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Philip Joyce

Practical Numerical C Programming

Finance, Engineering, and Physics
Applications
1st ed.
Philip Joyce
Goostrey, UK

Any source code or other supplementary material referenced by the

author in this book is available to readers on GitHub via the book’s
product page, located at www.​apress.​com/​978-1-4842-6127-9. For
more detailed information, please visit http://​www.​apress.​com/​
source-code.

ISBN 978-1-4842-6127-9 e-ISBN 978-1-4842-6128-6

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-6128-6

© Philip Joyce 2020

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the

Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned,
specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,
recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other
physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval,
electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar
methodology now known or hereafter developed.

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks,

service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the
absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the
relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general
use.

The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the
advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate
at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the
editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the
material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Distributed to the book trade worldwide by Apress Media, LLC, 1 New

York Plaza, New York, NY 10004, U.S.A. Phone 1-800-SPRINGER, fax
(201) 348-4505, e-mail orders-ny@springer-sbm.com, or visit
www.springeronline.com. Apress Media, LLC is a California LLC and the
sole member (owner) is Springer Science + Business Media Finance Inc
(SSBM Finance Inc). SSBM Finance Inc is a Delaware corporation.
Introduction
The C programming language is an important language in many
computer applications. It is the basis of C++ and C#. This book will
demonstrate how to use the C language to solve problems in finance,
commercial/industrial systems, and physics.
A basic familiarity with mathematics is assumed along with some
experience of the basics of computer programs.
The first chapter reviews the basic areas that C can be used in. A
more detailed introduction to C is contained in my Numerical C book.
The chapters following this C review are grouped into finance
(including regression, CAPM, and asset pricing), commercial
applications (supermarket stock control, airport flight information, and
power plant control), and various physics applications. The Graph
package has been used to display the results of programs.
There are exercises in each chapter with answers and suggested
code at the end of the book. The book’s source code can be accessed via
the Download Source Code link located at
www.apress.com/9781484261279 .
Acknowledgments
Thanks to my wife, Anne, for her support, my son Michael, and my
daughter Katharine.
Michael uses regression techniques in his work and has shared
some ideas with me.
Katharine is a software engineer working for a UK bank. All three
have mathematics degrees.
Thanks to everyone on the Apress team who helped me with the
publication of this, my second book. Special thanks to Mark Powers, the
coordinating editor, for his advice; Steve Anglin, the acquisitions editor;
Matthew Moodie, the development editor; and Juturi Narsimha Rao, the
technical reviewer.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1:​Review of C
1.​1 Arithmetic
1.​2 Switches
1.​3 Arrays
1.​4 Strings
1.​5 Mathematical Functions
1.​6 User-Written Functions
1.​7 File Creation
1.​8 File Read
1.​9 File Create2
1.​10 File Read2
1.​11 Common Mathematical and Logical Symbols
Part I: Finance Applications
Chapter 2:​Regression
2.​1 Capital Asset Pricing Model
2.​2 CAPM Illustration
Chapter 3:​PMCC
3.​1 Theory
3.​2 Manual Calculation of PMCC
3.​3 PMCC Program
3.​4 Comparison of the Two Regression Lines
3.​5 Manual Calculation of the Two Regression Lines
3.​6 Program for the Two Regression Lines
Chapter 4:​Stock Price Prediction
 4.​1 Two Parts to Stock Price Changes
4.​2 Drift Part of Formula
4.​3 Simple Example with 5 Day’s Prices
4.​4 Random Change Part of Formula
4.​5 Combining the Two Elements
Part II: Commercial Applications
Chapter 5:​Supermarket Stock
5.​1 What We Are Simulating
5.​2 Updating the File
Chapter 6:​Flight Information
6.​1 Airport Display Boards
6.​2 Create Flights File
6.​3 Update Display Boards
6.​3.​1 Not-Rollup Mechanism
6.​3.​2 Rollup Mechanism
Chapter 7:​Power Plant Control
7.​1 Simulation
7.​2 Monitoring Safety Levels
Part III: Physics Applications
Chapter 8:​Energy Transfer
8.​1 Potential and Kinetic Energy Simulation
8.​2 Convert Theory to Code
Chapter 9:​Pendulum Simulation
9.​1 Pendulum Theory
9.​2 Euler Method
9.​3 Euler-Cromer Method
Chapter 10:​Center of Mass
10.​1 Center of Mass Theory
10.​2 Circular Plate
10.​3 Other Shapes
Chapter 11:​Brownian Motion
11.​1 Brownian Motion Theory
Chapter 12:​Diffusion Lattice Model
12.​1 Vacancy Lattice Diffusion
Chapter 13:​Chain Reaction
13.​1 Chain Reaction Theory
13.​2 Chain Reaction Program
Appendix:​Answers to Problems
Index
About the Author
Philip Joyce
has 28 years of experience as a software engineer – working on control
of steel production, control of oil refineries, communications software
(pre-Internet), office products (server software), and computer control
of airports. This involved programming in Assembler, COBOL, Coral66,
C, and C++. Philip was a mentor to new graduates in the company. He
also has MSc in computational physics (including augmented matrix
techniques and Monte Carlo techniques using Fortran) from Salford
University, 1996. Philip is a chartered physicist and member of the
Institute of Physics (member of the higher education group). His first
book, Numerical C, was published by Apress in September 2019.
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About the Technical Reviewer
Juturi Narsimha Rao
has 9 years of experience as a software developer, lead engineer, project
engineer, and individual contributor. His current focus is on advanced
supply chain planning between the manufacturing industries and
vendors.
© Philip Joyce 2020
P. Joyce, Practical Numerical C Programming
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-6128-6_1

1. Review of C
Philip Joyce1
(1) Goostrey, UK

This chapter reviews the properties of the C programming language.

Example programs are given to illustrate the different areas that C
covers, for example, for, while, do-while loops, user-defined functions,
switches, mathematical functions, file access, and so on.
The programs tend to bring together similar properties, for
example, mathematical functions, and incorporate them as single
programs. The reader can just use the part of these programs that they
need for their program.

1.1 Arithmetic
This program starts with the basic process of asking the user to enter
some data. Here, we will use the term “in the location c” to mean “in the
address of the variable c in the local stack space.”
Firstly, it uses the printf command to write to the user’s
command line to say “Enter character”. When the user types in a
character, the getchar function reads it and places it into the location
c. It then tells the user the character they have entered, firstly using
printf to say “Character entered” and then putchar with c as the
parameter to write the contents of c to the command line. In this case
the location c is a character location denoted by char.
If we want to read integers rather than characters, we define the
location where it is to be stored as int. In this case we call the int
this_is_a_number1. Here, we use the more widely used command
scanf to read in the integer. We specify this_is_a_number1 as a
parameter to the call, and as a first parameter, we specify %d to say that
it is an integer.
We can repeat this with another variable this_is_a_number2.
We can now add these two variables using the coding total=
this_is_a_number1+ this_is_a_number2 where total has to
be defined as an integer. Again, we can use the printf function to
display our answer from total.
We can do similar things with floating point numbers. We define
them as float rather than int. We can subtract numbers using –
rather than +. Similarly, we can multiply using * and divide using /.
The following is the code for our arithmetic calculations:

