The Argosy, November 1908 — page 41: what you’re looking at

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

BY BULLET But I had not long to wait. Consuelo came from the house alone, and resumed her old attitude by the lake. I wondered what was going on in her mind. I knew of a case where a woman had stood like that on a river bank, her evident dejection attracting attention, and when somebody asked her if she was ill she answered by leaping into the wa- ter. Could Consuelo, I asked myself, be contemplating suicide? This thought was so horrible that I almost shouted to her. She never looked upward to the edge of the surrounding cliff. But even if she had I would not have dared to show my- self. I could not let her see me without giving all the others a chance to see, too. However, if the thing was to be done, it must be some brand-new scheme I had never heard of before. I wondered how they got down there, but knew of course there were ways of scaling cliffs, and there was probably some easy method of descent. I thought if I knew where that was I would sneak down at night and leave a note where she could find it. But then there were possibilities of somebody else finding it. Consuelo strolled leisurely along the lake shore. Then she hesitated and stopped again. Next she stooped and picked some- thing up from the ground. I thought, of course, it was a ruby. But she stepped to the water’s edge and stooped down again. She put what she had in her hand on the water and gave it a push. Then she began throwing pebbles at it. As each pebble made a series of cir- cles in the water she stood and watched them. ‘And yet she seemed to be taking no interest in what she was doing. It was clearly the act of a girl harassed by conditions, her mind full of misery, yielding to an idle thought to relieve the monotony. But this simple act gave me the inspi- ration I needed. I knew now what to do. It was risky, to be sure, but anything I tried would be that. And I was gain- ing nothing by waiting. Bonilla had come there to be convinced that there PERSUASION. 607 were rubies. And as soon as he was con- vinced, they would leave for home and my chance would be gone. I hurried back to Billy Barefoot. ~srere, 21 Said. -s | Ve. hit-On.a plan. What do you think of this?” “el: listen,’ hee replied: “You have noticed that my wife stands constantly by the lake looking steadily into the water, and sometimes walks a little, but always looking at the lake. And just now she threw in a piece of wood and tossed pebbles at it. ‘Now, on the other hand, nobody else seems to have any use for the lake. I have not seen any one go near it. The Mexican feons play their games, and Bo- nilla and Hernandez are all the time at that paper, and I suppose after dinner they smoke and drink wine. “Now, I am going to try this scheme. I am going to make a little boat. Oh, I am not to turn pirate and sail to the rescue of my wife. But I am going to make a little boat that will sail. And it will have a little piece of paper for a sail, or a piece of white cloth. And on- this sail will be written my message. “‘And there is a chance that she will see the little boat, and will wonder what it is, and will read the message.” The old Moqui stared at me till I al- most feared his eyes would pop out of his head. He showed not the least sign whether he liked the scheme, but just sat and stared. ; “Well,” I said testily, “ what about it? You told me to think of something, and that’s all I can think of.” (ct Huh.’’ He got up, and without saying any more, walked to the cliff. The peons were lolling around, smo- king. Consuelo was strolling by the lake- side just as I said, her gaze vacantly di- rected toward the water, her mind full of the misery of her position. Billy pointed across the lake. “She never goes there. What will you do when your boat gets there?” It was rather a problem. I knew nothing about the currents, if there were any in the lake. It would be easy enough to start the boat by launching it inside the gorge and letting it sail out on the bosom of the lake. But which way would it go then? comicloooks.corn