Adventure Magazine Cover, October 10, 1921 — page 100: what you’re looking at

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

90 “Hah! Slaves!” And he spat at the Brazilian boat. Fire shot into the eyes of the bowman and his comrades. Their muscles tensed. “Better be slaves—better be dogs—than Peruvian cutthroats!”’ one retorted. ‘‘Go your way. And keep to your own side of the river.” | “We go where we will, and no misborn Brazilians can stop us,” snarled Francisco. To which he added obscene epithets directed against Brazilians in general and the men of Coronel Nunes in particular. The unprovoked insults angered the Americans as well as the Brazilians. Know]l- ton leaped through the /oldo and confronted Francisco. “Shut your dirty mouth!” he blazed. For reply, the evil-eyed steersman spat at him the vilest name known to man. An instant later, his lips split, he sprawled dazedly on his platform, perilously close to the edge. Knowlton, the knuckles of his left fist bleeding from impact with the other’s teeth, stood over him in white fury. Francisco’s hand fumbled for his knife. Knowlton promptly stamped on that hand with a heavy boot-heel. ‘“‘Good eye, looey!”’ rumbled Tim’s voice at his back. ‘Boot him some more for luck. Hey you! Back up or [ll drill ye for keeps!” This to a pair of the Peruvian paddlers who had come scrambling through the cabin. Mere’ caucheros! Workers! After one Searching stare into Tim’s hard blue eyes and a glance at his fist curled around the butt of his belt-gun, the bogas backed up. A moment later they were thrown bodily into their own part of the boat by Jose, who blistered them with the profanity of three languages at once. -Then * McKay came through and took charge. “That'll do, Tim! Same goes for you, Merry! Jose, I’ll handle this. You Fran- cisco! Get up!” The curt commands struck like blows. Every man obeyed. And when the squat steersman again stood up McKay went after him roughshod. In the colloquial Spanish of Mexico and the Argentine, in the man- talk of American army camps, he flayed that offender alive. Jose himself, efficient man-handler though he was, stared at his capitan in awe. And Francisco, though not given to cringing, skulked like a beaten dog when the verbal flagellation was finished. Turning then to the Brazilians, McKay Adventure formally apologized for the insults to them. . “Tt 1s nothing, senhor,”’ coolly answered the bowman, though his glance at the Peruvians said plainly that it would have been something but for the swift punish- ment by the Americans. ‘Again I say— may God protect you! Adeos!”’ The Brazilian boat glided away. The Peruvian ‘craft crawled on up-stream in silence. When the next camp was made all apparently had forgotten the affair. The men badgered one another as usual, though none mentioned Francisco’s split mouth; and Francisco himself, albeit sulky, be- trayed no sign of enmity. After nightfall the regular camp-fire meeting was held, and at the usual time all turned in. One more night of listening to the sounds of the tropical wilderness seemed all that lay ahead of the secret sentinels. &) and gurgles rose and fell. Tim himself, for the sake of effect, snored heartily at intervals, though his eyes never closed. Through his mosquito- bar he could see only vaguely, but he knew any man walking from the crew’s quarters must cast a very visible shadow across that net, and to him the shadow would be as good a warning as a clear view of the sub- stance. But the hours crept on and no shadow came. At length, however, a small sound reached his alert ear—a sound different from the regular noises of the bush; a stealthy creep- ing noise like that of'a big snake or a huge lizard. It came from the ground a few feet away, and it seemed to be gradually advanc- ing toward his own hammock. Whatever the creature was that made it, its method of progress was not human but reptilian. Puzzled, suspicious yet doubtful, Tim lifted the rear side of his net, on which no moon- light fell. Head out, he watched for the crawling thing to come close. It came, and for an instant he was in doubt.as to its character; for around it lay the deep shadow of some tree-tops which at that point blocked off the moon. It inched along on its stomach, its black head seeming. round and minus a face, its body broad but flat—a thing that looked to be a man but not a man. Then, pausing, it raised its head and peered toward the ham- mock of Knowlton. With that movement SLEEP enveloped the huts. Snores Comicloooks C@