Argosy All-Story Weekly, November 13, 1920 — page 150: what you’re looking at

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

428 on his thigh with a resounding slap. ‘‘ By gosh, I’ll do it!”’ he muttered and straight- way set out for the pier, his long hair danc- ing on his shoulders. “Say, ’tain’t no use waitin’ fer them pertaters! Git in the dory, if ye be goin’ with me,” he said, as he hauled the boat close to the pier. Mr. Stegle noted the changed face of the man as he carefully lowered himself into the dory, but he made no return. Having seated his passenger amidships and loosened the triangular sail the other took his place: astern, and in a moment the little craft was gliding over the increasing seas—seas which to the city man looked sinister in the fast fading light. The lawyer was not happy; the nearness to the water he disliked, and the motion of the boat, made him apprehensive, while his not too fine sensibility was keen enough to permit him to see that there was an an- tagonistic feeling toward himself on the part of the man facing him. It appeared to be his duty to dissipate it. When the boat had sailed well into the bay he spoke. ‘““T see you are not smoking, Mr. Tobias, T thought—”’ “ Naw, I fergot about it,” was the short answer. “Won't you have one of mine? I meant—” “Say, I wouldn’t take a seegar from ye for a million dollars.” It was as flat a rebuff as the lawyer had ever received. He coughed. “1 presume you have some personal feeling against me on account of my errand,” he returned, in a conciliatory tone. ‘Wall, you bet! “Cause I happen to be Pop Drum- mond.” The big man fixed a hard eye on his passenger. Mr. Stegle stared. ‘‘ You told me your name was Toby—or Tobias!” ““ Wall, lawyers hain’t got a license to do all the lyin’! I knew ye! I knew ye was comin’ to ruin a feller on his birthday—on his seventieth birthday, mind ye. I was layin’ for ye. I ought to love ye, hadn’t 1?” ‘“‘ ‘You might have told me the truth when I first met you.” “ Wall, I didn’t, but I’m tellin’ ye some- I got a call to hev.”’ ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. thin’ now. An’ I'll go so far as to ask again ef somethin’ can’t be done?” Mr. Stegle was angry and for a moment forgot the irritability of his stomach. ‘“ No, nothing can be done,” he snapped. ‘I'am sorry for you, Captain Drummond. I have explained that this is a disagreeable matter for me.” ‘“ Nothin’ to be done, hey?” There was something about the fisherman’s hard eye which Mr. Stegle did not like. ““ Nothing—unless I might arrange for a small loan,” he answered. ‘“ Don’t ‘talk about loans to a dyin’ man.” The lawyer was impressed more by the other’s manner than by his words. He suddenly realized that he was alone with the ° man he had come to ruin, and under the circumstance considered it prudent to hedge. “*T little wonder that you have a bitter feel- ing toward me, but to blame me personally is unjust. I am only aservant. I am only here to give you formal notice of Mr. Lowny’s intentions.” His voice was per- Suasive but it seerned to have little effect on the fisherman whose face had grown as hard as flint. “Ye won’t never foreclose that moggage, mister.”’ There was plain menace in the deep tone. Mr. Stegle’s latent fear became active. ‘‘ Take me back to Wickapemis at once,” he said. ‘I will not go over to- day.” “Nor to-morrer—nor next day—nor never,” was the return that suddenly tight- ened the lawyer’s nerves and made him catch his breath. Had he been ashore he would have stoutly stood his ground but the existing conditions were different from anything he had ever experienced and he did not know how to meet them. He was on the water with a man against whom he was going to commit a moral wrong, though a legal right, and the land looked terribly far away. A sudden recollection of the words of the store proprietor to the effect that Pop Drummond was “ a leetle teched ” and might become violent if aroused assailed him with a force which curbed a wordy out- break and made him politic. It was not the time nor place for him to threaten. He gave a gulp and sent an anxious look over the darkening water the swells of which GComicbooks (E(0)