Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 16, 1921 — page 100: what you’re looking at

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

‘ WAY wer ¢ pt \ . aT hy » aes tte Sw 4% Si) at \ ' R), Lfd ie eS Sng "eiloeees : rm single file. The one who led held his hands stiffly before him and the second man carried an automatic pistol and watched the leader. The third traveler clung to a small, black leather ‘hand-bag. It had been raining, was raining and promised to keep on raining with the pecu- liar fidelity that is characteristic of the Cas- cade range where warm air currents off the Pacific meet the chill of the snow-fields and dissolve into tears. | The trail was merely a crude track through the big timber. It climbed over the roots of trees as high as a small house; crawled under windfalls and lost itself in thickets where vine maple and briars tan- gled like barbed wire and were no more con- siderate of the person who ventured through. The soil was so rain-sodden that the men sank to their ankles. _ The wrists of the leader, held so stiffly before him, were manacled and his arms were of little use in balancing his body. He lurched like a drunkard on a Saturday night and went often to his knees. From head to boot-sole he was plastered with mud. His clothing was torn by thorns and the exposed parts of his body were scratched and bruised and grimed. The gray light had failed completely when the leader came in sight of a little cabin of logs and cedar shakes set in a "Psat men followed a mountain trail Re 2 re ea eI > hdolt makeshift clearing and revealed only by the glow of a lamp. He indicated the place by a stiff gesture of the bound arms and halted. His two companions halted beside him and stared a long time. The man with the weapon, who was heavy set and spoke with evidence of a bad cold in the head, swore huskily. ‘“ You trying to double- cross us?” he demanded. “Yeah!” whined the third traveler. “You said this shack was empty! If you’re framing anything—” “It was empty two days ago,” their leader declared. ‘I tell you I was up to it and it was empty—and closed up. It was! How in hell could I double-cross the two of you—and you with the guns!”’ They clustered there at the edge of the clearing and argued angrily. All admitted to being tired—played out with the hard going; half starved and half frozen. -The orange glow of the light and errant sparks es ~ from the cabin’s tin stove-pipe had a fas-. gi cination for them like the candle’s lure for the moth. Finally the man who held the gun announced, ‘I'll go up, Gus. You watch him and if he makes a squawk—you know! If it’s O. K. Ill whistle.” Five minutes later they heard his low signal to them and met him before the cab- in door. He was chuckling. “ It’s all right, Gus! Go NOOK (C@ S|