Adventure Magazine Cover — page 70: what you’re looking at

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

56° Ivan stroked his beard. “You take my orders,” he said icily. “Avoid any suggestions. Keep away from smoke, sails and particularly gunboats of foreign powers. I'll double the thousand rubles which I have agreed to give you three officers. I'll increase it to two thousand rubles a week.”’ Mike gulped and drew his scrawny neck deep into his collar. He waited until Ivan and the Russians had descended the bridge- ladder and walked slowly aft to where the light streamed from the open cabin door. “Ye heard that!” grated the engineer with scorn. ‘Ah thought it was possible to get a thousand rubles a week. Ah expect noth- ing now. It’s too good to be true. Ah minds the likes o’ that Russian! It was in Guatemala where I was paid three thousand pesos a month. ‘The pesos were worth six- pence on the pound.” Micky McMasters shook his head. “Anyway,” he said, ‘‘we’re on the first leg ome to blighty. We’re gettin’ a free pass- age. That’s something!” Mike Monkey went below to the clanking engines. Red Landyard stared forward and ait. He entered the chart-house and turned in across the single seaweed mattress it contained. Micky stood the watch until midnight. He woke the Yankee mate, gave the course | and dropped down into the engine-room. He sat with Mike until two bells. The Scotch-Irish engineer was bitter against the Russians. He rose now and then and peered through the stoke-hold door, where a lurid light glowed. “Twa stokers,” he said, speak of.” Micky glanced around in caution as the engineer came back for the third time. “Investigate the fore-hold,” he whispered. “Find out what is in those tea boxes. Don’t let anybody see you doing it. There's a plot of some kind aboard this ship.” ~ They’ ve talked enough for a revolu- tion.”’ The little skipper paused on the first round of the engine-room grating. “Get forrard when you can,” he whis- pered. ‘‘Open one of those boxes.”’ Mike gulped and nodded. He drowsed out the morning hours and climbed to the deck at the first crack of dawn. He waited all the day for a chance to creep through the stoke-hold without being detected by the “and no fire to Adventure two Russian stokers. A second night came and after night the twinkling lights of the Inland Sea. No chance afforded itself in the passage between the Japanese Islands. It was morning of the third day when Ivan with the long surname dashed thoughts of a discovery in the forehold by summon- ing all hands to the waist of the Shongpong. A WILD seascape greeted Mike’s eyes as he hurried up the engine= room ladder and braced his spindle legs athwart the planks. The dusky outlines of the Japanese Coast were fast fading in the west. The wind swung out of a biting north. The sea had. been stirred by the tail of a storm. The dingy freighter, with her tipsy funnel and standing rigging, rolled and tossed. She ‘threatened to have the two masts out of her at any moment. Micky McMaster stood the bridge with Red Landyard. Ivan and all of the Rus- sians, including the crowd from the fore- castle, were gathered beneath the shelter of the quarter-deck’s lift. They glanced at Mike Monkey and started chattering in Russian. His eyes lifted over their heads. He gulped and moved his Adam’s apple up and down his scrawny throat. He spat to the deck. The Chinese flag which had been flying from the jack staff had been replaced by a red oblong. It showed baleful in the rays of the sun. Mike turned his chin. He looked at Micky. The little skipper’s jaw was square set. His shoulders were thrown back. There was a fighting fire in his eyes. “Wot happened?” asked Mike shrilly. “Our friends are in charge of the ship,” said Micky over the bridge-rail. ‘‘Come up ‘ere! They’re going to take a vote for cap- tain, mate and engineer. They say all things in their government should be settled by a vote. They’re going to elect a citizen captain.” “Wot is their government?” Micky gripped the rail. “Bolshevik!” he snapped. Mike steadied himself on the wet planks. He spat to the deck for a second time, His glance ranged from the little -skipper to Ivan’s broad face. ‘“‘Ah thought so!” he rasped. luded men!”’ Ivan strode from the press of Russians ‘‘We’re de- Eomicbooks.co