THE TERROR OF CLAWS AND FANGS.
When Suma, the Jaguar, driven from the dismal wastes of the pantenal
country by the encroaching floods of the rainy season reached the
higher, forested region skirting the Andean foothills, she entered upon
a wild orgy of terrorism and slaughter.
Her instinct gratified, Suma retired to the cavity in the cottonwood
while the torrential rains fell with a monotonous roar, and the
craneflies with their lacy, whirring wings formed a curtain in the
entrance to lend sanctity to the inner chamber.
Ordinarily, Suma did not destroy wantonly; she killed for food only or
in self-defense; or, in resentment of the too familiar advances or the
indifference of some one of the less intelligent creatures that had not
yet learned to respect her power and acknowledge her sovereignty in the
jungle. But, the present was not an ordinary occasion, for soon Warruk,
as the Indians on the Ichilo River called the Jaguar cub, was to make his
appearance in the big world; and it was but for his comfort and safety
that Suma provided.
After a three days' retirement the great cat emerged from the seclusion
of her dark retreat, hungry and ferocious but with a stealth and caution
well calculated to evade any prying eyes that might attempt to observe
her actions from the treetops and surmise their meaning.
A puff, like smoke, from the entrance to the cavity announced her
coming; but it was only the madly dancing cloud of craneflies clearing
the passage at her approach.
The rain was falling with a steady drone from a sky of unbroken,
cheerless gray, and rivulets of water trickled from the drooping
vegetation. Mosses and ferns, revived by the superabundance of moisture
had sprung up on the decaying trunks and branches of the uprooted
trees, pushing their feathery leaflets through the blanket of creepers
and forming a dense, soggy layer cold and clammy to the touch and
treacherous underfoot. But Suma knew her domicile well and passed
rapidly and surefootedly over the interlocking tree skeletons and soon
reached the level forest floor.
Straight as an arrow she headed to the north on some mission well-known
to herself, moving like a shadow and at a rapid pace. Before long the
windfall with the giant cottonwood containing the precious little Warruk
had been left far behind. Suma knew where the round, red chonta nuts
grew and that they ripened during the season of rains; and that even now
the ground was covered with the tasty morsels. But this knowledge was of
a vague nature only and interested her but indirectly. What was far more
important was that the peccary herds fed on the chonta nuts and were
sure to be in the neighborhood of their favorite feeding-grounds.
To stalk and kill one of the ferocious little animals entailed a great
deal of danger--to the inexperienced hunter, but Suma feared them not.
Never, since the time she had miscalculated the distance of the spring
and had succeeded only in slightly wounding her quarry--with the
resultant squeal of terror and the onrush of fully a hundred of the
stricken one's fellows--and the night of uncertainty spent in the
treetop, had they given her any trouble. But all that is another story
as likely as not to repeat itself in the life of Warruk for it seemed
that trouble with a peccary herd fell to the lot of every Jaguar and was
part of his education.
The clump of chonta trees grew a good five miles from the windfall. Suma
had covered half the distance when a sharp odor in the air caused her to
stop and, standing like an exquisitely chiselled statue, with tensed
muscles and alert poise, to drink deeply the scent-laden air. The vision
of a peccary dinner left her instantly and her pink tongue stole out
gently until it touched her moist, black nose in anticipation of a far
more satisfying gorge on venison.
A moment later the Jaguar resumed her journey, but in a different
direction. She had swerved at right angles to her former course and was
hot on the trail of the deer.
Like a shadow Suma seemed to flow over the ground, looking neither to
right nor left, the massive paws falling with the lightness of leaves
dropping from the trees. A frightened agouti scampered across her path
and stopped, frozen with fear, and a green ribbon-like snake drooping in
festoons from a low-growing branch hastily drew up its coils as the big
cat passed below.
Again Suma paused to sniff the air, then advanced; but this time in a
careless, leisurely manner. In a moment she came upon the deer standing
in an open little glade among the dark tree trunks. If the creature was
startled by the appearance of the Jaguar, it gave no indication of the
fact. It snorted and stamped its forefeet while Suma sat down on the wet
leaves and surveyed her intended victim in the most unconcerned manner.