/* ch1arith.c */
/* Read, display, and arithmetic */
/* Read input data from the command line */
/* and read it into the program. */
/* Also write the data back to the */
/* command line. Basic arithmetic */
/* done on input data. */
#define _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS

#include <stdio.h>
int main ()
{
char c; /* Declared character variable */
int this_is_a_number1, this_is_a_number2,
total; /* Declared integer variables */
float float_number1,
float_number2,float_total; /* Declared float
variables*/

/* Read and display a character */

printf("Enter character: "); /* Tell the

user to enter a character */
 c = getchar(); /* Read the character in and
store in c */

printf("Character entered: "); /* Tell the

user what was entered */
putchar(c); /* Write the char into variable
c */

/* Read in two integers, add them, and display the

answer */

printf("\nPlease enter an integer number:\n

");
scanf("%d", &this_is_a_number1); /* Read
number into this_is_a_number1 */
printf("You entered %d\n",
this_is_a_number1);

printf("Please enter another integer number:

\n");
scanf("%d", &this_is_a_number2); /* Read
number into this_is_a_number2 */
printf("You entered %d\n",
this_is_a_number2);

total = this_is_a_number1 +
this_is_a_number2; /* Add two numbers store in
total */
printf("sum of your two integer numbers is
%d\n", total); /* Write result to command line */

/* Add two floating point numbers */

printf("Please enter a decimal number:\n ");

scanf("%f", &float_number1); /* Read decimal
number into float_number1 */
printf("You entered %f\n", float_number1);
 printf("Please enter another decimal number:
\n");
scanf("%f", & float_number2); /*Read decimal
number into float_number2 */
printf("You entered %f\n", float_number2);

float_total = float_number1+float_number2;
/* Add the numbers */
printf("sum of your two decimal numbers is
%f\n", float_total); /* Write result to command
line */

/* Multiply two floating point numbers */

float_total = float_number1 * float_number2;

/* Multiply the numbers */
printf("product of your two decimal numbers
is %f\n", float_total); /* Write result to command
line */

/* Divide two floating point numbers */

/* Divide the numbers */

/* Place answer into float_total */

float_total = float_number1 /
float_number2);

/* Write result to command line */

printf("quotient of your two decimal numbers

is %f\n", float_total) ;
return 0;
}

1.2 Switches
A switch statement is a multiway branch statement. A program can
perform separate different functions. In order to select which one is
required, the program asks the user to select a value, for example, 1 to
use the cosine function, 2 to use the sine function, and so on. The
program then uses this number in the switch command to jump to the
relevant code.
This sequence of code is shown as follows:

printf("\nPlease enter a character a,b,c,d or e:\n

");
scanf("%c", &this_is_a_character);/* read into
this_is_a_character */

switch (this_is_a_character)
{
case 'a':
printf("Case1: Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
break;

We can switch on numbers or characters. So, for example, we could

ask the user to enter a number from 1 to 5 or a letter from a to e. For
characters we read their value using scanf with %c as a parameter. In
the program, if you select a, then the switch jumps to case a in the
code. In the code here, we print out the fact that we have jumped to
case a, but this is only to demonstrate how it works. After the relevant
code in case a, the program issues a break which jumps to the end of
the switch options.
If the user is asked to type a to e but they type in f, then the switch
goes to the default case. Here, we can just output an error message to
the user.
The following code demonstrates switches:

/* ch1sw.c */
/* Demonstrate switch case functionality by using
switch case */
/* parameter choice as either characters or
numbers */
#define _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS

#include <stdio.h>

/* Example of a switch operation */

int main()
{
int this_is_a_number; /* Store area to hold
number entered */
char this_is_a_character; /* Store area to hold
character entered */

printf("\nPlease enter a character a,b,c,d or

e:\n ");
scanf("%c", &this_is_a_character); /* Read into
this_is_a_character */

/* Switch to the specific "case" for the

character entered */
/* then print which switch case was entered */
switch (this_is_a_character)
{

case 'a':
printf("Case1: Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
break;
case 'b':
printf("Case2: Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
break;
case 'c':
printf("Case3: Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
break;
case 'd':
 printf("Case4: Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
break;
case 'e':
printf("Case5: Value is: %c",
this_is_a_character);
break;
default:
/* The character entered was not
between a, b, c, d, or e */
printf("Error Value is: %c\n",
this_is_a_character);
}

printf("Please enter an integer between 1

and 5:\n ");
scanf("%d", &this_is_a_number);

/* Switch to the specific "case" for the

number entered */
/* then print which switch case was
entered */
switch (this_is_a_number)
{

case 1:
printf("Case1: Value is: %d\n",
this_is_a_number);
break;
case 2:
printf("Case2: Value is: %d\n",
this_is_a_number) ;
break;
case 3:
printf("Case3: Value is: %d\n",
this_is_a_number);
break;
 case 4:
printf("Case4: Value is: %d\n",
this_is_a_number);
break;
case 5:
printf("Case5: Value is: %d\n",
this_is_a_number);
break;
default:
/* The number entered was not
between 1 and 5 */
printf("Error Value is: %d",
this_is_a_number);
}

return 0;
}

1.3 Arrays
As well as defining storage locations as single int, char, or float, we
can have a number of separate values contained in the same named
location. The locations are called arrays. The following program shows
an array of 8 integers defined as int arr1[8] where arr1 is the
name we use in our program for this location.
We could now store 8 integers, for example, 53614673 in the array.
So here, arr1[0] contains 5, arr1[1] contains 3, arr1[2] contains
6, and so on. Note that we count from 0.
We can, as before, ask the user to enter data, but rather than have 8
sets of printf and scanf commands, we can use a forloop, where
we tell the program to perform the same instructions 8 times. We use
the storage location i to move from arr1[0] to arr1[1] and so on,
and we also use the i location to keep count of how many times to go
round the loop. In the for instruction for(i=0;i<8;i++), the i=0
part sets the count i to 0, the i++ adds 1 each time we loop, and i<8
limits the number of times to 8 (note again that we count from 0).
 We can also have 2D arrays which are a bit like 2D matrices. We can
define an array as arr2[3][5] so we could store the matrix. The

matrix has 3 rows and 5 columns.

in our array as arr2[0][0] = 2 arr2[0][1] = 3

arr2[0][2] = 6 arr2[0][3] = 5 arr2[0][4]=10
arr2[1][0] = 4 arr2[1][1] = 12 arr2[1][2] = 7
arr2[1][3] = 8 arr2[1][4]=11
arr2[2][0] = 9 arr2[2][1] = 0 arr2[2][2] = 12
arr2[2][3] = 13 arr2[2][4]=14

Note, again, that we count from 0.

