grass and bounded away, with squeals of delight. Then, for no reason in
the world, save that the blood pounded riotously in his veins, he darted
into the wood, bearing his prize.
The Fish followed, close on his heels, as Laughing Boy threw shrill
mocking cries over his shoulder. The Fish gave answer with a whirling
stone, while more mocking cries from Laughing Boy announced that his aim
was bad. And, O, the fun of the chase through the deep woods! The
rollicking laugh and the deep shouts of The Fish as they startled the
birds from their nests in the old forest!
The brush grew thicker with every step and the trees locked branches
more closely with their neighbors for want of room to stretch them
freely toward the sun.
When he reached the tall lautania palm which marked the point beyond
which it was unsafe for the children of the Cave People to go alone,
Laughing Boy concealed himself in the brush. He thought to be able to
elude his brown playmate, and while The Fish sought him beyond the
bunya-bunya, to dash backward, toward the Hollow.
In a moment came The Fish. But the deep breathing of Laughing Boy and a
rustling of the bushes made known his hiding place. As his friend parted
the thicket, Laughing Boy had time only to crawl out on the opposite
side and dart onward ere he was caught. A shout and a shrill chattering
told his victory, and he disappeared again. The Fish grunted his
displeasure, but he was not far behind.
In the tall bambusa Laughing Boy again hid himself, and it was by the
tripping of The Fish over a creeping vine that he escaped. But his foot
blundered on a cone from the bunya tree and the cocoanut slipped from
his hands. The two boys threw themselves downward and rolled over each
other in their eagerness to recover it.
The Fish gave a shout of joy and made away, holding the cocoanut above
his head for Laughing Boy to see. A warm sweat covered their bodies and
their bronze skins shone like burnished copper.
On and on they ran. Further and still further they plunged into the
depths of the forest. They forgot the dangers that lurked there and the
wise warnings of the Cave People. They forgot their playmate, Crooked
Leg, who had wandered into the wood and vanished from the face of the
Hollow. Fears they had none, only laughter and the joy of abundant
youth!
All this time the grown members of the tribe of the Cave People slept
securely in the cool of the hollow. Their protruding bellies told of
continued eating and no one among them marked the absence of The Fish
and Laughing Boy.
Thicker and more dark grew the forest which the boys penetrated. The way
grew rough, and the tough vines trailing through the undergrowth often
tripped them. Still they lunged forward with no thought of turning their
faces toward the Hollow.
It was a crackling in the brush that warned them. The cocoanut rolled
from the hands of The Fish and the boys crouched low together. No sound
they made, save the breath in their throats which struggled to be free.
Couchant, they strained their bodies into an attitude of listening. Came
again a soft rustling in the thicket. This time nearer. And then—through
the long bambusa, they saw the head and throat of a grey hyena.
For a moment they paused while the sweat froze on their brown skins.
Their lips drew back in a snarl of helpless rage. But the hyena covered
the ground with great bounds, and they flung their arms about a tall
sapling. Their breath burst from them in quick gasps, for they were near
spent with running.
But they dug their toes into the rough bark and the strength of The Fish
enabled him to speedily mount to the forked branches above. But many
moments Laughing Boy clung half-way up the trunk of the tree, with the
hyena snapping at his heels. At every leap so near she came, that he
curled his feet up under his small body. The teeth of the hyena shone
white and her eyes gleamed. A great fear paralyzed him. The Fish danced
about on the limbs above, chattering wildly, till Laughing Boy gathered
breath and courage to continue his way to safety.
There he sat, huddled among the leaves, close to The Fish and for a long
time they gazed, quivering, at the enemy below. But a caution, wholly
new, had come to them, and they scrambled into the branches of a
neighboring banyan slowly and with care. Thence on through several trees
that brought them nearer the homes of the Cave Dwellers. With much
shivering they made their way pausing often to mark the progress of the
enemy. She moved as they advanced, persistently, like a hungry dog
watching a bone.
Slowly and fearfully the boys continued toward the Hollow, through the
interlocked limbs of the great trees. But the hyena followed. From a
bunya-bunya the boys pelted her with cones which she dodged easily.