For a moment the two stared at one another. Then, without warning, the
brocket turned and darted away.
Suma did not follow. Instead she arose and began to search the
neighborhood, for the other creature's actions plainly betrayed the fact
that she had a fawn hidden nearby. Why exhaust herself in a fruitless
chase after the fleeting mother whose speed was so much greater than her
own and who had dashed away simply to deceive her foe and in the hope of
drawing her from the spot where her offspring was concealed? The fawn,
far more desirable than its elder, could be had for the mere finding.
But the fawn had already learned one of the most important lessons of
life and this bit of knowledge had saved him from an untimely end no
fewer than seven times during his ten days on earth.
Now, the fawn was prettily spotted, and most persons who delve into such
matters and try to reconcile cause and effect, particularly from a
distant point of view, would have said that this coloration was the
means of rendering it, crouching among the ferns with head and neck
flattened to the ground, invisible to its enemies. But the truth of the
matter was that its color had nothing to do with its security. During
the hours of dusk and darkness when the predaceous animals came out to
hunt, the fawn might have been red or blue or green so far as its color
was concerned with its safety, for in the gloom of the jungle all
objects not snowy white appeared black if they could be distinguished at
all. The important thing was that it lay motionless--had been in this
identical position for some time, and so long as it did not move it gave
off no scent. It was for this same reason that the tinamou and quail and
other ground-nesting birds escaped the keen noses of the foxes,
otherwise they would have been exterminated long ago. The preying
animals hunted by scent, not by sight.
If the brocket mother, after her wild dash in the hope of luring Suma
from the spot had only stayed away both she and her offspring would have
been safe. But, finding that her ruse had been unsuccessful she
anxiously returned. The Jaguar sensed her coming and waited; the snort
and impatient stamp that announced her arrival was superfluous for Suma
had seen her approach.
Again the deer tried to lead her enemy away, trotting off a few paces
and turning to look back with large, questioning eyes. The big cat
merely sat upright and yawned as if bored by the proceedings. The
brocket retraced her steps, but the Jaguar seemed not to notice and
began to wash one of her massive paws. By this time the deer was
thoroughly aroused; she grunted and stamped her feet and pivoted this
way and that. Suma, while feigning indifference, eagerly watched each
movement and when the brocket, finally, frantic with apprehension made
one of her quick turns the Jaguar glided forward a few steps and sprang.
Like a flash she catapulted through the air; there was the gleam of
white fangs and when the jaws crunched together they closed upon the
neck of the unfortunate deer, crushing the vertebra. A second swift
lunge below the shoulder and the long teeth had penetrated the heart.
The deer, with a startled gasp staggered forward a step and dropped.
Suma eagerly lapped up the red pool forming on the wet leaves, purring
with satisfaction and then fell upon her victim with a savage relish,
for not in days had she eaten.
Long before the gory feast was completed the fawn, becoming impatient at
its mother's non-return, left the clump of arums, green leaves, wide as
an elephant's ear, not ten yards away and ambled up unsuspiciously to
within a few feet of the great cat where it stood and gazed with wide,
innocent eyes upon the fearful scene before it. Suma paid no attention
to the little creature, even when it came a step nearer and bleated
plaintively, for she had enough before her to satisfy her hunger. And
when the Jaguar had eaten her fill she carefully cleansed her face and
paws and started toward the river to drink before returning to the
windfall. The fawn followed, so she increased her pace, hopelessly
outdistancing the little creature and leaving it to the mercy of the
next marauder that chanced to pass that way. Without the guidance of its
mother it was a forlorn and pathetic little object left to drift
aimlessly through the rain-soaked forest with its numerous watchful eyes
and alert ears. Somehow, the other creatures sensed the fawn's
helplessness and the news soon spread among them. Shadowy forms appeared
where there should have been none. And the awe-inspiring Suma had
scarcely succeeded in shaking the dainty little sprite off her trail
when it met an untimely end from an unexpected quarter.