The program asks you to enter the 2D matrix. If you enter a 3x5
matrix, you can enter the data here. The program prints your array at
the end.
The code is shown as follows:

/* ch1arr.c */
/* Array use and nested forloops */

#define _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS

#include <stdio.h>

/* Program to show array use */

int main()
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{
int arr1[8]; /* Define an array of 8 integers
*/

int arr2[3][5]; /* 2D array of integers 3 rows

and 5 columns*/

int i, j, k, l;

/* arr1 1D array */
/* Ask the user to enter the data */
printf("enter 8 integer numbers\n");

for (i = 0;i < 8;i++)

{
/* Read the data into array arr1 */
scanf("%d", &arr1[i]); /* Read into
arr1[i] */
}
printf("Your 8 numbers are \n");

for (i = 0;i < 8;i++)

{
printf("%d ", arr1[i]); /* Write contents
of arr1 to command line */
}
printf("\n");

/* arr2 2D array */

/* Ask the user to enter the data */

printf("enter number of rows and columns (max 3
rows max 5 columns) \n");
scanf("%d %d", &k, &l);
if (k > 3 || l > 5)
{
/* User tried to enter more than 3 rows
or 5 columns */
 printf("error - max of 8 for rows or
columns\n");

else
{
printf("enter array\n");
/* Read i rows and j columns using nested
forloop */
for (i = 0;i < k;i++)
{
for (j = 0;j < l;j++)
{
/* Read the data into array
arr2 */
scanf("%d", &arr2[i][j]);
}
}
printf("Your array is \n");
/* Print entered 2D array using nested
forloop */
for (i = 0;i < k;i++)
{
for (j = 0;j < l;j++)
{
printf("%d ", arr2[i][j]);
}
printf("\n");

}
}

1.4 Strings
The next program shows the use of string manipulation. Strings are
char arrays in the program. Our array “select” is preset with values ‘s’ ‘e’
‘l’ ‘e’ ‘c’ ‘t’ '\0'. This is preset this way to show how the characters are
stored. We would normally define it as char select[7] = “select”;. The
second and third arrays are string1 and string2 and preset as shown.
Our first function is strlen which just returns the length of the string
you have entered. Here, it returns the length of int data point called len.
We can then print this to the user using printf.
The second string function copies one string into the other. So here,
we say strcpy(string3,string1) copies the contents of string1 into
string3. Again, we can print this out using printf.
Our next function, strcmp, compares two strings. If they are the
same, it replies 0.
Our final function concatenates one string onto the end of the other.
So here, it concatenates string2 onto string1 giving “This is string1. This
is string2”.
The code is as follows:

/* ch1strings.c */
/* Demonstrate strings */

#define _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS
#include <stdio.h>
#include <string.h>
/* Program to demonstrate string operations
strlen, strcpy, strcat, strcmp */

int main() {
char select[7] = { 's', 'e', 'l', 'e', 'c',
't','\0' };
char string1[32] = "This is string1";
char string2[16] = "This is string2";
char string3[16];

int len;

/* Print out the lengths of the strings */

/* strlen returns length of string */
 len = strlen(string1);
printf("strlen(string1) : %d\n", len);
len = strlen(string2);
printf("strlen(string2) : %d\n", len);
len = strlen(string3);
printf("strlen(string3) : %d\n", len);

/* copy string1 into string3 */

/* strcpy copies string1 into string3 */

strcpy(string3, string1);
printf("strcpy( string3, string1) : %s\n",
string3);
len = strlen(string3);
printf("strlen(string3) after copy of
string1 into string3 : %d\n", len);

/* strcmp compares strings & returns 0 if

they are equal */
/* strcmp returns negative value if they are
not equal */
/* Compare string1 and string3 (these should
be the same)*/

if (strcmp(string1, string3) == 0)
printf("strings are the same\n");

/* Concatenates string1 and string2 */

strcat(string1, string2);
printf("strcat( string1, string2): %s\n",
string1);

/* Total length of string1 after

concatenation */
len = strlen(string1);
printf("strlen(string1) after cat of string2
onto string1 : %d\n", len);
 printf("String as predefined quoted chars:
%s\n", select);

return 0;
}

1.5 Mathematical Functions

The commonly used mathematical functions are available for you to call
from your program. You need to include the library file <math.h> in
your program to access these. The first three functions are cos, sin,
and tan. Here, you are expected to enter the angle in degrees, but you
can change the code if you want so that you can enter the angle in
radians. The next three are arccos, arcsin, and arctan. Again,
these functions will return the angle in degrees, but again you can
change this to radians.
The next three functions are pow, sqrt, and fabs. The pow
function finds the power of a number. Its first parameter is the number
you want to find the power of and the second parameter is the power
you want to use. The functions return to answer to the store location
answer which is defined as a double float. The function sqrt finds
the square root of the number you enter as its parameter. Again, it
returns the answer into answer. The final function is fabs . You
supply a number as the parameter and it returns the absolute value of
the number.
The code is as follows:

/* ch1math.c */
/* Demonstrate mathematics functions */
#define _CRT_SECURE_NO_WARNINGS
#include <stdio.h>

#include <math.h>
#define PI 3.14159265
/* Illustration of the common trigonometric
functions */
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wrought-upon scout.
Bennett laughed again.
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And now I scalp my enemy!”
Bennett had worked himself into a species of frenzy. He sprang
forward now, dropping his revolver, knife in hand, to carry out his
threat.
“Never shall you do this crime—not if this is my last act on earth!”
shouted the scout.
As he spoke he suddenly jerked a revolver from his belt, threw it
forward, and fired pointblank at Boyd Bennett, all with the quickness
of a flash of light!
 CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE WHITE ANTELOPE INTERFERES.