Unmoved, she continued to gaze longingly upon them, while the slather
dripped from her lips.
At one time the boys almost threw themselves into the coils of a huge
green snake, that wound itself around the trunk of a cocoanut palm. They
were not expecting new dangers. A quick leap and they swung downward,
clinging closely to the bough of a neighboring bunya, and then scrambled
up to safety once more. Thus they made on, but the distance they had run
so joyously a short time before, seemed now to stretch before them
without end. Sometimes they paused to rest and gather breath. At these
points they huddled together and whimpered very low, or snarled,
jabbering at the enemy, as she sat on her haunches, waiting.
But the glad time came when they saw below the familiar berry bushes.
Beyond that the arboreal way was not unknown. With a new freedom and
ease they flung themselves forward. Their leaps grew daring and their
feet more sure, till at last they reached the edge of the wood near the
Hollow.
Here they lifted their voices in sharp cries that aroused the Cave
People from their torpor. Soon the stalwart members of the tribe had
seized their bone weapons and hurried to the rescue.
At first the hyena did not retreat before them, but darted in and out
slashing the Cave People with her great fangs. But the fierce stabs of
many bone weapons soon sent her fleeing back into the forest. Soon Quack
Quack soothed the whimpering of Laughing Boy, holding him close to her
breast.
The nut seasons came and the nut seasons passed away and Laughing Boy
grew tall and strong. Though his deeds were brave and his arm was long,
he hunted with the tribe, for he had learned the wisdom of the Cave
Dwellers. He knew that it was not safe for a man or a woman to fight
alone. The least of the forest enemies was able to destroy them. Strong
men had wandered into the forest to return no more. But when the tribe
went forth great deeds were possible, even the sabre-toothed tiger had
been destroyed by the thrusts of many. It was the strength of all the
Cave People that made safe the lives of every one.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
V
HUNTING AN ECHO
To the Cave People, dreams were chief among the great mysteries. None of
the strange occurrences of the world about them, so filled them with
wonder and awe, as the deeds they performed and the adventures they
encountered while their bodies lay wrapped in sleep. Often it was
difficult for them to separate the dream world from the world of
reality. This may account for the reports of those anthropologists who
charge savage tribes with being the most amazing liars in the world. It
may be that some of these primitive men and women have merely related
the remarkable exploits of their dreams which they were not always able
to distinguish clearly from their actual experiences.
Often a Cave Man might go forth alone in the night, and after traveling
a journey of many suns, slay fearlessly all the members of a hostile
tribe, while he slept securely in his cave. But when he reported his
dream adventures to his wife, she refused often to believe them.
Whenever she stirred during the night, she had found him at her side. Or
perhaps she had groaned through the long darkness, with the colic that
comes from too much eating of the early fruit. This she made known to
the dreamer. Indeed he had slumbered peacefully through all her trouble!
Again, when a Cave Dweller fell asleep beside his brothers and dreamed
of dispatching the sabre-toothed tiger with a single blow, the whole
tribe was ready to assure him, in the language of the Cave People, that
he had not moved from his resting place, but had slept continually. This
was all very strange.
When the fire dashed through the sky, during a storm, or the waters of
the river climbed up over the banks and flooded the woods, they were not
so wonderful as these dream things.
Many men and women of the tribe had closed their eyes in the long sleep,
but when the Cave People slumbered, the dead came back again, to journey
and hunt the forests with their brothers and sisters. And so, in time,
the Cave People came to believe that their friends, who had deserted the
body, still lived. That they had, themselves, fought and hunted while
their bodies slept, the Cave People well knew, and that the dead come
back again, they knew also, for they had seen and spoken with them in
their dream journeyings.
This was the origin of the idea of spirit, at first only dim and
confused but gathering strength as the years rolled away. The seed of
the idea of immortality sprang also from the dreams of primitive man.
Though the sabre-toothed tiger devoured a brother he would surely return
again. They had seen these things with their own eyes, in dreams.
The Cave People saw also their shadows that followed where they went,
moving slowly when they walked, and swiftly when they ran, keeping ever
at their sides.
