Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1908-03-07

dunn, If you choose, only he Didn't call
it that Radium, as known to our.
modern scientists. he regarded as the
harmless plaything of people with time
hanging heavy ON their hands. He
wasn't after force in pin poilt quaint
tics-he wanted results. Yet believe
that, after all, what he sought was a
sort of higher power of radium. The
phenomena were related And he had
some of that concentrated essence Of
pltchblende in the chest when we start
ed. oh, not much. say about $4,000
worth. Maybe thirty. For use: No.
Rather for comparison. l judge.
Yes, we chased volcanoes be.
came used to camping between sam
pie bells of all known varieties | got
so that the fumes of sulphur match
seemed like draft of pure. fresh
air. Wherever any of the earth's PIN
pies showed signs of coming to head
there We're we. taking part in the
trouble. BY and by the doctor got so
! thoroughly poisoned that he had TO
lay off. Back to Philadelphia we came.
There an aged seafaring person. tenn
porarily stranded, mulcted the profess
or of a doilar-an undertaking that re-
quired no art-and in the course of his
recital touched upon yonder little cess
pool of internal iniquities, An I'M
charted volcanic iSland-One that he
could have all for his own. You may
guess whether DR. SchermerhOrn was
, interested
THAT ISIS for which we hat so long
in vain sought, Percy he said to me
in his quaint. link chain style of
speech. a leedle prifate volcano Iabo-
! ratory to ourselves to have. Totally
unknown. undescribed, not on the
chart to be found. Tomorrow we start
l make a list of the things to get
He began his list. as | remember.
with three dozen undershirts. gallon
of pennyroyal for insect bites, box of
assorted fishhooks. thirty pounds of
tea and Il case of carpet tacks When
| l hadn't anything else to worry over. ]
used to lie awake ut night and specu.
| late on the purpose of those carpet
tacks. He had something in mind. If
! there was anything on which he prid
ed himself. it was his practical bent
But the list never got any further. II
ceased short of one page in the ledger
as you may have noticed. | QUILTED
| by telegraph on the way across the
continent.
The doctor didn't ask me whether
I'd go. He took it for granted That's
probably why | didn't back out. MOI
did tell him that the three life insur
! ance companies which had fooliShly
and trustinGly accepted me as Il risE
merely on the strength of a good con
stitutiOn We're making frantic effort.
to compromise on the policies. They
felt hurt. those companies. Ny
healthy condition had ceased to ap
peal TO them. What's Il good constitu
ton between earthquakes? No. Their,
was no use telling the doctor. 1
would only have worried him. Be
sides. didn't believe that the isiant
was there. ! thought it was a myth o
that stranded ancient mariners imag
ination. When it rose TO sight at tn
proper spot, none We're more astound
ed than the bad risk who now address
es you.
"Yet l must say for the island tina
it came handsomely up TO specifica
tons. Down where you were. Sladt
you didn't get a real insight into II
disposition. But in back of US Their
was any kind Of action for YOUR mon
ey-geysers, hell spouts, Tuning q
sures. cunning little craterlets Wi
half portions of molten lava ready
serve hot. more gases than you cou
create in all the worlds chemical lab
ratories-in fact, everything to mai
the place n paradise for Old Nick al
Dr. SchermerhOrn. He brought alOl
in his precious chest besides the r
dunn some sort of raw material; al
as near as l could make out Il sort
cage or guardianship scheme for h
concentrated essence of cussedne
when he should get it out of the W
cano.
In the first seven months he pU
tered around the little tuners, with
occasional excursion up to the ma
| Nlulti- II NdS NY uElS W IOlIoN
and drag him away when he fell u
conscious. Sometimes | would try
get him before he was quite gon
Then he would become indignant al
, fight me. Perhaps that helped to 10
| me his confidence. More and more
. withdrew into himself. There we
/ days when he spoke no word to me.
/ was lonely. Do You know why l us'
to visit you at the beach, Slade?
suppose you thought l was keepil
. watch on you. 1t wasn't that; it w
loneliness. In n way it hurt me, to
for one couldn't help but be fond
, the old boy, and at times it seem,
5 as if he weren't quite himself. Pa
don me if l may trouble you for Il
! | matches. Thanks.
: matters went very wrong at time
] | The doctor fumed like his little crater
: growled out long winded, exhaust
] German imprecations: wouldn't ev'
e eat. Then. again, the demon of wo
would drive him with thong and spJ
2 | He would rush to his craters, to /
| 10 bnro toriac IN bic Ia,lpay fo, tho M