Show ISLAND by edison Mars marshall ball copyright by edison Wax marshall shall service SYNOPSIS with his yacht the intrepid aban boned by its crew fel x horton mil leonaire llo with his mother his daughter nan and roy stuart puts into squaw harbor alaska to recruit palling falling to secure sailors he engages a bunch of stranded there A gigantic pole San domar lip I 1 their leader captain the intrepid a skipper Is an old friend of eric Eri ericssen Brics essen sen unemployed sailor and he engages to sail aa as chief officer nan and eric indulge in a moonlight flirtation which brings them both to the threshold of love the intrepid Is wrecked by one of San domar a crowd eric takes command ot of a 9 small boat with horton and his party unable to help they watch San domar kill cap tain and leave the ship with his crowd baym re has thrown eric a revolver on landing eric learns there Is no communication with the outside world Fir eheart priestess of the island descended from a white man in the remote past knowing a little engi sh welcomes the cast San domar declares there shall be no law on the island but eri erich e having the only gun cows him tor for the th time declaring he Is the law he lay out work tor for all whites and indiana alike nan faces the sitti situation tio n bra brave ly eric a love for hi her sr swells swell and nd as je 0 tells her he means to win her for afis mate despite all obstacles she Is tot ot unwilling jf CHAPTER V continued you ve already antagonized em certainly you dont don t that they ve taken kindly to this r 7 little monarchy you youve ve set up they 11 rise against you against your friends too the first chance they get if sando mar uses his head and you know now he has a good one he can lead them in a revolt that will sweep u us all into the sea the only s sens ole ill ething hing now Is to go the whole hog rul em with an iron hand regard not as their property but ours and make it so tough for them that they 11 glad ly break their taboo to belp help us find our way back to civilization roy went on we wel I 1 let that go for now but there s a another F other matter we wont won t let go I 1 refer to what you told San domar the first night on the island I 1 eric turned gravely that I 1 want ed one of the girls yes I 1 thought at first you must refer to marle or that possibly it was just part of your bluff since then I 1 ve noticed your attitude toward nan and I 1 heard your voice though I 1 couldn coulden t hear bear what you said when you ac ae her this morning I 1 ive ve been forced to the conclusion that you meant nan and beant meant it seriously fries eyes turned gray I 1 did mean nan and I 1 did mean it seri serl bously then im obliged to tell you lay off I 1 that s simple and plain isn t it toler tolerate your seizing the reins here but I 1 wont won t stand to see you paying court to my prospective wife I 1 ric s anger had been rising like the tide before a gale but suddenly it ran out and left him struggling with a smile isn t she the one to decide about this unfortunately not As dictator here you feel that you have the right to protect the aleuts against an in vader s ruthlessness As nan s friend I 1 have to protect her against her own folly I 1 concede that you are a gen tieman still in any normal state of affairs 1 you t have a dogs dog s chance with nan you could give her nothing she would have to give you everything very thIng you could never fit In into aier life or she in yours but out here when every old standard is wiped away she is likely to lose her head you may make a primitive ap peal to her I 1 can undy understand stand that very well and sweep her of 0 her feet then there d be another shipwreck when 4 14 we get back to civilization I 1 maan to protect her against that and pro hect you too I 1 eric erics s smile was now open and broad you needa t worry about me 14 1 does that mean you 11 confine your energies to running the island f it means I 1 can look out for myself t moreover I 1 think nan can too erics eric s smile faded and he faced roy straight anyway my attentions to F xan are nobody a business but hers and mine and it if Is can possibly get her I 1 im in going to do it roy did not answer tor for a long time at last his lips curled I 1 see that your idealism Is only for outside con the welfare of your ship mates doesn doean t cut much ice fee when your own desires are involved true I 1 respect you for that its fact not fiction but in secret you can kemem ber that I 1 m your earmy eric was ringed about with enemies on all the island he had only one staunch and unfailing ally mother horton felix horton leaned on him against Ms his will wilcox looked to roys his chief and would take his side in any break with eric marle adored her mistress blew hot and cold with her and nan herself was half pal half foe San domar and his