Adventure Magazine Cover — page 51: what you’re looking at

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

Tupahn the Thunderstorm taking his first view of the place where he had stumbled along in blackness. « The girl walked silently beside him, also looking about as if seeing the path for the first time. Pedro and I, following at a little distance, watched them. 3 “She should be told,’ Pedro muttered. “‘Senhor Tom is unfair to himself and to her.” Lagreed. For she still did not know of the marriage. More, she did not know the part her blond companion had played in saving her. Dazed for an instant by the news of what the ceremony meant, Senhor Tom then had forbidden us to tell her. He declared the marriage meant nothing, because neither of them knew what was taking place and such a proceeding would not hold in “white man’s law.”’ She would be humiliated if she knew, he said, and she must not know. And when she asked the reason for our shouts and laughter he invented a joke which he said the chief had made, telling her that we had only wanted to pass the joke on’ to them. She looked as if she did not quite believe the explanation, but she asked no more questions. And we knew that though he had told her something of our search for her, he had given all the credit to us and let her think he had been only a useless blind man who owed his life to us. We suspected—and we later learned it was true—that she thought the killing of the pajé was due to a sudden quarrel and fight which had little to do with her own position as prisoner of the tribe. Even her rescue from Black Hawk, he had - told her, had come about only because we “just happened around at the right time.” She knew nothing of the many miles of hard travel and the long days of lurking in am- bush which had made it possible for him and us to be there at the right time. “He does not wish her to feel obliged to him,” I said now. “Of course. He is so anxious to avoid gratitude that he makes himself seem a headstrong, reckless fellow who would as soon kill a man as smoke a cigaret. He cuts his own throat. Perhaps it is his right to do ~ so, but I do not like it.” “Nor I. It is his right to conceal his real nature if he will. But it is her right to know the truth of what has been done for her— and the truth of the Indian ceremony yes- terday.”’ 45 Then I stopped talking, for the pair ahead had halted and we were near enough to be overheard. “Why, it’s burned down!”’ cried the girl. “Sure enough,” was Senhor Tom’s an- swer. “Fellows, the priest-house is gone. Maybe we accidentally set it afire when we came out.”” He gave us a swift wink. “Perhaps so, senhor,’ Pedro replied coolly. “It is no loss to any one.” And we passed on, three of us knowing the Bat’s command to burn the pajé in his own house had been obeyed. At the farther edge of the bush we found our trail, and through the forest we passed silently to the camp. Soon the canoes were loaded, and out into the stream we shoved. ‘“‘All aboard once more, and bound for Viciado,” Senhor Tom sang out. ‘“Travel- ing again two by two, as the animals came from the ark. And thus endeth this chap- ter of our little story.” He sunk his paddle, and the canoe moved on. “How many more chapters are there, do, . you suppose?” Marion laughed back at him. “Every well-regulated story has a happy ending, at least.” “Maybe so, up home. But here in-the jungle a lot of stories aren’t well regulated. The ending is just as it happens.” Her face became very sober. She looked away again,down-stream. Her paddle began to swing. So did ours. And as I heard this and watched them, I determined to say something myself in their story. But I did not say it then. I waited for the right time. Soon Pedro spied the narrow water-lane of which Andirah had told us. We turned into it, and until nearly noon we worked along it. Then we came out into the other creek and pointed our bows toward Viciado and the Amazon. It was nearly night again before my chance came. I made the chance myself. Knowing we now were not more than one day’s journey from the river-town, I told Pedro, before we landed— “Take Senhor Tom hunting and leave me to make camp.” He gave me a shrewd look. “Right, comrade. tell the senhoriia a tale.” “T will,” I promised. And I did. It was dark when Pedro brought the North American back with a fine fat mutum nNicboo (E And while you work, 3 (EO) <S' com De Fae Py