Argosy All-Story Weekly — page 54: what you’re looking at

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

- at PS = = “Fwo fire-eaters,”” c*¥ ’ Naik hh) We" BAY iby ~ 524 a had known “ Smoke” Camer- - Cameron’s father had told Cameron a “Smoke” and Ballantine had been friends. Still, Ballantine had not offered to shake hands with him, had given him no greeting of any kind. What had been the significance of that ironic smile? War, of course. Cameron heard a voice, a mere whisper. He did not look up, for he knew it came from one of the men on the veranda. said the voice. ‘There’ 3 going to be trouble in Ransamel be CHAPTER V. — FHE EYE- SORE. AMERON stood, watching Strong. He had hit the man rather hard, for a terrific hatred: had expressed itself ‘im the blow. He hadn’t lost his temper; ye had merely deliberately punished the _ man for presuming to attempt to make him appear ludicrous in Ballantine’s. pieces’; for attempting to arouse antagonism “tween himself and Ballantine. Cameron didn’t want to antagonize the ese ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, SS == = Strong was. pale, but there was no more fight left in him. Cameron saw by the way — the man’s gaze wavered that he did not in— tend to seek immediate revenge for the blow. There might come a time when Strong would attempt reprisal of.some sort, but not now. For the present he had had enough. Followed by the glam of a half dozen men who were still on the veranda, Strong moved along the railing, holding to it until he reached the steps. He stumbled down the steps and walked unsteadily along the — Sidewalk, eastward. He made no attempt 3 Sy = to pick up the pistol Cameron had thrown , into the dust of the street. Cameron, feeling the interest of the men who had witnessed the scene between him- self and Ballantine,.and fully aware of the glances that followed him, stepped down from the veranda, crossed the street and walked through the Square. He paused at the base of the bronze statue erected to the memory of the town’s founder. Cameron wasn’t concerned about Strong. Strong was a cheap, blatant real estate shark. A blow would teach him his place. But Ballantine was different. Ballantine - old man. He meant to go ahead with his had refused to shake hands, although he projects, that was true, but he wanted to push them through, if possible, without arousing any bitterness. Strong would have been surprised if he had known how completely. Cameron com- prehended the magnitude of the work he had been sent to do. Strong would have been further surprised if he had known that Cameron had completed greater enterprises than were contemplated in Ransome. The invisible influences behind Camer- en had been at work for many months in Ransome; Cameron was the visible power which would push the well-planned projects to completion. Forces such as Gideon ‘Strong and Ballantine might irritate and delay; they could not defeat Cameron’s aims. ’ Cameron watched Ballantine ride away; he watched Strong sit up and stare dizzily about; he stood near the doorway of the hotel as Strong got to his feet, swayed and leaned against the veranda = and | wee at. —_— had offered Cameron no insults. His at- titude had been a revelation of character; he had confirmed the warlike inclinations which had been exhibited prodously 3 in the courthouse. - Cameron waited in the square until the crowd on the veranda of the hotel had dis- persed. Then he walked down to the sta- tion and sent a telegram to his father, at Denver, bearing the terse message: = Deal closed.” Early the following morning Canter hired a horse at the livery stable, rode down the slope west of town, passed the picket fence in front of Ballantine’s house and vanished into the hills south of town. He returned with the dusk, put the horse. away, went to his room, washed, found that his trunk had arrived and changed his — clothes. He hadn’t tasted food since break- fast and he was famisbed when he entered the dining room. But he had explored every foot of the land he had purchased. He spent some time the next morning © EComicbooks Eom