A family of great owls had been following the jungle tragedy from the
black trees, with large, glowing eyes. And when the proper moment
arrived they swooped down with noiseless wings like spirits from a
shadow world. Monsters of fury they were, stabbing and rending with
needle-sharp claws and hooked beaks that clattered; tearing at eye and
throat and flank until the poor fawn succumbed to the terrific attack.
Then they fretted and quarrelled among themselves, grunting and bowing,
and striking at one another with arched wings as they hopped around
their victim. The commotion attracted a pack of five short-tailed,
dog-like creatures which rushed upon the scene and drove the owls back
to their sphere in the tree tops, while they cleaned up the remains.
When Suma again emerged from her lair, two nights later, she started in
a different direction. Never did she return to a kill the second time or
hunt on two successive occasions in the same region.
Unless she remained to ward off the hungry advances of a host of other
creatures there would never be enough of her victims left to come back
for; and even if there had been, one short day's time in the hot,
steaming jungle atmosphere sufficed to cause the flesh to decay. Suma
had ideas of her own about spending the days away from her proper
rendezvous; and as for carrion, she never failed to give it a wide
berth.
As to her hunting instincts, there were several reasons why a region
should be shunned after one of its denizens had been slain. A nightly
raid in the same place might cause the creatures living in it either to
become so wary that soon it would be impossible to secure any of them at
all; or, they would be exterminated which was even worse. No! Suma
obeyed well the impulse that guided her actions. By visiting a new
district on each quest of food the game was not too greatly disturbed
and its numbers or existence was not imperilled.
Nor was this instinct confined to the Jaguar alone. The other
flesh-eating animals also heeded it. And the wild tribes that inhabited
the wilderness knew from bitter experience that it was best to conserve
their food supply and that to waste today was to want tomorrow. It was
only when men who professed some degree of civilization appeared on the
scene that the wild things found existence impossible; and the more
advanced the men the greater the slaughter. They showed an insatiable
lust for killing--under one pretext or another; but always they killed,
with guns and rifles and--from a safe distance.
On her second food-hunt since the arrival of Warruk, the cub, Suma
essayed to visit the margin of the swollen, raging river where the fat
capybaras lived in the dense cane brakes. The great creatures, like
hundred-pound guinea pigs, were rancid eating, it is true, but this was
in a measure counterbalanced by the fact that to capture them required
no excessive effort. Both by day and by night they were very much in
evidence gnawing tirelessly at the tough canes and when the stems were
finally severed they squatted complacently and munched the broad,
ribbon-like leaves. One wondered when, if ever, they slept; and why, in
the midst of such an abundance of food their appetites seemed never
satisfied. Upon the first sign of danger they stopped eating only long
enough to give vent to their resentment of the disturbance in a few
guttural grunts; but once the spectre of disaster was swooping down upon
them they made hurriedly for the water and dived with a loud splash.
They were good swimmers, with only the head showing above the surface
sending out a trail of V-shaped ripples that shimmered and sparkled if
the sun shone, and on moonlit nights. Often, however, they swam under
water to some nearby island reed-bed or to the security of a burrow
beneath the overhanging bank.
The rain had stopped for one of those rare and all too brief intervals
that broke the monotony of the sullen roar and the misery caused by a
perpetually drenched skin when the Jaguar approached the fringe of tall,
waving canes. Broad runways opened into the maze of stalks where the
capybaras had gnawed their way through the dense growth and then hastily
had turned back to start a new one--just as a woodpecker chiseling a
hole through a wall and dismayed at seeing daylight ahead, leaves the
laboriously excavated tunnel and quickly starts another.
The forest beyond the canes was an unknown world of lurking dangers. But
the capybaras simply found it impossible to loose themselves from it.
Always, at the most unexpected moment they came suddenly upon it looming
before them like a sinister, black monster.
