Far to the south a lion rose from his kill and walked majestically to
the edge of a nearby river. He cast not so much as a single glance
at the circle of hyenas and jackals that had ringed him and his kill
waiting for him to depart and which had broken and retreated as he
rose. Nor, when the hyenas rushed in to tear at what he had left, did
he appear even to see them.
There were the pride and bearing of royalty in the mien of this mighty
beast; and to add to his impressiveness were his great size, his
yellow, almost golden, coat, and his great black mane. When he had
drunk his fill, he lifted his massive head and voiced a roar, as is the
habit of lions when they have fed and drunk; and the earth shook to his
thunderous voice, and a hush fell upon the jungle.
Now he should have sought his lair and slept, to go forth again at
night and kill; but he did not do so. He did not do at all what might
have been expected of a lion under similar circumstances. He raised his
head and sniffed the air, and then he put his nose to the ground and
moved to and fro like a hunting dog searching for a game scent. Finally
he halted and voiced a low roar; then, with head raised, he moved off
along a trail that led toward the north. The hyenas were glad to see
him go; so were the jackals, who wished that the hyenas would go also.
Ska, the vulture, circling above, wished that they would all leave.
At about the same time, many marches to the north, three angry, wounded
_shiftas_ viewed their dead comrades and cursed the fate that had led
them upon the trail of the strange white giant; then they stripped the
clothing and weapons from their dead fellows and rode away, loudly
vowing vengeance should they ever again come upon the author of their
discomfiture and secretly hoping that they never would. They hoped that
they were done with him, but they were not.
Shortly after he had entered the forest, Tarzan swung to an overhanging
branch beneath which his mount was passing and let the animal go its
way. The ape-man was angry; the _shiftas_ had frightened away his
dinner. That they had sought to kill him annoyed him far less than the
fact that they had spoiled his hunting. Now he must commence his search
for meat all over again, but when he had filled his belly he would look
into this matter of _shiftas_. Of this he was certain.
Tarzan had considered the gastronomic potentialities of the bandit's
horse, but had discarded the idea. On several occasions in the past he
had been forced to eat horse meat, but he had not liked it. Although he
was hungry, he was far from famished; and so he preferred to hunt again
until he found flesh more palatable, nor was it long before he had made
his kill and eaten.
Satisfied, he lay up for a while in the crotch of a tree, but not for
long. His active mind was considering the matter of the _shiftas_.
Here was something that should be looked into. If the band were on
the march, he need not concern himself about them; but if they were
permanently located in this district, that was a different matter;
for Tarzan expected to be here for some time; and it was well to know
the nature, the number, and the location of all enemies. Furthermore,
he felt that he could not let them escape without some additional
punishment for the inconvenience they had caused him.
Returning to the river, Tarzan crossed it and took up the plain trail
of the _shiftas_. It led him up and down across some low hills and then
down into the narrow valley of the stream that he had crossed farther
up. Here the floor of the valley was forested, the river winding
through the wood. Into this wood the trail led.
It was almost dark now; the brief equatorial twilight was rapidly
fading into night; the nocturnal life of the forest and the hills was
awakening; from down among the deepening shadows of the valley came the
coughing grunts of a hunting lion. Tarzan sniffed the warm air rising
from the valley toward the mountains; it carried with it the odors of a
camp and the scent spoor of man. He raised his head, and from his deep
chest rumbled a full-throated roar. Tarzan of the Apes was hunting too.
In the gathering shadows he stood then erect and silent, a lonely
figure standing in solitary grandeur upon that desolate hillside.
Swiftly the silent night enveloped him; his figure merged with the
darkness that made hill and valley, river and forest one. Not until
then did Tarzan move; then he stepped down on silent feet toward the
forest. Now was every sense alert, for now the great cats would be
hunting. Often his sensitive nostrils quivered as they searched the
air; no slightest sound escaped his keen ears.
As he advanced, the man scent became stronger, guiding his steps.
