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About The Red Cloud chief. (Red Cloud, Webster Co., Neb.) 1873-1923 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 1917)
RED OLOUD, NEBRASKA, CHIEF wi"i uiAawMm King of the Khyber Rifles A Thrilling Story of German Intrigue Among the Fierce Hillmen of India During the War KING FACES THE BIGGEST ADVENTURE OF HIS CAREER SO FAR WHEN HE COMES TO THE ENTRANCE OF KHINJAN CAVES AND PROVES HIM SELF A MURDERER. 8ynopsls. At tho beginning of the world war Cnpt. Athelstnn King of tho British Indian army nnd of Its secret service, Is ordered to Delhi to meet Yasmlnl, a dancer, nnd go with her to Klnjan to meet tho outlaws there who arc Bald by spies to bo preparing for a Jihad or holy war. On his wuy to Delhi King quietly foils n plan to assassinate him nnd gets evidence that Yasmlnl Is after, htm. He meets Itowa Gungn, Ynsmlnl's man, who says sho lias already gone north, and at her town house witnesses queer dances. Ismail, an Afrldl, be comes his body servant and protector. He rescues some of YnRinlnl'a hillmen nnd takes them north with htm, tricking tho Hangar Into going ahead. The Rnngnr deserts htm at n dangerous time. He meets his brother at AH MasJId fort. Tho disguise ho nfumes there fools'even tho sharp-eyed cutthroats composing his guard. CHAPTER X. 6 Even with tho man with tho stom ach nchc mounted on the spare horso ,for tho sake of extra speed (nnd ho 'was not suffering one-fifth so much as ,110 pretended) ; with Ismail to urge, .'and King to coax, nnd tho fear of mountain death on every side of them, .they wcro tho part of a night and a day and a night and a part of another ;dny In reaching Klilnjan. At night and nt noon they slept fit fully nt tho chance-met shrine of somo holy mnn. Tho "mils" arc full of them, marked by fluttering rags that can bo seen for miles nway; and though tho Quran's mcnnlng must be Btrctchcd to find excuse, nnd hillmen are adept at stretching things nnd hold thoso shrines as sacred as tho book It self. Men who would almost rather cat thronts tlinn gnmblo regard them as sanctuaries. So a man may rest In temporary peaco oven on tho road Ito Khlnjan, although Khlnjan nnd peace hnv,o nothing whatever In com toon. It was at such a shrine, surrounded by tattered rags tied to sticks, that fluttered In tho wind threo or four thousand feet nbovo Khyber level, that King drew Ismail Into conversation, and deftly forced on him tho rolo of r' uestloner. "How enn'st thou sco tho caves I" ho asked, for King bad hinted nt his In dention ; nnd for answer King gnvo him a glimpse of tho gold bracelet. "Aye I Well nnd good I But even eho dnro not disobey tho rule. Khlnjan iwns thcro before sho come, and tho fnlo was thcro from tho beginning, jwhen the first men found tho caves I Some hundreds havo gained admis sion, lacking tho right. But who ever E"w them again? Allah I I, for one, ould not chnnco Itl" "Thou nnd I nro two men l" answered lag. "I shnll see the caves." "Aye I But listen I How many In Jttlan servants of tho BrltlRh ItaJ havo Wet out to see tho caves? Many, many 'aye, very many I Some, having got by Khlnjan, entered tho caves. None Ter came out again P 7 "Then, what is my caBe to thee?" Sag asked him. "If I cannot come out TWiw vuo "Who Are You?" Howled a Human Being. Whose Voice Was So Like a Wolf's That the Words at First Had No Meaning. gain and thero is a secret, then tho secret will be kept, and what Is tho itroubler "I love thee," the Afrldl anowered Blmply. "Thou art u man after nilno wn heart. Tumi Go buck before It Is too Intel" King shook his head. "I was In Khlnjan onco before, my friend I I know tho rulol I failed to reach tho caves that other tlmo be cause I had no witnesses to swear they had seen mo slay a man In tho teeth of written law. I known "Who saw thee this tlmo?" Ismail asked, and began to cackle with, tho cruel humor of the "Hills," that sees amusement In a man's undoing, or In the destruction of bis plans. "Be wnrned and go back!" ft J m4rJr fc'JI ILbBBBBBBBBbW Wmtii fHSllj llfclii L. 9 T ,i m xi f y "Como with me, then." "Nay, I nm her man. She