Show T i 7 F t tA y UE A T L F THE FLA IID r BY I. I S 7 ti t COPYRIGHT BY THE BO 53 COMPANY k h 4 THE BLUE MOON l I P Synopsis Never having known A i his father ant na nU with his i mother on- on otta ona a houseboat on the Wabash Wa Wa- u bash river par the hunter the er-the the only J name name he be has hn l learns from her a apart i. i t part of the story of her sad cad ad life lICe The recital Is Interrupted by a fearful fearful fear- fear 1 ful fit tit of oe coughing and he hurries ashore to seek a root that affords relief He lie meets a girl whom he mentally christens the Wild Rose c She eludes him before he can make her acquaintance A vacant cabin on the shore has attracted the attention at at- p. p i 6 of th the ailing woman and they o It meal t. t tift v ift 4 Is fe Interrupted by a a- stranger who t resents their presence ce 9 i k f CHAPTER I Continued I l f 3 f r A sS sadden Impulse se seemed m d to swe sweep p V the man l IY his hand felt feltt r for th tho hip Tie he whirled 1 toward the door The woman clutched his Hc caught tb the appeal In her t J eyes bowed his head turned back to the table A tense teme bit of ot pantomime it had i been full enough of ot i meaning meaning- of ot human human hu hu- man Interest to anyone anyone abie to trace back baek tJ t r rough the years the snarled life threads life Of the actors the two river waifs staring down at the mask the hard man striding away up the river road a The Tiie woman woman went b back c t to iler her chaIr and resumed her ber quick nervous rock rock- ro k- k ing I i r And 80 so he be has has' come orne to this I she sher r muttered My poor poor poor cousin 4 What must have been her bel fate I II I She leant forward and sat at still stilt and f thoughtful her ller face propped In her palm The Theman man stood man stood by the table fingering the bit of cloth his eyes tys stern stem and and severe severe still sun Irresistibly r drawn In the direction lon the Intruder had s gone 1 A hall came up from the houseboat t t. t X The sudden cry half balf startled them both coming g. g so so close e as It t did on the heels heel of that tense tense moment barely gone Its Jt the Boss I promised to go 1 spearing with him t tonight nl ht t. t th the door be he opened it and answered t the l hall hall cap a back bade A t the he teakettle off th the the fire closed dosed N the damper of the stove and snuffed t tl 55 Now mother dont don't ont a attempt t to clear away awny the dishes 4 Leave them till I get back Ill rn gone a lit lit- littie t tl tie tie while sd V 1 The The woman made no nC answer answer The he red redl mask still lying upon the table caught his eye Rolling It It up ha hid he hid It under a n loosened chink In to the cabin x wall waiF up his hat and t and starred starie for he tort ie toyo toy to h- h door hesitated came back the rocking chair I o You wont won't be afraid be-afraid- afraid She loCke up nt at hl quick sur- sur prise A half halt frown clouded the luster f of her er eyes What a n question 1 I v f lIe He turned and left th cloud o d the door after him and strode down t f t th the slope t. t to ta the houseboat Th The men who hunted the river ri mils mil's S sel the Wabash before the days a of the button industry hunted It for forthe the pearl earl sometimes found Imbedded between its ft flesh 1 and shell Straggling up and down the tIle streams often otten singly r crews they were a n shift shiftless less fiery reckless breed of a n feather r with the buccaneers of or other da days R and and led ted on by the the same same lure a n chance w flin flit fling at fortune fotune fo tune A pearl of ot great i value u yas' yas sometimes found even found even runnIng run- run nIng well up gP Into the tIe the thousands But Dut i tits t chance of t finding such a pearl peart was wa was small Still there was the chance and MM d it Is surp surprising what t a certain type I of t rilen men willI endure for such a chance b when when n i the he le same ends might be at nt att attained at- at t certain h kind and d sure by patient In In- A grizzled old river man man sat with th the nos nose of his skiff jamm Jammed d Mp tip tp on the r gravel grove b by the bow bott of the ho houseboat wh when n th the came down the 1 slope The Boss noss they called him the river men because In his long years ears In Inthe Inthe the Industry he had managed to to Iscra scrape e together an outfit and work worl n a a crew too poor to hunt hunti i alone jalone His hands were still upon the oars The pushed the boat off orr ant and spring sprang In directing the Boss to row row- around b by the stern of ot th the i houseboat After the fish fuh spear he be had been tiling filing that afternoons Boss Doss observed ob ob- observed See moved mo the served as the skiff slipped out into the stream v Mothers cough was the answer She thought It would help her to get getUp getup Up pup there under the trees That it'll cough cough It'll It'll git away with wither er lit If she h She have 4 medicine v I told herft 8 but she wont won't have haveIt haveIt C ItC tt It The Boss Doss did not pursue the point I A womans woman's will was something he never took the trouble to question Having Savini rowed out Into the current 4 y t ru i d after the er secured his spear he turned the n no ngae e of the skiff