Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 14, 1928 — page 35: what you’re looking at

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

THE MAN FROM THE RIO GRANDE. ‘“ They—they go together all right,” he choked. ‘ But don’t think Jake’s so darn smart—he’s th’ only one what got a good look at th’ hat before. I'd got wise jist th’ same as him if I'd had the chance.” The judge turned to Jake. ‘Sorry I spoke so quick, but at first, it did look awful fishy.” Jake simply nodded. “ Like as not the body will show up in Drumhead Dam ’fore a great while,” some one spoke up. “ Roaring River empties in thar, ‘bout a hundred miles down,”’ “ Might get caught in the rocks along the bottom ’fore it gets thar,” another opined. “ Can’t never tell!” “ What good’s th’ body anyhow?” Jake growled. “‘ Does any of yuh think th’ killer’s ever goin’ tuh show up alive, after me gettin’ two cracks at him at less than fifty yards and knockin’ him clean off his pins into that stream? Why a man what wasn’t even wound- ed couldn’t live in that wild water ten seconds—the rocks in them rapids would dash his brains out!” ‘Of course not, Jake!’’ one of his supporters agreed. “ Thar’s no arguin’ but what yuh put him out of business fur keeps.”’ “ And I did it myself—don’t forgit that!” Jake bawled. “ Them one thou- sand iron men will come in mighty handy tuh me jist now. Let’s head fur th’ Lucky Strike—I’m gettin’ damn dry!’ With Jake strutting proudly in the lead, the posse started along the nar- row path, Judge Wilson scratching his head as he trailed on behind as if his path was not altogether free from doubts. If. For the next week, Jake’s exploit was the main topic of conversation in Copper Gulch. With the refusal of Dick Tatnall, part owner of the Loder mines, to pay the one thousand dollars reward to old Jake until he had con- clusive proof of the murderer’s death, 178 the town became divided into three fac- tions. First, there was a large and demon- strative group that held no doubts whatever of the slayer’s speedy execu- tion at the hands of old Jake, branding Dick ‘Tatnall as very unfair in with- holding the reward. Directly opposed to these was another large but more reticent faction who subtly conveyed their opinion that Jake’s exploit was nothing but a brazen hoax from begin- ning to end, declaring he had chanced to find the slayer’s hat and the rest was simply the product of his imaginative mind, aided by two shots in the air from one of his guns. And acting as a sort of buffer be- tween these two large and more pow- erful groups was a small clique of in- habitants who, while not altogether doubting Jake’s tale, were far from convinced of the slayer’s death, point- ing out that a slightly wounded man might live through the rocks and rap- ids of Roaring River until he reached the calmer waters below where he could work his way to shore with com- parative ease. ‘These persons contend- ed that Dick Tatnall was justified in withholding the reward until the body was found. During this time, old Jake made the most of his doubtful honors by loafing in the Lucky Strike saloon, freely ac- cepting the treats tendered by his ad- mirers, in turn for which he gave graphic accounts of his exploit. Each day, carefully selecting a period when no drinks were forthcoming, Jake would leave the barroom long enough to find Dick Tatnall and plead for the reward. But Tatnall was obdurate in his condition that the body must first be found. On one of these visits, Jake encoun- tered Bill Simpson, the new paymaster of the Loder mines, who very forcibly expressed his opinion that Jake was nothing but a tipsy old bluff and that the murderer was still at large. Old Jake flew into a violent rage and after COPMICLOOOKS (E@)