Adventure Magazine Cover — page 168: what you’re looking at

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

‘tering the corner boxes. 154 against his right shoulder. He was rudely swung about, but righted himself; and, laughing, he "plunged on, conscious of a flowing warmth at his shoulder. He was amazed to find how easy it was. He discovered that he was relishing the situation. The tide of adventure flooded his being, submerging all save the thrill of Chance. He fired twice in rapid succession, splin- The quarry re- plied with alacrity. Randolph ran in a zig- zag course to confuse the other’s aim. He counted Cullum’s shots carefully. The fifth struck his leg and a pronounced limp came into his gait. The sixth went high. Then he ceased zigzagging and charged directly forward. He knew that Cullum was reloading. He gained the end of the barricade in full career, swung drunkenly about the corner, and flung himself upon the kneeling figure. In a crashing fall the outlaw went over backward to the ground. With a thump Red Cullum’s flaming head struck the rocky surface of the unpaved street. Randolph was overwhelmed by a wave of dizziness; in panic lest he faint and the quarry escape he reached for the other’s throat. His thumbs were pressing the jugular when the realization smote him that Red Cullum lay quite still. A trickle of blood crept from beneath his head. Fighting off the.encroaching dizziness, Randolph laboriously got to his feet. He had a_blurred vision of three horsemen drawing up their plunging mounts near by. He heard many feet running swiftly from the direction of the Lone Star. He grasped the edge of the boxes for support. The sheriff and his deputies flung them- selves from their animals and ran toward him. Randolph struggled to grin at the blurred faces. “T want this fellow, ene. and what’s left of his three friends. Ill swear out a warrant as soon as I feel better. Just now I’m goin’ sleep!” He was surrounded by a score of familiar, excited faces. They formed a circle about him which presently began’ to spin. He nodded pleasantly with just a hint of swag- ger and slipped quietly to the ground. Adventure HE WAKENED to a pained and | uncomfortable world. He was un- Gable to identify his surroundings. He saw vaguely many familiar faces; he caught the sound of hushed whispering. Some one was twisting a bandage about his leg; Florence White was bathing the wound at his shoulder. He closed his eyes and lay resting, flooded with a warming sense of contentment. He had read the high enthusiasm upon the faces of his new friends clustered about. A peaceful drowsiness overcame him. He became swiftly alert when above the sibilant whispering the words of one of the watchers reached him. “Ain’t he gosh-awful game! Why, sheriff, he ain’t got no fear of firearms in him!” Randolph felt the form of Florence White, kneeling beside him, move impatiently. Her hand ceased the work of bathing his wound. He cautiously opened one eye and saw the mistiness in her eyes as she glanced with quick spirit at the speaker. “Of course he is!” she exclaimed in a voice that was delightfully unsteady. ‘‘What do you expect of a man with all those n-n-notches on his gun?” Quite unashamed, she raised a bit of handkerchief to her eyes. Elmer’s blood pounded eilvetane through his veins. “But this was nothing at all!’? Florence White continued with pride. only play for him! Just you wait until next time!”’ Elmer started precipitously. On the in- stant his ready imagination proceeded to conjure up a lurid prospect of days and years ahead stirring with perplexities, diffi- culties and dangers. But he was undis- mayed. To his surprize, when the imposing picture was completed he found himself surveying it with decided relish. The great truth was his. Some time later he fell asleep after pro- pounding mentally the conviction that after all there was one fly in his ointment. He rather regretted his lurid reputation. It might exert a dampening influence upon whatever rebellious spirits still remained in the Black Creek district. “This was EComichooks (E{0)