Adventure Magazine, December 10, 1924 — page 78: what you’re looking at

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

56 impatient and suspicious at a long delay. Andy tied a handkerchief as best he could about his broken hand and waited. But when Johansen tiptoed fearfully down the ladder, Andy had only to step out of the doorway and shove his pistol vici- ously into the mate’s stomach. The man begged for his life, and in thirty seconds was bound and gagged beside his captain. Once more there was a long delay, punctu- ated after five minutes by shouts from the men waiting over the side, who called for the captain, for the mate, with a mounting dread in their voices. Finally came the sound Andy had feared from the first. There was an authoritative order to ““Hook on, and go over the side of her.”’ The heads of a dozen sailors popped over the rail, and the crew of a lifeboat jumped down on deck, lead by a bald-headed little man whose oil-smeared dungarees marked him as the engineer on watch when the ship had been abandoned. He peered up and down the deserted deck, his brow puckered in bewilderment. “Captain! Cap’n Stivers! Whaur are ye, Captain?” he shouted in an honest Glasgow burr. Andy stepped out of the doorway and raised his pistol. ‘‘Hands up/” he snapped. Behind the little engineer the sailors recoiled. Their hands leaped upward, and they gasped, ‘The loony!’ in chorus. “Keep your hands up,” ordered Andy. “‘Barratry’s been tried here, and I represent the owners. Hands up, I said,” he added sharply, shifting his aim to the engineer’s head, for the officer had not moved, and his hands were still at his sides. To Andy’s amazement the man’s face set grimly. . “Follow me, lads. He’s insane,” he whispered sharply over his shoulder, and walked directly for Andy, disregarding the gun. “Go back or I fire.” “Shoot and be dommed. Ha’e ye no done damage enough, mon?” pleaded the other. Behind the engineer the group of sailors swayed irresolutely as the bolder spirits, led by Harrigan, lowered their hands and pushed through the crowd to go to his as- sistance. Unless Andy shot the little man in his tracks, he could see that his mastery over the ship was ended, for the other in- Adventure tended to walk forward until he could snatch the pistol. He probably suspected Andy of having murdered the captain and mate. For Andy to shoot in cold blood was unthinkable, but whether the engineer was an accomplice of Stivers in the sinking of the ship he did not know. If he were—— “You’re a brave man, Scotty,”’ Andy re- marked with admiration, keeping his pistol leveled. The other walked steady forward. “‘That’s as may be. Will ye put awa’ yer gunp”’ Andy decided to risk everything on one speech. ‘“‘Brave—but are you honest?” he insinu- ated. An angry flush rose to the cheekbones of the engineer, and his pace quickened as he sought to come to grips with a man who had insulted him. } Andy put his pistol in his pocket. “T don’t intend to shoot, sir,” he stated. “T’ve been risking my life to keep this ship afloat, and I think you’ll do as much. Will you take my word that she is undamaged, but for the leak forward, and start your pumps?P”’ ‘“You’re crazy, mon,” replied the engi- neer, but Andy’s heart leaped at the words, for the tone implied that it was not he him- self who was crazy, but his statement. “Will you start your pumps to prove it?” he challenged. “And what ha’e ye done with the skip- per?” the little man asked suspiciously. “Put him and the mate in irons, I learned they’d loaded the ship with a false, worthless cargo and intended to sink her to hide it. When she struck I opened the seacocks myself to make them think she was going down.” : “Ye what?” shouted the engineer, and the men behind him murmured. “Certainly!” cried Andy. ‘‘Then I swam back and shut them. Aijn’t she still afloat? Look at the manifests and then at the cargo, if ye don’t believe me—and get your men aboard!” “We wull,” said the engineer shortly. “You'll find the skipper and the mate in the fo’csle,” Andy went on. ‘But will you investigate in spite of what they say? Wire- less the owners, too. They know me—and I tell you Stivers was planning to sink I ou. ‘“‘We’ll do all thot,” replied the engineer CoMmicbook ) (C© 5}