Adventure Magazine Cover — page 137: what you’re looking at

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

a “fT hope nobody sees me if I do,’’ grins ‘Dirty. “T contend that one’s information on -such a problem must come from personal observation and not from hearsay or opin- ions of others. We refuse to take cir- cumstantial evidence, as it were. It seems that some of the natives are—well, a bit touchy on the subject. I asked a gentle- man for his opinion, and he—well he——” “Just about where are headed for?” asks Dirty. “Headed for?” asks. Pettingill. are we going? “Where > We desire to locate asnear as possible to the habitat of the shepherd. We purchased the mules from a person in Silver Bend, who assisted us in selecting c ON Aye ye : \ ps (td iaaad A aN wy re A wid! by "as he ua 7 x fe Def vy \ { if ‘ . our provender. He tied it securely on the © mules, and we haven’t taken if off since - because we are afraid we could not get it ea Ths, fo “ ee “1 5A ‘How so?” I asks. on again.” = “At your city of Silver Bend I ap- ‘“Ffow long have you been in the hills?” <3 proached a man who was clad in leather I asks. as trousers, and I asked him if I could get a “Since yesterday morning.” = little information from him regarding sheep. “Suffering scissorbills!” snorts Dirty. = 3 I am sure my tones were not belligerent, ~ You left them burros packed all night, =e and I properly introduced myself before propounding the question.” “What did he say?” I asked. “He did not answer. He deliberately crushed my hat over my nose and kicked my feet from under me.” “Tt is very true,” nods the other one. “T—T thought perhaps we had met up with just the character we were investigating—a ‘mentally unbalanced sheep person. [ soothed him to the best of my ability, begging him to curb his profanity. Think- ing to humor him, I said—in kind tones: ‘“““My dear fellow, there was no offense intended to you or your sheep. We all love the little lambs.’” “Then what?” asks Dirty. “Well, it may have been a coarse way of describing it, but another fellow came along after the mentally unbalanced one had stridden away, and he said— “My , what a mess!’” “Who told you that shepherds were all crazy?” asks~Dirty. “Tt has been said,” replies Professor _ Middleton. ‘We are investigating.” “Just what does the word ‘crazy’ mean?” I asks. “Crazy?” Professor Pettingill shockéd at our ignorance. ‘Crazy means decrepit; weak; feeble; of weakened or disordered intellect.” “Come to think of it,” remarks Professor Middleton, ‘‘that party who assaulted us “was neither decrepit, weak nor feeble, Pettingill.”’ 7 “He was likely mad as ——, pa AL least that is a good simile,’ nods ” opines looks | bee Sa to he Pee @ Creek. *cause you— Say, you fellers ought to get Jobs herding sheep. You sure qualify.” “Ah!” says Middleton, pleased-like. “Do you—er—think it could be arranged?” “To herd sheep?” “Exactly. It would put us closely in touch with the subject. We could make — a close study of the effects of the sheep — animal upon the human brain. My dear Pettingill, that would be wonderful! Could it be arranged?” “T’d rise and howl that it could,” says~ Dirty. “You get the job.” “This is too good to be true!” exclaims Pettingill. “The same to you and many of them,” says Dirty. “Hump yourselves, mules; we're going home.” interested in our rag house. They @, makes a lot of notes in their little books while Dirty lays a fire:in the little sheet-iron stove. Then they wants to know where the sheep are. “Vou fellers want to be regular shep- THEM professors seemed a seap herds, don’t you?” asks Dirty. “Oh, certainly,” says Pettingill. ‘“We’re prepared for the worst. I am anxious to get first-hand information on the subject. Professor Middleton and myself are never content to take hearsay evidence for any weighty subject.” Being as we ain’t never seen the sheep ourselves, we has to trust to luck. We leads them pelicans to the top of a tall butte, and from there we gets a glimpse of the herd. Several hundred are feeding on the other side of a little creek, which we Cf, one 4 pe Re Wii 5 + Ma * westi” 4 i bay Ney WW he ; TUL *? MORAN Sova Ua Ai f ai) ae ‘7 y; ‘ey ‘ ) et ee PUA ee t ‘ ~~ Pa Liw | oe