Commodore Junk — page 83: what you’re looking at

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

76 COMMODORE JUNK. ‘* No, Dinny,” he said, “it would alarm the station. They’d think someone was escaping. Let it be.” Dinny sighed, the overseer smoked on, and the hot silence of the tropic clearing was only broken by the screaming and chattering of the excited bird, the hum of insects, and the clink-clink, thud-thud; of fetters and hoe as the convicts toiled on in the glowing sun. They kept as near as they dared to their task-master, and he smiled superciliously as he put his own interpretation upon their acts. “ The artful scoundrels !” he said to himself; “they want me to believe that they always work like this. Well, it helps the plantation ;” and he smoked placidly on, little dreaming that every time Alel reversed his hoe, so as to break a clod with the back, the young man glanced at him and measured the distance between them, while he calculated how long to hold the handle of the tool, and where would be the best place to strike the enemy so as to disable him at once. “You take the soldier, Bart,” said Abel, softly, “Tl manage the overseer.” — “ Right, lad ! but not without we’re obliged.” “No. Then, as soon as they’re down, into the wood, find Mary, and make for her boat.” The heat was intense, the shade beneath the great cotton- tree grateful, and the aroma of the cigar so delicious that the overseer sank into a drowsy reverie ; while the soldier gave the two convicts a half-laughing look and then turned to face the jungle, whose depths he pierced with his eyes. Bart drew a long breath and gazed toward the dark part of the jungle, and there was an intense look of love and satis- faction in his eyes as he tried to make out the place where Mary lay, as he believed, hidden. The sight of the sentry on the watch with his gun ready had ceased to trouble him, for he GComichbooksneo — >)