Argosy All-Story Weekly, Vol. 123, No. 3 — page 107: what you’re looking at

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

= PRIDE OF TYSON. “ Bah!” growled Garth. “A life is a life.” And with the word still on his lips he had turned and plunged into the night of the cavern. The foreman stepped back, growling. He looked toward Margaret with a shamefaced smile, prepared to explain, but she looked through and through him, and to the peons beyond. “ Are you going to let him go in alone?” she cried. There was a stir among the peons, and then a rumble of voices and a shaking of heads. She stamped in her anger. She would have gone herself, but in case of accident, what could she have done with the vast bulk of Garth? Already his foot- steps had echoed away to silence in the tunnel. Then a voice came from the crowd; her brother stood beside her. “‘ He’s in there,” was all she could say. “ Who?” asked Hal, with his usual self- control. “Garth! Garth, of course!” “‘ But what’s up?” “Gas. Some one’s caught in there, and these—men—won’t go in to help him!”’ “ By the Lord!” cried Tyson, and started forward. In a sudden impulse of fear she caught at his elbow. “‘'No, let’s wait a few minutes, and see. There’s nothing you could do alone if he’s overcome with the gas. You couldn’t drag out Garth.” Tyson drew out his watch. “We'll give him ten minutes,” he said quietly, ‘and then we'll go in after him. Here come some white men.” He put back the watch. ‘“ So Garth went in after some peon? He’s about nine- tenths man, eh?” . “ He’s all man!” ‘she said eagerly. “ Vulgar sort,” nodded Tyson, “ but at a time like this he’s the kind that’s needed. You stayed with them last night?” “Yes. Is the time up, Hal?” “ Not for five minutes. Don’t lose your head, Margaret. By the way, going to the hotel to-day?” “No,” she answered. ‘‘ They’ve asked me to stay on with them—and I intend to.” Shouted with rejoicing. 389 “Really?” He looked at her in astonish- ment, and then chuckled. “Well, it ll be an amusing experience— living with the Garths. Well, it Il do you good, Margaret. Ordinarily, one doesn’t get to know such people.” ° She looked at him, half angry, half sur- prised. His view-point had been her view- point of an hour before. But now she had forgotten it. She had seen Garth in action, and the picture, blotted out everything else. Tyson looked at his watch again, and then called to a few of the white men who had just come up. They consulted briefly, and half a dozen volunteers signified their willingness to go'in when the ten minutes should have elapsed. But before that time came, there was @ Stir in the tunnel, and then the sound of footsteps. With a rush, white men and peons poured into the cavern; there was a shout; they came out again bearing a limp body in their arms, followed by Garth. - His face was lined and white; he looked like one who has labored without sleep for a great length of time, and his eyes stared idly about him. Yet he shook off the arms of those who would have supported him. “Look to that poor devil,” he said. “ Feund him lying on his face. Air’s fresher close to the ground, of course, and he may be alive still. Nasty stuff, that gas.” _ That was all. His own lungs must have. been full of the. keen poison, but he had not a word for that. He stood by, watching the men work under the direction of Mar- garet, working the arms and legs of the Stricken peon to clear his lungs of the poison and bring in the fresh air. _ And eventually one eye flickered open, and then another. His brother peons, who had not lifted a hand to save him, now He. was lifted to a sitting posture, and grinned vacuously around upon the group. Then a hand touched the shoulder of Margaret. It was Garth. “ Better get out of this now,” he said calmly. “ The fellow will have his senses back in a moment, and he'll begin to thank you. Their gratitude sticks like a leech. A man can’t get away from it. I know!” Or riginal fro TG 9 OOO) = 2 So C@ THE OHIO STATE Ul _~M\O!I! |