Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-07-14
DREAMLAND
ADVENTURES
The SIcamp Pirates
BY DADDY
CHAPTER "
In the Smoke
6sT WISH we knew some way to fir


ct WISH we knew some way to fight
l. these swamp pirates" cried
Peggy. She thrashed out wildly to save
herself from the sharp sword Of Needle-
Nose, the pirate chief.
Needle Nose made a mocking face at
her as he lodged away from her slap
ping hand. The pirate leader felt that
he had Peggy, Billy, Folly wisher and
the African girl and youth at his mercy.
No matter how hard they thrashed they
couldn't drive the pirates away.
But as II in answer to Peggy's wish
for some way to fight the pirates, a
thought popped into Billy's head. He
had seen boy scouts drive mosquitoes
out Of camp. The scouts had done
1t by making a smudye of smoke. The
smoke had caused the mosquitoes to gasp
and choke. They couldn't stand the
smothering smudge and SO they had fed.
leaving the scouts in peace to tell their
campfire stories and to sing their camp
fire songs.
If smoke drove away the mosquitoes,
why wouldn't 1t drive away the winged
pirates?
Gather around me and guard me
against the swords of the pirates -
cried Billy. II am going to make
fire.
'How silly !" shouted Folly wisher,
without asking why Billy was going to
build a fire. 1T Is too hot in here
already"
Peggy and the two African savages
didn't wait to argue the matter. They
gathered around Billy, and facing out
ward beat the air with their fly swat
ters. The pirates grinned at them and
attacked from all sides, stabbing Peggy,
Flower Of the Forest, Youth of tho
Lion Heart and Folly Wisher wherever
a sharp sword could pierce the skin.
Billy, thus protected, gathered a heap
of dry grass from the floor Of the wig
wan. He broke little twigs from the
inside covering Of the wigwam and
placed these on the grass. When he had
a large pile built, he drow a match from
his pocket. He struck the match on
a stone and touched the fame to the
dry grass.
At once little blaze sprung up. The
blaze caught the twigs and in a minute
the fire was blazing merrily. Billy
heaped on more twigs and when these
we're aflame he pulled green branches
from the wigwam covering and threw
them on the blaze.
The green branches partly smothered
the flames, and at once dense smoke
poured up from the fire.
The pirates had been fighting hard
and cvilly. They had stabbed 'Pegg.
and the others on heads, hands, necks,
arms and legs. As they stabbed they
laughed and grimaccd.
But when the smoke poured up from
the fire-that was another matter for
the pirates. 1t caught them with their
mouths spread wide In mean grins. 1t
filed their throats. 1t made them
splutter and choke. They stopped their
stabbing and they tried to get away.
The smoke was snothering them.
"Ho! Ho! Ho!" laughed Folly
Wisher, MS he saw how the smoke upset
the pirates, "Ho! Ho! Ho! Now we
know how to drive away these imps
Ho! Ho! Ho!" Folly Wisher laughed
SO hard that he gulped down lot of
smoke. And when the smoke got into
his throat he spluttered and choked as
badly as the swamp pirates.
Billy piled on more and more green
branches ana the smuuBe pcchile thicher
and thicker. 1t filled the wigwam so
that no matter which way the pirates
flew they could not escape 1t. They
were as helpless before the smoke as
Peggy, Billy and the others had been
before the needle like swords.
But Peggy and Billy did not have any
time to be glad over this victory. The
smudge smothered the swamp pirates,
but it smothered the humans as well.
eve must get out Of here gaspted
Billy. "We must get out before tha
smoke overccmes US" He tried to tear
out the branches that stuffed the door
way. The smoke filled his eyes, his
mouth. his throat, his lungs. He fell
over in a stupor. Peggy, Folly Wisher.
Flower of the Forest and Youth OF
the Lion Heart, likewise overcome, fell
beside him.
"Oh!" thought Peggy, MS she lay
gasping. 1--WE are smothering to death !
I wish somebody would come to our
rescue"
She got her wish quickly. and how
she got it will be told tomorrow.