waits for mel" "I Imagine sho wnlts for mel" laughed King. "Forward I Wo havo rested In this place long enough 1" It wns ten of a blazing forenoon, and the sun hnd heated up tho rocks until It was pnln to walk on them and agony to sit, when they topped tho last es carpment nnd enmo In sight of Khtn Jan's walls, ncross n mlle-wldo rock ravine Khlnjan tho unregeuernte, that lias no other human habitation within a march because nono daro build. It was midday when nt Inst they stood on bottom nnd swayed like men In n dream fingering their bruises and scarcely able for the heat haze to sco the tangled mass of stono towers and mud-nnd-stono wnlls that faced them, n mllo away. They wero nearly ncross tho valley, hunting for shadow where none wns to be found, when n shotted snluto brought them up all-standing In n cluster. Six or eight nickel-coated bullets spattered on the rocks close by, and ono so narrowly missed King thut ho could feel Its wind. Up went nil their hands together, nnd they held them so until they ached. Nothing whatever happened. Their arms ceased aching and grew numb. They advanced another two hundred yards and another volley rattled among tho rocks on cither hand, frightening ono of tho mules so that It stumbled and fell and hud to bo helped up again. When that was done, and tho roulo stood trembling, 'they all faced tho wall. But they wero too weary to hold their hands up any more. Thirst had begun to exerclso Its sway. Ono of tho men was half delirious. "Who aro ye?" howled a human be ing, whoso voice was so like a wolf's that tho words at first had no meaning. Ho peered over tho parapet, a hundred feet above, with his head so swathed In dirty linen that he looked like a bandaged corpse. "What will ye? Who comes unin vited Into Khlnjan?" King bethought him of Ynslmlnl's talisman. Ho held It up, and tho gold band glinted In the sun. Yet, although a Hlllmnns eyes are keener than an eagle's, he did not believe the thing could bo recognised at that angle, and from that distance. Another thought suggested Itself to him. He turned his head and caught Ismail In the act of signaling with both bands. "Yo may cornel" howled the watch man on tho parapet, disappearing in stantly. King trembled perhaps as a race horse trembles at the starting gate, though ho was weary enough to trem ble from fatigue. But that passed, neJ was all in hand when he led bis men up over a rough stono causeway to a door In tho bottom of n high bnjtle mentcd wall and waited for somebody to open It. Tho great teak door looked as If It had been stolen from somo nindu tem ple, nnd ho wondered how nnl when they could have broucht It thcro across thoso savage Intervening miles. High above tho door was n ledgo of rock that crossed like n bridge from wall to wall, with a parapet of stono built upon It, pierced for rlflc-flre. As they approached a Hangar tur ban, not unlike King's own, appeared nbovo tho parapet on tho ledgo and a volco ho recognized hailed him good humoredly. "Snlnnm nlelkouml" "And upon thco bo peace 1" King an swered In the Pashtu tongue, for tho "Hills" nro pollto, whatever tho other principles. Kcwa Gungn's fnco beamed down on him, wreathed In smiles that seemed to Includo mockery as well as triumph. Looking up at him nt nn nnglo thnt mndo his neck ache nnd dazzled his eyes, King could not bo pure, but It seemed to him thnt the smtlo said, "Hero you nro, my man, and wren't you In for It?" He more than half sus pected ho wns Intended to understand thnt. But tlio Hangar's conversation took another lino. "By Jovel" ho chuckled. "She ex pected you. Sho guessed you aro a hound who can hunt well on a dry scent, and she dared bet you will conn in spite of all odds I But who didu'l expect you In Itnngar dress I No, by Jovol You Jolly well will tako tho wind out of her sails I" King mndo no nnswer. For ono thing, tho word "hound," even In English, Is not essentially a compliment. But he had a better reason than that. "Did you find tho wny easily?" tho Itangar asked ; but King kept silence. "Is ho parched? Have they cut his tongue out on tho road?" That question was In