Argosy All-Story Weekly — 'The Metal Monster' — page 105: what you’re looking at

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

J. BARLEYCORN, INC. . few minutes. Fin always wore rubber-soled sneakers, and they made no sound when he walked in. Neither did they mar the decks of Sal, nor would he slip from dock or craft into the river when he was not in the mood for a swim. Five minutes passed, and still no sign of Peters. Fin began to get impatient. He had taken a couple of steps toward the back room when he heard a voice from behind that door, talking rapidly in an un- dertgne.: Peters and an intimate, thought Fin, and stepped away. He wouldn’t butt in.- The five minutes lengthened into ten, and the talking in the back room became general. It was then that Fin began to distinguish voices. All of the Big Five were there, and they were discussing Fin. That was enough. The smuggler knew that they could have but one object in view. To separate him from his share of the profits and the capital, too, in all prob- ability. He turned and walked out of phe place. From across the street he watched the door and when he saw the last of the visit- ing stockholders leave, he walked over and into the place. ‘‘ "Lo, Peters.” Peters looked up quickly. flushed. “Lo, Fin. “T’ ’ell ’re you doin’ round this time o’ day? S’posed you’d be comhin’ Sal’s hair er manicurin’ ’er keel er some- thin’.”’ | “ Oh, well, sorta have t’-get round an’ p’tect our interes’, don’t [?” Peters flashed him a look. Did he know anything of the conference? couldn’t. And besides it wasn’t Fin’s way. If he had a grudge, he’d have it out of his system in less time than he accumulated it. After a few minutes’ talk about the weather, the prospects of a trip in the im- ‘mediate future, the activities of the rev- enuers—in other localities—and the health of Mrs. Peters, the pair parted, apparently on the best of terms. to McMann’s office. | ‘Say, Larry, them birds’re gettm’ ready to slip me th’ col’ deck. Gimme th’ ras- berry. They’re framin’ a col’ lay on me.” His face No, he Fin burned the trail - 99 McMann wanted details. Fin told him what he suspected, but could not repeat any of the conversation. He had heard nothing definite. Another star-chamber session. was called. This time Fin and Larry played the stellar rdles. An hour later they parted. Fin was smiling—as as much as he ever did—with his eyes. “Tt ll be a pipe, Fin. Don’t you worry. That charter is as flexible as my conscience, ~and you got jus’ as much power as the president in war time,” were the attorney’s parting words. Fin lost no time. Three nights in rapid succession he brought capacity loads. A pause. Then three nights more. Five were getting stocked up. But the end of the month-was approaching, and they were getting ready to spring their mine under Fin. | It was at this point that Fin got into action. Papers were served on Fin by law- yers representing one Daniel J. Mitchell, making Fin defendant in a suit for fifty thousand dollars. The plaintiff declared that “ on the night of July 22, when in company with his wife, in a motor-boat known as the Meteor he was coming up the Niagara River when one Michael Rafferty, owner and pilot of a motor speed-boat known as the Slippery Sal, did collide with him, sinking the Meteor, throwing his wife and himself into the Niagara at risk of their lives, and that as a result of the accident, his wife had been confined to bed since, and prcebably would be a confirmed invalid. _ For loss of craft, shock to his wife’s nerves and health and personal injuries, he asked the sum of fifty thousand dollars, as Sal had displayed no lights, in violation of the navigation laws of the river.” The lawyers representing him were class- same club. Without loss of time Fin, accompanied by McMann, visited Peters and laid the The Big . .mates of McMann’s, and patronized the story before him. He didn’t appear to be - particularly interested. “Tough luck, Fin,” was about the ex- tent of his first outburst. The second was indicative of more interest. COUMIUC AOO!K (COUNT