Argosy All-Story Weekly, February 4, 1922 — page 119: what you’re looking at

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

FORTUNE UNAWARES. streaks of rose, tipped with faint gold, be- gan to appear, high up, then lower. The beam of the searchlight grew wan and was shut off. Light came with a rush. I looked off ‘to the wreck and saw the white hull flash out as the sun jumped up with a daz- zling glare, temporarily blinding me. “Come on up to the bridge,”’ said En Sue. “‘ Here they are.” From the east, in the eye of the sun, black specks appeared, like the fins of mam- moth sharks. From the west, around the south cape of Banguey, came a flotilla of some thirty prahus, and the breeze carried +the far-off sound of their yelling. From the south, between Mallawalle and the north- ern horn of Paitan Bay, the channel was black with craft. The wind was against them, their sails were lowered and they were paddling hard, looking like water-bugs, coming on rapidly, the savage men of Sulu’s scattered isles. This was the largest fleet of all, at least fifty of the big, outrigged canoes, with overloads of men sinking the freeboard almost to water level. “Some scrap!” O’Rourke was by us, cuddling his rifle. “ When do we open the ball?” he asked En Sue. “ I’ll get the range from the gun-crews and, for the sacred memory of Brian Boru, don’t delay the game. Remember, man, I’ve got some ac- counts to straighten out.” “ T think the Sulus and those in the east- ern channel will join,” said En Sue, “ so as to keep us dazzled by the sun. Better come up on the bridge, both of you. Li Yuen will command the fight.”” He did not now speak of Li Yuen as father, I noticed, and I observed also the glad light of coming com- bat now displayed in his eyes. Every mem- ber of the crew was calmly preparing to be ready as soon as the order to fire was given and there was a reserved alacrity—if one may coin such an apparent paradox—in their bearing that made me take a dig at En Sue as we mounted to the bridge. “JT thought you said that soldiers in China were despised,” I said. ‘ Or, if you did not, your father did. But you seem as eager to fight as your crew.” ‘‘ Chinese soldiers are hirelings,” he an- swered. ‘‘ The mercenary is never the equal of the man who fights with his body because 429 his soul bids him. The Jews are not a fighting race, but they performed rare deeds of valor when they were put to it in an- cient times. Besides, this is not a battle; it is an administration of justice.” “T’m glad I’m on the bench,” said O’Rourke. “ But this is no one-sided argu- ment. Look at those devils!” From our vantage on the bridge we could see the maneuvers of the pirates. Long generations of fighting had taught them what tactics to adopt without any special admiral of their combined fleets. As In- dians surrounded a wagon train on the prairies, the prahus paddled up wind, hauled up their sails and shot before the wind, round and round us in a long and wide ellipse, keeping distance, yelling and shak- ing their weapons at us. We caught the furious beat of drums, and puffs of white smoke showed where they were firing their guns in the air and wasting cartridges. Slowly the ellipse narrowed with every evo- lution about the Little Dragon. The tide was at the full and the prahus paddling against the wind had the benefit of it. With sail or blade they must have made a good twelve knots. And still they swept nearer and still Li Yuen reserved his fire. He was waiting for them to bunch. They divided into two parties, one against the sun, the other off to windward. Simul- taneously they came down upon bows and stern, dividing into two opening V’s. The rapid-firers started, finding and holding the range to a nicety. I saw the shells strike plump and fair and praius blown clear of the water into the air, the men falling from them like so many aeronauts. But still they came on. Port and starboard the Lewis guns sprayed down a pattering death while rifles took individual toll. And still they came, yelling, firing, though none of their bullets took present effect. It was impos- sible to repulse them as they surged in from every point.of the compass, ran their slender craft up to the sides of the Little Dragon and tossed a hundred grappling-hooks aboard. The lines came snaking up with bamboo joints knotted into them, and as fast as the hooks caught, Dyak and Malay clambered to the rail. They had seen barbed-wire COmiclbooks.Gom