Argosy All-Story Weekly, October 6, 1923 — page 94: what you’re looking at

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

“was a ious sein, ee ad ground to a needle-prick of sharpness. — Hitch Diamond, six feet four inches tall, black as coal-tar, with shoulders like a pair of walking beams and legs like the columns of a temple, a face battered and scarred from many bloody fistic battles where men fought with naked fists on the wharf-boats __ of the Mississippi, stood at attention with - this mighty weapon of ancient warfare _ gripped in his giant paw. The antiquarian would have seen in him the perfect pattern _ of the Carthaginian warriors that Hannibal led to the Alps and who made affrighted _ Bone cower behind the protecting shelter of oy Amen! — So mount it be!” A chorus of voices resounded in the room. = = a ‘ Head EROpPe, advamce an’ receive ue = 2 de keh Dis president’s a ee within a foot of where Jim Golly sat. He let the == _Golly’s foot. There the dreadful weapon = - stood. alone, upright, quivering like a thing alive. Jim Golly performed certain physi- ‘al contortions suggesting to an observer that he was trying to put his imperiled _foat i in his pants’ pocket. -_ Vinegar Atts turned impressively to Jim = Golly and intoned these words: = = 2 Seudder Jim Gelly, you has beseeched point. in ae floor i an inch of Jim ~ ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY, = as our r money remains in yo ae an’ ontil our lodge suits is duly delivered unto us.” ‘““ Amen! answered. ‘I don’t se how dat kin be,” Jim Golly protested, showing the whites of his little piggish eyes and trembling with nervous- ness. “ Xo see, I got to send dis money away—” “Restrain yo’ conversation, -brudder,” Vinegar Atts admonished him. “ Us will instrack you in yo’ duties atter while!” Then turning to Hitch Diamond, Vinegar intoned:. “ Exalted Head Chopper, I charges you to gyard de funds of dis lodge as a sacred trust. _Us is poor an’ cain’t affode to lose our dollars. You is now de official gyar- deen of dis here Jim Golly, an’ ef you lets him escape away, yo’ life shall be fer his life!” = - Not on yo’ life!” Hitch Diamond rumbled, glaring at the little fat tailor’s agent as if longing for the glorious privilege of decapitating him, while Golly cowered before him with a fear that made his teeth rattle in his head. | Then Vinegar turned to Golly and said: __ “ Brudder Jim Golly, dis here money will - be ‘kep’ in trust by de Head Chopper ontwell you is ready to send it off. De Chopper will den go wid you to de bank an’ he’p you send it to de fellers whut makes So mought it be!” the lodge “Dat suits me,” Jim responded feebly, which it veritably did not; but there was nothing else to say. ‘“ While de Head Chopper attends you, I advices you to walk in de straight an’ narrer path,” Vinegar concluded. “De lodge am now adjourned!” TIT. THE next morning, Jim Golly entered the Hen-scratch saloon and sat down at a little table. Since his experience the night before, he had a creepy feeling and could not avoid taking furtive glances about him as if expecting‘a monstrous black to emerge from nowhere and chop his head off. Skeeter Butts, proprietor of the little ‘S.com OU EGOMIGHDOo