Adventure Magazine Cover, June 20, 1925 — page 48: what you’re looking at

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

30 “I guess we won’t go back that way,” said Nell. The gun stopped firing after a minute or two, but that was no sign that it wasn’t there any longer and ready to fire again at the slightest sound. ‘“What’s the mad rush to get back?” asked the hard-boiled man. ‘‘We’re just as safe here as we are there. We're safer. We ain’t gettin’ any fire here from either side and on the other side the track both the jerries and our own guys are lettin’ fly. We're goin’ to get perforated anyway, but there’s no hurry about it.” “No, I want to see what’s goin’ on,” said Nell. “The main object of this here war party is to take seven whole skins back across the river and if there’s a way to do it, it’s goin’ to be done. An’ that way won't be found by stickin’ around here.” “Lead the way, Cap’n!”’ said the other. “Over the top we go,” said Nell, and be- gan to scramble up the embankment. He forgot entirely that there were men. with ears all around him, nor did it occur to him that if a light went up just as he reached the track, that his light would be extinguished, and that with most astonish- ing rapidity. “Hey!” panted the other man. minute! ‘There’s a train comin”’!’’ A train! A train on this track that had borne no traffic since spring! By golly, there was one coming at that. The Boche must have an armored train running. The two men crouched on the stones. The rails hummed and sang, and Nell could hear the rattling of the wheels. He cautiously lifted his head. ‘There was a line of sparks along the rails, a glittering line of fire that stretched clear down around the curve. Nell ducked and waited for the train to go by. The sound continued, but no train appeared, nor did the rattle and song of the rails grow in volume as it would if wheels were making it. A hand plucked at Nell’s coat. “Let’s get outta here,” cried the hard- boiled man at the top of his voice, the words, however, only barely audible. “Come on offa here. Tthere’s a machine-gun barrage goin’ on this track!” Nell went to the bottom of the embank- ment in one jump. Train indeed! The Yanks must be putting down the barrage, for if it had come from Nell’s side of the track he would never have got as far up the bank as he had. “Wait a Adventure No wonder it sounded like a train. There were perhaps thirty or forty machine-guns firing and each one doing better than a hundred shots a minute. The bullets were rattling against the rails and striking sparks from them. The two men went down and sat wordlessly in the shadow of the bank. ‘‘Let’s have a listen at the culvert again,” suggested the hard-boiled man after a while. . There being no objection to that, they crawled to where the culvert opened, and harkened. 6< {?? they both gasped. ‘There’s guys comin’ through!” “Hark!” said Nell. ‘‘They’re talkin’!’ There was the familiar scraping sound of crawling men and muttering of voices. The two craned their necks into the ditch and then the voices were audible, so close that it seemed the men must be at the very en- trance of the culvert. “T tell yuh it’s mine!”’ said a voice in the culvert. “Like so much pig bristles!’ scoffed an- other. ‘I found it, didn’t I?” “Aw, grapenuts!”’ | “No, grapenuts, neither! Who killed that jerry anyways?” “Go on! Go on!” cried several. “For ’s sake git goin’! Never mind the argu- ment! Move yourself?’ The scratching sounds began again and five shadows emerged from the culvert. “This is as far as I go,”’ remarked a voice “Tf them two ain’t no more sense than to go curvin’ off through the whole Boche arm they oughta be captured.” “This night’s so black it would makea nigger look like a snow man,” said another. Here Nell thought best to say a word. “What the do you men mean by leaving your post?” he asked. There was the sound of five men doing their best to jump right out of their skins “Is that you?’ they gasped. ‘We thought the Boche got yuh!” “Well, if they hadn’t,” said Nell, “you birds would have, only the culvert had a crook init! Waddyuh mean lettin’ that gun go down the alley that way?” “Oh, man!” said Goodrich. “There was six big krauts come along the ditch an’ we staggered outa there. They all ducked into the tunnel, so we hauls the gun off the bank an’ turned it down the hole after ’em, but none of us knew how to work it. So COMIGDIOOKSEEO