Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 123, No. 4 — page 83: what you’re looking at

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

TEACH: PIRATE DE LUXE. as an impartial historian ought to write, but frankly, my mind is a bit warped in favor of the man.. His father looked a rich man, but died suddenly and left nothing. Peter kept him- self going at Harvard and elsewhere by scholarships. He took high degrees, and lots of them. Everybody who knew him predicted something glittering. Yet in spite of that, behold him G. P. in a village. Wine and women, so statistics show, are the ruin of one medical student out of three. Women handicapped Peter Cray— one, of the good variety; one, solidly deca- dent. Teach, though he did not know it, sailed in between the counter-influence of the two of them. Teach made his first inquiries at .Con- istone corner grocery, where they sold . everything from a tin tack to an anchor. His accent was of Maryland or Vermont. He was Mr. Joshua K. Furstenburg. He had heard that Conistone was the one spot in all the United States where a hard-driven man could get a rest cure, and was feeling improvement from the word “go.” But he would like to hear if there was any one who could hustle the cure along. Three marksmen suspended operations at the cuspidor, and offessed that Doc Cray was it. Teach, as Mr. Furstenburg, got one of them to ring up Cray’s house and ’ make an appointment for an ailing friend. Teach found Dr. Cray surprising. “I shouldn’t have thought your name was Furstenburg,” was Cray’s first remark. “You've got English blood in you, and possibly a dash of Spanish or Portugese. Certainly not Teutonic. Pedigree interests me, and incidentally has a large bearing on stomachs. How far can you go back with the Furstenburg history?” Captain Teach was generally ready enough with his tongue. But here a sub- ject, on which he was usually fluent, found him at a loss. ‘“‘ About one generation, ”” said he. am no use at ancient history.” “No. I guessed it would be like that,” said Cray dryly. ‘“ And which is the pain you wish to bring into prominence at this particular moment?”’ ‘Ty & © . 589 Teach was prepared for this, and with the subject well crammed up, gave tedious details. Cray, possibly with suspicion aroused, cross-examined mercilessly. And the pair of them ended up an hour’s bout full of mutual suspicion. A scented woman with dyed hair flitted-in and out of the room, and past across the window during the consultation. ‘““T wonder if you’d like to come and have a bit of a blow in my yacht?” said Teach at the finish. ‘ She’s back of Hat- teras now, but is coming across the Sound for me here to-morrow.” “Sorry,” said Cray. - “ Busy.” There they left it’ The scented woman flitted by as he left the house. But Teach went away fully decided that Dr. Cray was the exact man to fill the post of surgeon on the Littondale. Teach ostentatiously left Conistone that afternoon, but without any ostentation whatever ‘reentered the village at two o’clock next morning. He had with him Mr. gave that shifty person clearly to under- stard that any failure on his part to carry out orders with exactitude would be dealt with fatally. . It is always well when dealing with peo- ple of Llewelyn’s type, to have plain speak- ing on these matters. They met Dr. Cray just emerging from his own front door. A wave of scent followed him. ‘* Judging from your genial manner when we parted,” said the pirate, “I don’t think you'll be surprised when I assure you that I’m going to shoot you dead if you don’t do exactly what I order you.” ‘““No,” said Cray, “ that’s all right. spotted that bullet clip in your left ear, and the general outline and coloring of the pub- lished portraits of Captain.Teach. Those, on the top of your rottenly faked symptoms of angina, would have made a babe suspi- cious. ‘“‘ But as an extremely poor man I don’t see I’m a cashable asset to an expert of your profession. It may surprise you to learn that I have not even an insurance put by.” “Tl explain later how you can be of use, doctor, when in fact you start earning Original fr OM=a TE | (C =) C) CTA en HE OHIO ST THE Llewelyn Jones as bodyguard, and. 1 DOOK CO