Suma boldly entered one of the numerous openings for she knew it was not
there she would come upon her intended victims. She was only taking an
easy route to the main path that ran parallel to the river but upon
nearing this she immediately left the beaten trail and glided into the
growth at one side. There she lay in wait fully concealed by the
darkness, and the stems and leaves.
In addition to the wide runway trodden by the feet of countless
generations of the great rodents there were other evidences of their
recent presence and the atmosphere was laden with their scent. Suma
sniffed the heavy air greedily and her eyes glowed as she shifted her
gaze up and down the thoroughfare for a first glimpse of an unsuspecting
victim to come her way. There was but a minute to wait. A black, rounded
hulk appeared, moving with the silence of a shadow; on the near side
were two smaller forms, young, moving along stealthily at the side of
their mother. The Jaguar's mind was made up instantly; when the trio
came within range she would pounce upon the cubs, for they were tender
and without the layers of rancid fat of the older animal. But while her
eyes shone with the fire of anticipation and her tail lashed ever so
slightly an unforeseen thing happened. Evidently a difference of opinion
over some matter or other arose between the two smaller creatures, for
they stopped suddenly and began fighting, rolling over and over amidst
squeals and groans, feet waving in the air, and teeth champing, more in
bluff than in menace. Their elder, impatient at the disgraceful conduct
of her offspring turned and chided them with a stamp of her forefoot and
a low grunt.
The commotion startled a cane rat which was stealing down the path so
that it bolted for the nearest cover with a loud patter of feet, heading
straight for the Jaguar, of whose presence it was unaware. Suma saw it
just in time to raise a massive paw in order to avoid contact with the
lowly creature, but when she lowered the great foot it was directly upon
the rodent's tail for it had stopped as soon as it had reached the
protection of the canes. Of course this calamity was infinitely worse
than the noise that had first frightened it and the rat promptly began
to squeak with a lustiness that was surprising, the shrill voice
carrying a distance of many yards. The capybaras immediately stopped
fighting and all three wheeled to see the cause of the disturbance.
Their eyes caught the glint of Suma's burning orbs and with a cry of
alarm they dashed into the brakes. The Jaguar followed like a streak but
their lead had been too great and in a moment three distinct splashes in
quick succession announced the fact that they had dived to safety in the
river. From up and down the line of riverbank came the resounding
_plump, plump_ of other heavy bodies. The danger signal had not gone
unheeded and with a growl of rage and disgust Suma turned to slink away
from the scene of her disappointment. Further hunting in that region was
useless. Not for days would the capybaras trust themselves more than a
few steps from the security of the waterside. So, with a second deep
rumble of chagrin the mighty cat skirted the outside of the cane-brake
and was compelled to satisfy her hunger on a couple of agoutis.
Sometimes the Jaguar hunted each night; more often it was every second
night. It depended entirely upon the size of her kill. And all the time
not required in procuring food was spent within the cavity in the
cottonwood fondling and guarding the precious Warruk.
Three weeks had passed. The cub had grown at a surprising rate and was
beginning to observe his immediate surroundings, though still unsteady
and exceedingly awkward. The first thing he saw was his mother and he
was sure she was the most beautiful thing in the world--which was
exactly the way he should have felt. He snuggled close to her warm
body, looked adoringly into her face, and purred, while she, proud and
happy in his possession, smoothed his soft, velvety fur with her tongue
while a deep rumble of satisfaction came from her throat.
It was shortly after this that the thing happened that caused Suma to
reverse her course of procedure so far as hunting was concerned, and
came near bringing dire consequences.
She was returning to her abode rather earlier than usual, having
succeeded in cutting off a straggler from the peccary herd and killing
it before its cries could bring the other numerous members of the band
to its rescue. Spurred on by some subtle sense of intuition she had
eaten hurriedly and then made for her home where the cub had been left
curled upon the rotting chips and leaves, sound asleep.
As she bounded lightly over the first prostrate tree-trunks of the
windfall, an infrequent but not unfamiliar odor assailed her nostrils.
