United States or Dominican Republic ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
There stood a little shop a watchmaker's just opposite, and next to the shop a small ope with one dingy window over it. She vanished up the passage, at the entrance of which I was still staring idly, when, half a minute later, a skinny trembling hand appeared at the window and drew down the blind.
The cattle had scarcely been turned loose to graze, under the guardianship of 'Ngulubi, the voorlouper, when the headman of the village, accompanied by some half a dozen minor dignitaries, and followed by ten women bearing baskets containing preternaturally skinny fowls, eggs, green mealie cobs, sugar cane, and calabashes of milk, emerged from the village and advanced upon the wagon.
All the while he was talking I could hardly hear what he was saying and there was one word ringing through my head. It was the word slacker. I guess maybe I'd better tell you about Skinny now, so you'll know all about who he is. Before I was a scout I used to call him Wash-board, because he was so skinny you could have used his ribs for a wash-board.
"Find out which train they're on and let the Ramblin' Kid and me cut across to the Purgatory River bridge and wreck it," Skinny Rawlins, always tragic, darkly advised. "I ain't particular about killin' females," the Ramblin' Kid objected, "besides, we ain't got no dynamite." "Send them a telegram and say Old Heck's dead and not to come," Bert Lilly volunteered.
"Aha!" he shouted, his eyes sparkling, while he wildly clutched my arm with his skinny, claw-like hands, "did I not know have I not said it? Did I not fight for a hundred years, wading through blood every day, and then at last send you forth to finish the battle?
The launch which was to carry them to the South Sea King at this moment started nosing into the dock, on a turbulent zig-zag across the harbour; and the men forgot their quarrelling. It brought up at the foot of a pile and made fast. "Come on, Skinny," Nippers urged me aggressively, "it's front seats or nothing. Act as if you owned the boat."
Carolyn June was stunned for a moment by the thought that had come into her mind when the picture of the burly Greek flashed before her. She clenched her hands and her cheeks whitened. "Come on, Skinny!" she said suddenly, stepping off the running-board of the car and swinging on to Red John, "we'll go help look for the Ramblin' Kid!"
He don't need to go and do it in earnest. Come on back, you darned chump, I need you on the beef hunt!" "What'll I have to do?" Skinny asked cautiously. "Just set on the front porch with her at night and make your eyes roll up like a calf's that's being branded and kind of sigh heart-broken once in a while," Bert volunteered. "It'll be easy when you get used to it "
"Melancholical?" Skinny inquired. "My Gawd!" Old Heck said again, his weatherworn features working convulsively, "it's more than a mortal man can endure and stand!" "Bet somebody's dead!" Bert whispered to the Ramblin' Kid. "Probably. Most everybody gets to be sooner or later," was the answer without emotion.
This here's worse than the time we cleaned out th' C 80 outfit!" Then he kicked the dead toad and swore at the sun. "Close yore yap; yore worse than a kid! Anybody'd think yu never got plugged afore," said Skinny indignantly. "I can cuss all I wants," replied Hopalong, proving his assertion as he grabbed his gun and fired at the dead Indian.
Word Of The Day