Adventure Magazine Cover — page 22: what you’re looking at

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

20 We pushed on around many turns, and finally went up to the edge of the rushes where the cover was still good and the footing firmer. Here we made better speed, the mounted men bending low, so their hats could not be seen. As we crossed the bare spaces, or climbed over rocks, our ears were pricked for musket shots, but none came. Soon we began to splash through water again, even where trees stood, because Father Dnieper was in flood. Aye, we should not have known where the land ended, except that the raft came into view drifting past, just at the edge of the trees and brush where the current was not as swift as in midstream. The burlaks, the watermen on: the raft, were singing, sitting in the sun and smoking. The raft itself was made of fine long oak trunks bound together with ropes, about twenty logs in width and four tiers in length. “To the left,” I whispered, and the officers swung off through the trees, finding there a dry ridge of earth down which we ran, coming out again a little in advance of the raft. “If we could get our hands on that raft,” I explained to Edwards, “‘we could cross the Dneiper, at need, and land on the other side. See, it has three sweep oars. Our pursuers could not swim their horses across and boats are few along here.” “But the rogues would see us on the ratt” ae “Aye, if God wills. But they would hit upon us before long on the shore, and they have muskets.”’ Edwards spoke to the American who glanced at me keenly and nodded. He was no waster of time. The Englishman rode out a bit from the trees to where he could speak with the burlaks without shouting. They stopped their song and took their pipes out of their lips to stare the better. ‘Hola, little brothers! How much will you take for the raft?”’ They stared all the more, until one with a beard shaded his eyes and, after looking over the officers, made answer: ‘Health to you, serene great lords. This is fine oak, and we are taking it to the ship- yard at Kherson to sell the timber to the shipwrights.” ‘Sell it to us.” The stupid Moskya took several puffs at his pipe and shook his head. Adventure ‘Pardon noble lord, but it is for the ship- yard. Such fine oak-——”” The skin prickled up my back with im- patience, for any second we might be sighted by the riders behind. Edwards was growing red with rage when John Paul exchanged a word with him, and he sang another tune. “How much are the logs worth, little brother?” ‘“‘We will be paid two hundred and forty copecks for them, Excellency.” ‘We will see that it is made into ships,” Edwards promised, “and give you five hundred.” The burlaks looked at one another. They had broad, sunburned faces and moved clumsily, like cattle. ‘“*That is too much,” said the one with the yellow beard after a while. ‘God knows, Excellency, no one would pay more than two hundred and forty “Plague take ye! Then two hundred and forty it is. Draw in closer and we’ll come aboard.” 3 [ze] AFTER many delays and much sy laboring at the raft which was un- wieldy climbed upon it and pushed off from shore far enough to be out of good musket shot but still hidden somewhat by the trees. There was a log lean-to on the raft and into this I made the officers go with the servant and ordered the Tatars to off-saddle the horses, while I slid out of my long Cossack coat and placed it with my cap out of sight, “aS the burlaks grunting like cows at our antics, By degrees I had them steer and row the raft out into midstream, where we were in full sight from the bank but so dis- tant that a watcher would not notice any- thing unusual about the raft. Although I scanned the shore and the Tatars watched the reeds and the flight of birds for sus- picious movements, nothing more was seen of the bandits. And it was clear that they might have contented themselves with the plunder of the tarantass, yet I was uneasy, for a hidden foeman is like a snake unseen in the path. AT NIGHTFALL we ate what food ©) was in the saddle bags, the burlaks sharing their fish ‘and barley cakes with us, being only too pleased to have real coins in their belts instead of kicks and MICLOOOK in the slow current we (C@ inn