down str stream am and sl shipped his oars long enough h to light his pipe Mother Iother hung back a little rl right ht at atthe atthe atthe the the last last the young o ng man said his mind doubtless doubtless' dwelling on the unusual unusual un un- usual experIenc the first experience In his life of ot actually living upon Inn land She was afraid somebody might not like us to move Into the cabin But Dut I told her they couldn't do more than make male us move out move out Afeard of ot th Wild Man she The younger man looked up Say tell me about that Wild Man She did mention him this afternoon The Boss Doss took the pipe from his lips Ups and blew away the smoke In a n slow cloud as If wishing to prolong the feel of It upon his tongue t The Wild Man he pondered a n harmless ol of cuss an tn pitiful to see Seven year hes he's been In these Flatwoods Flat Flat- woods Hit aint often a body gits a glimpse uv I did once once once-a a. a tall ol of ghost of ot a man man tan tall as ns you you but a face on Ini im the you ever ever see sec An lIke tike like a ghost he comes and like a ghost he Me goes nobody goes nobody knows ts where whereto to They say hes he's got ot a daughter somewhere's up in the hills bUls but I never seed her The Boss Doss went back t to hl his pipe The Theother Theother other sat pond pondering what he had just heard No ii IY 1 w wasn't on account of the WIld Man he resumed it as as' If Jf In anster answer answer an an- ster to th the Boss Boss' first question She was afraid somebody m might make us s leave An that'll be bea n a long while doin a-doin a dolnY the Boss Doss answered They hey aint nobody nobody nobody no no- body In this quarter d' d th world world has got th tit right t do that That Ian tan b longs t Colonel Warbritton Ever Ever hear tell of ot him I never neter did Id 1 lie He owns hundreds and hundreds of five acres acres five or six sections I guess guess- In a square the river here bere th very heart and flower uv th Fla That's his east 1 line Ie back where the River r road bends north I It'll it be many a a alon lon long day he orders anybody off Hes He's got so J pouch much h I dont don't spose he hardly knows s hes he's got this if 1 he be ever ever seen seen It it The Boss Doss let the oars oars' drift he he turned his head and sat a moment moment sweeping s his eyes eyes ey s 's up up and down the dim forest for st-bo st nd shore line A A ATh Th Them m Is ISa remarkable race he resumed Fire eaters eaters' every everyone ry one Soldiers Soldiers Soldiers' In fighters sence th Lord knows v when u i. i In Ili o times s iong go they a clan They hada had a flag witha with witha i a gray wolf olt on It tt nn an t they i called their their- selves the Gray Wolf Volf fr clan din They say every man man In the clan brave brav tin an every woman virtuous An that's what they prided d on special special special cial They all Whig big then men l n lh They y s tl em Iq hj 1 the e Revolution Re two with Clark an anif f four our ur In the war of or 1 The I b bent nt forward and hung upon the the- le wor words ls Somehow they strang strangely ly stirred him I I fit th Injun under this Colonel Th rh soldiers soldiers' use t f talk about Ira m a around ar und th campfire That's how bow I come t know s s' much ab about ut Mm tm Hit nit me that saved sa hl his scalp at Horseshoe Bend A tang fang of ot pride pride- crept Into the hard tones of ot the Uie grizzled man Ills boss hoss got shot through th brains an an fell s s' s quick he hp caught th colonels colonel's foot an an anI I 1 stood over im with with th tb bayonet whilst he got loose We sent seven heathens t t hell that that da day hep come That's how bow I got ot t t be a sergeant Hit lIlt th best he could do fer a n man that hadn't no No NO to o You needn't J he afeard of out o 0 th cabin If It the colonel wits here he lIe He clutched the Ule oars In earnest Afew A Afew few tew lusty strokes drove the boat d downto down downto wn to where the glare front from the campfire of ot the Bo Boss Boss' s' s crew Je of of ot cl o flared out across the water There l lie o turne turned In to to get the jack light A dirtier bunch of ot men than the five lounging about that campfire couldn't be found anywhere else In the world except In another camp The practice of ot the early pearl fishers was vas to put the clams In vats ats and allow al- al al allow low them theta to die there and rot This muck was afterward carefully bandied handled han ban dIed for whatever pearls It might con tam tain The Jack light Is simply an anoil anoil oil burner burner In In early days dus a candle or rire fire of pine knots knots arranged arranged with a reflector re re- on on the bow of ot the boat bont In such sucha a way as to throw the full fun brilliancy of ot the light down upon the water leaving the fisherman himself In dark ness uess Such a light If it the night be dark and the water quiet and clear renders objects beneath the surface perfectly plain to a con considerable depth While the- the Boss was fastening the Jack light to the bow of the boat the stepped ashore to blacken the points o of the freshly sharpened 2 J r spear Jn In the blaze of ot the cam campfire for tOl all fishermen know it Is never advis advisable able to strike with a sp spear ur that gilt gift He knew