Part 35 (1/2)
”Schwandorf? Gang? Haven't seen anybody but Red Bones--though we sure saw plenty of the about?”
”Then ye e When'd ye leave? Last night? I bet he's there by now Gee! Where'd ye git theosh!+ Is he the Raposy? Wal, for the love o'
Mike--”
”Tim!” broke in McKay ”What's all this about? Noait This is the Raposa These girls are Mayoruna woot theeot a visitor to-day--old friend of ourn--li'l' old Hozy, the only white guy in that Peruvian cree had He's all dolled up like an Injun--shaved face, tribe paint, and so on He coh the Injun country that way--I dunno yet how he done it, hih, and he says Sworn-off and a whole gang of bad eggs is back here to git this Raposy guy and all the girls they can lay hands on He says Sworn-off's got them Red Bones workin'
for him, and you fellersI was here when he coood skate, but he sure is poison to anything Peruvian, and soon as Hozy begun to try to talk he got wise and dang near buot him to cool down some, and he believes Hozy's tellin' the truth, but even at that they got Hozy tied up like a dog
Come look at him”
But it was necessary to wait awhile for Tucu and Lourenco to tell Monitaya the tale of what had taken place; for the chief demanded immediate and full details, and not until he had them would he return to his _maloca_ and his haain ruler of the sky and the keen hunger of the voyagers had grown ravenous Followed by the rescued and the rescuers, he then stalked into the tribal house and to his usual place, where he coround, directly in front of the chief's haaunt, painted Indian around whose neck was a stout noose, the other end of the cord being held by a ripped loosely in his other fist As the whites reached thes, senores,” said the voice of Jose ”You will pardonfor an excuse to crush my head”
”Jose!” exclaih Tiht to find the expression literal truth The sight angered them and they turned to Lourenco
”Tell Monitaya ant this man freed!” McKay snapped At his peremptory tone the cannibal chieftain looked oddly at hih in a ave the clubman the word and the rope was lifted froos_,” he bowed ”If I still remain seated, it is because I am very weary--and I have not eaten since yesterday”
His thin face and his projecting ribs not only corroborated his simple announcement, but indicated that for more than one day his food and rest had been almost _nil_ Naked, painted, minus his fierce mustache and flamboyant headkerchief, he appeared a far different_puntero_ of a short tirin, and hisJose, undaunted by hunger, exhaustion, or his position as prisoner of oing to eat now, or we'll knohy not!” vowed Knowlton
”We understand that you brought a warning to Monitaya Is this his way of treating ed
”Once an enemy, always an enemy That is their rule And do not think that I traveled the bush and threw myself into this snake heap from love of Monitaya I do not care if he and all his race are blown to hell I aets Thank you, senor, I will eat now and talk later”
Deftly he extracted a chunk of meat from a clay pot which had been placed before Knowlton and in turn tendered to hin of disapproval; and the Aressive show of friendshi+p toward the lone Peruvian for the express benefit of the chief They kneell that by their rescue of the Mayoruna wo these people virtually inition of Jose as a friend probably would be his only bulwark Wherefore they left no doubt in the ard
Monitaya, sitting in regal dignity, looked down upon two parties of seven feasting with famished speed--the rescued women ere not members of his own tribe, and the four Americans, two Brazilians, and one Peruvian All the others had scattered--Tucu and his band to their own fairls to becoroups which demanded intimate accounts of their capture and treate woh he er was satisfied
His eyes dwelt on Rand, the strange cole demon of whom he had heard so much and on whose tanned skin the red skeleton streaks told the tale of a ”mind out of the skull”
Jose and Tim stared in frank curiosity at the dead-alive newcomer, whose silent coirls, though ignored by the chief and his guests, were by nothoroughly stared at by oodly proportion of the th the irls to stand before him and narrate their experiences The arette with avidity, Rand accepting his with the usual odd deliberation
”Wal, Hozy, old feller, ye're in right with the chief now,” asserted Ti, I'll tell the world This feller Renzo can talk cannibal so good he makes Monitaya hunt for the dictionary, and he'll tell the chief in ten seconds what I tried half an hour to say this afternoon--that ye belong
I 'ain't been here long enough to learn o, ye understand If I could spout it like French, now, there wouldn't been no trouble”