Williams news., 1922-05-19

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 tionists had risen and struck their | blow. After the fashion of hot
 headed and impetuous people, they had 1 entered the contest absolutely un- 1 trained. As a result, the war had last | ed just two weeks, the leaders had been fncontinently shot, and the white 1 winged dove of peace had once more 1 spread her pinions along the borders l of the Gold coast.
 Commodore Gibney was disgusted be- l yond measure, and at a special meet ! ing of the syndicate, called in the | cabin of the Maggie II that same eve | ming, 1t was finally decided that they l should embark on an indefinite trad | ing cruise in the South seas, or until l such time as 1t seemed their services must be required to free a downtrod- den people from a tyrant's yoke. Captain Scraggs and McGuffey had l never been in the South seas, but they ] had heard that a fair margin of profit 1 was to be wrupg from trade In copra, shell, coconuts, and kindred tropical products. They so expressed them selves. To this suggestion, however, Commodore Gibney waved a deprecat- ing paw.
 Legitimate tradin boys" he said, '-is a nice, sane, healthy business, but the profits is slow. What we want is quick profits, and while 1t afn't set down in black and white. one of the principal objects of this syndicate is to lead a life of wild adventure. In tradin', there ain't no adventure to speak of. We ought to do a little bIack-birdin', or raid some of those Jap pearl fisheries off the northern coast of Formosa."
 R,1t cha boats if we do that" objected Captain Scraggs. "Those Jap gunboats shoot to kill. Can't you think of somethin' else, Gib?'
 'WeH,'' said MT. Gibney, flor a starter, I can- Suppose we just head straight for Kandavu island in the Fiji jis, and scheme around for a cargo of black coral? It's only worth about if ty dollars pound. Kandavu lays somewhere in latitude p south, longi- tude IFS west. and when I was there last it was fair reekin' with cannibal savages. But there's tons of black coral there, and nObody's ever been able to sneak in and get away with 1t. Every time a boat used to land at Kandavu, the native niggers would have a white-man stew down on the beach, and it's got so that shippers give the island a wide berth.'
 "Gib, my dear boy" chattered Cap tain Scraggs, I'm a man of peace and I-I@'
 "Scraggsy, old stick-fn-the-mud," said MT. Gibney, laying an affectionate hand on the shippers shoulder, you're nothin' of the sort. You're a fightin' tarantu1a, and nobody knows it bet tern Adelbert P. Gfbney. I've seen you in action, Scraggsy. Remember that. It's all right for you to say you're a man of peace and advise me and McGuffey to keep out of the track of trouble, but we know that away down low you're goin' around lookin' for blood, and that once you're up agin the enemy, you never bat an eyelash. Eh, McGuffey?"
 >' McGuffey nodded; whereupon Cap tain Scraggs, making but a poor eff fort to conceal the pleasure which Mir. GibneyS rude compliment afforded him, turned to the rail, glanced sea- ward, and started to walk away to at tend to some tritiing detail connected with the boat falls
 ''AlI right, Glib, my lad" he said, affecting to resign himself to the inev- itable,- "have it your own way. You're commodore and I'm only a plain captain, but I'll follow. wherever you lead III go as far as the next man and we'll glom that black coral if we have to slaughter every man, woman and child on the island. Only, when we're sizzfin' in a pot don't you up and say never warned you, because I did. How dye propose intimidatin the natives. Gib?''
 ''Scraggsy,' said the commodore solemnly. we've waged a private war agjn a friendly nation, licked 'em and helped ourselves to their ship. We've changed her name and rig and her official number and letters and we're saflin' under bogus papers. That makes us pirates, and thac old Maggie burgee ffoatin at the fore ain't noth- in more nor less than the Jolly Roger All righti Let's be pirates. Who cares? When we slip into M'galao harbor we'll invite the king and his head men aboard for dinner We'll get 'em drunk, clap 'em in double irons, and surrender 'em to their weep in subjects when they've filled the hold of the Maggie II with black coral. If they refuse to come aboard we'll shell the bush with that long gun and the Maxim rapfd-fire guns we've got below decks. That'll scare 'em so they'll leave us alone and we can help ourselves to the coral"
 ScraggS' cold blue eyes plistened