Argosy All-Story Weekly — "Sea Marauders" — page 108: what you’re looking at

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

530 ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. determined stride and hurled some- thing to the bed. “ That’s what’s on my mind!” he stated. “There, sir!” “What’s the money?” asked. | ‘“Tt’s the three hundred dollars I accepted from you in a moment of weakness!’ said the butler, and self- contempt and suppressed fury sounded in every word. “ Will you be good enough to count it, Mr. Vaner”’ “I—I guess it’s all here, but—’’ Haggin drew himself up quite ma- jestically. “Very good, sir! Good night, Mr. Vane,” said he. “Yes, but—but where -are you taking all the dignity and indignation now?” Richard demanded, as sudden alarm shot through him, and he slid his legs from beneath the covers. The butler’s frosty smile all but passed description. “T’m going to do now what I should have done in the first place,’ he stated. ‘I’m going to the colonel and tell him the shameful truth. Now, just a minute, sir!” Haggin added, as Richard leaped from his bed. “ Don't try to stop me this time! I’m anvold man, but I can fight my way to the colonel if need be!” “You may go to the colonel or go to the devil, if you like,” Mr. Melton snapped, “so long as you don't stir up any fresh mischief for me. What's the shameful truth you’re talking about now? Did I upset you by trying to-get out of the house?” “To get out of the house!” Haggin echoed. “'That’s what I was doing, of course, and—”’ “Save your breath, Mr. Vane,” the butler replied shortly. “It happens that my eyes are the kind that see very well in the dark. Need I say any more than that?” “ Vou need say a lot more!’ Richard puffed. “Very well, then, distasteful as I Richard find the subject, I’ll say it all,” Haggin sneered. “‘ When I first roused up and got to this hallway, Mr. Vane, I saw you running from Mrs. Bragg’s room!” He nodded his head, which would have been more impressive if the few hairs had not been sticking out in a dozen directions; he drew his aged dressing-gown about him. Richard sighed. “Your eyes aren’t nearly as good as you think they are, Haggin,” he said. “Tf you saw me making for the stairs—” “Which I did see!” “All right. Dry up for a minute and let me talk!’ Mr. Melton exploded. “TI came out of some damned corridor, not out of any room. Ask the fat woman who thought I was a ghost and fainted all over the floor; she’s one of the servants, I suppose. “Hell! Ask Willis! I think it was Willis who tried to grab me. Ask your own common sense, if you've got any. Why, Haggin, with Colonel Bragg right on this floor would I be likely to— Say, you're a nasty-minded old man, and I’m ashamed of you!” This was an energetic, honest speech, well delivered with appropriate ges- tures, and some of its import penetrat- ed to Haggin. He blew out his cheeks and looked hard at Richard; there was new perplexity in his eye. “Well, I’m not ashamed of myself, because I know what I saw,” he mut- tered. ‘ At the same time you—you’re raising a doubt in my mind that may- be—”’ “ Hagegin,” Richard said, solemnly and quite emotionally, “ I swear to you by everything that’s high and holy that I wasn’t near Mrs. Brage’s room!” The butler pursed his lips and scowled, very thoughtfully. Now his gaze wandered to the bed and the little roll of bills; he picked them up and considered them for a time; eventually, with a grunt, he returned them to the pocket of his dressing gown. comicbooks.com — i Os . 4 : . - : Py < _ on 7 ~~ wea, << . *.> - f. > eg Pro, - ee ee ates —o- : 2 — a > ~ nee ~3Fs : » —s . a - —~— 4 a ~ an Ae de ante ee . - ~ “ a al % Se > = ee ar DP Bl a Pye * 2 ee en 2 PRE ge es 2. oe gerne ne ae ee nS eS es - r%,- * >a pee yg ey oe oy oe ln ae — c A : 4 Se ne eg or heat ie AEs eS Le nN aa a ae eS so eRe ae eS es ngt DN Se RTI, cake a a EN gn no eee