men secretly plotted his death where did the aleuts stand with out their friendship eric could not win but they too resented his law alric could control the natives only so far as he could sway their priestess ind he could as well stake his life aon on tomorrows weather 1 Fir eheart was her r gotful name she was as one of the elements and she obeyed lier er own law AN hen he passed by the shrine on file he fou ui th she called him in throaty throbbing tones white chief he paused and she came to the doorway in her slanted eyes was a gleam that stirred his pulse calling to the brute that slept in some alaci black cellar 0 of his brain but her dark skin repelled him you no come see Fir eheart heap much asle hided gently I 1 ve been working hard to get food for the people bul bill you no get Fir eheart food she wana want she mighty hungry mighty thirsty she smiled wistfully tou you no batch in love yet biot yet Fir eheart but I 1 want boll to be my friend your skin like snow maybe your heart 1 ke ice rineheart rire heart she no want be your friend she be your girl I 1 may be be you think Fir eheart no so pretty as girl kirl who come in boat maybe you think no white man want her but afine big white man come to her last night say he take her say he want her heap she did not fail fall to see that this shot went home who was it eric asked illicitly quickly man alan whose skin like milk hair like dry grass he say his name swede she sm s led and nodded he promise take Fir eheart to white man mans s coun try treat her fine Fir eheart no give to him yet but maybe she will if white chief no catch love pretty quick erics erles flesh crawled at the pros hect the virgin priestess of the lost isle in the arms of the worst cut you no come see Fir eheart heap much she ch ded gently throat in San domars crew but when he opened his lips to protest the ring ing words would not come how little and futile was one mans power 1 I 1 d rather you married one of your own tribe he told her at last I 1 no marry aleut I 1 white girl he saw her dusky skin her straight coarse hair her slanted eyes then if you want swede take him he wont won t carry you away with him if be he does hell not stay with you but if you re determined to have aa a white man I 1 suppose he hes s as good as any the eager light died in her eyes I 1 I 1 DO want him I 1 I 1 tell you big lie ile fire heart she feel cold sick when swede touch her put arm around her I 1 want you man I 1 see in dream her voice gathered power when you touch hand rineheart Fir rire eheart heart she no cold she warm like when sun comes through cloud she no sick she feel like she fly in air like pouch kle if you no catch love soon Fir eheart think maybe she d e but eric could only turn aside it if swede makes trouble for you come and tell me and remember what I 1 said that love comes when it comes and no man min can catch it now let you and me be friends te girl gazed dreamily away maybe you never catch love for fire heart she murmured at last may be you want girl who come in boat I 1 hear you say so first night you come but rineheart rire heart make prayer she no hear right but maybe she did hear right and now eric must deal in half lies ties the safety of his whole party was at stake I 1 think the girl you mean intends to marry roy I 1 don dont t suppose I 1 could get her no matter how much I 1 want her Fir eheart make prayer he get her quick so you no think of her no more then maybe you want Fir eheart A low red flame shone through the black iris of her eyes but she tell you the sh no common squaw she priestess of lost people she no wait till she old woman for you come take her she love hard like big tide in jull full moon but she no love I 1 ke devil wave sweep over dver rocks 0 in the meantime San domar domars s gang had kept the law although their looks were sullen they worked stead lly ily and well but eric knew that this was only the calm before the storm his guard did not relax but tight ened with the passing days darkened by fears plagued by evil dreams his nerves constantly on edge he longed for the blow to fall so the war could end either in definite victory or hopeless defeat when the knife cuts on his ridgepole recorded seven da das s when seven eternities had come and gone since his exile on forlorn island eric had gone to a lonely reach of beach to scout game San domar domars s men were working quietly at the nets and traps the aleuts seemed cheerful and the weather was worth record ng in pic ture lure writing in the archives of the tribe for the first time since the ship wreck he could take down his guard his muscles need not be cocked like the hammer of a pistol and his eyes could wander dreamily with no care for flicking shadows just past their corners but suddenly the truce ended it had been only an illusion false dawn over the dunes and