The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1912-02-08


PROV, to the fair land whittier he was
to convey the Pool of Flame.
Abruptly he leapt to his feet, wide
awake and raging.
A blow was still sounding through
the saloon a dull crash. Buried half
way to the hilt in the bulkhead back
of the transom knife quivered. In
stinctively the wanderers fingers had
closed upon the grip Of his revolver
He pulled the trigger almost before
he realized what had happened and
sent bullet winging toward a spot
on the gangway above where pair
of long brown legs had been but now
were not On the heels of that fruit
less shot he sent another, this time
with no murderous intent, but to
warn the captain on the bridge. Here
at last was an issue forced, animus
proven, assassination indisputably at
tempted.
He sprang for the companionway,
was half way up it in a thought, his
heart hot within him, mouth dry with
thirst for that lascar's blood. Not
third time should the man escape his
judgment at the hands Of ORourke,
he sWore.
A stentorian roar saluted him as he
gained the deck-a below choked and
ending in a sickening gurgle
O'Rourke in a flash swung on his
heel. Simultaneously he came face to
fo 10
aloud IN pity.
The captain swayed before him, a
massively built figure clothed all in
white, huge arms trembling towards
his head, revolver dropping from a
nerveless hand, his chin fallen for
ward on his chest, a stupid, weary
smile on his face and a dark and hid
eous smear spreading swiftly over the
bosom Of his shirt.
A, cry of horror, despair and rage
stuck in the wanderers throat. Quick,
who had hailed his appearance on the
Rance at Alden as a harbinger Of good
luck, had been foully murdered. His
dominant emotion Of the moment, an
intense and pitiful solicitude for the
dying man, threw him off his guard.
Under its influence he forgot the des
perate case of which this tragedy
brought all aboard the Rance, put out
his arms, received the falling body,
and let it gently to the deck.
But in a trice he was alive again to
his own peril. In the twinklng Of an
he of o. oil
wards him with resistless impetus.
Intuitively he swung to one side, to
the right, and leart TO his feet. At
that the knife, a kris sinuous and
keen, ran cold upon the flesh Of his
chest, slit through his shirt, caught
in the thong that held the Pool Of
Flame, and tore out, leaving a Tapping
hole and scramng a hands breadth
Of skin from his forearm. Needless
Of this, only in fact subcOnsciously
aware that the chamois bag had fallen
to the deck, he caught at the hand
that had welded the kris; his fingers
closed about tNp wrist, and bracing
hin' SELF, he s"s' re assassin off his
.. So q -. fingers slipped on
..s mans g;e"1j skin and he stun
Dled off his balance.
His object, however, had been &C
complished The murderer. hurled
yard or more through the air, fell and
slid along the deck into a group of
lascars, one of whom, like a nine-pin,
was knocked over and fell atop OF
him.
O'Rourke recovered and stepped for.
ward, revolver poised to administer
tho quietus TO the murderer-an ami.
able intention which was, however,
doomed to Illustration. With almost
Uncomfortable swiftness the group OF
| lascars had become a mere tangle Of
arms and legs, melange of strug-
| Cling limbs and bodies. Where he
had thought to find single PROSTATE
form, there were six struggling in con-
| fusion on the deck.
For thought he stayed his finger
on the trigger, waiting to pick out the
'undermost and Stay him first Of all,
unwilling, furthermore, to waste one
of the four invaluable cartridges re-
naming in his revolver. And then
Unexpectedly the tragedy seemed over
and done with altogether.
From the bottom of the heap of bod
les a terrible cry of mortal anguish
shrilled loud; and almost at once the
mob seemed to resolve into its orig
inal elements. Five lascars crawled,
arose, or flung themselves away from
the sixth, who lay inert, prone, limbs
still twitching, a knife buried in his
back.
For thought the tableau held,
there in the pure brilllance Of the
moonlight; the half a dozen standing
figures, ORourke a space apart from
the rest, and two bodies, the one face
down, Quick with face to the stars,
| each with its dread background; q
black stain that grew and spread slow
ly upon the white, dazzling
Quietly the tallest Of the lascars