So rapid and unexpected was this movement of Buffalo Bill, in

drawing his revolver and firing it, that not one of the warriors who
stood behind the renegade chief—some with arrows already fitted to
their bows, and others with rifles covering the scout—had time to
fire.
Yet, swift as he had been, one eye was quick enough to send an
arrow upon its errand. The shaft struck the outstretched arm of the
scout just as his finger pulled the trigger of his weapon, and the
shock destroyed his aim.
Having made this daring move, however, and believing that death
must follow the deed, Buffalo Bill dropped his left hand upon his
second pistol, determined to press the fight, kill Bennett, and die as
had the brave man at his feet—fighting to the last!
Maddened with rage and thirsting for the life of his foe, Boyd
Bennett shouted to his warriors to rush upon the scout and take him
alive that he might end his career by cruel torture. But suddenly a
slender form darted before the red braves, and, with arrow set in
readiness to let fly, the White Antelope thrust herself between the
white man and the reds who would have seized him.
“Let the Sioux braves hold their hands. The White Antelope
commands it!”
Like one man the reds halted, and even the renegade shrank back a
step, gazing in fear and wonder on the apparition of the beautiful
girl.
Buffalo Bill, too, gazed upon the chief’s daughter in amazement. He
knew now that the arrow he drew from the wound in his right
forearm had been driven home by the girl; yet now she stood
between him and his foes.
Her attitude evidently astonished Bennett as much as it did Cody
himself, for the renegade cried:
“Why has the White Antelope become the friend of the slayer of her
people? The man she shelters is Pa-e-has-ka, the Long Hair.”
“The arrow of the White Antelope brings blood from the arm of Pa-e-
has-ka. Is that the way in which a Sioux shows friendship?” asked
the young girl scornfully.
“Then the White Antelope yields the paleface foe to the medicine
chief of her tribe?”
“No!” was the decided response.
“What would you do?” demanded the renegade angrily.
“I will deliver Pa-e-has-ka to the great chief, my father, Oak Heart.”
“The White Antelope is no warrior,” sneered the renegade. “Are there
not braves enough loyal to Oak Heart to carry out his will upon this
paleface?”
“The White Antelope may be no warrior,” said the girl; “but she has
just saved the life of the Death Killer.”
At this Buffalo Bill laughed aloud, for the shot was a good one, and
his seeming indifference to his peril caused the daughter of the chief
to turn her eyes upon him. She scanned the scout from head to foot.
What was in her thoughts he could not guess; but, suddenly,
deciding upon a course of action, she stepped boldly to the side of
Buffalo Bill, and touched with tender fingers the wounded arm which
he had bared.
“If the Long Hair has ointment for the wound, it would be better to
bind it,” she said to him.
Buffalo Bill opened his pouch, and the girl found the salve and
bandages he always carried. Meanwhile, the scout sucked the wound
to remove any foreign matter that might have been driven into it by
the arrowhead. Then the Indian maiden bound up the hurt while the
renegade looked on sullenly.
“Why is the Long Hair here—so near the village of the Sioux?” she
asked Buffalo Bill, when this act of kindness was performed.
“I chanced upon the place. I saw the dead. Here lies my friend—the
young man whom I loved as a son,” said the scout, pointing to the
body of Danforth. “He and his men have been all slain by the Sioux.”
“They were enemies,” said the girl simply.
“But they had not come out to disturb the red men.”
“Why were they here?”
“To find and take prisoner that villain yonder!” exclaimed Buffalo Bill,
scowling at Boyd Bennett in his war-paint and feathers. “That man
who is neither white nor red, but a squaw-man! He had committed
crimes against the white man’s law and should be punished by that
law.”
“My father heard that the palefaces were coming to seize him.”
“Another lie of that renegade!” exclaimed the scout. “And while I
mourned over the body of this young man, the villain came upon
me, returning, as he declares, to tear the scalp from the head of the
white chief whom he was not brave enough himself to kill!”
The girl seemed to understand. She glanced from the body of
Danforth to the rage-inflamed face of Boyd Bennett.
“Is it from this dead white chief’s head the Killer would take the
scalp?” she asked haughtily.
“Aye; and I will have it!” cried Bennett.
“Did the young paleface fall by thy hand, Death Killer?” demanded
the maiden, with all the dignity of a judge.
“It matters not. Forget not, oh, White Antelope, that I am the
medicine chief of the Sioux——”
“And see that the Death Killer forget not that I am the daughter of
Oak Heart!” she interrupted.
“I acknowledge that fact,” sneered Boyd Bennett. “But the White
Antelope has no control over the acts of the Death Killer.”
“Did the paleface fall to your prowess?” she demanded again,
looking the renegade sternly in the eye.
An Indian stepped forward. He carried a blood-stained war-club in
one hand. In a deep guttural he said:
“The white chief’s scalp should be Red Knife’s; he brought him low
at last with a blow of his club. But the great chief, Oak Heart,
forbade that we take the scalp of so brave a warrior.”
“Then why does the Death Killer wish to do that which is forbidden
by my father?” cried the girl quickly.
“Is it the White Antelope’s place to question the medicine chief of
her tribe?” demanded the painted white man, with haughty
demeanor. “The scalp of the dead bluecoat is my prize!”
Buffalo Bill saw indecision in the Indian maiden’s face. He knew how
superstitious the redskins were regarding the mysterious powers
claimed by all medicine chiefs. In some way—by some manner of
fake magic—Boyd Bennett had roused the superstitious reverence of
the Sioux, and Buffalo Bill did not know how greatly the chief’s
daughter might be tainted by this feeling of reverence for the
villainous renegade.
“Let not this crime be done, White Antelope,” he said in her ear.
“Remember what Pa-e-has-ka told you in the cañon, when he had
you in his power. He knows much. He was once your mother’s
trusted friend. And he warns you now—as you hope for peace of
soul and body—not to allow the dead young man to be so treated by
your people.”
The girl turned upon him suddenly, with wide-open eyes.
“What does Long Hair mean? What is this dead paleface to her?”
“That Long Hair may not tell thee, oh, White Antelope. Trust him
——”
“Trust a paleface!”
“Trust one who has given you back to your father when he might
have taken your life, or held you prisoner.”
“Aye, Long Hair, thou didst that. It is true.”
“And believe me,” the scout said, more earnestly still, in English, not
wishing the other Indians to understand; “this dead paleface whom
even the great chief Oak Heart admired for his bravery, is more to
the White Antelope than she knows. The time will come when I can
explain all to you, girl—but not now!”
“What’s that?” demanded Boyd Bennett, stepping forward. “What’s
this foolishness you are telling the girl?”
But the White Antelope haughtily waved him back.
“Let the Death Killer stand away. The chief’s daughter can care for
herself. And let not one of these dead palefaces be further disturbed.
It is my will!”
The waiting Indians grunted agreement. They were willing enough
to obey the beautiful princess. The White Antelope turned again to
Buffalo Bill:
“Where are the paleface brothers of Pa-e-has-ka?”
Buffalo Bill pointed in the direction from which he had come.
“Far away.”
“The White Antelope is his foe, and the foe of his people; but she
wishes not to see the wolves and the vultures tear the bodies of
brave men for food. The Sioux have come to remove their dead. Let
Pa-e-has-ka go bring his brother warriors to remove the paleface
slain.”
At that Boyd Bennett uttered an oath and sprang forward.
“Not that, girl! You’re crazy!”
“We’ll see who wears the breeches in this family, Boyd Bennett!”
laughed the scout.
“You shall not leave this spot alive, Bill Cody!”
“Oh, shucks! Don’t speak so harshly,” gibed the scout.
The girl raised her hand. Without looking at the renegade, she said
to Buffalo Bill:
“But Pa-e-has-ka must make the White Antelope a promise.”
“All right. What is it?”
“The White Antelope came from the great chief Oak Heart, who told
her to seek the paleface warriors and tell them where to find their
dead. He bids them to come here and remove their slain in peace,
and not to follow on the track of his people. Will Pa-e-has-ka tell the
big chief the words of Oak Heart?”
“I will.”
“Then Pa-e-has-ka must promise to return and yield himself to the
Sioux.”
She looked Buffalo Bill straight in the eye as she stated her
condition, and he saw that she meant exactly what she said; but he
asked:
“Does the White Antelope mean that I am to give myself up to the
red warriors after I have guided the bluecoats here?”
“She has spoken.”
“And this is the promise she wishes Pa-e-has-ka to make?”
The Indian girl nodded.
“Why should Pa-e-has-ka return?”
“He is the captive of the medicine chief, Death Killer, now; but White
Antelope lets him go free that the paleface braves lie not unburied,
and that the other white warriors take heed not to follow upon the
trail of the Sioux. Will Pa-e-has-ka promise?”
Buffalo Bill was silent for a moment. If he refused he knew that her
protection would cease. If he agreed to her condition he must keep
his word, be the end what it might. And that end looked to the scout
much like an ironwood stake, a hot fire, and a bunch of naked red
devils dancing a two-step about him while he slowly crisped to a
cinder!
There was a loophole. He made a mental reservation that, after
bearing the tidings of the massacre to the fort, and delivering Oak
Heart’s warning, he would return to the Sioux encampment—but
with a force behind him that would surprise the redskins!
“I agree,” he said finally.
“Trust not the fox-tongue of the Long Hair!” cried Boyd Bennett
violently. “He will not keep his pledge.”
“The paleface is the foe of my people, but his tongue is straight,”
declared the Indian maiden, with confidence.
Buffalo Bill began secretly to weaken on that “mental reservation.”
“But he will come with a force at his back and burn the Indian
village,” cried the renegade.
Buffalo Bill had to give the fellow credit for having divined his
purpose; but the girl turned scornfully from the squaw-man.
“Pa-e-has-ka is not two-faced. He is not a turncoat,” she said
sneeringly. “The White Antelope will believe that the Long Hair will
return alone.”
Buffalo Bill at that completely abandoned the “mental reservation”
clause.
“Bet your life he will!” he exclaimed. “I’ll come back as I promise,
girl.”
“Then let Pa-e-has-ka go.”
But as she spoke the command, Boyd Bennett once more sprang
forward. He covered the scout with his rifle and cried:
“I am the medicine chief of the Sioux, and I say the paleface dog
shall not go!”
Then in English he declared:
“Your hour has come, Buffalo Bill. You die here and now!”
 CHAPTER XXIX.
A GIRL’S WORD.

