Adventure Magazine Cover — page 127: what you’re looking at

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

The Man-Eater man had company. John looked up to see his favorite servitor and the Reverend “ Bung standing with bared heads respect- fully before him. John rather liked the parson. He was a natural type of negro and while he firmly believed that he was the chosen vessel of the Lord, he was never offensive to white people, although somewhat tyrannical to- ward his parishioners. He was desperately in love with the music of his own voice and when John inquired what he wanted he launched into his story. “Mas’r John; Br’er Moses an’ Seroalt would like yo’ ad-vice. The morgidge on our church er due. We wanter pay it off; we jes’ got ter have a new organ. De Baptist got one, an’ we cain’t “ford to be behine ’em. De boll-weevil make it mighty hard fo’ niggers roun” here. ‘We got ter have five hundred an’ we don’ know how we gwine ter get hit. Now Br’er Mose has er plan. A ‘yeller nigger from Memphis done come here wif er fightin’ rooster. He ‘low he fight him ergin Br’er Moses’ rooster at de cullud picnic nex’ Friday week. Br’er Mose say he bet him all he got an if he win he give it to de church. “We cha’ge fo’ bits to see hit. Maybe two hundred niggers’ll come. That’ll “be two hundred four bitses. Br’er Mose done ’splained about de fightin’ part. If de roosters wanter fight an’ go’n ter fight, dey jes’ as well fight fo’ de Lawd. I don’ lak de bettin’ part—dat seem lak gamblin’. “Tf it war fo’ er prize an’ Br’er Moses’ - rooster, and de yeller nigger’s rooster war ter ’pete fo’ hit an’ de church got de money, hit wouldn’t be so bad. Now, Mas’r John, what orter we do?” A vague suspicion, dormant in John’s mind, took life. He dispatched the negroes to feed the dogs while he reviewed the situa- tion. The cock-fighting season was nearly over. It was to terminate in a big gather- _ ing of sportsmen at New Orleans. A tour- nament of the world’s best cocks was to be fought—preliminary to which he had con- tracted for a main with his old friend, that astute fancier, Montevidio of Memphis. The conditions of this main were peculiar. Montevidio had stipulated weights. Ac- cording to the agreement John would be forced to show some large cocks. Those of his own breeding ran from light to middle- weight. He was short on big ones and 117 would .be forced to buy—at all times a risky proceeding. At any rate it was sup- posed that he would use, for his top-weight, | Old Calomel, now the property of Uncle Mose. Old Calomel was a confirmed man- fighter, but even with that handicap was regarded as one of the greatest heavy- weights in the South. If he started directly for his opponent when pitted he would likely cut him down’ in that first savage rush but if he turned on his handler he might lose before he sighted his antagenist. While passing the depot that day, John had seen Hash Henderson, a yellow negro who he knew was employed by Montevidio, alighting from the negro compartment of the Memphis train. Later in the day, on his way to the fair- grounds to inspect some horses that he had in training, he had heard,a gamececk crow over behind some negro shanties. Rising in his stirrups, he could see “The General,” one of Montevidio’s best Roundhead cocks, tethered by the leg and enjoying a sun-bath near a high board fence. He had supposed that the negro had stolen the eock, and intended wiring a night-message to Monte- vidio telling him of its whereabouts, but all at once the full import of what he had just heard came to him. Cock-fighting is essentially a fair spert— perhaps less contaminated by the eanker of commercialism than any form of the more popular amusements. There are several reasons for this. The combatants can not, themselves, be bribed. Fights are attended only by those versed in the intricacies of the game. With a hundred men around the pit-side interested in the outcome, foul practise is seldom attempted. Prior to the actual fighting there is some jockeying. For instance, it would be to Montevidio’s interest to have Old Calomel out of the way. John had known of a case where Montevidio had allowed himself to be badgered into a hack fight that cost him a cock that might have won an important main. This must be the situation: Mentevidio wanted Old Calomel out of the way; he had sent the negro to pick a fight with Uncle Mose; he had sent one of his best cocks to battle with him. Then he must have other high-class heavyweights in reserve or he would not risk losing The General. John enjoyed-.one of his quiet laughs. (E(0) 0\(06) SS (EO) AAJ