The Argosy, August 1914 — page 50: what you’re looking at

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

40 THE tied, how’d you get away? Tell us that? ”’ Jack explained the processes of his release. Before he had quite finished Peter Gomez had leaped into a boat and was off for the shore. “Till look*and see what’s in th’ shanty,” he called back. Under Captain Zed’s continued questioning, abetted by Herb Mann and the rest, Jack’s whole story came out. He had a feeling while he was telling it that it transcended his com- panions’ capacities for belief. Incre- dulity was written on their faces. “And you didn’t hear anything else goin’ on before or after you was thrown into th’ shanty?” the captain asked. “T told you—something like a mallet pounding.” . Well, anyway, th’ propeller’s gone, and itll take a week to get another. Here’s Pete.” The absentee sculled up to the power-boat. To the inquiring glances of his fellows he shook his head. “Far’s I could see,’ he declared, “th’ shanty’s just th’ same as ever. Anyway, there ain’t any ropes or things lyin’ around in it. You can come an’ see for yourselves.” CHAPTER X. BUCK POTTER. His eyes on Peter Gomez, Jack felt the various expressions of surprise with which his mates had received his story altering to unbelief and suspi- cion, “No ropes?” he cried. “On the floor where I left them—did you look? And the door—’” “‘T'h’ door was open, of course,” | Pete returned. “ It’s always been open. ’Tain’t any different. I couldn’t find any ropes like you said. But you can all come and look for yourselves.” Captain Zed gave an impatient snort. “‘What’s th use o that?” he de- manded. “Question is now, what’re | ARGOSY. we goin’ to do? This boat is out o’ c’mission till we can get another pro- peller. That other business can wait. Come to think on it, Eb Spencer over to New Gallilee ’s got a spare that would do till we can get one by steam- er.. But that don’t help any.” “'Th’ Polly Ann?” Herb Mann sug- gested. ~ “’Phen what'll we pull trap with?” the old man demanded. “ As ’tis, we'll have to wait till it breezes up before we can get out with th’ catboat, and itll be an all day’s job to bring our fish home. No, we.can’t spare th’ Polly Ann.” | Affairs were apparently at an impasse. Set down in the midst of a hostile population, there was no chance of winning a helping hand from any islander. The steamer went cnly to the near- est point of rail communication, a place where the loss of the propeller could not be made good. A special messenger would find it necessary to go from there to the first city which boasted a.marine hardware store, and could not hope to catch the boat until the second day, arriving back at night- fall. Then there was the task of set- tine the propeller—altogether not a week, but three days of inconvenience and loss. “What say, Herb?” Captain Zed inquired. “Tf I had the feller that stole that propeller in a room with my shoes an’ stockin’s off—” began the usually im- perturbable number one man. ‘We'll catch up with them yet,” his employer declared. “* Thing now is to decide what’s best to do. There goes th’ Simcox gang.” 7 A power boat towing a couple of dories swung past. The Hooper gang stared at it moodily. No salutations were exchanged between the two par- ties of- men; indeed, it seemed to those aboard the crippled launch that the Simcoxes rather ostentatiously turned their faces the other way. Jack Garrett had been revolving a ECOMMICLOO® <=) (C@