The instant the renegade uttered the threat, Buffalo Bill placed
himself upon guard by drawing his revolvers and covering the
scoundrel. His wounded arm was sore, but the nerves had recovered
from the shock of the arrow-wound, and he could hold his gun
steadily enough. The renegade was so near at best that the scout
could not miss him!
But the scout did not shoot. The White Antelope with flashing eyes,
sprang to the front, and she, too, aimed her arrow at Boyd Bennett.
The warriors—or the bulk of them, at least—were surprised by
Buffalo Bill’s action, and their several weapons were in line for the
scout’s heart before they noted the White Antelope’s action. Then
several of them dropped their guns, and their facial expression was
as foolish as it was possible for so stoical a set of faces to be!
For a moment the tableau continued. A sudden motion might have
precipitated a bloody, though brief, conflict. Buffalo Bill, though pale,
was stern and determined, his eyes riveted upon the face of Boyd
Bennett. He felt that the girl was friendly to him, and he knew her
influence among the Sioux.
“Why do you not bring that finger to the trigger of your rifle,
Bennett?” he asked sneeringly. “It won’t go off otherwise.”
The girl looked at the warriors and commanded quickly:
“Let the braves of Oak Heart turn their weapons from the heart of
Pa-e-has-ka, the paleface chief.”
To the delight of Buffalo Bill, the command was instantly obeyed.
Much as they might have feared the power of the medicine chief,
Oak Heart was greater, and his daughter was here as his
representative.
That Boyd Bennett was nonplused by this move was plain. His face
fell, and he lowered his own rifle. But the scowl of deadly hatred
which he bestowed on the white man threatened vengeance at
some future date.
“I reckon the redskins are trumps, old man, and the girl holds a full
hand of them!” laughed Buffalo Bill.
“It is your time to laugh now, Cody. But mine will come,” gritted the
renegade.
“Oh, I can’t expect to laugh always, Bennett; but,” and the scout
changed his speech to the Sioux dialect, that all the warriors might
understand; “let the renegade paleface meet me now in personal
combat, and settle the matter at once. Long Hair does not fear a fair
fight with the mighty Death Killer!” he added sneeringly.
The nods and grunts of the warriors showed that they approved of
this proposal. Although they could not quite agree with the White
Antelope’s friendliness with Buffalo Bill, they saw that he was a
brave man—as, indeed, they knew well before—and a duel to the
death seemed to their savage minds the only way to properly decide
the controversy between their medicine chief and the scout. They
looked at Bennett expectantly.
But the renegade was not desirous of meeting Buffalo Bill with any
weapon he might name! He knew the scout’s prowess too well. His
desire was to see the scout writhing in the embrace of the flames, or
standing bound as a target for the hatchet-marksmen of the Indian
tribe with which he was affiliated.
He dared not seem to refuse the challenge, however, for he would
then lose completely his influence with Oak Heart’s braves. But
suddenly he caught sight of the Indian maiden’s face, and that he
read like an open book!
“The enemy of the Sioux has spoken well. We will fight!” exclaimed
Boyd Bennett promptly, but with a crafty smile wreathing his lips.
“The White Antelope says ‘No!’” exclaimed the Indian girl, facing the
renegade.
As he was so sure she would veto the proposition, the wily Bennett
was eager to urge the duel.
“Why does the daughter of the great chief interfere? She says that
Pa-e-has-ka is not her friend, and yet she shields him.”
Buffalo Bill had to chuckle over this. He couldn’t help it. He saw
through the whole game of Bennett’s, and it amused him.
“No, the Long Hair shall not fight the medicine chief,” declared the
girl earnestly.
“And why not?” demanded Bennett, with continued haughtiness.
“Because if they fought, the white man would wear the medicine
chief’s scalp at his belt,” declared the young girl. “The white man
shall go his way, bring his brothers to bury the paleface dead, and
then deliver himself to Oak Heart, as he has promised.”
“And you can make up your mind, Boyd Bennett, that she says one
very true thing,” declared Buffalo Bill. “Whenever we do fight, you’ll
go under! Mark that! I’ll run you down yet and nail your scalp to the
wall of Fort Advance as a warning to all horse-thieves, stage-
robbers, and deserters!”
The White Antelope spoke quickly before the wrathful Bennett could
reply to this challenge:
“Let the paleface go to his big chief. There is his horse. Yonder is his
weapon. Mount, Pa-e-has-ka, and away!”
“Aye, girl,” said Cody, in English; “but what will happen to this poor
young man if I go, leaving that brute here? He will tear the scalp
from Danforth’s head as soon as my back, and yours, are turned.”
“That he shall not!” exclaimed the White Antelope.
“You do not know his treachery,” said Buffalo Bill, who knew that the
very deed was in Bennett’s mind.
“I have told the white man that the brave young chief shall not be
mistreated.”
“Your word on it, girl?”
“The White Antelope has spoken. She will guard the body of the
young white chief herself until Pa-e-has-ka’s return.”
“Good!” exclaimed Buffalo Bill. “And, my girl, you’ll never be sorry for
this mercy shown the corpse of that poor young man.”
The girl looked at him strangely.
“The Long Hair will return, as he has promised, to the village of Oak
Heart?”
“I’ll keep my word; do you keep yours,” said the scout.
“Pa-e-has-ka’s tongue is straight?”
“As sure as I live, I’ll come back, girl!” declared the scout earnestly.
The next instant he mounted Chief unmolested, having picked up his
rifle, settled himself in the saddle, seized the reins, and dashed
away. As he mounted the ridge he looked back. The reds were busy
separating their own slain from the dead soldiers. The tall figure of
the medicine chief was stalking angrily from the scene. White
Antelope was down on her knees by the body of Dick Danforth, the
dead lieutenant. With a dumb ache at his heart, and little thought
for his own coming peril, Buffalo Bill went over the rise and spurred
away for Fort Advance.
 CHAPTER XXX.
THE MAD HUNTER.

