The Argosy, Vol. 84 No. 2 — page 143: what you’re looking at

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

DARING THE DANGER ZONE. rang out from the circle. ‘“‘ Remove the gag from the prisoner!” Two men sprang forward and took the handkerchief from his mouth. Gerard panted, drawing in deep breaths and spitting to relieve his tortured mouth. The man whom from his voice Derby had recognized as Symmonds seated him- self a little apart from the others. He raised his arm and pointed it threaten- ingly at Derby. ‘‘ Brother Vampas,” he said in a deep, echoing voice, ‘‘ this man had been in the Esperanza, spying upon us. He escaped, through no fault of mine. This same man tried to take my life. He attacked me fiom behind, a week ago, and almost strangled me. I ask that the sentence of death be passed upon him.” An answering voice spoke up from the darkness: ‘““ Now, look here, West, we can’t afford to kill no one now that we don’t have to. After that last hold-up coming so close on the one at Independence, we just got to lie low. Why not take him down to the mine and keep him there? This means swinging if it goes wrong.” “Ludlow,” growled Symmonds, “‘ we’ve all done enough for swinging now. But I tell you this man is a spy. What was he doing in the Esperanza?”’ Derby looked about him from mask to mask. The black cloths over the men’s faces were well suited to executioners. Symmonds continued: “I have just finished looking through the mail taken from the stage on Tuesday by our men at Regal. Listen!” He produced from his pocket a letter, which Derby in horror recognized to be in his own handwriting. It was the one he had written to the Secret Service. Symmonds proceeded to read it aloud with malignant emphasis. Then he folded it and looked gloweringly around the circle. ‘““He has guessed,” announced the chief of the Vampas, “‘ where the stuff from the held-ups is stored. He has evessed more than any man should know of us and live. He must die!” 825 “ Kill him, damn him, then!” came a roar of voices. Nineteen guns flashed from their holsters and were leveled at Derby. Symmonds strode forward and raised his hand. ‘Shooting is too good for this cur! Let me decide his death, and it shall be one worthy of the Vampas.”’ He beckoned the men aside, and Gerard watched him whisper to them as they stood grouped in a knot, heads close to- gether. A voice rose above the others so bigh that it carried to Derby’s ears. “West, you sure are a fiend; you’ve thought of the worst death I ever heard of. Come on, boys!” The men returned to the fire and grouped themselves about Derby. Shoul- der touching shoulder, they formed a solid wall around him. In the center opposite Gerard stood Symmonds. ‘Gerard Derby,” he said, “‘ you have been tried by the Vampas and our sen- tence is that you die. No man has threat- ened our brotherhood and survived. You shall not die with the joy of sudden death, but shall let your life flow forth slowly, cursing the mother that bore you, the nerves of your body that twitch with ter- ror, and the day that you crossed the path of West Symmonds and of the brotherhood of the Vampas.” Derby faced him scornfully. “You have got me this time, Sym- monds,” he said quietly, “ but sooner or later you will pay. At the moment of my death I shall amuse myself by think- ing how, if you escape punishment in this life, you will broil in hell for ages! And now let me tell you one thing: you and your whole crew of Vampas are a lot of damned cowards! Not one of you has dared to face me alone! It has taken twenty. That is odds that only cowards demand.” With a snarl of rage, Symmonds drew back his fist and sent it crashing against Derby’s mouth. “Gag him!” he shouted. As the men stuffed the handkerchief COMMICLOO® S (C@