Adventure Magazine Cover — page 145: what you’re looking at

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

= Beision. fe so abandoned-like in the saddle _ that a casual observer must surely have ex- _ pected him to fall off at any moment, he grinned in anticipation, between serious thinking _____ spells, because he was coming down without so much as a grain of gold dust. . “Broke—flat busted!” he told his old mare as he clattered across a rocky ridge and swung down into the gulch toward Goose Creek. But it didn’t seem to bother him much for goon he teetered back even more perilously and with one stirrup dangling empty began to hum and then: “Broke, flat busted; without a bloomin’ cent, An’ old man Milestone a-asking fer the rent; ‘Nary stick of powder, nary slice o’ ham— _ By gun, it’s up to Henry to save the old man!” That’s what Coyote Jim sang as he rode Steen into Tumble Fork; his watery blue eyes _ glistening; his ruddy, weather-beaten face _ rippling in a million fine wrinkles, and his == __ snow-white hair sticking out in wild tufts -. from under a battered, broad-brimmed hat, stained with sweat and ‘powder and clay, and ae searing’ the thumb-prints of a thousand camp- “ioe repasts. 5 “WELL, Henry, here we be,” said 9 Coyote Jim cheerfully as he dumped his empty pack-sacks down before the counter in Henry Morton’s general store with : s 2 the post-office annex ee iL see ye—I ain’t blind, ” returned Henry in a loud voice that suggested bluster. “Now ain’t that a fine way to greet a old friend, Henry,” reproved Coyote, whimsically; =< ast didn’t say nuthin’ about yore being blind.” ae oa “Of course ye didn’t, ye old, frazzled moun- Seen Bs - tain rat! Suppose [ll have to shake hands with ye for old times’ sake.” _- ~~ + ‘The two shook hands; and although their «grip was warm and hearty, they appeared to scowl and glare at each other; and it would have required close observation. to detect the - twinkle that lurked in the eyes of each. . “How’s business been, Henry?” asked ~ Coyote. “Poor—awful poor, Coyote.” Henry seemed to sigh as he shook his head. “Boys are going out of the hills fast and no new ones coming to take their place and——— “Now hold on, you old reprobate,’’ Coyote interrupted, shaking a long finger stubbed with callouses. “I hear that every time I come in an’ you’ve got a bigger stock now than you ever had.” 25 “That’s ’cause I can’t sell any of it—here it stays,” was the rejoinder as the storekeeper ia ro = a oe rc. 2a >. ae a gesture. — Jim's Code “how much chicken-feed did ye comb out of the included his shelves and racks in,a sweeping - “Wal, now that bein’ the case, I’m in a position to do you a favor,’ observed Coyote Jim, brightening. “T’'ll just take some of it off your hands.”’ He began tossing the empty pack-sacks over the counter. *_ “Fill em up Henry—same’s I allus get in the Fall. Better put in a extra slab of salt pork this trip; looks like it’s goin’ to be a hard Win- ter—hair on the squirrels is a foot long!’ ' The storekeeper watched the pack-sacks — come flying over the counter and when the last had landed on the heap at his feet he leaned his two fists on the counter and eyed Coyote speculatively. “Grub’s gone up,” he said business-like; creeks this summer?” Coyote Jim appeared hurt. “Look me in the eye, Henry; you know I ain’t been foolin’ with no leavings i in no creek beds. I’m no water toad, I ain’t; I look fer it where it belongs—in solid ‘rock. " “You mean you’re not packin’ any gold poke: this trip?” Henry straightened in well- feigned surprize. “Why you old scant-measuring, short- weight’n hypocrite! You know I ain’t packin’ no measly gold sack any more’n I’m packin’ a box of snuff.”’ Henry used snuff and had been on the point of taking a pinch but the prospector’s remark forestalled this indulgence in his habit; and he resented it. “Oh, that’s it, eh? Well then ye probably won’t want no chewing terbaccer this trip; an maybe you've threw away that- evil-smelling pipe of yourn——”’ ‘Now lookye here, Henry Morton, I’m not - here to talk about chawin’ terbaccer, or pipes, a or gold leavings; I’m here to grub up fer the ~ Winter an’ get a box or two of powder, an’ take in the town, or what there is left of it, fer a day a and get back afore the snow sets in steady; an a you’ve got the sacks to fill so fill °em an’ don’t. 4 be shootin’ off any more hard-boiled conversa- tion. I’m goin’ over to the Fashion bar and = “What ye been doing all Summer?” Henry 3 “T been opening | up them silver-lead claims on the west slope o’ Milestone and listen to me shoutin’, Henry—” Coyote’s eyes gleamed bright * with the lights of enthusiasm— “‘T’ve got a ‘= vein as wide as yer hand already!’’ a “On the west slope of Milestone,’’~ jeered 3 “An’ how did ye figure on gettin’ the a Henry. ore down from there? Carry it down in a buckets?” 3 “An aerial tramway!” cried Coyote trium- | phantly. ‘Just leave it to the big interests to = get the ore outa there when they see what I’ve got. I ain’t worrying nary bit, Henry.” = CoOmicloool