When a Cave Man gazed into the river, always a face looked back at him,
and the other members of the tribe told him he saw his own image. This
also was very strange. If he journeyed as far as the great canyon, and
sent his voice echoing among the big rocks, a call came bounding back to
him, although there was no other man there. Gradually he came to believe
the cry was the voice of a spirit and that the face he had seen in the
waters of the river was the face of a spirit also.
To all things the Cave People attributed animation. To them everything
was alive. Young trees were the children of big trees and great stones
were the fathers of small stones. Little they spoke of these things, for
their words were few and it is impossible to tell many things in a
gesture language. Danger and confusion they saw everywhere, for the
whole world was filled with happenings they could not understand.
Many seasons had passed since they had found the Fire beast eating up
the trees in the woods. The small blaze they had kept alive in the
Hollow had died long before, when Quack Quack forgot to feed it. In
these days the Fire flashed only through the heavens during a storm.
Strong Arm had been able to call it by striking a sharp stone against
the rock before his cave. When the darkness came on and he struck the
rock swiftly, a small spark fell. Again and again the Cave People saw
these sparks. But so quickly were they gone that no man or woman was
able to catch them, or to feed them the dead leaves they had brought.
At this time Big Nose made a great discovery. He had chased a fat lizard
over the rocks and had seen it disappear into the hollow of a tree that
lay prone on the river bank. Immediately he poked violently with a long
rod of bamboo, in order to drive the lizard out. To him the fresh flesh
of the lizard was sweeter than any other meat.
On removing the rod, Big Nose found the end of it warm. From one side to
the other, Big Nose tipped his brown head, like a great monkey, in an
effort to understand this new experience. Then he trotted off to make
known these things to the tribe.
Soon all the Cave People gathered around the dead tree, chattering
curiously. Big Nose thrust the bamboo rod into the hollow trunk and
pulled it out again. But this time it was not warm. The friction of the
bamboo rubbed violently against the dry wood of the tree had caused the
heat before, but Big Nose did not know this.
For a long time the Cave People chattered and gesticulated about the
tree while Big Nose continually made the fire sign, waving his fingers
upward, like smoke arising. One by one all the Cave People threw
themselves upon their bellies and gazed into the hollow trunk. But they
saw nothing.
At last Big Nose again thrust the bamboo into the tree, this time
angrily, jamming it in and out with all the strength of his great arms.
And the end of the rod came forth warm again. Then every member of the
tribe must have his turn in thrusting. Each one sought to outdo his
fellows in the frenzy of his movements.
Meanwhile the end of the rod had worn away, leaving a soft inflammable
saw-dust in the old tree. And when Light Foot sent the rod in and out
sharply with her strong, brown arms, the end of the bamboo came forth
smoking.
A flood of excited chatterings greeted her success and the Cave People
cried “Food! Food!” which was the word they used for “eat” also. For
they thought the Fire (within the tree) had begun to eat the bamboo rod.
Many of them ran about gathering dry leaves to feed the Fire.
When the rod came forth at last, with its end a dull glow, Light Foot
laid it on the rocks in the dead leaves. A soft breeze came from the
river and coaxed the embers into a blaze. And the Cave People jabbered
frantically as they gathered brush and wood.
Often they threw themselves on the rocks to gaze in wonder into the
hollow tree. But many of them believed Light Foot had driven the Fire
from the tree trunk, just as they had often forced out the lizard.
Thus for the first time in the memory of the tribe, a fire was kindled.
And the hand of the maiden, Light Foot, had worked the miracle. The Cave
People laughed and danced and sat in the Hollow long into the darkness;
for security came with the Fire and their forest enemies were afraid.
But a time came when great rains fell and the Fire died away with every
drop. And Strong Arm gathered a brand and carried it into his cave. But
the smoke from the burning choked him and forced him out. Then he
carried the Fire to the hollow of a tree that towered very high, and he
fed the Fire in this hollow. There it lived for many suns, eating slowly
into the tree trunk on one side.
* * * * *
The Sun saw many strange mysteries on the day when the Cave People first
came upon the great canyon. It was during the period of the year that
comes before the season of plenty.
