Adventure, November 1915 — page 94: what you’re looking at

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

92 exist lucrative employment for untrained men. The usual result was that the Ruby Mines ‘Syndicate, which worked the whole rubiferous tract under a concession from the Burma Government, was compelled to send them away again at its own expense as being undesirables and a continual source of trouble. : So invariable was this rule that the com- pany posted glaring notices all over Thabeit- kyin and in the weekly up-river steamer, proclaiming loudly that job seekers had ‘better stay away, as jobs were by no chance available. Of course not. Nobody was going to employ nondescripts from who knows where, on work the only qualification for which was integrity. Still they came, these stone-brokes, in the desperate hope of finding something to which a white man might turn his hand. A few, a very few, in jthe extremity of their need went fantay and, swallowing their white man’s pride, toiled at manual labor among the crowd of Burmans, Hindus, Chinamen, and natives of a dozen other countries. Of course the Syndicate could not forbid this, but it was strongly dis- couraged, for the white man’s prestige must be upheld. Such was the prospect facing the sham- bling figure, yet he smiled as if the world were pleasant to look upon. Though to the unprejudiced observer he seemed to have little enough to smile about. As he inquired his way through the camp to the one miscalled hotel, here and there a hawk-eyed overseer snatched a second from watching the native diggers to observe him and smile pityingly, or grunt callously ac- cording to his nature. The outlook was uninviting and grim, but he was still cheerful when he entered the hotel bar and rapped on the deserted counter. The proprietor, a shaggy Scotchman who combined the offices of manager, bell-boy, barkeep, and “‘chucker out” in his own com- pletely competent person, emerged froma dim hole in the rear where popular suspicion had it that he secretly distilled the smoky “pot still” which he dispensed. “‘Losh, here’s anither ane!” he ejaculated as his eyes fell on the ragged figure. Then, “Tis a dram ye’re wantin’ sure, but hae ye the siller?”” Then again, quickly, as the derelict felt among his rags: “Hech awa! Keep yer coin, laddie; ye’ll be wantin’ it Adventure sair eneugh presently, an’ it’s no Shon Mc- Nair that’ll refuse a drappie to a puir body ance in a while.” With that he poured out a, good four fin- gers and pushed it across. “‘Thank you. I sure needed it,” said the’ derelict in a voice oddly at variance with his attire, “and I’ll take a little water with it if you don’t mind.” “Man, ye’re desecratin’ as guid liquor as ye'll find in this God-forgotten country,” grumbled the Scotchman; but nevertheless he pushed over a great pitcher of porous clay, and stood taking stock of the queer figure while he mechanically wiped down the counter and got things ready for the crowd that would soon be in. The stranger gave him ample time as he sipped luxuriously at his drink. At last he gave a long drawn “‘Ah-h!”’ of satisfaction and turned to face the landlord. “Tt’s sure some pull up that last twenty miles, isn’t it?” he remarked. “Aye, it is that,”’ agreed the other. ‘‘An’ Ah ken weel ye hae trampit all the way up for want 0’ the tonga fare, sae sure as ye’ll hae to tramp doon agen.” . The stranger nodded. “But why down again?” he inquired. “Havers, man, did ye no see the muckle notices paperin’ all the walls frae Mandalay up?” “Sure, but I figured I’d take a hand at mining some on my own account.” “Man, but ye’re simple! D’ye no ken that the company has the rights for the whole district, an’ it’ll cost ye sixty rupees to tak oot a license for every single month?” “‘Can’t I dig without a license?” “God save the lad! Why there’s Super- intendent Gorman an’ seven inspectors drawin’ pay for watchin’ after juist sic folks as think to mine wi’oot takin’ oot their papers.” The stranger’s face fell. “Twenty bucks for a _license—Jeeru- salem!’ He gazed for a long while out of the door at the busy ant colony of diggers, and he suddenly seemed to the landlord to look very tired. Then his cheery optimism reasserted itself and he straightened him- self up. . “Well, I’m here now, and I'll stick,” he muttered. The landlord opened his mouth to ex- postulate, pointing out the impossibility of eS ECORNICLOO© (C (EO)