Pashtu, direct ed at Ismnll nnd tho others, but King answered It. "Oh, as for that," he said, salaaming again In the fastidious manner of n na tive gentleman, "I know no other tongue than Pashtu and my own Rn Jnsthnnl. My nnme Is Kurrnm Khan. I ask admittance." no held up his wrist to show tho gold bracelet, nnd high over his head tho Itnngnr laughed like a bell. "Shnbnsh!" ho laughed. "Well done! Enter, Kurrnm Khun, and be welcome, thou nnd thy men. Be welcome In her name l" Somebody pulled n rope nnd the door ynwticd wide, giving on n kind of courtyard whoso high walls allowed no view of nnythlng but not blue sky. Through n gnp under nn nrch In n fnr corner of tho courtyard came n one eyed, lean-looking villain In Afrldl dress who leaned on n long gun nnd stared nt them under his hand. After n leisurely consideration of them ho rubbed his nose Blowly with one finger, spnt contemptuously, nnd then used tho finger to beckon them, -crooking It qucerly nnd turning on his heel. Ho did not say ono word. King led the wny nfter hlra on foot, for even In the "Hills" where cruelty Is n virtue, a mnn tuny bo excused, on economic grounds, for showing mercy to his beast. His men tugged the wenry nnlmnls along behind hlra. through the gap under the arch nnd nlong nn nlmost Interminable, smelly maze of nlleys whose sides were the wnlls of square stono towers, or some times of mud-nnd-stone-wnlled com pounds, nnd hero and there of sheer, slab-sided cliff. Like Old Jerusalem, tho place could havo contained n civil war of a hundred factions, nnd still havo opposed stout resistance to no outside army. Alley gavo on to courtyard, and filthy square to alley, until unexpectedly at last a seemingly blind passage turned shnrply nnd opened on a straight street, of fulr width, nnd more than Phalf a mllo long. It Is mnrked "Street of tho Dwellings" bn tho secret army maps, nnd It has been burned so often by Khlnjan rioters, as well as by expe ditions out of India, that a man who goes on a long Journey never expects to find It tho samo on bis return. It wns lined on cither hand with motley dwellings, out of which n mot Her crowd of peoplo swarmed to stnro nt King nnd his men. There wero Hin dus sycophants, keepers of accounts nnd writers to the chiefs (since lit eracy Is at a premium In theso parts). In proof of Khlnjan's catholic taste and Indiscriminate villainy, there wcro women of nearly every Indian breed and caste, many of them stolen Into shameful slavery, but somo of them thero from choice. And there were lit tle children little naked brats with round drum tummies, who squealed and shrilled and "tared with bold eyes. Perhaps n thousand souls came out to watch, all told. Not an eye of them all missed the government marks on King's trappings, or the govern ment brand on the mules, and after a inlnuto or two, when tho procession was half-way down the street, a man reproved a child who had thrown a stone, and ho was backed up by tho others. They classified King correct ly, exactly as he meant they should. As n hakim a mnn of medicine ho could fill a long-felt wont ; but by the brand on his accoutrements ho walked nn openly avowed robber, and that made him a brother in crime. Somebody cuffed tho next child who picked up a stone. Ho know tho street of old, althouch It had changed perhaps a dozen times slnco ho had seen It. It was a cul-de-sac, and at tho end of It, Just as on his previous visit, thero stood a stono mosque, whoso roof leaned back at a steep nnglo ngalnst tho mountainside. It was a famous mosquo in Its wny, for tho bed sheet of tho Prophet Is known to hang In It, preserved against tho ravuges of tlmo and tho touch of Infldels by priceless Afghan rugs be foro und behind, eo thnt It hangs Ilka n great thin snndwlch beforo tho renr stono wall. King had seen It. Toward tho mosque the one-eyed ruf flnn led tho way, with tho long, leisure ly-seeming gnlt of a mountnluccr. At tho door, In tho mlddlo of tho end of tho street, ho pnused nnd struck on tho lintel threo times with his gun butt. And thnt wns n strnngo proceeding, to sny tho least, In a land whero tho mosquo Is public