Keen hunger assailed every living thing and sent them forth, sharp-eyed
into the forest. The wild hog grew strong and wary from the struggles of
the hard and meagre days. The green snakes hidden away, waited
continually for the small forest folk to run into their coils. The lank
black bear grew bold and desperate with the hunger passion and the Cave
People acquired a new skill in hunting.
Beside the strength of their forest enemies, they were weak indeed. But
armed with their long, sharp bone weapons, and a wonderful cunning, they
fought in all their numbers and were able to triumph over the animals of
the forest.
With eyes keen and tense hands gripping their weapons, they followed the
trail of the black bear which led them through strange ways. At the
breaking of a twig, they paused. And no falling leaf escaped them.
Sounds they made none, as they slipped through the deep woods, one
before the other.
At last they came to an open space, where the trees ceased to grow and
where the tracks of the bear were lost in a rocky way. Beyond them lay
the canyon, which had been once the bed of a river. Only the waters of
the spring rains lay in the hollows of the rocks that lined its bottom.
Here the Cave People halted, for they knew not which way the black bear
had taken, nor how to follow her. As they separated to seek further for
her tracks, no word was spoken. Only Strong Arm gave a low grunt of
approval, as his comrades departed.
Then, in the silence of the old world, it came, the strange voice
echoing down the great canyon, grunting in the tones of Strong Arm! The
whole tribe heard it and they paused, motionless, while their eyes swept
the canyon for him who had spoken. But they saw no one.
Silently they gathered together, with weapons raised. But the stillness
remained unbroken. Then Strong Arm raised his voice in a soft “Wough!”
And in his own tone, the Echo answered him, “Wough!”
It was very strange. The Cave People could not understand. But they
forgot the black bear and sent their voices ringing down the great
canyon. Came again the echo, in many tones, back to them.
Then a great chattering arose among them, and even as they spoke, the
chatterings of many voices arose from the canyon.
“Wough-ee!” said the Cave People. And they gave a sign in the gesture
language, for they thought the sounds were the voices of their enemies,
the Hairy Folk.
With great caution they departed to the point whence the sounds had
come. Not boldly, but by varied paths they made their way, slowly,
concealing themselves behind the rocks and the trees as they progressed.
Long they hunted, one and all, but no man they found, nor any signs of
man, and they returned at length to the mouth of the great canyon.
Again their voices rang down the bed of the old river, this time
defiantly. And the Echoes replied once more, challenging them. The Cave
People grew angry and the search was continued, but they found no one.
And they were compelled to return to their caves in the Hollow with
hearts heavy with wrath against the Hairy Folk.
Often they returned to the great canyon, bearing their bone weapons.
There they remained long in hiding, awaiting the advent of the enemy,
till at last they learned no one was there. Then the mystery grew more
strange, for no man could tell whence came the voices that replied to
them.
But there came a time when the Cave People believed that these cries
were the voices of the spirits that came to hunt with them, in their
dream journeyings. No longer were they afraid. Only a great awe filled
them and much wonder concerning these things.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
VI
THE FLOOD
Early in the spring the snows began to melt on the mountain tops, many
miles above the Hollow, and to run down into little streams that lost
themselves in the great river. Day by day the waters of the river arose
along its banks. The Cave People gave little heed, for they had much to
do at this time, to satisfy their hunger. Only the Old Woman bent her
eyes on the whirling waters with fear and dread in her heart.
Long before the memory of the other members of the tribe, she recalled a
time when the waters had clambered over the river banks and spread many
a day’s journey into the deep forests. Many of her brothers and her
sisters had been swallowed up by the angry waters. The members of her
tribe had been scattered and joined new tribes. Since those days, she
had always feared the river, when it rose in the spring.
When she warned the Cave People, one and all, they listened to her
words, but they knew not what to do. And always the river rose higher
and higher and its current grew more swift, tearing away the young
saplings that grew low down, and bearing them swiftly away.
But the Cave People had need of great skill these days to satisfy the
hunger of the tribe. A new activity seemed born unto them. Eyes grew
keen for the tracks of the wild boar and their ears were open for a
sound of the foot of the forest enemies.
