The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1926-09-10

y
perate Teller is Flint. Now what dye |
reckon he'll do wi the map?"
"What map?"
"When We bury treasure We draws |
map" Silver explained oracularly.
eff so be as one man knows where
twas buried and he has the map that
treasure Is safe till doomsday-'nless
someone else gets the map"
swell, he won't give me the map"
I returned shortly.
100000, it amt likely. But II he
ever slows it where We can lay your
hands on 1t or We see him give 1t to
anybody else you just remember as
Long John stands your friend, gentle
men. Friend is the word, remember.
And the old saw says friend In need
| is friend indeed"
Presently we rounded into the wind
and came to, and Flint pulled under
our lee, rowing slowly, with long, lei
surely strokes like man who Is
weary but intent upon finishing a diff
ficult undertaking. Now that he was
so close we could see that the scarf
around his head was crusted with
blood His coat and shirt were torn
to shreds, and his shoes and Stock
f! ings gummed with mud.
A man heaved him couple Of lines,
and he knotted them carefully to bow
and stern before he began to climb
the cleats of the side ladder, moving
stiffiy but with unerring precision. AS
his face lifted above the bulwarks the
men nearest to him gasped and tred
back upon the toes Of those behind
| them. Such a face 1 had never seen.
| Twas not alone the terrible blue color
and the congested veins that bulged
redly under the skin, but suggestion
of experiences beyond the pale of or
binary human understanding. His
eyes glared savagely. His mouth was
fixed in a grimace Of hatred. In his
tanned cheeks were riven lines of fear,
of anger, of revenge, of cupidity, OF
insensate ambition-aye, and OF re-
morse.
He dropped to the deck and peered
watchfully around him.
"WelI, here l be-" he croaked. 'Ho,
you Darby, fetch me bottle o. rum.
Yarely, lad!"
Darby skipped away on his errand,
white-cheeked and shaking.
Nobody spoke, and Flint laughed
oh, dreadfullyl
eye amt glad to welcome your skip
per back, Ell? How'd We make out,
Bih?"
Bones had shouldered path through
the clustering ranks, but even he was
speechless before Flint's CHASTITY figure.
"We-we-we're all right" he slut
tered finally.
Silver, only, seemed unimpressed.
"Ye were seven as went ashore,
!; cap'n," he said alphabetically, "and
, one to return aboard"
Flint laughed that dreadful laugh a
second time.
: "Aye, there's six stayed ashore, Sill
yer; six tall fellows. Six, says you
and seven's lucky. Aye, lucky! Main
lucky! And Allardyce says he's safe
WI sikh Ho, no, ho"
"Where-where-are theyT CUES
toned Bones.
ashore, told We, Bill. All safe
$ ashore"
"Dead?" pressed Bones.
"Aye, dead as Harry Morgan--ol
Avery"
, Darby dived through the jam with
( an open bottle of rum, and Flint
I stretched out both arms and tossed
j men right and left to make way fol
the lad.
"Rum!" he exclaimed. THAT:
what I need. Rum-and plenty of 1t J.
|. He bent back his head, put thu
bottle to his lips and drank-an'
drank. You could hear the gurg''
:. of it as it trickled down his gullet.
"Aaaa-aah!" he breathed. "Tha
was rare stuff. Get me another
y Darby"
He tossed the bottle overheard, ant
Is started to sing a stave of that savag'
II sea-song which was the chief deligh
I" of the crew:
= TON Avery died of cutlas slash
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle o. rum!
=. Mounseer Tessin felt the galleys' lash
Yo-ho-ho, and bottle O. rum!
'But the treasure" spoke up Silver
n "What'd We do wi it, capn?"
le Flint eyes him for as long as 'twoul
h take to count twenty. And 1 al
,e bound to say Silver met his eye ur
IN fiinchingly.
ID "Why tits safe, john" answere
lie Flint in the horribly soft tones he ha
l. employed with Allardyce. "All tucke
le where it'll stay safe"
ID aye, but where?' persisted Silve
n Flints blue, notified visage becam
e, convulsed with a passion words cal
he not describe.
n "Where?" he mouthed. "Aye, where
n Ask on, mani Or seek 1t, If We wisl
IT Aye, go ashore. Lay off those ropes,
d, he shouted to the men at the falls
which his gig was hitched. There
l a boat" he went on. There's too
49, on the island. Ye can have food an
rum. Go ashore If ye like, and stay
)r- any o. We! Search for the treasuI
We till - opens wide for We. But 6
= for the ship, she'll beat up for NOR
ne by thunder"
nd He waited a moment, but no ma
o accepted his challenge. Silver, L
deed, stumped deliberately out Of til
nd crowd, with faraway look in his eye
that were as bright and hard as
ne pair of polished buttons.
That's WELL" said Flint. Il
nK course is so'west by south, Bill. WEI
for the Dead Mans Chest. All ga
and a lookout In every top!"
ITO BE CoNTINUED.)
sss;