Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 72: what you’re looking at

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

4S > ie L. Anderson Kathe ob Fhe CaveiThat Swims euithe Weler,7"* The LerAiet the Winged Dealt,” ete, CHAPTER I. THE RIVALS. “ HIREE moons hence shall each bring to me a figure, the figure of the Star-Marked One, bride of @©-Ma-Ken, the Great Father, friend of lovers. Carven shall the figures be from the tooth of Do-m’rai, Walks; of purest ivory, as befits the Star- Marked One. To him whose figure is best shall my hand be given; with him will I go as bride to his cave.” The speaker was a lovely girl of some twenty years, Then-ai, the Lance of Dawn, daughter to Nan-a-ta, Great Chieftain of the People of the Mountain Caves. It was not the custom among the tribe for women to take “ warrior names” on reaching ma- turity, but sometimes in the case of a chief- tain’s daughter, or one who had performed some notable act, this was done, and here the name fitted well, both for the beauty of the girl and for the straight, slim grace of her skin-clad form, her bare arms and legs glowing rosy in the firelight as she stood erect and proud in her father’s cave, her brown eyes shining in the flickering’ light of the fire and the oil-fed lamps of stone that swung suspended from the roof. Beside the fire sat the great chieftain himself, nodding the approval for which his daughter looked as she finished speak- ing, and fronting her across the flames were two young men of the Ta-an, youths of her own age, the suitors to whom she had issued her command. | 638 the Hill That’ ‘These young men, tribal companions ef Then-ai, were by name Ku-ro, Carver ef Ivory, and Tu-sen, Maker of Figures, and their unmutilated hands, together with their lances — “ warrier’s weapons ”"— marked them as members of the artist clan. When a tribesman was inducted at ma- ~ turity into his chosen clan, whether war- rior, artist or priest, hunter or fisher er af- tisan, part of the ceremony of induction consisted in the solemn striking off by the chief priest of one or another of the youth’s fingers, that all might know his clan; the artists alone, most honored of the clans, kept all the fingers uninjured. Ku-ro and Twsen had for seme three years been rivals for the hand ef Thet-ai, nor had she been able to choose betweet them; her father somewhat favored Tu- sen, but none might coerce a chieftain’s daughter in her choice of a mate—even her own father might do no more than advise, and though many among the youths of the tribe had sought the Lance of Dawn, only to be sent away discouraged and downcast, it was now known to all men that the race lay between Ku-ro and Tu-sen, nor could the maiden decide. Gentle at heart, and reluctant to wound one who loved her, yet was she proud as became the daughter of the great chieftain, and now at length she had resolved to let the rivals, each known for his skill in carv- ing, contest for her favor; none might wed Then-ai save the loftiest! Bowing in acceptance of the task, and bowing again in honor to the great chief- COMIC INOOKS «CO