In the valley a cavalry command was encamped, some hours after

the battle in which Lieutenant Dick Danforth and his men had been
overwhelmed by Oak Heart’s ambuscade.
It was just sunset, but twilight among the mountains is sometimes
four hours long—a man might see to read fine print at nine o’clock.
The command had ridden hard and were a-wearied, so the party
had bivouacked early, the guide reporting that the ridge before them
afforded no good camping-ground. The horses were soon lariated
out, and scores of camp-fires were kindled along the banks of the
stream, while the cheerful rattle of dishes and the smell of cooking
sharpened the appetites of the troopers.
Leaving his servant to prepare his frugal meal, the commander of
the soldiers strode up the hillside toward the summit of the ridge,
the better to view the valley and its boundaries while daylight
lingered.
“Be careful, captain, for I look for Injuns hereabouts,” called the
guide, who was Texas Jack.
“All right, Jack. I’ll signal if I see any signs of the red scamps,”
returned the fearless officer, as he strode on up the ascent.
Once or twice he turned to enjoy the scene of beauty spreading
below him—the lovely valley, the winding stream, the picturesque
bivouac of the troopers, and the distant blue hills, on which the light
was fading rapidly. At length he reached the point from which he
could view a part of the country through which the morrow’s trail
would lead them.
Below him, on that side of the ridge, all was shadow now, for the
ridge shut off the last glow of the golden western sky; but the
summits of the hills and ridges were still bathed in the departing
sun’s radiance. The scene so impressed him that, quite
unconsciously, the officer spoke aloud:
“No wonder that poor Lo loves this land so well that he’s willing to
fight for it. It is a pity it must ever be settled, and cut up into farms
and homesteads—and possibly, town lots! The life of the free savage
is the best, after all!”
“Well said, captain! But I’ve got the drop on you!”
The officer started as the voice fell upon his ears, and, dropping his
hand upon his sword-hilt, turned to face the speaker. Before him,
and not six paces distant, having just stepped from a dense thicket,
was an apparition which, at first sight, the officer scarce realized was
human!
And yet, no other shape was near, and from the lips of the strange
being that confronted him had fallen the threatening words he had
heard.
“Who and what are you?” cried the officer sternly, his eyes beholding
a being of gigantic size, clad in the skins of beasts, so that at first
sight he appeared more like a grizzly bear reared upon its hind legs!
About the waist of the giant was a red fox-skin belt, in which were
slung two revolvers and a large knife; upon his head was a panther-
skin cap, the tail hanging down the man’s back, and on his feet were
moccasins of black bearskin. Hair black as night fell to his waist;
beard of the same hue matted and unkempt; and a dark, haggard
face, out of which glittered the wildest eyes it had ever been the
officer’s fortune to see.
To finish this terrifying picture, the strange being held a rifle at his
shoulder, and that rifle was aimed now at the military officer’s heart!
“You ask who and what I am?” repeated the creature, in a deep
voice.
“I do,” said the soldier, measuring him with the eye of a hawk.
He had instantly seen that he was in the presence of a maniac—a
person utterly irresponsible for his acts. Whether he was to be
cajoled out of his present murderous condition of mind, the soldier
did not know. But he was watching for some wavering of the rifle
which might tell him that the fellow was off his guard, and that there
might be a chance to spring under his guard and seize him.
“You are a bold man to question me, captain!” said the giant sternly.
“I know it; but I’ve an overpowering curiosity to find out,” and the
captain dropped his hand carelessly upon the butt of the pistol he
carried at his hip.
“Hands up!” exclaimed the fellow, seeing the movement. “Hands up,
or you are a dead man!”
Hoping that he might yet parley with the maniac, the officer obeyed.
It were better, perhaps, had he drawn his gun and risked a shot. The
giant looked at him with wicked, glowing eyes.
“I will tell you who I am, officer,” he whispered hoarsely. “I am a
madman!”
The last word he fairly shrieked; yet not for a second did he forget
his victim, nor did his hand tremble. The rifle still transfixed the
helpless officer.
But the officer was a kindly man, and although he believed himself
in peril of his life still, the brave man ever has pity for those touched
in the head. He said quietly:
“My poor man, lower your weapon and come with me down to
yonder camp. Those are Uncle Sam’s troops down there. They will
take care of you.”
“Ha!” cried the maniac furiously. “I need no one to care for me. I can
care for myself. You’d much better be thinking of help for yourself,
captain.”
“Well, then I’ll go along and look for that help,” said the officer
easily.
“Don’t move!”
“But, my dear fellow——”
“Hold! Address no words of kindness to me, for they are thrown
away upon one whose duty it is to slay.”
“But it surely isn’t your duty to kill me!”
“Aye—you, too.”
“But what have I done to you?”
“It matters not. Mankind has done enough to me. I am appointed to
slay, and slay I will!”
“It’s nice to know your duty so clearly,” said the officer easily. “But
aren’t you liable to make a mistake?”
“No! Never a mistake. Once I might have made a mistake. That was
when I believed I was called of God to kill the redskins only. I know
better now.”
“Well!” murmured the officer, hoping to catch the madman off his
guard, if only for a moment.
“I saw the error of my ways,” cried the madman. “I beheld my sins. I
had neglected the full measure of my duty.”
“So killing redskins didn’t satisfy you, eh?”
“Why should I kill the savages alone? I saw white men quite as
brutal—aye, more brutal—than the red. I saw them commit the
same atrocities. I saw white rangers rip the scalps from the head of
their dead foes; I saw the soldiers storm the Indian encampments
and kill the squaws and the papoose at the breast! Aye! how much
better are the whites than the red men?”
