River of Ice
"The River of Ice" is the 11th pulp magazine story to feature The Avenger. Written by Paul Ernst, it was published in the July 1, 1940 issue of "The Avenger” magazine.
Publishing history
This novel was re-published under its original title by Paperback Library on April 1, 1973.
Summary
In a cave under a glacier (the "River of Ice") in British Columbia, Brent and Lini Waller find a time capsule with treasure, artifacts, and manuscripts from an advanced, pre-Ice Age civilization. Lini seeks to sell the cave contents to the Wittwar Foundation. Benson declines to lead an expedition to the cave. Lini is kidnapped, and a steel needle is pounded into her brain, a pre-Ice Age mind control technique. She leads the Justice Inc. team into several death traps, including a room filled with dry ice and a building that falls on their car. Mac and Josh, sent to locate the cave, are captured by the criminals. Nellie, captured, apparently has a needle inserted in her brain. Flying to the cave, under Lini's control, Nellie strands Benson, Smitty, and Rosabel in a remote location. Benson had planned for a second plane, delivered by a young Canadian pilot, but accidentally crashes it and is captured. The mastermind seeks the ancient cold light technology which lights the cave, removes all the ancient artifacts, and sets an explosion that buries the cave with the Justice Inc. team inside. Benson arranged for the explosion to destroy the criminals, and escapes the cave using ancient advanced technology.
Notes
- Benson is "probably the best hypnotist alive."
- Benson, despite his strikingly unusual appearance, can walk openly without being seen, much like The Shadow: "Enemies sometimes swore he could make himself invisible."
- Smitty, in his anxiety for Nellie's safely, kills several criminals, apparently without reprimand.
- Doc Savage-like, Benson wears an equipment vest and uses a neck squeeze to render enemies unconscious.
- Benson's plane is described as "about the fastest thing in the country."
- Benson has never called himself "The Avenger": "That grim title had been bestowed on him by others, principally members of the underworld".
- Benson's aides realize that he has a death wish: "...Benson wasn't trying to avoid death in his dangerous work. He was half courting it. He wanted to die."