It was a disagreeable smell, not unlike that of cabbage or potatoes in
the first stages of decay. The first tinge of it lashed her into frenzy
so that she sprang forward in great leaps risking the breaking of her
legs in the jam of branches and tangled creepers. Her only thought was
of her little one. Had she arrived in time to save him from a horrible
fate, or should she find the lair empty?
Near the entrance to the cavity she stopped with a terrible growl. The
sinewy body of a great snake--a bushmaster,--was gliding rapidly into
the opening; in fact, half its scale-covered length had already
disappeared from view. This was an advantage to the Jaguar for the head
with its death-dealing fangs, being in the cavity, was rendered harmless
unless the serpent had heard her coming and had doubled back with the
lightning speed of which it was capable. But, so fixed was its attention
upon the still sleeping cub that it had heard nothing until the growl
apprised it of the presence of danger; and then it was too late. The
great paw fell upon the back of the reptile with a crash, shattering the
bones and crushing the flesh into a pulp. Out of the cavity darted the
arrow-shaped head, hissing and lunging frantically and blindly in all
directions, while the latter half of the body writhed impotently and
twisted itself into knots; but the snake could not move from the spot.
Suma drew back to a safe distance and waited, and before long the
contortions of the great serpent became less violent; then they stopped
altogether, but the triangular head raised above the mass of coils was
turned toward the crouching Jaguar while the greenish eyes glared at her
with a demoniacal hate. Suma knew her enemy well; to move suddenly was
to invite the deadly stroke. So she began creeping, so slowly and so
evenly that it was impossible to detect the slightest motion. Inch by
inch she advanced but not for an instant did her eyes leave those of the
snake. The latter took no note of this strategy or else seemed
spell-bound by the blazing eyes of its adversary. Nearer and nearer she
came, even more slowly than before, with tense muscles ready to carry
her far to one side should the snake suddenly awake to its peril and
strike. At last but a scant yard separated them.
The reptile's black, thread-like tongue began to play in and out of its
mouth with great rapidity. Apparently it was so confused or dazed that
it could not see clearly and was feeling for the antagonist that was so
near. The decisive moment had arrived. A massive forefoot bristling with
claws an inch long streaked through the air and fell on the serpent's
head with a thud, followed by another, equally crushing; long, white
teeth set in wide-open jaws flashed for an instant ere they met to sever
the mutilated head from the quivering body. In a moment the snake had
been clawed and mauled into a mass of pulp, and leaving it where it lay
Suma hastened to the side of the now wide awake Warruk. She pushed him
over gently with her nose, licked his face and sides, grunted with
satisfaction and then curled up beside him.
When daylight came there was the swish of wings through the air followed
by the sound of heavy bodies alighting. A trio of vultures had appeared
on the scene, guided unfailingly by some mysterious sense known only to
themselves. They hopped and flapped awkwardly over the rough surface of
the windfall to where the dead snake lay and began to tear at the flesh.
As they ate they quarrelled noisily among themselves croaking and
sighing with hoarse voices and striking at one another with wings and
beaks.
The Jaguar watched their antics with little interest and made no attempt
to disturb them. When they had gorged themselves on the loathsome repast
they tore off long strips of flesh and carrying them in their hooked
beaks flew to the lower branches of the nearest trees.
After her encounter with the bushmaster, Suma spent as little time as
possible away from her abode. Knowing that the deadly snake hunted by
night only, the Jaguar changed her former habit and went in search of
food during the daylight hours, spending the hours of darkness at home,
on guard against any similar intruder.
Warruk grew at a surprising rate; for, being alone the nourishment
ordinarily sufficient for two, occasionally even three, was all diverted
to his use. Before many weeks had passed he began to show interest in
various things that attracted his attention. After spending many hours
in admiration of his mother's beautiful coat, tawny with rosettes of
black dots and with longer and softer white fur underneath, he wondered
at the length of her claws, the whiteness of her fangs and the great
size of her--it tired him to walk completely around her as she lay
sprawled out on the floor.
