Congo Chronicle 12: The Daring Daylight Diamond Robbery!

So soon after our last diamond-themed adventure comes this, from More Fun Comics #67 (May, 1941).   This will be Bill's final appearance in More Fun; next month he moves to the more aptly-titled Action Comics alongside another famous Kent.  We'll also say goodbye to co-creator and artist George Papp with this issue, who will stick around More Fun to work on such forthcoming features as Green Arrow and Superboy.

Blah blah blah. Enough talk and more action!

Seems notorious jewel thief Gordon Slade is pulling off a brazen daylight heist!

Heading north along the coast, Slade disappears into the interior. The befuddled authorities have no choice but to turn to Congo Bill (who nonetheless has to ask permission from his sugar daddy Professor Kent!)

Seeing as how Bill addresses Kent as "Professor" most of the time, you may be questioning my insistence that there's more to their relationship than meets the eye.  I propose it's analogous to my acquaintance Mr. A_____, who has a large country estate and a live-in gardner. Although obvious to even the most obtuse observer that the gardner is tending more than the petunias, if you get my drift, he always addresses Mr. A______ as "Mr. A______" in public.  (And possibly in private as well. I don't like to pry.)

Bill and Prof come across a formerly-friendly tribesman who seems a couple of bubbles off plumb!

Unfortunately, knowing that we're dealing with Bantus does nothing to place us geographically, but for the sake of argument I'll assume we're still in South Africa somewhere.

Wise to the shady goings-on, Bill and Prof track the tribesman...

Even on their guard, Bill and Prof are soon captured!  Seems the tribesmen are now of the opinion that all whites are bad evil (an opinion not entirely unjustified if you've even a cursory knowledge of colonialism, I suppose...)

So just who is this medicine bird fellow, anyway?

I'll spare you the shockingly-racist battle repartee that Congo Bill engages in while fighting Ju-Ju; suffice it to say that Mighty Ju-Ju is no match for our stripped-to-the-waist hero!

Bill tosses Ju-Ju into the Medicine Bird, and to the surprise of all (except, I guess, us, who surely saw it coming)

The Bantus want to execute Slade immediately, but Bill and Prof petition to be allowed to return him to face justice in Capetown.  Bill offers a slick trade of white man film-flammery!

They head off with their prisoner, but before they reach civilization, we're reminded once again that The Ways of Justice are Strange!

 The ways of Justice are VERY strange, as boa constrictors are not native to Africa...anyway, let's finish things off with a Brokeback-tastic shot of our gentleman adventurers, shall we?