resting placo for homeless ones, nnd nil tho "faithful" havo a right to enter. A mullah, shaven llko a mummy for some unnccountnblo reason even his oyebrows nnd eyelashes hnd been re movedpushed his bare head through, the door and blinked at them, Thore was somo whispering and mora star By Talbot Copyright by the Bobbs - ing, nnd nt last the mullah turned his back. Tho door slammed. Tho one-eyed guldo grounded his gun-butt on the stone, nnd tho procession waited, watched by tho crowd that had lost Its Interest sufficiently to tnlk nnd Joke. In two minutes tho mullah returned nnd throw a mnt over the threshold. It turned out to bo the end of n long nar row strip that ho kicked and unrolled In front of him nil ncross the floor of the mosque. After thnt It wns not so nstonlshlng thnt tho horses nnd mules wero nl lowed to enter. "Which proves I wns right after all l" murmured King to himself. In u steel box nt Simla is n mem orandum, mndo nfter his former visit to tho plnce, to tho effect thnt the entrnnco Into Khlnjan caves might possibly be inside the mosque. No- "I Slew an Englishman!" body had believed it likely, and he bad not more than half favored It himself ; but It is good, even when tho next step may lead into a death-trap, to see ono's first opinions confirmed. Ho nodded to himself as the outer door slammed shut behind them, for that W" another most unusual circum stance. . A faint light shone through slltllko windows, changing darkness into gloom, and llttlo more than vaguely hinting at the Prophet's bed sheet. But for a section of white wall to either side of it, the relic might have seemed part of tho shadows. The mullah stood with hl3 back to It and beckoned King nearer. He approached until he could seo the pattern on the covering rugs, nnd the pink rims round tho mullah's lashlcss eyes. "What is thy desire?" tho mullah asked as a wolf might ask what a lamb wants. "Audience with her!" King an swered, and showed the gold bracelet on his wrist The red eye-rims of the mullah blinked a time or two, and though he did not salute the bracelet, as others had Invariably done, his manner un derwent a perceptible change. "That is proof that she knows thee. What is thy name?" "Kurrnm Khan, hakim." "We need thee in Khlnjan caves I But none enter who have not earned right to enter I There Is but one key. Name itl" King drew In bis breath. He bad hoped Ynsmlnl'a talisman would prove to bo key enough. Tho nails of his left band nearly pierced the palm, but ho smiled pleasantly. "He who would enter must slay a man bdfore witnesses in the teeth of written law I" he said. "And thou?" "I slew an Englishman I" The boast mado his blood run cold, but his ex pression was ono of sinful pride. "Whom? When? Where?" "Athelstnn King a British arrflcer sent on his way to theso 'Hills' to spy I" It was llko having spells cast on himself to order I "Whero Is his body?" "Ask tho vultures I Ask the kites 1" "And thy witnesses?" Hoping against hope, King turned and waved his hand. As ho did so, being quick-eyed, ho saw Ismail drive an elbow homo Into Darya Khan's ribs, nnd caught a quick lutcrchungo of whispers, "Theso men nro all known to mo," said tho mullah. "They havo right to enter here. They" havo right to tes tify. Did yo sco him slny his mnn?" "Ayol" lied Ismail, prompt ns friend can be. "Ayol' lied Daryu Khnn, fearful of Ismail's elbow. "Then enter 1" said tho priest re signedly, as ono who admits a com municant against his better Judgment. He turned his back on them a as to face tho Prophet's bed sheet and the rear wall, and in that mlnut a IE?53fl lil- Mundy Merrill Company hairy hand gripped King's arm from behind, and Ismail's volco hissed hot breathed in his car. "Ready of tongue 1 Ready of wit I Who told thee I would He to Bavo thy skin? Beuthy kismet ns thy courage, then but I nm hers, not thy man I Hers, thou light of life though God knows I love thee I" The mullah seized the Prophet's bed sheet and Its covering rugs In both hnnds, with nbout ns much reverence ns salesmen show forwhat they keep In stock. Tho whole lot slid to one side by means of noisy rings