There was also the tender care she gave him and her solicitude for his
welfare to be taken into consideration. She was forever caressing him
with her nose and washing his face with her tongue. The picture within
the cavity in the great cottonwood was a pleasant one to contemplate.
Suma the mother was a creature different from Suma the hunter moving
shadow-like through the forest intent on slaughter.
The hunting instinct asserted itself early in Warruk's life, and quite
unexpectedly. On one of his excursions around the outstretched form of
his mother he suddenly became conscious of a black fluff of something
that was jumping nervously from side to side. Crouching low, he watched
intently, prompted at first by curiosity. Back and forth the object
moved, lightly and without sound. An irresistible impulse came over the
cub; he ran forward a few steps, stopped, then sprang and the mysterious
thing was pinned firmly to the ground by his paws while his sharp little
teeth dug into it furiously.
Suma jumped to her feet with a grunt of surprise, quickly turned and
gave him a gentle cuff that however bowled him over, and when he
regained his feet, very much perturbed and startled, he arched up his
back and hissed, not knowing what else to do. It was the first time he
had noticed Suma's long, graceful tail, which was never quiet except
when she slept; but after that he had many a happy game of tag with the
tip of it even if there was the certainty of punishment ahead in the
event that his play became too strenuous. While his mother was a firm
believer in discipline she was never too severe; and often, after the
chastisement she hastened to caress him so that he quickly forgot the
occurrence.
Warruk's real education began when his mother started to bring some of
her victims to the lair. For this purpose she always chose the smaller
animals which she ordinarily should not have bothered to kill for her
own use. Mice, spiny rats, forest quail and an occasional squirrel were
taken to the cavity at various times and carelessly deposited by the
side of the cub. Cautious at first of making too intimate advances
toward these unfamiliar objects he began soon to look forward to the
return of his mother, knowing well that she would not come empty-handed.
He pounced upon the lifeless forms clawing, biting and shaking them
until the fur or feathers flew, amid growls and snarls that were but the
forerunners of the ferocious nature which would assert itself when
latent character was fully developed. Suma always watched the
proceedings with a complacent expression, fully satisfied with the
progress of her offspring.
Although using every strategy to conceal her secret from the other
inhabitants of the forest, particularly while in the vicinity of the
windfall, the actions of the Jaguar had not escaped the sharp eyes of a
band of female howling monkeys that frequented the wall of trees on one
side. They were alone, that is, the males had been driven to distant
parts until the mothers could bring forth their young and rear them to
the point where they were no longer in danger of death at the hands and
teeth of their jealous fathers.
Among the members of the troop, numbering four, was Myla, sad and
forlorn of face and housing a broken heart within her bosom, for she
had lost her baby. It happened early one afternoon when the four had
ascended to the top of a tall tree to dry their bedraggled fur during
one of those rare intervals when the clouds broke and the sun showed
his brassy face for a brief time. Such an opportunity was not to be
neglected. Happy and grateful they were, the four monkey mothers,
sitting on the dome of green leaves, each with her little one in her lap
while her long fingers delved among its rather sparse fur. Then, like a
bolt out of a blue sky it fell. A shadow plunged down from the heavens
with a rush that was almost a roar; wide-spreading feet with long,
curved talons shot out of the hurtling black mass, and Myla's lap was
empty. She leaped high into the air after the marauder with a frantic
scream of anguish only to fall back heavily upon the boughs clutching a
black feather in her hand. The eagle had made good its escape and
flapped away above the green sea of treetops with a cry of triumph.
Myla was mad with grief for hours after that and the other three joined
their voices to her barks and wails of sorrow as they moved restlessly
among the branches in constant dread of another visit from their aerial
foe. But when at last this external show of emotion had subsided the
bereaved mother looked with envious eyes at the offspring of her more
fortunate sisters. The latter, however, were not slow to divine the
thoughts that filled her mind. When she approached them, apparently with
the most innocent of motives they charged savagely and drove her off.
