UPSTAIRS AND DOWNSTAIRS.
Profound stillness followed the despairing exclamation of Mrs. Shirril,
who believed that her nephew had gone to his death while trying to steal
away from the cabin in which his friends were held at bay by the
Comanches.
The quiet on the outside was as deep and oppressive as within. There was
the sharp, resounding report of the rifle, followed on the instant by
the wild cry of mortal pain, and then all became like the tomb itself.
It was singular that the first spark of hope was kindled by the words of
the colored servant, Dinah.
"What makes you tink de boy am dead?" she asked, a moment after the
woful words of her mistress.
"Didn't you hear him cry out just now?"
"No; I didn't hear him nor did you either; dat warn't de voice ob
Avon."
"How can you know that?" asked Mrs. Shirril, beginning to feel anew hope
within her.
"Lor' o' massy! habent I heerd de voice ob dat younker offen 'nough to
know it 'mong ten fousand? Habent I heerd him yell, too? he neber does
it in _dat_ style; dat war an Injin, and de reason dat he screeched out
in dat onmarciful way war 'cause he got in de path ob Avon and de boy
plugged him."
"By gracious, Dinah! I believe you're right!" was the exclamation of
Captain Shirril, so joyous over the rebound from despair that he was
ready to dance a breakdown in the middle of the floor.
"Course I is right, 'cause I _allers_ is right."
"I suppose there is some reason in that, but please keep quiet--both of
you, for a few minutes, while I listen further."
The women were standing near the captain, who once more inclined his
head, with his ear at the small orifice in the door.
The seconds seemed minutes in length, but as they wore away, nothing
definite was heard. Once or twice the tramp of horses' feet was noticed,
and other sounds left no doubt that most of the Comanches were still
near the dwelling.
This listening would have lasted longer, but for an unpleasant though
not dangerous interruption. Dinah, who seemed to be meeting with some
trouble in her respiration, suddenly emitted a sneeze of such prodigious
force that her friends were startled.
It was not necessary for them to enquire as to the cause. The blanket
that had been thrown upon the flames, and which brought instant night,
did its work well, but it was beginning to suffer therefrom. The fire
was almost smothered, but enough air reached it around the edges of the
thick cloth to cause it to burn with considerable vigor, and give out a
slight illumination, but, worst of all, it filled the room with dense,
overpowering smoke. Breathing was difficult and the odor dreadful.
"This will never do," said the captain, glancing at the fireplace,
where the glowing edges of the blanket were growing fast; "we won't be
able to breathe."
His first thought was to fling another blanket upon the embers, thereby
extinguishing them altogether, but his wife anticipated him by
scattering the contents of the water pail with such judgment over the
young conflagration that it was extinguished utterly. Darkness reigned
again, but the vapor, increased by the dousing of the liquid, rendered
the room almost unbearable.
"You and Dinah had better go upstairs," said the captain to his wife;
"close the door after you, and, by and by, the lower floor will clear; I
can get enough fresh air at the little opening in the door and by the
windows to answer for me; if there is any need of you, I can call, but
perhaps you may find something to do up there yourselves."
The wife and servant obeyed, each taking her gun with her, together with
enough ammunition to provide for fully a score of shots.
The cabin which Captain Dohm Shirril had erected on his ranch in upper
Texas was long and low, as we have already intimated. There was but the
single apartment on the first floor, which served as a kitchen, dining
and sitting room, and parlor. When crowded his guests, to the number of
a dozen, more or less, could spread their blankets on the floor, and
sleep the sleep that waits on rugged health and bounding spirits.
The upper story was divided into three apartments. The one at the end
served for the bedroom of the captain and his wife; the next belonged to
Dinah, while the one beyond, as large as the other two, was appropriated
by Avon and such of the cattlemen as found it convenient to sleep under
a roof, which is often less desirable to the Texan than the canopy of
heaven.
Few of these dwellings are provided with cellars, and there was nothing
of the kind attached to the residence of Captain Shirril. The house was
made of logs and heavy timbers, the slightly sloping roof being of heavy
roughly hewn planking. Stone was scarce in that section, but enough had
been gathered to form a serviceable fireplace, the wooden flue of which
ascended to the roof from within the building.
This brief description will give the reader an idea of the character of
the structure, in which one man and two women found themselves besieged
by a war party of fierce Comanches.
The ceiling of the lower floor was so low that, had the captain stood
erect with an ordinary silk hat on his head, it would have touched it.
The stairs consisted of a short, sloping ladder, over which a trap-door
could be shut, so as to prevent anyone entering from below.
Inasmuch as smoke generally climbs upward, the second story would have
proven a poor refuge had the women waited any time before resorting to
it. As it was, considerable vapor accompanied them up the rounds of the
ladder, but, when the trap-door was closed after them, the greater
purity of the air afforded both relief.
It will be recalled that the lower story was furnished with two windows
at the front, of such strait form that no man could force his way
through them. The upper floor was more liberally provided in this
respect, each apartment having a window at the front and rear, though
the foresight of Captain Shirril made these as narrow as those below.
Indeed they were so near the ground that otherwise they would have
formed a continual invitation to hostile parties to enter through them.
So long as an attacking force kept off, three defenders like those now
within the house might defy double the number of assailants that
threatened them. No implement of warfare at the command of the red men
was sufficient to batter down the walls, or drive the massive door from
its hinges.
But the real source of danger has been indicated. The cabin was located
so far toward Western Texas, that it was exposed to raids from the
Comanches and Kioways, while occasionally a band of Apaches penetrated
the section from their regular hunting grounds in Arizona or New
Mexico.
Although the red men might find it impossible to force an entrance, yet
the darkness allowed them to manoeuvre outside, and lay their plans
with little danger of molestation. The roof of the building had been
seasoned by its long exposure to the weather, until it was as dry as
tinder. This was increased, if possible, by the drought that had now
lasted for months in that portion of Texas. A slight fire would speedily
fan itself into a flame that would reduce the building to ashes.
"And it only needs to be started," thought Captain Shirril, when he
found himself alone below stairs, "and it will do the work; it was very
thoughtful in Edna to dash that pailful of water on the smouldering
blanket, and it quenched the embers, but, all the same, it required the
last drop in the house."
However, there was nothing to be feared in the nature of thirst. The
defenders could go without drink easily enough for twenty-four hours,
and the issue of this serious matter would be settled one way or other
long before that period passed. The cowboys would not wait long after
sunrise for their leader, before setting out to learn the cause of his
delay.
The question of life and death must be answered before the rising of the
morrow's sun.