Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-01-16
CHAPTER |.
pauIvitch and an Ape.

The Marjorie VS. long boat was
floating down the broad Ugambi with
ebb tide and current. Her crew were
lazily enjoying this respite from the
arduous labor Of rowing upstream.
Three miles below them lay the Mar
jorie herself, quite ready to sail so
soon as they should have clambered
aboard and swung the long boat to its
dayts.
Presently the attention of every man
was drawn from his dreaming or his
gossiplng TO the northern bank of the
river. There, screaming at them in q
cracked falsetto, and with skinny arms
outsretched, stood strange appari.
ton Of man.
''Wot in thunder?" calculated one of
the crew.
"A white man." muttered the mate
and then: Man the oars, boys, and
we'll just pull over an see what he
wants."
When they came close to the shore
they saw an emaciated creature with
scant white locks, tangled and matted
The thin, bent body was naked save
for loin cloth. Tears were rolling
down the sunken. pockmarked cheeks
The man jabbered at them in a strange
tongue.
"ROoshun," hazarded the mate
"Savyy Engllsh?' he called to the
NAN.
The sCarecrow did, and In that tongue
brokenly and haltingly, as though Il
had been many years since he had USED
it, he begged them to take him witt
them away from this awful country
Once on board the Marjorie w. the
stranger told his rescuers pitiful tale
Of privation, hardships and torture, ex
tending over a period Of ten years.
How he happened to have come IL
Africa lie did not tell them, leaving
them to assume that he had forgotten
the incidents Of his life prior to thu
irghtfu ordcals that had wrecked hin
mentally and physically. His name, h,
said was Alexis Paulvitch.
A few scraggiy. yellow-whlte lock!
had supplanted the thick dark hair tina
had once covered his head. His limb!
were bent and twisted; he walked witt
shutting, unsteady gait, his bod,
doubled forward. His teeth were gon,
Knocked out by his savage masters
Even his mentality was but a sOrr,
mockery Of what it once had been.
They took him aboard the Marjorie
W., aud there they fed and nursed him
lie gained q little in strength, but hi
appearance never altered for the bet
ter-a human derelict, battered ant
wrecked, they had found him; human
derelict, battered and wrecked, h,
would remain until death claimed him
Alexis Paulvitch could easily hav,
passed for eighty.
The Marjorie W. had been chartere,
oy syndicate Of wealthy manufac
turers, equipped with a laboratory ant
stan OF scientists and sent out Il
search for some natural product which
The manufacturers who footed the bill
had been importing from South Amer
lea az an enormous cost. What tn
product was none ON board the Mar
!orle W. knew except the scientists
nor " 1t OF any moment to us, othe
thah that II led the ship to a certail
island off the coast of Africa afte
Alexis Pgulvitch had been takeI
aboard.
The ship lay nj anchor off the coas
Tor yeyeral weeks. The monotony 0
HE aboard her became trying for tn
crew. They went often ashore, an,
hhally paulvitch asked TO accompan,
them-he, too was firing Of the blight
ing sameness of existence upon tn
ship
The island was heavily timbered
Dense Jungle ran down almost to tn
oeacb. The scientists were far inland
prosecuting their search for the valu
a0ie commodity that native rumo
upon the mainland had led them 10 be
ie'e might be found here Ia market
able quantity.
me ships company fished, hunte'
anu explored. Paulyitch shufiled III
"iiu down The beach or lay In the shad
a" me great trees that skirted il.
"he day, as the men were gathare.