Detective Story Magazine February 1939 by unknow

Author:unknow
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery, Pulp
Publisher: Detective Story Magazine
Published: 1939-02-08T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 3 - Around the Island

THERE were eight tawny-skinned Hawaiian girls, and fully half a dozen thin cow-punchers at Lester Leith’s apartment when the spy returned from his session with Sergeant Ackley.

Lester Leith frowned his disapproval, and said: “Dammit, Scuttle, you’ve been more than an hour getting the car from the garage. What the devil’s the idea? Did you think you were on a vacation?”

“I’m sorry, sir,” the spy lied glibly with the facility born of long practice. “The car had a flat tire and I had the devil of a time getting it off. The rim was frozen solid to the wheel and—”

“Well, never mind,’ Leith said. “Here are these people who have gathered in response to the ad. Get the name and address of each, and send the applicants into my private sitting room, one at a time. Give me a list of the names and addresses, and I’ll check them off as I interview the applicants.”

“Yes, sir,’ the spy said, making a surreptitious appraisal of the Hawaiian girls whose dark, smoky eyes, hinting at the romantic possibilities of a friendly race, drew his attention as a magnet.

Lester Leith, ensconced in his private sitting room, set the stage for the interviews. After five minutes, the spy opened the door and oozed into the room.

“Here they are,” he said, “the names and addresses of all the applicants.”

“Very well, Scuttle. I’ll see the dancers first, the cowpunchers next.”

The first young woman through the door smiled at him with the frank friendliness of the Polynesian.

“What’s your name?” Lester Leith asked.

“Nano Kapiolani.”

Leith checked off her name and address on the list. “What do you know about the hula?” he asked.

“Everything,” she said, and for a moment her lips lost their smile. Her eyes were pleading and wistful. “If you people of the Mainland could only understand the spirit of our hula,” she said, “it would make for so much more enjoyment of our dances. The genuine hula isn’t a vulgar ‘grind’ such as you see at so many of the cheap exhibits. It’s a portrayal of nature. With our bodies, we imitate the swaying of trees in tropical winds. With our hands, we signify the action of our songs, the tiny wavelets hissing up the sand, the drifting of clouds across the sky, the— Here, let me show you.”

She kicked off her shoes, loosened the belt of her skirt, and, singing with the effortless ease of the native Hawaiian, began to sway in rhythm to the music.

When she had finished, Leith said: “You get the job. It may interest you to know that your activities will be in connection with the organization of the Hawaiian-American Aesthetic Art Association with offices in the Moronia Building. The purpose and scope of the organization will be to advance a greater appreciation of the artistic significance of the Hawaiian dances. Here’s a one-hundred-dollar advance on salary. That will cover your work for a week. The job may not last longer than that, but you’ll get another week’s salary in lieu of notice.

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