on n rod. nnd n wall lay bare, built of crudely cut but well laid blocks. It appeared to reach unbroken ncross the whole width of tho mosque's Interior. On tho floor lny a mallet, a peculiar thing of bronze, enst In ono piece, handle and nil. The mullah took it In his hand nnd struck the stone floor sharply onct then twice again then threo times thou u dozen times In quick succession. Tho floor rung hol low nt thut spot. After nbout n minute there" came one answering hammer stroke from beyond the wnll. Then the inulluh laid tho mallet down and though King nehed to pick It up nnd examine It he did not dure. Ills business wns to ut tract us llttlo attention to himself ns possible; nnd to that end he folded his bunds nnd looked reverent, ns If entering some Mecca of his dreams. Through his horn-rlmmed spectacles his eyes looked fnr nwuy nnd dreamy. But It would havo been a mistake to suppose thut n detull was escaping him. The Irregulur lines In the ninsonry began to be more pronounced. All nt onco tho wnll shook nud they gaped by nn Inch or two, us huppens when nu earthquake has shaken buildings without bringing nnythlng down. Then an irreguinr sectloii of wnll began to move quite smoothly nwny from In front of him, leaving a gnp through which eight men abreast could have marched a tunnel, split In two to right and left. Judging by the ungle of tho two divisions they became one again before going very far. The mullah stood aside and mo tioned King to enter. But the one eyed thrust himself between Dnryn Khun and Ismail, pushed King uslde und took tho lead. "Nay!" he said, "I am responsible to her." It was the first time he had spoken and he appeared to resent the wusto of words. The tunnel was pierced In twenty plnces In the roof for rifle Are; a score of men with enough ammunition could havo held it forever against an army. The guide led, and King followed htm, filled with curiosity. "Mnny have entered I" sang the lashlcss mullah In a sing-song chant. "More havo sought to enter I Somo who remnlned without wero wisest 1 I count them! I keep count! Many went in! Not all came out again by this road I" "Lead along, Charon I" King grinned. He needed some sort of plcasuntry to steady his nerves. But, even so, be wondered what the nerves of India would be like if her millions knew of this place. CHAPTER Xi: The gap closed up behind them and the tunnel began to echo weirdly. Over their heads, at Irregular Intervals, there were holes that if they led as King presumed Into caves above, left not an Inch of all the long passage that could not have been swept by rifle fire. It was Impregnable; for no artillery heavy .enough to pound tho mountain into pieces could ever be dragged within range. Whatever biding place this entrance guarded could bo held forever, given food and cartridges I The tunnel wound to right and left like a snake, growing lighter and light er after each bend ; und soon their own din began to be swallowed In a greater one that entered from tho farther end. After two sharp turns they carao out unexpectedly into tho glaze of bluo day, nearly stunned by light and sound. A roar camo up from below llko that of an ocean In tho grip of a typhoon. When bis wits recovered from tho shock, King struggled with a wild de sire to yell, for beforo him wns what no servant of British India had ever seen and lived to tell about, and that Is an experience moro potent than un broken rum. They had emerged from a round- mouthed tunnel It looked already like a rabbit-hole, so hugo was the cliff be hindon to n ledgo of rock that formed a sort of road along ono Bide of a mlle-wldo chnsm. Abovo him, It seemed a mllo up, was bjuo sky, to which umestono wans ran sneer, witti scarcely a foothold that could bo seen. Beneath, so deep that yes" could not guess how deep, yawned the stained gorgo of tho.underworld, mnny-colored, smooth and wet. And out of a great, Jagged silt in the sldo of the cliff, perhaps a thousand foot below them, thcro poured down Into thunderous dimness a waterfall whose breadth seemed not less thun I half a nUe, It spouted levaatx ar ctghty yards beforo It