nosey, however, appeared to astonish Steel Spring, for when he was allowed to see the body he grew pathetic.

"So old Nosey is dead!" he exclaimed, looking upon the face of the wretch; "veil, he vas a vonderful man, and used to rob more peoples than hany bushranger in those parts; ve shall miss him, I know ve shall miss him; and vere shall ve find a man to take his place?"

"Do you still think of robbery?" demanded Murden, sternly.

"No, sir; I vouldn't take a shillin' from a traveller to save my life.

But ven I thinks of the times ve've had, I feels like shedding tears! A vonderful man vas Nosey; so 'andsome, too!"

"Cease your nonsense, and answer me one or two questions," Murden said; "the gang has plundered for months; do you know where they concealed their money?"

"I'm blessed if I do," replied Steel Spring, with alacrity.

"Do you think that our prisoners know?"

"Veil, that feller who is looking at me so cross, as though I'd hinjured him, could tell if he'd got a mind to," replied Steel Spring, pointing to a robber who seemed to be regarded as a sort of leader, now that Nosey was dead.

"Are you disposed to inform me where Nosey buried his money?" asked Murden, appealing to the man.

"And what inducements do you hold out, if I give you the information?"

asked the robber, dryly.

"I do not promise you your life, but I think that I can get the sentence put off a few months," the lieutenant replied.

"And you suppose that I will reveal on such conditions?" demanded the bushranger, impudently.

"I do; you have every thing to gain, and nothing to lose."

"My life, I suppose, you call nothing; that is already forfeited, you seem to think; but you shall find that, robber as I am, I know how to keep a secret."

"Then you refuse to divulge?"' asked Murden.

The bushranger regarded him with a scornful air, and remained silent.

Murden grew excited, and forgot that he was only an humble instrument of the law, and that life and death were not at his disposal after men had surrendered.

"Throw a tackle over the branch of yonder tree," he said, pointing to a st.u.r.dy gum tree which grew near; "we will save the courts of Melbourne the trouble of trying the fellow."

The bushranger did not seem surprised, or appear to be affected at the news.

Not so the policemen; they knew that their officer was exceeding his authority, but their discipline was too good to allow them to cavil at his orders, right or wrong.

They threw a rope over the shrub pointed out, and then making a slip-noose, pa.s.sed it around the neck of the obstinate robber. Still he wore his scornful look, and did not even ask for mercy, which Murden had evidently antic.i.p.ated.

"Will you reveal?" demanded the lieutenant.

"No!" he yelled: and with his refusal was a gesture of the most impudent and insulting nature.

"Up with him, men!" cried the officer, beside himself with pa.s.sion.

The men tugged at the rope, but with all their strength they could not raise the man from the ground, owing to the cord being pa.s.sed over a limb, instead of through a block, the friction was too great.

Smith, during all of this time, had been a spectator, instead of an actor in the tragedy; but when he saw that the policemen were unable to carry their designs into effect, he appeared to recollect the death of his oxen, and to think that the present was an excellent time to avenge their death.

He rushed to the rope, and pulled away at it with such good will that the bushranger was raised from the ground a few inches, and by the spasmodic movement of his feet, I saw that he was choking, and could exist but a few minutes longer.

"Are you mad?" I asked of Murden; "you have no authority to hang the man; the courts of Melbourne will make a noise about the matter, be a.s.sured."

The lieutenant appeared to reflect, and seemed to think that my advice was worthy of being taken, for he waved his hand, and the nearly strangled man was lowered to the ground, much to the disgust of Smith, who appeared to think that he was cheated of his prey.

"Once more, I ask you to reveal the hiding-place of the treasure," the officer said, when he found that the robber had sufficiently recovered to answer his question.

"I refused when a rope was tightened around my neck, did I not?" the bushranger asked, in a gasping manner.

Murden nodded his head in token of a.s.sent.

"And do you think that, after being half choked to death, I'll reveal now?" he demanded, in an indignant tone; "I'll see you and your cowardly police d----d first; and sooner or later I know that you will be."

"Up with him again!" cried the angry lieutenant; but his rage was only momentary, and before the men could put his order into execution, he countermanded it.

"You are too impudent a scoundrel to die immediately; a few months'

solitary confinement in the prison at Melbourne, with nothing but bread and water to eat, and the certain prospect of a long, lingering death, will tame your spirit, and make you docile."

"Do you think so?" asked the bushranger, with a sneer.