Amazing Stories, Vol. 3, No. 2 — page 23: what you’re looking at

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

118 do nothing but wait till someone comes to help us.” “Or until we go to them,” from Weyl. Duperret paled slightly, and stood up. “I offer my- self as a messenger,’ he said. “I will take a dhow out. If I am attacked, well, know where to shoot them— in the eyes. [—” ZNO Reaouls ce would be simply—” He was interrupted. citedly, “Fim one piece boat in town,’ man comes.” “Boat? White man?” queried Larivet, puzzled. A cheery voice in the doorway answered him, “T say, is anybody here?” it said, and in marched an extraordi- nary figure of a man, A large sign saying “Englishman” could not have stamped his race more effectively than his expression of cheerful vapidity. His clothes were white, sc. 1pu- lously clean, and meticulously pressed, and in one hand he bore what looked like a small fire-extinguisher. He extended the other toward Weyl. “You're Weyl, aren’t your” he said. my name; Henry Seaton Mulgrave. grave and Pembroke, and all that rot. vice.” “Of course I remember,” said Weyl cordially. “You gave that extraordinary paper on the Myxinidae be- fore the British Association. Ah, that paper! Allow me,” he said, and translated into rapid French for the benefit of Larivet, “to present the Earl of Mulgrave, one of the most distinguished of living scientists.” There wete bows, a drink offered and accepted,, and the visitor, carefully placing his fire-extinguisher 1n the corner, curled his Janky frame up in a chair. said Weyl, “let me try it. It A native servant entered ex- * said the black. ‘White “Mulerave’s Earl of Mul- At your ser- CHAPTER VLE 66 ERIOUSLY, though, y'know,” Mulgrave said after finishing his whisky and soda, “if it hadn’t been that I was a bit in the doldrums at the time your report came out, I believe I would have joined the rest of the world in thinking you somewhat -—er—balmy, despite your excellent reputation. But I needed a cruise anyway, and cameon the chance there was something in it; sort of a sporting venture, d’y’see? It did seem ante a bally cooked-up sort of mess, the way those journals played it up, y'know.” Weyl’ s nod of understanding was followed by an in- : quiring look at the queer contrivance the Englishman had placed in the corner, _“Flammenwerfer,”’ query. “Germans used ’em in the war. of frightfulness. Shoots out fire. effective, even against your bally you.” = Bute Weyl xctunet "you Slt yes, 1 have, Mulgrave smiled. Superior bit Pecaon: and paid us a visit on he: grea my yi cl y’know—just outside the harbor. against them, iE fancy when we got through with them they were rather scorched. — Morgane: ‘was war- built, and has- steel decks, so we AMAZING STORIES didn’t mind putting the Flammenwerfer to work We've got what’s left of one stretched out on the deck. Others got away.” Weyl breathed a sigh of relief and thankfulness that this casual Englishman had come prepared. How easily the mail boat disaster might have been duplicated! He shuddered. “Well then, part of our horrible problem seems to be solved, thanks to your foresight, Mulgrave. At least we have a means of wiping them out. But here’s the difficulty. It will take years, killing them off one by one, as we'll have to do with your pump gun. JI tell you, they infest the whole island, thousands of ’em. They're increasing and multiplying faster than we could possibly kill them off. That’s the only way I can explain this recent outbreak. They were few enough in number, before this, to femain in obscurity except in isolated districts, and known only to ignorant and super- stitious natives.” Weyl’s forehead creased in perplexity and worry. “If they keep on—well, they'll need the whole globe. And that means only one thing; man wall have to get off it to make room for them. They’re powerful enough, and intelligent enough, to have their own way about it, too. Don’t doubt it, Unless—” Mulgrave evidently did not share Weyl’s anxiety, though he did not seem to underestimate the danger. “T’ll finish that last sentence of yours, Weyl, althonen Pil admit things are a bit worse than I had thought But. meanwhile, let's Jook over our resources, and try to find out a bit more about the nature of the beast we're up against. The post-mortem of that lamentably deceased visitor on the Morgana’s deck ought to tell us something of his weak points. Do you want to go out there now ?” With chairs tilted back against the cabin of the Mor- gana, the three men regarded the sundown sky in a moody and depressed silence. Their dissection of the octopus killed by Mulgrave’s pump-gun had-added little to their knowledge of the anatomy of the menacing brutes, save a confirmation of Weyl’s hypothesis that their preathiee while on land,-was conducted by means of the same gills which supplied them with oxygen in the water, protected, like the lobster’s, by a. covering of chitin. — Mulgrave’ 3 chair. scraped on the deck. _ get back ashore,” he said. “Well, let’s — “Can’t do any more now I~ _ fancy, unless they decide to stage a Pa for us ams = - evening,’ 2 “Mulgrave answered _ ihe. Stent = “And really quite = a pete