Nearer and nearer sounded the deep cough of the lion; but of Numa
Tarzan had little fear at present, knowing that the great cat, being up
wind, could not be aware of his presence. Doubtless Numa had heard the
ape-man's roar, but he could not know that its author was approaching
him.
Tarzan had estimated the lion's distance down the valley and the
distance that lay between himself and the forest and had guessed that
he would reach the trees before their paths crossed. He was not hunting
for Numa, the lion, and with the natural caution of the wild beast, he
would avoid an encounter. It was not food either that he hunted, for
his belly was full, but man, the archenemy of all created things.
It was difficult for Tarzan to think of himself as a man, and his
psychology was more often that of the wild beast than the human, nor
was he particularly proud of his species. While he appreciated the
intellectual superiority of man over other creatures, he harbored
contempt for him because he had wasted the greater part of his
inheritance. To Tarzan, as to many other created things, contentment
is the highest ultimate goal of achievement, and health and culture
the principal avenues along which man may approach this goal. With
scorn the ape-man viewed the overwhelming majority of mankind which
was wanting in either one essential or the other, when not wanting
in both. He saw the greed, the selfishness, the cowardice, and the
cruelty of man; and, in view of man's vaunted mentality, he knew that
these characteristics placed man upon a lower spiritual scale than the
beasts, while barring him eternally from the goal of contentment.
So now, as he sought the lair of the man-things, it was not in the
spirit of one who seeks his own kind but of a beast which reconnoiters
the position of an enemy. The mingled odors of a camp grew stronger in
his nostrils, the scents of horses and men and food and smoke. To you
or to me, alone in a savage wilderness, engulfed in darkness, cognizant
of the near approach of a hunting lion, these odors would have been
most welcome; but Tarzan's reaction to them was that of the wild beast
that knows man only as an enemy--his snarling muscles tensed as he
smothered a low growl.
As Tarzan reached the edge of the forest the lion was but a short
distance to his right and approaching; so the ape-man took to the
trees, through which he swung silently toward the camp of the
_shiftas_. Numa heard him then and roared, and the men in the camp
threw more wood upon the beast fire.
To a tree overlooking the camp, Tarzan made his way. Below him he saw
a band of some twenty men with their horses and equipment. A rude boma
of branches and brush had been erected about the camp site as a partial
protection against wild beasts, but more dependence was evidently
placed upon the fire which they kept burning in the center of the camp.
In a single quick glance the ape-man took in the details of the scene
below him, and then his eyes came to rest upon the only one that
aroused either interest or curiosity, a white man who lay securely
bound a short distance from the fire.
Ordinarily, Tarzan was no more concerned by the fate of a white man
than by that of a black man or any other created thing to which he was
not bound by ties of friendship; the life of a man meant less to Tarzan
of the Apes than the life of an ape. But in this instance there were
two factors that made the life of the captive a matter of interest
to the lord of the jungle. First, and probably predominant, was his
desire to be further avenged upon the _shiftas_ for their wanton attack
upon him, which had frightened away his intended kill; the second was
curiosity, for the white man that lay bound below him was different
from any that he had seen before, at least in so far as his apparel was
concerned.
His only garment appeared to be a habergeon made up of ivory discs that
partially overlay one another, unless certain ankle, wrist, neck, and
head ornaments might have been considered to possess such utilitarian
properties as to entitle them to a similar classification. Except for
these, his arms and legs were naked. His head rested upon the ground
with the face turned away from Tarzan so that the ape-man could not see
his features but only that his hair was heavy and black.
As he watched the camp, seeking for some suggestion as to how he might
most annoy or inconvenience the bandits, it occurred to Tarzan that a
just reprisal would consist in taking from them something that they
wanted, just as they had deprived him of the buck he had desired.
Evidently they wished the prisoner very much or they would not have
gone to the trouble of securing him so carefully; so this fact decided
Tarzan to steal the white man from them. Perhaps curiosity also had a
considerable part in inducing this decision, for the strange apparel
of the prisoner had aroused within the ape-man a desire to know more
concerning him.
