Argosy All-Story Weekly — "The Purple Limited" — page 59: what you’re looking at

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

JUNGLE LOVE. “ Married!’’’ This had been the pivot of Julie’s thoughts when she stead in the cabin. It was an event. A crossroad; the old life ef drudgery was done with. She was bound fer a new life. Ap existence Ire Tram pene ny-pinching. “ A wife!’ How strange it had all seemed. Se it bad been; but that which followed outdid all that Julie had passed through. She recol- lected well enough now. It all came back to her clearly: Artie’s veice outside the port- hole. Then azother’s, a husky, wheezy They were talking about her. Their veices were low, but at intervals, reached "her cleazly. Kneeling on the bunk, Julie loeked out. She.saw Artie and a big, overdressed, fat man, standing by the rail under the ‘prome- nade deck. It was. nearing sailing time, and the lower deck was deserted. Their backs were turned; but the girl had recog- niged the big man. It was he who: had stepped between her and that woman who - had jumped-out of the cab. The undelectable confab of Artie and Sid bears repeating: . “You left her in the cabin?” asked Sid. “Sure. She’s waiting for me. Guess I'll have a good time. I ain’t so sorry now the _burst-up came along, The thing I wanna know though is, what ‘ll I do with her. I don’t mind being hitched for a couple -of weeks, but hanged if I want t’ be tied up for keeps Sid’s ’¢ short laugh was hearse and—mean- ing. “T reckon you'll know hew to get rid of her when the time’comes. She ain’t the first. Here. Shove this money in your pocket. There’s five hundred there, an’ ‘don’t forget that settles all accaunts. You can consider yourself on velvet. All exes paid and a good slice over. I suppose the new Mrs. F. has a wad tucked away. These innocent, hard-working stenogs generally save up.” “Aw! I aim’t married no Wall Street filly. Julie aig’t got mere’n a couple ef dollars, am’ that I give her.” Artie cackled seftty. “ One ef these days,” he went on, 4A 625 “ when the rumpus has all blewed over am I’m back, Ill tell you the yarn ahout thag two bucks. It’s a rich joke.” Sid looked down at Artie, slightly ina terested; but the deck-hands were getting ready to cast off, and the tale Artie had to tell was indefinitely postponed. There was one, though, whose interest had not been just slightly stirred. Just then the siren boomed. The mer. ment for departure was at hand. “Tve done my bit,” went on Sid. “ Seen yeu aboard and paid you the money put up by the Mogolia bunch for the getaway of the pair of you. That girl would have been too easy a witness to leave around Locking her in that reom was a fool trick. You've got off easier than you deserve. You’ve got your bit, though, so don’t get writing home fer more. That’s the last ~you'll get. Sid lunrbered away a step. “You won’t forget Leila?” “Yeu bet we won’t, and we'd hand a little keepsake to that Gordon woman, toa, if we got the chance. She’d have had us all pinched if we bhadn’t been tipped off, She’s too high up to monkey with, though. S’long.” Artie had hinted at some story attached te the two-dollar bill he had given her. With anxious desire to solve whatever mys- tery was attached to this, Julie had slipped down off the bunk and opened her bag. In the confusion of her mind, caused by what she had partly overheard, her thoughts now took a curious twist, and yet they were not _ingonsistent. Julie was superstitious. Mrs. Bruce had given her a two-dollar bill. Artie had handed her another. They were both in her bag, and she had not torn the corners of them. That meant bad luck! A tiny scrap torn from the corner of a twe-dollar bill is supposed to be a charm against the alleged ill fortune attendant upen their possession. Foolish; but older, and one would suppose, wiser people than Julie believe in all sorts of nonsense con- nected with walking under ladders, spilling salt, and piebald horses. Julie had turned out the contents of her bag. On the top lay the folded bill given her by Artie. She had spread it eut. The | CONMIGIIOO S CO