Adventure, January 20, 1922 — page 64: what you’re looking at

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

62 standing on the high bulwark and snatching up a grapnel. “Out wi’ ye, lads, an’ let’s see who’s robbed us of our prey.” The Cadiz fell away from the Spaniard, leaving her and her/ ghastly freight to the winds and seas. At midnight when a full moon hung in the zenith the sharp eyes of Goliath aloft picked up the fleeing shape of a small pinnace, plainly to be-seen, and as plainly hurrying with what spéed she had in fear of the pursuing Cadiz. In an hour more the bow gun of the Cadiz sent a shot over the chase. Now, as in the case of the dead ship, there came no reply. “Another ship. o’ corpses?” laughed Davies harshly. | “Not she!’ snapped Steve Carr. “She steers too true to Be in hands o’ dead men. Try her wi’ another pill.” Another shot thundered forth, and the splash was visible from the Cadiz. It took the sea under the pinnace’s counter; and like an echo came a response. A tiny piece spat flame, and a ball no bigger than Davies’ fist hit the Cadiz with a spiteful spat and fell off into the sea. “°Tis a* spunky little man,” laughed Davies. And he said no more until he hailed by voice from a scant hundred feet distance. Then came an answer in the shape of a piti- ful broadside, the whole of which might have been wadded into one of the Cadiz’ guns. A voice was heard aboard the pinnace, yelling for pikes to repel boarders, and Steve Carr seized his captain’s arm in amazement. “By th’ livin’ soul 0’ Davy Jones, that’s the tongue o’ Cap’n Swan!” he yelled. XXIV Wa SWAN, like Davies, was too big ma fish in the puddle of sea-rovers for Manother rover to be long deceived by any change in his appearance due to hardship. The pinnace had come along- side the greater ship without more ado, upon Ed Davies and Steve Carr making themselves known. Now Swan sat, with Burden, his lieutenant, at the broad table in the cabin of the Cadiz, facing Davies and Carr over tall flagons and gobbets of meat, making their introductory explanation. Hard faces they had, weatherbeaten, hairy, seamed and grimed from long ex- posure and evil passions. ‘Though they Adventure : admitted having fed generously within the hour, they wolfed the meat and swallowed the wine before them like men who had known bitter shortage. Swan was a man of build as unlike his nafhe as could well be imagined. Short, thick and broad, low of brow and shifty of eye, he was the embodiment of brute force and ignorance. His lieutenant, Burden, was better looking, yet so obviously in awe of his captain that he lost any advantage he may have deserved from his appearance. “The rat fired into us in the Gut!” swore Swan, his eyes gleaming with sullen fires. “Never tell me John Cook mistook us for you, Davies. He seen as my ships was gone, seen as it was him and me alone to jine ye or the frog, and took at me in th’ fog an’ swirl o’ the Narrows.” “But he said he sunk ye,” remarked Davies. ‘How are ye here as soon as us, who sailed straight up from Magellan wi’ a stout ship underfoot?”’ “Ve see me!’ growled Swan, fiercely. “Had ye seen me or my lads afore we found meat,aboard yonder Spainer, ye’d not ask how came we here. Boats through the Straits; a fight wi’ Indians whenever we tried for water or meat; half the lads who wasn’t drowned or killed by Cook’s traitor- ous shot killed by arrows or starvation or cold! We took the pinnace off Valdivia, and sailed in sight o’ the shore all the time, daring onsets of enemies if we could but win north in time to face Cook an’ his Scorpion. “He and you and the Frenchman sailed far west, did ye not? Well then, that’s how ye find me up wi’ ye. But, if we fell not in wi’ that Don this afternoon ye’d ha’ picked up a starved pinnace full o’ starved gallus crows, I tell ye, Ed?’ . Swan uttered a harsh, terrible laugh. “T tell ve, I couldn’t stay my bold fellows when meat and drink were to hand! Mother o’ Satan!” “T saw it,” returned Davies shortly. “*Twould ha’ done credit to Lolonais at his drunkest. Dirty butchery, Swan. [ doubt not but ye’re plain murderer at bottom, hey?” Swan scowled; but Davies feared none of the tribe of rovers, and his steady eye warned Swan of the futility of taking umbrage. “What of it, then?’ he demanded. “The Don fought us off. We starved and thirsted _ COMmMICLOoks (C@