Adventure Magazine Cover — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

8 | Adventure “Sure,” grinned Brick. “Bein’ as you’re Bunty’s hired——” “Period,” grunted Harp. him no more.” “When did yuh quit?” “Thank yuh, Brick, but I didn’t quit.” “What did he fire yuh for, Harp?” “Well—” Harp licked his lips thought- fully—‘‘well, I told him to be sure and lock up the jail ’cause somebody might steal the hinges off the cell doors.” Brick grinned. “Want to work for the Nine Bar Nine?” “Gotta work,” observed Harp. “Youre hired. Come and eat with us, hired man.” Harp asked nothing about the robbery, and they ate silently. Their meal over, they sauntered outside - Just as a roan team; hauling a buckboard, was driven up in front of the restaurant by Lafe Freeman. “Brick, what happened to the team an wagon?” he rasped. “Ran away. Silent accident’ly dropped the lines.” “Did, eh?” Freeman glared at Silent. “Accidental, eh? Pinto dead and that Schuttler wagon all busted to ——!” Lafe shifted his eyes to Brick. “You're fired. Do yuh hear that? Both of yuh fired.” Brick nodded sadly and turned to Harp, who was starting to put the jew’s-harp be- tween his lips. “T’ve gotta cancel that job, Harp.” “Thanks,” grunted Harp, “I’d hate to work for a man who was that mean.” Lafe Freeman started to kick off the brake, but changed his mind. “Met the sheriff and his ornyment down there,”” motioning down the road. “Said there was a hold-up.” “Veah,”. nodded Brick. “T ain’t with “Yeah, there was, Lafe.”’ Freeman held the lines between his knees while he filled his old pipe. He smiled down at the pipe and turned to Brick. “Whatcha say, Brick?” “T didn’t say,” drawled Brick, “but I was jist thinkin’ about hittin’ yuh for a job.” “Say yuh was?” Lafe’s tone was indignantly sarcastic. “Huh! Yuh was, was yuh?” He shifted his eyes to Silent and Harp and Sack to Brick. “S’pose yuh want a job as foreman, eh? Yuh do? Then you’ll go and hire Silent Slade and that danged harp-twanger over there. My. gosh, don’tcha know wagons cost money? Don’tcha know that there pinto horse was worth : ‘Sure, sure,’”’ nodded Brick, “I knowed we'd git fired. Silent says to me— ‘““*Brick, my heart bleeds for Lafe, but——’ ) “Don’t lie!’ snapped Lafe. ‘‘You’ve done enough without that. C’mere and tell me about.that hold-up, will yuh?” ““A female!” gasped Lafe, as Brick de- scribed the hold-up. ‘Female? I tell yuh it’s gittin’ so we can’t trust our weak sex. “Held a Winchester right on the three of yuh. Whatcha know about that? Petti- coats and perfumed sheriffs. Next thing yuh know we'll have to do the crow- shayin’.”’ . “Here comes Limpy,” stated Silent. “Been down to the telegraph office.” Limpy was hurrying as fast as his game leg would permit and working his jaws overtime. He shuffled to a stop beside the buckboard and spat copiously. “Sent a message to Teton,” he volun- teered. ‘““They’ll send it to the Whip- poorwill.” “What do yuh reckon was in that box, Limpy?” asked Brick. ““We-e-ell—” Limpy squinted up the street—‘‘well, the Whippoorwill’s a free- gold producer, and they ain’t shipped in a long time. That box weighed about a hun- dred pounds, and folks don’t generally ship junk, do they?” “Hundred pounds of gold!” gasped Lafe. “Thirty thousand dollars or thereabouts! fools ought to lose it when they send it without protection. Thought ~they was smart, didn’t they? Nobody expects a un- guarded stage to haul money. Don’t be- lieve in it myself, y’betcha. Goin’ to the ranch, Brick?” ‘Not now. Me and Silent can borry a couple of broncs from Wesson. You’ve got a outfit, ain’t yuh, Harp? MHarp’s workin’ for us now, Lafe.”’ “Work ? Lafe exploded. ‘‘Never had a puncher yet that would work. All right, all right. Come out and visit us, Harp. Forty a month for visitin’ punch- ers. I’m goin’ to fasten that heatin’-stove on the back of this buckboard. Ought to ’a’ done that instead of sendin’ a couple of Eomichooks.co