began to curve ntld Its din was llko tho voice of all cro ntlon. Ismail camo and stood by King In silence, taking his hand, ns a little chlb might Presently he stooped and picked up n stone nnd tossed It over. "Gono I" he said simply. "That down thero Is Earth's Drink I" "And this Is the 'Heart of tho Hills' men bonst about?" "Nay t It is not 1" snapped Ismail. "Then, where" But tho one-eyed guide beckoned Ira pntlently, nnd King led the wny nfter him, staring ns hnkim or prisoner or any mnn had right to do on first ad mission to such wonders. Not to havo stared would 'havo been to proclaim himself nn Idiot They soon began to pnss the mouths of caves. Somo were nbovo tho road, now nnd then at crazy heights above it, reached by artificial steps hewn out of the stone. Others were below, reached from the road by means of lad ders, that trembled and swayed over tho dizzying waterfall. Most of tho caves wero Inhabited, for armed men nnd sullen women camo to their en trances to stnre. Ears grow necustomed to tho sound of wnter sooner than to nlmost any thing. It wns not long beforo King's ears could catch the patter of his men's feet following, nnd the shod clink of the mule. He could hour when Ismail whispered : "Be brave, little hnkim! Sho lovca fcnrless men I" At lust the guide halted, In the mld dlo of u short steep slopo where the path wns less than six feet wide nnd a narrow envo mouth gave directly onto it "Be content to rest here I" he said, pointing. "Thy cuve?" asked King. "Nay. God's I I nm the enretuker !" Tho "'Hills" nro very pious nnd po lite, between the nets of robbing nnd shedding blood. "Allah, then, reward thee, brother l" answered King. "Allnh give Bight to thy blind eye I Allah give thco chil dren! Allnh give thee peace, nnd to nil thy house I" The guide snlnnracd, hnlf-mocklngly, hnlf-wonderlng nt such eloquence, paused In the passage to point 'nto the side enves that debouched to elMicr hand, turned on his heel nnd stacked out of the cavern. It wns the tost King ever saw of him. King turned back and lapked Into the other caves saw the weary Hrso nnd mule fed, wntcred nnd bclded down took note of the running vntcr that rushed out of a rock fissure and gurgled out of sight down nnothci ono examined the servants' cave and raw that they hnd been amply provided with blankets. There was nothing lack ing that the most exueting traveler could hnve demanded at such a dis tance from civilization. There wnD more than the most exacting would huve dnred expect "Ismnll 1" he shouted, und Jumped at tho revolver-cracklike echo of his voice. Ismnll camo running. "Mnke the men curry the mule's packs Into this envc. You and Durya Khan stay here and help me open them. Remember, ye nrc both assist ants of Kurrnm Khnn, the hnkim I" "They will laugh nt us! They ill laugh nt us!" clucked Ismnll, but ho hurried to obey, whllo King wondered who would Inugh. Within an hour n delegntlon enmo from no less a person than Yasmlnl herself, bearing her compliments, and hot food snvory enough to mnke a brass Idol's mouth water. By this time King hnd his sets of surgical Instru ments and drugs and bandages nil laid out on one of tho beds and covered from view by a blanket It .was only ono more proof of the British army's everlasting luck that one of the men, who set the great brass dish of food on the floor near King, had a swollen cheek, and that he should touch the swelling clumsily ai bbbbbbbwa 'WWSBBSbbbPW LbbbbbbbbbbbW V l tvUr CvObVjbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb' c ! JC- IibbbV ibbkbbt De.Ai.7fcM VALfNPN "Does It Pain Thee. Brother?" Asked Kurram Khan, the Hakim. he lifted bis hand to shake back a lock of greasy hatr. There followed an oath like flint struck on steel ten times In rnpld succession. "Does It pain thee, brother?" asked Kurram Khan tho hakim. As a famous medicine man, King holds his first clinic among the suffering natives or the Khln jan country, and hears some Im portant news. sr r. j s (TO BO CONTINUED.) V a l! H .jWl ibbb! IbbK 'H BBBBBT .f,Jft m&U&i(& yij&mt&X&&ai jZJte. iStiI jtSu S,' 4-udjSl i&mJti8i :lvv j&x,ta' f?i. WWK
