Argosy All-Story Weekly, April 7, 1928 — page 71: what you’re looking at

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

HIS SERVICE TO FOLLY. caring whether the mask of tolerance between them was dropped or not. De Banana looked down at him with eyes that were bloodshot from drink and rage. “T have lost a trinket—the miniature of which I told you. Now, no man on board cares for a pictured face unless it be you, dog!’ Then he caught sight of the packet of letters on the table and reached for them, but Basil snatched and thrust them inside his coat. “T took the miniature,” said Basil coolly. ‘I would have won the lady had you not cheated at dice. The wager is mine by default—your fault.” “Thief! You confess taking my belongings? The fate of thieves on board is shortly told. Ill not trouble you to restore it now. We'll get you done with, then find the trinket. “ Gefondo, seize, bind him! Then take him to the brig. We'll hang the swine at sundown. ‘*Twill-be a pretty sight for Cap Francois men, to see him at the yardarm.”’ But when Gefondo slowly shook his head, the baron shouted a foul oath. “ Mutiny aboard? Then we'll have the two of you aloft. Here, Gordo!’ He ran to the door calling: “ A thief aboard. Put him in irons.’”’? He seemed purposely to have omitted Gefondo from the order of punishment, as if in some manner he feared the power of the hunchback. Gefondo turned his wits to coaxing the baron from the cabin as Gordo entered and stood scratching his head in perplexity. Fury made De Banana stutter so that he could not articulate. Basil, at the other end of the table, had leaped to his feet. His sword belt hung on a wall peg and was out of his reach. He was unarmed and at their mercy, and knew De Banana had chosen this opportunity for a last, de- termined attack on his life. He waited, breathing hard, while Gordo summoned the boson, and they advanced one along each side of the heavy table. 61 Suddenly Basil ducked under the board, caught a leg of each man and sent them sprawling on their backs. Then, diving between the braced apart legs of De Banana and upsetting him, Basil leaped for the companion steps. On deck he swarmed to the fore rigging, calling a warning to Jack Butts to have a care. Gefondo raced after him as if to assist in his capture, as Basil took the ratlines and hauled aloft to the crow’s nest. With incredible speed the hunchback came aloft, and, at a thud Basil saw a brace of pistols dropped in the cask lashed to the mast which served the lookout. “Hit me. Knock me to the deck!’ muttered Gefondo. Basil made a pre- tense of struggling with him and sent him hurtling from his precarious footing. But Gefondo was like an ape. His long arms and legs grasped backstays, halyards, and anything he could reach, and he swung himself down, muttering that he would not again face that puma in the crow’s nest for any captain’s bidding. _Basil remained where he was, a pistol in each hand trained menacingly down on pirates gathered around their captain, who foully cursed them be- cause they would not risk a shot from Trelawney’s guns. “ Pick off the swine with a musket ball,’ suggested one man. De Banana shook his head violently. “ Diablo, no! He shall hang. Lay aloft, you dogs, and fetch him down.” _Not_a man moved toward the rig- ging. Instead, they stood grumbling loudly their dislike of leaden slugs, especially now within sight of land. With a wary eye on the pirates be- low, and every sense alert, Basil snatched glances at the sea, and his breath caught as he saw the blue and lavender haze which wreathed the mountains of Santo Domingo. On the very top of one hill, like a ship’s prow headed toward the mag- EOPMIG MOO KS (E@)