{"product_id":"2940012760418","title":"THE LEAGUE OF THE LEOPARD","description":"CONTENTS\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Chap.                                  Page\u003cbr\u003e     I.  A DANGEROUS BEQUEST                1\u003cbr\u003e    II.  AN UNDERSTANDING                  15\u003cbr\u003e   III.  AT THE ELBOW POOL                 30\u003cbr\u003e    IV.  THE POACHER                       43\u003cbr\u003e     V.  THE TRYST AT HALLOWS BRIG         56\u003cbr\u003e    VI.  DANE'S SILENCE                    71\u003cbr\u003e   VII.  A WARNING                         85\u003cbr\u003e  VIII.  TREACHERY                         96\u003cbr\u003e    IX.  TEMPTATION                       110\u003cbr\u003e     X.  RIDEAU'S BARGAIN                 125\u003cbr\u003e    XI.  THE TRAIL OF THE LEOPARD         137\u003cbr\u003e   XII.  WEALTH IN SIGHT                  149\u003cbr\u003e  XIII.  PESTILENCE                       163\u003cbr\u003e   XIV.  AN EVENTFUL DECISION             177\u003cbr\u003e    XV.  THE BOARDING OF THE KABUNDA      189\u003cbr\u003e   XVI.  ILLUMINATION                     202\u003cbr\u003e  XVII.  IN NEED OF HELP                  214\u003cbr\u003e XVIII.  MAXWELL'S CONFIDENCE             227\u003cbr\u003e   XIX.  THE DANGEROUS SEÑORITA           240\u003cbr\u003e    XX.  MAXWELL'S LAST MARCH             251\u003cbr\u003e   XXI.  RELIEF                           262\u003cbr\u003e  XXII.  ON TO THE COAST                  274\u003cbr\u003e XXIII.  AN EYE FOR AN EYE                285\u003cbr\u003e  XXIV.  THE ESCAPE                       297\u003cbr\u003e   XXV.  THE HEART OF BONITA CASTRO       311\u003cbr\u003e  XXVI.  REWARDED                         320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE LEAGUE OF THE LEOPARD\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCHAPTER I\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA DANGEROUS BEQUEST\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt was very hot in the little West African factory where trader Niven\u003cbr\u003elay dying. The sea breeze had died away, and though sunset drew near, it\u003cbr\u003ewas not yet time for the spicy airs from the inland forest to mitigate\u003cbr\u003ethe temperature. The dust lay still in the sun-scorched compound, about\u003cbr\u003ewhich the palm fronds hung motionless, and only the roar of breakers on\u003cbr\u003ethe beach broke through the drowsy silence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTwo white men lounged in cane chairs upon the veranda which encircled\u003cbr\u003ethe building. Both were limp, gaunt of frame, and pallid in face,\u003cbr\u003ebecause the climate they lived in is particularly unhealthy. Neither had\u003cbr\u003eenjoyed much education, or felt the lack of it in the trade they\u003cbr\u003efollowed, while the cocktail jug on the little table betokened their\u003cbr\u003efavorite relaxation. Redmond and Gilby were West Coast traders who lived\u003cbr\u003efar remote from intercourse with their fellows, except for the two\u003cbr\u003eFrench rivals with whom they periodically quarreled. They concerned\u003cbr\u003ethemselves with little beyond the well-being of their factory, and\u003cbr\u003eindulged each appetite on opportunity, knowing that on the morrow they\u003cbr\u003emight suddenly die. Yet they had their strong points, including a\u003cbr\u003etenacious regard for their employers' interests, which led them to toil\u003cbr\u003etwelve hours daily when sick of fever if trade was good, and sometimes\u003cbr\u003edefy the French authorities, and an inconsistent generosity, as the\u003cbr\u003eresult of which they had camped in the store shed, and turned over their\u003cbr\u003eown quarters to the man who stood behind them, and his stricken\u003cbr\u003ecompanion. The former was of very different type.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"You have done your best for the poor devil,\" said Redmond, glancing\u003cbr\u003eregretfully from him toward the empty jug. \"But if I know anything about\u003cbr\u003ecoast fever--and I ought to--Niven will get his release to-night. Still\u003cbr\u003erambling about that fortune, I suppose?\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCarsluith Maxwell nodded, and Gilby commented meditatively: \"It may be\u003cbr\u003eall a fever fancy, and it may be true. Niven was well known in this\u003cbr\u003eafflicted colony years ago, and there is gold up yonder. In fact, right\u003cbr\u003eaway from here to the Volta you can find the color in the rivers, but\u003cbr\u003ethere's very little of it that will pay for the washing, and few British\u003cbr\u003emining companies that distribute much in dividends. Still, the old\u003cbr\u003ePortuguese took a good deal out, if the tales are true, and one gets\u003cbr\u003esmall lots now and then put up in quills.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRedmond laughed maliciously.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The last quills Gilby took in contained brass filings, and the firm\u003cbr\u003ewrote off their nominal value against our commission. Gilby had been\u003cbr\u003edrinking cocktails all that day. He may be right about the gold, but\u003cbr\u003eit's my firm opinion that unless the French send up a strong column and\u003cbr\u003eroot out the Leopards, no white man will ever find it. You have heard\u003cbr\u003eabout them, Maxwell?\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMaxwell was a man of discretion, and though he had ventured beyond the\u003cbr\u003efringe of the Leopards' country, he only said:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"I don't know much about them. Do you?\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"He does not,\" said Gilby. \"Neither does any white man; unless perhaps\u003cbr\u003eit's Rideau, or Niven. They are supposed to be members of one of the\u003cbr\u003esecret leagues run by the bush magicians in connection with the cult of\u003cbr\u003ethe Ju-Ju; and if you want to know just what kind of devil a Ju-Ju is,\u003cbr\u003eyou need not ask me.","brand":"SAP","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47182225408240,"sku":"2940012760418","price":0.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940012760418_p0.jpg?v=1763572390","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940012760418","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}