Adventure Magazine Cover — page 182: what you’re looking at

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

176 I jumps to the corner of the building and looks. There’s a big feller coming down the stairs, with Buddy held in front of him. He’s got his arms wrapped around the kid, and there ain’t a chance in the world for us to shoot him. “Take that bay hoss, Sim,” yells a voice from the hall. ‘He can outrun anythin’ around here.” “He, he, he!’ cackles Sol Vane. he, he!” Hashknife empties his rifle through tlte windows of the hall and Sol quit laughing. “Vuh can’t git the best of Sim Sellers,” whoops a voice. Sim comes on to the horses, which are plumb nervous. One of ’em ripped its bridle loose and went down the street and another threw itself, trying to get loose. Sellers is kinda between us and the win- dows, which stops their shooting. ‘He, “Don’t get scared, Buddy,” says Hash- knife. “T ain’t,’ shrills Buddy. “Betcha I ain’t.”’ . “Sim,” says Hashknife, “‘you better think up a prayer, cause you’re goin’ to need one CE? SELLERS cursed us and carried 4) Buddy in close to that bay horse, which has anchored itself with its left side against the tie-rack and refuses to budge. It’s easy enough to use a kid fora shield against bullets, but it’s another thing to get on toa scared brone with the kid in your arms and still keep covered. Willer Crick are liable to hit Sellers if they shoot at us, so we takes things easy. “Vou’re in a hole, Sim,” says Hashknife. “One bad move and you’re a goner.”’ “You'll have to get on Injun side,” says I, “and that bronc will sure love you for that.”’ Sim Sellers sure is up against it. I reckon he seen what he was up against— seen that he had to take a chance; so he threw Buddy into the saddle, intending, I reckon, to throw himsélf sideways on that bronc and make a getaway like an Injun, but Hashknife was looking for that move. As Buddy went into the saddle it left Sim’s legs exposed under the bronc’s belly. Hashknife shot twice with his six-shooter and Sim went down, like something had cut his legs out from under him. The horse plunged against the rack, throwing _me. goin’ Adventure Buddy between us and the hitch-rack, but he lit on his hands and knees. “Come a-runnin’, Buddy!” yells Hash- knife, and if you ever seen a rabbit, that kid sure imitated one. He dived around the corner of that lum- ber pile and landed between us, where he sets and puffs the wind back mto his lungs. “Hurt yuh any?” asks Hashknife. ‘“‘Na-a-a-w! Sim Sellers like to busted my ribs, though. Did yuh kill him?” “Cut him loose from the“Bround,” says - Hashknife, watching the windows. “Set still, Sim. Don’t forget that both ends of yuh are exposed now.” Sim Sellers is setting there in the dust, with a pair of legs that don’t seem to work. ‘‘They stole me,” says Buddy. ‘After you left me with the horses, Mitch, Ames and ‘Poky’ Vane swiped me. I kicked M#th in the knee and he swore he’d kill He brought me here. Say, they’re to kill you—honest. They ain’t goin’ to let you tell the sheriff on Cale Ames. They sent men to get the old man.” ‘“‘Where were they goin’ to take you, Buddy?” asks Hashknife. “Me dunno,’ Buddy shakes his head. “Sim Sellers says he’s takin’ me where you fellers never will find me.”’ “Hey!” yells a voice from the hall, which we recognizes as belonging to Sol Vane. “Can yuh hear me?” “Tf yuh don’t yell todo loud,” answers Hashknife. ‘“‘Now listen; that shed beside you is containin’ about five” hundred pounds of dinnamite, caps and fuses. Come out and hold up your hands or we'll shoot into it until we blows yuh up. Do yuh hear that?” Me and Hashknife looks at each other. It’s a good bluff. I don’t care a whoop who says nay, I’m here to state that dyna- mite might go off under them conditions. Some of them hombres are shooting .50-110 rifles, which carries a explosive bullet, and that might make things plumb ° audible around us. “Talk to ’em, Sleepy,’ ent Hash- knife. “Keep talking, for ’s sake!” “You mean, you’d blow us up, Sol?” I asks, as Hashknife slides pat me and gets against the building. “He, he, he! Think we'd let ye off after what you’ve done? Naw, sir, your goin’ to git all that’s comin’ to yuh. When I give the word we start shootin’.”’ COMIC LOOKS (E@)