Adventure Magazine Cover — page 88: what you’re looking at

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

a2 y a a For the former will believe your word but = once, and the latter will surely find you out.” “Good,” said he, “those are simple.” But I still added a warning. “Simple to learn. But not so easy to remember in all one’s dealings, amigo. For of all the men who trade these upper rivers there is perhaps but one other than myself who adheres to them—which is why they remain petty traders. Three simple rules; yet those fellows do not heed them. And for you, my Fire-Head, I will add a fourth. Forget that petty townlet which you share with your God in the center State of America. And concede that whole men are born also in the states of the east and of the west. Ay, and even in some of the States of America of the south.” _ He grinned at me again. **So [am beginning to find out, my friend of the jungle places,” he said. “Good,” said I. ‘You have learned much. Come then. Let us go to the Steamer and purchase from the traveling agent of the house of Araujo Company such trade goods as will be needful for this busi- ness in the back creeks.”’ ik SO WE went together. And as JIGS. we stood on the long plank that K7\¥£ connected the steamer with the vs ess moist of themud of the ad- joining bank, the captain, swelling at the neck, shouted at us from the upper deck. ‘What is that man that you bring with you, you Theophilo, sheltering him under the cover of your name to insult me on my own ship?”’ I was about to reply as the-man deserved when this Fire-Head took the words upon himself and shouted back: “This is an up-river man, mio Capitdo, by name Pelloroxo. One who shelters under no man’s name but his own.” “Celestes,’ I muttered. The man is ripe for quarrel. jump into the river.” But the captain was clearly taken aback _ by this boldness; and he must surely have reflected quickly ‘that this man’s reputation was to carry a pistol in that specially con- Structed pocket of his, even in Manaos City. So instead of making any hostile move, he but grumbled and retreated into his wheel house. I breathed again at the passing of the trouble, and we went on into “*Fool-Head. Be ready ‘to Adventure — es < . ° =< : =" ee - = SAF aes ~ — ee PES to ae te eo re, | = aOR aut eee ee “= ra the ship to the Araujo man and I advised him in the selection of such goods as would _ be most acceptable to the Indians of the igarapes. Knives and machetes and ax heads and fish hooks and small mirrors and salt. All such things as the Indians most desire. And I told him that I would make out a list for him of their values in terms of trade; for since the Indians understood nothing of cost, it was necessary for him to know how much labor could be bought for each article. And I added for his own feeding, quinin and medicines and rice and great slabs of dried pirarucu fish and lard, to be used when the wild game should fall short. On the top of which he demanded potatoes. But I told him: — “You have seen your last leathery potato and your last musty vegetable on this river steamer. From now on you will eat the manthot yam of the Indians.” He made a face, but said nothing. f laughed and reminded him with gusto: ‘Wait, my young pioneer, till it shall be your fate—as comes to all of us river men— to eat the stinking pirarucu.” And then I selected for him a rifle of the Winchester .44 with five hundred cartridges, which have become so standard in our rivers that they pass for currency. And I advised him further that, while it was against the law, since there was no law in our jungles, the best present that could be made to a chief in the back creeks would be a muzzle-loading gun of one barrel with black powder and shot for its use. All the things that would be necessary for his subsistence in the jungle I selected for him, and in all things he submitted to my judgment; and we made a great pile of the goods upon the deck and I checked over the list to see that nothing was forgotten and said to him then: “Basta, it is finished. You are outfitted now with all that any man needs in our back creeks.” But he demurred still. “Will it not be necessary, amigo, to carry a pistol in those back creeks?” “The automatic pistol that you have will suffice,” I told him. But he replied: “Tt have no pistol, my good friend. For since they found such fault with me in Manaos and made such a fuss about the mn (¢ ‘ aes (E(0) ,OOKS.cOmMm