“And having seen all this bloody warfare, you wish to add to the sum
total of horror by killing everybody you come across, do you, old
fellow?”
“You are all alike to me. I kill. That is the way I obtain ammunition
and arms. The arms and cartridges you carry are mine!”
“Oh, I’ll give them to you right now, if you want them,” exclaimed
the captain eagerly. “You won’t have to kill me to get them. Really, it
isn’t necessary. I’ll do the polite and hand them over.”
To himself he thought:
“And I’ll hand you something that will do you a lot of good the first
chance I get!”
But the madman was not to be fooled so easily.
“Nay, nay! Your bullets would not fly true for me were you alive,”
declared the giant. “I am the Mad Hunter. Have you heard of me?”
“I have heard of such a character,” admitted the captain.
“I am he, and if you know of me you must know that I show mercy
to none—not even to one wearing the uniform you do. No, no! I
spare neither my own race—for I was white once, before I became
like the beasts that perish—nor the redskin. All fall before me.”
The man spoke with intensity; yet not a motion gave the officer
hope of his chance to spring on him. The man’s nerves were of
steel; he held the rifle as though it and his own body were of stone;
yet the glittering eyes showed his victim that if he dropped his hands
a bullet would end his career on the instant.
“But, you know, I haven’t harmed you, my poor man,” said the
officer.
“All mankind are my foes,” said the Mad Hunter, in his strong
monotone, and without moving. “Come! the night draws near, and I
have yet to travel many miles to my cave in the mountains.”
“Don’t let me detain you, old man,” said the officer. “Won’t it do just
as well another day?”
“Come! prepare to die. If you have prayers to say, repeat them
quickly. It is growing dark.”
Now, the officer didn’t care how dark it got before the madman
fired. Indeed, he would have been glad if it suddenly became pitch-
dark—so dark that he might dodge away and escape the sinister
weapon which held its “bead” on his breast. He gave up all hope of
“talking the fellow out of it.” The madman meant to kill him, and
unless some miracle averted the fate, he would very quickly be a
dead man!
The madman was a giant in build and strength. He remembered now
having heard the scouts tell many strange stories of the Mad Hunter
about the camp-fire. For years he had been tracking about the
Rockies, appearing unexpectedly in first one locality and then
another; sometimes committing atrocious murders of inoffensive
people. But usually his presence was noted by the scouts by the
dead bodies of Indians, their bodies mutilated by a cross gashed
with the madman’s knife over their hearts. He put this insignia upon
every redskin he killed, so that even the savages—who feared him
as some spirit and altogether supernatural—knew who to lay the
death of their friends to when the Mad Hunter was about.
Whether the giant had a habit of marking his white victims in the
same way, the captain did not know; but it was a suggestion that did
not tranquilize his nerves. To cope with the giant he knew would be
impossible. He was a tall and strong man himself; but the maniac
could have handled three men like the officer with ease. A
movement toward his revolver or sword would be a signal for his
death. Yet the officer could not stand here helplessly and allow the
maniac to shoot him down!
In full view below him were the camp-fires of his men. The valley
had grown dark now, but surely they could see him clearly standing
here on the summit of the ridge. His body must loom big against the
sky-line. Yet it was plain they did not see the giant with him.
He stood in the shadow of the thicket where he had hidden at the
officer’s approach. It was behind him, and made him invisible to the
men in the valley. To call for aid would bring the end more quickly.
So he waited in silence, hoping against hope that some mad freak of
the maniac’s mind and humor might work for his salvation.
If the Mad Hunter kept his word, the officer had but a few minutes
to live. He looked all about the vicinity, hoping he might see some
chance of help. It was a desperate—a really hopeless thought. Who
or what could save him now?
Suddenly his eyes became fixed upon the spur of a hill that jutted
out across a shallow valley. The lingering rays of the sun touched the
hill-spur redly. It seemed much nearer to him than it really was, and
along its brink came a horse and rider!
The officer gasped; then held his breath, and did not change the
mask of his face. He had learned long since to hide emotion; but this
was a terrible situation, and he had almost lost his nerve.
The horseman had evidently been about to descend into the valley,
when his glance fell upon the two men standing like statues upon
the opposite ridge. He could see the giant huntsman, if the soldiers
in the other valley could not. He saw at once the attitude of both
men and understood. He drew rein, and the officer at the same
moment recognized him. Unconsciously his lips parted, and the
name of the rider came from the officer in a quick gasp:
“Buffalo Bill!”
The keen ear of the mad hercules caught the name, and, turning like
a panther at bay, he saw the scout on the distant spur. As he moved,
the officer’s hands dropped, and he seized the revolver from his belt.
Throwing it forward, he pulled the trigger as the madman wheeled
again toward him.
But the hammer fell without exploding the cartridge. The madman
laughed aloud.
“No, no!” he shouted. “The bullet is not cast that will kill the Mad
Hunter! The cartridge is not made that will injure me!”
The officer found his pistol-hammer jammed. He could not cock the
weapon again. With a wild shriek the maniac dropped his rifle, and,
drawing his knife, flung himself at his victim, intending evidently to
kill him with those slashes across the breast which usually marked
his dead.
But in that awful moment the doomed man’s eyes turned upon the
distant spur, and he beheld the rifle rise to the horseman’s shoulder.
Desperate as was the chance, Buffalo Bill intending risking a shot to
save him. He flung himself backward, as the madman came on,
leaving the field clear for the scout to fire.
 CHAPTER XXXI.
BUFFALO BILL’S GREAT SHOT.

