Evening star., 1921-05-22
what-i-i" Sydney's voice rose to a
squeal as a frothing ripple caught his

what-i-i" Sydneys voice rose to a
| squeal as frothing ripple caught his
| toes
Junius came wading shoreward, but
| he did not relinquish the lump when
| the other felt and padded it fever
| ishly, babbling.
Look at that-look at that! All
| smooth an soft-an' kind of Shiny,
like. Oh, no. we int struck it fair
rich this time. nor nothin-oh: now;
|. Mytey. 1 tell you-by Cav,
| tell you it's the real stuff
But oughtn't there be an odor-a
Not yet-not while it's fresh. That
comes after. And any'ow. what else
! could it be-'ey?"
Junius shook his head.
ERE, I'll show you. you poor nat:
! The larrikin ragged about like a man
| in a strong temper. ."Where's nail?
Gimme a nail. lohg nail. or a piece
of wire-'ell. I'll show you
He snatched up strip of pianking
from the sand and wrenched rusty
spike from it. With swift jerky ses--
lures he gathered few dry chips and
them alight. In this brief blaze he
hea.e the spike and then applied it
to the lump. 1t sank smoothly, leav-
! ing a little melted ring around the
hole. ~
in Fufuti. And the 'arf of It's
mine" he added, with a startling shift
| to the most brazsn impudence
Junius regarded him lncredulous
What? That's wot. Wasn't here?
Int I been palm along of you? It's
| a fair divvy. Wy, damn your soul"
he screamed in a sudden febrile blast
| of fury. you don't think you're goin'
to 'og my 'arf an all!
your half" repeated Junius.
a iS
there? Why. you wern't anywhere
near when I found it. Didn't you
pass up the SWIM"
Just here the Sydney Duck made
. his mistake. He acted by his lights
which were narrow and direct. and
he hit Junius Peabody suddenly in
the smiling face of him and knocked
him reeling backward. The next in
slant he was running for the nearest
palms with the prize tucked under
one arm.
Junius sat on the sand and blinked.
and at first he felt rather hurt. for
he was not used to being treated so,
| at least not while he was sober. And
thereafter he grinned. for such was
| his way Of turning aside a casual un-
| pleasan:ness. But finally came the
| throb Of a strange new emotion, as
| If some one had planted small. hot
! coal in his breast.
i Never before had Junus Peabody
But never before had Junius Peabody
been reduced to a naked Junius Pea
| body, dot and carry nothing-pennl. .
| less, desperate. and now cheated of
| last hope. That made the difference.
! He struggled up and climbed any
| how into trousers. coat and shoes. and
| set off at shambling trot, keeping
/ the larrikin in sight. .--
| sydney lodged in among the trees.
found them too stant for cover.
4 oh la cd
! auesting here and there, shouting as
! he ran. From a hollow another fig
| ure started up to join him. bearded.
! heavy-set rogue. whose abnormaliy
long arms dangled like an apes out
| Of his sleeveless shirt. Junius recOg-
| nized Willens. the third of their par
". the night before. The two beach
| combers ran on together. footing
briskly past the long boat sheds and
J the high white veranda of Bende-
Under this iron thatch stood the
man Bendemeer himself. cool and
, lathy in spotless ducks planted there.
! as was HIS morning custom. to over
see and command all his little capital
the center of trading monopoly of
the old type and chief seat of as
strange and absolute tyront as the
! world still offers room for;- at once
! tie best loved and the best hated in
+, diyidual in his sphere of influence.
! Against Bendemeer was no scandal
f, only curses and bitterness. For his
/ Deculiarity took the especially irri-
F.! tating form of fair dealings with
| some thousands of brown-skinne
! natives and no dealings at all with
| any man of his own color-eXcept to
| beat him at strict business and then
to sell him as much villainous liquor
as he could at the highest possible
price. AS he leaned there indolentlv
in his doorway he could measure his
own lard as far as he could see on
, either side. a anlall part OF his hold
inrs in plantations "nd trading sta
tions throughout the archipelago
offshore lay anchored his Likely
Jane. flagship of a smart little navy
His gang OF boys was hustlirg cargo
out Of her in surfboats. and both
boys and boats were tn: handlest
ard ableTt that could be found any
where for that ticklish work. He
had only to turn his head to view the
satisfactory bulk of his sheds and de-
tendencies. solid. new-painted. The
house at his hack was trim. broad,
and comfortable and in the store.
room underneath lay thousands OF
dollars worth Of assorted trade goods
all of which would eventually become
conra and great wealth.
1--WE been robbed" eabody whe ezed
and pointed a wavering hand. "Those
chaps thcre-robbcd-
Bendeemer glanced aside up the
strand after the disappearing ruffians
and then down at the complainant.
but otherwise he did not move. only
STAYED considering from his lean.
leatacry mask. with still eyes, out
ward looking
What do You care?" he said. idly.
"Yru'll h" dead in month anyhow.
Lunius rap"d toward him diH2ily.
Hc could not believe that he had heard
ar cht. "Eut, sIy-they've stolen my
nrorcrty:'
X
ID ENDEMEER shot blue ring OF
- smoke into tho sunshine. "In that
case you've lost it. They're heading