down the beach came two dark figures one was a little man with a quick short step the other barrel cheated and long of arm had a hobbling un steady gait like most men who dwell close to the sources of life erie eric had a strong intuitive power A sense of grave peril hung over him somehow he I 1 anew new that this open strand was to be the scene of one of the great crises of the island adventure still the two nearing figures made no cusp clous movements San domar talked idly er c could see his head turn and frequently garges little hand lifted to reply to a casual view neither man was armed the heavy ten foot pole on San Sat domar s shoulder was merely a piece of driftwood he had dug out of the sand and could well be carrying home for the supper fire gorge had a stone the size and shape of a big potato in plain sight in his hand but eric s alarm grew in sando inar in mars ar s simian arm that young tree trunk was a mere club and there was wag something ominous about garges stone carried openly though it was that eric could feel but at first could not quite interpret suddenly the truth dawned the stone was in garges garge s right hand what deed did he anticipate that he would be em cloying his untrained left hand to sig nal to his master eric erics s own right hand fell to his side in quick reach of his revolver as his foes trudged near I 1 found this ere stone on the beach garge barge began when he was ten paces off but he did not stop still talking he followed San domar until both men stood within six feet of their prey the old lady said she wanted a pestle for mashing up bread root and I 1 thought this ere might do erie eric hardly heard him ills thoughts were fairly flying seeking deliver ance that these two foes had come deliberately to kill him he had not the least doubt to lose his head meant to lose his life but that danger was passed now suddenly his fears scuttled away like coyote cubs and he was cold and deadly as a she wolf if this pair wanted a finish fight by G d they would get it I 1 he would not wait for the trap to spring but would e first and hard he ile could spare the two cartridges the only question was the best and safest way to carry out his iron resolve in his present stand he could not reach for his pistol both men would attack at once and though he might down one of them the other would be almost certain to get in a fatal blow I 1 saw a better stone for the pur pose just a few seconds ago he said thoughtfully he backed a few feet his eyes on the ground apparently he had dropped his guard actually it was as strict as ever he was not searching for stones but watching the long shadows of his enemies cast by the low sun the shorter shadow never wavered garges garge s eyes were quick as a rats perhaps he saw through erics eric s trick anyway it was not in his make up to attack from the front even though the hated stern eyes were lowered he made the first move to warn his corn com rade but before the aln fingers ers of his un trained left hand could waggle their message San domar s fury and hatred broke from its leash he ile did not whirl to strike sideways with the pole erie was already out of reach of such a blow instead he jerked the short end of the pole straight down with all the superhuman strength of his long biceps As the long end flew dew up he meant to change hands his left at the pole end and his right far enough back to give gine him leverage then strike down as with a club S Sin ingomar domars s feet were ur teady but his I 1 ands were known tu to be quick and clever garge barge knew that they would not fumble that the giants club would sweep up and 10 in a smooth and terrible arc are stead lagath ly gath ering momentum until the air h amed a blow to the back of a valrus if it struck fair and sai sal jomar domar 9 blows usually did strike fr the tough salt laden trunk would break oft off on eric erles s skull before it crushed through to his collar bone eric was only ten feet distant in easy reach unless all signs tailed failed the mighty bludgeon would be hang ing heavy over his head before he looked up San domar domars s brute heart was swelling large and larger with a horrible sadist ecstasy it was ful willment fill ment victory revenge but as the island priestess had often told in the on winter nights chanting the ancient legends of the aleuts no man can escape his shadow at San domar s first move his black flattened image mocked him on the sand eric saw its first flicker his hand leaped up and out fast as a striking salmon the blue steel of his revolver gleamed in the sunlight on his face wal was a look of doom As the sweeping barrel came level with San domar domars s breast eric pulled the trigger but the silence held there was only a futile ca click lei of the hammer against the breach the gun had mis misfired fIrel TO BB on CONTINUED |