Adventure Magazine Cover — page 54: what you’re looking at

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

44 ‘“‘What’s the danger?” The fellow drew down an ironic mouth— “Qne does not care to rush into the bright mansions of the sun, before it is absolutely necessary, Sevor.’ A certain cynicism about this remark caused the promoter to look him over care- fully. ; “IT am Jagala,” said the man, “a priest and a rope gatherer—” he shook the coil on his arm—‘“and the holy Gogoma told me of you, a Sefior Lassiter.” The promoter acknowledged the intro- duction. ‘“‘A rope gatherer? e “Si, senor.’ “Don’t you mean a rope maket®” “I make this rope?” Jagala had a long face, and now the lift of his pointed brows gave him a Mephistophelean look. “Well, some one makes it!” ‘cried Las- siter. “No one makes it, sewor. I gather it from the cliffs.” ‘“‘Flow does it come there?”’ exclaimed the promoter. Jagala shrugged. “Tt is the gift of the sun, sezor. When the sun climbs down the side of the cliff into the lake——”’ ‘‘T’ve heard all that.” “If you don’t believe it, sevior,”’ defended the rope gatherer, ‘‘just look at this rope and tell me if any man can make such a rope!” Lassiter took the rope and reperused it for the hundredth time. “You really mean to tell me you find this cordage hanging from the cliffs?” “Sp senor.’ “And you have no idea how it ‘came there?”’ ‘‘Sefor,’’ snapped the priest, “I have told you twice that the sun in its climb down the sides of the cliff leaves this rope as a gift to his people!” ~ The promoter nodded, “Yes, yes,” and stood studying the rope, with an occasional glance at the web of the sun. As he stood looking first at one, then at the other, he saw something slowly rising through the water beneath the net. The 9 priest also saw it for he walked down to the margin of the lake, thrust his pole and hook under the net and drew the object to him. He swung it out on the stones. To Las- siter’s amazement, it .was the very lamb ~ dried out somewhat, Adventure- he had thrown into the net on the preceding evening. The little creature was stiff and water soaked. Its legs were bound tightly to its body by several turns of the mysterious rope. Jagala clipped one end of-this binding cord’ with his obsidian blade, tossed the little animal back into the water, and un- wound the cord by letting the cadaver re- volve in the water. As he salvaged the line, he wound it on his arm with the rest of his findings. When Jagala finished, the promoter took his bamboo and fished the dead body out on the stones. Jagala strolled on back toward the temple. After the carcass had Lassiter settled him- self for a careful study of the dead animal. Its throat was not cut. The region over the heart where butchers stick their kills was intact. whole body failed to discover the slightest blemish to its skin. Its death duplicated the slaying of the pack mules on the cliff. Apparently the priestly contrivance could destroy at a distance—or else some athletic fellow like Jagala climbed the cliff. The promoter was considering which of these clews he would pursue when he started to arise, and pressed down on the cadaver to lift himself. His hand crushed into the body as if it had been an empty sack. Lassiter drew out his knife and opened the, vicuna. The viscera of the little creature seemed dried up. Its heart was a blackish knot; its entrails might have been tripe. If some one had turned a tinner’s blow-pipe into the lamb, it would have produced the same - desiccated appearance. It was another link in the chain of enigmas that surrounded existence in Motobatl. By the time Lassiter finished his inspec- tion it was high noon. Profound silence and a fulgor of sunlight lay over lake and temple. The vicuna was spread open before Lassiter, and the brilliance of the light upon its withered entrails accented its sinister sig- nificance. A vast loneliness fell over the promoter. With all these grim riddles accumulating ‘about him, there’ was not one person in all the crater from whom he’ could expect even a sensible discussion of the matter. Nunes was superstitious, and besides had been rather grum toward the promoter since their little tiff over Tilita. Birdsong solved MICLOOOK A painstaking search over its | (©