Adventure, January 20, 1922 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

Tides of Hate 9 But, —— take it, girl, you’re white as death. Afraid?” The woman laughed bitterly. “Afraid of nothing on earth, if that’s what you mean. I’ve broken every one of the ten commandments except the one which forbids coveting your neighbor’s wife. But I’ve made one of my own to take that one’s place. I have coveted a woman’s man instead. So why should I fear? Had I been of a scary sort, d’ ye think I would have chosen such a life?”’ “Then why shiver? Why so pale?” “Rage, poor fool; rage! Why shouldn’t I look pale, when that scum o’ the salt seas outside is licking its chops over my frying for their fun? You'll see color enough in my cheeks when we burst through and face them.” “Then let’sget to work,” Davies suggest- ed, seizing a cask and rolling it clear of the wall farthest away from the window. On hands and knees together they dug at the yielding sand with wood taken from * a broken box, and the thudding of the fagots outside, and the uproarious yells of the waiting revelers beyond, sounded ominous in the face of the slow progress they made with the digging. From time to time the woman straight- ened up to listen. Once she stepped to the window and glanced out. When she re- joined her companion a vivid spot of red burned in each cheek; her ~bold eyes glittered metallically. “In ten minutes we must be outside, or frying in our own grease,” she said. ‘‘The first torches are being lighted over at the camp-fire.”’ “Then outside it shall be. For I did not risk the seas alone in a cockle-shell, with no crew save my parrot, to make barbecue for John Cook’s rabble.” Davies straightened his broad back with a carefree laugh and pulled away a section of the lower wall, letting in a shower of dust and gravel, but also admitting the faint glow which told of a completed outlet. “Why did you risk that lonely voyage?” Nell asked eagerly, seeming in no way inter- ested in escape for the moment. “I am curious to know what reason was strong enough to impel Edward Davies to part with his imposing whiskers and take to a tiny boat in order to risk his life in John Cook’s retreat.” The Schoolmaster sprawled on the floor, his long, powerful arms tugging and pushing at some obstruction just outside which seemed partly to block their egress still; and as he labored he chuckled gently for a moment before answering: “The rover’s lot is not so merry a one lately, Nell. The bulldogs are beginning to discover that faster ships are needed in order to catch the gentlemen of the Black Flag; and faster ships are arriving in the Caribbean. A change was advisable for me. “‘Besides, I had just failed in a foolish land enterprise; failed and lost a fortune. That Nicaraguan expedition proved 2 “Was that your exploit?” the woman interrupted him with something of admira- tion in her tone. “Nothing to boast about, Nell,” he laughed. “TI joined up with the Frenchman, L’Escuyler, and together we made the march with seven hundred men. As far as the lake we got, and almost to the city of Ria Lexa. ‘Then a gold convoy fell into our hands. “There is neither time to tell, nor use in telling, of the failure which followed success so swiftly. I accused the Frenchman of treachery when after a night camp we found the treasure gone like the smoke of a cannon in a breeze. He in turn accused me. His men were tallied; so were mine. Only those who had fallen in the attack on the convoy were missing, and a search of a week failed to discover trace or sign of that store of gold. “But distrust of each other soon set our parties to fighting; fever and bad water helped; and in short we parted company vowing vengeance upon each other. I reached the coast alone, save for my parrot here; and after many a long league of tramp- ing the coastline and sailing the coastal seas in any crazy craft I could come upon I got such a boat as gave me hope of reaching here, where I had heard John Cook was getting ready a fleet to round the Horn for a descent upon the Dons of the west coast.” “But Cook has no Jove for you!” the woman exclaimed. “He will have when I show him how much easier it is to reach the place where that treasure was lost from the Pacific than by the land journey from the Caribbean.” ‘“‘Have you heard that this same French- man, L’Escuyler, is to join with John Cook too?” “My parrot told me something of the Go VOOKS AUUG (E@)