All her plotting availed her nothing.
And now, Myla had observed the big, spotted cat stealthily making her
way over the windfall with food in her mouth. Not once, but many times
had she clandestinely peered from her concealed position among the dense
foliage; and each time the Jaguar had entered the same cavity in the
great tree-trunk. That could mean but one thing; she too had a baby.
A fierce hope sprang up in Myla's empty heart and rapidly grew into an
obsession; but soon she realized with a sinking sensation how futile
were her desires. She was no match for the Jaguar; indeed, the mere
sight of the fearsome beast made her tremble. Never could she muster
the courage to descend from her lofty perch while such a creature roamed
the earth below.
In spite of these sound conclusions, an indescribable fascination held
her prisoner in its grasp. So day after day she spied longingly and
furtively upon the comings and goings of the big cat.
As for Suma, unsuspicious of the existence of the pair of burning eyes
that followed her movements, the days were brimming over with
contentment.
Warruk was growing by the hour, or at least so it seemed, and increasing
in sprightliness each day. He even insisted on following her to the
entrance of the cavity when she departed and met her there when she
returned. The fear that he might some day disobey her injunction and
sally forth alone in her absence did not once occur to her. She trusted
him to obey, even if he was different in one respect from her other
children, and for this difference he was doubly precious to her. For,
the first beams of daylight falling upon his glossy fur revealed the
fact that he was _black_. Instead of being a miniature replica of his
mother with her lovely markings he shone with a satiny lustre the tone
of jet. A rarity indeed was Warruk, and because of his color, destined
to grow into the largest and most ferocious of his species. Had the
Indians on the Ichilo River known of the birth of the black cub they
would have beaten their breasts and wailed, "_Simla Wallah-Caru_,"
meaning "a Black Phantom has come to haunt us;" and they would have
placed offerings of roots and nuts, and calabashes of milk from the
milk-palm in the forest to soothe and placate the temper of the shadowy
one.
Warruk, all oblivious of the fact that he was in any way different from
the usual, spent his waking hours in play. Many were the victims Suma
brought him on which to exercise his developing powers, but so far they
were of scant interest to him as food.
As the days passed the cub's curiosity concerning the opening that led
into the world increased and as he looked in wonder at the splash of
light coming through the doorway he determined to learn more about it.
He started toward the enchanting radiance with cautious steps, but ere
he had gone far his mother halted him with deep rumblings in her throat,
well calculated to inspire him with awe. Never must he venture to the
border of that outer world without her guidance, she repeated. Death, or
a thousand mishaps almost as bad awaited him there from the trees, the
earth and even from subterranean places of concealment.
Warruk took the warning seriously and retreated with high-arched back,
but he liked to sit upright and watch the mysterious shaft of light and
to wonder.
Suma had gone for more playthings for her little one, as was her custom.
And, as she disappeared through the opening the cub sat for a long time
pondering and fighting to keep back the curiosity that was consuming
him. As he looked a dark rounded form like a ball of some fluffy
material blown by the wind rolled across the patch of light near the
doorway. He glided toward it noiselessly, filled with the spirit of
adventure. Then he stopped, crouching with tense muscles while his
little eyes shone with a new light. Again the strange object came into
view on the return trip, and with an agile leap Warruk had pounced on
top of it. It wriggled under his feet, and squeaked dolefully and for a
moment he was at a loss as to what to do next. Then he cautiously raised
one forefoot, bent his head and sniffed at the soft, warm thing and
remembered that it was exactly like the rats his mother had brought him,
only smaller; but they were always limp and silent while this one
struggled and made queer little noises! He raised his other paw for a
good look at the creature, his heart pounding wildly with excitement.
And the mouse, feeling the pressure relaxing gave one quick wrench and
was free. Warruk bounded after it but it slipped nimbly into a crevice
in the rotten wood and was gone. Exasperated at being outwitted he
clawed and bit furiously at the minute opening into which his captive
had escaped, spitting and growling the while. His exertions only tired
him so at last he was compelled to stop to rest.
