Argosy, Vol. 120, No. 1 — page 16: what you’re looking at

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

6 THE ARGOSY. was, who wandered about the Lushai Hills with the equanimity of a moving-picture outfit, and whose fame seemed so obvious to the tall young man with the horn- rimmed spectacles. But the young man was addressing him again with drawing- room courtesy. “May I inquire whom we have the pleasure of entertaining?” “Huh?” said Smith. He was still look- ing after the girl, who had returned to her task with the unfamiliar instrument. ‘“ Oh, Smith is my name. ‘ Jehannum’ Smith.” And he added, with a flash of his satirical humor, ‘ You know.” Very obviously Smith, in the presence of mere man, was recovering his poise. ‘‘ Ah,” said the young man, with evasive politeness. ‘I’m very glad to make your acquaintance, Mr.—er—how do you say it—Smith. My name is Van-Eyck.. I have the honor to be Professor Harrison’s assist- ant and that of his daughter, who is his coworker.” Smith’s vanity must be forgiven if he reflected that these people must be very new in the country. But the young man was growing more surprising every minute. He was smiling with engaging friendliness and asking: ‘“In what way can we be of service to you, Mr. Smith?” Smith’s grunt was an explosion. He was entirely unaccustomed to having people offer to kelp him in any way at all in the jungles. And from these lost children! It was staggering. “‘ Say, son—” he began, but the petulant voice from within the tent interrupted him. ‘‘ Show the gentleman in, Howard.” The young man smiled in pleased antici- pation and drew aside the tent flap. Smith stooped under the scalloped frill, strode in—and stood spellbound. He had entered a magician’s den, it seemed to him. A long trestle table occupied two sides of the large tent. It was covered with more shiny instruments like that which the girl had been toying with, and with glass tubes _ bent into all sorts of queer shapes, and with test tubes in neat racks, and with a litter of other things. A burly man, whose salient characteristic ‘seemed to be a pair of dreamy eyes under startlingly prominent white eyebrows set at random in a red, perspiring face, stood watching a glass retort with intense concen- - tration. Smith knew that all this para. phernalia constituted some sort of field prospecting outfit; but it was unlike any outfit that he had seen, and he thought that he knew them all. The young assistant was introducing Smith to the old man, but the professor re- mained in absorbed contemplation of his retort. When he finally spoke, it was with a sudden clap of his hands and an air of pleased expectation. ‘Well, Howard, there it is! In a few hours we ought to know whether Dryo- balanops Malayensis will crystallize out in commercial quantities, as I have always maintained. And I think, my boy—I feel confident, in fact, that success will crown our experiments. We have proved it to be dextrorotary, and the levo-modifications—”’ Suddenly he stopped and peered fiercely at Smith from under his pent brows. “Who is this—ah, giant that you have captured, Howard?” The assistant introduced him over again, while Smith grinned at the word “ cap- tured.” him. quite cordially, and led him immedi- ately to the retort. His attitude was that of an enthusiastic lecturer returning, after an unwilling interlude, to an absorbing sub- ject. There was no time to waste. He commenced at once to run over the previ- ous points of importance for the benefit of the new pupil. ; “You see, Mr. Smith, we are trying to establish that D. Malayensis will render a product similar to the commercially known Borneol, which will be more familiar to you doubtless, as C1oH170H. The trees, as you see, abound in this locality, and—-”’ His daughter had slipped in unnoticed, and now she laid her hand on her father’s arm. “You know, dad,” she reminded him, with quiet emphasis, “ that you agreed not, to talk to anybody about what you were do- ing. You were told to confide in nobody, remember.” , ' The professor scowled fiercely at this un- C@ The professor shook hands with - LOOOLK CO