Sharp eyes everywhere pierced the woods and glanced from the branches of
trees, for man and beast had need to be ever alert and watchful to
survive the dreary period of the hard seasons. The black bear appeared,
thin and dangerous. But the Cave People eluded and outwitted her. Across
yawning cracks in the ground or over great hollows, they threw branches
of trees. And upon these branches they threw dead fish and smeared the
blood of the wild duck.
Through the woods the smell of fresh blood reached the keen nose of the
bear and she made her way thither to satisfy the hunger that gnawed her
continually. But the branches gave way under her great bulk and she fell
crashing into the pit below, where the Cave People killed her with their
long bone weapons.
It was after one of these great bear feasts, when the Cave People had
fed the Fire into a roaring blaze to protect them from the animals that
grew over-bold at this season of the year, that the Old Woman renewed
her warnings. The waters of the great river continued to climb upward
and there remained but a little way before they should overflow the
banks.
Then the Old Woman gathered the members of the tribe together and told
them the story of her childhood days. The new words of the tribe came
stumblingly to her lips, therefore she made known her thoughts chiefly
in the gesture language.
First she pointed to the land across the river, waving her wrinkled
hands northward. That way lay the home of her birth. Many, many years
before—she held up both hands to indicate the time was beyond the power
of counting—she had lived with her fathers and mothers, on a river bank.
Very small she was in those days. Her head came only to the thigh of a
man.
Came a time when the waters of the river crept up over the lands, just
as they had begun to steal over the wood north of the Hollow. The people
of her tribe had climbed into the great trees, but with the coming of
every new sun, the waters rose higher and higher. Long the waters
continued to climb till they became a great surging flood, creeping
through the forest and at last joining the waters of the river that
flowed beside the homes of the Cave People. Over all the world there
remained no dry land.
And the Old Woman, who was then a child, dwelt for many suns with her
fathers and mothers, in the tall trees.
But there came one day a storm, when the waters foamed and whirled and
tore up the trunks of the great trees and hurled them into the flood.
And the limbs of the tree, on which the Old Woman clung, were beaten and
bent in the mighty struggle till at last, she was whipped from the
branches and thrown into the waters, as nuts are shaken from the trees.
And the Old Woman was borne away in the swift current. She heard many
cries, as the waters threw her about, and some of her people leaped into
the flood to save her. But she was beaten about like a leaf in the wind
and unable to call to them.
Soon she found herself dashed against the trunk of a tree, and she
climbed upon it and clung to it for a long time. Often she grew very
weary and slipped back into the waters, but always she clung to the
branches of the tree, till, at last, she had been washed ashore. And she
made her way into the new land till she came, by and by, to the homes of
the Cave Dwellers.
Tubers they fed her and the eggs of the wild fowl. And she remained with
them and became a member of the tribe.
Never again had the Old Woman beheld the people of her own tribe, save
at night when she dreamed on her bed of dry leaves in the deep cave.
Sometimes they returned to her then and told her strange things.
Thus the Old Woman told her story and when she was finished a trembling
seized her brown body and she gazed long at the swift waters of the
river. Of the color of the leaves, touched by the frosts of winter, were
her wrinkled hands, with which she pointed toward the river. And the
Cave People were seized with fear also, for even as they watched, small
rivulets crept over the banks and trickled down into the Hollow.
Heavy rains fell all through the day that followed and the small streams
of water that overflowed the banks found their way into all the little
hollows, filling them. At night when the Cave Dwellers sought their
caves, their hearts were filled with dread.
Quack Quack crouched close to Strong Arm, with her arms about little
Laughing Boy. The rumbling and roar of the waters sounded in their ears,
as the swollen river tore downward in her course. But, after a time,
they fell asleep and forgot their terrors, till the cries of their
brothers and sisters aroused them toward the morning.
Now the cave in which Strong Arm slept was upon a point above the caves
of the other members of the tribe, but when he arose and rolled the
great stone from the entrance of the cave, the snarling waters curled
about his feet and wet them. And, when he looked into the Hollow, a
strange sight met his eyes. For the river had risen in the darkness,
covering the face of the world. Every moment the waters surged savagely
onward over the land, into the deep woods, as though they meant to
devour the whole earth.