know every man of them around the fire But Dut a toss of his hand a toss of five hands In response was all that passed between them them them- men that would have carried a c comrade comrade com com- m- m rade for miles at need that would share the last bite with him that would knife him Just as readily at a a- fancied grievance Such w were were re the river men a law unto themselves themselves-a a simple code warped fantastically fantastically- with knife and pistol for judge and I Jury jury a leftover product of ot other days when clansmen followed their chief and asked no questions a bt product bl-product of ot the border who fund found it hard to disarm 1 when civilization came In The Boss slipped sUpped an oar Into the water and laid the boat more toward the south shore over the deepest part of ot the b bar r. r Hardly ly hind had he done so when the lowered the point of his spear The outline t Of t f an nn Immense black bass took shape under the glare of ot the Ufe Jack light half halt hidden among the swaying verdure as If lying ly ly- lying ing In wait walt for his prey which In all likelihood he was a scaly tiger of ot the stream In ambush The spear slid Into the thet thel water and stole toward to him All he lay his fins Idly fanning the like fern moss In which he lurked little suspecting the five five pr pronged five pronged death c creeping upon him The points were within three feet of the glossing scales when the struck There followed a moment of of fi fierce flurry among the waving ferns fern a little shower of ot spray spray broke broke the then surface atthe of at the water and all was was over A fish does not struggle long when the spear goes home Six If hes he's an an ounce chuckled the n Boss ss when when- the fish lay In Inthe inthe the bottom of ot the boat The Pearl- Pearl hunter rested his spear upon the gunwale gun gunwale gun gun- wale and bent above the jack light The boat drifted on It was perhaps half an h hour mr later inter when In the leisurely manner of ot men returning from a season of ot s successful f sport the two fish fishermen ennen with the pick of all nil they had floated over in the I I v. v N r You Needn't Be Afeard of put Out ut V o t th Cabin bottom of ot the boat rowed up the stream The glare of of- the campfire was beginning to slither upon the dripping dripping drip drip- ping oar blades' blades and the ripples they raised when the Boss Doss laid the boat nearer the s south nth shore with the remark re re- mark Heres where were we're t f hIst th tit shiners tomorrow tomorrow all all along here JIt look at nt th tracks Make a aright aright aright right smart track dont don't they fer fer-a fer a a beast without no feet The The- Pea made no answer Crouched down by the Jack jacl light well toward the bow how of the boat he had bad been for some time Um watching the unusually unusually unusually un un- usually thick tangle of ot winding marks upon the the slimy slimy bottom plowed there thereby thereby thereby by the mussels or clams while feedIng feedIng feed feed- Ing dozens and hundreds of the creepIng creeping creeping creep creep- ing bivalves half burled buried In the ooze at that very ery moment dotting the river bed The Boss Doss was In the very ery act of turning the boat across ss the river to th the camp wiled when he lie was startled by an excited exclamation from his companIon companIon compan compan- Ion lon who had suddenly leant low and dangerously far out over the water n He was up 11 on the Instant and and had Unshed flashed the jack light around tb the boatIn boatIn boat boatIn In In his dripping hand ther was an Immense Im mense river muss mussel 1 The rhe old Boss Doss had hud no sooner sooner caught cau caught ht the purple bluish glitter shedding froni the the hinge knobs knobs' of ot th the giant bivalve i a shout that hat waked the echoes and up a down the river shore and brought the five men mell at the camp running down to the waters water's r 0 edge x t mue A Blue JA Moon Moon he he be yelled By Dy the gods a Blue Moon I l lIe He from the hand band of his c companion and held it under the full glare of ot the Jack light Next moment he had handed it back and was driving Ing ring the boat to shore where the first glance at the peculiar markings of ot th the mussel Instantly threw the the whole camp Into the wildest excitement The They spread down by the light of the fire the whitest cloth the camp afforded afforded af at forded and nd the Boss cut the mussel massel open One pearl pear large lustrous dropped out upon the cloth and lay twinkling up into irate their faces like a a 11 fallen star It passed from hand to hand the pearl fishers struggling with each other for the privilege of holding It L. I I 1 never ii r seed sled a one cried the thee oldest present but I d 1110 hit were cre a n Blue Moon th minute minute min min- ute I l Tamped th shell The pearl passing from hand to hand had come orne round to the the Boss again who stooping close to the firelight firelight fire firl light examined It ft through a small hand lens such as mo most 1 pearl parl fishers earns carry he said turning to the young man you air lucky I Youve You've I found yur pearl pearl an pearlana an ana a fortune It It t were were IThen I IThen IThen Then Its It's you ou that's lucky was the |