In that instant, as he was falling backward upon the ground,

knowing that if the huge madman reached him before Buffalo Bill’s
bullet reached its mark he would be a dead man, a clear perception
of the great mistake he had made flashed through the captain’s
mind. He remembered that that morning when cleaning his revolver
he had noticed something wrong with the hammer, and had put it
aside, unloaded, to attend to later in the day. But as he started from
the camp that evening to walk up the hill, and Texas Jack had called
his warning to him, he had picked up the weapon and thrust it into
his belt without looking at it.
Had he not made this error he would have shot the Mad Hunter
dead in that instant when the giant turned his head to look across
the little valley. As he went backward, the officer flung away his
useless revolver and clutched at his sword. But he could not get it
from its scabbard in time. It was but half-drawn when he landed
upon his back with a shock that almost deprived him of his senses!
Fearful, indeed, were the chances against the officer. He was
absolutely helpless then, and like a tiger-cat the madman had
sprung at his falling body. He actually was in the air with the blade
of his knife poised to thrust downward into the officer’s breast when
the latter heard the crack of Buffalo Bill’s rifle on the other hillside.
The keen eye of the scout on horseback had noted every move of
the game on the ridge. He recognized the officer, and he guessed
who the other man must be when he saw his threatening attitude. It
was a long shot, and there was danger at first of his hitting the
captain instead of his foe.
But when the former flung himself backward the scout dared fire.
And he pulled the trigger just in the nick of time. The maniac was
already plunging forward to knife the supine soldier when the bullet
sped on its mission.
With a scream the madman pitched forward, over-leaping his victim,
and falling on his face upon the ground, the knife being plunged hilt
deep into the soft earth! A red streak showed across his scalp where
the bullet had grazed the man’s crown.
“Bravo, bravo, Buffalo Bill! I owe my life to him—and Heaven knows
I was never in closer quarters with death!” cried the officer, as he
leaped up and drew his sword to further defend himself.
But the huge form lay still. The Mad Hunter lay unconscious.
Therefore, turning to the opposite hill, he waved his hat, which he
had picked up, to the horseman who was now spurring down into
the valley. An answering yell from Buffalo Bill showed that he saw
the officer was safe.
The rifle-shot and the shout of the Border King was unheard down
there in the bigger valley; all this tragic happening had been in sight
of the camp of the troopers, yet had chanced to go unnoticed. It
was the scout who had come upon the scene in the nick of time, and
who again had proved himself a hero.
With rapid bounds the scout urged his big white charger up the hill,
from the shadows below to the twilight of the ridge summit. Finally
he pulled up, threw himself from the saddle, and the officer caught
his gauntleted hand.
“God bless you, Cody!”
“Captain Ed. Keyes!”
“Always in the right place at the right time, scout. Another minute,
and that old madman would have sent me on my long journey, and
no mistake!”
“I came blamed near being in the wrong place, captain,” said Cody
seriously. “That was a long shot. I was taking great chances, and if
you hadn’t flung yourself backward I should have scarcely risked
firing at all.”
Then he turned to view the prostrate form of the madman, and said:
“It’s that crazy fellow they talk about, isn’t it?”
“So he said. He seemed to be proud of his reputation.”
“The Mad Hunter!”
“Yes. And mad he certainly is—poor fellow. I suppose he’s not to be
blamed for what he can’t help. But he’s better dead than at large.
Ugh! Another moment, and he’d had his devil’s cross slashed on my
breast, I fancy.”
“You had a narrow squeak, sir.”
“I certainly did. Is he dead?”
Buffalo Bill was stooping over the giant. He turned him over so that
his face was visible in the half-light.
“That shot oughtn’t to have killed him,” muttered the scout, noting
the course of his bullet.
“It certainly couldn’t have hurt his brain any more than it was
queered. He’s breathing, isn’t he?”
But Buffalo Bill did not immediately reply. He had suddenly fallen
silent, and when Captain Keyes looked at the scout in surprise he
saw that his eyes were fixed with a most strange expression upon
the unconscious madman’s face.
“What’s the matter, Cody?” the officer asked.
The scout still made no reply. It is doubtful if he heard his superior
officer. He seemed devouring the features of the unconscious man.
Little of the face could be seen for the matted beard and hair. Yet
the angles of the cheek-bones and jaw were easily traced; likewise,
the penthouse brows and deeply sunken eyes. The nose was
prominent—a handsome nose, with its point thin and flexible, and
the nostrils well marked.
“No—no,” murmured the scout at last. “I never could have seen him
before—never!”
“What’s the matter with you, Cody?”
Buffalo Bill looked up at him, and wet his lips before speaking.
“I—I thought I saw a ghost, Captain Keyes—a ghost! My God! and
it’s no wonder, with my mind full of the horror I have seen already
this evening. It—it was Danforth—he’s got into my mind, and I can’t
forget him.”
“Dick Danforth—Lieutenant Danforth?”
“Aye—the poor boy himself.”
“What under the sun has Dick got to do with this madman?”
“Oh—nothing! nothing!” exclaimed Cody, leaping up. “But I have to
report a very terrible thing, captain.”
“Not about Dick Danforth?”
“It is, sir. Lieutenant Danforth is dead—dead with all his men!”
“No!”
“It is the awful truth, sir.”
“I cannot believe it, Cody. You are beside yourself. You look strange,
man!”
“Aye, and you would look strange yourself had you seen what I have
seen, Captain Keyes.”
“Tell me!”
“I was on my way to Fort Advance with the news when I happened
to see you—as I supposed, facing a grizzly bear over on this ridge.”
“He was worse than a grizzly,” said Keyes, with a glance at the giant.
“But give me the particulars——”
“Boyd Bennett has joined the Sioux, betrayed Danforth and his men
into a trap, and the whole party were wiped out.”
“My God, Cody!”
“It is so. I saw them. I was captured by Bennett, indeed. It was
within a few miles of Oak Heart’s big village.”
“Ha! And did you see the wily old scoundrel himself?”
“Oak Heart?”
“Yes.”
“No; but I saw a representative of the chief;” and he repeated the
story of his coming upon the field of carnage and his adventure with
Bennett and the White Antelope, while Keyes hurried him down the
hillside toward the troopers’ camp.
 CHAPTER XXXII.
THE BORDER KING’S PLEDGE.

With him Captain Keyes had over a hundred cavalrymen, a company

of mounted infantry, and two mountain howitzers, numbering, with
the artillerymen and scouts, nearly two hundred men—a strong
flying column, that could move rapidly and stand off a big force of
Indians. They were then encamped not twenty miles from the main
village of the Sioux, and not much more than half that distance from
the coulée where Danforth’s squadron had been overcome.
The coming of Buffalo Bill, although it had been most timely for
Captain Keyes, and had undoubtedly saved his life, cast a mantle of
gloom over the encampment. Although the men had been warned to
turn in early, because of the work before them on the morrow, they
stood or sat around the camp-fires until late, discussing the terrible
intelligence the scout had brought.
And at the officers’ quarters, Buffalo Bill had to relate the story all
over again to an eager band of listeners. All had known Dick
Danforth, and his death was greatly deplored.
As soon as he could get away, and had eaten a bit of supper, Cody
sought out his faithful partner, Jack Omohondreau.
“Jack, old man, did you ever see the Wild Huntsman?”
“What! this fellow who come pretty near bowling over the captain—
the Mad Hunter?”
“Yes.”
“Never. But I’ve seen his spoor—and I’ve seen his work.”
“Meaning his dead?”
“Yep. Two redskins. He didn’t do a thing but hash them up. Ugh!”
“I don’t think I killed him up there. Will you get a couple of torches,
and bring two other fellows you can trust, and help me make a
search for him?”
“Lord! Want to put the finishing touch on him—eh?”
“No. I must bring him down here and have the surgeon give him
what care he can.”
“Whew! You’d best roll him over a precipice by mistake.”
“The man is mad.”
“Well, then, he isn’t missing much, if he cashes in.”
“But perhaps he can be cured.”
“Well, are you going to tackle the cure?”
“I want to see if he’s dead first,” said Cody non-committingly. “Go
find your men—and don’t forget the torches, Jack.”
Texas Jack found both, and the four men searched the ridge
thoroughly—or as thoroughly as they could by torchlight; but the
gigantic madman was not there. He might have crawled into some
hole to hide; anyway, they had to give it up for the night.
As they returned to camp they found an orderly searching
industriously for Buffalo Bill.
“Captain Keyes’ compliments, sir, and will you come to his tent at
once?”
The scout complied with his request. Keyes had his despatch-box
open, and was undoubtedly just inditing his report of the day’s work,
and of the intelligence the scout had brought him, to his commander
at Fort Advance. He motioned the scout to a camp-stool.
“Sit down, Cody. I want to talk with you.”
Buffalo Bill obeyed.
“We have deeded to divide the command. I shall go myself with the
first division on to the place where our poor brave fellows lie, and
attend to the burial of their bodies. The rest of my party will form a
reserve squad with the howitzers—in case of treachery.”
“There will be no treachery, Captain Keyes. I know Oak Heart.”
“But you say that deserter, Bennett, has influence in the tribe.”
“Not enough to make the old chief break his word.”
“Best to be sure, anyway. Now, there’s a point I wish to discuss with
you. I know your confounded quixotism, Cody. You certainly don’t
propose to keep your promise to that squaw and go alone to the
Indian encampment?”
“I do mean just that, sir.”
At this the officer rose to his feet and spoke vigorously.
“Cody, you sha’n’t do it! By the nine gods of war! it’s foolish—it’s
insane!”
“I have promised.”
“But I forbid you!”
“I can’t help that, sir; but if you will think a moment, you will see
that it is quite out of your jurisdiction. I was the reds’ prisoner. They
did not have to let me go at all. My life is hostage to them yet. They
have trusted me—and, God knows, enough white men have lied to
them.”
“Then I’ll attack their camp, small as my force is.”
“You will compass my death sure enough if you do,” said the scout,
shaking his head.
“But, Cody, of all white men alive, you are the one they most wish to
see dead!”
“So be it.”
“Be reasonable.”
“They desire to make my closer acquaintance, and I intend to give
them the chance,” said Buffalo Bill, smiling.