Argosy All-Story Weekly, May 5, 1928 — page 134: what you’re looking at

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

700 As Andy tried to guard his abdomen, Blacky changed his tactics and closed Andy’s left eye with a well-aimed left. Andy tried to pull away to regain his breath, and in so doing laid him- self open to the coolly calculated blows of his opponent. A neatly delivered crack on the chin sent him sprawling. Blacky grinned down at him, then turned and faced Hankins. “Do you want some, too?” he de- manded, “Your damn right, I do, you big bully!” returned Hankins. _As the two men squared away, Andy, who had stumbled to the railing nursing his bruised eye, gave a mut- tered warning: “ Here comes a gold striper—look out!” Blacky and Hankins lowered their arms. Blacky squatted down with his back against the gun turret and gazed dreamily off across the water, while Hankins joined Andy at the railing. When the officer had passed, Han- kins muttered: “Come on. We'll get a piece of beefsteak from the cook to put on that eye of yours.” After procuring a bit of raw meat for a poultice, the two men went below, and Hankins proceeded to bind up Andy’s shiner. | “Till get that big stiff yet!’ mut- tered Andy, wrathfully. “And just wait until I get a crack at him!” returned Hankins. “ He’s always acted like a dirty snob ever since he came on board at San Diego.” Their threats of vengeance against Blacky did not cease until they heard the mess call for supper. If. THe next day Andy and Hankins again brought up the subject of their enmity against Blacky. Andy, suffer- ing under the stabs of a barrage of sar- castic comments from his buddies con- cerning his black eye, was insistent ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. that he once more engage Blacky in combat. | “ But he licked you, fair and square, there’s no doubt of that,’’ remonstrated Hankins. “I’m the baby that should take him on. I’m nearer his size than you are, anyway. I’m gonna get Jake Quarles to train me. You know, he used to be welterweight champion of the fleet. Tl challenge that bozo just as soon as I get in Ar condition—and, boy, what I won’t do to him!” After further argument, Andy finally gave in, and it was decided that after Hankins had received a couple of weeks’ training he should fight, and, in his own words: “ Lick the tar out of Blacky.” “Till hunt him up and give him warning right away,” announced‘ Han- kins. “What you wanta do that for?” de- manded Andy. “It’s the psychology of the thing— if you get what I mean,” Hankins re- plied, condescendingly. “TI figure he’s yellow, and when he starts thinkin’ about what’s gonna happen to him in a coupla weeks, he'll get more scared every day—jist like waiting to be hanged, or something like that.” “Yeh,” returned Andy, dubiously. “ Maybe that’s right.” After Hankins had left him to hunt up Blacky, Andy leaned against the railing and pictured in his mind the forthcoming battle. Just as he reached the point where Blacky lay on the deck, bruised and gory, ready to be doused with a bucket of salt water, Hankins returned, his swarthy features portray- ing agitation. Grabbing whispered : “Come on below. to show you.” Arriving in a quiet corner of the berth deck, Hankins pulled out a sheet of paper and handed it to Andy. “Read that!’ he exclaimed, excited- ly. “ Blacky was standing at the rail. I was just going to spill the works to Andy’s arm, Hankins I got something Eom ehbooks (E@)