Adventure, February 20, 1922 — page 60: what you’re looking at

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

. * al : + ». 4 eS N= 2 4 ¥ ws @7t) oy had , ‘ have to go’ to the President to do it! A gunner!” he spat viciously. “And me scheming to get married next month and bring my wiff to the bungalow. Wouldn’t I look nice bringing a wiff out here to live in the dog-house?”’ “You don’t happen to know this bird ~ Blackhurst, do you?” asked Goat. “Might if I saw him,” was the grumbling reply. ‘A man remembers mostly by faces and nicknames in the Navy. I suppose I'll -remember him from somewhere when I see him. And like all former shipmates that have passed up into the realm of gold- wearers he’ll give me to understand that fa- miliarity breeds contempt, and that it might perhaps be better if we forget our former ac- quaintance. Whoever he is, he’s an officer. _ I can’t see how things are going to get any better out here.” “T can’t see how they could, chief,”’ said Goat. ‘“You’ve sure run things so that everybody’s been satisfied, and at the same time always got the work done proper.” “That’s the bug that bites, Goat. You see, in the long run I’m the dub it all falls on. I’ve always figured there was only a few of us out here, and sooner than give a -man a growl and stir up hard feelings I’ve let a lot of things slide. But now I’ll have to turn around and tighten up. “And itll put me in a world all by myself. I'll be between the gunner and the gang; the gang hating me on the one hand because I’ve suddenly become duty-struck, and the gunner riding me on the other because I’m _ not duty-struck enough.” “Oh, he may turn oui to be nice and democratic-like,” said Goat optimistically. rae “One thing—he’ll have to eat with us; that’ll _ tend to kinda bridge the gap between us and him.” *“Simple,”’ who had come in during the discussion, and stood reading the message over Graveyard’s shoulder, now chimed in: “Does this mean work all night out in the - power-house? Doll everything up?” “Doll —— up!” Graveyard setslade® “And spoil him right off the bat? Give him the impression that he’s running into a cage _ of monkeys, all breaking our necks to please Py ~ him?” “That’s a pageful,” Goat spoke up. “My suggestion Is, everybody go right about their business as usual, just as if there wasn’t any gunner coming out at all. Let’s you ane I take our regular mornin’ fishin’-trip. Adventure Let’s start the gunner off with fish for din- ner,” he concluded with a grin. If “Beans,” the cook, wanted to get the rock-gang fighting mad, ‘all he had to do was have fish for dinner. They would not eat fish on a bet. Graveyard and Goat went out in a boat fishing every morning, but they gave all the fish they caught to the light- house men. Start him off on fish. The idea pleased Graveyard immensely. “Boy, you’ve got a man’s head,” he re- sponded approvingly. Then he grew thoughtful for a moment. “The question is,” he finally added, “will Beans be sober enough to cook by to- morrow? Do you know what that rum- hound has done in these last two weeks? He’s nearly emptied a five-gallon can of al- cohol on me! T’ll have to get after him; it’s time he came out of it. Either of you seen him today?” Simple shook a negative. “Tast I seen him,” informed Goat, ‘“‘was when he busted into my room about two o’clock this morning. Woke me up and wanted me to kill a big snake with a devil’s head on it he thought was chasing him.” ‘Tell the first man that sees him to run him over to my shack,” ordered Graveyard, who then strode out of the quarters and over to his bungalow. NO SOONER had Graveyard seated “ himself than there came a timid Zed knock at his door. It was Beans, the cook. Beans was a pitiable sight. His eyes and face were bloodshot and bleary; he was disheveled and dirty. “Nothing doing on the shot,” snapped Graveyard. ‘Every drop of alcohol on this station is under lock and key. And fur- thermore, you better snap. Ill give you till tomorrow morning at ten o’clock to be straight. If——” “Now wait a minute, chief,” Beans inter- rupted. “First place, T ain’t lookin’ for a shot. I told you yesterday I was quittin’, didn’t IP So I did quit. All I’ve had in the last twelve hours is eight shots—just enough to keep the animals away.’ “You mean just enough to just keep your jag warmed up. Now listen, Beans——” ‘“‘Never mind, chief,” Beans again cut in. “You listen. I’ve been asleep down in the boat-house all day. And it’s what I heard (<(o)| micboo