Adventure Magazine Cover — page 178: what you’re looking at

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

168 jemadar—chief—of the Jumna band of half a thousand thugs; Hossein was the most youthful of the biutotes—stranglers. Dom Gion held the mastery of Bhir in his hand; he took toll of the wealth of its merchants, yet he gave wealth of merchan- dise to them—merchandise that was the spoil of the thugs’ bands upon the highway. And the countryside held him in fear as being a demon incarnate. This was be- cause Dom Gion, who took pains not to let them see him face to face, talked to himself in a tongue that they did not know, and because the snakes of the ruins were friendly to him. Likewise his wisdom was more than theirs. “Come, come,” snarled the old man. “Indeed you are my servant and the bonds of thuggt hold you. The vengeance of Kali would blast you and bar you from paradise did you lift hand against me, or the thugs, your comrades. Go, and bring report to me when the revenues are complete. Think not of Tala. She is not for you.” Hossein departed, outwardly humble, yet as he went he cast a sidelong glance at the form of the girl sleeping upon the divan. And, sleepless himself, he paced the jungle paths for many hours that night, his desire hot in his veins and his brain in a tumult. Hossein had taken from life what he coveted, and now he longed to possess Tala, who was ordained for other things by the master of the thugs. ram WHILE Hossein walked the jungle tS: Dom Gion retired to his closet be- hind his bed. There, it was said by the thugs who waited on him, he prayed to his“image of Kali and after praying he often came forth in the form of a snake to glide among their feet and listen . to what they said. And as proof of this they pointed out that Dom Gion, the jema- dar, had no fear of snakes, nor had the cobras any dread of him. But there was no image in the closet. Layer upon layer were placed squares of gold bullion and boxes of silver. Jade statuettes—spoil from itinerant Chinese caravans in Kashmir—jeweled rings and gems taken from inlaid weapons—for Dom Gion wore no weapon himself—strings of pearl that .had been on the throats of wo- men of Rajasthan before they were stran- gled to death—all in all the treasure of Dom Gon was a goodly store. And with the ‘ mering balls gently with his finger-tips. Adventure treasure were many dusty lease deeds made out on his behalf. He knew every item of it. Although the closet in the rock was almost dark, he lifted necklaces of pearls and touched the shim- For Dom Gion was a miser. Long residence in the half-light of un- derground had accustomed his eyes to the dark. In large measure he had the ability of animals of the cat family to see in the night. Because of this, and knowing the plan of the castle as he did, it was possible for him to stalk the two occupants, Malcolm and Rawul Singh, without being cornered. ‘Dom Gion had not slain them with his own hands because there were two of them and he feared both anu they were always together. On the wall of the closet was a painting done by an Indian artist of a harsh-featured Portuguese merchant. It was clad in the fashion of a century ago. It was, in fact, the grandfather of Dom Gion, who had taken the daughter of the village potaz! to wife. And in one of the chests was a firman or deed made out to his grandfather to trade in the district of Bhir. Dom Gion—as he was called, after his father—glanced at the parchment and smiled. V “THOU seest, Rawul Singh,” said eat John Malcolm, “that all signs point [5 to our friend the demon being a half- caste. I think he is more native than white even though he wears a cloak that has the seeming of a priest’s garb.” “The gods know.” ‘*‘A man of mixed blood always bears in his heart a grievance against the white man. And in the tale of the khttmatgar of Cunning- ham sahib it was related that the demon of Bhir-was akin to the daughter of the vil- lage potail. In Agra I made inquiries among the traders of the bazaar and they knew of a Portuguese who owned the district of Bhir during the last war with the English, three generations ago. So this man of Bhir, knowing that his authority over the district is not lawful and nursing his own enmity against my countrymen—he is the one we have to deal with. And I believe that the thugs serve him.”’ Malcolm frowned into the fire. It was cCOmiclbooks CO