To accomplish his design, he decided to wait until the camp slept;
and settling himself comfortably in a crotch of the tree, he prepared
to keep his vigil with the tireless patience of the hunting beast
he was. As he watched, he saw several of the _shiftas_ attempting
to communicate with their prisoner; but it was evident that neither
understood the other.
Tarzan was familiar with the language spoken by the Kafichos and
Gallas, and the questions that they put to their prisoner aroused his
curiosity still further. There was one question that they asked him
in many different ways, in several dialects, and in signs which the
captive either did not understand or pretended not to. Tarzan was
inclined to believe that the latter was true, for the sign language was
such that it could scarcely be misunderstood. They were asking him the
way to a place where there was much ivory and gold, but they got no
information from him.
"The pig understands us well enough," growled one of the _shiftas_; "he
is just pretending that he does not."
"If he won't tell us, what is the use of carrying him around with us
and feeding him?" demanded another. "We might as well kill him now."
"We will let him think it over tonight," replied one who was evidently
the leader, "and if he still refuses to speak in the morning, we will
kill him then."
This decision they attempted to transmit to the prisoner both by words
and signs, and then they squatted about the fire and discussed the
occurrences of the day and their plans for the future. The principal
topic of their conversation was the strange white giant who had slain
three of their number and escaped upon one of their horses; and after
this had been debated thoroughly and in detail for some time, and the
three survivors of the encounter had boasted severally of their deeds
of valor, they withdrew to the rude shelters they had constructed and
left the night to Tarzan, Numa, and a single sentry.
The silent watcher among the shadows of the tree waited on in patience
until the camp should be sunk in deepest slumber and, waiting, planned
the stroke that was to rob the _shiftas_ of their prey and satisfy his
own desire for revenge. As he patiently bided his time, there came
strongly to his nostrils the scent spoor of Numa, the lion; and he
guessed that the carnivore, attracted by the presence of the horses,
was coming to investigate the camp. That he would enter it, he doubted,
for the sentry was keeping the fire blazing brightly; and Numa seldom
dares the fearful mystery of flames unless goaded by extreme hunger.
At last the ape-man felt that the time had come when he might translate
his plan into action; all but the sentry were wrapped in slumber, and
even he was dozing beside the fire. As noiselessly as the shadow of a
shadow Tarzan descended from the tree, keeping well in the shadow cast
by the beast fire.
For a moment he stood in silence, listening. He heard the breathing of
Numa in the darkness beyond the circle of firelight, and knew that the
king of beasts was near and watching. Then he looked from behind the
great bole of the tree and saw that the sentry's back was still turned
toward him. Silently he moved into the open; stealthily, on soundless
feet, he crept toward the unsuspecting bandit. He saw the matchlock
across the fellow's knees; and for it he had respect, as have all
jungle animals that have been hunted.
Closer and closer he came to his prey. At last he crouched directly
behind him. There must be no noise, no outcry. Tarzan waited. Beyond
the rim of fire waited Numa, expectant, for he saw that very gradually
the flames were diminishing. A bronzed hand shot quickly forward,
fingers of steel gripped the brown throat of the sentry almost at the
instant that a knife was driven from below his left shoulder blade into
his heart. The sentry was dead without knowing that death threatened
him, a merciful ending.
Tarzan withdrew the knife from the limp body and wiped the blade upon
the once white robe of his victim; then he moved softly toward the
prisoner who was lying in the open. For him, they had not bothered to
build a shelter. As he made his way toward the man, Tarzan passed close
to two of the shelters in which lay members of the band; but he made
no noise that might awaken them. When he approached the captive more
closely, he saw in the diminishing light of the fire that the man's
eyes were open and that he was regarding Tarzan with level, though
questioning, gaze. The ape-man put a finger to his lips to enjoin
silence, and then he came and knelt beside the man and cut the thongs
that secured his wrists and ankles; then he helped him to his feet, for
the thongs had been drawn tightly, and his legs were numb.
