Adventure Magazine Cover, December 10, 1922 — page 95: what you’re looking at

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

Minerva’s Treasure with a corned beef sandwich in one hand and the crown of a patent anchor in the other. His hair was long and bleached nearly white, and his body was tanned a beautiful golden brown, such as_ only blonds get who do tan at all. He lifted the anchor easily and tossed it over the side, where it presently buried itself in the fine sand of a Nuka Hiva harbor. He turned and surveyed the little bridge, where stood Minot, lighting a cheroot, and Skull, looking shoreward, apparently some- what pleased. Dockery laughed. He was young and needed lots of room to spread out. The broad beach and the little settle- ment seemed strangely attractive. The high palms appeared to beckon. “Fresh coconut milk,” he exclaimed, and a minute later his tow head cut into the clear water. They did not delay long. West and south, ever west and south—they left the Mar- quesas behind, after two days on the beach. Carefully avoiding Tahiti, they cut west to Scilly and south again to Hervey, making but short stops. Raratonga came next, and then the twelve-day jump to Pylstaart. Pylstaart! A low reef tinted pink by the afternoon sun. Inside, a calm cove. A dazzling beach. Heavy green, palms and Paradise. Pylstaart—one hundred miles from the Minerva Reefs. Dockery threw over the hook, whistling off the key the while. Minot tapped the ashes out of his favorite pipe and seriously placed them in his pocket, tossing the pipe over the side. Skull gazed shoreward contentedly. Elec- tricity and excitement and an odd quiet filled their little world. Pylstaart! SUPPOSE we skip a week? It isn’t an interesting week anyway, — F because it’s uneventful, but Dock- ery and Minot worked harder than they had for a good while before, in the very necessary duty of locating the exact spot where Captain Cassius Cleaver had _ brought Minot when the captain was spending, mentally, the rich proceeds from Minerva. Now, on one bright, calm noon, after six nervous days, they had found it, and Minot and Dockery were manning the rail and minutely studying the dark spots down beside the edge of the coral where the anchor had caught hold. There were the banks, all right, just below them, and filled in thick as far as one could see. Here a iz 89 diver could work an hour or more in a single spot. The reef itself came up straight and sheer from the packed sand, almost within a fathom of the surface. Minot pointed here and there excitedly. Dockery said, “God,” and then a little later, “God,” again. “Here! What’d we come for? Let’s rig the lines and go down and look her over. Come on; shed those lousy dungarees; come on!” In a minute all was action, and in a few more they were ready. “You, Skull! You know your job, don’t your Come here and tend these lines; we're going under. Meet»me on the edge of the reef, Minot—we’ll go down together the first time. Now watch this,” he gripped the rail with both hands. Slowly, the heavy muscles in his shoul- ders and back dancing, his body lifted, and slowly, his feet pointed upward, his back arching gradually. For several seconds he re- mained, holding a handstand, then slipped, with hardly a sound, into the translucent water. Minot watched him a bit, while his body slowly spiraled toward the bot- tom, and then sprang over the rail feet first and followed after. Along the edge of the reef they swam, taking care not to come close enough to be scratched. Here was a garden spot for fair. Long streamers strained upward out of the coral, gleaming green where they passed through a path of sunlight; and in the distance the depths appeared pale heliotrope. Though dark gray when viewed from the boat, the oyster beds now were colored a deep blue, with tiny flashes here and there of pure crimson, where parts of colored shell lay at certain angles to the changing light. An occasional little silvery fish nosed up, keeping at a safe distance, and departed again, evidently satisfied. Dockery and Minot looked at each other and shook hands; then, ignoring the lines, shoved off toward the surface and a few seconds later climbed aboard, up an improvised rope- ladder. “What do you say?” asked Minot. “T say I never saw so much shell in one place in my life,” said Dockery, ‘“‘and also, we’ve got a pretty place to work, as well as an easy place. Did you see that cave?” “What cave?” comicbook (E(0)