Adventure Magazine, December 10, 1924 — page 185: what you’re looking at

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

The Pirates of Andrus Island canoe was just swinging in past the stern to go alongside the starboard side of the schooner, the side near the shore. This threw the missionary in high relief against waning bonfires. Parut’s boat came into the long, wide shadow of the whale-boat with its shrouded burden. Jessup’s canoe disappeared from view, moving slowly to the side of the schooner, where the ladder was dropped by the mate. The boat with the organ, its way falling off as it rounded slowly to the tow-line, hung under the schooner’s stern. ‘“‘What’s the trouble? Why was the light put out?” they heard Jessup ask in low tones. , “Lot of fishing boats prowling around,” said Langton. ‘It looks suspicious to me with you ashore. We’ve got to look out for these birds.” There was the creaking of the sea-ladder, and the thump of its steps against the side as Jessup swung up to the bulwarks. “Tl have the whale-boat swung in- board,” said the mate. “Let her lie alongside for now,” said Jes- sup. “Don’t like the looks of so many na- tive ‘boats myself. Get the crew out so we'll be ready.”’ The fishing boats between them and the shore seemed to hold the attention of Jes- sup and Langton. Parut’s men had drawn in closer, and were purposely making some- thing of a racket to draw notice across the bows of the schooner. Jessup and the mate moved to the forecastle head, talking in low tones, while the native canoe made fast the painter to the sea-ladder, leaving the whale-boat trailing a trifle astern of the schooner, dancing on the ripples made by the paddlers. The tide swung her slowly and she fell round under the fairing of the Gospel Argonaut. Wade whispered a few words to Doxey and then gave directions to Parut. The paddles began to move, the canoe glided under the schooner’s stern and snuggled close to the whale-boat. Doxey slipped overboard and hung to the bow of the whale-boat. Wade handed him the revolver. As Parut’s canoe slipped past, Wade went overboard also. Parut’s canoe shot away from them into the schoon- er’s shadow again and slowly drew out to seaward. In a few minutes it was a hun- dred yards from the schooner, and heading to cross its bows, while Parut began to call 163 to the other fishers, saying in Malay that he had all the fish he wanted, and was going in. This confab with the other boats served to distract the attention of Jessup and the mate from what was going on astern. They asked their native sailors to translate what was passing between Parut and the others. The clatter of voices covered any noises made by Wade and Doxey as.they pulled themselves up the ends of the whale-boat. and crawled under the loose edges of the canvas covering. There was room enough for them under the canvas, for, while it hung limply over bow and stern and trailed over the gun- wales, there was nothing in the big whale- boat but the melodeon, which peaked the canvas upward in the center like the pole of a tent. They could hear Parut gabbling away and the waning voices of the fishers as they hauled in for shore. The whale-boat scraped idly against the schooner, and in a quarter of an hour there was only the dis- tant chatter of the boatmen as they got their boats on the beach. Jessup and the mate came to the quarter- deck, satisfied that their alarm about the native boats had been needless. Wade heard the missionary say that the fruit and water would be out the first thing in the morning, and that they would sail immedi- ately. : “Andrus Island has seen Salvation Jes- sup, anyway,” they heard him say. “I’m glad I stopped. It would have been a mis- take to have passed this place, and we had to have a good supply of water and fruit. We kill two birds with one stone.” They heard Langton pass the worttte— the serang to hook the whale-boat to the falls and hoist her aboard. In a few min- utes Wade and Doxey felt the boat being towed forward, and presently the rattle of hooks forward and aft. They swung into the air to the creaking of blocks and the grunting counts of the native seamen as they hauled on the tackle. The whale-boat dropped into the skids, the gripes were se- cured, and the canvas was laced down all round the boat to protect the organ from moisture and any sudden squall of rain. It was stifling hot under the canvas, but the two white men were content. As the crew went away forward, Doxey cut a slit in the canvas cover close to the gunwale Comiclbook CO 5}