For a moment he waited while the stranger tested his feet and moved
them rapidly in an effort to restore circulation; then he beckoned him
to follow, and all would have been well but for Numa, the lion. At this
moment, either to voice his anger against the flames or to terrify the
horses into a stampede, he elected to voice a thunderous roar.
So close was the lion that the sudden shattering of the deep silence
of the night startled every sleeper to wakefulness. A dozen men seized
their matchlocks and leaped from their shelters. In the waning light of
the fire they saw no lion; but they saw their liberated captive, and
they saw Tarzan of the Apes standing beside him.
Among those who ran from the shelters was the least seriously wounded
of Tarzan's victims of the afternoon. Instantly recognizing the bronzed
white giant, he shouted loudly to his companions, "It is he! It is the
white demon who killed our friends today."
"Kill him!" screamed another.
"Kill them both!" cried the leader of the _shiftas_.
Completely surrounding the two white men, the _shiftas_ advanced upon
them; but they dared not fire because of fear that they might wound
one of their own comrades. Nor could Tarzan loose an arrow nor cast a
spear, for he had left all his weapons except his rope and his knife
hidden in the tree above the camp that he might move with the utmost
freedom and in silence while seeking to liberate the captive.
One of the bandits, more courageous, probably because less intelligent,
than his fellows, rushed to close quarters with musket clubbed. It was
his undoing. The man-beast crouched, growling; and, as the other was
almost upon him, charged. The musket butt, hurtling through the air to
strike him down, he dodged; and then he seized the weapon and wrenched
it from the _shifta_'s grasp as though it had been a toy in a child's
hands.
Tossing the matchlock at the feet of his companion, Tarzan laid
hold upon the rash Galla, spun him around, and held him as a shield
against the weapons of his fellows. But despite this reverse the other
_shiftas_ gave no indication of giving up the battle. They saw before
them two men practically defenseless, and now with redoubled shouts
they pushed closer.
Two of them rushed in behind the ape-man, for it was he they feared the
more; but they were to learn that their former prisoner might not be
considered lightly. He had picked up the musket that Tarzan had cast
aside and, grasping it close to the muzzle, was using it as a club.
The heavy butt struck the foremost bandit heavily upon the side of the
head, dropping him like a felled ox; and as it swung again, the second
bandit leaped back barely in time to avoid a similar fate.
A quick backward glance assured Tarzan that his companion was proving
himself a worthy ally, but it was evident that they could not hope to
hold out long against the superior numbers pitted against them. Their
only hope, he believed, lay in making a sudden, concerted rush through
the thin line of foemen surrounding them, and he sought to convey his
plan to the man standing back to back with him; but though he spoke to
him in English and in the several continental languages with which the
ape-man was familiar the only reply he received was in a language that
he himself had never before heard.
What was he to do? They must go together, and both must understand
the purpose animating Tarzan. But how was that possible if they could
not communicate with one another? Tarzan turned and touched the other
lightly on the shoulder; then he jerked his thumb in the direction he
intended going and beckoned with a nod of his head.
Instantly the man nodded his understanding and wheeled about as Tarzan
started to charge, still bearing the struggling _shifta_ in his grasp;
but the _shiftas_ were determined not to let these two escape; and
while they could not fire for fear of killing their comrade, they
stood their ground with clubbed muskets and with spears; so that the
outcome looked dark indeed for the lord of the jungle and his companion.
Using the man in his grasp as a flail, Tarzan sought to mow down those
standing between him and liberty; but there were many of them, and
presently they succeeded in dragging their comrade from the clutches
of the ape-man. Now it seemed that the situation of the two whites was
hopeless, for there was no longer anything to prevent the bandits using
their matchlocks to advantage. The _shiftas_ were in such a transport
of rage that nothing less than the extermination of these two foes
would satisfy them; but Tarzan and the other pressed on so closely that
the muskets were useless against them for the moment; though presently
some of the _shiftas_ withdrew a little to one side where they might
have free use of their weapons.
One fellow in particular was well placed to fire without endangering
any of his fellows, and raising his matchlock to his shoulder he took
careful aim at Tarzan.