It seemed however, that this was destined to be Warruk's unlucky day.
Scarcely had he thrown himself down upon the litter of soft chips than
another black, rounded form hove into view, precisely where the first
had been; but it was of larger size. This time there would be no mincing
of matters. He was determined that the new prize should not escape him.
With a savage little snarl he rushed at the newcomer and struck it with
all the might at his command.
A howl of pain escaped him as he tried to lift his paw quite as quickly
as it had descended but the awful thing clung to it and it was only
after a number of vigorous shakes that he succeeded in dislodging it. In
his lack of experience he had planted his paw directly upon a giant
rhinoceros beetle with bristling, thorn-like "antlers" one of which had
penetrated the skin between the pads. The pain was intense so he held
up the injured member and wailed for his mother; he was in trouble and
wanted her badly.
Fortunately, Suma at that very moment was stealing across the windfall
and at the sound of her offspring's cries of distress she darted forward
with frantic speed and rushed into the cavity so hurriedly she upset
him. Warruk scrambled to his feet and followed her to the farther end of
the hollow where she licked his foot until the pain left. At the same
time she chided him for his disobedience and again tried to impress upon
him the peril of venturing too near the outer world while she was away.
And childlike, Warruk remembered the lesson for a period of exactly one
day.
Again Suma was away, working havoc among the smaller wildfolk. Time hung
heavy and the light of the world beyond his horizon exerted a stronger
fascination than ever. It attracted the cub like a magnet and before he
knew it he was standing before the opening. His eyes opened wide at the
strange scene in front of him. Inside the cavity there was only
darkness, or gloom at best. Outside were light and heaps and walls of
green things that moved as if alive. Everything was dazzling and
brilliant; even the sun had burst through the angry clouds to bid him
welcome.
Warruk wanted to go out among the waving, dripping leaves that sparkled
as the sunlight caught the drops of crystal water hanging in fringes
from their edges, and to drink in the fresh, moist air; but he dared not
venture out. All he had the courage to do was to stare in awe and
wonder.
Something moved at his feet, startling him so that he withdrew quickly
into the shelter of his safe retreat; but upon observing it for a while
he concluded that it must be nothing more than some new kind of mouse or
similar creature. It was dark and danced back and forth in a dainty
manner as if inviting pursuit. The cub retraced his steps and reached
for it gingerly with one paw but it evaded him and fled lightly to one
side. Again he reached and again there was nothing in which to fasten
his sharp, little claws. Then he became more eager than ever to capture
the elusive something. He struck at it, ran after it and jumped on top
of it but it always escaped him; for the puzzling thing was only the
shadow cast by a bunch of trumpet-flower dangling high overhead.
The antics of Warruk had not escaped the watchful eye of Myla, the
bereft monkey. And in her eagerness to see the better she descended to
the lower branches and leaned far out over the ridge of the windfall.
How the actions of the cub reminded her of those of her own little one!
And how she longed to clasp the small form in her arms! To feel it near
her breast and to stroke its silky fur. The mother-love was strong in
Myla and her loss still caused her untold agony.
As she watched, with yearning heart, she suddenly became aware of the
appearance of Suma on the far edge of the upheaved barrier and with a
sob she realized that in a moment her joy would be ended. The little
creature would disappear into the dark cavity with its mother; perhaps
she should never see it again.
An impulse that smothered all fear, all caution swept over her with an
urge that defied resistance; and dropping to the tangle of forest
wreckage she bounded to the cub's side, seized him and clasping him in
one arm sped back to the trees.
Suma had seen it all; but in spite of every effort had been unable to
reach the thief before she swung gracefully into the branches and made
for the denser growth of the interior. Mad with hate and fury she raced
along the ground roaring and whining in turn while Myla bounded through
the leafy canopy high overhead; and in chorus with the cries of anguish
from below, and the triumphant chatter of the monkey, came the screams
of Warruk terror-striken and helpless, rushing headlong to certain doom.